Daniel 4

1 Nebuchadnezzar the king, unto all the peoples, the races and the tongues who are dwelling in all the earth, Let, your prosperity, abound!

Nebuchadnezzar, the king, to all peoples, nations, and languages, who dwell in the whole world, may peace be increased with you.

2 The signs, and the wonders, which the most high God, hath wrought with me, it is pleasing before me to declare.

The supreme God has accomplished signs and wonders with me. Therefore, it has pleased me to proclaim

3 His signs, how great! and, his wonders, how mighty! His kingdom, is an age-abiding kingdom, and, his dominion, lasteth from generation to generation.

his signs, which are great, and his wonders, which are mighty. For his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his power continues from generation to generation.

4 I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at peace in mine own house, and was prosperous in my palace.

I, Nebuchadnezzar, was content in my house and prospering in my palace.

5 A dream, I saw, and it made me afraid, —and, fancies upon my bed, and visions of my head, terrified me.

I saw a dream that terrified me, and my thoughts on my bed and the visions in my head disturbed me.

6 Therefore made I a decree, to bring in before me, all the wise men of Babylon, —who, the interpretation of the dream, should make known to me.

And so a decree was established by me, that all of the wise men of Babylon should be brought in before me, and that they should reveal to me the answer to the dream.

7 Then came in the sacred scribes, the magicians, the Chaldeans, and the astrologers, —and, the dream, told I before them, but, the interpretation, could they not make known to me.

Then the seers, the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers entered, and I explained about the dream in their presence, but they did not reveal its answer to me.

8 Howbeit, at last, came before me—Daniel, whose, name, was Belteshazzar, after the name of my god, and in whom is the spirit of the holy gods; and, the dream—before him, I told [saying]:

And then their colleague came in before me, Daniel, (whose name is Belteshazzar according to the name of my god, ) who has the spirit of the holy gods within his very self, and I told the dream directly to him.

9 O Belteshazzar, chief of the sacred scribes, because I know that, the spirit of the holy gods, is in thee, —and no secret giveth thee trouble, [therefore], the visions of my dream which I have seen, and the interpretation thereof, do thou tell.

Belteshazzar, leader of the seers, since I know that you have in you the spirit of the holy gods, and that no mystery is unreachable to you, explain to me the visions of my dreams, which I saw, and the solution to them.

10 The visions then of my head upon my bed [were these], —I was looking, when lo! a tree in the midst of the land, and, the height thereof, was great.

This was the vision of my head on my bed. I looked, and behold, a tree in the middle of the earth, and its height was exceedingly great.

11 The tree, grew, and became strong, —and, the height thereof, reached unto the heavens, and, the view thereof, unto the end of all the land:

The tree was great and strong, and its height reached up to heaven. It could be seen all the way to the ends of the entire earth.

12 The foliage thereof, was beautiful, and, the fruit thereof, abundant, and there was food for all therein, —under it, the wild beast of the field found shade, and, among its branches, dwelt the birds of the heavens, and, therefrom, was well fed, all flesh.

Its leaves were very beautiful, and its fruit was very abundant, and in it was food for the whole world. Under it, animals and beasts were dwelling, and in its branches, the birds of the sky were sheltered, and from it, all flesh was fed.

13 I was looking, in the visions of my head, upon my bed, when lo! a watcher and holy one, outer the heavens, coming down.

I saw in the vision of my head upon my blanket, and behold, a watcher and a holy one descended from heaven.

14 He cried aloud, and, thus, he said—Hew ye down the tree, and lop off its branches, strip off its leaves, and scatter its fruit, —let the wild beasts flee from under it, and the birds, out of its branches;

He cried out loudly, and he said this: “Cut down the tree and prune its branches; shake off its leaves and scatter its fruits; let flee the beasts, which are under it, and the birds from its branches.

15 Nevertheless, the stock of its roots in the earth, leave ye, yea in a bond of iron and bronze, in the tender grass of the field, and, with the dew of the heavens, let it be drenched, and, with the wild beasts, be its portion, amongst, the herbage of the earth;

Nevertheless, leave the stump of its roots in the earth, and let it be bound with a band of iron and brass among the plants, which are close by, and let it be touched by the dew of heaven, and let its place be with the wild animals among the plants of the earth.

