The story goes that Nimrod, a powerful and wicked king, grew furious with Abraham (who was, of course, not called Abraham yet at this point in the narrative—but we'll call him that for clarity's sake). Nimrod threw him into prison, ordering the guards to deny him food and water. A death sentence. But as Legends of the Jews (Ginzberg) tells us, God heard Abraham's prayers and sent the angel Gabriel to keep him company in the dungeon.
For a whole year, Gabriel provided Abraham with food and water. Imagine that! A spring of fresh water even welled up right there in the prison.
Eventually, Nimrod's advisors suggested an even more dramatic way to deal with Abraham: throw him into a giant furnace. They figured this would scare everyone into believing in Nimrod forever. So, the king ordered everyone in his kingdom – men, women, children – to bring wood for a massive fire. The flames, we are told, shot up to the sky!
The prison warden was ordered to cast Abraham into the flames. But the warden, probably thinking Abraham was long dead from starvation, hesitantly asked the king, "Shouldn't we check if he's even alive?" Nimrod agreed and told the warden to call out Abraham's name.
To the warden's astonishment, Abraham answered! "I am living," he declared. The warden, bewildered, asked how he had survived. Abraham replied with unwavering faith: "Food and drink have been bestowed upon me by Him who is over all things, the God of all gods and the Lord of all lords… He dispenseth food and drink unto all beings. He sees, but He cannot be seen… He is present in all places."
This miraculous survival convinced the prison-keeper of the truth of God and Abraham's prophecy. He declared his belief publicly, and when threatened with death if he didn't recant, he refused. As the executioner raised his sword, the warden exclaimed, "The Eternal He is God!" The sword, however, couldn't cut him; it shattered into pieces!
Nimrod, still determined to kill Abraham, sent princes to throw him into the fire. But every time someone approached Abraham, the flames leapt out and consumed them instead. It was a deadly, fiery deterrent.
Then, Satan, disguised as a man, suggested a solution: a catapult. That way, no one had to get close to the flames. Satan even built the catapult himself.
As they were about to launch Abraham into the fire, Satan whispered to him, tempting him to bow down to Nimrod to save himself. But Abraham rebuked him, saying, "May the Eternal rebuke thee, thou vile, contemptible, accursed blasphemer!" Even Abraham's own mother pleaded with him to feign loyalty to Nimrod. Abraham's response, according to the text, was: “O mother, water can extinguish Nimrod’s fire, but the fire of God will not die out for evermore. Water cannot quench it.”
Finally, as Abraham was placed in the catapult, he cried out, "O Lord my God, Thou seest what this sinner purposes to do unto me!" His faith was absolute.
The angels, having received divine permission to intervene, watched as Gabriel approached Abraham. “Abraham, shall I save thee from the fire?” he asked. Abraham replied, "God in whom I trust, the God of heaven and earth, will rescue me."
And God did. Seeing Abraham's unwavering faith, God commanded the fire, "Cool off and bring tranquillity to my servant Abraham."
And what happened? The fire didn't just go out. According to the narrative in Legends of the Jews, the logs burst into buds, blossoming into fruit-bearing trees. The furnace transformed into a beautiful garden, where angels sat with Abraham.
Nimrod, witnessing this, accused Abraham of witchcraft. But his princes protested, declaring that it was the power of Abraham's God, "beside whom there is no other god." The princes and the people then proclaimed, "The Lord He is God in heaven above and upon the earth beneath; there is none else."
Abraham, the text emphasizes, was even greater than righteous men of his time like Noah, Shem, Eber, and Asshur because he did not compromise his faith in the face of persecution.
The story doesn't end there. It goes on to explain how this miraculous deliverance fulfilled a prophecy that Abraham's father, Terah, had seen in the stars. Terah had seen the star of Haran consumed by fire, and at the same time fill and rule the whole world. Haran, Abraham’s brother, was killed by the fire because he was undecided in his faith. The fire represented the trial of faith, and Haran's death, according to the text, marked the first time in history that a son died before his father.
