Homily

Who are these guys in the tropars, mentioned last Sunday and today, these three youths, these young men? We read of them in the Book of Daniel. The king of Babylon had conquered the Kingdom of Judah about 600 years before the birth of Christ, and many of the brightest and best Jews were taken away to live in Babylon. Daniel, a pious and God-fearing man, had won place in the royal court, along with the three young men Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. They were given Chaldean names and became known as Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. Since these three, along with Daniel, would not be able to keep kosher food observances if they ate the Chaldean menu, Daniel begged the Chief Chamberlain to give them only water and vegetables to eat. But the official was afraid that if they ended up not looking healthy that he would be punished by the king for not properly managing the household. Daniel proposed a ten-day trial, and it was agreed. Ten days later these tee-totaling, vegan Jews look more healthy than all the other young men at court.

Scripture says, "In any question of wisdom or prudence which the king put to them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his kingdom."

King Nebuchadnezzar had a great golden statue made and set up before the people. We don't know what the statue represented; it might have been a statue of the king, or perhaps the Babylonian god of wisdom, Nabu. There was a great dedication ceremony and all the people were told that when the music sounded, at the appointed time, everyone must fall down and worship the golden statue. The penalty for disobeying this order was death by fire. The three young God-fearing men did not, of course, fall down and worship the statue when they were supposed to do so, and some of the Chaldeans went to the king to accuse them. Nebuchadnezzar flew into a rage when he heard this and called Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to appear before him and answer this charge. The king, like so many people who politically hold power, arrogantly and egotistically asked the Hebrews, "Who is the God who can deliver you out of my hands?"

And here is what the Bible tells us was their response to the king:

"There is no need for us to defend ourselves to you in this matter. If our God, whom we serve, can save us from the white-hot furnace and from your hands, O king, may He save us! But even if he will not, know this, O king, we will not serve your god or worship the golden statue which you have set up."

Now these were three young guys, who had marriage and family life to look forward to. They were from Jewish noble families and had risen to the level of chief advisors to the king and had wonderful careers ahead of them, easy lives full of promise. They could have fallen down and pretended to worship the idol; they could have gone along with the crowd. But they would not give in even to an outward appearance of obedience to the king in this matter, nor would they risk giving scandal to their fellow Jews. They would die rather than dishonor the God of Israel. They do not beg for mercy. They stand solid and firm.

Needless to say, this made the king even more angry and he ordered the execution furnace to be heated seven times hotter than usual, and the men were thrown into the furnace. The flames were so huge when the door was opened that the guards were killed, but Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego fell into the flames alive. They walked about inside the furnace singing to God and blessing the Lord. Azariah stood up and began to pray aloud: "Blessed are you, and praiseworthy O Lord, the God of our Fathers, and glorious forever is Your name . . . . . In all that You have done, Your justice is apparent." We just sang those words a few minutes ago in today's Prokimenon.

The guards kept stoking the furnace and throwing on more fuel but it did not change a thing. Suddenly an angel of the Lord went into the furnace, driving the flames away and he made the inside of the furnace as though a "dew-laden breeze were blowing through it." And the three men together sang a hymn of praise to God which can be found in the Book of Daniel, Chapter 3.

The king was astonished to see they were still alive, and not only alive but singing as well. Nebbie asked his nobles, "Didn't we throw three guys in there?" "Yes," they answered.

"But," he replied, "I see four men untied and unhurt, walking in the fire, and the fourth looks like a son of God."

The king calls them out of the furnace, and not a hair on their heads had been singed. Nebuchadnezzar exclaimed,

"Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who sent His angel to deliver the servants that trusted in Him; they disobeyed the royal command and handed over their bodies rather than serve or worship any god except their own God. Therefore, I decree that for nations and peoples of every language, that whoever blasphemes the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego shall be cut to pieces and his house destroyed. For there is no other God Who can rescue like this."

So we sang about these three young men last Sunday and today, but why? One reason is that the prophet Daniel's feast day is December 17th, so it is close to Christmas. The three men are seen as a symbol of the Trinity, and we should recall that the only Son of God the Father was conceived in the womb of Mary by the power of the Holy Spirit. Some of the Fathers said that the fiery furnace was symbolic of the burning bush that Moses saw in the desert which did not consume itself and burn up. In the same way the flames did not burn up the three youths because the divine presence was with them. Some of the Fathers believed it was Christ who came to them in the form of an angel, or else the angel was a symbol for Christ, and while it is true that we will find ourselves tested in our faith at times, and we will experience trials and hardships in this life, Christ will always be present and available to those who are in need and He will always help those who call upon Him. Some of the Fathers also write this actual or perhaps symbolic presence of Christ in the form of an angel, is meant to show us that when the Son of God comes in the flesh and is born in Bethlehem, His mission will be to conquer the power of death for all those faithful who belong to Him. But unlike the Hebrews in the furnace who were temporarily spared from death, and would still face it again when their time came, the gift of Christ's divine life extends beyond this world and lasts forever. Moses was told by God that if any man would look upon Him directly that man would die. But now, when God becomes man, those who look on His face and believe, shall not die, but they will live forever.