16 Let, its heart, from a man’s, be changed, and, the heart of a wild beast, be given to it, —and let seven seasons pass over it.

Let his heart be changed from being human, and let the heart of a wild animal be given to him, and let seven periods of time pass over him.

17 By the decree of the watchers, is the thing, and [by] the mandate of the holy ones, the matter: to the intent that the living, may get to know, that the Most High, hath dominion, over the kingdom of men, and, to whomsoever he pleaseth, he giveth it, and, one low among men, he setteth up over it.

This is the decree from the judgment of the watchers, and the decision and proclamation of the holy ones, until the living shall know that the Supreme One is ruler in the kingdom of men, and that he will give it to whomever he wills, and he will appoint the lowest man over it.”

18 This dream, have, I, King Nebuchadnezzar, seen. Thou, therefore, O Belteshazzar, the interpretation, do thou tell, forasmuch as, all the wise men of my kingdom, are unable, the interpretation, to make known to me, but, thou, art able, because, the spirit of the holy gods, is in thee.

I, king Nebuchadnezzar, saw this dream. And so you, Belteshazzar, must quickly explain to me the interpretation because all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to declare the meaning of it to me. But you are able because the spirit of the holy gods is in you.

19 Then, Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was astonished for about one moment, and, his thoughts, troubled him. The king spake and said, O Belteshazzar, let neither, the dream, nor the interpretation, trouble thee. Belteshazzar answered and said, My Lord, The dream, be for them who hate thee, and, the interpretation, for them who are thy foes.

Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, began silently to think within himself for about one hour, and his thoughts troubled him. But the king responded, saying, “Belteshazzar, do not let the dream and its interpretation disturb you.” Belteshazzar answered and said, “My lord, the dream is for those who hate you, and its interpretation may be for your enemies.

20 The tree which thou sawest, which grew and became strong, whose, height, reached unto the heavens, and, the view, thereof to all the earth:

The tree that you saw was lofty and strong; its height reached toward heaven, and it could be seen throughout the whole world.

21 Whose, foliage, was beautiful, and whose, fruit, abundant, and, food for all, was in it, —under it, dwelt the wild beasts of the field, and, in the branches thereof, nestled the birds of the heavens:

And its branches were very beautiful, and its fruit very abundant, and in it was food for all. Under it, dwelt the beasts of the field, and in its branches, the birds of the air stayed.

22 Thyself, it is, O king, in that thou art grown, and become strong, —and, thy greatness hath grown, and reached to the heavens, and, thy dominion, to the end of the earth.

It is you, O king, who has been greatly esteemed, and you have grown strong. And you have increased your power, and it reaches towards heaven, and your rule is to the ends of the whole earth.

23 And, whereas the king saw a watcher and holy one coming down out of the heavens, who said, Hew ye down the tree and despoil it, nevertheless, the stock of its roots—in the earth, leave ye, even in a bond of iron and bronze, in the tender grass of the field, —and, with the dew of the heavens, let it he drenched, and, along with the wild beasts of the field, be its portion, until that, seven seasons, pass over it.

Yet the king also saw a watcher and a holy one descend from heaven and say: ‘Cut down the tree and scatter it; however, leave the stump of its roots in the earth, and let it be bound with iron and brass, among the surrounding plants, and let it be sprinkled with the dew of heaven, and let his feeding be with the wild beasts, until seven periods of time pass over him.’

24 This, is the interpretation, O king, —and, the decree of the Most High, it is, which hath come upon my lord the king:

This is the interpretation of the judgment of the Most High, which has reached my lord, the king.

25 That, thee, are they going to drive forth from among men, and, along with the wild beasts of the field, shall be thy dwelling, and, grass—like oxen, will they suffer, thee, to eat, and, with the dew of the heavens, will they suffer, thee, to be drenched, and, seven seasons, shall pass over thee, —until that thou come to know, that the Most High, hath dominion, over the kingdom of men, and, to whomsoever he pleaseth, he giveth it.

They will expel you from among men, and your dwelling will be with the beasts and the wild animals, and you will eat hay like an ox, and you will be drenched with the dew of heaven. Likewise, seven periods of time will pass over you, until you know that the Supreme One rules over the kingdom of men, and he gives it to whomever he wills.

26 And, whereas they gave word to leave the stock of the roots of the tree, thy kingdom, unto thee, is sure, —after that thou come to know, that the heavens, have dominion.

