Daniel 4

Complete Jewish Bible

4 ⁽⁴⁾“I, N’vukhadnetzar, was contentedly living at home, enjoying the luxury of my palace; ²⁽⁵⁾but as I lay on my bed, I had a dream which frightened me, followed by fantasies and visions in my head which frightened me even more. ³⁽⁶⁾So I ordered all the sages of Bavel to present themselves to me, so that they could tell me the interpretation of the dream. ⁴⁽⁷⁾When the magicians, exorcists, astrologers and diviners came, I told them the dream; but they couldn’t interpret it for me. ⁵⁽⁸⁾Finally, however, Dani’el (renamed Belt’shatzar, after the name of my god), in whom is the spirit of the holy gods, came before me; and I told him the dream: ⁶⁽⁹⁾‘Belt’shatzar, chief of the magicians! Because I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in you, and no mystery is too difficult for you, tell me the meaning of the visions I saw in my dream. ⁷⁽¹⁰⁾Here are the visions I had in my head as I lay on my bed: I looked, and there before me was a tree at the center of the earth; it was very tall. ⁸⁽¹¹⁾The tree grew and became strong until its crown reached the sky, and it could be seen from anywhere on earth. ⁹⁽¹²⁾Its foliage was beautiful and its fruit abundant; it produced enough food for everyone. The wild animals enjoyed its shade, the birds in the air lived in its branches, and it gave food to every living creature. ¹⁰⁽¹³⁾I looked in the visions of my head as I lay on my bed, and there appeared a holy watcher coming down from heaven. ¹¹⁽¹⁴⁾He cried out:

    “‘“Cut down the tree, cut off its branches,
    strip off its leaves, scatter its fruit!
    Let the wild animals flee from its shelter!
    Let the birds abandon its branches!
¹²⁽¹⁵⁾But leave the stump with its roots in the ground,
    with a band of iron and bronze,
    in the lush grass of the countryside;
    let him be drenched with dew from the sky
    and share the lot of animals in the pasture;
¹³⁽¹⁶⁾let his heart and mind cease to be human
    and become those of an animal;
    and let seven seasons pass over him.

¹⁴⁽¹⁷⁾“‘“This order is issued by the watchers,
    the sentence is announced by the holy ones,
    so that all who live may know
    that the Most High rules the human kingdom,
    that he gives it to whomever he wishes
    and can raise up over it the lowliest of mortals.”

¹⁵⁽¹⁸⁾“‘This is the dream which I, King N’vukhadnetzar, saw. Now you, Belt’shatzar, tell me its interpretation. None of the sages of my kingdom can tell me the interpretation, but you can do it, because the spirit of the holy gods is in you.’

¹⁶⁽¹⁹⁾“Dani’el, whose name was Belt’shatzar, was in shock awhile, frightened by his thoughts. The king said, ‘Belt’shatzar, don’t let the dream or the interpretation frighten you.’ Belt’shatzar answered, ‘My lord, if only the dream were about those who hate you, and the interpretation about your enemies! ¹⁷⁽²⁰⁾The tree you saw which grew and became strong until its crown reached the sky, and it could be seen throughout the whole earth, ¹⁸⁽²¹⁾that had beautiful foliage and abundant fruit, enough to feed everyone, under which the wild animals lived, and on whose branches the birds in the air built their nests — ¹⁹⁽²²⁾it’s you, your majesty! You have grown and become strong — your greatness has grown and reaches to heaven, and your rule extends to the end of the earth.

²⁰⁽²³⁾“‘Now the king saw a holy watcher coming down from heaven, who said,

    “‘“Cut down the tree, and destroy it,
    but leave the stump with its roots in the ground,
    with a band of iron and bronze,
    in the lush grass of the countryside;
    let him be drenched with dew from the sky
    and share the lot of the wild animals
    until seven seasons pass over him.”

²¹⁽²⁴⁾“‘This is the interpretation, your majesty; and it is the decree of the Most High that has come upon my lord the king:

²²⁽²⁵⁾“‘You will be driven from human society
    to live with the wild animals.
    You will be made to eat grass like an ox
    and be drenched with dew from the sky,
    as seven seasons pass over you;
    until you learn that the Most High
    rules in the human kingdom
    and gives it to whomever he pleases.

