Nebuchadnezzar's Dream of a Great Tree
Daniel 4:1-18
Dan.4.1 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- אנה: ADV,interrog
- נבוכדנצר: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- שלה: PRON,3,f,sg,gen
- הוית: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- בביתי: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs+1,sg
- ורענן: CONJ+ADJ,m,sg
- בהיכלי: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,cons
Parallels
- Daniel 4:30 (structural): Immediate narrative parallel — the same king’s proclamation of prosperity and self-sufficiency later in the chapter that precipitates divine judgment.
- Psalm 92:12-14 (thematic): Uses the motif of flourishing/being verdant to describe one’s prosperous condition (righteous flourishing), echoing the image of flourishing in a palace.
- Ezekiel 28:2-10 (thematic): Portrait of a proud, prosperous ruler exalted in his palace/garden whose height of prosperity precedes judgment — a thematic parallel of royal pride and impending downfall.
- Proverbs 16:18 (thematic): General wisdom principle linking pride (often arising from prosperity and ease) with subsequent destruction — the theological lesson implicit in Nebuchadnezzar’s opening claim of rest and flourishing.
- Genesis 41:41-43 (thematic): Royal promotion and enjoyment of palace privileges after exaltation (Pharaoh robes Joseph and sets him over the land) — a parallel instance of a ruler’s high status and life ‘in the palace’.
Alternative generated candidates
- I Nebuchadnezzar was living in my house, prospering in my palace.
- I Nebuchadnezzar was flourishing in my house and secure in my palace.
Dan.4.2 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- חלם: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- חזית: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- וידחלנני: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- והרהרין: VERB,qal,ptc,3,m,pl
- על: PREP
- משכבי: NOUN,m,pl,cons
- וחזוי: CONJ+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- ראשי: NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,1,sg
- יבהלנני: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
Parallels
- Dan.4.34-37 (verbal): Same speaker and context—Nebuchadnezzar explicitly recounts and praises the ‘works’ and ‘wonders’ God did for him later in the chapter, echoing the intent to tell signs and wonders.
- Dan.2.28-30 (thematic): Both passages center on dreams/visions and the disclosure of divine mysteries to Nebuchadnezzar, attributing the revelation and its meaning to the Most High God.
- Ps.105:5 (verbal): An exhortation to ‘remember’ and ‘tell’ God’s marvelous works—language and function (recounting divine wonders) parallel the declaration to relate signs and wonders done by God.
- Mark 5:19 (cf. Luke 8:39) (thematic): Jesus commissions a healed man to ‘go home and tell’ how much God has done for him; thematically parallels the personal testimony impulse to announce divine acts performed for an individual.
Alternative generated candidates
- I had a dream that alarmed me; and the visions of my head frightened me as I lay on my bed.
- I had a dream and visions alarmed me; and the thoughts on my bed and the visions of my head terrified me.
Dan.4.3 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ומני: CONJ+PREP+PRON,1,sg
- שים: VERB,qal,impv,2,m,sg
- טעם: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- להנעלה: PREP+VERB,peal,inf
- קדמי: ADV
- לכל: PREP
- חכימי: NOUN,m,pl,cs
- בבל: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- די: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- פשר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- חלמא: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יהודענני: VERB,peal,perf,3,m,sg
Parallels
- Daniel 2:37-38 (thematic): Nebuchadnezzar (or the royal voice) credits the God of heaven with giving kingdoms and authority—same theme of divine sovereignty behind earthly rule as in Dan 4:3.
- Daniel 4:34-37 (verbal): Later in the chapter the king repeats the same praise of God’s signs, wonders and an everlasting kingdom; 4:3 is an earlier formulation of that confession.
- Psalm 145:11-13 (verbal): Speaks of declaring the glory and power of God and states, 'Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations,' language closely parallel to Dan 4:3.
- Daniel 7:14 (allusion): Describes one who is given 'an everlasting dominion' and universal rule—echoes the idea of God's (or God‑appointed) eternal sovereignty expressed in Dan 4:3.
Alternative generated candidates
- Therefore I make known the signs and the wonders that the Most High God has wrought toward me.
