Daniel 3:16-18 NKJV [16] Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. [17] If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. [18] But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.”
- The phrase “if it be so” is the Aramaic word “hen.”If what be so? In verse 15 these men of God are threatened with being cast into the furnace. Their reply “if it be so” is referring to the threat. “If it be so that you throw us into the furnace…”
- They then continue:“But if not.” But if not what? The Aramaic words here are “hen la.” The “la” is the negative added to the original “hen.” Hen = if it be so. Hen la = if it be not so. The original declaration was in regards to the threat. The following “hen la” refers to the same threat!
This is what is being said:
- “If it be so that you throw us into the furnace, our God will deliver us.
- If it be not so (if you change your mind and don’t throw us in the furnace) be it known to you that we still won’t serve your gods…”
Their declaration is a declaration of faith. “God WILL deliver us. And if you change your mind, King, be sure that we still won’t worship your gods.”
- This is what made Nebuchadnezzar that angry.
This is what they really said. Don’t let tradition rob you of a powerful example of faith and deliverance!
Know your Bible, Renew your mind.
Psalm 149:1–4 1 Praise the Lord! Sing to the Lord a new song, And His praise in the assembly of saints. 2 Let Israel rejoice in their Maker; Let the children of Zion be joyful in their King. 3 Let them praise His name with the dance; Let them sing praises to Him with the timbrel and harp. 4 For the Lord takes pleasure in His people; He will beautify the humble with salvation.
James 1:21–25 21 Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. 22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; 24 for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. 25 But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.
Romans 12:1–2 1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
The Fall but no curse or punishment from God
- Grace-Law-Grace
- Romans 5:13 13 (For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law.
Genesis 3:14–19 14 So the Lord God said to the serpent: “Because you have done this, You are cursed more than all cattle, And more than every beast of the field; On your belly you shall go, And you shall eat dust All the days of your life. 15 And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.” 16 To the woman He said: “I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; In pain you shall bring forth children; Your desire shall be for your husband, And he shall rule over you.” 17 Then to Adam He said, “Because you have heeded the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat of it’: “Cursed is the ground for your sake; In toil you shall eat of it All the days of your life. 18 Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you, And you shall eat the herb of the field. 19 In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread Till you return to the ground, For out of it you were taken; For dust you are, And to dust you shall return.”
When God made man, all man had to do was to take care of a beautiful garden east of Eden, to make it grow.
God also instructed man not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
A talking serpent deceived Eve, into eating the fruit of that tree.
She also gave to her husband with her, and he, Adam, the first man, disobeying God, listened to the voice of his wife and also ate from the tree.
Sin entered the creation because of that rebellion. Through sin, death entered the world.
Because the serpent deceived Eve, God cursed the serpent more than all the cattle, and put enmity between his children and hers..
To Eve, God greatly multiplied her sorrow.
“In pain you will give birth, God said.
You will desire to take your husband’s role,
Instead of being his helper
But he shall resist that and instead try to rule over you
Instead of treating you as an equal,
Instead of loving you unconditionally as only I can”
God said all this because it was the result of eating that forbidden fruit.
God cursed the ground because of what man had done,
Toil, sweat, and tears were introduced to Adam, because he listened to the voice of his wife, instead of obeying God’s commandment in eating from the tree of which God told him not eat of it.
From that moment, they became mere mortal human beings.
For death with its sting, starting ruling as a result of man’s disobedience to God.
God drove them out of that Garden,
- and He placed an angel at the east of the garden of Eden,
- and a flaming sword to guard the way to the tree of life,
- lest humans eat of the Tree of Life and live forever in sin;
- unredeemable by Jesus the Christ, His Messiah, our Saviour.
Reason together with God
Genesis 3:8 8 And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.
- Reason
Isaiah 1:18–20 18 “Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the Lord, “Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool. 19 If you are willing and obedient, You shall eat the good of the land; 20 But if you refuse and rebel, You shall be devoured by the sword”; For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
Hebrews 11:15–16 15 And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.
Don’t let tradition rob you of a powerful example of faith and deliverance.
Don’t let your reasoning rob you of faith and drive you to unbelief.
God, our Father in Heaven, invites you to reason together with Him.
Therefore, belong to a Church so that you can ask questions.
- Renew your mind in His Holy Word.
- Faith and unbelief can exist together.
- Do not let unbelief become a stronghold.
- Do not give the devil a foothold by harboring doubts.
Do not let the thief steal, kill and destroy.
Dear God, I repent of my sins and my ways apart from you. I put my trust in Jesus Christ as Lord; the master over my life, and my Saviour. Forgive me and grant me your gift of everlasting life.
In Jesus’ name I pray.