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I beheld in the night vision upon my bed, and, behold, a watcher and an holy one came down from heaven and cried aloud, and thus he said,
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Cut down the tree, and pluck off its branches, and shake off its leaves, and scatter its fruit: let the wild beasts be removed from under it, and the birds from its branches.
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Only leave the stump of its roots in the earth, and with an iron and brass band; and it shall lie in the grass that is without and in the dew of heaven, and its portion with the wild beasts in the grass of the field.
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His heart shall be changed from that of man, and the heart of a wild beast shall be given to him; and seven times shall pass over him.
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The matter is by the decree of the watcher, and the demand is a word of the holy ones; that the living may known that the Lord is most high the kingdom of men, and he will give it to whomsoever he shall please, and will set up over it that which is set at nought of men.
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This is the vision which I king Nabuchodonosor saw: and do thou, Baltasar, declare the interpretation, for none of the wise men of my kingdom are able to shew me the interpretation of it: but thou, Daniel, art able; for the Holy Spirit of God is in thee.
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Then Daniel, whose name is Baltasar, was amazed about one hour, and his thoughts troubled him. And Baltasar answered and said, lord, let the dream be to them that hate thee, and the interpretation of it to thine enemies.
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The tree which thou sawest, that grew large and strong, whose height reached to the sky and its extent to all the earth;
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and whose leaves were flourishing, and its fruit abundant, (and it was meat for all; under it the wild beasts lodged, and the birds of the sky took shelter in its branches:)
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is thyself, O king; for thou art grown great and powerful, and thy greatness has increased and reached to heaven, and thy dominion to the ends of the earth.
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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;