Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Daniel 3:26
Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, [and] spoke, and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, ye servants of the most high God, come forth, and come [hither]. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, came forth of the midst of the fire.
26. mouth ] Aram. door.
God Most High ] so Dan 4:2; Dan 5:18; Dan 5:21: without ‘God,’ Dan 4:17; Dan 4:24-25; Dan 4:32; Dan 4:34, Dan 7:25 (first time); and with the adj. in a more Hebraistic form, Dan 7:18; Dan 7:22; Dan 7:25 (second time), 27. The title is found in Hebrew, Gen 14:18-20; Gen 14:22 (of the deity of Melchizedek, identified by the narrator with Jehovah); elsewhere only in poetry, especially in the Psalms, as Psa 57:2, though usually without ‘God,’ as Psa 9:3, Psa 18:13: as applied to Jehovah, it is a title of dignity and respect, denoting Him as one who is supreme, whether over the earth, as ruler and governor of the world (e.g. Psa 47:2), or over other gods (e.g. Psa 95:3: cf. Cheyne on Ps. 7:18). It occurs not unfrequently with the same force in the Apocrypha, being used sometimes by Israelites (cf. Luk 1:32; Luk 1:35; Luk 1:76), and sometimes (as here and Dan 4:2; Dan 4:34, cf. Isa 14:14) placed in the mouth of heathen speakers (1Es 2:3; 1Es 6:31 ; 1Es 8:19 ; 1Es 8:21 , al.: cf. Mar 5:7, Act 16:17): it is also common (as a title, without ‘God’) in the Book of Enoch. See more fully the article Most High in Hastings’ Dict. of the Bible.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth … – Margin, door. The Chaldee word means door, gate, entrance. The form of the furnace is unknown. There was a place, however, through which the fuel was cast into it, and this is doubtless intended by the word door or mouth here used.
Ye servants of the most high God – They had professed to be his servants; he now saw that they were acknowledged as such. The phrase most high God implies that he regarded him as supreme over all other gods, though it is probable that he still retained his belief in the existence of inferior divinities. It was much, however, to secure the acknowledgment of the monarch of the capital of the pagan world, that the God whom they adored was supreme. The phrase most high God is not often employed in the Scriptures, but in every instance it is used as an appellation of the true God.
Come forth, and come hither – The reasons which seem to have influenced this singular monarch to recal the sentence passed on them, and to attempt to punish them no further, seem to have been, that he had some remains of conscience; that he was accustomed to pay respect to what he regarded as God; and that he now saw evidence that a true God was there.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Came near; as near as he durst come, within hearing. And spake with a milder tone than before, God having abated the fire of his fury. Now he could at once confess and acknowledge the true God to be the Most High above all gods, and the three worthies to be his faithful servants.
Came forth of the midst of the fire; they went out upon the kings call, without which they would not have stirred.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
26. the most high GodHeacknowledges Jehovah to be supreme above other gods (not that heceased to believe in these); so he returns to his originalconfession, “your God is a God of gods” (Da2:47), from which he had swerved in the interim, perhapsintoxicated by his success in taking Jerusalem, whose God hetherefore thought unable to defend it.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace,…. He came so nigh before, as to see at a distance four persons walking in it; now he comes nearer, as near as he could with safety:
and spake and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, ye servants of the most high God; he not only spake to them in a different tone than he did before; not in wrath and fury, but mildly and gently, with great respect unto them, and reverence of them; and not only calls them by the names he and his courtiers had given them, but styles them the servants of the most high God; he owns their God was a God above his: the Chaldeans worshipped fire, but the God of the Jews had power over that, and could restrain the force of it at pleasure; and he acknowledges that these men were faithful worshippers of him; who had in this wonderful manner appeared for them, and thereby approved their faith and confidence in him, and their service of him; see Ac 16:17:
come forth, and come hither; that is, come out of the furnace, and come to the place where I and my nobles are:
then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, came forth of the midst of the fire; as they had been cast into it by the king’s order, therefore they did not presume to go out of it without the same; nor were they concerned about coming out; they had very agreeable and delightful company, and had reason to say it was good for them to be there; however, when they had the king’s order, they immediately obeyed it.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
THE CONVINCED KING–TWO DECREES Verse 26-30:
Verse 26 describes Nebuchadnezzar the king as coming near the mouth or opening of the fiery furnace and calling aloud, addressing the three Hebrew children in the fiery furnace by name, as “servants of the most high (Jehovah) God.” He called for them to come forth out of the midst of the fire. And they did, well dressed and strong, by Divine, miraculous protection, Dan 6:16-23; Gen 5:24; Jon 1:10. Note Nebuchadnezzar who had said to Daniel 19 years before this, “your God is a God of gods,” a living God over dead gods, Dan 2:47; had since turned away from that view, having since then destroyed Jerusalem, with no immediate harm coming to him, Pro 29:1.
