Daniel 4:5

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Daniel 4:4-18

Nebuchadnezzar, before he relates the judgments of God that had been wrought upon him for his pride, gives an account of the fair warning he had of them before they came, a due regard to which might have prevented them. But he was told of them, and of the issue of them, before they came to pass, that, when they did come to pass, by comparing them with the prediction of them, he might see, and say, that they were the Lord's doing, and might be brought to believe that there is a divine... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Daniel 4:5

I saw a dream which made me afraid ,.... Things were represented to his fancy in a dream, as if he saw them with his eyes, as the tree, its leaves and fruit; the shaking and cutting it down to the stump, &c.; and though he did not understand the meaning of it, yet he thought it portended some evil, which threw him into a panic; he was afraid that something bad would befall him, though he knew not what: thus God can make the minds of the greatest men uneasy amidst all their glory, pride,... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Daniel 4:5

I saw a dream - See this dream circumstantially explained in the following verses. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Daniel 4:1-37

EXPOSITION THE MADNESS OF NEBUCHADNEZZAR . We follow here the division of chapters which we find in our English Version, and as, indeed, in all modern versions. The Aramaic concludes the third chapter with the three verses which are placed in our version at the beginning of the fourth chapter. The arrangement of the Aramaic is followed by the Septuagint, by Theodotion, and by Jerome. The Peshitta and Paulus Tellensis follow the more logical division. Luther divides the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Daniel 4:4-5

I Nebuchadnezzar was at rest in mine house, and flourishing in my palace: I saw a dream which made me afraid, and the thoughts upon my bed and the visions of my head troubled me. In the Aramaic text there is what may be regarded either as a play on words of the nature of rhyme, or the traces of a doublet. The Septuagint begins the chapter with this verse, as does the Massoretic text, but further appends a date, "In the eighteenth year of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar said, I was at peace in my... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Daniel 4:4-9

True and false prophets. It is amazing how some men are addicted to folly. It seems ingrained into the very nature of some men. Nebuchadnezzar had proved aforetime the vain pretensions of his magicians and soothsayers, and had proved, too, the incomparable superiority of Daniel; nevertheless, he neglects Daniel again on this occasion, and sends for the pretentious astrologers. Such men must be pounded in a mortar before the folly can be expurgated. I. THE PROPHET HAS ALWAYS A ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Daniel 4:4-27

Human greatness, its rise, fall, and restoration. "Behold a tree in the midst of the earth, and the height thereof was great" ( Daniel 4:10 ). The subject naturally suggested by the text is that of human greatness, its rise, its decay, its restoration. It should be remembered, even in the first entertainment of the theme, that this greatness may inhere in man individual as in man collective. To guide our thoughts, especially in its practical applications, it will be well, then, to keep... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Daniel 4:5

I saw a dream - That is, he saw a representation made to him in a dream. There is something incongruous in our language in saying of one that he saw a dream.Which made me afraid - The fear evidently arose from the apprehension that it was designed to disclose some important and solemn event. This was in accordance with a prevalent belief then (comp. Daniel 2:1), and it may be added that it is in accordance with a prevalent belief now. There are few persons, whatever may be their abstract... read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Daniel 4:4-5

Daniel 4:4-5. I Nebuchadnezzar was at rest, &c. Nebuchadnezzar, “for the extent of his dominion, and the great revenues it supplied; for his unrivalled success in war; for the magnificence and splendour of his court; and for his stupendous works and improvements at Babylon, was the greatest monarch, not only of his own times, but incomparably the greatest the world had ever seen. At a time when he was at rest in his house, and flourishing in his palace;” having lately subjected to... read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Daniel 4:1-37

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... read more

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