Written by Peter Rodriguez
The Book of Daniel – Chapter 4
Available in other languages: Português
1: נבוכדנצר מלכא לכל עממיא אמיא ולשניא די דארין בכל ארעא שלמכון ישגא Nebuchadnezzar the king to all the peoples, the nations, and the languages, who dwell in all the earth: Your peace be multiplied!
2: אתיא ותמהיא די עבד עמי אלהא עליא שפר קדמי להחויה The signs and the wonders that the God, the Most High, made with me, it is pleasant before me to show.
3: אתוהי כמה רברבין ותמהוהי כמה תקיפין מלכותה מלכות עלם ושלטנה עם דר ודר His signs, how great! and his wonders, how mighty! his kingdom, an age-during kingdom, and his rule with generation and generation.
Just to reinforce a certain point made in the introduction to this series, this study will highlight all the parallelisms—a poetic structure frequently used by biblical writers—found in this chapter. Understanding parallelisms and other poetic structures found in the Bible will be very important for reading this series, Light in Babylon, as well as for all the other series and Bible studies you will find on this website.
As mentioned, the parallel words will be color-coded to help readers identify them more easily. Words with the same or related meanings will share the same color. For example, the verse we are reading would look like this: “His signs, how great! and his wonders, how mighty! his kingdom, a kingdom age-during, and his rule with generation and generation.”
4: אנה נבוכדנצר שלה הוית בביתי ורענן בהיכלי I, Nebuchadnezzar, was thriving in my house, and verdant in my palace.
“thriving in my house, and verdant in my palace.”
Verdant: The meaning is that Nebuchadnezzar was flourishing, vigorous, successful and thriving (as indicated by the parallelism of the biblical text). Literally, Nebuchadnezzar is saying that he was green and exuberant, like a lush, leafy tree.
“The word [the original word translated as ‘verdant’] is applied properly to a tree, and means spreading, luxuriant (Deuteronomy 12:2; 1 Kings 14:23, al.). A.V., R.V., ‘green,’ which is correct only in so far as a luxuriant tree is also commonly a ‘green’ one […]” (Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges) “רענן, properly growing green, of the fresh, vigorous growth of a tree, to which the happiness and prosperity of men are often compared; e.g., in Psalm 52:10 (8), Psalm 92:12” (Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament)
In my house: The palace of a king is the house of that monarch, as shown by the parallelism in the text. Nebuchadnezzar was not in two different places at the same time. ‘House’ and ‘palace’ here refer to the same location, just as ‘verdant’ and ‘thriving’ convey the same idea.
5: חלם חזית וידחלנני והרהרין על משכבי וחזוי ראשי יבהלנני A dream I saw, and it made me afraid; and impressions upon my bed and visions of my head caused me to tremble.
“A dream I saw, and it made me afraid; and impressions upon my bed and visions of my head caused me to tremble.”
6: ומני שים טעם להנעלה קדמי לכל חכימי בבל די פשר חלמא יהודענני And therefore by me a decree was made, to cause all wise men of Babylon to come up before me, that the interpretation of the dream they may cause me to know.
7: באדין עללין חרטמיא אשפיא כשדיא וגזריא וחלמא אמר אנה קדמיהון ופשרה לא מהודעין לי Then came in the scribes, the enchanters, Chaldeans, and the diviners. And I told the dream before them, and its interpretation they did not make known to me.
8: ועד אחרין על קדמי דניאל די שמה בלטשאצר כשם אלהי ודי רוח אלהין קדישין בה וחלמא קדמוהי אמרת And at last came up before me Daniel—whose name is Belteshazzar, according to the name of my god, and in whom is a Spirit of Holy Gods—and I told the dream before him.
9: בלטשאצר רב חרטמיא די אנה ידעת די רוח אלהין קדישין בך וכל רז לא אנס לך חזוי חלמי די חזית ופשרה אמר “O Belteshazzar, master of the scribes, as I have known that a Spirit of Holy Gods is in you, and no secret presses you, the visions of my dream that I have seen, and its interpretation, tell.
