“Look!” he exclaimed. “I see four men, unbound and unharmed, walking around in the fire—and the fourth looks like a son of the gods!”
Parallel translations
- WEB He answered, Look, I see four men loose, walking in the middle of the fire, and they are unharmed; and the aspect of the fourth is like a son of the gods.
- KJV He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.
- NKJV “Look!” he answered, “I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.”
- NASB He responded, “Look! I see four men untied and walking about in the middle of the fire unharmed, and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods!”
- NLT “Look!” Nebuchadnezzar shouted. “I see four men, unbound, walking around in the fire unharmed! And the fourth looks like a god!”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The king sees four men walking unharmed in the fire, the fourth like "a son of the gods." God's presence has joined his servants in the flames.
Overview
The fourth figure, whom Nebuchadnezzar describes in pagan terms, is a divine messenger sent to protect the faithful. Many Christians have seen here a foreshadowing of God's nearness to his people in suffering, and some a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ, though the text speaks plainly only of a heavenly deliverer. Either way, the scene proclaims that God does not always remove his people from the fire, but he is with them in it.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 14
- Isa 43:2When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you go through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched; the flames will not set you ablaze.
- Acts 28:5But Paul shook the creature off into the fire and suffered no ill effects.
- Mark 16:18they will pick up snakes with their hands, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not harm them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will be made well.”
- Ps 91:3–9Surely He will deliver you from the snare of the fowler, and from the deadly plague.
- Job 1:6One day the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came with them.
- Ps 34:7The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him, and he delivers them.
- Dan 3:28Nebuchadnezzar declared, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent His angel and delivered His servants who trusted in Him. They violated the king’s command and risked their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.
- 1 Pet 3:13Who can harm you if you are zealous for what is good?
- Job 38:7while the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?
- Dan 3:18But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden statue you have set up.”
- Rom 1:4and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by His resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.
- Prov 30:4Who has ascended to heaven and come down? Who has gathered the wind in His hands? Who has bound up the waters in His cloak? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is His name, and what is the name of His Son—surely you know!
- Luke 1:35The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the Holy One to be born will be called the Son of God.
- John 19:7–8“We have a law,” answered the Jews, “and according to that law He must die, because He declared Himself to be the Son of God.”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Daniel sees the stone cut without hands that shatters the kingdoms, and 'one like a son of man' given everlasting dominion — titles and visions Jesus claims as his own.
How Daniel 3:25 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.