- Therefore I determined to declare the matter before the rulers of Babylon, that all the wise men might make known to me the interpretation of the dream.
Dan.4.4 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- באדין: ADV
- עלין: PREP,3,pl
- חרטמיא: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- אשפיא: VERB,qal,impf,1,?,sg
- כשדאי: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- וגזריא: CONJ+NOUN,f,pl,abs
- וחלמא: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- אנה: ADV,interrog
- קדמיהון: PREP,3,pl
- ופשרה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- לא: PART_NEG
- מהודעין: PTCP,hif,ptc,?,m,pl
- לי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
Parallels
- Dan.2:10-11 (verbal): Court magicians/wise men are unable to reveal or interpret the king's dream—same motif of royal dream and the failure of the king's diviners to make it known.
- Gen.41:14-16 (verbal): Pharaoh's magicians/wise men fail to interpret his dreams, and Joseph states explicitly that God must give the interpretation—parallel situation of dreams requiring divine disclosure.
- Ezek.31:3-9 (thematic): Uses the image of a great tree (a mighty cedar) being cut down as divine judgment on a proud power—echoes the tree‑cutting motif applied to Nebuchadnezzar's downfall.
- Ezek.17:22-24 (thematic): Employs tree imagery to depict the humbling, removal, and eventual raising up of rulers/kingdoms—resonant with the cycle of fall and restoration associated with the tree vision.
- 2 Sam.12:10-12 (thematic): Nathan’s oracle pronounces judgment on a king (David) resulting in the cutting down or striking of his house/line—themewise parallel of divine judgment upon a proud monarch leading to humiliation and loss.
Alternative generated candidates
- Then the magicians, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers came in; I related the dream before them, but they could not make known to me its interpretation.
- Then the magicians, enchanters, Chaldeans, and diviners were brought in; and I told the dream before them, but they could not make its interpretation known to me.
Dan.4.5 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ועד: CONJ+PREP
- אחרין: ADJ,m,pl,abs
- על: PREP
- קדמי: ADV
- דניאל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- די: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- שמה: ADV
- בלטשאצר: PREP+NOUN,prop,m,sg
- כשם: PREP
- אלהי: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- ודי: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- רוח: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אלהין: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- קדישין: ADJ,m,pl,abs
- בה: PREP+PRON,3,f,sg
- וחלמא: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- קדמוהי: PREP+PRON,3,sg
- אמרת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
Parallels
- Dan.2:1-3 (thematic): Another episode in which a Babylonian king is troubled by a dream/vision that prompts summons of wise men and interpreters—parallels the motif of a royal, disturbing dream.
- Dan.4:6 (structural): Immediate narrative continuation in the same chapter: the king summons his magicians and Daniel to interpret the disturbing dream mentioned in 4:5—directly connected in context and function.
- Gen.41:1-8 (thematic): Pharaoh experiences troubling dreams that lead to calling in interpreters (Joseph)—a similar royal-dream motif linking divine revelation, anxiety, and prophetic interpretation.
- Job 7:13-14 (verbal): Job speaks of being frightened and disturbed by dreams and visions at night—uses similar language of dreams causing fear and mental disturbance.
- Acts 2:17 (Joel 2:28) (allusion): The prophetic tradition that God communicates through dreams and visions ("your old men shall dream dreams") underlies texts like Daniel where dreams function as divine revelation to rulers and interpreters.
Alternative generated candidates
- At last Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was brought before me—he in whom is the spirit of the holy gods—and the dream and its interpretation he declared.
- At last there came in before me Daniel, whose name is Belteshazzar, because of the name of my god, and in whom is the spirit of the holy gods; and I told the dream before him and asked him its interpretation.
Dan.4.6 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- בלטשאצר: PREP+NOUN,prop,m,sg
- רב: ADJ,m,sg
- חרטמיא: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- די: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אנה: ADV,interrog
- ידעת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- די: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- רוח: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אלהין: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- קדישין: ADJ,m,pl,abs
- בך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
- וכל: CONJ+PRON,indef
- רז: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לא: PART_NEG
- אנס: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- לך: PRON,2,m,sg
- חזוי: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- חלמי: NOUN,m,sg,cs
- די: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- חזית: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- ופשרה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
Parallels
- Dan.2:27-28 (verbal): Daniel declares that ‘there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries,’ claiming divine disclosure of dreams—parallels the present appeal to the revelation of dreams and their interpretation.
