Deeper Reflection
Nebuchadnezzar made a 90 feet high and 9 feet wide (60 x 6 cubits) “statue of gold” (v.1). It was “a stylised image of Nebuchadnezzar himself, or of his imperial empire” and “a huge monument to the Babylonian Empire itself, ‘The Spirit of Babylon.’” ²³Nebuchadnezzar ruled over a great mixture of “nations and peoples of every language” (v.7). He needed to stabilise and strengthen his relatively young empire, and his golden statue was intended to be “a symbol of the unity and strength of his empire.”²⁴ To build unity, there must be loyalty. And this loyalty to King Nebuchadnezzar was to be demonstrated by worshiping his golden statue (v.5). Nebuchadnezzar did not prohibit his subjects from worshipping their own gods. They could continue to worship their gods, “just so long as they gave priority to the official state gods of Babylon”, symbolised by Nebuchadnezzar’s golden statue.²⁵For God’s people, there will be pressure from the world to compromise: to worship the true God and its gods. It can be pressure from authority.²⁶ To worship the golden statue was the king’s “command” that must be obeyed (v.4). “Nebuchadnezzar the king” is repeated six times in verses 1 to 7, out of eight times in Daniel 3. The repetition underscores the king’s authority. It can be pressure to conformity. ²⁷ The whole range of the Babylonian civil service employees (vv.2-3) and “all the nations and peoples of every language” worshipped Nebuchadnezzar’s golden statue (v.7). For God’s faithful people who remain standing, “there’s a tremendous coercion that comes from being among a whole mob of flattened worshipers” ²⁸ .

---

²³ Christopher J. H. Wright, 67 ²⁴ Christopher J. H. Wright, 67 ²⁵ Christopher J. H. Wright, 67 ²⁶ Dale Ralph Davis, The Message of Daniel, The Bible Speaks Today (IVP, 2013), 52 ²⁷ Dale Ralph Davis, 52 ²⁸ Dale Ralph Davis, 52