< Daniel 3 >
1 Nebuchadnezzar the king hath made an image of gold, its height sixty cubits, its breadth six cubits; he hath raised it up in the valley of Dura, in the province of Babylon;
King Nebuchadnezzar made a golden statue sixty cubits high and six cubits wide, and he set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon.
2 and Nebuchadnezzar the king hath sent to gather the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the honourable judges, the treasurers, the counsellors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the province, to come to the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath raised up.
Then King Nebuchadnezzar sent word to assemble the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all the other officials of the provinces to attend the dedication of the statue he had set up.
3 Then are gathered the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the honourable judges, the treasurers, the counsellors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the province, to the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath raised up: and they are standing before the image that Nebuchadnezzar hath raised up.
So the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all the rulers of the provinces assembled for the dedication of the statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up, and they stood before it.
4 And a crier is calling mightily: 'To you they are saying: O peoples, nations, and languages!
Then the herald loudly proclaimed, “O people of every nation and language, this is what you are commanded:
5 at the time that ye hear the voice of the cornet, the flute, the harp, the sackbut, the psaltery, the symphony, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and do obeisance to the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath raised up:
As soon as you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes, and all kinds of music, you must fall down and worship the golden statue that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up.
6 and whoso doth not fall down and do obeisance, in that hour he is cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace.'
And whoever does not fall down and worship will immediately be thrown into the blazing fiery furnace.”
7 Therefore at that time, when all the peoples are hearing the voice of the cornet, the flute, the harp, the sackbut, the psaltery, and all kinds of music, falling down are all the peoples, nations and languages, doing obeisance to the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath raised up.
Therefore, as soon as all the people heard the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, and all kinds of music, the people of every nation and language would fall down and worship the golden statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
8 Therefore at that time drawn near have certain Chaldeans, and accused the Jews;
At this time some astrologers came forward and maliciously accused the Jews,
9 they have answered, yea, they are saying to Nebuchadnezzar the king, 'O king, to the ages live!
saying to King Nebuchadnezzar, “O king, may you live forever!
10 Thou, O king, hast made a decree that every man who doth hear the voice of the cornet, the flute, the harp, the sackbut, the psaltery, and the symphony, and all kinds of music, doth fall down and do obeisance to the golden image;
You, O king, have issued a decree that everyone who hears the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes, and all kinds of music must fall down and worship the golden statue,
11 and whoso doth not fall down and do obeisance, is cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace.
and that whoever does not fall down and worship will be thrown into the blazing fiery furnace.
12 There are certain Jews whom thou hast appointed over the work of the province of Babylon — Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, these men have not made of thee, O king, [any] regard; thy gods they are not serving, and to the golden image thou hast raised up — are not making obeisance.'
But there are some Jews you have appointed to manage the province of Babylon—Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego—who have ignored you, O king, and have refused to serve your gods or worship the golden statue you have set up.”
13 Then Nebuchadnezzar, in anger and fury, hath said to bring in Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. Then these men have been brought in before the king.
Then Nebuchadnezzar, furious with rage, summoned Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king,
14 Nebuchadnezzar hath answered and said to them, 'Is [it] a laid plan, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego — my gods ye are not serving, and to the golden image that I have raised up ye are not doing obeisance?
and Nebuchadnezzar said to them, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, is it true that you do not serve my gods or worship the golden statue I have set up?
15 Now, lo, ye are ready, so that at the time that ye hear the voice of the cornet, the flute, the harp, the sackbut, the psaltery, and the symphony, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and do obeisance to the image that I have made! — and lo, ye do no obeisance — in that hour ye are cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; who is that God who doth deliver you out of my hands?'
Now, if you are ready, as soon as you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes, and all kinds of music, you must fall down and worship the statue I have made. But if you refuse to worship, you will be thrown at once into the blazing fiery furnace. Then what god will be able to deliver you from my hands?”
16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego have answered, yea, they are saying to the king Nebuchadnezzar, 'We have no need concerning this matter to answer thee.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter.
17 Lo, it is; our God whom we are serving, is able to deliver us from a burning fiery furnace; and from thy hand, O king, He doth deliver.
If the God whom we serve exists, then He is able to deliver us from the blazing fiery furnace and from your hand, O king.
18 And lo — not! be it known to thee, O king, that thy gods we are not serving, and to the golden image thou hast raised up we do no obeisance.'
But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden statue you have set up.”
19 Then Nebuchadnezzar hath been full of fury, and the expression of his face hath been changed concerning Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego; he answered and said to heat the furnace seven times above that which it is seen to be heated;
At this, Nebuchadnezzar was filled with rage, and the expression on his face changed toward Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He gave orders to heat the furnace seven times hotter than usual,
20 and to certain mighty men who [are] in his force he hath said to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, to cast into the burning fiery furnace.
and he commanded some mighty men of valor in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and throw them into the blazing fiery furnace.
21 Then these men have been bound in their coats, their tunics, and their turbans, and their clothing, and have been cast into the midst of the burning fiery furnace.
So they were tied up, wearing robes, trousers, turbans, and other clothes, and they were thrown into the blazing fiery furnace.
22 Therefore, because that the word of the king is urgent, and the furnace heated exceedingly, those men who have taken up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego — killed them hath the spark of the fire.
The king’s command was so urgent and the furnace so hot that the fiery flames killed the men who carried up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
23 And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, have fallen down in the midst of the burning fiery furnace — bound.
And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, firmly bound, fell into the blazing fiery furnace.
24 Then Nebuchadnezzar the king hath been astonished, and hath risen in haste; he hath answered and said to his counsellors, 'Have we not cast three men into the midst of the fire — bound?' They have answered and are saying to the king, 'Certainly, O king.'
Suddenly King Nebuchadnezzar jumped up in amazement and asked his advisers, “Did we not throw three men, firmly bound, into the fire?” “Certainly, O king,” they replied.
25 He answered and hath said, 'Lo, I am seeing four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the appearance of the fourth [is] like to a son of the gods.'
“Look!” he exclaimed. “I see four men, unbound and unharmed, walking around in the fire—and the fourth looks like a son of the gods!”
26 Then Nebuchadnezzar hath drawn near to the gate of the burning fiery furnace; he hath answered and said, 'Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, servants of God Most High come forth, yea, come;' then come forth do Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, from the midst of the fire;
Then Nebuchadnezzar approached the door of the blazing fiery furnace and called out, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out!” So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out of the fire,
27 and gathered together, the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, and the counsellors of the king, are seeing these men, that the fire hath no power over their bodies, and the hair of their head hath not been singed, and their coats have not changed, and the smell of fire hath not passed on them.
and when the satraps, prefects, governors, and royal advisers had gathered around, they saw that the fire had no effect on the bodies of these men. Not a hair of their heads was singed, their robes were unaffected, and there was no smell of fire on them.
28 Nebuchadnezzar hath answered and hath said, 'Blessed [is] the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, who hath sent His messenger, and hath delivered His servants who trusted on Him, and the word of the king changed, and gave up their bodies that they might not serve nor do obeisance to any god except to their own God.
Nebuchadnezzar declared, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent His angel and delivered His servants who trusted in Him. They violated the king’s command and risked their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.
29 And by me a decree is made, that any people, nation, and language, that doth speak erroneously concerning the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, pieces he is made, and its house is made a dunghill, because that there is no other god who is able thus to deliver.'
Therefore I decree that the people of any nation or language who say anything offensive against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego will be cut into pieces and their houses reduced to rubble. For there is no other god who can deliver in this way.”
30 Then the king hath caused Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, to prosper in the province of Babylon.
Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon.