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Daniel 3:16-18
“Shadrak, Meyshak, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the sovereign, “O Nebukadnetstsar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. For if so, our Elah whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning furnace of fire and from your hand, O sovereign – He does deliver! But if not, let it be known to you, O sovereign, that we do not serve your elahin, nor do we do obeisance to the gold image which you have set up.’ ”
Hananiah (meaning Yah has favored, aka Shadrach), Mishael (meaning who is like El, aka Meshach), and Azariah (meaning Yah has helped, aka Abed-nego), were faced with a decision:
Would they bow down to the golden idol created by the pagan Nebuchadnezzar to save their lives, or would they stay true to YHVH even if it meant their deaths?
These men knew the Torah and how it prohibited idol worship. They knew the story of the golden calf and how many of the Israelites had worshipped it. They knew the story of Baal-Peor and how many of the people had committed idolatry with Moab. While these men were likely empowered by these stories of the past, knowing these Bible stories and living them out is entirely different.
These three men were faced with certain death, yet they chose to obey YHVH rather than men. Confidently they declared that YHVH was able to deliver them, and even if He didn't, they would still not bow down to the idol. Indeed, YHVH did save them, sending one like the son of Elohim to walk with them in the fire.
Daniel 3:25
“He (Nebuchadnezzar) answered and said, ‘Look! I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire. And they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of Elahin.’ ”
When we are faced with a similar decision, what will we decide? Will we choose to obey YHVH and His commandments, or will we bow down and serve men?
Matthew 5.21
"not everyone who says to Me (Yeshua), 'Master, Master' shall enter into the reign of the heavens, but he who is doing the desire of My Father in the heavens."
Author, Jared Gragg
Date, June 3, 2025