10: וחזוי ראשי על משכבי חזה הוית ואלו אילן בגוא ארעא ורומה שגיא As for the visions of my head upon my bed, I was looking, and behold, a tree in the midst of the earth, and its height was great.
11: רבה אילנא ותקף ורומה ימטא לשמיא וחזותה לסוף כל ארעא The tree became great, and was strong, and its height reached to the heaven, and its sight to the end of all the earth;
12: עפיה שפיר ואנבה שגיא ומזון לכלא בה תחתוהי תטלל חיות ברא ובענפוהי ידרון צפרי שמיא ומנה יתזין כל בשרא its leaves were beautiful, and its fruit great, and food for all was in it. Under it sought shade the animal of the field, and in its branches dwelt the birds of the sky, and from it was fed all the flesh.
13: חזה הוית בחזוי ראשי על משכבי ואלו עיר וקדיש מן שמיא נחת I was looking, in visions of my head upon my bed, and behold, a Watcher, even a Holy One, from the heaven came down.
A Watcher, even a Holy One: Literally, “A Watcher, and a Holy One, […]”.
“He evidently does not intend to refer to two beings, a ‘watcher,’ and ‘one who was holy;’ but he means to designate the character of the watcher, that he was holy, […]. So Bertholdt, ‘not two, but only one, who was both a watcher, and was holy; one of those known as watchers and as holy ones.’ The copulative ו (v) and may be so used as to denote not an additional one or thing, but to specify something in addition to, or in explanation of, what the name applied would indicate. Compare 1 Samuel 28:3: ‘In Ramah, even (ו v) in his own city.’ 1 Samuel 17:40: ‘and put them in a shepherd’s bag which he had, even (ו v) in a scrip.'” (Barnes’ Notes on the Bible)
Furthermore, the verb translated as “came down” is in the singular form, referring to a single subject.
Therefore, “Watcher” and “Holy One” are words that refer to the same being. The one that came down from heaven was a Watcher and Holy One.
14: קרא בחיל וכן אמר גדו אילנא וקצצו ענפוהי אתרו עפיה ובדרו אנבה תנד חיותא מן תחתוהי וצפריא מן ענפוהי He called with might, and thus he said, “Cut down the tree, and cut off its branches, shake off its leaves, and scatter its fruit, let the animal move away from under it, and the birds from off its branches;
15: ברם עקר שרשוהי בארעא שבקו ובאסור די פרזל ונחש בדתאא די ברא ובטל שמיא יצטבע ועם חיותא חלקה בעשב ארעא but leave the stump of its roots in the earth, and with a band of iron and copper, in the grass of the field, and with the dew of the heaven it shall be wet, and with the animals shall be his portion in the herb of the earth;
16: לבבה מן אנושא ישנון ולבב חיוה יתיהב לה ושבעה עדנין יחלפון עלוהי his heart shall be changed from that of man, and a heart of animal shall be given to him; and seven times shall pass over him;
Seven times shall pass over him: Seven times are seven years.
In fact, the first-century Jewish historian Flavius Josephus states that Nebuchadnezzar spent seven years in the wilderness: “and that when he halt lived in this manner in the desert [wilderness] for seven years, he should recover his dominion again. […]; and as he foretold, so it came to pass; for after he had continued in the wilderness the forementioned interval of time, while no one durst attempt to seize his kingdom during those seven years, […]. But let no one blame me for writing down every thing of this nature, as I find it in our ancient books; […] I intended to do no more than translate the Hebrew books into the Greek language, and promised them to explain those facts, without adding any thing to them of my own, or taking any thing away from there.” (Flavius Josephus, The Antiquities of the Jews, translated by William Whiston.)
The book of Daniel also says that “times” means “years”: “And at the end of times, years, coming he shall come […]” (Dn 11:13)
Therefore, when Nebuchadnezzar spent seven times in the wilderness, it means he spent seven years there.
