Daniel 3:19–27

Daniel’s Friends Protected

¹⁹Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with ^awrath, and his facial expression was altered toward Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego. He answered ¹by giving orders to heat the furnace seven times more than it was usually heated.

²⁰He commanded certain valiant warriors who were in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego in order to cast them into the furnace of blazing fire.

²¹Then these men were tied up in their ^1atrousers, their ²coats, their caps and their other clothes, and were cast into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire.

²²For this reason, because the king’s ¹command was ^2aurgent and the furnace had been made extremely hot, the flame of the fire slew those men who carried up Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego.

²³But these three men, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, ^afell into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire still tied up.

²⁴Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astounded and stood up in haste; he said to his high officials, “Was it not three men we cast bound into the midst of the fire?” They replied to the king, “Certainly, O king.”

²⁵He said, “Look! I see four men loosed and ^awalking about in the midst of the fire ¹without harm, and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the ^bgods!”

²⁶Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the door of the furnace of blazing fire; he responded and said, “Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, come out, you servants of the ^aMost High God, and come here!” Then Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego ^bcame out of the midst of the fire.

²⁷The ^asatraps, the prefects, the governors and the king’s high officials gathered around and saw in regard to these men that the ^bfire had no ¹effect on ²the bodies of these men nor was the hair of their head singed, nor were their ^3ctrousers ⁴damaged, nor had the smell of fire even come upon them.