Verse-by-Verse Bible Commentary
Daniel 4:26

Clarke's Commentary

Verse 26. Thy kingdom shall he sure unto thee — No new king was set up; Evil-merodach his son was regent during his father's insanity.

Bridgeway Bible Commentary

Nebuchadnezzar’s madness (4:1-37)

In this chapter Nebuchadnezzar recounts, for the benefit of his subjects, an experience that humbled his pride and brought him to acknowledge Yahweh as the one and only true God (4:1-3). It all began when Nebuchadnezzar had a puzzling dream. After getting no help from his Babylonian wise men, he told it to Daniel in the hope of discovering its meaning (4-9).
The first thing that Nebuchadnezzar saw in his dream was a giant tree. It towered over the world and provided food and shelter for all creatures everywhere (10-12). A heavenly messenger then announced that this tree would be cut down, though its stump would be preserved (13-15a). The tree was also a person, who then lived for a time as an animal in the fields (15b-16). Angels announced that the purpose of the dream was to show that God rules over all the world’s kingdoms and gives them to anyone he chooses (17-18).
Daniel, after hesitating at first, revealed that the dream applied to the great and powerful Nebuchadnezzar himself (19-22). The king would suffer a period of mental illness when, imagining he was an animal, he would go and live like an animal in the field. Although he would not be able to rule during this time, God would preserve his kingdom for him. Eventually he would come to realize that God, not he, was the all-powerful one who decided the destinies of nations. Then God would give him back his throne (23-26).
After revealing the dream’s meaning, Daniel gave the king some advice. He urged the king to cease the oppression and injustice that characterized his rule, and begin instead to administer justice for the welfare of his people. Perhaps he would then avoid the threatened disaster (27).
God gave Nebuchadnezzar a year to repent as Daniel had urged, but the king would not change. Instead of repenting, he only grew more defiant and proud. The result was that God acted, and Daniel’s dreadful forecasts concerning Nebuchadnezzar came true (28-33).
Only after Nebuchadnezzar lost his sense of self-importance and humbly submitted to God did his sanity return. Previously he had acknowledged that Daniel’s God was one among many gods, maybe even the best god (see 2:47; 3:29), but now he openly acknowledged that Daniel’s God was the one and only true God, to whom he must bow. This God is the one who determines the destinies of individuals and nations according to his will (34-37).

Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible

“Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was stricken dumb for awhile, and his thoughts troubled him. The king answered and said, Belteshazzar, let not the dream, or the interpretation trouble thee. Belteshazzar answered and said, My lord, the dream be to them that hate thee, and the interpretation thereof to thine adversaries. The tree that thou sawest, which grew, and was strong, whose height reached unto heaven, and the sight thereof to all the earth; whose leaves were fair, and the fruit thereof much, and it was for food for all; under which the beasts of the field dwelt, and upon whose branches the birds of the heavens had their habitation: it is thou, O king, that art grown and become strong; for thy greatness is grown, and reacheth unto heaven, and thy dominion to the end of the earth. And whereas the king saw a watcher and a holy one coming down from heaven, and saying, Hew down the tree, and destroy it; nevertheless leave the stump of the roots thereof in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the field; and let it be wet with the dew of heaven; and let his portion be with the beasts of the field, till seven times pass over. him; this is the interpretation, O king, and it is the decree of the Most High, which is come upon my lord the king: that thou shalt be driven from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and thou shalt be made to eat grass as oxen, and shall be wet with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over thee; till thou know that the Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will. And whereas they commanded to leave the stump of the roots of the tree; thy kingdom shall be sure unto thee, after that thou shall have known that the heavens do rule.”

THE INTERPRETATION OF THE DREAM

The king’s edict here used both the Hebrew name and the Babylonian name of Daniel; and critics seize this as a grounds for destructive remarks; but, on the other hand, this use of both names is exactly what should have been expected.

“So far from being an objection, it is an undesigned mark of genuineness. In a decree to ’all peoples’ and one designed to honor the God of the Hebrews, Nebuchadnezzar would naturally have used the Hebrew name (derived from [~’El], God), the name by which the prophet was best known among his own countrymen.”Robert Jamieson, op. cit., p. 628.

