Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego

Biblical Account

The three were youths of the royal family and nobility of Judah who were carried off to Babylon together with Daniel during the reign of King Nebuchadnezzar. Their original names were Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, but the prince of the eunuchs gave them the Babylonian names Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, respectively (Daniel 1:6–7).

• Refusal of the king's food (Daniel 1): Together with Daniel, they resolved not to defile themselves with the king's food and wine, and they ate only vegetables and drank only water. After ten days their countenances appeared fairer, and when their training was complete, the king judged them superior to all the others.
• Prayer for the interpretation of the dream (Daniel 2): When the wise men faced death because of the king's dream, Daniel asked his three friends to join him in seeking mercy from God (2:17–18). Afterward, at Daniel's request, the three were appointed over the affairs of the province of Babylon (2:49).
• The fiery furnace (Daniel 3): The king set up a golden image sixty cubits high on the plain of Dura and commanded all officials to bow down to it, but the three refused. Before the king they declared that God was able to deliver them, yet affirmed, "But if not," they still would not worship the image (3:16–18). They were thrown into a furnace heated seven times hotter than usual, but the king saw four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire. The three came out without a hair of their heads singed and without even the smell of fire on them. The king praised their God and promoted the three men (Daniel 3:24–28). This episode is also known as the fiery furnace incident.

After chapter 3, their names do not appear again in Scripture.

Significance Within Scripture

The story is read as an example of faith that rejects idolatry and serves God alone, even in a foreign land. The New Testament does not mention the three by name. However, the phrase "quenched the violence of fire" (Hebrews 11:34) is commonly understood to refer to them (Hebrews 11:33–38).

Interpretations and Points of Debate

• The fourth man in the fire: The king said that the form of the fourth was "like the Son of God" (3:25; many translations render it "a son of the gods"). Some interpret this as a preincarnate appearance of Christ, while others, citing the king's later statement that God "hath sent his angel" (3:28), regard the figure as an angel. Views divide along the lines of individual interpreters rather than denominations.
• Daniel's absence: The text does not explain why Daniel does not appear in chapter 3. Explanations such as his being away on official business are speculative.
• Additional passages: The Septuagint version of Daniel contains additional material: the "Prayer of Azariah," offered in the fire, and the "Song of the Three Young Men." The Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church accept these as part of Scripture, while Protestants classify them as apocryphal and exclude them from the canon.
• Disobedience to authority: The account is often cited alongside Acts 5:29 as an example of obeying God rather than the commands of state power.

In the Korean Church

The phrase "But if not" is frequently quoted in sermons on a faith that holds firm regardless of whether prayers are answered. Preachers also often connect the account with the history of refusal to take part in Shinto shrine worship during the Japanese colonial period. In Sunday school, the story, along with the other accounts of Daniel, is a staple of children's lessons.