- Dan.5:11-12 (verbal): Officials describe Daniel as ‘a man in whom is the spirit of the holy gods,’ echoing the phrase and function found in Dan 4:6 (the spirit of the holy/divine enables interpretation).
- Gen.41:15-16 (thematic): When Pharaoh asks for a dream’s meaning Joseph replies that God will give the interpretation; parallels the broader motif of the interpreter as God’s mouthpiece for dreams.
- Dan.2:11 (structural): The magicians and enchanters say they cannot tell the king his dream (they can only interpret if told), creating the same dramatic contrast between failed court sages and Daniel’s divinely given insight.
Alternative generated candidates
- Then Belteshazzar, the chief of the magicians, answered and said: “Because the spirit of the holy gods is in you, and no mystery is too difficult for you, show the visions of your dream and its interpretation.”
- Belteshazzar, chief of the magicians, because I perceived that the spirit of the holy gods is in you and that you have insight, knowledge, and understanding, for you can interpret visions and solve riddles—tell the visions of your dream and its interpretation.
Dan.4.7 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- וחזוי: CONJ+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- ראשי: NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,1,sg
- על: PREP
- משכבי: NOUN,m,pl,cons
- חזה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- הוית: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- ואלו: CONJ
- אילן: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- בגוא: PREP
- ארעא: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ורומה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- שגיא: ADJ,m,sg
Parallels
- Daniel 4:20-22 (structural): Immediate interpretive parallel — Daniel explains that the tree in the dream represents a great king (Nebuchadnezzar), describing its height and dominion, giving the dream's meaning within the same chapter.
- Psalm 1:3 (thematic): Uses the image of a flourishing tree planted by streams of water to symbolize prosperity and stability — similar use of a tree as a symbol of a person's or ruler's flourishing condition.
- Ezekiel 31:2-9 (allusion): Courtly/royal tree imagery applied to mighty nations and rulers (cedars of Lebanon) whose height and prominence lead to downfall — parallels the dream's portrayal of a great, lofty tree symbolizing imperial power and vulnerability.
- Ezekiel 17:22-24 (thematic): Employs the motif of God planting and raising up a lowly shoot into a lofty tree to represent kingdoms being exalted or humbled, echoing the symbolic use of arboreal imagery for political destiny.
- Job 14:7-9 (thematic): Presents the image of a tree cut down yet with hope of new shoots — connects to themes of mortality, humbling, and possible restoration implicit in the dream‑tree's fate.
Alternative generated candidates
- I saw in the visions of my head upon my bed, and behold, a tree in the midst of the earth, and its height was great.
- The visions of my head upon my bed were these: I looked—behold, a tree in the midst of the earth, and its height was great.
Dan.4.8 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- רבה: ADJ,f,sg,abs
- אילנא: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ותקף: CONJ+VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- ורומה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ימטא: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- לשמיא: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- וחזותה: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs+PRON,3,m,sg
- לסוף: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- כל: DET
- ארעא: NOUN,f,sg,abs
Parallels
- Dan.4.20 (quotation): Daniel's own interpretation repeats the dream-language almost verbatim: the tree grew large and strong, its height reached to heaven and its sight to the ends of the earth (direct restatement of the image).
- Ezek.31:3,8-9 (verbal): Ezekiel portrays a mighty cedar whose height was exalted above all trees and in whose branches the birds nested—close verbal and imagistic parallels to the great-tree description in Daniel.
- Ezek.17:22-24 (thematic): Uses the cedar/sprig motif to describe God's sovereign raising and humiliating of rulers: a high tree brought low and the low tree exalted—echoing Daniel's theme of divine judgment on a towering power.
- Gen.11:4 (thematic): The Tower of Babel's aspiration 'to make a name' and reach the heavens parallels the theme of imperial/human pride embodied by something that reaches to heaven and invites divine response.
