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Expanded Comments |
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| 1 'Nebuchadnezzar the king to all peoples, nations, and languages, who are dwelling in all the earth: Your peace be great! |
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| 2 The signs and wonders that God Most High hath done with me, it is good before me to shew. |
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| 3 His signs how great! and His wonders how mighty! His kingdom [is] a kingdom age-during, and His rule [is] with generation and generation. |
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| 4 'I, Nebuchadnezzar, have been at rest in my house, and flourishing in my palace: |
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| 5 a dream I have seen, and it maketh me afraid, and the conceptions on my bed, and the visions of my head, do trouble me. |
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| 6 And by me a decree is made, to cause all the wise men of Babylon to come up before me, that the interpretation of the dream they may cause me to know. |
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| 7 Then coming up are the scribes, the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers, and the dream I have told before them, and its interpretation they are not making known to me. |
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| 8 And at last come up before me hath Daniel, whose name [is] Belteshazzar according to the name of my god and in whom [is] the spirit of the holy gods, and the dream before him I have told: |
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| 9 'O Belteshazzar, master of the scribes, as I have known that the spirit of the holy gods [is] in thee, and no secret doth press thee, the visions of my dream that I have seen, and its interpretation, tell. |
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| 10 As to the visions of my head on my bed, I was looking, and lo, a tree in the midst of the earth, and its height [is] great: |
Visions of mine head – "None of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand." (Dan. 12:10) R598:3
Behold a tree – The first dominion of earth. B94
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| 11 become great hath the tree, yea, strong, and its height doth reach to the heavens, and its vision to the end of the whole land; |
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| 12 its leaves [are] fair, and its budding great, and food for all [is] in it: under it take shade doth the beast of the field, and in its boughs dwell do the birds of the heavens, and of it fed are all flesh. |
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| 13 'I was looking, in the visions of my head on my bed, and lo, a sifter, even a holy one, from the heavens is coming down. |
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| 14 He is calling mightily, and thus hath said, Cut down the tree, and cut off its branches, shake off its leaves, and scatter its budding, move away let the beast from under it, and the birds from off its branches; |
Hew down the tree – In death. B94
The beasts get away – The lower creation no more found shelter and blessing under man's influence. B94
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| 15 but the stump of its roots leave in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the field, and with the dew of the heavens is it wet, and with the beasts [is] his portion in the herb of the earth; |
Stump of his roots – God's purpose and plan of restitution. B94
A band of iron – That it should not sprout until the appointed time. B94
And let it – The figure changes from a tree to a degraded man. B95
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| 16 his heart from man's is changed, and the heart of a beast is given to him, and seven times pass over him; |
Heart be changed – Man's heart has become beastly and degraded through the fall. B95
So history seems to show that during the period of Gentile dominion the poor world has been in a measure insane, putting light for darkness and darkness for light. CR44:6
Let seven times – In the Bible a "time" is used in the sense of a year. A symbolic year as used in prophecy is reckoned on the basis of a lunar year--12 months of 30 days each, or 360 days--each day representing a year. B89; CR140:2
The final and conclusive punishment visited upon the Jews, the "Times of the Gentiles." Seven symbolic times would be 2520 years, beginning with the 70 years of desolation of the land in 606 BC and ending in 1914 AD. B91, B97
A "prophetic year" of 360 days, used to symbolize 360 years, is an arbitrary arrangement peculiar to its intended symbolic use. It is neither a lunar year of 354 1/3 days nor a solar year of 365 1/4 days. A prophetic year, or time, would mean 360 actual, or solar years, of the common reckoning. R1979:6
Repeated four times (verses 16, 23, 25, 32) as in Lev. 26 (verses 18, 21, 24, 28). HG49:3
When perfect man lost his ability and right to reign. it was taken away and given to the Adversary whose reign of terror and death lasted 6000 years--but limited by the Almighty as to time and power. R196:4
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| 17 by the decree of the sifters [is] the sentence, and by the saying of the holy ones the requirement, to the intent that the living may know that the Most High is ruler in the kingdom of men, and to whom He willeth He giveth it, and the lowest of men He doth raise up over it. |
Most High ruleth – Exercises a supervisory oversight. Q502:1
God's government is general over all his works. R196:4
The Lord guides in the affairs of nations now, only so far as will promote the fulfilment of his own purposes. R5466:5: Q501:7
A hindering or restraining power. Q502:3; R5466:6
Kingdom of men – Not that he authorized them to represent him. Q502:1; R5466:6
Whomsoever he will – God used King Cyrus to perform his bidding. Q501:5; R5466:3
Setteth up – Whoever sat on the throne of Israel was there as the Lord's representative. R5466:3; Q501:4
Basest of men – He brings to power those who will have the disposition to do what he purposes when his due time has arrived. R5467:1
For example, Pharaoh, the perverse king of Egypt. Q501:5; R5466:3
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| 18 'This dream I have seen, I king Nebuchadnezzar; and thou, O Belteshazzar, the interpretation tell, because that all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to cause me to know the interpretation, and thou [art] able, for the spirit of the holy gods [is] in thee. |
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| 19 'Then Daniel, whose name [is] Belteshazzar, hath been astonished about one hour, and his thoughts do trouble him; the king hath answered and said, O Belteshazzar, let not the dream and its interpretation trouble thee. Belteshazzar hath answered and said, My lord, the dream to those hating thee, and its interpretation to thine enemies! |
