Open English Translation DAN Chapter 4

4 King Nevukadnetstsar (Nebuchadnezzar) sent this message to all people groups, nations, and languages that live all over the world:

May you have peace and prosperity. 2 It seemed good to me to let you all know about the amazing miracles that the supreme God has done for me.

3 The miracles he does are incredible,

≈ and his acts of creation are powerful.

His kingdom will last forever,

≈ and his authority goes from one generation to another.

4 I, Nevukadnetstsar, was doing well at home, and prospering at my work in my palace, 5 but one night as I lay in bed, I had a dream that scared me—the images and visions in my head terrified me. 6 So I summoned all of Babylon’s wise men to come and tell me the interpretation of the dream. 7 When those magicians, fortune-tellers, sorcerers and astrologers arrived, I told them the dream, but they didn’t know the interpretation.

8 Finally, Daniel came in—he’d been named Belteshatstsar (Belteshazzar) after my god’s name. The spirit of the holy gods is in him, and I told him the dream: 9 “Oh Belteshatstsar, chief of the magicians, since I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in you and that no mystery is too difficult for you, go through the visions of my dream and tell me their interpretation.

10 This is the vision that was in my mind as a lay in bed: I was looking and was surprised to see a very tall tree growing in the middle of a field. 11 The tree kept growing taller and stronger until its top reached the sky and it could be seen from all over the world. 12 It had beautiful leaves were beautiful and lots of fruit on it. It provided food for everything, the animals in the countryside found shade under it, and the birds of the sky lived in its branches. Every living thing benefitted from it.

13 I was looking at the visions in my mind as I lay in bed, and then, wow, a holy sentinel came down from the heavens. 14 He shouted loudly, ‘Chop that tree down and cut its branches off, strip off its leaves, and scatter its fruit. Let the animals run away from under it and the birds from its branches. 15 But leave the stump with its roots in the ground, and bind it with a band of iron and bronze. Let it become wet with the dew in the tender grass of the field, accompanied only by those animals that live in the grass. 16 Let his mind[fn] be changed from a man to an animal as seven periods pass over him. 17 That sentence is by the decree of the sentinels, and the decision is a command of the holy ones, so that the living may know that the highest one is ruler over human kingdoms and gives them to whoever he wants—even to those who seem unimportant.’

18 I, King Nevukadnetstsar, had this dream. Now you, O Belteshatstsar, tell me the interpretation, because none of the wise men in my kingdom can tell me the interpretation. But you can, because the spirit of the holy gods is in you.”

19 Daniel (also known as Belteshatstsar) was appalled for a while at the meaning of the dream, and worried how to present it. The king saw this and said, Belteshatstsar, don’t hold back on being honest about the dream its interpretation.”

“My master,” he answered, “If only the dream was for those who hate you, and its interpretation was for your enemies. 20 You saw that tree that grew and became strong, and whose top reached the sky and was visible all over the world, 21 with its beautiful leaves and plentiful fruit. It provided food for everyone, and the animals from the countryside lived under it, and the birds lived in its branches. 22 That was you, your majesty. You’ve grown and become strong—your greatness has grown and reaches to heaven, and your dominion to the ends of the earth. 23 Then the king saw a holy sentinel coming down from heaven and saying, ‘Chop down the tree and destroy it, but leave the stump and the roots in the ground, bound with a band of iron and bronze, in the tender grass of the countryside, and let him be wet with the dew, and let him live with the animals of the fields until seven periods of time pass over him.’

24 “Your majesty, this is the interpretation: It’s actually the decree of what the supreme God has declared will happen to you, my master the king. 25 You will be driven away from society and you’ll live with the animals in the countryside. You’ll be forced to eat grass like a bull, and you’ll sleep on the ground and be wet with dew in the morning for seven years until you acknowledge that the highest one is ruler over humankind and learn that he gives kingdoms to whoever he wants. 26 But just as it was commanded to leave the stump of the tree with its roots, so too your kingdom will be restored to you from the time you recognise that heaven rules over earth. 27 Therefore, your majesty, please consider my advice: stop sinning and do what is right, and stop disobeying God by starting to show mercy to the oppressed, so that perhaps your prosperity might be prolonged.”

28 But all of that did happen to King Nevukadnetstsar. 29 Twelve months later, he was walking on the upper terrace of the royal palace in Babylon 30 when he looked across and said, “Isn’t that the great Babylon, which I’ve built as a royal residence by the strength of my power and for the glory of my majesty?”

31 He’d only just finished saying that when he heard a voice in the sky, “It’s now decreed to you, King Nebuchadnezzar: you’ve just lost your kingdom. 32 You’ll be driven away from other people, and you’ll live will be with the animals out in the countryside where you’ll have to eat grass like a cow. Seven years will pass before you acknowledge that the highest one is ruler over mankind and he gives kingdoms to whoever he wants.”

33 Immediately what had been said in advance happened to Nebuchadnezzar. He was driven away from society. He ate grass like a cow, and his body was wet with dew each morning after sleeping on the ground. Eventually his hair had grown long like eagles’ feathers, and his nails were long like birds’ claws.

34 “After the seven years, I, Nevukadnetstsar looked up toward heaven and my reason returned to me. Then I praised and honoured the highest one who lives forever, because his authority is everlasting and his kingdom endures through the generations. 35 Compared to him, all the inhabitants of the earth are insignificant like ants—he issues his commands to the heavenly army and to earth’s inhabitants. No one can hold back his hand or has any right to ask him, ‘What have you done?’ ”

36 “At that time my sanity returned to me, and I was reestablished in my kingdom. My majesty and my splendour was restored to me as I became again the respected leader of my kingdom. My counsellors and my nobles wanted to be in my company, and I became even more powerful than I was before. 37 Now I, Nevukadnetstsar, praise, extol, and honour the king of the heavens, because everything he does is, and his methods are just, and he’s able to humble those who become proud.