Dan 4:1-37

From Feast upon the Word (http://feastupontheword.org). Copyright, Feast upon the Word.
(Redirected from Daniel 4)
Jump to: navigation, search

Home > The Old Testament > Daniel > Chapter4
Previous page: Chapter 3                              Next page: Chapter 5


This page would ideally always be under construction. You are invited to contribute.


Summary[edit]

This heading should be very brief. Click the link above and to the right to edit or add content to this heading. →

Relationship to Daniel. The relationship of Chapter 4 to Daniel as a whole, and in particular to the account of Belshazzar's feast in Chapter 5, is discussed at Daniel. The historical setting of Chapter 4 is also discussed at Daniel.

Story. Chapter 4 tells the story of Nebuchadnezzar's insanity. Chapter 4 has ___ principal parts.

Message. Themes, symbols, and doctrinal points emphasized in Chapter 4 include:


Discussion[edit]

This heading is for more detailed discussions of all or part of a passage. Discussion may include the meaning of a particular word, how a doctrinal point is developed throughout the passage, insights to be developed in the future, and other items. Contributions may range from polished paragraphs down to a single bullet point. The focus, however, should always be on understanding the scriptural text consistent with LDS doctrine. Click the link above and to the right to edit or add content to this heading. →

a. introduction praising God’s power (1-3)
b. Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and resulting dread (4-5)
c. request that magicians interpret, but they cannot (6-7)
c. request that Daniel interpret with spirit of God (8-9)
d. Nebuchadnezzar recounts the dream (10-17)
c. request that Daniel interpret with spirit of God (18)
b. Daniel’s dismay at the interpretation of the dream (4:19)
c - d. Daniel recounts and interprets the dream (20-26)
e. exhorts to repent and avoid the dream’s sentence (27)
e. the king’s pride triggers the dream’s sentence (28-30)
d. the sentence is imposed that he live as a beast (31-33)
a. conclusion praising both God’s power and his justice (34-37)

This outline of Daniel 4 is not pretty and could be improved, but it does probably track the train of thought. In this episode Nebuchadnezzar is sentenced, because of his pride, to spend seven “times” as a beast eating the grass of the field. He is then restored to his reason and to his kingdom when “I lifted up mine eyes unto heaven,” having learned that God “ruleth in the kingdom of men.”

The trigger for imposing this sentence is Nebuchadnezzar’s pride in his own greatness (4:30-31, 37). Pride interferes (a) with faith by obscuring the need to rely on God, (b) with hope by hiding the need to repent, and (c) with charity by causing one to devalue others. The purpose of the sentence imposed upon Nebuchadnezzar is (a) to teach him enough faith to recognize that God rules in the affairs of men (4:25, 31). Daniel’s exhortation on how to avoid the dream’s sentence is to “[b] break off thy sins by righteousness, and [c] thine iniquities by showing mercy to the poor” (4:27). Daniel, in contrast to Nebuchadnezzar, humbly praised God as the source of his wisdom and might at the center of chapter 2 (2:19-23).

The Lord teaches that kings are often the basest of men (4:25). Nebuchadnezzar “dwells with the beasts of the field” until “his hairs were grown like eagles’ feathers, and his nails like birds’ claws” (4:32-33). This ties Daniel 4 to the den of lions in chapter 6 and to the vision of four beasts in chapter 7. Daniel 4 is also tied to chapter 2 when Daniel interprets the king’s dream after the king’s magicians cannot (2:4-7, 19-23, 27; 4:6-9; also 5:8, 11). Also compare 4:5 to 7:1, 15 and 4:1 to 6:25. The two stories in chapters 4-5 are placed at the center of Daniel, and many of the other stories share literary ties to the central story and lesson of Daniel 4.


Parallel passages[edit]

This heading is for listing other passages that borrow from or are very similar to all or part of this passage. Click the link above and to the right to edit or add content to this heading. →


Points to ponder[edit]

This heading is for prompts that suggest ways in which all or part of this passage can influence a person's life. Click the link above and to the right to edit or add content to this heading. →


I have a question[edit]

This heading is for unanswered questions and is an important part of the continual effort to improve this wiki. Please do not be shy, as even a basic or "stupid" question can identify things that need to be improved on this page. Click the link above and to the right to edit or add content to this heading. →


Resources[edit]

This heading is for listing links and print resources, including those cited in the notes. A short comment about the particular strengths of a resource can be helpful. Click the link above and to the right to edit or add content to this heading. →


Notes[edit]

Footnotes are not required but are encouraged for factual assertions that average readers cannot easily evaluate for themselves, such as the date of King Solomon’s death or the nuanced definition of a Greek word. In contrast, insights rarely benefit from footnoting, and the focus of this page should always remain on the scriptures themselves rather than what someone has said about them. Links are actively encouraged on all sections of this page, and links to authoritative sources are preferable to footnotes.




Previous page: Chapter 3                              Next page: Chapter 5