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Daniel 3

Sunday Morning Bible Study

April 28, 2013

Introduction

Do people see Jesus? Is the gospel preached? Does it speak to the broken hearted? Does it build up the church? Milk – Meat – Manna Preach for a decision Is the church loved?

Announce: There is a mission trip being organized to Mexico May 17-19. Play Mexico clip.

Play Daniel goes to Babylon map clip

In 605 BC, after having conquered the Assyrians at Carchemish, Nebuchadnezzar began to work his way southward toward Egypt, stopping at Jerusalem not only to take control of the city, but to take some of the brightest and best back to Babylon with him to train them and help him run his growing empire. Among the captives were Daniel and his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah – also known as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego

We’ve seen Nebuchadnezzar as a ruthless, wild, megalomaniac of a ruler. He has a temper. He demands that the impossible be done, as he did in chapter 2, demanding impossible things, like telling his wise men to his mind and tell him what he had dreamed…or die.

It is some time after this that the events in Daniel 3 take place.

Some think it takes place right afterwards, but the Greek translation of the Old Testament, the Septuagint, states in Daniel 3:1 that it took place in the 18^th year (out of 43) of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign, which would also put it in the year before he completely wipes out Jerusalem in 586 BC.

If this is true, then this event would take place after the second waves of captives had been brought to Babylon (including Ezekiel) in 597 BC. It would also place it in the middle of Babylon’s two year siege of Jerusalem, and we saw Thursday night that there had been a brief break in the middle of the siege (2Ki. 24-25).

3:1-30 The Fiery Furnace

:1 Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose height was sixty cubits and its width six cubits. He set it up in the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon.

:1 the king made an image of gold

image – tselem – image, idol

This is the same Aramaic word used in chapter 2 to describe the “image” that Nebuchadnezzar had seen in his wild dream.

Nebuchadnezzar’s dream (Dan. 2) was about an “image” (same Aramaic word) that was made up of various parts.

The head was gold, the chest was silver, belly of bronze, and the legs were of iron. The various parts of the body represented succeeding empires that would follow each other through history, starting with Nebuchadnezzar as the “head of gold”.

Now Nebuchadnezzar sets up a literal “image”, but this one is all of gold.

What do you think he’s trying to say?

He’s trying to say that there will be only one Empire. His. He’s had more than fifteen years to think about the implications of his dream, and he’s decided he’s going to make his Empire last forever.

:1 sixty cubits … six cubits

It was tall and narrow. The height of this statue was 90 feet (like an eight story building – like CSUF Humanities Bldg), and it was 9 feet wide.

It may have been a human like shape. It might have been the statue of a person on a tall pedestal.

Others suggest this may have been an obelisk like those in Egypt that recorded his conquests and exploits.

:1 in the plain of Dura

Dura is a common name for any place that was enclosed by mountains or a wall.

Play Jerusalem to Dura map clip.

First we start in Jerusalem and head to modern Iraq. The modern capital of Iraq, Baghdad, is on the Euphrates River, 55 miles north of the ancient ruins of Babylon.

Archeologists have uncovered a large public square made of brick six miles southeast of Babylon. This base is in the center of a wide plain, and an eight story structure would be imposing and impressive.

:2 And King Nebuchadnezzar sent word to gather together the satraps, the administrators, the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the judges, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces, to come to the dedication of the image which King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

Nebuchadnezzar is bringing all his various leaders together. It sounds a little like one of those corporate team building exercises.

Play Team Building Fail clip

:3 So the satraps, the administrators, the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the judges, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces gathered together for the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar 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 peoples, nations, and languages,

:5 that at the time you hear the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, in symphony with all kinds of music, you shall fall down and worship the gold image that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up;

:6 and whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace.”

:5 the sound of the horn, flute, harp…

Nebuchadnezzar has assembled a world class “worship band”.

Music can be a pretty moving thing. It has the ability to touch and motivate a person deep in their soul.

Music can be used for the wrong things, like Nebuchadnezzar’s band.

Music can be used for the right things, like the music that moves us to worship God.