17: בגזרת עירין פתגמא ומאמר קדישין שאלתא עד דברת די ינדעון חייא די שליט עליא במלכות אנושא ולמן די יצבא יתננה ושפל אנשים יקים עליה by the decree of the Watchers is the word, and by the saying of the Holy Ones is the demand, to the intent that the living may know that the Most High is ruler in the kingdom of men, and to whom he wills he gives it, and the humblest of men he raises up over it.”
By the decree of the Watchers is the word: “by the decree of the Watchers is the word, and by the saying of the Holy Ones is the demand“.
Considering the parallelism in this verse, what does the term “word” refer to? The demand (the cutting down the tree and what is signified by it). And who are the Watchers? The Holy Ones. This parallelism provides further evidence that the Watchers and the Holy Ones are the same, justifying the translation of verse 13 as “a Watcher, even a Holy One.”
18: דנה חלמא חזית אנה מלכא נבוכדנצר ואנתה בלטשאצר פשרא אמר כל קבל די כל חכימי מלכותי לא יכלין פשרא להודעתני ואנתה כהל די רוח אלהין קדישין בך This is the dream I have seen, I, the king Nebuchadnezzar; and you, O Belteshazzar, tell its interpretation, because that all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to cause me to know the interpretation, and you are able, for a Spirit of Holy Gods is in you.
19: אדין דניאל די שמה בלטשאצר אשתומם כשעה חדה ורעינהי יבהלנה ענה מלכא ואמר בלטשאצר חלמא ופשרא אל יבהלך ענה בלטשאצר ואמר מראי חלמא לשנאיך ופשרה לעריך Then Daniel, whose name is Belteshazzar, was terrified about one moment, and his thoughts troubled him. The king answered and said, “O Belteshazzar, do not let the dream and its interpretation trouble you.” Belteshazzar answered and said, “My lord, the dream—to them that hate you, and its interpretation—to your enemies.
“My lord, the dream—to them that hate you, and its interpretation—to your enemies.”
This parallelism shows the blending seen throughout this chapter of symbol and meaning, dream and interpretation. Nebuchadnezzar begins his testimony by saying that he was verdant in his palace, as if he was a lush, leafy tree that grows vigorously. And as the Watcher speaks about the tree, the narrative suddenly shifts, referring to the tree directly as if it were a human being (see verses 14 to 16).
Here, the dream and its interpretation are interconnected, just as Nebuchadnezzar’s enemies are those who hate him.
20: אילנא די חזית די רבה ותקף ורומה ימטא לשמיא וחזותה לכל ארעא The tree that you saw, which became great and strong, and its height reached to the heaven, and its sight to all the earth,
21: ועפיה שפיר ואנבה שגיא ומזון לכלא בה תחתוהי תדור חיות ברא ובענפוהי ישכנן צפרי שמיא and its leaves were beautiful, and its fruit great, and food for all was in it; under it dwelt the animal of the field, and in its branches sat the birds of the sky.
22: אנתה הוא מלכא די רבית ותקפת ורבותך רבת ומטת לשמיא ושלטנך לסוף ארעא It is you, O king, for you have become great and mighty, and your greatness has become great, and has reached to the heavens, and your dominion is to the end of the earth;
23: ודי חזה מלכא עיר וקדיש נחת מן שמיא ואמר גדו אילנא וחבלוהי ברם עקר שרשוהי בארעא שבקו ובאסור די פרזל ונחש בדתאא די ברא ובטל שמיא יצטבע ועם חיות ברא חלקה עד די שבעה עדנין יחלפון עלוהי and inasmuch as the king saw a Watcher, even a Holy One, coming down from the heaven, and saying, “Cut down the tree, and destroy it; but leave the stump of its roots in the earth, and with a band of iron and copper, in the tender grass of the field, and with the dew of the heaven it shall be wet, and with the animal of the field shall be his portion, until seven times pass over him.
24: דנה פשרא מלכא וגזרת עליא היא די מטת על מראי מלכא This is the interpretation, O king, and it is a decree of the Most High, that came against my lord the king:
It is a decree of the Most High: It is a decree of the Watchers: “by the decree of the Watchers is the word,” said the Watcher that came down from heaven.
