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Three Hebrews in the Fiery Furnace
This chapter is based on Daniel 3.
God had given Nebuchadnezzar the dream of the great image so
that he would understand the relationship that his kingdom would
have to the kingdom of heaven. The dream’s interpretation had
given him clear instruction regarding the establishment of God’s
everlasting kingdom. “The God of heaven will set up a kingdom. ...
It shall ... consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.”
Daniel 2:44
.
The king had acknowledged God, saying to Daniel, “Truly your
God is the God of gods, ... and a revealer of secrets.”
Daniel 2:47
.
For a time the fear of God influenced Nebuchadnezzar, but his heart
was not yet cleansed from a desire to exalt himself. Filled with
pride, in time he returned to his idol worship with increased zeal.
The words, “You are this head of gold,” had made a deep impression
on the ruler’s mind. Taking advantage of this, the wise men of his
realm proposed that he make an image similar to the one in his
dream and set it up where all could see and admire the head of gold,
interpreted as representing his kingdom.
Pleased, he determined to go even farther. His image would
not deteriorate in value from the head to the feet, but be entirely
of gold—symbolic of Babylon as an indestructible, all-powerful
kingdom.
Establishing a dynasty that would endure forever appealed
strongly to the ruler before whose weapons the nations of earth
had been unable to stand. Forgetting the remarkable acts of God
connected with the dream of the great image, and that in connection
with the interpretation the great men of the realm had been spared a
dreadful and shameful death, the king and his counselors determined
that they would work to exalt Babylon as supreme.
Daniel’s interpretation was to be rejected and forgotten; truth was
to be misapplied. The symbol God had designed to reveal important
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