Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were close friends of the prophet Daniel. During the time of the Israelite captivity in Babylon, King Nebuchadnezzar had an enormous gold likeness of himself made and decreed that all in the kingdom must bow and worship the statue. The three men refused to worship anyone other than the one true God. The king, in his anger, commanded that they be thrown into a raging furnace and burned alive. The furnace was heated to seven times its usual strength and was so hot that the soldiers who threw them in died in the process. However, when the king peered into the fire, he noticed that it was not three men agonizing in the throes of being incinerated that he saw, but four men who were perfectly at peace. This fourth man, the angel of the Lord, was there to accompany them in this moment of monumental faith and obedience. The men came out of the infernal furnace unharmed, not even smelling of smoke or ash, and Nebuchadnezzar exclaimed, “Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who has sent His angel and rescued His servants!” Daniel 3:28
Daniel 3:1–7 – Nebuchadnezzar sets up the golden image and commands everyone to worship it.
Daniel 3:8–18 – Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refuse to bow and declare their faith in God.
Daniel 3:19–23 – The king orders the furnace heated seven times hotter and throws them in.
Daniel 3:24–27 – Nebuchadnezzar sees a fourth figure in the fire; the three men come out unharmed.
Daniel 3:28–30 – Nebuchadnezzar praises God and promotes the men.
Illustration by: Colton Rompala