- Matt.13:32 (thematic): The mustard-seed parable describes a small thing growing into a tree large enough that 'the birds of the sky come and nest in its branches'—a related conventional ancient Near Eastern image of great power and sheltering reach.
Alternative generated candidates
- The tree grew and became strong; its height reached to heaven, and it was visible to the ends of all the earth.
- The tree grew and became strong, and its top reached to heaven, and it was visible to the ends of all the earth.
Dan.4.9 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- עפיה: PREP
- שפיר: ADJ,m,sg
- ואנבה: VERB,qal,impf,1,sg
- שגיא: ADJ,m,sg
- ומזון: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לכלא: PREP
- בה: PREP+PRON,3,f,sg
- תחתוהי: PREP
- תטלל: VERB,qal,impf,3,f,pl
- חיות: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- ברא: VERB,qal,perf,3,ms
- ובענפוהי: PREP
- ידורן: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- צפרי: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- שמיא: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- ומנה: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יתזין: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- כל: DET
- בשרא: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Matthew 13:31-32 (verbal): Jesus' parable of the mustard seed says the tiny seed grows into a tree 'so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches,' echoing the image of a great tree providing shelter for birds in Daniel's vision.
- Ezekiel 17:22-24 (thematic): God plants a high cedar that becomes lofty and provides shade and nesting for birds; uses the same tree-as-kingdom motif to describe imperial rise and refuge, paralleling Daniel's large, life-giving tree.
- Ezekiel 31:6-9 (verbal): Ezekiel depicts Assyria as a great cedar whose height and branches shelter birds and beasts—close language and function to Daniel's tree imagery about a mighty tree visible to the earth and hosting creatures.
- Psalm 104:16-17 (thematic): Psalmist celebrates trees as God's provision: 'trees of the Lord... where the birds make their nests,' connecting the themes of divine provision, habitation, and the life-sustaining role of a great tree found in Daniel.
Alternative generated candidates
- Its leaves were fair and its fruit abundant; in it was food for all. Under it the beasts of the field lodged, and in its branches the birds of the heavens had their habitation; from it every living thing was fed.
- Its foliage was beautiful, its fruit abundant, and in it was food for all; the beasts of the field found shade under it, and the birds of the heavens lived in its branches; from it every living thing was fed.
Dan.4.10 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- חזה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- הוית: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- בחזוי: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- ראשי: NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,1,sg
- על: PREP
- משכבי: NOUN,m,pl,cons
- ואלו: CONJ
- עיר: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- וקדיש: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- מן: PREP
- שמיא: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- נחת: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Dan.7.1 (verbal): Daniel again introduces a prophetic revelation with almost identical wording—‘visions of my head upon my bed’—parallel form and setting of a bed‑vision.
- Dan.2.1 (thematic): Nebuchadnezzar’s earlier dream account: royal nightmare/vision that troubles the king and prompts interpretation—similar motif of a revelatory dream affecting the ruler.
- Gen.28:12-17 (thematic): Jacob’s bed‑vision at Bethel: a divine revelation received in sleep; parallels the theme of God communicating through visions while one lies down.
- Ezek.1:1 (structural): Prophetic prologue framing a visionary experience (‘the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God’): similar literary structure announcing a theophanic vision.
Alternative generated candidates
- I saw in the visions of my head upon my bed, and behold, a watcher, a holy one, came down from heaven.
- I saw in the visions of my head upon my bed, and behold a watcher, a holy one, came down from heaven.
Dan.4.11 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- קרא: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- בחיל: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- וכן: ADV
- אמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- גדו: ADJ,m,sg
- אילנא: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- וקצצו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- ענפוהי: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- אתרו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- עפיה: PREP
- ובדרו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- אנבה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- תנד: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,sg
- חיותא: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- מן: PREP
- תחתוהי: PREP
- וצפריא: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- מן: PREP
- ענפוהי: NOUN,m,pl,abs
Parallels
- Ezekiel 17:22-24 (allusion): Uses the image of a sprig/tree that becomes lofty and provides shelter for birds of every wing—parallels the tree’s stature and the birds nesting in its branches.
