Thou shalt have no other gods before me eyes, which have lusted after their idols.” This led to a broken covenant between Yahweh and Israel and “divorce,” manifested as defeat by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon followed by exile, from which the northern kingdom never recovered. The Bible presents Daniel and his companions as distinct, positive examples of individuals refusing to pay homage to another god, even at the price of their lives. During the time of the exile, Nebuchadnezzar erects a gold statue of himself and commands all subjects to worship it. Three Jewish officials – Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego – who had been taken to Babylon as
Thomas Shadrach James Thomas Shadrach James Thomas Shadrach James (1 September 1859 – 9 January 1946) was a Methodist lay preacher, linguist and herbalist. However, it was as a teacher, first at Maloga Aboriginal Mission and later at Cummeragunja, that he is remembered in history. Through this role, he equipped and influenced generations of Aboriginal activists, including Margaret Tucker, Pastor Doug Nicholls, George Patten, Jack Patten, William Cooper and Bill Onus. On his birth certificate, Thomas James is recorded as being "Thomas Shadrach Peersahib". His father was denoted as James Peersahib (in other documents, this name is Peersaib). And his mother was Esther