Daniel 3:18 (GNV)

Passage

But if not, bee it knowen to thee, O King, that wee will not serue thy gods, nor worship the golden image, which thou hast set vp.

Nearby Context

Daniel 3:16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to the King, O Nebuchad-nezzar, we are not carefull to answere thee in this matter.

Daniel 3:17 Beholde, our God whom we serue, is able to deliuer vs from the hote fierie fornace, and hee will deliuer vs out of thine hand, O King.

Daniel 3:18 But if not, bee it knowen to thee, O King, that wee will not serue thy gods, nor worship the golden image, which thou hast set vp.

Daniel 3:19 Then was Nebuchad-nezzar full of rage, and the forme of his visage was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego: therefore hee charged and commanded that they should heate the fornace at once seuen times more then it was wont to be heat.

Daniel 3:20 And hee charged the most valiant men of warre that were in his armie, to binde Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the hote fierie fornace.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "knowen", "thee", "king", "serue", "gods", "worship", "golden", and "image". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "knowen" and "thee", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 17's "Beholde our God whom we serue is..." into verse 19's "Then was Nebuchad-nezzar full of rage and...", so "knowen" and "thee" 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 "knowen" and "thee" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.