:5 you shall fall down and worship

Nebuchadnezzar feels that if he can get all his leaders to bow before his image, he can promote unity in his government and perhaps set up his empire to rule forever (instead of one day being conquered by successive empires like his dream).

:6 a burning fiery furnace

Some have suggested that this furnace might have been similar to a lime-kiln.

There would be a perpendicular shaft from the top.

An opening at the bottom would allow for the removal of materials placed into the furnace, as well as seeing what is going on in the furnace.

The materials put in the furnace will be put in from the top.

Jeremiah in Jerusalem talks about two false prophets working in Babylon and what Nebuchadnezzar did with them.

(Je 29:22 NKJV) And because of them a curse shall be taken up by all the captivity of Judah who are in Babylon, saying, “The Lord make you like Zedekiah and Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire”;

Nebuchadnezzar has a reputation. You have to take threats like this seriously.

Everyone who does not “show love” to Nebuchadnezzar is tossed into the furnace.

Lesson

Forced Love

Some people have the crazy notion that they can command others to love them.

When their partner doesn’t give them what they ask for, they can resort to different tactics to “punish” the other person.

The punishment might take the form of some sort of physical or emotional abuse.

It might be the withdrawal of affection.

If you demand that others love you, you might indeed get some to bow, but you are not going to experience the real love.

The only person you can “command” to “love” is yourself. You can choose to love another person.

Look at how Jesus loved us:

(Eph 5:25 NKJV) Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her

Love starts by me choosing to love another person. Love continues by choosing to lay down your life for that other person.

Real love doesn’t come when you force others to bow. It might come if you learn to lay down your life for another.

:7 So at that time, when all the people heard the sound of the horn, flute, harp, and lyre, in symphony with all kinds of music, all the people, nations, and languages fell down and worshiped the gold image which King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

:5 worship the gold image

This foreshadows the coming antichrist. He will have his own “image” and …

(2 Th 2:4 NKJV) who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.

(Re 13:15b NKJV) …cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed.

Lesson

It’s not about you

Nebuchadnezzar doesn’t want the kingdom to change. He wants to keep his kingdom the center of the world.

You can’t always have your way.

You can’t always force your way on others.

:8 Therefore at that time certain Chaldeans came forward and accused the Jews.

:9 They spoke and said to King Nebuchadnezzar, “O king, live forever!

:10 You, O king, have made a decree that everyone who hears the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, in symphony with all kinds of music, shall fall down and worship the gold image;

:11 and whoever does not fall down and worship shall 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 Abed-Nego; these men, O king, have not paid due regard to you. They do not serve your gods or worship the gold image which you have set up.”

Apparently people have noticed that Daniel’s three friends had not bowed down when the others had.

:13 Then Nebuchadnezzar, in rage and fury, gave the command to bring Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. So they brought these men before the king.

:13 in rage and fury

rage – regaz – rage

The Greek form of this word is boanerges, which is the name that James and John had as their nickname, the “Sons of Thunder”. James and John were angry men before they learned to give their lives fully to Jesus.

fury – chema’ – anger, rage

Nebuchadnezzar is one angry man.

:14 Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the gold image which I have set up?

:15 Now if you are ready at the time you hear the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, in symphony with all kinds of music, and you fall down and worship the image which I have made, good! But if you do not worship, you shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you from my hands?”

:16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need 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 from your hand, O king.

:17 our God …is able

This is their answer to Nebuchadnezzar’s question, “And who is the god who will deliver you from my hands?” Their God is able to deliver them.

Lesson

He is able

God can do anything.

In Nebuchadnezzar’s 18^th year (possibly the same year we’re in), Jeremiah received a word from God. He was still back in Jerusalem under siege by Nebuchadnezzar’s army. God told him to do something that was not a sound business decision. God told Jeremiah to purchase a piece of property from his uncle because the day would come when the land would one day be repopulated. Jeremiah responded by praying…

In Nebuchadnezzar’s 18^th year, Jeremiah wrote,

(Je 32:17 NKJV) ‘Ah, Lord God! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for You.

If God made the heavens and the earth (and He did), then how could anything be impossible for Him?

Isaiah wrote,

(Is 40:12 NKJV) Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand, Measured heaven with a span And calculated the dust of the earth in a measure? Weighed the mountains in scales And the hills in a balance?

