Daniel

3 Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, the height thereof sixty cubits, the breadth thereof six cubits,—he set it up in the valley of Dura, in the province of Babylon.

2 And Nebuchadnezzar the king sent to gather together the satraps, the nobles and the pashas, the chief judges, the treasurers, the judges, the lawyers, and all the rulers of the province,—to come to the dedication of the image, which Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.

3 Then were gathered together the satraps, the nobles and the pashas, the chief judges, the treasurers, the judges, the lawyers and all the rulers of the province, to the dedication of the image, which Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up,—and they stood before the image which Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

4 And the herald proclaimed aloud,—To you is given the word, O ye peoples, races and tongues:

5 At what time ye shall hear the sound of the horn, the pipe, the lyre, the harp, the psaltery, the bagpipes, and all kinds of instruments of music ye shall fall down and adore the image of gold, which Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up;

6 and whosoever shall not fall down and adore shall instantly be cast into the burning furnace of fire.

7 Wherefore at the same time—when all the peoples heard the sound of the horn, the pipe, the lyre, the harp, the psaltery, and all kinds of instruments of music they were falling down—even all the peoples, the races and the tongues—adoring the image of gold, which Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.

8 Wherefore at the same time drew near certain Chaldeans,—and accused the Jews:

9 they spake and said, to Nebuchadnezzar the king: O king! for ages live!

10 Thou thyself, O king, hast made a decree, that any man who shall hear the sound of the horn, the pipe, the lyre, the harp, the psaltery and the bagpipes, and all kinds of instruments of music shall fall down and adore the image of gold;

11 and whosoever shall not fall down and adore shall be cast into the burning furnace of fire.

12 There are certain Jews whom thou hast set over the business of the province of Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego,—these men have made thee, O king, of no account, thy god they serve not, and the image of gold which thou hast set up do they not adore.

13 Then Nebuchadnezzar—with anger and wrath gave word to bring Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, then these men brought they before the king.

14 Nebuchadnezzar spake and said unto them, Is it with design O Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego,—that my god ye are not serving, and the image which I have set up are not adoring?

15 Now if ye be ready at what time ye shall hear the sound of the cornet, the pipe, the lyre, the harp, the psaltery and the bagpipes and all the instruments of music ye shall fall down and adore the image which I have made, but if ye shall not adore instantly shall ye be cast into the midst of the burning furnace of fire,—and who is the god that shall deliver you out of my hands?

16 Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego answered, and said to the king: O Nebuchadnezzar! we are not accounting it needful concerning this to answer thee.

17 If it is our God whom we serve is able to deliver us,—out of the burning furnace of fire, and out of thy hand O king, he will deliver.

18 But if not be it known to thee, O king,—that thy god will we not serve, and the image of gold which thou hast set up will we not adore.

19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with wrath and the likeness of his countenance was changed, against Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego,—he spake and gave word to heat the furnace seven times hotter than it was ever seen heated;

20 and to men who were the mightiest men in his army gave he word to bind fast Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego,—to cast them into the burning furnace of fire.

21 Then bound they these men in their trousers, their tunics and their cloaks and their (other) clothing,—and cast into the midst of the burning furnace of fire.

22 Therefore because the word of the king had raged forth, and the furnace was exceeding hot those very men who took up Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego were slain by the flame of the fire;

23 and these three men, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego fell down into the midst of the burning furnace of fire fast bound.

24 Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was amazed and rose up in haste: he spake and said to his nearest friends—Were there not three men we cast into the midst of the fire fast bound? They answered and said to the king, Surely, O king!

25 He answered and said, Lo! I see four men unbound walking in the midst of the fire, and injury there is not in them, and the appearance of the fourth is like to a son of the gods!

26 Then did Nebuchadnezzar draw near to the door of the burning furnace of fire, he spake and said, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, ye servants of the most high God, step forth and come hither. Then stepped forth Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, out of the midst of the fire.

27 And—being gathered together—the satraps, the nobles and the pashas and near friends of the king saw these men over whose bodies the fire had no power, nor was a hair of their head singed neither were their trousers disfigured,—nor had the smell of fire come upon them.

28 Nebuchadnezzar spake and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, who hath sent his messenger and delivered his servants, who trusted in him,—when the word of the king they transgressed, and delivered up their bodies, that they might not serve nor adore any god, saving their own God.

29 Therefore do I make a decree, that whosoever of any people, race or tongue it be that shall charge any error upon the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego shall be cut in pieces, and his house into a dunghill shall be changed; because there is no other God, who is able to deliver like this!

30 Then the king advanced Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego in the province of Babylon.