Fiery furnace
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The fiery furnace is a story from the Book of Daniel (chapter 3) in the Tanakh / Old Testament. The story is well-known among Jews and Christians.
In the story, Hananiah (Shadrach), Mishael (Meshach), and Azariah (Abednego), defy King Nebuchadnezzar's order that they bow down and worship a golden idol, a cult image of Nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadnezzar, in a rage, orders the boys thrown into a furnace, but they are miraculously unharmed by the flames and survive the experience unscathed. Nebuchadnezzar sees them walking around in the furnace along with an unnamed fourth figure. After the three youths emerge, Nebuchadnezzar orders everyone to worship their God instead of the golden idol.
The Septuagint version of this story adds two additional portions to the story that take place while the three youths are inside the furnace. In the Prayer of Azariah, Azariah confesses their sins and the sins of Israel, and asks God to save them to demonstrate his power to the Babylonians. It is followed by an account of an angel coming and making the inside of the furnace feel like a cool breeze over dew, and an extended song of praise to God for delivering them.
The song of the three youths is alluded to in odes seven and eight of the canon, a hymn sung in the matins service and on other occasions in the Eastern Orthodox Church, where their feast day is December 17 (along with Daniel). The reading of the story of the fiery furnace, including the song, is prescribed for the vesperal Divine Liturgy celebrated by the Orthodox on Holy Saturday. Likewise, the three are commemorated as prophets in the Calendar of Saints of the Lutheran Church on December 17 with Daniel.
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[edit] Characters
[edit] Shadrach
Hananiah (Hebrew for "Yahweh is gracious") is a Hebrew boy in the Book of Daniel in the Bible, whom Nebuchadnezzar names Shadrach.
- Introduced in Daniel 1 as one of the nobles
- Taken captive by the Babylonian army after they conquered Judah
- Brought to Babylon to be re-educated as a Babylonian and serve in the court
- Renamed Shadrach (an honorific for a Babylonian god)
- Along with his companions Daniel (Babylonian name: Belteshazzar), Mishael (Babylonian name: Meshach), and Azariah (Abednego), refused the king's meats and kept Kosher by eating only vegetables, a way of resisting compromise and maintaining his Jewish identity
- Along with Mishael and Azariah, refused to bow down to the golden idol of King Nebuchadnezzar, leading to the episode of the fiery furnace
[edit] Meshach
Meshach (me-shack) is the name given in Babylon to Mishael, one of the three young Hebrew companions of Daniel (Daniel 1:7; 2:49; 3:12-30). It is likely based on a name of a Chaldean (Babylonian) god. It also means "to feed" or "to provide" (as in how a husband would provide for his family) in Hebrew.
Meshach (possibly, Mi·sha·aku), apparently a clever twist of "Who Is Like God?" to "Who Is What Aku Is?"
[edit] Abednego
Abednego (Hebrew עֲבֵד־נְגוֹ, Standard Hebrew ʿAved-nəgo, Tiberian Hebrew ʿĂḇēḏ-nəḡô) is the name given in Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar to Azariah, one of the companions of Daniel (Daniel 1:7). It is perhaps a corruption, perhaps deliberate, of either Abednebo, "servant of Nebo," or Abednergo, for Abednergal, "servant of the god Nergal."
[edit] King Nebuchadnezzar
[edit] Influence
- The story of the fiery furnace is alluded to in the song "Shadrach" on the Beastie Boys' 1989 album Paul's Boutique.[1]
- The story is also a somewhat common theme within Reggae music.
- The story of the fiery furnace is chronicled in the Johnny Cash song named The Fourth Man in the Fire
- The story was featured for the Veggie Tales video Rack, Shack and Benny.
- Author William Vollman presents an idiosyncratic take on this tale to express the color orange in the short story "Scintillant Orange" in his collection The Rainbow Stories.
- In the October 1998 issue of Scientific American magazine, Carolyn P. Meiner wrote a story, "How Hackers Break In... and How They Are Caught", about a hacker who used the alias "Abednego".
- In the song 'Loose Booty' by Sly and the Family Stone, the names Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego are repeatedly sung.
- In Toni Morrison's Sula there is a character named Shadrack who is interpreted as a prophet.
[edit] See also
- The Prayer of Azariah and Song of the Three Holy Children
- The Burning Fiery Furnace
- Book of Daniel
- Nebuchadrezzar II
[edit] External links
- Bible Stories for Kids - The Fiery Furnace, modern Christian telling of the story for children
- Biblical Art on the WWW, illustrations of the story
- Chananya, Mishael, and Azarya - The Fiery Furnace. From Talks and Tales by Nissan Mindel at Chabad.org
- Lessons on Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Teaching the Story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
- October 1998 Scientific American Magazine
