In the book of Daniel, Daniel shared how Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego would not bow to or worship the golden image set up by King Nebuchadnezzar, and afterward “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. 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. 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 Abednego. And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery furnace”, and in chapter three and verse twenty-four of his book Daniel shared how “Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonied” where we read,
Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, and spoke, 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.
The verse reads, “Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, and spoke, and said unto his counselors, ...” Daniel began with the words, “then Nebuchadnezzar the king” or “at that time Nebuchadnezzar whose name means may Nebo protect the crown and was the great royal ruler and leader of Babylon who captured Jerusalem and carried Judah captive”, “was astonied” whose name means “existed as alarmed, startled and amazed”, “and rose up in haste” or “and arose or stood up in a frighted and hurried manner”, “and spoke” which means “and replied and responded”, “and said unto his counselors” or “and uttered, declared, proclaimed and asked his, Nebuchadnezzar's, ministers” the following words. Daniel shared how King Nebuchadnezzar was startled and amazed, arose in a hurried fashion, responded and asked his ministers the following question.
The verse goes on to say, “... Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and said unto the king, True, O king.” Daniel continued with the words, “did not we cast three men bound” which means “was it not true that we, King Nebuchadnezzar and his ministers, threw three male human beings who were fettered” “into the midst” or “in the middle” “of the fire” which means “of the burning flame”? “They answered” or “they, the ministers, replied and responded” “and said” which means “and uttered, declared and proclaimed” “unto the king” or “to the royal ruler and leader”, “true, O king” which means “surely, reliably and for certain, O royal ruler and leader”. Daniel shared how King Nebuchadnezzar asked His minister whether they threw “three” male human beings into the middle of the flaming fire-place, and they responded that they were certain of it.
When we meditate upon the words in this verse, we learn through Daniel how King Nebuchadnezzar questioned what he was seeing. He was not only startled and amazed, but he felt the need to verify with his ministers that they indeed threw “three men” into the flames. The men validated his concern, but let us be reminded that God was orchestrating these events. God knew He would save “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego”, and He would make Himself known to King Nebuchadnezzar. God loves people, and regardless of how terrible they have been, even to His own people, He is willing to save and forgive them when they submit to His Son Jesus who died on the cross for the sins of all mankind and was raised from the grave after three days. God prepared eternal life for everyone who puts their faith in Jesus, and when we believe, we shall be saved and forgiven for all eternity. (See John 3:16-17)
Next time Daniel shares how Nebuchadnezzar says, “Lo, I see four men loose”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
See more devotionals on the website "thewordfortodaywithray.com" or look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".
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