Meshach

Meshach, born Mishael ("Who is what God is?"), was of the royal line of Judah carried captive to Babylon as a youth. Together with Daniel, Hananiah, and Azariah, he was set apart for the king's court and renamed after a Babylonian deity. Yet his loyalty remained to the God of Israel. He shared in Daniel's resolve not to defile himself with the king's food, and God prospered him with wisdom and understanding.

When the Chaldeans accused him and his companions of refusing to worship the golden image, Meshach stood beside Shadrach and Abednego before the wrathful king. Their joint confession—"Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us"—remains one of the boldest statements of faith in Scripture. Bound in their garments, they were cast into a furnace so hot it slew the soldiers who carried them.

Inside the flames they were loosed, walking with one "like the Son of God." When called out by the astonished king, not a hair was singed, nor was the smell of fire upon them. Nebuchadnezzar promoted Meshach in the province of Babylon and issued a decree honoring their God.

Meshach's story illustrates that companions in faith strengthen one another in trial. Three young men, unwilling to compromise even unto death, became the means of a pagan king's confession that there is no other God who can deliver after this sort.