| NET Bible | International Standard Version |
| 1King Nebuchadnezzar had a golden statue made. It was ninety feet tall and nine feet wide. He erected it on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon. | 1Some time later, king Nebuchadnezzar built a golden statue, making it 60 cubits high and six cubits wide. He set it up in the Dura Valley within the province of Babylon. |
| 2Then King Nebuchadnezzar sent out a summons to assemble the satraps, prefects, governors, counselors, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all the other authorities of the province to attend the dedication of the statue that he had erected. | 2Then King Nebuchadnezzar summoned the regional authorities, governors, deputy governors, advisors, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all of the other administrators of the provinces, ordering them to come to the dedication of the statue that he had erected. |
| 3So the satraps, prefects, governors, counselors, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all the other provincial authorities assembled for the dedication of the statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had erected. They were standing in front of the statue that Nebuchadnezzar had erected. | 3So the regional authorities, governors, deputy governors, advisors, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all of the other administrators of the provinces assembled to dedicate the statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had erected. They took their places in front of the statue that he had erected. |
| 4Then the herald made a loud proclamation: "To you, O peoples, nations, and language groups, the following command is given: | 4Then a herald proclaimed aloud: "People of all nations, and languages are commanded: |
| 5When you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, trigon, harp, pipes, and all kinds of music, you must bow down and pay homage to the golden statue that King Nebuchadnezzar has erected. | 5Whenever you hear the sound of the trumpet, the flute, the lyre, the four-stringed lyre, and the harp, playing together along with various instruments, you are to fall down and worship the golden statue that was set up by King Nebuchadnezzar. |
| 6Whoever does not bow down and pay homage will immediately be thrown into the midst of a furnace of blazing fire!" | 6Anyone who does not fall down and worship is immediately to be thrown into the blazing fire furnace." |
| 7Therefore when they all heard the sound of the horn, flute, zither, trigon, harp, pipes, and all kinds of music, all the peoples, nations, and language groups began bowing down and paying homage to the golden statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had erected. | 7Therefore, when all of the people "heard the sound of the trumpet, the flute, the lyre, the four-stringed lyre, and the harp, playing together along with various other instruments," all the "people, nations, and languages" began to fall down and worship the golden statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up. |
| 8Now at that time certain Chaldeans came forward and brought malicious accusations against the Jews. | 8Just then, certain influential Chaldeans took this opportunity to come forward and denounce the Jews. |
| 9They said to King Nebuchadnezzar, "O king, live forever! | 9They told King Nebuchadnezzar, "Your majesty, live forever. |
| 10You have issued an edict, O king, that everyone must bow down and pay homage to the golden statue when they hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, trigon, harp, pipes, and all kinds of music. | 10You, your majesty, issued this decree: 'Every man who hears the sound of the trumpet, the flute, the lyre, the four-stringed lyre, and the harp, playing together along with various other instruments is to fall down and worship the golden statue. |
| 11And whoever does not bow down and pay homage must be thrown into the midst of a furnace of blazing fire. | 11Whoever does not fall down and worship is to be thrown into a blazing fire furnace.' |
| 12But there are Jewish men whom you appointed over the administration of the province of Babylon--Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego--and these men have not shown proper respect to you, O king. They don't serve your gods and they don't pay homage to the golden statue that you have erected." | 12"Certain influential Jewish men whom you appointed to manage the city of Babylon—Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego—have neither paid attention to you, your majesty, nor served your gods. And they won't worship the golden statue that you set up." |
| 13Then Nebuchadnezzar in a fit of rage demanded that they bring Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego before him. So they brought them before the king. | 13Nebuchadnezzar flew into a rage and furiously ordered that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought before him. |
| 14Nebuchadnezzar said to them, "Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you don't serve my gods and that you don't pay homage to the golden statue that I erected? | 14Nebuchadnezzar asked them, "Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you don't worship my gods and that you don't worship the golden statue that has been set up? |
| 15Now if you are ready, when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, trigon, harp, pipes, and all kinds of music, you must bow down and pay homage to the statue that I had made. If you don't pay homage to it, you will immediately be thrown into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire. Now, who is that god who can rescue you from my power?" | 15Now, if you are ready at this very moment to obey 'the sound of the trumpet, the flute, the lyre, the four-stringed lyre, and the harp,' and worship the image that I have made… If you do not so worship, you will immediately have cast yourselves into the middle of the blazing fire, and what god is there who can deliver you from my power?" |
