The
American
Wisdom Series
Presents
Pamphlet 5026 KC Daniel 9-1
Have you taken heed to the things
that are written in the Word of God...
all of it,
the
Old Testament too?
As we return to Daniel we find that there has been a big
gathering of the "princes, the governors, and captains, the judges, the
treasurers, the counsellors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces
(Dan. 3:3)", unto the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king
had set up.
And they all stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar
had set up.
Of course none of the servants of God attended that gathering
to participate in the dedication for even if they were invited to the gathering
they would not have gone.
Nevertheless, the king made a decree and had it proclaimed
to the "people, nations, and languages (Daniel 3:4)" that "at what time
they hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer,
and all kinds of musick, they are to fall down and worship the golden image
that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up (Daniel 3:5)".
There is only one problem with that
decree and that is that God's elect, the servants of the Most High God,
do not bow down to idols or graven images nor will they bow a knee to Baal
(Rom. 11).
Now there were a bunch of religious Chaldeans, no doubt
kenites, who spied out the servants of God, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego,
and had them delivered up to king Nebuchadnezzar after reminding him how
great he was and reinforcing the fact that if anyone dared not obey his
decree that they would be cast into a burning fiery furnace.
So here they are, God's elect, His
servants who have remained faithful to His Word and not partaken of the
king's meat nor drunk of his spiritually intoxicating wine.
Nebuchadnezzar now inquires of them
as he wants to hear it directly from the horse's mouth.
Daniel
3:14
Nebuchadnezzar
spake and said unto them, Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abed-nego, do not ye serve my gods, nor worship the golden image
which I have set up?
Nebuchadnezzar is willing to forgive and forget at
this point if they will simply fall in line with his decree and worship
his golden image and stop all this rightwing nonsense about serving only
the true God!
[15]
Now if ye be ready that at what time ye hear the sound of
the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds
of musick, ye fall down and worship the image which I have made;
well: but if ye worship not, ye shall be cast the same
hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; and who is
that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?
First of all, notice that Nebuchadnezzar is challenging
the authority and power of YHVH, Almighty God.
Whenever you see this take place know and understand that
this makes it God's business and He will surely deal with that leader as
He sees fit.
Secondly, notice that the casting
into the fiery furnace shall be in "the same hour" which is that final
hour of temptation spoken of in Rev. 3:10 and Rev. 17:12 because it
will be during that "hour" when the old dragon's (Satan's) fire will be
increased to the spiritual maximum (7 times hotter) when he and the
mightiest men of his army, those ten kings we have been learning about
who will take hold and try to bind up God's servants, are present when
the great gathering to the false bridegroom's wedding feast takes place
in Jerusalem (Mat. 24:28).
Let us also be reminded as we see these men of God delivered
up before the king of Babylon, that God's elect are instructed by Jesus
Christ NOT to premeditate about what they will say when they are delivered
up before antichrist and they are also instructed not to worry or be anxious.
Here is your documentation:
Mark
13:11
But when they
shall lead you, and deliver you up, take no thought beforehand what
ye shall speak, neither do ye premeditate: but whatsoever
shall be given you in that hour, that speak ye: for it is not ye that speak,
but the Holy Ghost.
Notice the definition of the Greek word "promerimnao"
translated "thought"!
thought, promerimnao, prom-er-im-nah'-o,
Greek 4305; from Greek 4253 (pro) and Greek 3309 (merimnao); to care
(anxiously) in advance :- take thought beforehand.
God's elect are to take no
careful thought in advance of what they are to say!
Now let's see what the three children of God, the meanings
of whose name's sum up their faith and trust in God, have to say to the
king of Babylon who has just threatened them to death.
In other words, they have been delivered up to death,
who is the king of Babylon of these last days!
[16]
Shadrach,
Meshach, and Abed-nego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar,
we are not careful to answer thee in this matter.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego did NOT premeditate
nor take "careful thought in advance" about what they were going
to say, did they?
Didn't even have to think about it!
Nor were they afraid or intimidated one bit!
Always remember this type for it
is given for our ensample upon whom the ends of the world are come (1 Cor.
10:13).
That's you and me!!!!, Don't you
know?
This is a type of the strong faith and richness of those
of the church of Smyrna who shall be delivered up and give "witness" to
the princes and rulers of all nations who shall see the power of the Holy
Spirit.
