Daniel 3.24-Nebuchadnezzar Is Startled When Looking Into The Furnace And Asks His Highest Officials To Confirm That Three Men Were Deposited Into The Furnace
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Thursday July 26, 2012
Daniel: Daniel 3:24-Nebuchadnezzar Is Startled When Looking Into The Furnace And Asks His Highest Officials To Confirm That Three Men Were Deposited Into The Furnace
Lesson # 99
Please turn in your Bibles to Daniel 3:24.
This evening we will study Daniel 3:24, which records Nebuchadnezzar’s astonishment when he looks into the furnace and asks his advisers to confirm that only Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were unceremoniously deposited into the blazing, fiery furnace.
Daniel 3:24 Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astounded and stood up in haste; he said to his high officials, “Was it not three men we cast bound into the midst of the fire?” They replied to the king, “Certainly, O king.” (NASB95)
“Was astounded” is composed of the third person masculine singular peʿal (Hebrew: qal) active perfect form of the verb tewǎh (תְּוַהּ) (tev-ah´), which means “to astonish” in the sense of being struck with sudden fear and great wonder and surprise and is used of Nebuchadnezzar’s reaction to seeing four men in the furnace walking around.
It denotes that he was struck with a sudden fear and great wonder and surprise because he knew for certain that only three men, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were deposited unceremoniously into the blazing, fiery furnace.
“And stood up in haste” is composed of the conjunction wa (וְ) (waw), “and” which is the third person masculine singular peʿal (Hebrew: qal) active perfect form of the verb qûm (קוּם) (koom), “stood up” and then we have the preposition bĕ (בְּ) (beh), “in” and its object is the hitpeʿel (Hebrew: qal passive) passive infinitive construct form of the verb behǎl (בְּהַל) (bĕ-hal´), “haste.”
The conjunction wa is used to mark a result meaning that it is introducing an action which was the direct result of the previous action and thus it denotes that “as a result of” being astonished by what he saw in the furnace, Nebuchadnezzar stood up.
The verb qûm means “to stand up” in the sense of rising to an erect position and implies that Nebuchadnezzar was sitting down looking into the furnace and then stood as a result of being astonished by what he saw.
The verb behǎl means “to hasten” in the sense of moving or acting quickly and expresses the idea that Nebuchadnezzar did not delay standing up as a result of being astonished by what he saw in the furnace.
“High officials” is the masculine plural construct form of the noun hǎd∙dā∙ḇǎr (הַדָּבַר) (had-daw-bawr´), which means “counselors” and is synonymous with the noun ʾǎḏǎr∙gā∙zǎr, “advisers” which appears in Daniel 3:2-3.
Both words refer to those individuals who gave Nebuchadnezzar counsel or advised him with regards to various matters of state.
That both words are synonymous is indicated by the order in which both words appear in the list of officials in Daniel 3:2-3 and 27.
In Daniel 3:2-3, the noun ʾǎḏǎr∙gā∙zǎr appears in a list of dignitaries in Nebuchadnezzar’s kingdom who were assembled for the dedication of the statue and occurs after the satraps, prefects (military commanders) and governors.
In Daniel 3:27, the noun hǎd∙dā∙ḇǎr also occurs in a list of dignitaries after the satraps, prefects and governors.
Daniel 3:24 Then, King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished so that he immediately stood up. He asked a question and said to his counselors, “Did we not unceremoniously deposit three men bound into the fire’s midst?” They replied and said, “Absolutely O king!” (My translation)
In Daniel 3:24, we have the record of Nebuchadnezzar’s reaction to what he saw when he was looking into the furnace in which he had Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego deposited unceremoniously as a result of disobeying his command to worship the gold statue he erected of himself.
This verse says that he was astonished by what he saw in the furnace in the sense that he was struck with a sudden fear and great wonder and surprise because he knew for certain that only three men, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were deposited unceremoniously into the blazing, fiery furnace.
He was astonished because he knew that it was impossible for there to be four men in the furnace.
His question which he posed to his counselors in verse 24 and his statement in verse 25 reveals that what astonished him initially was that there were four men in the furnace and not Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego alone.
His statement in verse 25 also reveals he was astonished at the appearance of this fourth unidentified individual because his appearance was not of this world.
Also, undoubtedly, he would be astonished that they were walking around untied since they were bound by the soldiers and executed while tied up.
He would also be astonished because they were not lying down as would be the case if they were tied up but rather they were walking around as his statement in verse 25 records.
The king would also be astonished because Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were totally untouched by the flames.
This is indicated by Daniel 3:27 in which Nebuchadnezzar and his counselors gathered around the three men and were amazed that they were totally untouched by the flames and didn’t even have the smell of smoke on them.
They were astonished that they were not consumed by the flames since the soldiers who executed them were killed and yet they were not.
Lastly, Nebuchadnezzar would be astonished by the fact that Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were not frantically looking for a possible exit to escape the flames and the heat of the furnace but instead, they were walking around.
Nebuchadnezzar had witnessed a miracle and a manifestation of the power of the God of Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the form of a miracle.
Miracles may be performed directly by God or through a human agent.
Miracles demonstrate God’s greatness and power (Psalm 77:14; cf. Exodus 14:30-31; 34:10; Deuteronomy 3:24; 1 Kings 18:37-39; Job 5:9; Psalm 78:4; Luke 9:42-43) and can bring God’s judgment (Leviticus 10:1-2; cf. Genesis 19:24-26; Numbers 12:10; 16:31-35; 1 Kings 13:4-5; 2 Kings 1:9-12; 2 Chronicles 26:19-20; Acts 5:5,10; 13:11).
