The Book of Prophet Daniel
Chapter 3
¹ King Nebuchadnezzar made a golden statue whose height was sixty cubits and whose width was six cubits; he set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon. ² Then King Nebuchadnezzar sent for the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the counsellors, the treasurers, the justices, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces, to assemble and come to the dedication of the statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
(The Book of the Prophet Daniel Chapter 3 verses 1 to 2)
Oh God my Father in the name of human rights we have the right of freedom of expression. As in the case of the king who chose to express himself by informing all his officials and people of high ranking of the great sin that he was going to commit. The statue that he constructed was to be given adoration and sacrificial offerings. Even though Daniel the prophet had warned him by means of the interpretation of the dream the King pursued his dream and made the golden statue. At times even though You give us a clear indication of what is according to Your will and what is not we still end up pursuing our ambitions and desires. I pray that during such moments we seek Your counsel and not that of the world Amen.
Oh God my Father in the name of human rights we have the right of freedom of expression. As in the case of the king who chose to express himself by informing all his officials and people of high ranking of the great sin that he was going to commit. The statue that he constructed was to be given adoration and sacrificial offerings. Even though Daniel the prophet had warned him by means of the interpretation of the dream the King pursued his dream and made the golden statue. At times even though You give us a clear indication of what is according to Your will and what is not we still end up pursuing our ambitions and desires. I pray that during such moments we seek Your counsel and not that of the world Amen.
³ So the satraps, the prefects and the governors, the counsellors, the treasurers, the justices, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces, assembled for the dedication of the statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up. When they were standing before the statue that Nebuchadnezzar had set up, ⁴ the herald proclaimed aloud. "You are commanded, O peoples, nations, and languages, ⁵ that when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, drum, and entire musical ensemble, you are to fall down and worship the golden statue that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up.
(The Book of the Prophet Daniel Chapter 3 verses 3 to 5)
Oh God, my Father, this is a perfect example of classical conditioning meaning stimulus-response as in the case of the dogs of Pavlov, who salivated when exposed to the stimulus. This happens to us in a different way when we are exposed to the media and other ways of the world Amen. We are convinced to go against our values and beliefs in order to imitate the stimuli of our times which could be anything such as fashion divorce among others. Amen.
⁶Whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately be thrown into a furnace of blazing fire."
(The Book of the Prophet Daniel Chapter 3 verses 3 to 6)
During our times my God and Father, we do not use fire. Instead, we use our tongues. If one does not fit with the norms of our society or faith we slander and stigmatize that person for life until his life becomes unbearable Amen. May we always be aware of the consequences of what we say about others Amen.
⁷ Therefore, as soon as all the peoples heard the sound of the horn, pipe lyre, trigon, harp, drum, and entire musical ensemble, all the peoples, nations and languages fell down and worshipped the golden statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
(The Book of the Prophet Daniel Chapter 3 verse 7)
Oh God, it is the same thing in Church. When people listen to the incantation; Ora pro-Nobis they all answer automatically without knowing what they are saying it becomes an automatic response. I pray that my prayers are never stereotyped but from the heart Amen.
⁸ Accordingly at this time certain Chaldeans came forward and denounced the Jews.
(The Book of the Prophet Daniel Chapter 3 verse 8)
Oh God my Father, for some reason or other as Catholics or Roman Catholics, we will always be criticized by the seemingly perfect world that we are not living according to its standards, however, what is not of the world cannot be expected to live like those who are of the world and vice versa Amen.
⁹ They said to King Nebuchadnezzar, "O king, live forever! ¹⁰ You, O king, have made a decree, that everyone who hears the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, drum, and entire musical ensemble, shall fall down and worship the golden statue, ¹¹ and whoever does not fall down and worship shall be thrown into a furnace of blazing fire.
(The Book of the Prophet Daniel Chapter 3 verses 9 to 11)
Oh God, my Father, even the Devil knows how to quote scripture and manipulate it with bad intentions as much as these people were citing this rule to use it against the Jews. I pray that we do not take our religious life lightly and become lax, for others will judge us on our behaviour Amen.
¹² There are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the affairs of the province of Babylon; Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These pay no heed to you. O king. They do not serve your gods and they do not worship the golden statue that you have set up."
(The Book of the Prophet Daniel Chapter 3 verse 12)
Oh God, my Father I wonder what the evil one would say if he were to make a report to You against me. I have an idea of what he would include. I pray that You oppose him and stand up for me, for at first he persuades me and my brain to sin and then he accuses me of the same sins Amen.
¹³ٰ Then Nebuchadnezzar in furious rage commanded that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought in; so they brought those men before the king. ¹⁴ Nebuchadnezzar said to them, "Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods and you do not worship the golden statue that I have set up? ¹⁵ Now if you are ready when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, drum, and entire musical ensemble to fall down and worship the statue that I have made, well and good. But if you do not worship, you shall immediately be thrown into a furnace of blazing fire, and who is the god that will deliver you out of my hands?"