This chapter first states that the decree is of the Watchers, the Holy Ones, and then it attributes the decree to the Most High. This is because the Watchers, the Holy Ones, are “God, the Most High” (Daniel 4:2).
“The plain truth is, that these appellations, Watchers and Holy Ones, denote the persons in the Godhead; the first describing them by the vigilance of their universal providence, the second by the transcendent sanctity of their nature. The word rendered Holy Ones is so applied in other texts of Scripture, which make the sense of the other word, coupled with it here, indisputable. In perfect consistency with this exposition, and with no other, we find, in the 24th verse, that this decree of the Watchers and the Holy Ones is the decree of the Most High God; […]” (Benson’s Commentary of the Old and New Testaments)
“The eyes of Jehovah are in every place, watching the wicked and the good.” (Proverbs 15:3)
Daniel says that “Jehovah watched over the evil, and brought it upon us.” (Dn 9:14) “The meaning here [Daniel 9:14] is, that the Lord had not been inattentive to the progress of things, nor unmindful of his threatening. He had never slumbered, but had carefully observed the course of events, and had been attentive to all that they had done, and to all that he had threatened to do. The practical “truth” taught here – and it is one of great importance to sinners – is, that God is not inattentive to their conduct, though he may seem to be, and that in due time he will show that he has kept an unslumbering eye upon them.” (Barnes’ Notes on the Bible) “And it shall be, as I have watched over them to pluck up, and to break down, and to throw down, and to destroy, and to bring calamity; so I will watch over them to build, and to plant, declares Jehovah.” (Jeremiah 31:28)
God watches the actions of kings and examines the hearts of His stewards.
25: ולך טרדין מן אנשא ועם חיות ברא להוה מדרך ועשבא כתורין לך יטעמון ומטל שמיא לך מצבעין ושבעה עדנין יחלפון עליך עד די תנדע די שליט עליא במלכות אנשא ולמן די יצבא יתננה And you shall be driven away from the men, and with the animal of the field shall be your dwelling, and you shall be fed with the herb as oxen, and you shall be wet with the dew of the heaven, and seven times shall pass over you, until you know that the Most High is ruler in the kingdom of men, and to whom he wills he gives it.
26: ודי אמרו למשבק עקר שרשוהי די אילנא מלכותך לך קימה מן די תנדע די שלטן שמיא And that which they said to leave the stump of the roots of the tree, your kingdom will remain for you, until you know that the heavens rule.
27: להן מלכא מלכי ישפר עליך וחטיך בצדקה פרק ועויתך במחן ענין הן תהוא ארכה לשלותך Therefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable to you, and your sins by righteousness replace, and your perversity by pitying the poor, behold, it is a prolongation of your prosperity.”1By righteouness replace: LEB translation footnote: “Or ‘replace.'”
Your sins by righteousness replace: The verb translated as “replace” is פּרק, which literally means “to break off, to break in pieces, hence to separate, to disjoin, to put at a distance;” (Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament)
“The metaphor is taken from a refractory beast casting off the yoke. (Comp. Genesis 27:40, where it is foretold that Esau’s posterity shall ‘break off’ the yoke of Jacob.) In Chaldee the word is used for the most part in the sense of putting on one side. Daniel therefore counsels the king to rebel against his sins, such as pride, harshness, and cruelty towards his captives, and to put all these sins aside. And how can he do this in a better manner than by practising the contrary virtues?” (Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers) “Change thy principles and practices; do justly and love mercy; and instead of oppressing the poor, have compassion upon them, and be kind and bountiful to them.” (Benson’s Commentary of the Old and New Testaments)
All Daniel is saying is simply “replace your sins by righteousness”.
28: כלא מטא על נבוכדנצר מלכא All this came upon Nebuchadnezzar the king.