In Scripture, there are miracles which meet human needs such as in the provision of food and water (Exodus 17:6; cf. 15:25; Numbers 11:31-32; 20:10-11; Judges 15:18-19; 1 Kings 17:5-6,8-16; 2 Kings 2:19-22; 4:42-44; Matthew 14:15-21; Mark 8:1-10), healing (Acts 5:16; cf. Numbers 21:6-9; 2 Kings 5:1-14; Luke 9:6; Acts 3:1-10; 9:33-34; 28:7-9), exorcism (Acts 16:18; cf. Mark 6:13; 9:38; Luke 9:49; 10:17; Acts 8:7).
Scripture records miracles of people being raised from the dead (John 11:38-44; cf. 1 Kings 17:17-24; 2 Kings 4:32-37; 13:21; Acts 9:36-41; 20:9-12), miraculous births (Genesis 18:10-14; cf. Judges 13:2-3; 1 Samuel 1:20; 2 Kings 4:14-17; Luke 1:34-37), miraculous military victories (2 Chronicles 32:21; 2 Kings 19:35-36; Isaiah 37:36-37; cf. Exodus 12:29-36; 14:26-28; Joshua 10:12-14; 1 Samuel 7:10-12; 2 Kings 6:18-23; 2 Chronicles 20:22-26).
As in the case of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, Scripture records individuals delivered from death miraculously (Daniel 6:27; cf. Psalm 91:11-12; Daniel 3:19-27; 6:19-23; Matthew 8:23-27; Mark 4:36-41; Luke 8:22-25; Acts 12:6-11; 16:25-26).
Some have received supernatural strength (Judges 14:5-6; cf. Judges 14:19; 15:14-16; 16:26-30; 1 Kings 18:46).
The Scripture records miracles in nature (2 Kings 2:7-8; cf. Exodus 10:13-23; 14:15-22; Joshua 3:14-17; 2 Kings 2:13-14; Matthew 21:18-22; Mark 11:12-14; 20-24; John 2:1-11).
Miracles are part of God’s plan of redemption (2 Samuel 7:23; 1 Chronicles 17:21; cf. Mark 16:17-18; Acts 2:22-24; 14:3; Hebrews 2:3-4).
They occur at times of special significance such at the time of the exodus of Israel from Egypt (Exodus 3:2-3; 7:3-4; 16:11-15; 17:6-7; Numbers 17:8; Deuteronomy 4:34) and have occurred during times of national religious crisis in Israel (1 Kings 18:30-39; 2 Kings 3:16-25; 4:3-7, 40-41; 6:5-7).
They occurred during Jesus Christ’s First Advent (Matthew 14:15-21; Mark 6:35-44l; Luke 9:12-17; John 6:5-13; Matthew 20:29-34; Mark 10:46-52; Luke 18:35-43; John 11:38-44) and during the apostolic period (Luke 10:17; Acts 8:6, 13; 14:8-10,19-20; 19:11-12).
As was the case with the prophets and apostles of Jesus Christ, miracles authenticated that their message was from God (John 10:38; cf. Exodus 4:30-31; Matthew 11:2-5; Luke 7:20-22; Mark 9:39; 16:20; John 14:11; 2 Corinthians 12:12).
They are given by God’s sovereign will (1 Corinthians 12:8-11; cf. Matthew 10:1; Luke 9:1; 1 Corinthians 12:28-30; Galatians 3:5).
Miracles are not in themselves proof of God’s work since Satan and his fallen angels can perform counterfeit miracles (Matthew 24:24; cf. Exodus 7:11-12, 22; 8:7; Acts 8:9-11; 2 Thessalonians 2:9; Revelation 13:13; 16:14; 19:20).
Miracles are also no guarantee that the unsaved will trust in Jesus Christ as Savior (Matthew 7:22-23; cf. Luke 16:27-31; John 2:23-24; 1 Corinthians 13:1-2).
The Scriptures record positive responses to miracles such as faith (Exodus 14:31; cf. 4:30-31; John 7:31; Acts 9:33-35, 40-42; 13:12), amazement (Matthew 15:31; Mark 7:37; cf. Daniel 3:24; Acts 3:10; 8:13; 12:16), praise and worship (Acts 3:8; cf. Exodus 15:11, 21; Psalm 9:1; Daniel 3:28; 4:2-3; 6:26-27; Matthew 15:31; Luke 19:37; Acts 4:21-22).
Miracles have resulted in individuals paying closer attention to the Word of God (Acts 8:6; cf. 1 Kings 17:24), as well as temporary faith (John 2:23-24; cf. Exodus 15:20-24; 16:1-3; 17:3; Numbers 20:3-5; Luke 17:17-18; John 6:49).
The Scriptures record negative responses to miracles such as fear (Mark 5:15-17; Luke 8:36-37; Acts 5:5, 11; 19:17), disbelief (Acts 12:14-15; cf. Genesis 17:17-18; 18:12-13; Luke 1:18, 20), hardness of heart as in the case of Pharaoh (Exodus 8:19; cf. 7:3-4; 11:10; Psalm 78:32; Matthew 11:20-22; Luke 10:13-14; John 9:18,28-29; 10:25-26; 12:37; 15:24), opposition (John 11:47-48; Acts 6:8-9; 16:19-21), disobedience (Psalm 106:7; cf. Numbers 14:11,22-23; Psalm 78:11-22, 42-43), and jealousy (Acts 8:13,18-19).