Of special interest is the evidence of mutual love and respect between Daniel and the king in Daniel 4:19. This attitude of the principal characters here is proof that no writer in the days of Antiochus had anything to do with the composition of the prophecy of Daniel. Nebuchadnezzar in this passage is so utterly unlike Antiochus Epiphanes that it must ever remain a mystery why critical scholars are always mentioning Antiochus and the need of the people for encouragement in those times, as being pertinent in any manner whatever to this prophecy.

We have already noted that Daniel 4:24-25 were designed to correct the king’s notion about the source of the decree against him. It did not come from angels, but from God.

“Thou shalt be driven from men” The description here of the king’s condition during the days of his punishment should not be pressed as to details. They have the general meaning that, “The king would be in such a state as to be treated like a beast; he would be removed from his ordinary abode, and become a miserable and neglected outcast.”Albert Barnes, op. cit., p. 258.

The nature of the king’s strange malady is readily identified by a number of writers as “lycanthropy,”J. R. Dummelow, op. cit., p. 535. a strange form of insanity in which the victim imagines that he is a beast and adopts a form of behavior appropriate to such a delusion. A dissenting view was quoted by Thomson from a famed British medical doctor, David Yellowlees, of the University of Glasgow:

“Nebuchadnezzar’s illness was not lycanthropy; it was an attack of acute mania, from which he likely recovered, as usually in such attacks, if uncomplicated, in seven months. In its extreme form, acute mania causes victims to exhibit all kinds of degraded habits such as stripping or tearing of clothes, eating filth and garbage of all sorts, wild and violent gesticulations, dangerous assaults, howling noises, and utter disregard of personal decency.”J. E. H. Thomson, op. cit., p. 147.

This quotation has been included here not from any personal acceptance of it as true, but as a matter of general interest. Our own viewpoint is that, since the visitation upon Nebuchadnezzar was a heaven sent punishment, it might not have been any particular disease with which men are familiar. We simply do not know what it was.

Whatever was the length of time that Nebuchadnezzar was deprived of his throne, the government of Babylon would have been taken care of by a regent. Adam Clarke gives us the name of that regent. “Evil-merodach his son was regent during his father’s insanity.”Adam Clarke, op. cit., p. 584.

The destructive critics gleefully remark that, “The silence of the inscriptions is inexplicable!”H. T. Andrews, op. cit., p. 526. Such a remark is based on the fact that none of the monuments or inscriptions uncovered from the mud of Mesopotamia have any report of king Nebuchadnezzar’s terrible malady. Apparently critics know nothing at all of human rulers. Do they suppose that Senator Ted Kennedy would have a monument erected to his escapade at Chappaquiddick? or that President John Kennedy would have memorialized his sexual escapades in the White House?

How can anyone on earth suppose that Nebuchadnezzar would have erected a monument to his status while in the throes of that awful malady? Despite that, however, the king did publish the decree which we have before us in the historic Book of Daniel; and this writer believes, along with a great many other conservative scholars, that the discoveries in the ancient Babylonian area my yet reveal a copy of this very decree. But if and when that should happen, the enemies of the Word would not stop denying it.

“Thy kingdom shall be sure unto thee, after that thou shall have known that the heavens do rule” (Daniel 4:26). “Heaven rules is the oldest surrogate for God in the Bible. It was widely used later, as in Luke 15:18.”A. R. Millard, The New Layman’s Bible Commentary, Daniel (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1979), p. 912. Note that the plural is used here, “the heavens do rule.” In fact the kingdom of heaven as written in the Greek New Testament is actually, “The royal majesty of the heavens has approached”The Emphatic Diaglott of the New Testament (Brooklyn: The Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society), p. 14. (Matthew 3:2).

Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible

And whereas they commanded - The watchers, Daniel 4:15. Compare Daniel 4:17.

To leave the stump of the tree roots - Or, to leave roots to the stump of the tree; that is, it was not to be dug up, or wholly destroyed, but vitality was to be left in the ground. The Chaldee here is the same as in Daniel 4:15, “leave the stump of his roots.”