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| 20 The tree that thou hast seen, that hath become great and strong, and its height doth reach to the heavens, and its vision to all the land, |
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| 21 and its leaves [are] fair, and its budding great, and food for all [is] in it, under it dwell doth the beast of the field, and on its boughs sit do the birds of the heavens. |
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| 22 'Thou it [is], O king, for thou hast become great and mighty, and thy greatness hath become great, and hath reached to the heavens, and thy dominion to the end of the earth; |
It is thou, O king – Nebuchadnezzar, typifying the original dominion given to Adam: "Thou art this head of gold." (Dan. 2:38) B96
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| 23 and that which the king hath seen a sifter, even a holy one, coming down from the heavens, and he hath said, Cut down the tree, and destroy it; but the stump of its roots leave in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the field, and with the dew of the heavens it is wet, and with the beast of the field [is] his portion, till that seven times pass over him. |
With the beasts – Typical of human degradation under beastly governments. B96
Till seven times – Typifying the Times of the Gentiles. B95, B97; R2498:1
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| 24 'This [is] the interpretation, O king, and the decree of the Most High it [is] that hath come against my lord the king: |
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| 25 and they are driving thee away from men, and with the beast of the field is thy dwelling, and the herb as oxen they do cause thee to eat, and by the dew of the heavens they are wetting thee, and seven times do pass over thee, till that thou knowest that the Most High is ruler in the kingdom of men, and to whom He willeth He giveth it. |
Seven times – This, being a type, covers only seven literal years. R109:5*
During Gentile domination of 2520 years the poor world has been in a measure insane. CR44:6
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| 26 And that which they said to leave the stump of the roots of the tree; thy kingdom for thee abideth, after that thou knowest that the heavens are ruling. |
Leave the stump – The root of promise and hope, planted first in Eden and borne across the flood and transplanted with Israel, will sprout and bloom again. B98
That there might be a restitution of the kingdom. HG49:2
The heavens do rule – The kingdom of earth is sure to man after he has learned that the heavens do rule. R196:4
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| 27 'Therefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and thy sins by righteousness break off, and thy perversity by pitying the poor, lo, it is a lengthening of thine ease. |
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| 28 'All hath come on Nebuchadnezzar the king. |
This came upon the king – We understand that God's dealing with King Nebuchadnezzar was prophetic. R5466:3
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| 29 'At the end of twelve months, on the palace of the kingdom of Babylon he hath been walking;
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| 30 the king hath answered and said, Is not this that great Babylon that I have built, for the house of the kingdom, in the might of my strength, and for the glory of mine honour |
Great Babylon – 14 miles square surrounded by walls 350 feet high (300 feet--R2497:3[R2497]) and 80 feet broad. Having 100 gates; the largest and strongest fortress in the world at that time; it was the center of commerce, art and wisdom. R2497:3[R2497], R3632:3[R3632], R4901:6
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| 31 'While the word is [in] the king's mouth a voice from the heavens hath fallen: To thee they are saying: O Nebuchadnezzar the king, the kingdom hath passed from thee, |
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| 32 and from men they are driving thee away, and with the beast of the field [is] thy dwelling, the herb as oxen they do cause thee to eat, and seven times do pass over thee, till that thou knowest that the Most High is ruler in the kingdom of men, and to whom He willeth He giveth it. |
Seven times – The "Times of the Gentiles." B95, B97; R109:5*; CR44:6; HG49:5
Shall pass – Although the Gentile times do expire, it may be that the Lord will not immediately dispossess them. R5449:4
Whomsoever he will – He might have given the Kingdom to Jesus without redeeming man at all had he seen good to do so. A274
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| 33 'In that hour the thing hath been fulfilled on Nebuchadnezzar, and from men he is driven, and the herb as oxen he eateth, and by the dew of the heavens his body is wet, till that his hair as eagles' hath become great, and his nails as birds.' |
Nebuchadnezzar – His period of bestial degradation represents the madness upon the world. R3361:2
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| 34 'And at the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, mine eyes to the heavens have lifted up, and mine understanding unto me returneth, and the Most High I have blessed, and the Age-during Living One I have praised and honoured, whose dominion [is] a dominion age-during, and His kingdom with generation and generation; |
The end of the days – Typically. Antitypically, the end of the Times of the Gentiles. B97
Understanding returned – So at the end of the Gentile times, after 1915 AD, reason will begin to come back to the prodigal son (Israel). R3361:3
Already we begin to see reason returning to mankind; men are awakening to some sense of their degradation, and are on the lookout to improve their condition. B98
Typifying the restitution of earth's dominion. B97
After the close of the Gentile times humanity will regain its sanity and praise the God of heaven. CR44:6
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| 35 and all who are dwelling on the earth as nothing are reckoned, and according to his will He is doing among the forces of the heavens and those dwelling on the earth, and there is none that doth clap with his hand, and saith to Him, What hast Thou done |
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| 36 'At that time my understanding doth return unto me, and for the glory of my kingdom, my honour and my brightness doth return unto me, and to me my counsellors and my great men do seek, and over my kingdom I have been made right, and abundant greatness hath been added to me. |
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| 37 'Now, I, Nebuchadnezzar, am praising and exalting and honouring the King of the heavens, for all His works [are] truth, and His paths judgment, and those walking in pride He is able to humble.' |
Praise and extol – Nebuchadnezzar and other nations, even those in idolatry, reverenced Jehovah, the God of Israel. R2541:3
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