< Daniel 3 >

1 Nebuchadnezzar the king hath made an image of gold, its height sixty cubits, its breadth six cubits; he hath raised it up in the valley of Dura, in the province of Babylon;
King Nebuchadnezzar made a gold statue that was sixty cubits tall and six cubits wide. He set it up in the Plain of Dura in the province of Babylon.
2 and Nebuchadnezzar the king hath sent to gather the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the honourable judges, the treasurers, the counsellors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the province, to come to the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath raised up.
Then Nebuchadnezzar sent messages out to gather together the provincial governors, regional governors, and local governors, together with the counselors, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all the high officials of the provinces to come to the dedication of the statue that he had set up.
3 Then are gathered the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the honourable judges, the treasurers, the counsellors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the province, to the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath raised up: and they are standing before the image that Nebuchadnezzar hath raised up.
Then the provincial governors, regional governors, and local governors, together with the counselors, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all the high officials of the provinces gathered together to the dedication of the statue that Nebuchadnezzar had set up. They stood before it.
4 And a crier is calling mightily: 'To you they are saying: O peoples, nations, and languages!
Then a herald loudly shouted, “You are commanded, peoples, nations, and languages,
5 at the time that ye hear the voice of the cornet, the flute, the harp, the sackbut, the psaltery, the symphony, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and do obeisance to the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath raised up:
that at the time you hear the sound of the horns, flutes, zithers, lyres, harps, and pipes, and all kinds of music, you must fall down and prostrate yourselves to the golden statue that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up.
6 and whoso doth not fall down and do obeisance, in that hour he is cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace.'
Whoever does not fall down and worship, at that very moment, will be thrown into a blazing furnace.”
7 Therefore at that time, when all the peoples are hearing the voice of the cornet, the flute, the harp, the sackbut, the psaltery, and all kinds of music, falling down are all the peoples, nations and languages, doing obeisance to the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath raised up.
So when all the peoples heard the sounds of the horns, flutes, zithers, lyres, harps, and pipes, and all kinds of music, all the peoples, nations, and languages fell down and prostrated themselves to the golden statue that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.
8 Therefore at that time drawn near have certain Chaldeans, and accused the Jews;
Now at this time certain Chaldeans came and brought accusations against the Jews.
9 they have answered, yea, they are saying to Nebuchadnezzar the king, 'O king, to the ages live!
They said to Nebuchadnezzar the king, “King, live forever!
10 Thou, O king, hast made a decree that every man who doth hear the voice of the cornet, the flute, the harp, the sackbut, the psaltery, and the symphony, and all kinds of music, doth fall down and do obeisance to the golden image;
You, king, have made a decree that every person who hears the sounds of the horns, flutes, zithers, lyres, harps, and pipes, and all kinds of music, must fall down and prostrate himself to the golden statue.
11 and whoso doth not fall down and do obeisance, is cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace.
Whoever does not fall down and worship must be thrown into a blazing furnace.
12 There are certain Jews whom thou hast appointed over the work of the province of Babylon — Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, these men have not made of thee, O king, [any] regard; thy gods they are not serving, and to the golden image thou hast raised up — are not making obeisance.'
Now there are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the affairs of the province of Babylon; their names are Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These men, king, pay no attention to you. They will not worship or serve your gods, or prostrate themselves before the golden statue you have set up.”
13 Then Nebuchadnezzar, in anger and fury, hath said to bring in Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. Then these men have been brought in before the king.
Then Nebuchadnezzar, filled with anger and rage, commanded that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought to him. So they brought these men before the king.
14 Nebuchadnezzar hath answered and said to them, 'Is [it] a laid plan, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego — my gods ye are not serving, and to the golden image that I have raised up ye are not doing obeisance?
Nebuchadnezzar said to them, “Have you made your minds up, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you will not worship my gods or prostrate yourselves to the golden statue that I have set up?
15 Now, lo, ye are ready, so that at the time that ye hear the voice of the cornet, the flute, the harp, the sackbut, the psaltery, and the symphony, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and do obeisance to the image that I have made! — and lo, ye do no obeisance — in that hour ye are cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; who is that God who doth deliver you out of my hands?'
