Chapter 4:
King Nebuchadnezzar had a second dream. The king once again ordered all of his wise men to come to him. He then told them the dream and commanded them to give the interpretation of it. However, they could not. So then Daniel who was known as Belteshazzar was told to come to the king for its interpretation because he knew the Spirit if God was in him and he was the only one that could interpret the dream. The king told Belteshazzar the dream;
"Thus were the visions in my head in my bed; I saw, and behold a tree in the midst of the earth, and the height thereof was great. The tree grew, and was strong, and the height thereof reached unto heaven, and the sight thereof to the end of all the earth: The leaves thereof were fair, and the fruit thereof much, and in it was meat for all: the beasts of the field had shadow under it, and the fowls of the heaven dwelt in the boughs thereof, and all flesh was fed of it. I saw in the visions of my head upon my bed, and, behold, a watcher and an holy one came down from heaven; He cried aloud, and said thus, Hew down the tree, and cut off his branches, shake off his leaves, and scatter his fruit: let the beasts 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 field; and let it be wet with the dew of heaven, and let his portion be with the beasts in the grass of the earth: Let his heart be changed from 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 ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the basest of men." Dan. 4: 10-17
Daniel told the king after much thought, that the tree that he saw, with the fair leaves upon it which had fruit and was shade for the beasts and in which the birds dwelt was in fact the king himself;
"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." Dan. 4:22
Daniel also explained the meaning of the tree being cut down and the beasts being removed from it and the leaves being scattered that the king would be brought down to virtually nothing. Daniel warned the king to "break off thy sins by righteousness and thine iniquities by showing mercy to the poor."
One year later , all of this did in fact come unto King Nebuchadnezzar. While the king was boasting about the great Babylon he built, a voice from heaven came upon him;
"O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee." Dan. 4:31
The same hour, the king was driven from men, and he ate grass like an Oxen and his body was wet from the dew of heaven and as the scriptures state, his hair grew like feathers of an eagle and his nails became long like bird claws. It is believed that the 'seven times pass over him" in the dream, to be interpreted as seven years.
At the end of this time, the king came to realize that the "God in Heaven is ruler of all, having ever lasting dominion from generation to generation." Dan. 4:34.
King Nebuchadnezzar's humiliation made him realize that God is everything and he, even as king and all that he has is nothing. At the very hour of his realization of this, he was restored and everything was returned to him. He responded;
"Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase." Dan. 4:37
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