The Danger of Anger by David Jeremiah

The Danger of Anger Then Nebuchadnezzar was full of fury, and the expression on his face changed toward Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. He spoke and commanded that they heat the furnace seven times more than it was usually heated.  Daniel 3:19 During the six-year reign of Queen “Bloody” Mary in England (1553-1558), the Catholic monarch put to death some three hundred Protestant leaders of the breakaway Church of England—most by burning at the stake. Sometimes, sympathetic executioners would tie a bag of gunpowder around the neck of the condemned to hasten their death once the flames reached high enough.

Recommended Reading: Ephesians 4:26-27

Think about it: to make death excruciatingly painful, you would make it slow, not fast. Yet when King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon condemned the three friends of Daniel to a fiery death, he ordered the furnace to be heated seven times hotter than normal. They would literally die the moment they were exposed to the horrendous fire; hardly suffering at all! The king was so “full of fury” that he lost touch with reality. That is what anger has the potential to do. The apostle Paul knew that, which is why he commanded Christians not to let anger fester or to  “give place to the devil” (Ephesians 4:27). Don’t let anger be the cause of irrational actions. Whatever begins in anger, ends in shame. Ben Franklin