Thy kingdom shall be sure unto thee - That is, thou shalt not die under this calamity, but after it has passed away shalt be restored to authority. It might have been supposed that this meant that the authority would survive in his family, and that those who were to succeed him would reign - as shoots spring up after the parent tree has fallen; but Daniel was directed to an interpretation which is not less in accordance with the fair meaning of the dream than this would have been.

After that thou shalt have known that the heavens do rule - That God rules, This was the great lesson which the event was designed to teach, and when that should have been learned, there would be a propriety that he should be restored to his throne, and should proclaim this to the world.

Calvin's Commentary on the Bible

Here Daniel closes the interpretation of the dream, and shews how God did not treat King Nebuchadnezzar so severely by not giving way to clemency. He mitigates, indeed, the extreme rigor of the punishment, to induce Nebuchadnezzar to call upon God and repent, through indulging the hope of pardon, as a clearer exhortation will afterwards follow. But Daniel now prepares him for penitence, by swing His kingdom should stand For God might cast him out from intercourse with mankind, and thus he would always remain among wild beasts. He might instantly remove him from the world; but this is a mark of his clemency, since he wished to restore him, not to a merely moderate station, but to his former dignity, as if it had never been trenched upon. We see, therefore, how useful the dream was to King Nebuchadnezzar, so long as he did not despise the Prophet’s holy admonition, through ingratitude towards God; because Daniel not only predicted the slaughter which was at hand, but brought at the same time a message of reconciliation. God, therefore, had instructed the king to some purpose, unless he had been unteachable and perverse, like the majority of mankind. Besides, we may gather from this the general doctrine of our being invited to repentance when God puts an end to his chastisements; since he sets before us a taste of his clemency to induce in us the hope of his being entreated, if we only fly to him heartily and sincerely, We must notice also what Daniel adds in the second part of the verse, from which thou mayest know that there is power in heaven: for under these words the promise of spiritual grace is included. Since God will not only punish the king of Babylon, to humble him, but will work in him and change his mind, as he afterwards fulfilled, though at a long interval.

From which thou shalt know, then, says he, that power is in heaven I have stated the grace of the Spirit to be here promised, as we know how badly men profit, even if God repeats his stripes an hundredfold. Such is the hardness and obstinacy of our hearts — for we rather grow more and more obdurate, while God calls us to repentance. And, doubtless, Nebuchadnezzar had been like Pharaoh, unless God had humbled him, not only with outward penalties, but had added also the inward instinct of his Spirit, to allow himself to be instructed, and to submit himself to the judgment and power of heaven. Daniel means this when he says, Wherefore thou shalt know; for Nebuchadnezzar would never have acquired this knowledge of his own accord, unless he had been touched by the secret movement of the Spirit. He adds, That there is power in heaven; meaning, God governs the world and exercises supreme power; for he here contrasts heaven with earth, meaning all mankind. For if kings see all filings tranquil around them, and if no one causes them terror, they think themselves beyond all chance of danger, as they say; and through being desirous of certainty in their station, they look round on all sides, but never raise their eyes upwards to heaven, as if God did not concern himself to behold the kingdoms of the earth, and to set up whom he would, and to prostrate all the proud. The princes of this world never consider their power to be from heaven, as if this were entirely out of God’s hands; but, as I have said, they look right and left, before and behind. This is the reason why Daniel said, Power is from heaven. There is a contrast then between God and all mankind, as if he had said, Thou shalt know God reigns — as we have formerly seen. It follows:

Smith's Bible Commentary

Chapter 4

Now Nebuchadnezzar the king, [a proclamation] unto all the people, nation, languages, that dwell in all the earth; Peace be multiplied unto you. I thought it good to show the signs and wonders that the high God hath wrought towards me. How great are his signs! and how mighty are his wonders! his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion is from generation to generation ( Daniel 4:1-3 ).

