Blessed are you, Lord, the God of our fathers,
and worthy to be praised.
Your name is glorified forever.
For you are righteous in all the things you have done to us.
Yes, all your works are true,
your ways are right,
and all your judgments are truth.
In all the things that you have brought on us
and on the holy city of our fathers, Jerusalem,
you have executed true judgments;
for according to truth and justice
you have brought all these things on us because of our sins.
For we have sinned and committed iniquity in departing from you.
We have grievously offended in all things,
and have not obeyed your commandments,
nor kept them, neither done as you have commanded us,
that it might go well with us.
Yet now we cannot open our mouths.
Shame and reproach have come on your servants
and those who worship you.
Deliver us not utterly, for your name's sake.
Don't break your covenant.
Don't take away your mercy from us,
for your beloved Abraham's sake,
for your servant Isaac's sake,
and for your holy Israel's sake.
With a contrite heart and a humble spirit may we be accepted.
Like burnt offerings of rams and bulls,
and like ten thousands of fat lambs,
so let our sacrifice be in your sight today,
for those who put their trust in you shall not be ashamed.
Now we follow you with all our heart.
We fear you, and we seek your face.
Let us not be put to shame,
but deal with us after your kindness,
and according to the multitude of your mercy.
Amen.
The Prayer of Azariah
Also known as The Song of the Three Holy Children ยท The Prayer of the Three Young Men
About this prayer
The Prayer of Azariah is one of the additions to the Book of Daniel preserved in the Greek Septuagint but not in the Hebrew Masoretic text. It is part of the longer Greek text of Daniel chapter 3, inserted between Daniel 3:23 and 3:24 in the Greek versions. The prayer is offered by Azariah (the Hebrew name of Abednego) in the midst of the fiery furnace, after Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon has cast Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego into the flames for refusing to worship his golden image. In the Greek text, the prayer is followed by the Song of the Three Young Men (sometimes called the Benedicite).
The prayer belongs to the deuterocanonical books of the Hebrew Bible (also called the apocryphal books in Protestant terminology), accepted as canonical scripture by the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox churches and used in liturgical reading by Anglican and Lutheran churches even where they are not considered canonical in the strict Protestant sense. The Council of Trent in 1546 formally defined the Catholic biblical canon to include the deuterocanonical books; the Protestant Reformers placed these books in a separate section called the Apocrypha.
The Prayer of Azariah is theologically significant for its combination of corporate confession and trust in God's mercy. Azariah does not deny the justice of the punishment that Israel has suffered, but he appeals to God's covenant promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The prayer's combination of acknowledged sin and appealed-to mercy is one of the great expressions of penitential prayer in the biblical tradition.
The English translation included here is from the World English Bible (WEB) Apocrypha section, a public-domain modern translation.
When it's said
Used in Catholic Office of Lauds, where the Song of the Three Young Men (Benedicite) that follows the Prayer of Azariah is a frequent canticle. Read in Catholic and Orthodox lectionary cycles during Lent and at certain feast days. In Anglican use, included in the Book of Common Prayer as one of the canticles available at Morning Prayer (the Benedicite, omnia opera). Used as a personal penitential prayer combining acknowledgment of sin with appeal to God's covenant mercy.
Notes on the text
The Prayer of Azariah is followed in the Greek text by the Song of the Three Young Men (the Benedicite), in which Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the furnace summon all creation to bless the Lord. Together, the Prayer and the Song constitute one of the major liturgical pieces of Christian worship. The theological framework of the prayer (corporate confession of national sin, appeal to covenant mercy, expression of contrite heart) is consistent with the penitential prayers of the Hebrew Bible. Comparable prayers include the prayer of Daniel in Daniel 9 (which is in both the Hebrew and Greek versions of Daniel), the prayer of Ezra in Ezra 9, and the prayer of Nehemiah in Nehemiah 1.
Common questions
Is the Prayer of Azariah in the Bible?
Who is Azariah in the Prayer of Azariah?
What is the difference between the Prayer of Azariah and the Song of the Three Young Men?
Greek Septuagint addition to Daniel 3, c. 2nd century BC. English translation from the World English Bible (WEB) Apocrypha, a public-domain modern translation.
Last reviewed: June 2026 against primary source.