Kabbalah Library

35. When Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah were imprisoned, to drop them into the furnace of the burning fire, Hananiah said, “The Lord is for me, I shall not fear what man does to me. The Lord is for me in those who help me, and I shall see in those who hate me.”

Mishael opened and said, “Thus said the Lord to the house of Jacob, who redeemed Abraham, Jacob shall not now be ashamed, nor shall his face now grow pale, for when he sees his children, the work of My hands, in his midst, they will sanctify My name.”

36. At that time, they judged him above. The Creator said, “This one will say, ‘I am the Lord’s.’” This is Hananiah, who said, “The Lord is for me in those who help me, and I shall see in those who hate me.” And this one will be called by the name Jacob. This is Mishael, who said, “Thus said the Lord to the house of Jacob,” and he will be called by the name Israel. This is Azariah, who said, “Hear O Israel.”

37. When Mishael said, “Thus said the Lord to the house of Jacob, who redeemed Abraham,” the Chaldeans mocked them with their tongues. The Creator said, “My throne, that mockery that they mocked, save them, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah,” in this degree, “as I had saved Abraham. And Jacob shall not now be ashamed, nor shall his face now grow pale.” At that time, all those who imprisoned them were killed by a spark of fire.

38. Why was Daniel not with them? He thought in his heart, “But they made a similitude out of him, and the king called his name like the name of his god, as it is written, in Daniel, “Whose name is Belshazzar, as the name of my god,” and it is written, “You shall burn the statues of their gods with fire‎.” For this reason, he hid from them. Can a person run from the Kingship? However, angels concealed him.

39. What did Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah see that they gave themselves up to the fire? One day, David went down to entertain himself before the river. He was saying, “Preserve my life, for I am a Hassid [one who has the quality of Hesed].” They told him, “Are you a Hassid?”

He said to them, “I am not a Hassid, for my hands are dirty with blood, and amniotic fluid, and placenta, and purify the pure, and defile the impure, and I gladly rise in three watches, as it is written, ‘At midnight, I will rise to thank You,’ and I sleep like a horse, in one exhale, one breath.

40. “At midnight, I rise to engage in Torah, and in the third watch, I play with the angels to the Creator, as it is written, ‘When the morning stars sing together, and all of God’s children cheer.’ God’s children are the holy angels, who say psalms with me at night, as it is written, ‘And in the night, His song is with me, a prayer to the God of my life.’”

41. The frogs said, “We did more than you for the Creator, for we were burning our bodies in fire in the oven in Egypt. When they imprisoned Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, they said to themselves, “We will do as the frogs.”