Listen to these words of Nebuchadnezzar. Sounds like a convert. And I personally believe he was. He tells now his story, "I'm going to tell you a story." He said,

I Nebuchadnezzar was at rest in my house, I was prospering in my palace: And I saw a dream which made me afraid, and the thoughts upon my bed and the visions of my head troubled me. Therefore I made a decree to bring in all of the wise men of Babylon before me, that they might make known unto to me the interpretation of the dream. And there came in the magicians, the astrologers, Chaldeans, and all the soothsayers: and I told them the dream; but they could not make known to me the interpretation. But at last Daniel came before me, whose name was Belteshazzar, according to the name of my god, in whom is the spirit of the holy gods: and before him I told the dream, saying, O Belteshazzar, master of the magicians, because I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in thee, no secret troubles thee, tell me the visions of my dream that I have seen, and the interpretation thereof. And thus for the visions in my head in my bed; I saw, and behold there was a tree in the middle of the eaRuth ( Daniel 4:4-10 ),

It was very tall.

The tree grew, and was strong, and the height thereof reached into heaven, and the sight thereof unto the end of the whole earth: And the leaves thereof were fair, and the fruit was very much, and in it there was meat for everyone: the beast of the field had shadow under it, the fowls in the heaven dwelt in the boughs thereof, and all flesh fed from it. And I saw in the visions of my head upon my bed, and, behold, a watcher ( Daniel 4:11-13 )

Now this is interesting!

and a holy one [a watcher, and a holy one] came down from heaven; And he cried aloud, and said, Cut down the tree, cut off his branches, shake off his leaves, and scatter his fruit: let the beast get away from under it, and the fowls from his branches. Nevertheless, leave the stump of his roots in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the fields; and let it be wet with the dew of heaven, and let his portion be with the beast and the grass of the earth: Let his heart be changed from a man's, and let a beast's heart be given unto him; and let seven times pass over him. This matter is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones: to the intent that the living may know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomsoever he will, and sets over it the basest of men. This dream I king Nebuchadnezzar have seen. Now thou, O Belteshazzar, declare the interpretation thereof, forasmuch as all of the wise men in my kingdom were not able to make known the interpretation: but you are able; for the spirit of the holy gods is in you. Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was astonished for about one hour, his thoughts troubled him. And the king spoke, and said, Belteshazzar, don't let the dream, or the interpretation thereof, trouble you. And Belteshazzar answered and said, My lord, the dream is for those that hate you, and the interpretation is something your enemies will enjoy. For the tree you saw, which grew, and was strong, whose height reached into heaven, and the sight of all were upon the earth; Whose leaves were fair, and the fruit was very much, and in it was meat for all; under which the beast of the field dwelt, [and so forth]: It is you, O king, that have grown and become strong: for thy greatness is grown, and reaches unto heaven, and your dominion unto the end of the earth. And whereas the king saw a watcher and a holy one coming down from heaven, and saying, Hew down the tree, and destroy it; yet leave the stump of the roots thereof in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass, tell the tender grass of the field; and let it be wet with the dew of heaven, and let the portion be with beast for the fields, until seven times pass over him; This is the interpretation, O king, this is the decree of the Most High, which has come upon my lord the king: They shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling place will be with the beasts of the field, and they shall make thee to eat grass as an ox, and they shall wet thee with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over thee, till you know that the that Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomsoever he will. And whereas they commanded to leave the stump of the tree roots; thy kingdom shall be sure unto thee, after that you have known that the heavens do rule. Wherefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by showing mercy to the poor; for it may be a lengthening of your tranquillity ( Daniel 4:13-27 ).

So he had this dream, the tree and the whole thing, and as Daniel interprets it, "The tree is you Nebuchadnezzar. You've become great, and powerful, and this great kingdom is given unto you. But you've been lifted up in pride."

Now the interesting thing to me is there are watchers that are watching the whole affair. Do you know that your life is being watched? That's sort of awesome. These watchers from heaven who are down here watching you. And he had in this dream the insight into these watchers who had come from heaven and were watching him. And he heard one of them say, "Hew down the tree, cut off the branches, until seven times. Let him go out and live with the wild beast until seven times are passed over him."

