![]() ![]() ![]() Abraham left this place, the cradle of civilization, to go to an unknown and, as yet, undesignated place, where God was to bless him and others through him (Genesis 11:27–12:3).Ĭenturies later, after countless warnings from God through the prophets, Israel was taken captive and dispersed by Assyria. Abraham was commanded to leave Ur of the Chaldeans, a place within the range perhaps of your tank’s cannon. The place became known as Babel (later Babylon), which meant confusion (Genesis 11:5-9). God frustrated and ended their efforts by confusing their language and scattering them. They intended to build not only a city, but a tower of bricks and stone with tar as mortar (Genesis 11:3-4). Centuries ago, about the time of Abraham, men concentrated themselves in a city on the plain in Shinar (Genesis 11:1-2). Near here, or nearby, Nimrod built the city of Babel, and the kingdom of Babylon had its birth (Genesis 10:8-10). Imagine tank tracks in the Garden of Eden! The Garden of Eden may have been near this spot (Genesis 2:10-15). As you fire rockets, taking out a bridge over the Euphrates River, you recall that here, or nearby, is where it all began. As part of a tank battalion, you are scanning the landscape for enemy troops. Imagine for a moment that you are an American soldier sent to the Middle East during the Persian Gulf War to liberate Kuwait. The same stage upon which today’s events are being played is also the setting of past biblical events. Carefully consider the words of Daniel 3 and look to God’s Spirit to enlighten your mind’s understanding and to quicken your heart’s belief and application. The message of our text is as vital to Christians today as it was to the Israelite of old. Our study will consider this text in light of both its context in the Book of Daniel and in the history of Israel. We must feel the heat of that fire and smell the smoke of that ancient furnace. We must see this event as history, not fairy tale. ![]() My goal is to challenge your childhood perception of this favorite and familiar story. But many of us have heard this story so often in Sunday School that we may have lumped Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego with Cinderella, Hansel and Gretel, and Goldilocks and the Three Bears. They, at least, are conscious of their perspective on this passage. Christians, and many others, know the stories of David and Goliath, Samson and Delilah, and Jonah and the “whale.” We may fail to grasp the meaning and message they were intended to convey because of our superficial understanding of the characters and events.Ī second barrier is our mentally filing the story of these three Hebrews under the category of “fairy tale” or “myth.” Some commentators candidly admit, even advocate, that this story is merely a myth, and not history. In the same way, familiar passages of Scripture may receive less of our attention. Because we are so familiar with the area, we pay less attention. We are told automobile accidents often happen close to home. Who does not know how these three Hebrews were cast into the fiery furnace and came out alive? Familiarity with the story of the fiery furnace is one of two major obstacles which prevents us from benefitting from this passage as we should. The story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego is a story we all know well. (Nebuchadnezzar Puts the Heat on the Hebrews) Introduction ![]()
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