John Calvin Commentary Daniel 3:16-18

"Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer thee in this matter. If it be [so], our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace; and he will deliver us out of thy hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up." — Daniel 3:16-18 (ASV)

In this history, it is necessary to observe with what unbroken spirit these three holy men persisted in the fear of God, though they knew they were in danger of instant death. When, therefore, this kind of death was placed directly before their eyes, they did not turn aside from the straightforward course, but treated God’s glory as of greater value than their own life—indeed, than a hundred lives, if they had so many to offer and an opportunity had been given them.

Daniel does not relate all their words, but only their substance, in which the unconquered virtue of that Holy Spirit, by whom they had been instructed, is sufficiently evident. For that denunciation was certainly dreadful, when the king said, If you are not prepared to fall down at the sound of the trumpet before the image, it's all over with you, and you shall be immediately cast into a furnace of fire. When the king had so thundered, they might have flinched, as men usually do, since life is naturally dear to us, and a dread of death seizes upon our senses. But Daniel relates all these circumstances to assure us of the great fortitude of God’s servants when they are led by His Spirit, and yield to no threats, and succumb to no terrors.

They answer the king, “We do not need any long deliberation.” For when they say they care not, they mean by this word, the matter is settled. Just as that sentence of Cyprian is related by Augustine: when courtiers persuaded him to preserve his life (for it was with great reluctance that the emperor condemned him to death), when flatterers on all sides urged him to redeem his life by the denial of piety, he answered, “There can be no deliberation in a matter so sacred!” Thus, those holy men say, We do not care; we do not enter into the consideration of what is expedient or useful—no such thing! For we ought to resolve within ourselves never to be persuaded by any reason to withdraw from the sincere worship of God.

If you prefer to read it as—we ought not to answer you—the meaning will be the same. They imply that the fear of death was set before them in vain, because they had determined and resolved in their inmost souls not to depart a single inch from the true and lawful worship of God.

Moreover, they give a twofold reason here for rejecting the king’s proposal. They say God has sufficient power and strength to deliver them; and then, even if they must die, their life is not of so much value as to deny God for the sake of preserving it. Hence, they declare themselves prepared to die if the king persists in urging his wish for the worship of the image.

This passage is therefore worthy of the greatest attention. First of all, we must observe the answer: when people entice us to deny the true God, we must close our ears and refuse all deliberation. For we have already committed an atrocious insult against God when we even question the appropriateness of turning away from the purity of His worship for any impulse or reason whatsoever.

And I earnestly wish everyone would observe this! How excellent and striking is the glory of God, and how everything ought to yield to it whenever there is danger of its being either diminished or obscured. But today, this fallacy deceives the multitude, since they think it lawful to debate whether it is allowable to turn away from the true worship of God for a time, whenever any advantage presents itself on the other side.

Just as in our own times, we see how hypocrites, of whom the world is full, have pretexts by which they conceal their wrongdoings when they either worship idols with the ungodly or deny true piety, sometimes openly and sometimes indirectly. Such a one will say, “Oh! what can happen? Of what value is consistency? I see some clear advantage if I can only dissemble a little and not betray who I am. Openness is harmful not only to me privately, but to everyone around me! It is, therefore, better to have some mediators on the watch to observe whether the wicked are planning anything. Thus, if they cannot openly, they may secretly avert danger from the heads of the pious.” By such reasoning as this, they think they can satisfy God.

As if Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego did not have the same excuse; as if the following thought would not occur to them:

“Behold! We are armed with some power to help our fellow believers. Now what barbarity, what cruelty will be exercised against them if the enemies of the religion which they profess replace us? For as far as they can, they will overthrow and destroy our people and the very memory of piety. Is it not better for us to yield for a time to the tyranny and violent edict of the king than to leave our positions empty, which the furious will soon occupy, and who will utterly destroy our suffering people, now so dreadfully oppressed?”

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, I say, might have gathered all these pretexts and excuses to justify their treachery if they had bowed the knee before the golden image to avoid danger; but they did not act this way.

Hence, as I have already said, God retains His full rights when His worship is upheld without the slightest hesitation, and we are fully convinced that nothing is of such importance as to make it lawful and right to turn away from that profession that His word both demands and requires.

On the whole, that security which ought to confirm the pious in the worship of God is opposed here to all those tortuous and mistaken counsels which some men adopt, and thus, for the sake of living, lose life itself, according to the sentiment of even a secular poet. For what use is life except to serve God’s glory? But we lose that purpose in life for the sake of life itself—that is, by desiring to live entirely for the world, we lose the very reason for living!

Thus, then, Daniel opposes the simplicity that ought to mark the children of God to all those excuses which dissemblers invent to conceal their wickedness.

We are not anxious, say they, and why not? Because we have already determined God’s glory to be of more consequence than a thousand lives and the gratification of a thousand senses. Hence, when this magnanimity flourishes, all hesitation will vanish, and those who are called upon to incur danger through their testimony for the truth need never be troubled; for, as I said before, their ears are closed to all the enticements of Satan.