Verse 27 adds that the princes, governors, captains, and king’s counselors, while assembled, saw these three Jewish young men upon whose bodies the fire had no power; neither burning an hair on their heads, smutting their clothes, nor making any smell or scorch of fire upon them, Luk 12:7; Luk 21:18.
Verse 28 expresses a benediction of Nebuchadnezzar toward the living God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego; He vowed this God had sent (mandated) his angel (Gabriel) and delivered His servants who trusted in Him as related v. 16-18. See also Pro 3:3-5; Psa 34:7; Pro 16:7; Act 5:29; Rom 12:1; Heb 1:14. He attributed the preservation of the three Hebrew children to the guardian care of the living God, because they refused to worship idol gods, 1Co 8:5-6.
Verse 29 announces a decree by Nebuchadnezzar that any people, nation, or language which spoke any unbecoming thing against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego should be hacked to pieces and their residences made to be a dunghill, totally destroyed. Because there is (exists) no other God, said he, that can deliver or liberate after this sort he had just witnessed, Rom 2:1; Deu 32:31; Psa 3:8; Dan 6:27.
Verse 30 concludes that then the king promoted or made to prosper Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon. And no more is it reported any effort was made to force the Jews to worship idols, of which they had now received their fill of judgment, Exo 20:3-5; Num 32:23.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
HERE a sudden change is described in the mood of this cruel and proud king. We have already seen how confidently he extracted worship from the servants of God, and when he saw them disobedient to his command, how mightily he raged against them. Now Daniel shews in how short a time this pride was subdued and this cruelty appeased; but we must remark that the king was not so changed as entirely to put his disposition and manners. For when he was touched with this present miracle, he gave God the glory, but only for a moment; and still he did not return to wisdom. We cannot take too diligent notice of examples of this kind, as many estimate the characters of others from a single action. But the worst despisers of God can submit to him for a short time, not merely by feigning to do so before men, but in real seriousness, since God compels them by his power, but meanwhile they retain their pride and ferocity within their breasts. Of this kind, then, was the conversion of King Nebuchadnezzar. For when astonished by the miracle, he could no longer resist the Almighty, he was still inconsistent, as we shall afterwards see. We may also notice how the impious, who are unregenerate by God’s Spirit, are often impelled to worship God; but this is only temporary, and this equable tenor never remains through their whole life. But when God renews his own, he undertakes to govern them even to the end; he animates them to perseverance, and confirms them by his Spirit.
We must here remark how God’s glory is illustrated by this temporary and vanishing conversion of the reprobate; because, whether they will or not, yet they yield to God for a time, and thus the greatness of his power is acknowledged. God, therefore, turns an event which does not profit the reprobate to his own glory, and at the same time punishes them more severely. For Nebuchadnezzar’s conduct was less excusable after his once acknowledging the God of Israel to be the supreme and only God, and then relapsing into his former superstitions. He says, therefore, — He approached the door of the furnace, and spoke thus, — Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, servants of the most high God, come forth and come hither A short time before, he wished his own statue to be worshipped, and his own name to be esteemed the only one in heaven and earth, since this was pleasing to him. We then saw how he claimed the right of subjecting the religion and worship of God to his own will and lust; but now, as if he were a new man, he calls Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, servants of the most high God! What place, then, was left to him and to all the Chaldeans? How could they now worship those fictitious gods and idols which they had fabricated? But God extracted these words from the proud and cruel king, as when criminals and compelled, by tortures, to say what they would otherwise refuse. Thus Nebuchadnezzar confessed God to be the most high God of Israel, as if he had been tortured, but not of his own accord, or in a composed state of mind. He does not pretend this before men, as I have said; but his mind was neither pure nor perfect, since it was in a ferment with this temporary commotion. And this must also be added — the instinct was rather violent; than voluntary.
