This morning I had an opportunity to sit down with a coworker friend of mine and help him understand the story of the firey furnace in Daniel 3. Together, we found some amazing truth about who God is in this story and about how God desires and works to refine us into the likeness of Jesus.
In this story we have three men living captive in Babylon during the reign of Nebuchadnezzar. These were Hebrew men who knew Yahweh intimately. There names in Hebrew were Hananiah which means 'Yahweh is gracious', Mishael which means 'Who is like Yahweh', and Azariah which means 'Yahweh has helped'. Each of these three names and their meanings hold significance throughout the story. Nebuchadnezzar changed their names to Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These three bold Hebrew men defied Nebuchadnezzar by refusing to bow down before his image. Their devotion was to Yahweh and He alone. Bowing to his image would be to turn their backs on Yahweh. Let's look closer at another detail. The fiery furnace. Through the Jewish Encyclopedia, I learned that the furnace was used for the potters kiln for firing earthen vessels, baking bread and for smelting metals and ore.
The meaning of the word furnace in Hebrew is "aysh" meaning fire, supernatural fire (appearance of theophany), altar fire etc. The word theophany simply means an appearance of God. So, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah (Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego) were thrown into the fiery furnace for refusing to bow to Nebuchadnezzar. We saw earlier that the furnace was used for firing earthen vessels. Are these three Hebrew men earthen vessels? If so, earthen vessels of what or
who? The answer to the first question is yes, they are earthen vessels. They are earthen vessels of the Spirit of Yahweh. 1 Peter says that the prophets of old had the Spirit of Christ within them. The fire is an appearance of God. They are thrown in the presence of God. The account says, however, that there was a fourth man in the furnace with them. An angel of sorts. Who could it be? It has to be Jesus. The appearance of God in the flesh is Jesus.
What is the heart of the story? As earthen vessels, we are refined daily through various trials and persecutions (James 1:2-4). Are we thrown daily into the fiery furnace? Are we available and obedient to God to the point that He can "fire" us to look more like his Son? 1 Peter says we are refined like pure gold. Gold is refined because it contains impurities. Our lives contain impurities which cannot stand before a holy God. It is only after our lives have been purged of the dross that we can walk on the "highway of holiness" (Isaiah 35). 1 Corinthians 13:12 says, "For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known."
