Discovery BoxDaniel 3:19-22 
Context3:19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with rage, and his disposition changed 1 toward Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He gave orders 2 to heat the furnace seven times hotter than it was normally heated. 3:20 He ordered strong 3 soldiers in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and to throw them into the furnace of blazing fire. 3:21 So those men were tied up while still wearing their cloaks, trousers, turbans, and other clothes, 4 and were thrown into the furnace 5 of blazing fire. 3:22 But since the king’s command was so urgent, and the furnace was so excessively hot, the men who escorted 6 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were killed 7 by the leaping flames. 8
1 tn Aram “the appearance of his face was altered”; cf. NLT “his face became distorted with rage”; NAB “[his] face became livid with utter rage.”
2 tn Aram “he answered and said.”
3 tn This is sometimes taken as a comparative: “[some of the] strongest.”
4 sn There is a great deal of uncertainty with regard to the specific nature of these items of clothing.
5 tn Aram “into the midst of the furnace.” For stylistic reasons the words “the midst of” have been left untranslated.
6 tn Aram “caused to go up.”
7 tn The Aramaic verb is active.
8 tn Aram “the flame of the fire” (so KJV, ASV, NASB); NRSV “the raging flames.”