Daniel afterwards relates — His companions came forth from the midst of the fire By these words he again confirms the miracle; for God could extinguish the fire of the furnace, but he wished it to burn in the sight of all, to render the power of this deliverance the more conspicuous. Meanwhile we must notice the three men walking in the furnace, until the king commanded them to come forth, because God had issued no command. They saw themselves perfectly safe and. sound in the midst of the furnace; they were content with God’s present benefit, but still they had no free departure, until fetched by the king’s voice. As when Noah, in the ark, saw safety prepared for him in that tomb, yet he did not try anything until commanded to come forth. (Gen 8:16.) So also Daniel asserts that his companions did not, come forth from the furnace till the king commanded them. Then at length they understood how what they had heard from the king was pleasing to God; not because he was a Prophet or teacher, but because they were cast into the furnace by his command. So also when he recalls them, they know the end of their cross to be arrived, and thus they pass from death unto life. It follows —
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
e.
PHILANTHROPIC DECREE
TEXT: Dan. 3:26-30
26
Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace: he spake and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, ye servants of the Most High God, come forth, and come hither. Then Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego came forth out of the midst of the fire.
27
And the satraps, the deputies, and the governors, and the kings counsellors, being gathered together, saw these men, that the fire had no power upon their bodies, nor was the hair of their head singed, neither were their hosen changed, nor had the smell of fire passed on them.
28
Nebuchadnezzar spake and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him, and have changed the kings word, and have yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God.
29
Therefore I make a decree, that every people, nation, and language, which speak any thing amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made a dunghill; because there is no other god that is able to deliver after this sort.
30
Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego in the province of Babylon.
QUERIES
a.
Why did Nebuchadnezzar call the Hebrew men out of the furnace?
b.
How did the Hebrew men change the kings word?
c.
Does the Kings decree mean he now believes in Jehovah?
PARAPHRASE
Then Nebuchadnezzar came as close as he could to the opening in the flaming furnace and shouted, Shadrach, Meshach and Adebnego, you servants of the Most High God, Come out of there and Come here! So they came out of the furnace and approached the king. Then a great company of the kings princes, governors, captains, and counsellors crowded around them and saw that the fire had not even touched the Hebrew mennot a hair of their heads was singed; their shoes were not even scorched; there was not even the slightest smell of smoke on their persons! Then the king said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Me-shach, and Abednego, for he sent his angel to deliver these servants who trusted him completely. By their trust and miraculous deliverance they have caused the king to cancel his decree concerning their execution. Their determination to be true to their God and not serve other gods was manifested when they willingly submitted their bodies to be burned alive. Therefore, I make this new decree, that any person of any nation, language, or culture who speaks a word against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego shall be hacked limb from limb and his house publicly desecrated. No other God can do what this God does! So the king, from that time forward, favored these Hebrew young men and they were successful and prosperous because of the kings favor.
COMMENT
Dan. 3:26-27 . . . CAME FORTH OUT OF THE MIDST OF THE FIRE . . . THE FIRE HAD NO POWER UPON THEIR BODIES . . . Nebuchadnezzar saw that in spite of his royal authority and in spite of his having physically committed the Hebrew men to the furnace and in spite of the intensity of the flames these men were not going to be consumed. There was nothing left for the king to do but admit defeat and call them forth from the furnace. Stationing himself at a safe distance from the furnace he yelled over the roar of the flames that they should come out and stand before him.
