Daniel 3
1 King Nabuchodonosor made a statue of gold, of sixty cubits high, and six cubits broad, and he set it up in the plain of Dura of the province of Babylon.
King Nebuchadnezzar made a gold statue that was sixty cubits tall and six cubits wide. He set it up in the Plain of Dura in the province of Babylon.
2 Then Nabuchodonosor the king sent to call together the nobles, the magistrates, and the judges, the captains, the rulers, and governors, and all the chief men of the provinces, to come to the dedication of the statue which king Nabuchodonosor had set up.
Then Nebuchadnezzar sent messages out to gather together the provincial governors, regional governors, and local governors, together with the counselors, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all the high officials of the provinces to come to the dedication of the statue that he had set up.
3 Then the nobles, the magistrates, and the judges, the captains, and rulers, and the great men that were placed in authority, and all the princes of the provinces, were gathered together to come to the dedication of the statue, which king Nabuchodonosor had set up. And they stood before the statue which king Nabuchodonosor had set up.
Then the provincial governors, regional governors, and local governors, together with the counselors, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all the high officials of the provinces gathered together to the dedication of the statue that Nebuchadnezzar had set up. They stood before it.
4 Then a herald cried with a strong voice: To you it is commanded, O nations, tribes, and languages:
Then a herald loudly shouted, “You are commanded, peoples, nations, and languages,
5 That in the hour that you shall hear the sound of the trumpet, and of the flute, and of the harp, of the sackbut, and of the psaltery, and of the symphony, and of all kind of music; ye fall down and adore the golden statue which king Nabuchodonosor hath set up.
that at the time you hear the sound of the horns, flutes, zithers, lyres, harps, and pipes, and all kinds of music, you must fall down and prostrate yourselves to the golden statue that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up.
6 But if any man shall not fall down and adore, he shall the same hour be cast into a furnace of burning fire.
Whoever does not fall down and worship, at that very moment, will be thrown into a blazing furnace.”
7 Upon this therefore, at the time when all the people heard the sound of the trumpet, the flute, and the harp, of the sackbut, and the psaltery, of the symphony, and of all kind of music: all the nations, tribes, and languages fell down and adored the golden statue which king Nabuchodonosor had set up.
So when all the peoples heard the sounds of the horns, flutes, zithers, lyres, harps, and pipes, and all kinds of music, all the peoples, nations, and languages fell down and prostrated themselves to the golden statue that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.
8 And presently at that very time some Chaldeans came and accused the Jews,
Now at this time certain Chaldeans came and brought accusations against the Jews.
9 And said to king Nabuchodonosor: O king, live for ever:
They said to Nebuchadnezzar the king, “King, live forever!
10 Thou, O king, hast made a decree that every man that shall bear the sound of the trumpet, the flute, and the harp, of the sackbut, and the psaltery, of the symphony, and of all kind of music, shall prostrate himself, and adore the golden statue:
You, king, have made a decree that every person who hears the sounds of the horns, flutes, zithers, lyres, harps, and pipes, and all kinds of music, must fall down and prostrate himself to the golden statue.
11 And that if any man shall not fall down and adore, he should be cast into a furnace of burning fire.
Whoever does not fall down and worship must be thrown into a blazing furnace.
12 Now there are certain Jews whom thou hast set over the works of the province of Babylon, Sidrach, Misach, and Abdenago: these men, O king, have slighted thy decree: they worship not thy gods, nor do they adore the golden statue which thou hast set up.
Now there are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the affairs of the province of Babylon; their names are Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These men, king, pay no attention to you. They will not worship or serve your gods, or prostrate themselves before the golden statue you have set up.”
13 Then Nabuchodonosor in fury, and in wrath, commanded that Sidrach, Misach, and Abdenago should be brought: who immediately were brought before the king.
Then Nebuchadnezzar, filled with anger and rage, commanded that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought to him. So they brought these men before the king.
14 And Nabuchodonosor the king spoke to them, and said: Is it true, O Sidrach, Misach, and Abdenago, that you do not worship my gods, nor adore the golden statue that I have set up?
Nebuchadnezzar said to them, “Have you made your minds up, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you will not worship my gods or prostrate yourselves to the golden statue that I have set up?
15 Now therefore if you be ready at what hour soever you shall hear the sound of the trumpet, flute, harp, sackbut, and psaltery, and symphony, and of all kind of music, prostrate yourselves, and adore the statue which I have made: but if you do not adore, you shall be cast the same hour into the furnace of burning fire: and who is the God that shall deliver you out of my hand?