What is a megalomaniac with a temper problem compared to God?

Think about your problems. Are you facing something difficult?

Are you facing something that seems impossible?

(Mt 19:26 NKJV) But Jesus looked at them and said to them, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Keys to surviving an impossible situation:

1. Know God is able

He can do anything.

2. Know God loves you

You may understand that God can do anything, but what if He doesn’t really care for you anymore? What if He doesn’t love you? What good is His power if He is against me?

You can trust that no matter what happens, God still loves you.

(Ro 8:38–39 NKJV) —38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Your impossible situation isn’t due to God not loving you. He still loves you. You can count on His love.

3. Trust Him

Put the problem into God’s hands. We call that prayer.

(Php 4:6–7 NKJV) —6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Peace doesn’t come by some naïve faith that thinks you have to be able to twist God’s arm into fixing things your way. Peace comes because you put your problem into the hands of a loving, Almighty God, and you believe He is able to do anything – even if that “anything” isn’t the way you want things resolved.

:18 But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.”

:18 But if not …

Lesson

Stubborn Obedience

What do you do if the “conditions” aren’t to your liking?

What if it isn’t a “good day” to serve the Lord?

What if God doesn’t answer your prayer the way you want?

Some people would tell you that you need to have faith so you can twist God’s arm into doing what you want Him to do.

But real faith is trusting God, no matter what the outcome. Job said,

(Job 13:15 NKJV) Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him…

Real faith is about obeying God, no matter the cost.

The real issue here is not just about “bowing”, the root issue is about obeying. God Himself said this about “idols” …

(Ex 20:5a NKJV) …you shall not bow down to them nor serve them.

In the early church, the cutting edge of obedience was telling the truth about Jesus. We call it preaching the gospel. The early church often had to choose between preaching the gospel and dying, or being silent and living. Look what they chose:

Matthew was slain with a sword at a distant city of Ethiopia.

Mark died at Alexandria, after being cruelly dragged through the streets of that city.

Luke was hanged upon an olive tree in the land of Greece.

John was put in a caldron of boiling oil, and was afterward branded at Patmos.

Peter was crucified at Rome with his head downward.

James, the Greater, was beheaded at Jerusalem.

James, the Less, was thrown from the temple, and then beaten to death with a fuller's club.

Bartholomew was flayed alive.

Andrew was bound to a cross, whence he preached to his persecutors until he died.

Thomas was run through the body with a lance in the East Indies.

Jude was shot to death with arrows.

Matthias was first stoned and then beheaded.

Barnabas was stoned to death.

Paul was beheaded at Rome by the Emperor Nero.

Polycarp (69-155), one of the early church fathers, was put on trial because of his faith in Christ. When the Roman governor told him to deny his faith, Polycarp answered, "For 86 years I have served Him, and He has never wronged me. How can I blaspheme my King, who has saved me?"

Polycarp was burned at the stake. Unlike Daniel’s friends, he died in the fire.

How serious are you about obeying God? To what extent are you willing to go to obey God?

The enemy wants you to “bow” before all his strange gods. Will you give in and bow or are you willing to pay the price, even if God doesn’t deliver you?

Are there areas in your life where you are having a difficult time obeying God?

Some people think obedience works like this: If you have trouble with drinking, then you pray a prayer and ask God to take away your desire to drink.

There are indeed a few people who have been delivered this way.

But what if God doesn’t deliver you this way? Are you going to disobey Him?

What if your obedience to God demands that you are thrown into the fire and have to learn how to obey Him the hard way, by doing the hard work, by working your program back to sobriety?

Think twice before you give up too easily when it comes to obeying God.

What are you going to say to Polycarp in heaven when you meet him? Are you going to say, “It was too hard for me to quit?” Really?

If you’re going to be stubborn, be stubborn about obeying God.

:19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was full of fury, and the expression on his face changed toward Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. He spoke and commanded that they heat the furnace seven times more than it was usually heated.

:19 Nebuchadnezzar was full of fury

Nebuchadnezzar is not used to being disobeyed.

