What does Daniel 3:15 mean?
It's possible Nebuchadnezzar did not fully trust his court advisors (Daniel 2:8–11). When he elevated certain captive Jewish men (Daniel 1:6–7) to positions of power (Daniel 2:48–49), it may have inspired jealousy. The claim that these men did not follow a command to worship an idol (Daniel 3:1–7) may have been completely fabricated (Daniel 3:8). In other words, it's possible that the accusers were merely harassing the Hebrew men out of spite. The king calls the three men and interrogates them about their obedience. Here, he offers them an opportunity to prove their submission to his rule.Nebuchadnezzar saw himself as more authoritative and powerful than any god. He thought no god could undo his sentence of death. His question is rhetorical: a statement of his view that no deity could keep someone from death if the king of Babylon so ordered. Yet the king failed to realize that the God of the three Jews wasn't just another pagan idol. Their God created the heavens and earth (Genesis 1:1), controlled all nature, and could surely deliver His faithful worshipers from the burning fiery furnace. If Nebuchadnezzar cast Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego into the furnace, he would be setting up a conflict between himself and the one and only true God.
The three men won't dispute the charges against them, nor wait for the next command to worship. Instead, they neatly inform Nebuchadnezzar that they refuse to participate in idolatry (Daniel 3:16–18).
This verse is one of several which repeats the exact same list of musical instruments (Daniel 3:5, 7, 10). That repetition may be a way of satirizing Babylon's overly controlling, bureaucratic nature.