Now if you are ready—when you hear the sounds of the horns, flutes, zithers, lyres, harps, and pipes, and all kinds of music—to fall down and prostrate yourselves to the statue that I have made, all will be well. But if you do not worship, you will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace. Who is the god who is able to rescue you out of my hands?”
16 Sidrach, Misach, and Abdenago answered and said to king Nabuchodonosor: We have no occasion to answer thee concerning this matter.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered the king, “Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter.
17 For behold our God, whom we worship, is able to save us from the furnace of burning fire, and to deliver us out of thy hands, O king.
If there is an answer, it is that our God whom we serve is able to keep us safe from the blazing furnace, and he will rescue us out of your hand, king.
18 But if he will not, be it known to thee, O king, that we will not worship thy gods, nor adore the golden statue which thou hast set up.
But if not, let it be known to you, king, that we will not worship your gods, and we will not prostrate ourselves to the golden statue you set up.”
19 Then was Nabuchodonosor filled with fury: and the countenance of his face was changed against Sidrach, Misach, and Abdenago, and he commanded that the furnace should be heated seven times more than it had been accustomed to be heated.
Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with rage; the look on his face changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He commanded that the furnace should be heated seven times hotter than it was normally heated.
20 And he commanded the strongest men that were in his army, to bind the feet of Sidrach, Misach, and Abdenago, and to cast them into the furnace of burning fire.
Then he commanded some very strong men in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and to throw them into the blazing furnace.
21 And immediately these men were bound and were cast into the furnace of burning fire, with their coats, and their caps, and their shoes, and their garments.
They were tied up still wearing their robes, tunics, turbans, and other clothing, and they were thrown into the blazing furnace.
22 For the king’s commandment was urgent, and the furnace was heated exceedingly. And the flame of the fire slew those men that had cast in Sidrach, Misach, and Abdenago.
Because the king's command was strictly followed and the furnace was very hot, the flames killed the men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
23 But these three men, that is, Sidrach, Misach, and Abdenago, fell down bound in the midst of the furnace of burning fire.
These three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell into the blazing furnace while they were tied up.
24 Then Nabuchodonosor the king was astonished, and rose up in haste, and said to his nobles: Did we not cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They answered the king, and said: True, O king.
Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was amazed and stood up quickly. He asked his advisors, “Did we not throw three men tied up into the fire?” They replied to the king, “Certainly, king.”
25 He answered, and said: Behold I see four men loose, and walking in the midst of the fire, and there is no hurt in them, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.
He said, “But I see four men who are not tied up walking around in the fire, and they are not hurt. The brilliance of the fourth is like a son of the gods.”
26 Then Nabuchodonosor came to the door of the burning fiery furnace, and said: Sidrach, Misach, and Abdenago, ye servants of the most high God, go ye forth, and come. And immediately Sidrach, Misach, and Abdenago went out from the midst of the fire.
Then Nebuchadnezzar came near the door of the blazing furnace and called out, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of God Most High, come out! Come here!” Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out of the fire.
27 And the nobles, and the magistrates, and the judges, and the great men of the king being gathered together, considered these men, that the fire had no power on their bodies, and that not a hair of their head had been singed, nor their garments altered, nor the smell of the fire had passed on them.
The provincial governors, regional governors, other governors, and the king's counselors who had gathered together saw these men. The fire had not hurt their bodies; the hair on their heads was not singed; their robes were not harmed; and there was no smell of fire on them.
28 Then Nabuchodonosor breaking forth, said: Blessed be the God of them, to wit, of Sidrach, Misach, and Abdenago, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that believed in him: and they changed the king’s word, and delivered up their bodies that they might not serve, nor adore any god, except their own God.
Nebuchadnezzar said, “Let us praise the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his messenger and given his message to his servants. They trusted in him when they set aside my command, and they gave up their bodies rather than worship or prostrate themselves to any god except their God.
29 By me therefore this decree is made, that every people, tribe, and tongue, which shall speak blasphemy against the God of Sidrach, Misach, and Abdenago, shall be destroyed, and their houses laid waste: for there is no other God that can save in this manner.
Therefore I make a decree that any people, nation, or language that speaks anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego must be torn apart, and that their houses must be made into rubbish heaps because there is no other god who is able to save like this.”
30 Then the king promoted Sidrach, Misach, and Abdenago, in the province of Babylon.
Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon.
