| Chapter 3 |
| 1 | Nebuchadnezzar 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.
|
| 2 | Then Nebuchadnezzar the king sent to gather together the princes, the
governors, and the captains, the judges, the treasurers, the counsellors, 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
counsellors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces, were gathered
together unto 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 an herald cried aloud, To you it is commanded, O people, nations, and
languages, |
| 5
| That at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute,
harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and
worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up: |
| 6 |
And whoso falleth not down and worshippeth shall 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 cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery,
and all kinds of musick, all the people, the nations, and the languages, fell
down and worshipped the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set
up. |
| 8 |
Wherefore at that time certain Chaldeans came near, and accused
the Jews. |
| 9
| They spake and said to the king Nebuchadnezzar, O king,
live for ever. |
|
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 musick, shall fall down and worship the golden
image: |
| 11
| And whoso falleth not down and worshippeth, that he
should be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. |
| 12 | There
are certain Jews whom thou hast set over the affairs of the province of
Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego; these men, O king, have not regarded
thee: they serve not thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast 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 spake and said unto them, Is it true, O
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, do not ye serve my gods, nor worship the
golden image which I have set up? |
| 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 musick, 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? |
|
16 | Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said
to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this
matter. |
| 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. |
| 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. |
| 19 |
Then was Nebuchadnezzar full of fury, and the form of his visage was changed
against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego: therefore he spake, and commanded that
they should heat the furnace one seven times more than it was wont to be
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
hosen, 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 exceeding hot, the flames of the fire
slew those men that 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 astonied, and rose up in haste, and spake, and said unto his counsellors,
Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and
said unto the king, True, O king. |
| 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. |
| 26 | Then
Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and spake,
and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, ye servants of the most high God,
come forth, and come hither. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, came forth
of the midst of the fire. |
|
27 | And the princes, governors, and
captains, and the king's counsellors, being gathered together, saw these men,
upon whose bodies the fire had no power, nor was an hair of their head singed,
neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on
them. |
| 28 |
Then Nebuchadnezzar spake, and said, Blessed be the God of
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, 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. |
| 29 |
Therefore I make a decree, That every people, nation, and
language, which speak any thing 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 after this sort. |
| 30 | Then
the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, in the province of
Babylon. |
