Daniel 3
The Deliverance from
the Fiery Furnace |
1 |
Nebuchadnez'zar the king made an image of
gold, whose height was threescore cubits, and the
breadth thereof six cubits: he set it up in the plain of Dura, in
the province of Babylon.
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2 |
Then Nebuchadnez'zar the king sent to
gather together the princes, the governors, and the captains, the
judges, the treasurers, the counselors, the sheriffs, and all the
rulers of the provinces, to come to the dedication of the image
which Nebuchadnez'zar the king had set up.
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3 |
Then the princes, the governors, and
captains, the judges, the treasurers, the counselors, the sheriffs,
and all the rulers of the provinces, were gathered together unto the
dedication of the image that Nebuchadnez'zar the king had set up;
and they stood before the image that Nebuchadnez'zar had set
up.
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4 |
Then a herald cried aloud, To you it is
commanded, O people, nations, and languages,
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5 |
that at what time ye hear the
sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and
all kinds of music, ye fall down and worship the golden image that
Nebuchadnez'zar the king hath set up:
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6 |
and whoso falleth not down and
worshippeth shall the same hour be cast into the midst of a burning
fiery furnace.
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7 |
Therefore at that time, when all the
people heard the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut,
psaltery, and all kinds of music, all the people, the nations, and
the languages, fell down and worshipped the golden image that
Nebuchadnez'zar the king had set up.
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8 |
Wherefore at that time certain
Chalde'ans came near, and accused the Jews.
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9 |
They spake and said to the king
Nebuchadnez'zar, O king, live for ever.
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10 |
Thou, O king, hast made a decree, that
every man that shall hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp,
sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of music, shall fall
down and worship the golden image:
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11 |
and whoso falleth not down and
worshippeth, that he should be cast into the midst of a
burning fiery furnace.
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12 |
There are certain Jews whom thou hast set
over the affairs of the province of Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abed'nego; these men, O king, have not regarded thee: they serve not
thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set
up.
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13 |
Then Nebuchadnez'zar in his rage
and fury commanded to bring Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed'nego. Then
they brought these men before the king.
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14 |
Nebuchadnez'zar spake and said unto them, Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed'nego? do not ye
serve my gods, nor worship the golden image which I have set
up?
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15 |
Now if ye be ready that at what time ye
hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and
dulcimer, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and worship the image
which I have made; well: but if ye worship not, ye shall be
cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; and
who is that God that shall deliver you out of my
hands?
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16 |
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed'nego,
answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnez'zar, we are not
careful to answer thee in this matter.
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17 |
If it be so, our God whom we serve
is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will
deliver us out of thine hand, O king.
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18 |
But if not, be it known unto thee, O
king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image
which thou hast set up.
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19 |
Then was Nebuchadnez'zar full of fury,
and the form of his visage was changed against Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abed'nego: therefore he spake, and commanded that they
should heat the furnace one seven times more than it was wont to be
heated.
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20 |
And he commanded the most mighty men that were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed'nego, and to cast them into the burning fiery
furnace.
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21 |
Then these men were bound in their coats,
their hose, and their hats, and their other garments, and
were cast into the midst of the burning fiery furnace.
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22 |
Therefore because the king's commandment
was urgent, and the furnace exceeding hot, the flame of the fire
slew those men that took up Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abed'nego.
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23 |
And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abed'nego, fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery
furnace.
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24 |
Then Nebuchadnez'zar the king was
astonished, and rose up in haste, and spake, and said unto
his counselors, Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of
the fire? They answered and said unto the king, True, O
king.
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25 |
He answered and said, Lo, I see four men
loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and
the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.
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26 |
Then Nebuchadnez'zar came near to the
mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and spake, and said,
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed'nego, ye servants of the most high God,
come forth, and come hither. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abed'nego, came forth of the midst of the fire.
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27 |
And the princes, governors, and captains,
and the king's counselors, being gathered together, saw these men,
upon whose bodies the fire had no power, nor was a hair of their
head singed, neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire
had passed on them.
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28 |
Then Nebuchadnez'zar spake, and
said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed'nego,
who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in
him, and have changed the king's word, and yielded their bodies,
that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own
God.
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29 |
Therefore I make a decree, That every
people, nation, and language, which speak any thing amiss against
the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed'nego, shall be cut in pieces,
and their houses shall be made a dunghill; because there is no other
God that can deliver after this sort.
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30 |
Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abed'nego, in the province of Babylon.
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