As they stood before the king a great company of the kings officials gathered around them and were utterly amazed that not a hair on their head was singed and there was not even the slightest smell of smoke upon them. The shoes with which they walked upon the white-hot coals were not scorched at all. Daniel wants to be understood by his future readers that a large body of reliable witnesses satisfied themselves as to the perfect deliverance from certain death experience by these three Hebrew men. Deliverance was so complete and supernatural that their clothing did not even smell of fire or smoke. Under natural circumstances one who has been anywhere near a fire will bear the odor of smoke on his person or clothing,
Dan. 3:28 NEBUCHADNEZZAR . . . SAID, BLESSED BE THE GOD OF SHADRACH, MESHACH, AND ABED-NEGO . . . Nebuchadnezzar has not only witnessed with his own eyes a stupendous physical miracle of deliverance but he has also been touched by the whole-hearted faith of these Hebrews. The kings immediate reaction is a word spoken in praise of the God of these Hebrews.
Yet, his manner of designating God as the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, is the manner of a heathen polytheist. The king is merely admitting that their God, compared to other gods, has distinguished Himself by manifesting a power that is greater than any other god. So far it has not even occurred to the king to confess the Hebrew God as the Only True God and to denounce pagan gods as false.
That fourth person seen in the furnace by the king and formerly called by him a son of the gods is now called His angel by the king. This is to be expected since Babylonian religion was replete with doctrines of angels, demons, helping spirits and the like. As to the whereabouts of this fourth person we assume it returned to its heavenly abode.
Note the various impressions made on Nebuchadnezzar by these Hebrew men: (1) the complete trust or faith they had in their Godsuch faith has impressed more than one heathen potentate; (2) their deliverance had overruled the decree of the powerful Nebuchadnezzarhe was forced to admit defeat; (3) they were willing to surrender their physical bodies to apparent excruciating death by being burned alive rather than worship pagan deities.
Note further in his decree the king does not deny his own national gods but simply makes a decree in a negative way that no one should speak any thing remiss (error or falsehood that would tend to lead the minds of men astray in regard to the things they have seen the God of the Hebrews demonstrate). Nebuchadnezzar does not decree, in a positive sense, that Jehovah is to be worshipped as the one and Only God.
The kings promised punishment for violation of this decree is exactly like that pronounced upon his own magicians should they fail to tell him his dream (cf. ch. 2).
Dan. 3:30 THEN THE KING PROMOTED . . . Leupold says the word promoted does not mean they were advanced to a new office in the structure of government but the word means the king supported and favored them so that their position was made easier and their work more successful in spite of the opposition of those that begruged them their success.
Keil notes that the incidents recorded in this chapter teach us how the true worshipers of the Lord under the dominion of the world power could and would come into difficulties, imperiling life, between the demands of the lords of this world and the duties we owe to God. But we also learn that, if in these circumstances they remain faithful to their God, they will in a wonderful manner be protected by Him; while He will reveal His omnipotence so graciously that even the heathen world rulers will be constrained to recognize their God and give Him glory. (See our sermon at the end of this chapter for similar remarks).
QUIZ
1.
Where was the king when he called for the Hebrew men to come out?
2.
What happened to the fourth person in the furnace?
3.
Why did Daniel note the many people who surrounded the Hebrew men upon their exit from the furnace?
4.
What is the significance of mentioning that they did not even smell of fire?
5.
Name at least three things about the Hebrew mens faith that amazed Nebuchadnezzar.
6.
Why do we think the king is not a true believer in Jehovah?
7.
What does this chapter teach us for today?
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
26. On the furnace see Dan 3:25. On the most high God compare Gen 14:18; Mic 6:6, and notes Dan 3:13-15; Dan 3:25. Thomson well says that this term did not imply a recognition by the king of Jehovah’s supreme divinity “any more than a king of France acknowledged the supremacy of the Holy Roman Empire when in the credentials of his embassador the emperor was called Domiuus urbis et orbis.” It was simply a matter of “religious etiquette” to address the gods thus (Dan 2:47).
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘Then Nebuchanezzar came near to the opening of the burning fiery furnace. He spoke and said, “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, you servants of the Most High God, come out, and come here.” Then Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out, out from the heart of the fire. And the satraps, the deputies and the governors, and the king’s counsellors, being gathered together, saw these men, that the fire had had no power on their bodies, nor was the hair of their head singed, nor were their hose altered, nor had the smell of the fire clung to them.’