| 16Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied to King Nebuchadnezzar, "We do not need to give you a reply concerning this. | 16Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered King Nebuchadnezzar, "It's not necessary for us to respond in this matter. |
| 17If our God whom we are serving exists, he is able to rescue us from the furnace of blazing fire, and he will rescue us, O king, from your power as well. | 17Your majesty, if it be his will, our God whom we serve can deliver us from the blazing fire furnace, and he will deliver us from you. |
| 18But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we don't serve your gods, and we will not pay homage to the golden statue that you have erected." | 18But if not, rest assured, your majesty, that we won't serve your gods, and we won't worship the golden statue that you have set up." |
| 19Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with rage, and his disposition changed toward Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He gave orders to heat the furnace seven times hotter than it was normally heated. | 19Out of control with rage, Nebuchadnezzar's facial expression changed toward Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and he ordered that the furnace be heated seven times hotter than usual. |
| 20He ordered strong soldiers in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and to throw them into the furnace of blazing fire. | 20Then he issued orders to his elite guard to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego with ropes and throw them into the blazing fire furnace. |
| 21So those men were tied up while still wearing their cloaks, trousers, turbans, and other clothes, and were thrown into the furnace of blazing fire. | 21So the elite guard tied them up fully clothed, still wearing their robes, tunics, and turbans, and threw them into the blazing fire furnace, |
| 22But since the king's command was so urgent, and the furnace was so excessively hot, the men who escorted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were killed by the leaping flames. | 22because the king's command was so drastic. Since the furnace was blazing hot, its flames killed those who threw Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego into the blazing fire. |
| 23But those three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell into the furnace of blazing fire while still securely bound. | 23Bound firmly with ropes, these three men Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego fell into the blazing fire furnace. |
| 24Then King Nebuchadnezzar was startled and quickly got up. He said to his ministers, "Wasn't it three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?" They replied to the king, "For sure, O king." | 24Astonished, King Nebuchadnezzar stood up in terror, and asked his advisers, "Didn't we throw three men into the fire, bound firmly with ropes?" In reply they told the king, "Yes, your majesty." |
| 25He answered, "But I see four men, untied and walking around in the midst of the fire! No harm has come to them! And the appearance of the fourth is like that of a god!" | 25"Look!" he told them, "I see four men walking untied and unharmed in the middle of the fire, and the appearance of the fourth resembles a divine being." |
| 26Then Nebuchadnezzar approached the door of the furnace of blazing fire. He called out, "Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the most high God, come out! Come here!" Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego emerged from the fire. | 26Then Nebuchadnezzar approached the opening of the blazing fire furnace. He shouted out, "Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out and come here!" So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out of the fire. |
| 27Once the satraps, prefects, governors, and ministers of the king had gathered around, they saw that those men were physically unharmed by the fire. The hair of their heads was not singed, nor were their trousers damaged. Not even the smell of fire was to be found on them! | 27The regional authorities, viceroys, governors, and royal advisors gazed at those men and saw that the fire had no effect on their bodies—not a hair on their head was singed, their clothes were not burned, and they did not smell of fire. |
| 28Nebuchadnezzar exclaimed, "Praised be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent forth his angel and has rescued his servants who trusted in him, ignoring the edict of the king and giving up their bodies rather than serve or pay homage to any god other than their God! | 28Nebuchadnezzar spoke up and announced: "Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego! He sent his angel to deliver his servants who trusted in him. They disobeyed the king's command and were willing to risk their lives in order not to serve or worship any god except their own God. |
| 29I hereby decree that any people, nation, or language group that blasphemes the god of Shadrach, Meshach, or Abednego will be dismembered and his home reduced to rubble! For there exists no other god who can deliver in this way." | 29So I decree that people from any nation or language who say anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego will be destroyed and their house reduced to rubble, because there is no other god who can save like this." |
| 30Then Nebuchadnezzar promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon. | 30Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego within the province of Babylon. |
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