But, since he commanded that the stump of its roots, that is, of the tree, should be left behind, your kingdom will be left for you, after you have realized that power is from divinity.

27 Wherefore, O king, let, my counsel, be pleasing unto thee, thy sin, then, —by righteousness, break thou off, and, thine iniquities, by shewing favour to the oppressed, —if so be it may become the lengthening out of thy security.

Because of this, O king, let my counsel be acceptable to you. And redeem your sins with alms, and your iniquities with mercy towards the poor. Perhaps he will forgive your offenses.”

28 All this, came upon Nebuchadnezzar the king.

All these things came upon king Nebuchadnezzar.

29 At the end of twelve months, over the palace of the kingdom of Babylon, was he walking:

After the end of twelve months, he was taking a walk in the palace of Babylon.

30 the king spake and said, Is not, this, Babylon the great, —which, I myself, have built as the home of the kingdom, by the might of my power, and for the dignity of my majesty?

And the king spoke out loud, saying, “Isn’t this the great Babylon, which I have built, as the home of the kingdom, by the strength of my power and in the glory of my excellence?”

31 While yet the word was in the mouth of the king, a voice, out of the heavens, fell, —Unto thee, is it said, O Nebuchadnezzar the king, The kingdom, hath departed from thee;

And while the words were still in the king’s mouth, a voice rushed down from heaven, “To you, O king Nebuchadnezzar, it is said: ‘Your kingdom will be taken away from you,

32 And, from among men, are they going to drive, thee, forth, and, with the wild beast of the field, shall be thy dwelling, grass—like oxen, will they suffer, thee, to eat, and, seven seasons, shall pass over thee, —until that thou come to know that the Most High, hath dominion, over the kingdom of men, and, to whomsoever he pleaseth, he giveth it.

and they will expel you from among men, and your dwelling will be with the beasts and the wild animals. You will eat hay like an ox, and seven times will pass over you, until you know that the Supreme One rules in the kingdom of men, and he gives it to whomever he wills.’”

33 Immediately, the word, was fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar, and, from among men, was he driven forth, and, grass—like oxen, did he eat, and, with the dew of the heavens, his body was drenched, —until that, his hair, like to eagles’ feathers, was grown, and his nails, like birds’ claws.

The same hour, the sentence was fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar, and he was driven away from among men, and he ate hay like an ox, and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven, until his hair increased like the feathers of eagles, and his nails like those of birds.

34 And, at the end of the days, I, Nebuchadnezzar, mine eyes unto the heavens, did uplift, and, mine understanding, unto me, returned, and, the Most High, I blessed, and, to him that liveth age-abidingly, I rendered praise and honour, —whose dominion, is an age-abiding dominion, and, his kingdom, lasteth from generation to generation;

Therefore, at the end of these days, I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted up my eyes to heaven, and my mind was restored to me. And I blessed the Most High, and I praised and glorified him who lives forever. For his power is an everlasting power, and his kingdom is from generation to generation.

35 And, all the inhabitants of the earth, as nothing, are accounted, and, according to his own pleasure, dealeth he—with the army of the heavens, and the inhabitants of the earth, —and none there is who can smite upon his hand, or say to him, What hast thou done?

And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing before him. For he acts according to his own will, with the inhabitants of the earth just as with the holy inhabitants of heaven. And there is no one who can resist his hand, or say to him, “Why have you done this?”

36 At the same time, mine understanding, returned unto me, and, for the dignity of my kingdom, my majesty and my brightness, returned unto me, and, unto me, my nearest friends and my nobles, did seek, —and, over my kingdom, was I restored, and, surpassing greatness, was added unto me.

At the same time, my mind returned to me, and I arrived at the honor and glory of my kingdom. And my appearance was given back to me. And my nobles and my magistrates needed me. And I was restored to my kingdom, and even greater majesty was added to me.

37 Now, I, Nebuchadnezzar, am praising and extolling and honouring the King of the Heavens, all whose works, are truth, and, his ways, right; and, them who walk in pride, he is able to abase,

Therefore I, Nebuchadnezzar, now praise, and magnify, and glorify the King of heaven, because all his works and the judgments of his way are true, and those who go forth in arrogance, he is able to bring low.