Daniel 3:1-7 – Expect to be tested

The lesson we cannot ignore in Daniel 3 is that believers in the Sovereign God must exercise faith and stand firm unwaveringly as His witness in the face of a fiery trial. This chapter describes the testing of Daniel's three friends, Hananiah, Misheal, and Azariah. They are addressed by their Babylonian names: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego.

In Daniel 3:1-7, Nebuchadnezzar, the monarch who dreamed of the colossal statue with a head of gold, decided to build a golden statue himself. We are not told whether it was built with pure gold or just one plated with gold, but we are told it was sixty cubits or the equivalent of ninety feet tall and six cubits or about nine feet wide.

We are also not told how he was inspired to build it, but he probably wanted to be worshiped like the figure he had built. How far apart the building of this golden image from his dream described in Daniel 2 is unknown. However, his desire could have come from the interpretation that he is the head of the gold of the image of his dream.

With the massive golden statue set in Dura, a plain in Babylon, the king invited all his officials to its dedication. So, all "the satraps, the prefects and the governors, the counselors, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all the rulers of the provinces assembled" came for the dedication service.

As the thong of people stood before the golden image, the herald proclaimed loudly. It was the king's decree saying, "…O peoples, nations, and men of every language, …at the moment you hear the sound of the horn, flute, lyre, trigon, psaltery, bagpipe, and all kinds of music, you are to fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king has set up." It further decreed that whoever would not comply with the order would be immediately cast into a fiery furnace.

As if it was a trial run, verse 7 says that all the musical instruments sounded according to what was decreed. Every citizen under Nebuchadnezzar's domain complied. They all fell to their knees and worshipped the golden image. The three friends of Daniel are not mentioned here, but we can anticipate what is coming and guess how they would respond.

Testing of our faith and trust in God will undoubtedly happen. The issue is, "How will we respond when a fiery trial comes upon us?" Some people ask for trials to be removed and miss the golden opportunity to build their character. We should not dodge trials but instead ask God's grace to face them. When we come through a trial with God, we will go forth pure as gold. Know that His grace is sufficient for us, and His strength is perfected through testing. Trust God to see us through! Their stand.