“Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.” I Corinthians 10:11
Daniel is a prophetic book which details God’s plan for the nation of Israel. Daniel shows us the coming 70th week of tribulation and the return of the Messiah to establish His millennial kingdom. In Daniel 3 God gives us a partial snapshot of what that time will be like.
The Antichrist Nebuchadnezzar is a type of the Antichrist.
He portrays himself as a friend of the Jews but then demands
that he be worshipped as God.
Hananiah, Azariah, Mishael The thee men are an example of the
faithful believers in the nation of Israel.
The Golden Image The Antichrist sets up an image of himself in the
Temple for all to see as does Nebuchadnezzar on the plain of Dura.
The Decree All men are commanded to immediately and under the
penalty of death fall down and worship the image.
The Timing The Lord warns those in Jerusalem to flee immediately
upon seeing the image in the temple. He knows a decree is coming that demands all people to fall on their faces immediately to worship the idol. There is no time to think, only obey. Hananiah, Azaraih and Mischal show us we must prepare our hearts to obey before the test of faith arises.
The Masses on the plain of Dura The masses are a type of the world’s population who will comply with the king’s (Antichrist’s) command to worship the image.
The Fiery Furnace The furnace is an example of the awful death awaiting those who will not worship the image. Both the fiery furnace and the beheading of those who defy the Antichrist’s decree in the tribulation are designed to produce terror.
The Soldiers This is an example of those who search the world for those who will not bow their knee to the satanic ruler.
The Protection We see the Lord protect his children just as He does for those who obey and flee to Petra after the image is set in the Temple.
The Savior The Lord Himself protects His servants. He walks through the fires with His faithful servants.
The Promotion We see the the three men promoted at the end of this test. At the end of the tribulation, saints are promoted into the Lord’s presence and into His millennial kingdom.
The World’s reaction to God Nebuchadnezzar sees the great miracle of God and recognizes He is the Most High God but he does not accept Him as his Savior. The knowledge of God and the witness of His miracles only serves as condemnation for he knew God but glorified Him not as God.
Daniel There is one last example of the Tribulation in this passage. There is a lot of speculation as to why Daniel is not in this chapter. Why would God allow Hananiah, Azariah and Mishael to suffer this trial alone? We know God is sovereign and is in control of every test He allows each of us to face. There is another reason, however which fits in with the illustration of the Tribulation. Hopefully this “type” will thrill your soul.
We know Daniel is mysteriously absent. He is a true believer but he is not there during this intense testing. What does Daniel represent?
He is an example of the church. It too is mysteriously removed from the earth before the beginning of the Tribulation. Daniel is not
there during this tribulation and neither will the church be present during the Tribulation but their prayers for the faithful are.
What can we learn? God’s word is wonderfully constructed. Here He tells us a story of three faithful servants during a time of intense testing. He uses them to show us how to stand for Him and how He is always faithful to those who honor Him with their faith. Yet at the same time he gives encouragement to those who will faithfully go through the 70th week of Daniel trusting Him. He encourages them by showing He is with them through the trial and that there is victory that lies at the end. At the same time He uses one detail in the story to confirm that certain believers (His church) will not be present through the time of Jacob’s troubles.