Let's listen to what else these faithful men of God have
to say:
[17]
If
it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us
from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver
us out of thine hand, O king.
That is being totally trusting and faithful unto
death!
Remember what Jesus Christ said to those of Smyrna, "...be
thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life (Rev. 2:10)."
I wonder if Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego will be rewarded
following this?
We will find out in the last verse of this chapter.
[18]
But
if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will
not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou
hast set up.
Well, they've done it now!
They have not only flat out refused to bow down and worship
the golden image but they have insulted king Nebuchadnezzar.
Time to turn the heat up on these boys and bind them up
and toss them in the fiery furnace.
[19]
Then was Nebuchadnezzar full of fury, and the form
of his visage was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego:
therefore he spake, and commanded that they should heat the furnace
one seven times more than it was wont to be heated.
The heat is being turned up to spiritual maximum...
for we know that the number "7" in Biblical numerics denotes spiritual
completeness.
This is an illustration of how great
the tribulation shall be when Satan and his mighty locust army are cast
out of heaven to this earth.
Now notice what the king of Babylon orders the "MOST MIGHTY
MEN" in "HIS ARMY" to do!
He orders them to "bind" the servants of God and then
"cast" them into the midst of the burning fiery furnace to destroy them.
[20]
And he commanded the most mighty men that were in his
army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, and
to cast them into the burning fiery furnace.
The most mighty men in Satan's
army will be his ten supernatural kings, those fallen angels of Genesis
6 who are cast out of heaven with him.
They are going to be used to "turn up the heat" on God's
elect and try to "bind" and "cast" them, as in to "cause them to fall"!
cast, remah, rem-aw', Hebrew
7412; (Chaldee); corresponding to Hebrew 7411 (ramah); to
throw, set, (figurative) assess :- cast (down), impose.
ramah, raw-maw', Hebrew 7411; a primitive root;
to hurl; specifically to shoot; figurative to delude or betray (as
if causing to fall) :- beguile, betray, [bow-] man, carry,
deceive,
throw.
Satan cannot bind up God's
elect and destroy them with his fire!
You "see", these servants of God
already have on the whole armour of God and are fully protected by the
Holy Spirit.
You might say as they do on Star Trek, their shields are
up and Satan's lasers, his fiery darts (Eph. 6: 16) cannot penetrate their
shield of faith.
To that end, you will find them
fully dressed in their gospel armor in the next verse.
[21]
Then these men were bound in their coats, their hosen, and their hats,
and their other garments, and were cast into the midst of the burning fiery
furnace.
Again, this is an ensample
of what Satan and his angels will try to do to God's elect, those who simply
will not bow a knee to his golden image, the facade that he is God!
Are you prepared to take a stand?
God is looking for a few good men and women who are called,
and chosen, and faithful.
Actually, He knows right where they are for He Himself
sent them and commissioned them and had them fully trained and outfitted
to engage in the great spiritual warfare of these last days... and they
will take a stand!
Here are Paul's instructions to
those who desire to stand against the wiles of Satan.
Ephes.
6:11-16
Put on the whole
armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against
the wiles of the devil.
[12]
For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities,
against powers, against the rulers of the darkness
of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
Again, we are here to engage
in spiritual warfare!
[13]
Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able
to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
The "evil day" is that one
hour when the great dragon and his angels are cast out of heaven to this
earth (Rev. 12:7-9) and the spiritual furnace is turned up seven times
hotter than it is won't to be.
[14]Stand
therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having
on the breastplate of righteousness;
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego sure took a stand,
didn't they?
And you know what?
It was their garments they had on, symbolic
of the gospel armor, that enabled them to withstand the fire of
the wicked one.
[15]
And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were spiritually
prepared by consuming pulse and water for three years plus, remember?
[16]
Above
all, taking the shield of faith,
wherewith ye shall
be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
How dressed are you in the
wisdom and knowledge of your Father's Word?
Paul defines "faith" in Hebrews 11:1 as "hupo-stasis"
or "sub-stance".
In other words, it is that which is under (sub, hupo)
you upon which you stand.
If you stand upon the Rock, meaning
your faith comes from knowing and understanding the Word of God, then you
stand firm and solid.