The seven times are probably a year and three quarters. Referring to the summer, fall, winter, spring, rather than seven years. And so for a year and three quarters, king Nebuchadnezzar was to be insane. He was to live with the ox and out in the field. He was to eat grass like a wild animal. This was to continue until he realize that the God in heaven is the One who rules over the earth as far as establishing kingdoms and setting in power those whom He will. God still rules in the overall sense. And sometimes God puts evil men into power in order to bring judgment upon the people. But God rules over all. So after Daniel interprets, he said, "Now look, king, straighten up, man. Live right. You know, it may be that you can increase the days of your peace because you know this is going to come on you. But maybe by living right you can forestall it a bit."

And so for a year there was no furies or rages. The king was watching his p's and q's.

But all of this came upon king Nebuchadnezzar. At the end of twelve months as he was walking in the palace of the kingdom of Babylon ( Daniel 4:28-29 ).

Now according to the ancient historians, Babylon was just a place of marvel and beauty. They describe the hanging gardens of Babylon; they were one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. They described the walls that surrounded the city. The glory, the grandeur of this marvelous city of Babylon. And so Nebuchadnezzar was walking there in the midst of the gardens, the beautiful city, the palace and,

The king spake, and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honor of my majesty? ( Daniel 4:30 )

Boasting in himself that I have built with my power for my majesty.

And while these words were in his mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, [one of the watchers] said ( Daniel 4:31 ),

He'd been watching him.

O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee. And they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling place shall be with the beasts of the field: and they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times shall pass over thee, until you know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and he gives it to whomsoever he will. And in the same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: he was driven from men ( Daniel 4:31-33 ),

He became insane.

he did eat grass as the oxen, his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hair was grown like eagles' feathers, and his nails like birds' claws. And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up my eyes unto heaven, and my understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the Most High, and I praised and honored him that lives for ever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation: And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he does according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou? ( Daniel 4:33-35 )

He came into a consciousness of the power of God and the sovereignty of God, who rules over the universe. And no man can say to God, "What are you doing?"

At the same time my reason returned unto me; and for the glory of my kingdom, my honor and my brightness returned unto me; and my counselors and my lord sought unto me; and I was established in my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added unto me. Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honor the King of heaven ( Daniel 4:36-37 ),

That sounds like conversion to me.

all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase ( Daniel 4:37 ).

So this final proclamation of Nebuchadnezzar, a very interesting proclamation of the faith that he had come to as he believed in God and in the power of God and in the sovereignty of God over the universe. Very exciting.

I think that we will hold off on the remainder, and next week we'll take chapters 5 through 8. So we'll cut Daniel up in four chapter sections so we can spend a little more time in it. And fascinating, interesting book, and you've got some great reading next week as we get into Daniel chapters 5 through 8. Exciting prophecies.

Father, we do acknowledge that You are the Lord, the King, the Ruler over all the universe. We acknowledge Your sovereignty. We realize, Lord, that none of us can really challenge You to say, "What are You doing?" because You do things after the counsel of Your own will and after Your own purposes. God, we bow before Thee and we submit our lives to Thee. That we might be ruled over by Thy Spirit. Lord, we thank You for the commitment of Daniel and of his three friends. Lord, help us that we too might make a full commitment of our lives unto Thee. To have that same kind of confidence and trust that Your ways are best. Knowing, Lord, that You can do whatever You want. Take our lives now and use them as You see fit to glorify Thy Name. Bless this week. Lord, strengthen us, guide us, keep us in Thy Love. In Jesus' name. Amen. "

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

4. Daniel’s interpretation 4:19-27

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

The king’s condition, whatever it was, would continue for seven periods of time (cf. Daniel 4:16) until the king had learned that the Most High is sovereign. Then Nebuchadnezzar would receive back both his senses and his throne. "Heaven ruling" (Daniel 4:26) is a figure of speech (metonymy) for God ruling, since God lives in heaven. The Jews often substituted "heaven" for God’s name out of respect for Him. This is most obvious in Matthew’s Gospel, which was written primarily for Jews, in which "the kingdom of heaven" usually replaces the more common "kingdom of God" in the other Gospels. However, this is the only place in the Old Testament where the substitution of "heaven" for "God" occurs.

Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

And whereas they commanded to leave the stump of the tree roots,.... That is the watchers and the Holy Ones; or it was commanded: this was the order given by the most High:

thy kingdom shall be sure unto thee; signifying that another king should not be set up in his place; and though the kingdom and administration of it would depart from, him for a while, yet it would be restored again, and be firm and stable:

after that thou shall have known that the heavens do rule; that is, that God, who is the Maker of the heavens, and dwells there, is known and acknowledged by thee to rule on the earth; from the government of which he was desirous of excluding him, and taking it to himself; see

Luke 15:18.

Henry's Complete Commentary on the Bible

      19 Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was astonied for one hour, and his thoughts troubled him. The king spake, and said, Belteshazzar, let not the dream, or the interpretation thereof, trouble thee. Belteshazzar answered and said, My lord, the dream be to them that hate thee, and the interpretation thereof to thine enemies.   20 The tree that thou sawest, which grew, and was strong, whose height reached unto the heaven, and the sight thereof to all the earth;   21 Whose leaves were fair, and the fruit thereof much, and in it was meat for all; under which the beasts of the field dwelt, and upon whose branches the fowls of the heaven had their habitation:   22 It is thou, O king, that art grown and become strong: for thy greatness is grown, and reacheth unto heaven, and thy dominion to the end of the earth.   23 And whereas the king saw a watcher and a holy one coming down from heaven, and saying, Hew the tree down, and destroy it; yet leave the stump of the roots thereof in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the field; and let it be wet with the dew of heaven, and let his portion be with the beasts of the field, till seven times pass over him;   24 This is the interpretation, O king, and this is the decree of the most High, which is come upon my lord the king:   25 That they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and they shall wet thee with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over thee, till thou know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will.   26 And whereas they commanded to leave the stump of the tree roots; thy kingdom shall be sure unto thee, after that thou shalt have known that the heavens do rule.   27 Wherefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by showing mercy to the poor; if it may be a lengthening of thy tranquillity.

      We have here the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's dream; and when once it is applied to himself, and it is declared that he is the tree in the dream (Mutato nomine de te fabula narratur--Change but the name, the fable speaks of thee), when once it is said, Thou art the man, there needs little more to be said for the explication of the dream. Out of his own mouth he is judged; so shall his doom be, he himself has decided it. The thing was so plain that Daniel, upon hearing the dream, was astonished for one hour,Daniel 4:19; Daniel 4:19. He was struck with amazement and terror at so great a judgment coming upon so great a prince. His flesh trembled for fear of God. He was likewise struck with confusion when he found himself under a necessity of being the man that must bring to the king these heavy tidings, which, having received so many favours from the king, he had rather he should have heard from any one else; so far is he from desiring the woeful day that he dreads it, and the thoughts of it trouble him. Those that come after the ruined sinner are said to be astonished at his day, as those that went before, and saw it coming (as Daniel here), were affrighted,Job 18:20.

      I. The preface to the interpretation is a civil compliment which, as a courtier, he passes upon the king. The king observed him to stand as one astonished, and, thinking he was loth to speak out for fear of offending him, he encouraged him to deal plainly and faithfully with him; Let not the dream, nor the interpretation thereof, trouble thee. This he speaks either, 1. As one that sincerely desired to know this truth. Note, Those that consult the oracles of God must be ready to receive them as they are, whether they be for them or against them, and must accordingly give their ministers leave to be free with them. Or, 2. As one that despised the truth, and set it at defiance. When we see how regardless he was of this warning afterwards we are tempted to think that this was his meaning; "Let it not trouble thee, for I am resolved it shall not trouble me; nor will I lay it to heart." But, whether he have any concern for himself or no, Daniel is concerned for him, and therefore wishes, "The dream be to those that hate thee. Let the ill it bodes light on the head of thy enemies, not on thy head." Though Nebuchadnezzar was an idolater, a persecutor, and an oppressor of the people of God, yet he was, at present, Daniel's prince; and therefore, though Daniel foresees, and is now going to foretell, ill concerning him, he dares not wish ill to him.

