Daniel 4:3-13

3 And I made a decree to bring in before me all the wise men of Babylon, that they might make known to me the interpretation of the dream.

4 So the enchanters, magicians, soothsayers, Chaldeans came in: and I told the dream before them; but they did not make known to me the interpretation thereof;

5 until Daniel came, whose name is Baltasar, according to the name of my God, who has within him the Holy Spirit of God; to whom I said,

6 O Baltasar, chief of the enchanters, of whom I know that the Holy Spirit of God is in thee, and no mystery is too hard for thee, hear the vision of my dream which I had, and tell me the interpretation of it.

7 I had a vision upon my bed; and behold a tree in the midst of the earth, and its height was great.

8 The tree grew large and strong, and its height reached to the sky, and its extent to the extremity of the whole earth:

9 its leaves were fair, and its fruit abundant, and in it was meat for all; and under it the wild beasts of the field took shelter, and the birds of the sky lodged in the branches of it, and all flesh was fed of it.

10 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,

11 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.

12 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.

13 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.

Daniel 4:3-13 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.