40 THE GOSPEL PRIMER.

furnace, and they walked around in the fire, perfectly
safe, and their clothes even were not burned. The
king and all that were with him could see the four
men walking in the fire, and they were astonished.
And the king commanded them to come forth.

In the second picture that goes with this story,
you can see the four men in the fire, and, lying near
them, are the men who were killed by the fire when
they threw the three Hebrews into it. At the right
you can see the king looking with wonder, and his
soldiers and rulers are standing near him.

Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego walked
out of the furnace, and the king and his rulers gathered
around them, and they found that there “was not an
hair of their head singed, neither were their coats
- changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on them.”

Then the king was forced to say that the God of
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego was stronger than
he and all his gods, and able to take care of those who
trusted in him. This was the lesson God wanted to
teach the Babylonians.

The lesson this teaches us is, that no matter who
tells us to disobey God, and do what he has told us we
should not, we must refuse to do it, even if we suffer
for it. And if we suffer for doing just as God has
commanded, we can remember that he knows it all,
and his mighty angels are by our side, even though
we cannot see them. And by and by he will give us
a great reward for all we have done and borne for him.