Dan 3:15-18, 6:10-28, Joh 11:8-10, Act 4:5-12, 24-33 | ESV | STEP | Now if you are ready when you hear the sound of the horn , pipe , lyre , trigon , harp , bagpipe , and every kind of music , to fall down and worship the image that I have made , well and good. But if you do not worship , you shall immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace . And who is the god who will deliver you out of my hands ?

15 Now if you are ready when ^ayou hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, to fall down and worship the image that I have made, well and good. ^{▼▼Aramaic lacks well and good} But if you do not worship, ^cyou shall immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace. And ^dwho is the god who will deliver you out of my hands?”

16 ^eShadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. 17 If this be so, ^four God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king. ^{▼▼Or If our God whom we serve is able to deliver us, he will deliver us from the burning fiery furnace and out of your hand, O king.} 18 But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

Daniel 6:10-28

10 When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his house where ^hhe had windows in his upper chamber open ⁱtoward Jerusalem. He got down on his knees ^jthree times a day and prayed and ^kgave thanks before his God, as he had done previously. 11 Then these men came by agreement and found Daniel making petition and plea before his God. 12 Then they ^lcame near and said before the king, concerning the injunction, “O king! Did you not sign ^man injunction, that anyone who makes petition to any god or man within thirty days except to you, O king, shall be cast into the den of lions?” The king answered and said, “The thing stands fast, according to the law of ⁿthe Medes and Persians, ^owhich cannot be revoked.” 13 Then they answered and said before the king, ^p“Daniel, who is one ^qof the exiles ^rfrom Judah, ^spays no attention to you, O king, or ^tthe injunction you have signed, but makes his petition ^uthree times a day.”

14 Then ^vthe king, when he heard these words, ^wwas much distressed and set his mind to deliver Daniel. And he labored till the sun went down to rescue him. 15 Then these men came by agreement to the king and said to the king, “Know, O king, that it is a law of the Medes and Persians that no ^xinjunction or ordinance that the king establishes can be changed.”

16 Then the king commanded, and Daniel was brought and cast into the den of lions. The king declared ^{▼▼Aramaic answered and said; also verse 20} to Daniel, “May ^zyour God, whom you serve continually, deliver you!” 17 ^aaAnd a stone was brought and laid on the mouth of the den, ^aband the king sealed it ^acwith his own signet and with the signet of his ^adlords, that nothing might be changed concerning Daniel. 18 Then the king went to his palace and spent the night fasting; ^aeno diversions were brought to him, and ^afsleep fled from him.

19 Then, at break of day, the king arose and went in haste to the den of lions. 20 As he came near to the den where Daniel was, he cried out in a tone of anguish. The king declared to Daniel, “O Daniel, servant of ^agthe living God, ^ahhas your God, whom you serve continually, ^aibeen able to deliver you from the lions?” 21 Then Daniel said to the king, ^aj“O king, live forever! 22 My God ^aksent his angel ^aland shut the lions’ mouths, and they have not harmed me, because I was found blameless ^ambefore him; ^anand also before you, O king, I have done no harm.” 23 Then the king was exceedingly glad, and commanded that Daniel be taken up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and ^aono kind of harm was found on him, because he had trusted in his God. 24 And the king commanded, and ^apthose men who had maliciously accused Daniel were brought and cast into the den of lions—they, their children, and their wives. And before they reached the bottom of the den, the lions overpowered them and broke all their bones in pieces.

25 Then King Darius wrote to all ^aqthe peoples, nations, and languages ^arthat dwell in all the earth: ^as“Peace be multiplied to you. 26 ^atI make a decree, that in all my royal dominion ^aupeople are to tremble and fear before the God of Daniel,

for ^avhe is ^awthe living God,
enduring forever;
his kingdom shall never be destroyed,
^axand his dominion shall be ^ayto the end.
27 He delivers and rescues;
he works ^azsigns and wonders
in heaven and on earth,
he who has ^basaved Daniel
from the power of the lions.”
28 So this Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius and ^bbthe reign of ^bcCyrus the Persian.

John 11:8-10

8 The disciples said to him, ^bd“Rabbi, ^bethe Jews were just now seeking to stone you, and are you going there again?” 9 Jesus answered, ^bf“Are there not twelve hours in the day? ^bgIf anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. 10 But ^bhif anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not ^biin him.”

Acts 4:5-12

5 On the next day their rulers and elders and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem, 6 with ^bjAnnas the high priest and ^bkCaiaphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family. 7 And when they had set them in the midst, they inquired, ^bl“By what power or ^bmby what name did you do this?” 8 Then Peter, ^bnfilled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders, 9 if we are being examined today ^boconcerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, 10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that ^bpby the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, ^bqwhom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well. 11 ^brThis Jesus ^{▼▼Greek This one} is the stone that was ^btrejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. ^{▼▼Greek the head of the corner} 12 And there is ^bvsalvation ^bwin no one else, for ^bxthere is no other ^byname under heaven given among men ^{▼▼The Greek word anthropoi refers here to both men and women} by which we must be saved.”

Acts 4:24-33

24 And when they heard it, they lifted their voices ^catogether to God and said, “Sovereign Lord, ^cbwho made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them, 25 who through the mouth of our father David, your servant, ^{▼▼Or child; also verses 27, 30} said by the Holy Spirit,

^cd“‘Why did the Gentiles rage,
and the peoples plot in vain?
26 The kings of the earth set themselves,
and ^cethe rulers were gathered together,
against the Lord and against his ^cfAnointed’ ^{▼▼Or Christ}—
27 for truly in this city there were gathered together against your ^chholy servant Jesus, ^ciwhom you anointed, both ^cjHerod and ^ckPontius Pilate, along ^clwith the Gentiles and ^cmthe peoples of Israel, 28 ^cnto do whatever your hand and ^coyour plan had predestined to take place. 29 And now, Lord, ^cplook upon their threats and grant to your servants ^{▼▼Greek bondservants} to continue to speak your word with all ^crboldness, 30 while ^csyou stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed ^ctthrough the name of your ^cuholy servant Jesus.” 31 And when they had prayed, ^cvthe place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and ^cwthey were all filled with the Holy Spirit and ^cxcontinued to speak the word of God with boldness.

They Had Everything in Common

32 Now the full number of those who believed were of ^cyone heart and ^czsoul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but ^dathey had everything in common. 33 And with great ^dbpower the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and ^dcgreat grace was upon them all.