:20 And he commanded certain mighty men of valor who were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, and cast them into the burning fiery furnace.

:21 Then these men were bound in their coats, their trousers, their turbans, and their other garments, and were cast into the midst of the burning fiery furnace.

:21 bound in their coats …

They have all their clothes on, but their hands and feet are tied.

:22 Therefore, because the king’s command was urgent, and the furnace exceedingly hot, the flame of the fire killed those men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego.

:22 killed those men

Just in case you are wondering if there was some sort of trick with this fire, the men who take Shadrach and his friends to the furnace all die because of the intensity of the fire.

:23 And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery furnace.

Play “The Bible – Fiery Furnace” clip

:24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished; and he rose in haste and spoke, saying 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 “Look!” he answered, “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.”

:25 loose, walking in the midst of the fire

The only thing that burns up in the fire is the ropes that had bound them. Fascinating.

Lesson

Fiery Freedom

We become afraid that our trials, the “fire”, will destroy us.

Sometimes it’s the fire that actually sets us free.

(1 Pe 4:1–2 NKJV) —1 Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind, for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, 2 that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will of God.

:26 Then Nebuchadnezzar went near the mouth of the burning fiery furnace and spoke, saying, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, servants of the Most High God, come out, and come here.” Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego came from the midst of the fire.

:27 And the satraps, administrators, governors, and the king’s counselors gathered together, and they saw these men on whose bodies the fire had no power; the hair of their head was not singed nor were their garments affected, and the smell of fire was not on them.

:27 the satraps, administrators …

Note: The producers of “The Bible” made it sound as if it were Jewish people watching this happen. It wasn’t. It was the various leaders of Nebuchadnezzar’s government.

:28 Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, who sent His Angel and delivered His servants who trusted in Him, and they have frustrated the king’s word, and yielded their bodies, that they should not serve nor worship any god except their own God!

:29 Therefore I make a decree that any people, nation, or language which speaks anything amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made an ash heap; because there is no other God who can deliver like this.”

:29 shall be cut in pieces

Nebuchadnezzar still doesn’t get it, does he? He wants people to honor God, but threatens to kill them if they don’t.

:30 Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego in the province of Babylon.

I wonder if he put them in charge of the Fire Department.

The End Times picture

Though this is nothing that we could actually build doctrine on, I think that this story has some interesting pictures of events that will happen in the end times.

This could be an interesting picture of the events that will happen during the Great Tribulation.

Nebuchadnezzar is a picture of the antichrist, who will set up an image and demand to be worshipped.

The three young men represent the Jews who will become persecuted and face the wrath of the antichrist.

God will miraculously keep the Jews safe.

Some have suggested that Daniel might be a picture of the church. Where is Daniel? He isn’t there.

:25 the fourth is like the Son of God

I have a sneaking suspicion that the fourth person in the fire was Jesus.

Lesson

Not alone in the fire

David wrote,

(Ps 34:7 NKJV) The angel of the Lord encamps all around those who fear Him, And delivers them.

He will deliver us.

Sometimes it’s to take us home to heaven, like Polycarp.

Sometimes it’s to take us through the fire like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego.

Isaiah had an interesting prophecy a hundred years earlier…

(Is 43:2 NKJV) When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you.

Israel knew what it is to “pass through the waters”. They had seen God part the Red Sea and they went through it with a wall of water on either side of them. Now God is taking them through the fire.

God promised to be with His people in times of trouble.

He even promised to be with them through the fire. And not be burned.

If you choose to obey and you find yourself in the fire, you will not be alone.

Illustration

“Footprints”

One night a man had a dream. He dreamed he was walking along the beach with the LORD. Across the sky flashed scenes from his life. For each scene, he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand; one belonged to him, and the other to the LORD.

When the last scene of his life flashed before him, he looked back at the footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path of his life there was only one set of footprints. He also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times in his life.

This really bothered him and he questioned the LORD about it. “LORD, You said that once I decided to follow You, You’d walk with me all the way. But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life, there is only one set of footprints. I don’t understand why when I needed You the most You would leave me.”

The LORD replied, “My precious, precious child, I love you and I would never leave you. During your times of trial and suffering, when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you.”