(The Book of the Prophet Daniel Chapter 3 verses 13 to 15)
Oh God, my Father, this is one of the greatest temptations or challenges that the world imposes on us, that of either agree and accept its ways or else be socially excluded. Even if it comes to that Oh God my Father, I prefer to be excluded than to go against Your ways Amen.
¹⁶ Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to present a defence to you in this matter. ¹⁷ If our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire and out of your hand, O king, let him deliver us. ¹⁸ But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods and we will not worship the golden statue that you have set up."
(The Book of the Prophet Daniel Chapter 3 verses 16 to 18)
Oh God, my Father I pray for such nerve-shattering faith that is more powerful than any blazing fire made by man. Amen. Indeed I pray for such faith Amen.
¹⁹ Then Nebuchadnezzar was so filled with rage against Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego that his face was distorted. He ordered the furnace heated up seven times more than customary, ²⁰ and ordered some of the strongest guards in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abdenego and to throw them into the furnace of blazing fire.
(The Book of the Prophet Daniel Chapter 3 verses 19 to 20)
Oh God, my Father, I pray that You give us more control over our emotions because in the heat of the moment we can make many bad decisions and many people including ourselves can end up being hurt Amen. Oh God, my Father save us from our sinful selves Amen!
²ⁱ So the men were bound, still wearing their tunics, their trousers, their hats, and their other garments, and they were thrown into the furnace of blazing fire.
(The Book of the Prophet Daniel Chapter 3 verse 21)
Oh God, my Father, even though You permit us to experience crisis and tribulation, You do not place us in a position where our human dignity is placed at risk. Amen.
²² Because the king's command was urgent and the furnace was so overheated, the raging flames killed the men who lifted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
(The Book of the Prophet Daniel Chapter 3 verse 22)
Oh God my Father many times people experience negative consequences due to the wrong decisions of others and there is a ripple effect. I pray for the wisdom to make good decisions so that nobody will suffer the negative consequences of such decisions Amen.
²³ But the three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abdenego, fell down bound, into the furnace of blazing fire.
(The Book of the Prophet Daniel Chapter 3 verse 23)
Oh God, my Father, I thank You for protecting me from the raging fires of this world, for the evil one never takes a break in trying to tempt us to sin and its negative ways Amen.
²⁴ Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished and rose up quickly. He said to his counsellors, "Was it not three men that we threw bound into the fire?" They answered the king, "True, O king" ²⁵ He replied, "But I see four men unbound, walking in the middle of the fire, and they are not hurt; and the fourth has the appearance of a god."
(The Book of the Prophet Daniel Chapter 3 verses 24 to 25)
Oh God, my Father, I thank You for intervening in our lives directly and even indirectly. Thank You for taking control of our misery and change them to positive situations. I also thank You for the conversion of many who are positively influenced by the changes that they see manifested in other Amen.
²⁵ He replied, "But I see four men unbound, walking in the middle of the fire, and they are not hurt; and the fourth has the appearance of a god."
(The Book of the Prophet Daniel Chapter 3 verse 25)
Oh God, You are with us all the time, however, we do not always see You, however when the period of testing arrives, Your presence becomes more present and apparent. I thank You for being there my God and Father Amen.
²⁶ Nebuchadnezzar then approached the door of the furnace of blazing fire and said, "Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here! So shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out from the fire.
(The Book of the Prophet Daniel Chapter 3 verse 26)
Oh God, my Father You know each of us by our name which means personally, You know when it is time for us to be tested and also the time of our deliverance Amen. Blessed be Your Name and may Your will always be done Amen.
²⁷ And the satraps, the prefects, the governors, and the king's counselors gathered together and saw that the fire had not had any power over the bodies of those men; the hair of their heads was not singed, their tunics were not harmed, and not even the smell of fire came from them.
(The Book of the Prophet Daniel Chapter 3 verse 27)
Oh God, You are our avenger. You fight for us against our enemies, You save our face before those who plan to harm us. Amen Yours is the victory, and glory forever Amen.
²⁸ Nebuchadnezzar said, "Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his angel and delivered his servants who trusted in him. They disobeyed the king's command and yielded up their bodies rather than serve and worship any god except their own God.
(The Book of the Prophet Daniel Chapter 3 verse 28)
How beautiful are the blessings especially those that come from non-believers, for such people are evidence of Your presence in the world Amen because such blessings do not come from the hearts of men alone but as a consequence of the presence of the Holy Spirit who lives and is present in each and every one of us Amen.
²⁹ Therefore I make a decree; Any people, nation, or language that utters blasphemy against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego shall be torn limb from limb, and their houses laid in ruins; for there is no other god who is able to deliver in this way." ³⁰Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the province of Babylon.
(The Book of the Prophet Daniel Chapter 3 verses 29 to 30)
Oh God, my Father, nobody can ever experience Your love power and glory and remain untouched or unaffected by it. Amen.
Dear God and Father I would like to end this meditation on this third chapter of the book of the prophet Daniel with the following prayer:-
Oh, brothers and sisters, I pray that we be constantly aware of the idols that we can create in our lives, ranging from pop stars, football players, singers and even our sons and daughters and moreover our jobs and our own selves. I pray that nobody and nothing will ever take the place of our God and Father blessed be Your Name forever and ever Amen.
