Texts in Conversation
Isaiah 43 promises that those passing through waters and fire will not be destroyed, echoing the language of the exodus as a pattern of deliverance. Daniel uses this imagery and incorporates it into a narrative where the three Judean boys survive the blazing furnace unharmed.
Share:
Isaiah 43:2
Hebrew Bible
1 Now, this is what the Lord says, the one who created you, O Jacob, and formed you, O Israel: “Don’t be afraid, for I will protect you. I call you by name, you are mine. 2 When you pass through the waters, I am with you; when you pass through the streams, they will not overwhelm you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not harm you. 3 For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your deliverer. I have handed over Egypt as a ransom price, Ethiopia and Seba in place of you. 4 Since you are precious and special in my sight and I love you, I will hand over people in place of you, nations in place of your life.
Date: 7th-5th Centuries B.C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
Source
Daniel 3:25
Hebrew Bible
23 But those three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell into the furnace of blazing fire while still securely bound. 24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar was startled and quickly got up. He said to his ministers, “Wasn’t it three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?” They replied to the king, “For sure, O king.” 25 He answered, “But I see four men, untied and walking around in the midst of the fire! No harm has come to them! And the appearance of the fourth is like that of a god!” 26 Then Nebuchadnezzar approached the door of the furnace of blazing fire. He called out, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the most high God, come out! Come here!” Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego emerged from the fire.
Date: 2nd Century B.C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
Source
Search:
Notes and References
"... Isaiah 43:2 is frequently cited in association with Daniel 3, the latter even being described as a “midrash” on the former. There are considerable warrants for discerning in Daniel 3 an allusion to Isaiah 43:2. However, according to the form-critical criteria adopted in this work, the term “midrash” — an exegetical genre in which the citing text appears to exist “for the sake of elucidating” the source text — would be misleading. First, Daniel 3 does not appear to see Isaiah 43:2 as confusing or in any way requiring explanation. Second, the story of the three friends has many purposes of its own, independent of working with Isaiah 43:2: it continues certain Danielic themes like the conversion of the foreign monarch and the defeat of rivals in the court; it further develops the characters of the three youths; and it brings a certain comic relief with its incessant listings of titular offices, musical instruments, articles of clothing, personal names, and so forth. Thus, to claim that the primary purpose of Daniel 3 is to exegete Isaiah 43:2 proves reductionist, overlooking the chapter’s many narrative functions to which an allusion to Isaiah 43:2 is pressed into service ..."
Lester, G. Brooke
Daniel Evokes Isaiah: Allusive Characterization of Foreign Rule in the Hebrew-Aramaic Book of Daniel
(p. 118) Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2015
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
Your Feedback:
Leave a Comment
Anonymous comments are welcome. All comments are subject to moderation.