seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Daniel 4:1 [a]King Nebuchadnezzar,
To the nations and peoples of every language, who live in all the earth:
May you prosper greatly!
2 It is my pleasure to tell you about the miraculous signs and wonders that the Most High God has performed for me.
3 How great are his signs,
how mighty his wonders!
His kingdom is an eternal kingdom;
his dominion endures from generation to generation.
how mighty his wonders!
His kingdom is an eternal kingdom;
his dominion endures from generation to generation.
4 I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at home in my palace, contented and prosperous. 5 I had a dream that made me afraid. As I was lying in bed, the images and visions that passed through my mind terrified me. 6 So I commanded that all the wise men of Babylon be brought before me to interpret the dream for me. 7 When the magicians, enchanters, astrologers[b] and diviners came, I told them the dream, but they could not interpret it for me. 8 Finally, Daniel came into my presence and I told him the dream. (He is called Belteshazzar, after the name of my god, and the spirit of the holy gods is in him.)
9 I said, “Belteshazzar, chief of the magicians, I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in you, and no mystery is too difficult for you. Here is my dream; interpret it for me. 10 These are the visions I saw while lying in bed: I looked, and there before me stood a tree in the middle of the land. Its height was enormous. 11 The tree grew large and strong and its top touched the sky; it was visible to the ends of the earth. 12 Its leaves were beautiful, its fruit abundant, and on it was food for all. Under it the wild animals found shelter, and the birds lived in its branches; from it every creature was fed.
13 “In the visions I saw while lying in bed, I looked, and there before me was a holy one, a messenger,[c] coming down from heaven. 14 He called in a loud voice: ‘Cut down the tree and trim off its branches; strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit. Let the animals flee from under it and the birds from its branches. 15 But let the stump and its roots, bound with iron and bronze, remain in the ground, in the grass of the field. “‘Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven, and let him live with the animals among the plants of the earth. 16 Let his mind be changed from that of a man and let him be given the mind of an animal, till seven times[d] pass by for him.
17 “‘The decision is announced by messengers, the holy ones declare the verdict, so that the living may know that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes and sets over them the lowliest of people.’
18 “This is the dream that I, King Nebuchadnezzar, had. Now, Belteshazzar, tell me what it means, for none of the wise men in my kingdom can interpret it for me. But you can, because the spirit of the holy gods is in you.”
19 Then Daniel (also called Belteshazzar) was greatly perplexed for a time, and his thoughts terrified him. So the king said, “Belteshazzar, do not let the dream or its meaning alarm you.”
Belteshazzar answered, “My lord, if only the dream applied to your enemies and its meaning to your adversaries! 20 The tree you saw, which grew large and strong, with its top touching the sky, visible to the whole earth, 21 with beautiful leaves and abundant fruit, providing food for all, giving shelter to the wild animals, and having nesting places in its branches for the birds— 22 Your Majesty, you are that tree! You have become great and strong; your greatness has grown until it reaches the sky, and your dominion extends to distant parts of the earth.
23 “Your Majesty saw a holy one, a messenger, coming down from heaven and saying, ‘Cut down the tree and destroy it, but leave the stump, bound with iron and bronze, in the grass of the field, while its roots remain in the ground. Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven; let him live with the wild animals, until seven times pass by for him.’
24 “This is the interpretation, Your Majesty, and this is the decree the Most High has issued against my lord the king: 25 You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like the ox and be drenched with the dew of heaven. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes. 26 The command to leave the stump of the tree with its roots means that your kingdom will be restored to you when you acknowledge that Heaven rules. 27 Therefore, Your Majesty, be pleased to accept my advice: Renounce your sins by doing what is right, and your wickedness by being kind to the oppressed. It may be that then your prosperity will continue.”
28 All this happened to King Nebuchadnezzar. 29 Twelve months later, as the king was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, 30 he said, “Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?”
31 Even as the words were on his lips, a voice came from heaven, “This is what is decreed for you, King Nebuchadnezzar: Your royal authority has been taken from you. 32 You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like the ox. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes.”
33 Immediately what had been said about Nebuchadnezzar was fulfilled. He was driven away from people and ate grass like the ox. His body was drenched with the dew of heaven until his hair grew like the feathers of an eagle and his nails like the claws of a bird.