- Ezekiel 31:3-9 (thematic): Describes a great cedar visible to all lands whose foliage and fruit sustain beasts and birds—closely parallels the lofty, life-giving tree imagery.
- Psalm 1:3 (thematic): Compares the righteous to a tree planted by streams, bearing fruit and prospering—similar motif of a flourishing, fruitful tree as symbol of life and provision.
- Jeremiah 17:7-8 (thematic): Speaks of the blessed person as a tree planted by water, whose leaf does not wither and who yields fruit—echoes the ideas of vitality and sustenance associated with the tree in Daniel 4:11.
Alternative generated candidates
- He cried aloud and said thus: “Cut down the tree and lop off its branches; strip off its foliage and scatter its fruit. Let the beasts flee from under it and the birds from its branches.
- He cried aloud and said thus: ‘Hew down the tree and cut off its branches; strip off its foliage and scatter its fruit; let the beasts flee from under it and the birds from its branches.
Dan.4.12 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ברם: CONJ
- עקר: ADJ,m,sg,abs
- שרשוהי: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- בארעא: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- שבקו: VERB,peal,perf,3,m,pl
- ובאסור: CONJ+VERB,peal,perf,3,m,sg
- די: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- פרזל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ונחש: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- בדתאא: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- די: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ברא: VERB,qal,perf,3,ms
- ובטל: CONJ+VERB,peal,perf,3,m,sg
- שמיא: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- יצטבע: VERB,peal,impf,3,m,sg
- ועם: CONJ+PREP
- חיותא: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- חלקה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- בעשב: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ארעא: NOUN,f,sg,abs
Parallels
- Ezek.31:3-9 (verbal): Uses virtually the same large-tree/cedar imagery (height to heaven, beauty, birds in its branches, beasts under it) to describe a great imperial tree — close verbal and thematic parallels to Daniel’s description of a mighty tree representing a king/kingdom.
- Ezek.17:22-24 (thematic): God plants a tender shoot that becomes a lofty cedar under which birds dwell; thematically parallels the motif of a divinely‑ordered tree as an image for kingship, restoration and sovereign reach.
- Ps.1:3 (thematic): The righteous person is likened to a tree planted by streams, bearing fruit and prospering — shares the tree-as-life/prosperity motif (stability, fruitfulness) found in Daniel’s tree imagery.
- Jer.17:7-8 (thematic): The man who trusts in the LORD is compared to a tree by water that yields fruit and does not wither — another Near Eastern use of tree imagery to represent security and flourishing, resonant with Daniel’s portrayal of a great, life‑sustaining tree.
Alternative generated candidates
- Yet leave the stump and roots in the earth, bound with a band of iron and bronze, in the tender grass of the field; let it be wet with the dew of heaven, and let its share be with the beasts of the field, until seven times pass over it.”
- Nevertheless leave the stump and its roots in the earth, bound with a band of iron and bronze, in the tender grass of the field; let him be drenched with the dew of heaven, and let his portion be with the beasts of the field, until...
Dan.4.13 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- לבבה: NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,3,f,sg
- מן: PREP
- אנשא: VERB,hiph,impf,1,m,sg
- ישנון: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- ולבב: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- חיוה: VERB,qal,perf,3,ms
- יתיהב: VERB,qal,imprf,3,ms
- לה: PREP+PRON,3,f,sg
- ושבעה: NUM,m,pl,abs
- עדנין: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- יחלפון: VERB,qal,imprf,3,pl
- עלוהי: PREP,3,m,sg
Parallels
- Dan.4.17 (verbal): Repeats the phrase and motif of the 'watcher, a holy one' who pronounces a divine decree about the king's fate; same technical term and judicial role.
- Dan.4.23 (verbal): Retells the vision context in which the watcher appears and issues the sentence concerning the great tree—same scene continued and recounted with similar language.
- Dan.4.25 (quotation): Contains the content of the watcher's decree (the judgment on Nebuchadnezzar) that is announced following the appearance described in 4:13– the direct outcome of the watcher’s pronouncement.
