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.
02 Then Nebuchadnezzar the king sent to gather
together the princes, the governors, and the
captains, the judges, the treasurers, the
counsellors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of
the provinces, to come to the dedication of the
image which Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.
03 Then the princes, the governors, and captains,
the judges, the treasurers, the counsellors, 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.
04 Then an herald cried aloud, To you it is
commanded, O people, nations, and languages,
05 That at what time ye hear the sound of the
cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer,
and all kinds of music, ye fall down and worship
the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king
hath set up:
06 And whoso falleth not down and worshippeth
shall the same hour be cast into the midst of a
burning fiery furnace.
07 Therefore at that time, when all the people
heard the sound of the cornet, flute, harp,
sackbut, psaltery, and all kinds of music, all
the people, the nations, and the languages, fell
down and worshipped the golden image that
Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.
08 Wherefore at that time certain Chaldeans came
near, and accused the Jews.
09 They spake and said to the king
Nebuchadnezzar, O king, live for ever.
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 music, shall fall down and worship
the golden image:
11 And whoso falleth not down and worshippeth,
that he should be cast into the midst of a
burning fiery furnace.
12 There are certain Jews whom thou hast set over
the affairs of the province of Babylon, Shadrach,
Meshach, and Abednego; these men, O king, have
not regarded thee: they serve not thy gods, nor
worship the golden image which thou hast set up.
13 Then Nebuchadnezzar in his rage and fury
commanded to bring Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abednego. Then they brought these men before the
king.
14 Nebuchadnezzar spake and said unto them, Is it
true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, do not
ye serve my gods, nor worship the golden image
which I have set up?
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 music,
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?
16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and
said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not
careful to answer thee in this matter.
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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.
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.
19 Then was Nebuchadnezzar full of fury, and the
form of his visage was changed against Shadrach,
Meshach, and Abednego: therefore he spake, and
commanded that they should heat the furnace one
seven times more than it was wont to be heated.
20 And he commanded the most mighty men that were
in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abednego, and to cast them into the burning fiery
furnace.
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.
22 Therefore because the king's commandment was
urgent, and the furnace exceeding hot, the flames
of the fire slew those men that took up Shadrach,
Meshach, and Abednego.
23 And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abednego, fell down bound into the midst of the
burning fiery furnace.
24 Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonied, and
rose up in haste, and spake, and said unto his
counsellors, Did not we cast three men bound into
the midst of the fire? They answered and said
unto the king, True, O king.
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.
26 Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of
the burning fiery furnace, and spake, and said,
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, ye servants of
the most high God, come forth, and come hither.
Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, came forth
of the midst of the fire.
27 And the princes, governors, and captains, and
the king's counsellors, 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.
28 Then Nebuchadnezzar spake, and said, Blessed
be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego,
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.
29 Therefore I make a decree, That every people,
nation, and language, which speak any thing amiss
against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abednego, 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.
30 Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abednego, in the province of Babylon.
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