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 “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. 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. 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. Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and spoke, and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, you servants of the most high God, come forth, and come here. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, came forth of the midst of the fire”, and in chapter three and verse twenty-seven of his book Daniel shared how the leaders in Babylon, “saw these men, upon whose bodies the fire had no power” where we read,
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 an hair of their head singed, neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on them.
The verse reads, “And the princes, governors, and captains, and the king's counselors, being gathered together, saw these men, ...” Daniel began with the words, “and the princes” or “and the satraps”, “governors” which means “and the prefects”, “and captains” or “and chiefs”, “and the king's counselors” which means “and the royal ruler and leader's viziers and ministers”, “being gathered together” or “collected and assembled with one another”, “saw these men” which means “beheld, gazed upon and witnessed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego”. Daniel shared how the leaders and officials who belonged to King Nebuchadnezzar assembled and observed “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego”.
The verse continues, “... 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.” Daniel added the words, “upon whose bodies” which means “on whose physical bodies” “the fire had no power” or “the heated flames did not have rule, dominion or mastery over”, “nor was an hair of their head singed” which means “no and not in any way was a single hair upon their physical heads seared, burned or scorched”, “neither were their coats changed” or “no and not in any way were their, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego's, mantles or cloaks transformed or altered”, “nor the smell of fire” which means “no and not in any way the scent or odor of smoke belonging to flames” “had passed on them” or “been deposed or forced on them, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego”. Daniel shared how Nebuchadnezzar's officials witnessed how the flames did not have dominion over the bodies of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, the “hair” on their heads was not scorched, their garments were not altered and the odor of the flames was not discoverable upon them.
When we consider the words in this verse, we discover through Daniel how Nebuchadnezzar's leaders and officials were observing “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego” as they were thrown into the fiery furnace, and when the flames had no impact on them, they noticed. God intervened and rescued “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego”, and His desires is to save every person from the consuming affects of sins which are committed by everyone. He sent His Son Jesus into the world to die on the cross for our sins and raised Him from the dead after three days so when we put our faith and trust in Him as our “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and teach us about His miracle working power that brings confusion to everyone who does not believe.
Next time Daniel shares how Nebuchadnezzar says, “blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, 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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