And when they add—God is sufficiently powerful to preserve us; and if not, we are prepared for death—they point out to us what ought to raise our minds above all trials: namely, the preciousness of our life in God’s sight, since He can deliver us if He pleases. Therefore, since we have sufficient protection in God, let us not think any method of preserving our life is better than to entrust ourselves entirely to His protection and to cast all our anxieties upon Him.

Regarding the second clause, we must note this: even if the Lord should wish to magnify His own glory by our death, we ought to offer this as a rightful sacrifice. Sincere piety does not flourish in our hearts unless our minds are always prepared to make this sacrifice. Thus, I wished to remark on these things briefly now, and with God’s permission, I will explain them more fully tomorrow.

Prayer:

Grant, Almighty God, since we see the ungodly carried away by their impure desires with so strong an impulse, and while they are so filled with arrogance, may we learn true humility, and so subject ourselves to You that we may always depend upon Your word and always heed Your instructions. When we have learned what worship pleases You, may we constantly persist to the end, and never be moved by any threats, or dangers, or violence from our position, nor drawn aside from our course; but by persevering obedience to Your word, may we show our eagerness and obedience, until You acknowledge us as Your sons, and we are gathered to that eternal inheritance which You have prepared for all members of Christ Your Son. Amen.

[Exposition continues from previous day's lecture]

We said yesterday that the constancy of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego was based upon these two reasons: their certain conviction that God was the guardian of their life and would deliver them from present death by His power if it were beneficial, and also their determination to die boldly and fearlessly if God wished such a sacrifice to be offered.

What Daniel relates of these three men belongs to us all. From this, we may gather this general instruction: When our danger for the sake of truth is imminent, we should learn to entrust our lives to God’s hand, and then bravely and fearlessly devote ourselves to death. As to the first point, experience teaches us how many turn away from God and the profession of faith, since they do not feel confidence in God’s power to deliver them.

It may be truly said of us all—God takes care of us, since our life is placed in His hand and subject to His will; but scarcely one in a hundred holds this deeply and securely fixed in his heart, since everyone devises their own way of preserving their life, as if there were no power in God.

Therefore, one who has learned to place his life in God’s care and to consider it safe under His protection has made some progress in God’s word. For if he has made progress thus far, he may face danger a hundred times, yet he will never hesitate to follow whenever God calls.

This one feeling frees him from all fear and trembling, since God can rescue His servants from a thousand deaths, as it is said in the Psalm, The issues of death are in His power (Psalms 68:20). For death seems to consume all things, but God snatches from that whirlpool whomever He pleases.

So this conviction ought to inspire us with firm and unshakeable steadfastness, since it is necessary for those who so entrust the whole care of their life and safety to God to be fully aware and undoubtedly sure that God will defend a good cause. This is also expressed by the words of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, “Behold, our God whom we worship.” When they bring forward God’s worship, they bear testimony to the sureness of their support, as they do not act rashly but are worshippers of the true God and labor for the defense of piety.

For this is the difference between martyrs and evildoers, who are often compelled to suffer the penalty of their madness for attempting to overthrow all things. We see, indeed, that most people are driven by their own lack of self-control. If they happen to suffer punishment, they are not to be counted among God’s martyrs; for, as Augustine says, the martyr is made by his cause, and not by his punishment. Hence the weight of these words, when these three men attest their worship of God, since in this way they confidently face any urgent danger, not rashly, but only as supported by their sincere worship of God. I now come to the second point.

If God is unwilling to deliver us from death, be it known to you, O king, we will not worship your gods. I said first of all, we should be constantly prepared to undergo every conflict, to commit our lives to His care, to submit to His will and hand, and to His protection.

But the desire for this earthly and fading life ought not to retain its hold upon us and to hinder us from the free and candid confession of the truth. For God’s glory ought to be more precious to us than a hundred lives. Hence, we cannot be witnesses for God unless we lay aside all desire for this life and at least prefer God’s glory to it.

Meanwhile, we must remark the impossibility of doing this unless the hope of a better life draws us towards itself. For where there is no promise of any eternal inheritance implanted in our hearts, we shall never be torn away from this world. We naturally desire existence, and that feeling cannot be eradicated unless faith overcomes it; as Paul says, Not that we wished to be unclothed, but clothed upon (2 Corinthians 5:4).

These, then, are the two points which prepare the sons of God for martyrdom and remove hesitation as to their offering their life in sacrifice to God. First, if they are convinced that God is the protector of their life and will certainly deliver them should it be beneficial; and secondly, when they live above the world and aspire to the hope of eternal life in heaven, while prepared to renounce the world.

This magnanimity is to be noted in their language when they say, Be it known to you, O king, that we do not worship your gods nor adore the statue which you have set up. Here they indirectly accuse the king of claiming too much for himself and of wishing religion to stand or fall by his own will.

You have erected the statue, but your authority is of no importance to us, since we know it is a false deity whose image you want us to worship. The God whom we worship has revealed Himself to us; we know Him to be the maker of heaven and earth, to have redeemed our fathers from Egypt, and to intend our discipline by driving us into exile. Therefore, since we have a firm foundation for our faith, we consider your gods and your authority worthless. It follows: