Paul Harvey had a famous radio signature where he would tell an often familiar bit of history and then reveal “the rest of the story” – the background that made the initial news even more amazing.  He would have loved to tell (and probably did) two such events that are contained in the book of Daniel.

You probably know that Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego were tossed into the fiery furnace after they refused to bow to King Nebuchadnezzar’s giant idol (Daniel 3). An angel rescued them, and they emerged with unsinged hair, unburned clothes, and no smoky smell.  The poor guards who tossed them in, however, were killed by the flames.  The rest of the story is the aftermath – Nebuchadnezzar issued a proclamation forbidding anyone from speaking against the God of the three unburnable boys.

And you have most likely heard that Daniel was tossed into the lion’s den because he continued to pray to his God (Daniel 6).  Daniel was sealed in overnight but was taken up out of the pit with nary a scratch.  His accusers, however, when cast into the same  hole, were overpowered by the lions so ravenously that all their bones were broken before they hit the bottom.  Again, the rest of the story is the proclamation made by King Darius – not only was God praised abundantly, but all men in the kingdom were to “tremble and fear” before Him.