- Ezek.1:4-14 (thematic): Another prophetic vision of heavenly beings with striking, otherworldly features and movement; thematically parallels the appearance of supernatural 'watchers/holy ones' and the vivid visionary setting.
- Job 4:15-17 (thematic): A reported nocturnal vision/appearance of a spirit that terrifies the observer; thematically parallels the experience of receiving an awe-inspiring, revelatory apparition that conveys a message.
Alternative generated candidates
- Let his mind be changed from that of a man, and let a beast’s mind be given to him; and let seven periods pass over him.
- ...seven periods of time pass over him; let his mind be changed from that of a human, and let a beast’s mind be given to him.
Dan.4.14 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- בגזרת: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- עירין: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- פתגמא: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ומאמר: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- קדישין: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- שאלתא: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- עד: PREP
- דברת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- די: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ינדעון: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- חייא: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- די: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- שליט: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- עלאה: ADJ,m,sg
- במלכות: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אנשא: VERB,hiph,impf,1,m,sg
- ולמן: CONJ+PREP
- די: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יצבא: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- יתננה: VERB,qal,impf,3,f,sg
- ושפל: CONJ+ADJ,m,sg,abs
- אנשים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- יקים: VERB,hiph,impf,3,m,sg
- עלה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
Parallels
- Daniel 2:21 (verbal): Both verses assert that God controls earthly rule—changing times and seasons, removing and setting up kings—echoing the theme that the Most High governs human kingdoms.
- Psalm 75:6-7 (verbal): Declares that promotion does not come from humans but from God, who puts down one and lifts up another—a close verbal and thematic parallel to God giving kingdoms to whom He wills.
- Proverbs 21:1 (thematic): Affirms that the heart of a ruler is in God's hand, so He directs kings' decisions and destinies, echoing the idea that the Most High rules over human sovereignties.
- Romans 13:1 (thematic): New Testament statement that governing authorities are instituted by God, reflecting the Danielic claim that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men and appoints rulers.
- Isaiah 40:23 (thematic): Speaks of God bringing princes to nothing and making earthly rulers as nothing—resonant with the motif that divine sovereignty determines the rise and fall of human rulers.
Alternative generated candidates
- This sentence is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand is the word of the holy ones, so that the living may know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will, and sets over it the lowliest of men.
- This decree is by the utterance of the watchers, and the sentence by the word of the holy ones, that the living may know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men, and gives it to whom he will, and sets over it the lowliest of men.
Dan.4.15 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- דנה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- חלמא: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- חזית: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- אנה: ADV,interrog
- מלכא: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- נבוכדנצר: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- ואנת: CONJ+PRON,2,sg
- בלטשאצר: PREP+NOUN,prop,m,sg
- פשרא: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- כל: DET
- קבל: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- די: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- כל: DET
- חכימי: NOUN,m,pl,cs
- מלכותי: NOUN,f,sg,poss1
- לא: PART_NEG
- יכלין: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- פשרא: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- להודעתני: VERB,hifil,inf,1,sg
- ואנת: CONJ+PRON,2,sg
- כהל: ADV,sim
- די: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- רוח: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אלהין: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- קדישין: ADJ,m,pl
- בך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
Parallels
- Dan.5.11 (verbal): Belshazzar (speaking of Daniel/Belteshazzar) uses the same phrase that a 'spirit of the holy gods' is in him—verbal parallel in ascribing Daniel's interpretive gift to a divine spirit.
- Dan.2.27-28 (thematic): Daniel explains that God reveals mysteries and discloses dreams to men; this provides the theological rationale for Daniel's ability to interpret the king's vision.
- Dan.4.6 (structural): Earlier in the same episode the king summons all the magicians, enchanters and Chaldeans who cannot give the interpretation—structural parallel that sets up why Daniel (and his divine gift) is singled out.
- Job 32:8 (thematic): Affirms the broader biblical theme that the spirit/breath of the Almighty gives understanding to people, paralleling the attribution of Daniel's insight to a divine spirit.
Alternative generated candidates
- This dream I, Nebuchadnezzar, saw. Now, Belteshazzar, tell the interpretation—because all the princes of my kingdom are unable to make known to me its interpretation—and you have the spirit of the holy gods in you.
