Daniel 3:26

Old Testament Major Prophet ASV (1901)

What does Daniel 3:26 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “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.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

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.
Daniel 3:26 — American Standard Version

Context — Daniel 3

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
26Then 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.

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, etc.] 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,…”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“the most high God--He acknowledges Jehovah to be supreme above other gods (not that he ceased to believe in these); so he returns to his original confession, "your God is a God of gods" (Dan 2:47), from which he had swerved in the interim, perhaps intoxicated by his success in taking Jerusalem, whose God he therefore thought unable to defend it.”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“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,…”
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Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · 18th-century historical commentary
“And spake - With a milder tone than before, God having abated the fire of his fury. Now he could at once acknowledge the true God to be the most high above all gods, and the three worthies to be his faithful servants. Next: Daniel Chapter 4”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“3:26 The title Most High is often used to refer to God (e.g., 4:2, 24-25; 7:25; Gen 14:18; Num 24:16; Deut 32:8-9; Ps 73:11; Isa 14:14). In Canaanite religion, it often referred to Baal.”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“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 Daniel 3:27”
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Related study paths

Sources and verification