If you think you have faith but
you are ignorant of your Father's Word and follow after the traditions
of men, then the foundation under you is nothing but sand and you
will fall down in the great spiritual deception of antichrist.
In fact Paul tells us in 1 Cor. 10:11-13 that if you think
you stand, i.e. are in good standing with God, yet you have not taken heed
to the things that are written for our ensamples upon whom the ends of
the world are come, then will fall indeed!
1 Cor.
10:11-13
Now all
these things happened unto them for ensamples: and
they are written for our admonition, upon whom the
ends of the world are come.
[12] Whereforelet
him that thinketh he standeth take
heed lest he fall.
Do you think you stand?
Have you taken heed to the things
that are written in the Word of God... all of it, the Old Testament too?
Daniel
3:22
Therefore because
the king's commandment was urgent, and the furnace exceeding hot, the
flame of the fire slew those men that took up Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abed-nego.
This is interesting in that the "most mighty men"
of Satan's army, the fallen angels, are destroyed when Jesus Christ returns
at the sound of the 7th Trump (Rev. 11:13).
[23]
And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, fell down bound
into the midst of the burning fiery furnace.
Not to worry, the Lord is with them!
You "see", He has been with them all along... the evidence
of which was even seen when He intervened and "brought Daniel into favour
and tender love with the prince of the eunuchs (Dan. 1:9)" that led to
them being able to receive pulse and water.
God takes care of His own, those
who love and serve Him.
You know, there is an apocryphal book called "The Song
of the Three Children" which you will find in the original 1611 King James
Bible and even in the Septuagint.
Though it is not canonized you can still
read it for it contains the beautiful prayers of Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abednego when they were cast into the burning fiery furnace.
Here are the first few verses from that book:
[1]
And
they walked in the midst of the fire, praising God, and blessing the Lord.
[2] Then Azarias
stood up, and prayed on this manner; and opening his mouth in the midst
of the fire said,
[3] Blessed
art thou, O Lord God of our fathers - thy name is worthy to be praised
and glorified for evermore:
[4] For thou
art righteous in all the things that thou hast done to us - yea, true
are all thy works, thy ways are right, and all thy judgments
truth.
The interesting thing about that fourth verse is
that is
exactly what the overcomers of the beast and of his
image are singing in Rev. 15 taken from the Song of Moses.
Remember, Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abednego are types of God's elect in these last days who overcome the beast
and his image... and they did!
Rev.
15:2
And I saw as
it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them
that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his
image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand
on the sea of glass, having the harps of God.
Here is what they will be singing.
Rev.
15:3
And they sing
the
song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb,
saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty;
just
and true are thy ways, thou King of saints.
Compare that with verse four
of the Song of the Three Children.
Pretty amazing, isn't it?
Daniel
3:24
Then Nebuchadnezzar
the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, and spake, and said unto his
counsellors, Did not we cast three men bound into the
midst of the fire? They answered and said unto the king, True,
O king.
Old Nebuchadnezzar just can't believe his eyes!
[25]
He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose , walking
in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt ; and the
form of the fourth is like the Son of God.
It was like the Son of God... because was the Son
of God who would eventually come and pay the price.
It was Melchisedek, which means KING of the JUST. "Melchi"
is king and "zadok" is just!
And the Zadok were just "bound"
and "cast" into Satan's fiery furnace but his binding could not hold them
and his fire had no effect on them whatsoever.
You "see", Satan cannot bind God's
elect for they are loosed of his bonds by Jesus Christ and Satan's fire
has no power over them for it cannot penetrate the Holy Spirit
that protects them.
To the contrary, God's elect are
given power over Satan and over all our enemies (Luke 10:19)!
Daniel
3:26
Then Nebuchadnezzar
came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and spake, and said,
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, ye servants of the most high God, come
forth, and come hither. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, came
forth of the midst of the fire.
Seems Nebuchadnezzar the man returned to his senses,
once again recognizing the most high God.
Remember, though God uses him as a type to teach us, Nebuchadnezzar
himself will be converted and even write one of the most beautiful prayers
in God's Word.
[27]
And the princes, governors, and captains, and the king's counsellors, being
gathered together, saw these men, upon whose bodies
the fire had no power, nor was an hair of their head singed,
neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of
fire had passed on them.