- This dream I, King Nebuchadnezzar, have seen; and you, Belteshazzar, declare the interpretation, for as for me all the wise men of my kingdom could not make known to me the interpretation, but you have the spirit of the holy gods in you.
Dan.4.16 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- אדין: ADV
- דניאל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- די: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- שמה: ADV
- בלטשאצר: PREP+NOUN,prop,m,sg
- אשתומם: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- כשעה: ADV
- חדה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ורעינהי: NOUN,m,pl,abs,poss3ms
- יבהלנה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- ענה: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- מלכא: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ואמר: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- בלטשאצר: PREP+NOUN,prop,m,sg
- חלמא: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ופשרא: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אל: NEG
- יבהלך: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- ענה: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- בלטשאצר: PREP+NOUN,prop,m,sg
- ואמר: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- מרי: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- חלמא: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לשנאך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
- ופשרה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- לערך: PREP+INF,qal
Parallels
- Daniel 2:26–30 (verbal): Same figure (Belteshazzar/Daniel) appearing before the king to explain a troubling dream; emphasizes that God reveals mysteries to Daniel and frames the interpretation as divine revelation.
- Daniel 5:16–17, 25–28 (structural): Daniel again interprets a royal portent before a Babylonian king (Belshazzar), announces the meaning and consequences, and explicitly identifies himself as God’s spokesman who reveals the message and judgment.
- Genesis 41:15–32 (thematic): Joseph’s interpretation of Pharaoh’s dreams parallels the role of courtwise interpreters: explaining a king’s perplexing dream, attributing revelation to God, and forecasting political/future outcomes.
- Daniel 4:24–27 (thematic): Immediate context: Daniel not only gives the interpretation but counsels Nebuchadnezzar how to avert or lessen the dream’s predicted doom, connecting the interpretation with moral/exhortatory application.
Alternative generated candidates
- Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was astonished for a while; his thoughts troubled him. The king answered and said, “Belteshazzar, let not the dream or its interpretation alarm you.” Belteshazzar answered and said, “My lord, let the dream be for those who hate you and the interpretation for your enemies.”
- Then Daniel—whose name was Belteshazzar—was astonished for a time, and his thoughts made him afraid. The king said, ‘Belteshazzar, let not the dream or its interpretation alarm you.’ He answered, ‘My lord, may the dream be for those who hate you, and the interpretation for your adversaries.’
Dan.4.17 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- אילנא: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- די: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- חזית: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- די: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- רבה: ADJ,f,sg,abs
- ותקף: VERB,qal,perf,3,f,sg
- ורומה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ימטא: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- לשמיא: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- וחזותה: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs+3fs
- לכל: PREP
- ארעא: NOUN,f,sg,abs
Parallels
- Ezek.31:3-9 (verbal): Uses the image of a towering cedar/treelike nation whose height reaches the heavens and whose glory is seen to the ends of the earth; likewise depicts a great tree brought low—close verbal and thematic resonance with Daniel's great tree vision.
- Ezek.17:22-24 (thematic): Presents the motif of God raising and making a tree/twig lofty so that its top reaches the clouds and is seen by all—parallel theme of a tree symbolizing kingship and divine action in raising/lowering rulers.
- Isa.14:8 (allusion): Speaks of the cedars of Lebanon and tall trees being humbled and shamed when a great one falls—echoes the humiliation of a lofty tree whose prominence is suddenly lost.
- Ps.1:3 (thematic): Uses the image of a conspicuous, well‑rooted tree as a symbol of flourishing life and visible status; parallels the use of tree imagery to represent a person's or nation's standing before all the earth.
- Job 14:7-9 (thematic): Reflects on the fate of a tree cut down and the possibility (or lack) of renewal—relates to the motif of a great tree's downfall and questions about life, survival, and change after being felled.
