Daniel 3:4 (DRB)

Passage

Then a herald cried with a strong voice: To you it is commanded, O nations, tribes and languages:

Nearby Context

Daniel 3:2 Then Nabuchodonosor, the king, sent to call together the nobles, the magistrates, and the judges, the captains, the rulers, and governors, and all the chief men of the provinces, to come to the dedication of the statue which king Nabuchodonosor had set up.

Daniel 3:3 Then the nobles, the magistrates, and the judges, the captains, and rulers, and the great men that were placed in authority, and all the princes of the provinces, were gathered together to come to the dedication of the statue, which king Nabuchodonosor had set up. And they stood before the statue which king Nabuchodonosor had set up.

Daniel 3:4 Then a herald cried with a strong voice: To you it is commanded, O nations, tribes and languages:

Daniel 3:5 That in the hour that you shall hear the sound of the trumpet, and of the flute, and of the harp, of the sackbut, and of the psaltery, and of the symphony, and of all kind of music, ye fall down and adore the golden statue which king Nabuchodonosor hath set up.

Daniel 3:6 But if any man shall not fall down and adore, he shall the same hour be cast into a furnace of burning fire.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "herald", "cried", "strong", "voice", "commanded", "nations", "tribes", and "languages". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "herald" and "cried", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "Then the nobles the magistrates and the..." into verse 5's "That in the hour that you shall...", so "herald" and "cried" belong inside that flow. In Daniel context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "herald" and "cried" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.