the king's mercy. They were also under peculiar obligations to the king, who had educated them at his own expense, and had even invested them with authority over whole provinces of his native subjects. These considerations were calculated to operate strongly on their minds, and to render them somewhat less scrupulous than they would otherwise have been about a single infringement of the Divine law. A sense of duty to their king, and of gratitude to their benefactor, might seem to justify a small deviation from the stricter path of duty. They might possibly compare the act required of them with the con- duct of the whole Jewish nation, both priests and people : the Jews had erected idols of their own, and, of their own free-will, had worshipped them in preference to Jehovah : but these youths were brought into the situation against their will, and in their own minds intended no disrespect to the God of hea- ven. Were they to act as their own priests and people had done, they would doubtless be highly criminal ; but could there then be any great harm in merely bowing their heads, as an act of obedience to their prince ? Moreover, when every go- vernor in the empire complied with the edict, why should they refuse ; more especially since their refusal would subject them to the most cruel death, and rob them of all opportunity of benefiting their respective provinces in future ?
They who know how the mind and conscience are apt to be biassed by such reasonings as these, will see, that they must of necessity present a very formidable obstacle to the preservation of integrity under such circumstances.]
But they manfully withstood the royal edict — [They would not for a moment confer with flesh and blood. No regard to their own ease or safety, no, nor to their eventual usefulness in the world, could induce them to swerve from the plain path of duty. They were offered by the king to re- consider their determination : but their minds were made up, rather to suffer any thing, than to sin against their G od. The king had exultingly said, " Who is that God who shall deliver you out of my hand ? " But they told him, that their God was able, yea, moreover, that he would deliver them out of his hand: but that, whether he would or not, they were fixed in their purpose, never to violate their conscience in bowing down to this golden idol a.
In the midst of all this firmness, we observe not one inde- corous expression ; no invectives, no complaints, but simply a declaration of their affiance in God, and of their determination never to sin against him.]
How God appreciated their fidelity, we may judge from,
a Dan. hi. 16—18.