Daniel 3

TKJU^{(i) 1} Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose height was sixty cubits, and its breadth six cubits: He set it up in the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon.60 Hebrew cubits (of the scriptures) high is approximately 109.5 feet, or 33.4m; and 6 Hebrew cubits wide is approximately 11 feet, or 3.3m: Per Noah Webster's 1828 Dictionary and Easton's Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Appendix VI. ² Then Nebuchadnezzar 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 Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up. 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 to the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up; and they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up. ⁴ Then a herald cried aloud, "To you it is commanded, O people, nations, and languages, ⁵ that at what time you hear the sound of the horn, flute, harp, sackbut trumpet, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of music, you fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king has set up: ⁶ And whoever does not fall down and worship shall in the same hour be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace." ⁷ Therefore at that time, when all the people heard the sound of the horn, flute, harp, sackbut trumpet, psaltery, and all kinds of music, all the people, the nations, and the languages, fell down and worshiped the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up. ⁸ For this reason at that time certain Chaldeans came near, and accused the Jews. ⁹ They spoke and said to the king Nebuchadnezzar, "O king, live forever. ¹⁰ You, O king, have made a decree, that every man who shall hear the sound of the horn, flute, harp, sackbut trumpet, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of music, shall fall down and worship the golden image: ¹¹ And whoever does not fall down and worship, that he should be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. ¹² There are certain Jews whom you have set over the affairs of the province of Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego; these men, O king, have not regarded you: They do not serve your gods, nor worship the golden image which you have set up." ¹³ Then Nebuchadnezzar in his rage and fury commanded to bring Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Then they brought these men before the king. ¹⁴ Nebuchadnezzar spoke and said to them, "Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, you do not serve my gods, nor worship the golden image which I have set up? ¹⁵ Now if you are ready that at what time you hear the sound of the horn, flute, harp, sackbut trumpet, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of music, you fall down and worship the image which I have made; well: But if you do not worship, you shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; and who is the God that shall deliver you out of my hands?" ¹⁶ Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not anxious to answer you in this matter. ¹⁷ If that is the case, our God Whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. ¹⁸ But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods nor worship the golden image which you have set up." ¹⁹ Then Nebuchadnezzar was full of fury, and the expression of his face was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego: Therefore he spoke, and commanded that they should heat the furnace seven times more than it was usually heated. ²⁰ And he commanded the most mighty men that were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace. ²¹ Then these men were bound in their coats, their trousers, and their hats, and their other garments, and were cast into the midst of the burning fiery furnace. ²² Therefore because the king's commandment was urgent, and the furnace exceedingly hot, the flame of the fire slew those men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. ²³ And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery furnace. ²⁴ Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonished, and rose up in haste, and spoke, and said to his counselors, "Did we not cast three men bound into the midst of the fire?" They answered and said to the king, "True, O king." ²⁵ He answered and said, "Look, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they are not hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God." ²⁶ Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and spoke, and said, "Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out, and come here." Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out of the midst of the fire. 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 the hair of their head singed, neither were their coats changed, nor was the smell of fire passed on to them. ²⁸ Then Nebuchadnezzar spoke, and said, "Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, Who has sent His angel, and delivered His servants who trusted in Him, and has changed the king's word, and yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God. ²⁹ Therefore I make a decree, that every people, nation, and language, which speak anything amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made a dunghill: Because there is no other God that can deliver in this manner." ³⁰ Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon.