v.
26a: Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the door of the furnace…
o A reference to the
large ground level opening.
v.
26b: "…come out, you servants of the Most High God, and come here!"
o The fire of his fury
thus abated, Nebuchadnezzar, under the control of the Sovereign Hand
of God, is compelled by events to set aside his own
political/religious agenda and openly acknowledge things that were
contrary to his own unregenerate heart and self-centered purposes.
o The Three had professed
to be “servants” of the Most High (v. 17)—and indeed, they were now recognized
as such by their very oppressor!
o The King recognizes the
God of Israel
as a “God of gods,” supremely standing above all others (reverting to
the form of Dan. 2:47, from which he had lapsed)— though he does not expressly
nor formally deny the existence of other deities.
o Calvin, on Dan. 3:26:
the temporary & vanishing “conversion” of the reprobate.
“We cannot take too diligent notice of examples of
this kind, as many estimate the characters of others from a single action. But
the worst despisers of God can submit to him for a short time, not merely by
feigning to do so before men, but in real seriousness, since God compels them
by his power, but meanwhile they retain their pride and ferocity within their
breasts. Of this kind, then, was the conversion of King Nebuchadnezzar. For
when astonished by the miracle, he could no longer resist the Almighty, he was
still inconsistent, as we shall afterwards see. We may also notice how the
impious, who are unregenerate by God’s Spirit, are often impelled to worship
God; but this is only temporary, and this equable tenor never remains through their
whole life. But when God renews his own, he undertakes to govern them even to
the end; he animates them to perseverance, and confirms them by his Spirit.”
o This is yet another
example demonstrating that the reprobate can be temporarily made to fear—but
this is not synonymous with the lasting conversion characteristic of
genuine saving faith (cf., 1 John 2:19; 2 Pet. 2:22).
Acts 24:24-25: But some days later
Felix arrived with Drusilla, his wife who was a Jewess, and sent for Paul and
heard him speak about faith in Christ Jesus. But as he was discussing
righteousness, self-control and the judgment to come, Felix became frightened
and said, "Go away for the present, and when I find time I will summon
you."
Ex. 10:16-20: Then Pharaoh hurriedly
called for Moses and Aaron, and he said, "I have sinned against the LORD
your God and against you. Now therefore, please forgive my sin only this once,
and make supplication to the LORD your God, that He would only remove this
death from me." He went out from Pharaoh and made supplication to the
LORD. So the LORD shifted the wind to a very strong west wind which took up the
locusts and drove them into the Red Sea; not one locust was left in all the
territory of Egypt. But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he did not let
the sons of Israel go.
v.
26c: Then Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego came out of the midst of the fire.
o The young men are content
to remain in the furnace until commanded to depart! Some observations:
o Better to be in the
midst of a blazing furnace with the Lord than to remain in a palace without
Him!
o In submission to
authority, they obey the King’s command to emerge.
o Like Noah, they do not
“come out” (Gen. 8:16) until the appropriately designated, specially appointed
moment.
v.
27a: “The satraps…and the king's high officials gathered around and saw…”
o
These
lofty pagan dignitaries—"hostile witnesses”—would now serve a Sovereign Living
God as reliable & confirming eyewitnesses unto the legitimacy of the sign-miracle!
v.
27b: “…the fire had no effect…”
o The young men subjected
to proper “scientific investigation.”
o Their deliverance was
COMPLETE & TOTAL! Note these four indicators:
1. “the fire had no effect on the bodies of
these men…”
2. “nor was the hair of their head singed…”
3. “nor were their trousers damaged…”
4. “nor had the smell of fire even come
upon them.”
o When genuine,
supernaturally-directed sign-miracles are involved, God’s deliverance is not
partial, but total, perfect, complete, and abundantly self-evident (cf.,
Whitcomb’s EBC Commentary on Dan. 3:27).
o Not one Israelite perished in
the Red Sea during the Exodus, and not one Egyptian escaped (Ex. 14:28-29)!
o Not one Assyrian escaped the
wrath of the Angel of the LORD in the Days of Hezekiah (2 Kings 19:35)!
o When Christ healed
individuals, it was a complete healing!
o Contrast His miraculous
healings with the staged “healings” of so many highly promoted charlatans found
within today’s Charismatic movement.
o Likewise, we can be
assured that our Redemption that our Lord wrought at Calvary on our behalf is complete
(John 19:30; Heb. 10:1-14)!
v.