Then Nebuchadnezzar called to the men to come out of the furnace, and when they came out the high officials who were surrounding the king saw that the fire had not effected them in any way. Not even a hair was singed, or a piece of clothing affected by the fire, nor was there any smell of fire on them. And yet the ropes that had bound them had burned up in the fire.
‘You servants of the Most High God’. He did not see God as the only God, but as a higher god, One Who was supreme over the gods.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Reader! pray observe what is here said. Nebuchadnezzar is astonished, and so are his courtiers. But is this all? Yes! for had there been more than astonishment and any grace wrought in the heart, the accusers of these holy men would have been punished; the King himself would have confessed his guilt, and the Lord God of his faithful servants been acknowledged and adored. And, Reader! is it not so now in what is going on through life? Do the most awful judgments, visitations, deliverances, blessings, or chastisements, produce a change in the minds of men by their operations! Ah! no. If the unhappy apostate spirits now in hell were unchained and freed, devils they would still remain. Nothing but the arm of sovereign grace can subdue the stubborn heart of sinners, whether men or devils. Oh! that this was but thoroughly considered, that so the glory of Jehovah might be known and confessed in the Church of God, that his arm alone bringeth salvation. Reader! do you know this most certain truth of God? Are you a living testimony of his grace, in being the happy object on which that grace hath been shown? Eph 2:1 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Dan 3:26 Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, [and] spake, and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, ye servants of the most high God, come forth, and come [hither]. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, came forth of the midst of the fire.
Ver. 26. Ye servants of the most high God. ] This was a high title, such as David and other great princes have gloried in; Psa 36:1 title See Trapp on “ Psa 36:1 “ The devil gave it to Paul and his fellow labourers; Act 16:17 and they who deny it to Christ’s faithful ministers, loading them with names of scorn and obloquy, show therein less ingenuity than the devil himself.
Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came forth.
a Rollock.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
mouth = door.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Dan 3:26
Dan 3:26 ThenH116 NebuchadnezzarH5020 came nearH7127 to the mouthH8651 of the burningH3345 fieryH5135 furnace,H861 and spake,H6032 and said,H560 Shadrach,H7715 Meshach,H4336 and Abednego,H5665 ye servantsH5649 ofH1768 the most highH5943 God,H426 come forth,H5312 and comeH858 hither. ThenH116 Shadrach,H7715 Meshach,H4336 and Abednego,H5665 came forthH5312 ofH4481 the midstH1459 of the fire.H5135
Dan 3:26
Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and spake, and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, ye servants of the most high God, come forth, and come hither. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, came forth of the midst of the fire.
Nebuchadnezzar came to worship and honor the one true and living God in a progression of steps. This verse illustrates the next step in Nebuchadnezzar’s journey toward righteousness. He has not acknowledged that God is the only god, but he now acknowledges that He is the God supreme among the rest. He refers to God as the “most high”, in other words, the greatest of the gods and he affirms this in his decree as recorded in Dan 3:29.