29: לקצת ירחין תרי עשר על היכל מלכותא די בבל מהלך הוה At the end of twelve months, upon the palace of the kingdom of Babylon he walked;
30: ענה מלכא ואמר הלא דא היא בבל רבתא די אנה בניתה לבית מלכו בתקף חסני וליקר הדרי the king answered and said, “Is this not Babylon the Great, which I have built for a house of the kingdom, in the might of my strength, and for the glory of my honor?”2Which I have built: “The pronoun is emphatic.” (Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges)
31: עוד מלתא בפם מלכא קל מן שמיא נפל לך אמרין נבוכדנצר מלכא מלכותה עדת מנך Yet the word was in the king’s mouth, a voice from heaven fell: “To you it is said, O Nebuchadnezzar the king, The kingdom was removed from you,
32: ומן אנשא לך טרדין ועם חיות ברא מדרך עשבא כתורין לך יטעמון ושבעה עדנין יחלפון עליך עד די תנדע די שליט עליא במלכות אנשא ולמן די יצבא יתננה and you shall be driven away from the men, and with the animal of the field shall be your dwelling, you shall be fed with the herb as oxen, and seven times shall pass over you, until you know that the Most High is ruler in the kingdom of men, and to whom he wills he gives it.”
33: בה שעתא מלתא ספת על נבוכדנצר ומן אנשא טריד ועשבא כתורין יאכל ומטל שמיא גשמה יצטבע עד די שערה כנשרין רבה וטפרוהי כצפרין In the moment the word was fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar, and from the men he was driven, and the herb as oxen he ate, and by the dew of the heaven his body was wet, until that his hair as eagles’ became great, and his nails as birds’.
His nails as birds’: During the seven years, his nails could grow to a great length and deformity. “his nails like birds’ claws: the nails of his fingers and toes were hard, long, and sharp, like theirs, having not been cut during this time; this shows that the seven times are not to be understood of weeks or months, but of years.” (Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible)
34: ולקצת יומיה אנה נבוכדנצר עיני לשמיא נטלת ומנדעי עלי יתוב ולעליא ברכת ולחי עלמא שבחת והדרת די שלטנה שלטן עלם ומלכותה עם דר ודר And at the end of those days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted up my eyes to the heaven, and my understanding returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and I praised and honored the Age-during Living One, whose dominion is an age-during dominion, and his kingdom with generation and generation;
And at the end of those days: At the end of the seven times.
Seven days would not have been enough time for his nails to grow as bird’s and for his hair to cover his body like the plumage of an eagle. He used the word days (יומ) here because they sometimes used that word to refer to years. For example, “As the days of a human are your days? Your years as the days of a man? That you inquire for my iniquity, and for my sin seek?” (Job 10:5-6) We can see this usage in the first chapter of the book of Daniel as well: “for three years, that at the end of which they would stand before the king. […] And at the end of those days [the three years] that the king had said to bring them in, the chief of the eunuchs brought them before Nebuchadnezzar.” (Daniel 1:5, 18)
Thus, by referring to the seven times as “those days,” Nebuchadnezzar shows that seven times are equivalent to seven years.
Keep this information (that one time is the same as one year), for it will be important to understand the time-related prophecies we will encounter in the books of Daniel and Revelation.
35: וכל דארי ארעא כלה חשיבין וכמצביה עבד בחיל שמיא ודארי ארעא ולא איתי די ימחא בידה ויאמר לה מה עבדת and all who are dwelling on the earth are reckoned as nothing, and according to his will he does in the army of heaven and those dwelling on the earth, and there is none that strike against his hand and says to him, “What are you doing?”
36: בה זמנא מנדעי יתוב עלי וליקר מלכותי הדרי וזוי יתוב עלי ולי הדברי ורברבני יבעון ועל מלכותי התקנת ורבו יתירה הוספת לי At that time my understanding returned to me, and for the glory of my kingdom, my honor and my brightness returned to me, and my counselors and my great men sought to me, and over my kingdom I was established, and abundant greatness was added to me.
37: כען אנה נבוכדנצר משבח ומרומם ומהדר למלך שמיא די כל מעבדוהי קשט וארחתה דין ודי מהלכין בגוה יכל להשפלה Now, I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and honor the King of heaven, for all his works are truth, and his ways are just, and those who walk in pride he is able to humble.
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