28a: Nebuchadnezzar responded and said, "Blessed be the God…”
o
Nebuchadnezzar
openly blesses the God of Israel!
o
Nebuchadnezzar
publicly declares the greatness of the deliverance!
o
The
king praises the young men for fearlessly & sacrificially trusting in their
God!
o
The
Head of Gold—the living essence of royal absolutism—praises the young men for
violating his own command!
o
The
instigator of this attempt to fuse religious idolatry with an all-powerful
world-state praises the young men for rejecting the king’s gods!
o
A
pagan polytheist praises the Jews for their religious exclusivism!
v.
29a: "Therefore I make a decree…”
o
The
earlier destructive decree is now set aside, yielding to a new decree favorable
to the Jews.
o
The
power of the Head of Gold in having absolute authority over his laws stands in
marked contrast to that of the rulers of the succeeding Silver (i.e., Persian)
Kingdom (cf., Dan. 6:8, 12, 15; Esth. 1:19).
o
The
second decree marks a dramatic volte-face from the earlier decree
imposing a one-world religion!
o
The
empire-wide impact of this favorable decree must have been enormous with regard
to its significance upon Jewish life in a variety of ways.
v.
29b: “the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego”
o The King respects the
God of the Three Holy Children as their God—but fails to appropriate Him
as his own!
v.
29c: “…shall
be torn limb from limb and their houses reduced to a rubbish heap”
o Echoes the threat
against the Chaldeans in 2:5.
v. 29d: “…inasmuch as there is no other god who is able to deliver in this
way."
o
The
most powerful man in the world publicly testifies as to the unique power of the
God of Israel!
o
A
recognition by Nebuchadnezzar of the matchless power of the superiority of
YHWH—but again, no affirmation that He is the ONE and ONLY True God.
o
Still,
this statement perhaps represents a progressive advance in Nebuchadnezzar’s
understanding of the power of the God of Israel. Earlier (2:47), he had
acknowledged Israel’s God as “a revealer of mysteries.”
v.
30: Then the king caused Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego to prosper [or, promoted]
in the province of Babylon.
o
The
offices of the three faithful men are restored, and additional honors are
bestowed upon them!
o
The
schemes of the wicked Chaldeans (3:8-12) thus backfire in their faces (cf.,
Dan. 6:24)—even as the scheming Haman would later be forced to eventually honor
his great enemy, Mordecai the Jew (Esth. 6) and would ultimately be hanged on
the gallows of his own creation (Esth. 5:14; 7:9-10)!
Ps. 21:11 Though they plan evil against you,
though they devise mischief, they will not succeed.
Ps. 37:1-4 Fret not yourself because of
evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers! For they will soon fade like the grass
and wither like the green herb. Trust in the LORD, and do good; dwell in the
land and befriend faithfulness. Delight yourself in the LORD, and He will give
you the desires of your heart.
Job 5:13 He catches the wise in their own
craftiness, and the schemes of the wily are brought to a quick end.
Ps. 141:10 Let the wicked fall into their own
nets, while I pass by safely.
Prov. 12:13 An evil man is ensnared by the
transgression of his lips, but the righteous escapes from trouble.
APPLICATION:
How easy
it is to compromise when the entire world is shouting “UNITY!” But what great
blessings await those who are willing to stand against the entire world in the
Name of TRUTH!
_____________________________
An
Application from Church History:
ATHANASIUS
CONTRA MUNDUM
John 8:24: “for
unless you believe that I AM, you will die in your sins."
Athanasius, Bishop of Alexandria,
was an unswerving opponent of the heretical but influential Arian Party within
the Church of the 4th Century. The Arians denied the Triunity of God
and full deity of Christ, affirming that Christ was a lesser, created demigod
(much like the Jehovah’s Witnesses cult of our own day). Athanasius refused to
accept Arianism as a legitimate expression of Christianity, and thus refused to
acknowledge supporters of the Arian Party as brothers in Christ and members the
Communion of the Faithful.
The
Imperial pressure against Athanasius to receive the Arians as legitimate
brethren was enormous, as Rome’s newly Christianized government desired peace
and outward unity amongst nominal “Christians.” For this reason, Athanasius was
sent into exile no less than five times for tenaciously clinging
to principles of ecclesiastical separation with reference to what Imperial
authorities no doubt regarded as impractical, inconvenient, and insignificant
matters of personal theological conviction.
Athanasius
was reviled as hard-headed, fanatical, stubborn, and unreasonable by the unity-seeking
Imperial authorities of his day, and was viewed as a man who stood “against
the entire world.” Yet for this very reason, he is honored today by Bible
believing Christians as a man who rightly perceived that entire Gospel turns
upon this very matter of the full Deity of Christ and the Triunity of God. He
is therefore remembered forever in the hearts of the Faithful as Athanasius
Contra Mundum:
“ATHANASIUS AGAINST THE
WORLD!”