      II. The interpretation itself is only a repetition of the dream, with application to the king. "As for the tree which thou sawest flourishing (Daniel 4:20; Daniel 4:21), it is thou, O king!" Daniel 4:22; Daniel 4:22. And willing enough would the king be to hear this (as, before, to hear, Thou art the head of gold), but for that which follows. He shows the king his present prosperous state in the glass of his own dream; "Thy greatness has grown and reaches as near to heaven as human greatness can do, and thy dominion is to the end of the earth," Daniel 2:37; Daniel 2:38. "As for the doom passed upon the tree (Daniel 4:23; Daniel 4:23), it is the decree of the Most High, which comes upon my lord the king," Daniel 4:24; Daniel 4:24. He must not only be deposed from his throne, but driven from men, and being deprived of his reason, and having a beast's heart given him, his dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and with them he shall be a fellow-commoner: he shall eat grass as oxen, and, like them, lie out all weathers, and be wet with the dew of heaven, and this till seven times pass over him, that is, seven years; and then he shall know that the Most High rules, and when he is brought to know and own this he shall be restored to his dominion again (Daniel 4:26; Daniel 4:26): "Thy kingdom shall be sure unto thee, shall remain as firm as the stump of the tree in the ground, and thou shalt have it, after thou shalt have known that the heavens do rule." God is here called the heavens, because it is in heaven that he has prepared his throne (Psalms 103:19), thence he beholds all the sons of men,Psalms 33:13. The heavens, even the heavens, are the Lord's; and the influence which the visible heavens have upon this earth is intended as a faint representation of the dominion the God of heaven has over this lower world; we are said to sin against heaven,Luke 15:18. Note, Then only we may expect comfortably to enjoy our right in, and government of, both ourselves and others, when we dutifully acknowledge God's title to, and dominion over, us and all we have.

      III. The close of the interpretation is the pious counsel which Daniel, as a prophet, gave the king, Daniel 4:27; Daniel 4:27. Whether he appeared concerned or not at the interpretation of the dream, a word of advice would be very seasonable--if careless, to awaken him, if troubled, to comfort him; and it is not inconsistent with the dream and the interpretation of it, for Daniel knew not but it might be conditional, like the prediction of Nineveh's destruction. Observe, 1. How humbly he gives his advice, and with what tenderness and respect: "O king! let my counsel be acceptable unto thee; take it in good part, as coming from love, and well-meant, and let it not be misinterpreted." Note, Sinners need to be courted to their own good, and respectfully entreated to do well for themselves. The apostle beseeches men to suffer the word of exhortation,Hebrews 13:22. We think it a good point gained if people will be persuaded to take good counsel kindly; nay, if they will take it patiently. 2. What his advice is. He does not counsel him to enter into a course of physic, for the preventing of the distemper in his head, but to break off a course of sin that he was in, to reform his life. He wronged his own subjects, and dealt unfairly with his allies; and he must break off this by righteousness, by rendering to all their due, making amends for wrong done, and not triumphing over right with might. He had been cruel to the poor, to God's poor, to the poor Jews; and he must break off this iniquity by showing mercy to those poor, pitying those oppressed ones, setting them at liberty or making their captivity easy to them. Note, It is necessary, in repentance, that we not only cease to do evil, but learn to do well, not only do no wrong to any, but do good to all. 3. What the motive is with which he backs this advice: If it may be a lengthening of thy tranquility. Though it should not wholly prevent the judgment, yet by this means a reprieve may be obtained, as by Ahab's humbling himself,1 Kings 21:29. Either the trouble may be the longer before it comes or the shorter when it does come; yet he cannot assure him of this, but it may be, it may prove so. Note, The mere probability of preventing a temporal judgment is inducement enough to a work so good in itself as the leaving off of our sins and reforming of our lives, much more the certainty of preventing our eternal ruin. "That will be a healing of thy error" (so some read it); "thus the quarrel will be taken up, and all will be well again."