The Fiery Furnace From the Old Testament book of Daniel

King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon conquered many nations, including Egypt and Judah. He took the people of Judah captive and robbed their temple. The king made a large gold statue and commanded everyone to worship it, but three young men refused because they worshipped the true God. The king threatened to throw them into a fiery furnace, but they remained faithful. The king heated the furnace even more and threw the men in, but they were unharmed. The king praised God and promoted the men to high positions. The Fiery Furnace from the Old Testament Book of Daniel. There was a great king of Babylon named Nebuchadnezzar who fought with all the nations round about and conquered them. He conquered Egypt and he conquered the kingdom of Judah. He took the king of Judah and blinded him and carried him off to Babylon. He robbed Jerusalem and God's temple of the gold and silver and everything precious that it contained and took thousands of the people away from their homes to Babylon. And he was so proud that he thought himself as great as a god. One day he caused a huge image of gold to be made and set it up on the plain and commanded that all the nations round about should come and as soon as they heard the sound of music they were to fall down and worship the image. But three of the children of Judah who had been carried away from Jerusalem worshipped the true God and though they stood on the plain and heard the music and saw everyone falling down before the image they stood upright and would not bow. Then someone went and told the king who was very angry. He called the three young men to him and told them that if they did not fall down in worship the next time they heard the music they would be cast into a burning fiery furnace. But the young men loved the true God better than their lives and they faced the great king bravely as they answered, Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace and he will deliver us out of your hand O king. But even if not be it known unto you O king that we will not serve your gods nor worship the golden image which you have set up. Then the king was filled with fury and he commanded that the furnace should now be heated seven times more than it was normally heated and ordered the most mighty men that were in his army to bind the three young men and cast them into the burning fiery furnace. So the soldiers bound the three young men and cast them into the furnace and the furnace was so terribly hot that the flame shot forth and slew the very soldiers who cast the men into it. The king now thought that he had got rid of everyone who would not bow down to his image but as he stared into the furnace a great fear seized him and he cried to his counselors, Did we not cast three men into the midst of the fire? They answered, True O king. The Nebuchadnezzar cried, 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. Then the king went near to the mouth of the furnace and called to the three young men to come forth. So they came forth and stood before the king and everyone saw that there was not a hair of their head singed and their clothes were not spoiled and there was not even the smell of fire upon them. Then the king was so astonished that he praised and blessed the Lord God of Israel and made a decree that everyone was to worship him for he said, There is no other God that can deliver in such a way. Then he promoted the three brave men to be governors in Babylon.