The people, witnessing these wonders, prostrated themselves before Abraham. But Abraham directed their worship to God. Nimrod, humbled, showered Abraham with gifts, including two slaves named Ogi and Eliezer. But what pleased Abraham most was that three hundred people joined him, embracing his faith.
What do we take away from this incredible story? It's a testament to unwavering faith, even in the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges. It's about trusting in something bigger than yourself, even when everyone around you doubts. And maybe, just maybe, it's a reminder that even in the darkest of times, miracles can happen. What "furnace" are you facing in your life right now, and how can Abraham's story give you the strength to face it?
Now the king was exceedingly wroth at Abraham, and ordered him to be cast into prison, where he commanded the warden not to give him bread or water. But God hearkened unto the prayer of Abraham, and sent Gabriel to him in his dungeon. For a year the angel dwelt with him, and provided him with all sorts of food, and a spring of fresh water welled up before him, and he drank of it. At the end of a year, the magnates of the realm presented themselves before the king, and advised him to cast Abraham into the fire, that the people might believe in Nimrod forever. Thereupon the king issued a decree that all the subjects of the king in all his provinces, men and women, young and old, should bring wood within forty days, and he caused it to be thrown into a great furnace and set afire. The flames shot up to the skies, and the people were sore afraid of the fire. Now the warden of the prison was ordered to bring Abraham forth and cast him in the flames. The warden reminded the king that Abraham had not had food or drink a whole year, and therefore must be dead, but Nimrod nevertheless desired him to step in front of the prison and call his name. If he made reply, he was to be hauled out to the pyre. If he had perished, his remains were to receive burial, and his memory was to be wiped out henceforth. Greatly amazed the warden was when his cry, "Abraham, art thou alive?" was answered with "I am living." He questioned further, "Who has been bringing thee food and drink all these many days?" and Abraham replied: "Food and drink have been bestowed upon me by Him who is over all things, the God of all gods and the Lord of all lords, who alone doeth wonders, He who is the God of Nimrod and the God of Terah and the God of the whole world. He dispenseth food and drink unto all beings. He sees, but He cannot be seen, He is in the heavens above, and He is present in all places, for He Himself superviseth all things and provideth for all." The miraculous rescue of Abraham from death by starvation and thirst convinced the prison-keeper of the truth of God and His prophet Abraham, and he acknowledged his belief in both publicly. The king's threat of death unless he recanted could not turn him away from his new and true faith. When the hangman raised his sword and set it at his throat to kill him, he exclaimed, "The Eternal He is God, the God of the whole world as well as of the blasphemer Nimrod." But the sword could not cut his flesh. The harder it was pressed against his throat, the more it broke into pieces. Nimrod, however, was not to be turned aside from his purpose, to make Abraham suffer death by fire. One of the princes was dispatched to fetch him forth. But scarcely did the messenger set about the task of throwing him into the fire, when the flame leapt forth from the furnace and consumed him. Many more attempts were made to cast Abraham into the furnace, but always with the same success—whoever seized him to pitch him in was himself burnt, and a large number lost their lives. Satan appeared in human shape, and advised the king to place Abraham in a catapult and sling him into the fire. Thus no one would be required to come near the flame. Satan himself constructed the catapult. Having proved it fit three times by means of stones put in the machine, they bound Abraham, hand and foot, and were about to consign him to the flames. At that moment Satan, still disguised in human shape, approached Abraham, and said, "If thou desirest to deliver thyself from the fire of Nimrod, bow down before him and believe in him." But Abraham rejected the tempter with the words, "May the Eternal rebuke thee, thou vile, contemptible, accursed blasphemer!" and Satan departed from him. Then the mother of Abraham came to him and implored him to pay homage to Nimrod and escape the impending misfortune. But he said to her: "O mother, water