²³⁽²⁶⁾“‘But since it was ordered to leave the stump of the tree with its roots, your kingdom will be kept for you until you have learned that Heaven rules everything. ²⁴⁽²⁷⁾Therefore, your majesty, please take my advice: break with your sins by replacing them with acts of charity, and break with your crimes by showing mercy to the poor; this may extend the time of your prosperity.’

²⁵⁽²⁸⁾“All this happened to King N’vukhadnetzar. ²⁶⁽²⁹⁾Twelve months later, as he was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Bavel, ²⁷⁽³⁰⁾the king said, ‘Bavel the great! I built it as a royal residence by my power and force to enhance the glory of my majesty!’ ²⁸⁽³¹⁾No sooner had the king spoken these words when a voice came down from heaven: ‘King N’vukhadnetzar! These words are for you:

    ‘“The kingdom has left you.
²⁹⁽³²⁾You will be driven from human society
    to live with the wild animals.
    You will be made to eat grass like an ox
    and be drenched with dew from the sky,
    as seven seasons pass over you,
    until you learn that the Most High
    rules in the human kingdom
    and gives it to whomever he pleases.’

³⁰⁽³³⁾“Within the hour the word was fulfilled. N’vukhadnetzar was driven from human society, he ate grass like an ox, and his body was drenched with dew from the sky, until his hair had grown like eagles’ feathers and his nails like birds’ claws.

³¹⁽³⁴⁾“When this period was over, I, N’vukhadnetzar, lifted my eyes toward heaven, and my understanding came back to me. I blessed the Most High, I praised and gave honor to him who lives forever.

    “‘For his rulership is everlasting,
    his kingdom endures through all generations.
³²⁽³⁵⁾All who live on earth are counted as nothing.
    He does what he wishes with the army of heaven
    and with those living on earth.
    No one can hold back his hand
    or ask him, “What are you doing?”’

³³⁽³⁶⁾“It was at that moment that my understanding came back to me; and for the sake of the glory of my kingdom, my majesty and splendor also came back to me. My advisers and lords sought me out, I was re-established in my kingdom, and to my previous greatness even more was added. ³⁴⁽³⁷⁾So now I, N’vukhadnetzar, praise, exalt and honor the King of heaven:

    “‘For all his works are truth,
    and his ways are just;
    and he can humble those who walk in pride.’”

Daniel 4

International Children’s Bible

Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream of a Tree

4 King Nebuchadnezzar sent a letter. It went to the people, nations and those who speak every language in all the world. The letter said:

I wish you great wealth!

²The Most High God has done miracles and wonderful things for me. I am happy to tell you about these things.

³The things he has done are great.
His miracles are mighty.
His kingdom continues forever.
His rule will continue for all time.

⁴I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at my palace. I was happy and successful. ⁵I had a dream that made me afraid. As I was lying on my bed, I saw pictures and visions in my mind. Those things made me very afraid. ⁶So I gave an order. All the wise men of Babylon were to be brought to me. I wanted them to tell me what my dream meant. ⁷The fortune-tellers, magicians and wise men came. I told them about the dream. But those men could not tell me what it meant.

⁸Finally, Daniel came to me. (I called him Belteshazzar to honor my god. The spirit of the holy gods is in him.) I told my dream to Daniel. ⁹I said, “Belteshazzar, you are the most important of all the fortune-tellers. I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in you. I know there is no secret that is too hard for you to understand. This was what I dreamed. Tell me what it means. ¹⁰These are the visions I saw while I was lying in my bed: I looked, and there in front of me was a tree. It was standing in the middle of the earth. The tree was very tall. ¹¹The tree grew large and strong. The top of the tree touched the sky. It could be seen from anywhere on earth. ¹²The leaves of the tree were beautiful. It had plenty of good fruit on it. On the tree was food for everyone. The wild animals found shelter under the tree. And the birds lived in its branches. Every animal ate from it.

¹³“I was looking at those things in the vision while lying on my bed. And then I saw a holy angel coming down from heaven. ¹⁴He spoke very loudly. He said, ‘Cut down the tree, and cut off its branches. Strip off its leaves. Scatter its fruit around. Let the animals that are under the tree run away. Let the birds that were in its branches fly away. ¹⁵But let the stump and its roots stay in the ground. Put a band of iron and bronze around it. Let it stay in the field with the grass around it.