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
mouth: Chal, door
ye servants: Dan 3:17, Dan 2:47, Dan 6:20, Ezr 5:11, Act 16:17, Act 27:23, Gal 1:10, Rev 19:5
the most: Gen 14:18
come forth: Jos 3:17, Jos 4:10, Jos 4:16-18, Isa 28:16, Isa 52:12, Act 16:37
Reciprocal: Jos 4:17 – Come ye up Jos 4:24 – all the people Ezr 5:8 – the great God Isa 54:17 – the heritage Dan 4:2 – that Mic 6:6 – the high Mat 2:13 – until Rom 6:22 – become Rev 7:3 – the servants
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Dan 3:26. We are sure that God took a part in the whole proceeding else the king could not have come near enough to the furnace to speak to the men without being injured by the heat. The men inside were not harmed, yet they were prisoners of Nebuchadnezzar and would not be guilty of “breaking jail until authorized to come forth by him. The king said nothing to the “fourth man,” but spoke only to the three Hebrews; the angel evidently had disappeared. Besides, Nebuchadnezzar would not have felt at liberty or considered it necessary to give instructions to him.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Dan 3:26-27. Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the furnace As near as he durst come; and spake With a milder tone than before, God having abated the fire of his fury; and said, Ye servants of the most high God, &c. The miracle calls to his mind the confession which he had formerly made of the true God, Dan 2:47. And he can now at once both acknowledge him to be most high above all gods, and the three worthies, who had been condemned to the flames, to be his faithful servants. Observe, reader, sooner or later God will convince the proudest of men, that he is the most high God, and above them, and too hard for them, even in those things wherein they deal proudly and presumptuously, Exo 18:11. He will likewise let them know who are his servants, and that he owns them, and will stand by them. Nebuchadnezzar now embraces those whom he had abandoned to destruction, and is ready to show them every possible kindness, perceiving them to be the favourites of Heaven. How the fourth, whose form was like the Son of God, withdrew, and whether he vanished away or visibly ascended, we are not told; but of the other three we are informed, that they came forth out of the midst of the fire As Abraham their father out of Ur, that is, the`fire, of the Chaldees, into which, says the tradition of the Jews, he was cast for refusing to worship idols, and out of which he was delivered, as those his three descendants were. When they had their discharge, they did not tempt God by staying any longer, but came forth as brands out of the burning. And the princes, governors, &c., being gathered together, saw those men All the great men came together to view them, and were amazed to find that they had not received the least damage by the fire; that it had no power over their bodies, &c. Several expressions are here used, which rise in fine order one above another, and the climax is beautiful. The fire not only had no prevailing power over their bodies, but neither was a hair of their head burned, nor their flowing robes singed, nor even the smell of fire had passed on them.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
3:26 Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, [and] spake, and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, ye servants of the most high God, come forth, and come [hither]. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, {l} came forth of the midst of the fire.
(l) This commends their obedience to God, that they would not because of any fear depart out of this furnace until the appointed time, as Noah remained in the ark, until the Lord called him forth.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
Nebuchadnezzar then drew as close to the large door of the furnace as he could. It stood open to provide a view inside. He called to the three victims to come out of the furnace, and they responded obediently this time. The fourth person disappeared as he had appeared. The king described Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego as servants of the "Most High God" (Dan 3:26). This title for God appears 13 times in Daniel, more than in any other book except Psalms. Seven times, either Nebuchadnezzar used it to describe God (Daniel 3:36; Dan 4:2; Dan 4:17; Dan 4:34), or Daniel used it in speaking of God to Nebuchadnezzar (Dan 4:24-25; Dan 4:32). Daniel used it twice when speaking to Belshazzar about Nebuchadnezzar (Dan 5:18; Dan 5:21). It occurs four times in chapter 7, Daniel’s vision of the four beasts, three times in the words of the interpreting angel (Dan 7:18; Dan 7:25; Dan 7:27), and once in Daniel’s words in that chapter (Dan 7:22). With this title the king ascribed greater power to their God than to any other. He had obviously delivered them, as they said He could (Dan 3:17), and the leaders of the Babylonian Empire had witnessed the miracle.
". . . it [the title "the most High God"] suggests a God of universal authority, but of otherwise undefined personal qualities. For a pagan, it would denote only the highest among many gods, but as an epithet of El it was accepted in early OT times and applied to Yahweh, so that for a Jew it has monotheistic (or mono-Yahwistic) implications." [Note: Goldingay, p. 72.]
The three Jews had escaped every form of destruction, even the smell of smoke. The ropes that bound them, symbolic of Nebuchadnezzar’s power over them, were gone, undoubtedly burned up by the fire.
"Just as the reign of Nebuchadnezzar is symbolic of the entire period of the times of the Gentiles, so the deliverance of Daniel’s three companions is typical of the deliverance of Israel during the period of Gentile domination. Particularly at the end of the Gentile period Israel will be in fiery affliction, but as Isaiah prophesied, ’But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine. When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee’ (Isa 43:1-2)." [Note: Walvoord, p. 92.]
The three Hebrew young men quenched the fury of flames with their faith in their faithful God (Heb 11:34; cf. 1Ma 2:59).