34 At the end of that time, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored. Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified him who lives forever.
His dominion is an eternal dominion;
his kingdom endures from generation to generation.
his kingdom endures from generation to generation.
35 All the peoples of the earth
are regarded as nothing.
He does as he pleases
with the powers of heaven
and the peoples of the earth.
No one can hold back his hand
or say to him: “What have you done?”
36 At the same time that my sanity was restored, my honor and splendor were returned to me for the glory of my kingdom. My advisers and nobles sought me out, and I was restored to my throne and became even greater than before. 37 Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything he does is right and all his ways are just. And those who walk in pride he is able to humble.
a. Daniel 4:1 In Aramaic texts 4:1-3 is numbered 3:31-33, and 4:4-37 is numbered 4:1-34.
b. Daniel 4:7 Or Chaldeans
c. Daniel 4:13 Or watchman; also in verses 17 and 23
d. Daniel 4:16 Or years; also in verses 23, 25 and 32
Well.... talk about your "dream come true" story.
This is from the easy English site.
Nebuchadnezzar was comfortable. He was happy. He was the most powerful man in the whole world. He thought that he could do anything. He thought that he did not need God. But God had plans for Nebuchadnezzar. God gave him a dream.
Nebuchadnezzar called his wise men. He wanted them to tell him what his dream meant. This time he told them his dream. But they could not tell him what it meant. This is strange. The king had a dream before (Daniel 2:1). Then the wise men made a promise. If the king told them the dream, they would tell him the meaning. This time he did tell them the dream. But still they could not tell him what it meant. God told Daniel the king’s first dream. Daniel told the king the dream. And he told him what it meant. But Nebuchadnezzar only called for Daniel last. We do not know why the wise men did not tell the king the meaning of the dream. We do not know why the king called for Daniel. The king probably knew that God gave him the dream. He knew that he was an evil man. He knew that God would tell him bad news. He may have guessed what the dream meant. He did not want to hear bad news. The wise men probably knew all this too. They did not want to tell the king bad news.
When Daniel heard the dream, he was uneasy for a time. He knew that God was telling Nebuchadnezzar bad news. Perhaps Daniel liked Nebuchadnezzar, although Nebuchadnezzar was evil. Perhaps Daniel felt sorry for Nebuchadnezzar. He did not want to give him the bad news.
Daniel told the king that he, Nebuchadnezzar, was like the tree. He was a very powerful king. He had power over the whole earth.
Nebuchadnezzar had the mind of an animal. But, when the time was right, he was able to think about God. One day he gave honour to God. He agreed that God rules over everything. He agreed that God was more powerful than any king. Then he got his own mind back.
This is from Bibletrack.org.
How do you tell the King who promoted you that, because of his sin, he's going to go insane for a period of seven years? Well, Daniel is a straight shooter - gotta tell the truth. Actually, Daniel gives him an out in verse 27 when he concludes his interpretation, "Wherefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by shewing mercy to the poor; if it may be a lengthening of thy tranquillity." So...the insanity stipulated by the dream and its interpretation can be avoided, but did Neb take Daniel's counsel along with the interpretation? Apparently not...as we'll see in the balance of this chapter.
It took a little while for the stipulations of the dream and interpretation to be fulfilled, but about a year later it happens; Neb goes insane just like Daniel said - becomes socially repulsive and even starts eating grass like cattle. Yuck! This goes on for seven years. This very-rare mental disorder actually has a name - "boanthropy." Incidentally, you will notice that Neb's mental illness follows on the heals of an ego trip in verse 30.
It was quite an ordeal, but when Neb emerges from his insanity (seven years later), he clearly has learned a lesson about the one true God. Compare verse 30 to 37 for a good before-and-after picture.
Verse 37 almost makes you like the man. Well, that's the end of Nebuchadnezzar in the Book of Daniel.
So I googled "Boanthropy" and this is what it said.Boanthropy is a psychological disorder in which the sufferer believes he or she is a cow or ox. The most famous sufferer of this condition was King Nebuchadnezzar, who in the Book of Daniel “was driven from men and did eat grass as oxen”.
Wow.... Old Neb had to become as stubborn as an ox to accept God as the Only True Living God. Makes sense.... and it's so ironic!