דניאל, פרק ג׳, פסוק כ״ז

A massive crowd witnessing a fiery execution is left completely stunned by an impossible sight. While the fierce, raging flames killed the soldiers standing nearby, the condemned men emerge without a single scratch [ביאור שטיינזלץ]. The king's top officials, governors, and closest advisors quickly gather together to inspect them [אבן עזרא, מצודת דוד]. Noticeably absent from this group, however, are some of the royal staff who were present at an earlier assembly. Their absence is explained in two ways. They were either the mighty soldiers who were consumed by the flames while throwing the men into the furnace [רש״י], or they were fire-worshipping priests who fled in deep shame upon realizing their god lacked any power [מלבי״ם].

As the crowd carefully examines the survivors, the events unfold in four distinct stages. The primary approach among commentators is that this detailed account is not merely repetitive language, but a deliberate, step-by-step breakdown meant to disprove any attempt by the onlookers to attribute the survival to natural causes, science, or magic [מלבי״ם, אלשיך].

First, the crowd observes that the fire did not harm the men's bodies at all. In response, the officials try to argue that the men must have smeared themselves with the blood of a salamander, a mythical creature believed to be immune to fire. However, they then notice that not a single hair on the men's heads is singed. This discovery severely weakens the ointment theory, as such a rare and expensive substance would never be wasted on hair that is eventually cut [אלשיך]. Even so, some skeptics still try to argue that the hair naturally absorbed the protective qualities from the smeared body [מלבי״ם].

The third observation completely destroys the ointment theory. The men's outer coats and garments remain entirely unchanged, which logically proves their inner clothing is untouched as well [אבן עזרא, יוסף אבן יחיא]. Clothing cannot absorb ointment from a body, and if the clothes themselves had been smeared, it would be clearly visible. Left with few options, the doubters propose one final theory, suggesting the men either wore garments made of a special fireproof stone or used magic to protect themselves [מלבי״ם, אלשיך].

The final detail shatters these remaining guesses. Not even the faint smell of fire has clung to them. Even a fireproof garment would absorb the heavy scent of smoke from a furnace [מלבי״ם], and magic has no power to prevent a foul odor from sticking to a person [אלשיך]. Faced with the complete absence of any smoky smell, the officials are left speechless, forced to recognize that this is an absolute, supernatural miracle performed by God.