“‘Let the man become wet with dew. Let him live among the animals and plants of the earth. ¹⁶Let him not think like a man any longer. Let him have the mind of an animal for seven years.

¹⁷“‘Messengers gave this command. The holy ones declared the sentence. This is so all the people may know that the Most High God rules over the kingdoms of men. God gives those kingdoms to anyone he wants. And he chooses people to rule them who are not proud.’

¹⁸“That is what I, King Nebuchadnezzar, dreamed. Now Daniel, called Belteshazzar, tell me what the dream means. None of the wise men in my kingdom can explain it to me. But you can, because the spirit of the holy gods is in you.”

Daniel Explains the Dream

¹⁹Then Daniel (also called Belteshazzar) was very quiet for a while. His thoughts made him afraid. So the king said, “Belteshazzar, do not let the dream or its meaning make you afraid.”

Then Daniel, called Belteshazzar, answered the king. He said, “My master, I wish the dream were about your enemies. And I wish its meaning were for those who are against you! ²⁰You saw a tree in your dream. The tree grew large and strong. Its top touched the sky. It could be seen from all over the earth. ²¹Its leaves were beautiful, and it had plenty of fruit. The fruit gave food for everyone. It was a home for the wild animals. And its branches were nesting places for the birds. That is the tree you saw. ²²My king, you are that tree! You have become great and powerful. You are like the tall tree that touched the sky. And your power reaches to the far parts of the earth.

²³“My king, you saw a holy angel coming down from heaven. He said, ‘Cut down the tree and destroy it. But leave the stump and its roots in the ground. Put a band of iron and bronze around it. Leave it in the field with the grass. Let him become wet with dew. He will live like a wild animal for seven years.’

²⁴“This is the meaning of the dream, my king. The Most High God has commanded these things to happen to my master the king: ²⁵You will be forced away from people. You will live among the wild animals. People will feed you grass like an ox. And dew from the sky will make you wet. Seven years will pass, and then you will learn this lesson: The Most High God is ruler over the kingdoms of men. And the Most High God gives those kingdoms to anyone he wants.

²⁶“The stump of the tree and its roots were to be left in the ground. This means your kingdom will be given back to you. This will happen when you learn that heaven rules your kingdom. ²⁷So, my king, please accept my advice. I advise you to stop sinning and do what is right. Stop doing wicked things and be kind to poor people. Then you might continue to be successful.”

The King’s Dream Comes True

²⁸All these things happened to King Nebuchadnezzar. ²⁹Twelve months after the dream, King Nebuchadnezzar was walking on the roof^[a] of his palace in Babylon. ³⁰And he said, “Look at Babylon. I built this great city. It is my palace. I built this great place by my power to show how great I am.”

³¹The words were still in his mouth when a voice came from heaven. The voice said, “King Nebuchadnezzar, these things will happen to you: Your royal power has been taken away from you. ³²You will be forced away from people. You will live with the wild animals. You will be fed grass like an ox. Seven years will pass before you learn this lesson: The Most High God rules over the kingdoms of men. And the Most High God gives those kingdoms to anyone he wants.”

³³Those things happened quickly. Nebuchadnezzar was forced to go away from people. He began eating grass like an ox. He became wet from dew. His hair grew long like the feathers of an eagle. And his nails grew long like the claws of a bird.

³⁴Then at the end of that time, I, Nebuchadnezzar, looked up toward heaven. And I could think correctly again. Then I gave praise to the Most High God. I gave honor and glory to him who lives forever.

God’s rule is forever.
    His kingdom continues for all time.
³⁵People on earth
    are not truly important.
God does what he wants
    with the powers of heaven
    and the people on earth.
No one can stop his powerful hand.
    No one can question the things he does.

³⁶So, at that time I could think correctly again. And God gave back my great honor and power as king. The people who advise me and the royal family came to me for help again. I became king again. And I became even greater and more powerful than before. ³⁷Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, give praise and honor and glory to the King of heaven. Everything he does is right. He is always fair. And he is able to make proud people humble.

Footnotes

4:29 roof In Bible times houses were built with flat roofs. The roof was used for drying things such as flax and fruit. And it was used as an extra room, as a place for worship and as a place to sleep in the summer.

Complete Jewish Bible (CJB)

International Children’s Bible (ICB)