Daniel 4:10–26

¹⁰In these visions of my mind as I was lying in bed, I saw this come to pass:

There was a tree in the midst of the land,

and its height was great.

¹¹The tree grew large and strong;

its top reached the sky,

and it was visible

to the ends of the earth.

¹²Its leaves were beautiful,

its fruit was abundant,

and upon it was food for all.

Under it the beasts of the field found shelter,

in its branches the birds of the air nested,

and from it every creature was fed.

¹³As I lay on my bed, I also saw in the visions of my mind a watcher,^b a holy one, coming down from heaven. ¹⁴He called out in a loud voice:

‘Cut down the tree and chop off its branches;

strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit.

Let the beasts flee from under it,

and the birds from its branches.

¹⁵But leave the stump with its roots in the ground,

with a band of iron and bronze around it,

in the tender grass of the field.

Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven

and graze with the beasts on the grass of the earth.

¹⁶Let his mind be changed from that of a man,

and let him be given the mind of a beast

till seven times pass him by.

¹⁷This decision is the decree of the watchers,

the verdict declared by the holy ones,

so that the living will know

that the Most High rules over the kingdom of mankind

and gives it to whom He wishes,

setting over it the lowliest of men.’

¹⁸This is the dream that I, King Nebuchadnezzar, saw. Now, Belteshazzar, tell me the interpretation, because none of the wise men of my kingdom can interpret it for me. But you are able, because the spirit of the holy gods is in you.”

¹⁹For a time, Daniel, who was also known as Belteshazzar, was perplexed, and his thoughts alarmed him.

So the king said, “Belteshazzar, do not let the dream or its interpretation alarm you.”

“My lord,” replied Belteshazzar, “may the dream apply to those who hate you, and its interpretation to your enemies!

²⁰The tree you saw that grew large and strong, whose top reached the sky and was visible to all the earth, ²¹whose foliage was beautiful and whose fruit was abundant, providing food for all, under which the beasts of the field lived, and in whose branches the birds of the air nested— ²²you, O king, are that tree! For you have become great and strong; your greatness has grown to reach the sky, and your dominion extends to the ends of the earth.

²³And you, O king, saw a watcher, a holy one, coming down from heaven and saying:

‘Cut down the tree and destroy it,

but leave the stump with its roots in the ground,

with a band of iron and bronze around it,

in the tender grass of the field.

Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven,

and graze with the beasts of the field

till seven times pass him by.’

²⁴This is the interpretation, O king, and this is the decree that the Most High has issued against my lord the king:

²⁵You will be driven away from mankind, and your dwelling will be with the beasts of the field. You will feed on grass like an ox and be drenched with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass you by, until you acknowledge that the Most High rules over the kingdom of mankind and gives it to whom He wishes.

²⁶As for the command to leave the stump of the tree with its roots, your kingdom will be restored to you as soon as you acknowledge that Heaven rules.