Alternative generated candidates
- “The tree which you saw, which grew and became strong, whose height reached to heaven and was visible to the ends of all the earth,
- The tree that you saw, which grew great and strong, whose top reached to heaven and whose sight reached to the end of all the earth,
Dan.4.18 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ועפיה: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- שפיר: ADJ,m,sg,abs
- ואנבה: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- שגיא: ADJ,m,sg
- ומזון: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לכלא: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- בה: PREP+PRON,3,f,sg
- תחתוהי: PREP+PRON,3,fs
- תדור: VERB,qal,impf,3,f,sg
- חיות: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- ברא: VERB,qal,perf,3,ms
- ובענפוהי: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- ישכנן: VERB,qal,impf,3,pl
- צפרי: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- שמיא: NOUN,m,pl,abs
Parallels
- Ezek.31:3-6 (verbal): Describes a great cedar whose branches sheltered birds of every wing and beasts that lived under it—very similar tree imagery and language of birds and animals dwelling in its boughs.
- Ezek.17:3-8 (structural): A parable of a high cedar planted by abundant waters that becomes a refuge for birds—uses the same structural motif (a lofty tree by water providing shelter) to symbolize dominion and protection.
- Ps.104:12 (verbal): Speaks of birds having their home in the trees and singing among the branches; echoes the image of birds dwelling in the tree’s boughs and contributing to its portrayal as life-giving shelter.
- Dan.4:10-12 (thematic): The earlier verses of the same dream describe the great tree visible to the ends of the earth with birds making nests in its branches and beasts sheltering under it—this verse repeats and develops that central image in the dream narrative.
Alternative generated candidates
- whose leaves were lovely and whose fruit was abundant, in which was food for all, under whose shade the beasts of the field lodged and upon whose branches the birds of the heavens lived—
- whose foliage was fair and whose fruit abundant, and in which there was food for all—under it the beasts of the field nested, and in its branches the birds of the heavens lived—
I, Nebuchadnezzar, was flourishing in my house and thriving in the palace of my kingdom.
I had a dream and visions passed through my mind while on my bed; and the visions of my head alarmed me.
Therefore I resolved to set forth the dream before all the wise men of Babylon, that they might tell me its interpretation.
Then the magicians, enchanters, Chaldeans, and diviners came in to stand before me; and I told them the dream, but they could not make its interpretation known to me.
At last Daniel—whose Babylonian name was Belteshazzar, by the name of my god, and in whom is the spirit of the holy gods—came in before me; and I related the dream to him.
Belteshazzar, chief of the magicians, because I perceived that the spirit of the holy gods is in you and that no mystery is too difficult for you, declare to me the visions of my dream and their interpretation.
In the visions of my head, while on my bed, I saw—and there was a tree in the midst of the earth, and its height was great.
The tree grew and became strong; its top reached to heaven, and it was visible to the ends of all the earth.
Its foliage was fair and its fruit abundant; food for all was in it. Under it the beasts of the field lodged, and in its branches the birds of heaven made their home, and from it every living thing was fed.
I saw in the visions of my head, in my bed, and behold a watcher, a holy one, descended from heaven.
He cried aloud and said thus: 'Hew down the tree, lop off its branches, strip off its leaves, and scatter its fruit; let the beasts flee from under it, and the birds from its branches.' But leave the stump and roots in the earth, bound with a band of iron and bronze, in the tender grass of the field; let it be drenched with the dew of heaven, and let its portion be with the beasts among the grass of the earth.
Let his heart be changed from that of a man, and let a beast’s heart be given to him; let seven times pass over him.
This sentence is by the decree of the Watchers, the demand by the word of the holy ones, that the living may know that the Most High rules over the realm of mankind, and gives it to whomever he wills, and sets over it the lowliest of men. Now this dream I, King Nebuchadnezzar, have seen. And you, Belteshazzar, declare its interpretation; for all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to make it known to me, but you have the spirit of the holy gods in you.
Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was astonished for a time and his thoughts alarmed him. The king said, 'Belteshazzar, let not the dream or its interpretation alarm you.' Belteshazzar answered, 'My lord, the dream is for those who hate you, and its interpretation for your enemies.'
The tree which you saw, which grew and became strong, whose top reached to heaven and which was visible to all the earth—
its foliage was fair, its fruit abundant, and food for all was in it; under it the beasts of the field lodged, and among its branches the birds of heaven dwelt.'