Now if you are ready—when you hear the sounds of the horns, flutes, zithers, lyres, harps, and pipes, and all kinds of music—to fall down and prostrate yourselves to the statue that I have made, all will be well. But if you do not worship, you will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace. Who is the god who is able to rescue you out of my hands?”
16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego have answered, yea, they are saying to the king Nebuchadnezzar, 'We have no need concerning this matter to answer thee.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered the king, “Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter.
17 Lo, it is; our God whom we are serving, is able to deliver us from a burning fiery furnace; and from thy hand, O king, He doth deliver.
If there is an answer, it is that our God whom we serve is able to keep us safe from the blazing furnace, and he will rescue us out of your hand, king.
18 And lo — not! be it known to thee, O king, that thy gods we are not serving, and to the golden image thou hast raised up we do no obeisance.'
But if not, let it be known to you, king, that we will not worship your gods, and we will not prostrate ourselves to the golden statue you set up.”
19 Then Nebuchadnezzar hath been full of fury, and the expression of his face hath been changed concerning Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego; he answered and said to heat the furnace seven times above that which it is seen to be heated;
Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with rage; the look on his face changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He commanded that the furnace should be heated seven times hotter than it was normally heated.
20 and to certain mighty men who [are] in his force he hath said to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, to cast into the burning fiery furnace.
Then he commanded some very strong men in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and to throw them into the blazing furnace.
21 Then these men have been bound in their coats, their tunics, and their turbans, and their clothing, and have been cast into the midst of the burning fiery furnace.
They were tied up still wearing their robes, tunics, turbans, and other clothing, and they were thrown into the blazing furnace.
22 Therefore, because that the word of the king is urgent, and the furnace heated exceedingly, those men who have taken up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego — killed them hath the spark of the fire.
Because the king's command was strictly followed and the furnace was very hot, the flames killed the men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
23 And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, have fallen down in the midst of the burning fiery furnace — bound.
These three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell into the blazing furnace while they were tied up.
24 Then Nebuchadnezzar the king hath been astonished, and hath risen in haste; he hath answered and said to his counsellors, 'Have we not cast three men into the midst of the fire — bound?' They have answered and are saying to the king, 'Certainly, O king.'
Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was amazed and stood up quickly. He asked his advisors, “Did we not throw three men tied up into the fire?” They replied to the king, “Certainly, king.”
25 He answered and hath said, 'Lo, I am seeing four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the appearance of the fourth [is] like to a son of the gods.'
He said, “But I see four men who are not tied up walking around in the fire, and they are not hurt. The brilliance of the fourth is like a son of the gods.”
26 Then Nebuchadnezzar hath drawn near to the gate of the burning fiery furnace; he hath answered and said, 'Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, servants of God Most High come forth, yea, come;' then come forth do Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, from the midst of the fire;
Then Nebuchadnezzar came near the door of the blazing furnace and called out, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of God Most High, come out! Come here!” Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out of the fire.
27 and gathered together, the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, and the counsellors of the king, are seeing these men, that the fire hath no power over their bodies, and the hair of their head hath not been singed, and their coats have not changed, and the smell of fire hath not passed on them.
The provincial governors, regional governors, other governors, and the king's counselors who had gathered together saw these men. The fire had not hurt their bodies; the hair on their heads was not singed; their robes were not harmed; and there was no smell of fire on them.
28 Nebuchadnezzar hath answered and hath said, 'Blessed [is] the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, who hath sent His messenger, and hath delivered His servants who trusted on Him, and the word of the king changed, and gave up their bodies that they might not serve nor do obeisance to any god except to their own God.
Nebuchadnezzar said, “Let us praise the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his messenger and given his message to his servants. They trusted in him when they set aside my command, and they gave up their bodies rather than worship or prostrate themselves to any god except their God.
29 And by me a decree is made, that any people, nation, and language, that doth speak erroneously concerning the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, pieces he is made, and its house is made a dunghill, because that there is no other god who is able thus to deliver.'
Therefore I make a decree that any people, nation, or language that speaks anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego must be torn apart, and that their houses must be made into rubbish heaps because there is no other god who is able to save like this.”
30 Then the king hath caused Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, to prosper in the province of Babylon.
Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon.

< Daniel 3 >