The Fourth Man in the Fire

Scripture

When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.

Isaiah 43:2 KJV

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Big idea

Summary

Graham retells the account of Nebuchadnezzar's golden image and the three Hebrew exiles thrown into a furnace for refusing to worship it, noting they trusted God without any guarantee of rescue and were joined in the flames by a mysterious fourth figure. The central lesson he draws is that God's promise is companionship through trial, not automatic deliverance — even Jesus, who could have claimed angelic protection, chose instead to submit to the Father's will, and believers may likewise be called to suffer for the sake of others rather than to escape it. Graham reflects that this same principle applies to martyrs and ordinary people who lose loved ones to tragedy: God's presence in the fire matters more than any promise of being spared from it, and knowing Scripture's promises in advance is what allowed the three Hebrews to stand firm without knowing the outcome.

The chapter then surveys a series of biblical images of God as refuge, shield, and shepherd, illustrating each with contemporary stories: a woman imprisoned in solitary confinement by the Nazis whose fear is calmed by watching an ant flee instantly to its hiding place at the first sign of danger; the hymn writer who turned to Christ after his fiancée's drowning and later penned a hymn of comfort still sung by millions; and a well-known Christian couple whose exhausted wife finds supernatural strength to complete a second speaking engagement after friends pray with her. Graham draws on shepherd imagery from both Testaments to frame two accounts of women whose deep wounds from abuse and abandonment were healed through an intimate, ongoing sense of Jesus as their protector and guide.

Graham closes with the promise of abundant provision, illustrated by a well that produced what seemed an inexhaustible supply of water, and with the ministry of protecting angels, which he connects to his own experience of a spiritually dry season resolved by his mother's counsel to trust God even when His presence isn't felt. He notes that believers often sense unseen protection only in hindsight, recalling near-accidents or unexpected provisions that seem too well-timed to be coincidence. He ends with a parable of a shipwrecked man whose only shelter burns down, unknowingly creating the smoke signal that leads to his rescue, reinforcing that apparent disaster can become the very means of deliverance, and that God walks with His people through, not merely around, the fire.

Key points

• God's promises of protection guarantee His presence within suffering, not necessarily escape from it.
• Even Jesus relinquished a claim to angelic rescue in order to fulfill a greater purpose.
• Simple, memorable images — a refuge, a shield, a shepherd — help believers hold onto God's promises under pressure.
• A support community and remembered Scripture sustain people through prolonged hardship when human comfort runs out.
• Apparent disasters can become the very means God uses to bring rescue and blessing.

Illustrations & stories

• A woman imprisoned alone by the Nazis is comforted when she watches an ant flee instantly to a crack in the wall the moment floodwater reaches it, seeing it as a picture of running straight to God as her hiding place.
• A young man devastated after his fiancée drowned before their wedding eventually finds peace in Christ and writes a hymn of comfort still sung by millions today.
• A well-known Christian wife, physically and emotionally drained between two speaking engagements, prays for help and finds strength restored after friends pray with her.
• Two women, given changed names, each describe how deep wounds from childhood sexual abuse were healed through an intimate sense of Jesus's ongoing companionship rather than counseling alone.
• A shipwrecked man's only shelter burns to the ground, and he later learns the resulting smoke was what led a passing ship to rescue him.

Notable line

God will never leave us nor forsake us.

Billy Graham Hope for the Troubled Heart, ch. 10, on trusting God during a spiritually dry season

For reflection and discussion

1. When has God felt more like a 'fourth man in the fire' with you than a rescuer who removed the fire altogether?
2. Which biblical picture of God — refuge, shield, shepherd, or strength — speaks most to your current season?
3. How do you respond when a trial ends not in visible deliverance but in God's quiet presence?
4. What promise of Scripture do you most need to memorize and hold onto right now?