| 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. |
| 3:2 |
Then Nebuchadnezzar the
king sent to gather together the princes, the governors,
and the captains, the judges, the treasurers, the
counsellers, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the
provinces, to come to the dedication of the image which
Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up. |
| 3:3 |
Then the princes, the
governors, and captains, the judges, the treasurers, the
counsellers, 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. |
| 3:4 |
Then an herald cried
aloud, To you it is commanded, O people, nations, and
languages, |
| 3:5 |
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: |
| 3:6 |
And whoso falleth not
down and worshippeth shall the same hour be cast into the
midst of a burning fiery furnace. |
| 3:7 |
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. |
| 3:8 |
Wherefore at that time
certain Chaldeans came near, and accused the Jews. |
| 3:9 |
They spake and said to
the king Nebuchadnezzar, O king, live for ever. |
| 3:10 |
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: |
| 3:11 |
And whoso falleth not
down and worshippeth, that he should be cast into the
midst of a burning fiery furnace. |
| 3:12 |
There are certain Jews
whom thou hast set over the affairs of the province of
Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego; these men, O
king, have not regarded thee: they serve not thy gods,
nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up. |
| 3:13 |
Then Nebuchadnezzar in
his rage and fury commanded to bring Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abed-nego. Then they brought these men before the
king. |
| 3:14 |
Nebuchadnezzar spake and
said unto them, Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego,
do not ye serve my gods, nor worship the golden image
which I have set up? |
| 3:15 |
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? |
| 3:16 |
Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abed-nego, answered and said to the king, O
Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this
matter. |
| 3:17 |
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. |
| 3:18 |
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. |
| 3:19 |
Then was Nebuchadnezzar
full of fury, and the form of his visage was changed
against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego: therefore he
spake, and commanded that they should heat the furnace
one seven times more than it was wont to be heated. |
| 3:20 |
And he commanded the most
mighty men that were in his army to bind Shadrach,
Meshach, and Abed-nego, and to cast them into the burning
fiery furnace. |
| 3:21 |
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. |
| 3:22 |
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 Abed-nego. |
| 3:23 |
And these three men,
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, fell down bound into
the midst of the burning fiery furnace. |
| 3:24 |
Then Nebuchadnezzar the
king was astonied, and rose up in haste, and spake, and
said unto his counsellers, Did not we cast three men
bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and said
unto the king, True, O king. |
| 3:25 |
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. |
| 3:26 |
Then Nebuchadnezzar came
near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and
spake, and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, ye
servants of the most high God, come forth, and come
hither. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, came forth
of the midst of the fire. |
| 3:27 |
And the princes,
governors, and captains, and the king's counsellers,
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. |
| 3:28 |
Then Nebuchadnezzar
spake, and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abed-nego, 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. |
| 3:29 |
Therefore I make a
decree, That every people, nation, and language, which
speak any thing amiss against the God of Shadrach,
Meshach, and Abed-nego, 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. |
| 3:30 |
Then the king promoted
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, in the province of
Babylon. |