Notice that the princes, governors, and captains,
and the king's counsellors, all those gathered together,
SAW THESE MEN!
They saw how the power of Satan's fire had no affect on
them and not an hair on their heads was singed.
You "see", Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego gave WITNESS
unto the power and strength and glory of Almighty God!
And one other thing.
We already documented that Jesus
Christ had the Book of Daniel on His mind in Matthew 24 and Mark 13 when
He told us to go read it for understanding concerning the arrival of the
abomination of desolation.
Well, Luke 21 which also contains
the account of His Olivet teaching concerning the events of the final generation,
also show He had the Book of Daniel on His mind.
Here is what He said concerning the delivering up (you
can go read it in context for yourself):
Luke
21:18
But there shall
not
an hair of your head perish.
And so it was that not an hair of their head perished
or was even singed.
Then too, not even the smell of the smoke from the
pit did cling to their garments.
Daniel
3:28
Then Nebuchadnezzar
spake, and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego,
who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted
in him, and have changed the king's word, and yielded their
bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their
own God.
God's Word overrules and makes void the words of
man... even if the man is the most powerful ruler in the world.
[29]
Therefore I make a decree, That every people, nation, and language, which
speak any thing amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego,
shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made a dunghill: because
there is no other God that can deliver after this sort.
God loves and protects His
own.
You can count on it.
So do count on it!
[30]
Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego,
in the province of Babylon.
Hey, they received new crowns in the kingdom.
What a type we have seen here with these three servants
of Yahveh.
Our Father blesses and rewards His children who love and
serve Him.
Of course the big promotion and
crown they receive is the promotion (raising) to Eternal Life.
Let's conclude today's study with the following verses
from Romans chapter eight concerning those who have a destiny, those who
are called according to His purpose.
Romans
8:30
Moreover whom
He did predestinate, them He also called: and whom He called, them He also
justified: and whom He justified, them He also glorified.
[31] What
shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against
us?
The answer is NO ONE!
Not even Satan and his angelic host can come against God's
elect!
[32]
He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall
he not with him also freely give us all things?
[33] Who
shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth.
[34] Who
is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen
again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh
intercession for us.
There is only one mediator and intercessor now between
God and man, and that our Rock, Jesus Christ our Lord and High Priest,
who sits at Father's right hand.
1 Tim. 2:5 "For there is one God, and one mediator between
God and men, the man Christ Jesus."
Now consider carefully the next few verses.
Romans
8:35
Who shall separate
us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution,
or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
[36]
As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted
as sheep for the slaughter.
[37] Nay,
in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him
that loved us.
It is not our power but HIS
POWER than gives us the victory.
[38]
For
I
am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels,
nor principalities, nor powers, nor things
present, nor things to come,
These cannot separate us because it precisely these
things we WAR AGAINST!
Remember Eph. 6:12?
"For we wrestle not against flesh
and blood, but against
principalities, against powers,
against the
rulers of the darkness of this world, against
spiritual
wickedness in high places."
[39]
Nor
height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us
from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
We have the victory in Him!
Praise God for "Great
and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and
true are thy ways, thou King of saints."
Live Link to- The Book of Daniel Table of ContentsIt is important that YOU Read it all!
Jesus said, "the book of Daniel
was where one could go read and gain understanding"
Jesus Christ told us in Matthew
24 and Mark 13 when He sat upon the Mount of Olives and gave His disciples
the seven seals concerning the knowledge and the events that would transpire
during the final generation of the fig tree, that the book of Daniel was
where one could go read and gain understanding concerning
the abomination of desolation, that abominable desolator (antichrist)
who would come stand in the holy place claiming to be God.
The book of Daniel is the Apocalypse of the Old Testament
and
a sister book to the Apocalypse of the New Testament,
the
book of Revelation. To study the Bible is the noblest of all pursuits;
to understand it, the highest of all goals.
We pray that with the guidance of the Holy
Spirit, you accomplish both.
The
"American
Wisdom Series"
is
Published
by:
Rhine
Publishing Co.
E-mail address - americanwisdomseries@verizon.net
If you would like to have your essay
published
as part of the American Wisdom
Series
submit your manuscript to Rhine
Publishing Co
at the address above for consideration,
or e-mail us
at the address shown on our home
page.
Click
Here to Return to
"The American Wisdom Series" home
page.