Daniel 4:20-30

20 And whereas the king saw a watcher and a holy one coming down from heaven, and he said, Strip the tree, and destroy it; only leave the stump of its roots in the ground, and with a band of iron and brass; and it shall lie in the grass that is without, and in the dew of heaven, and its portion shall be with wild beasts, until seven times have passed over it;

21 this is the interpretation of it, O king, and it is a decree of the Most High, which has come upon my lord the king.

22 And they shall drive thee forth from men, and thy dwelling shall be with wild beasts, and they shall feed thee with grass as an ox, and thou shall have thy lodging under the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over thee, until thou known that the Most High is Lord of the kingdom of men, and will give it to whom he shall please.

23 And whereas they said, Leave the stumps of the roots of the tree; thy kingdom abides to thee from the time that thou shalt know the power of the heavens.

24 Therefore, O king, let my counsel please thee, and atone for thy sins by alms, and iniquities by compassion on the poor: it may be God will be long-suffering to thy trespasses.

25 All these things came upon king Nabuchodonosor.

26 After a twelvemonth, as he walked in his palace in Babylon,

27 the king answered and said, Is not this great Babylon, which I have built for a royal residence, by the might of my power, for the honour of my glory?

28 While the word was yet in the king's mouth, there came a voice from heaven, , To thee, king Nabuchodonosor, they say, The kingdom has departed from thee.

29 And they drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the wild beasts of the field, and they shall feed thee with grass as an ox: and seven times shall pass over thee, until thou know that the Most High is Lord of the kingdom of men, and he will give it to whomsoever he shall please.

30 In the same hour the word was fulfilled upon Nabuchodonosor: and he was driven forth from men, and he ate grass as an ox, and his body was bathed with the dew of heaven, until his hairs were grown like lions' , and his nails as birds' .

Daniel 4:20-30 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO DANIEL 4

This chapter was written by Nebuchadnezzar himself; and was either taken out of his archives, or given by him to Daniel, who under divine inspiration inserted it into this work of his; and a very useful instruction it contains, showing the sovereignty of God over the greatest kings and potentates of the earth, and this acknowledged by one of the proudest monarchs that ever lived upon it. It begins with a preface, saluting all nations, and declaring the greatness and power of God, Da 4:1-3 then follows the narrative of a dream the king dreamed, which troubled him; upon which he called for his wise men to interpret it, but in vain; at length he told it to Daniel, Da 4:4-9: the dream itself; which being told, astonished Daniel, the king being so much interested in it, Da 4:10-19, the interpretation of it, with Daniel's advice upon it, is in Da 4:20-27 the fulfilment of it, time and occasion thereof, Da 4:28-33. Nebuchadnezzar's restoration to his reason and kingdom, for which he praises God, Da 4:34-37.