can extinguish Nimrod's fire, but the fire of God will not die out for evermore. Water cannot quench it." When his mother heard these words, she spake, "May the God whom thou servest rescue thee from the fire of Nimrod!" Abraham was finally placed in the catapult, and he raised his eyes heavenward, and spoke, "O Lord my God, Thou seest what this sinner purposes to do unto me!" His confidence in God was unshakable. When the angels received the Divine permission to save him, and Gabriel approached him, and asked, "Abraham, shall I save thee from the fire?" he replied, "God in whom I trust, the God of heaven and earth, will rescue me," and God, seeing the submissive spirit of Abraham, commanded the fire, "Cool off and bring tranquillity to my servant Abraham." No water was needed to extinguish the fire. The logs burst into buds, and all the different kinds of wood put forth fruit, each tree bearing its own kind. The furnace was transformed into a royal pleasance, and the angels sat therein with Abraham. When the king saw the miracle, he said: "Great witchcraft! Thou makest it known that fire hath no power over thee, and at the same time thou showest thyself unto the people sitting in a pleasure garden." But the princes of Nimrod interposed all with one voice, "Nay, our lord, this is not witchcraft, it is the power of the great God, the God of Abraham, beside whom there is no other god, and we acknowledge that He is God, and Abraham is His servant." All the princes and all the people believed in God at this hour, in the Eternal, the God of Abraham, and they all cried out, "The Lord He is God in heaven above and upon the earth beneath; there is none else." Abraham was the superior, not only of the impious king Nimrod and his attendants, but also of the pious men of his time, Noah, Shem, Eber, and Asshur. Noah gave himself no concern whatsoever in the matter of spreading the pure faith in God. He took an interest in planting his vineyard, and was immersed in material pleasures. Shem and Eber kept in hiding, and as for Asshur, he said, "How can I live among such sinners?" and departed out of the land. The only one who remained unshaken was Abraham. "I will not forsake God," he said, and therefore God did not forsake him, who had hearkened neither unto his father nor unto his mother. The miraculous deliverance of Abraham from the fiery furnace, together with his later fortunes, was the fulfilment and explanation of what his father Terah had read in the stars. He had seen the star of Haran consumed by fire, and at the same time fill and rule the whole world. The meaning was plain now. Haran was irresolute in his faith, he could not decide whether to adhere to Abraham or the idolaters. When it befell that those who would not serve idols were cast into the fiery furnace, Haran reasoned in this manner: "Abraham, being my elder, will be called upon before me. If he comes forth out of the fiery trial triumphant, I will declare my allegiance to him; otherwise I will take sides against him." After God Himself had rescued Abraham from death, and Haran's turn came to make his confession of faith, he announced his adherence to Abraham. But scarcely had he come near the furnace, when he was seized by the flames and consumed, because he was lacking in firm faith in God. Terah had read the stars well, it now appeared: Haran was burnt, and his daughter Sarah became the wife of Abraham, whose descendants fill the earth. In another way the death of Haran was noteworthy. It was the first instance, since the creation of the world, of a son's dying while his father was still alive. The king, the princes, and all the people, who had been witnesses of the wonders done for Abraham, came to him, and prostrated themselves before him. But Abraham said: "Do not bow down before me, but before God, the Master of the universe, who hath created you. Serve Him and walk in His ways, for He it was who delivered me from the flames, and He it is who hath created the soul and the spirit of every human being, who formeth man in the womb of his mother, and bringeth him into the world. He saveth from all sickness those who put their trust in Him." The king then dismissed Abraham, after loading him down with an abundance of precious gifts, among them two slaves who had been raised in the royal palace. 'Ogi was the name of the one, Eliezer the name of the other. The princes followed the example of the king, and they gave him silver, and gold, and gems. But all these gifts did not rejoice the heart of Abraham so much as the three hundred followers that joined him and became adherents of his religion.
