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The Prayer of the [[Three Holy Children]] is a component of the biblical [[Daniel|Book of Daniel]]. It is a segment of a larger component called ''The Prayer of [[Azariah]] and the Prayer of the Three Holy Children'' which. although part of the [[Septuagint]] text, is considered by Protestants as part of the [[Apocrypha]] rather than a fully canonical part of Scripture, and so appears in most English-language bibles as a seperate section. If included within the larger text of Daniel, it would appear in the third chapter of between verses 23 and 24.
In Orthodox Christian worship, the prayer is the basis of the seventh and eighth biblical [[canticles]] sung at [[Orthros]]. Although the text of the canticles are generally not read in contemporary practice, the hymns sung as part of the [[canon]] reference the theme of the Three Holy Children. At [[Vespers]] of [[Holy Saturday]], the text of the prayer is heard as part of one of the fifteen Old Testament readings prescribed for that day. In Byzantine practice, the closing refrains to each verse "bless ye the Lord: praise and exalt him above all for ever" are chanted elaborately.
