Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Daniel 4:7
Then came in the magicians, the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers: and I told the dream before them; but they did not make known unto me the interpretation thereof.
7. the magicians, the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the determiners (of fates)] see on Dan 1:21, Dan 2:2, and Dan 2:27.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Then came in the magicians … – All the words occurring here are found in Dan 2:2, and are explained in the note at that verse, except the word rendered soothsayers. This occurs in Dan 2:27. See it explained in the note at that verse. All these words refer to the same general class of persons – those who were regarded as endued with eminent wisdom; who were supposed to be qualified to explain remarkable occurrences, to foretell the future, and to declare the will of heaven from portents and wonders. At a time when there was yet a limited revelation; when the boundaries of science were not determined with accuracy; when it was not certain but that some way might be ascertained of lifting the mysterious veil from the future, and when it was an open question whether that might not be by dreams or by communication with departed spirits, or by some undisclosed secrets of nature, it was not unnatural that persons should be found who claimed that this knowledge was under their control. Such claimants to preternatural knowledge are found indeed in every age; and though a large portion of them are undoubted deceivers, yet the existence of such an order of persons should be regarded as merely the exponent of the deep and earnest desire existing in the human bosom to penetrate the mysterious future; to find something that shall disclose to man, all whose great interests lie in the future, what is yet to be. Compare the remarks at the close of Dan. 2.
And I told the dream before them … – In their presence. In this instance he did not lay on them so hard a requisition as he did on a former occasion, when he required them not only to interpret the dream, but to tell him what it was, Dan. 2. But their pretended power here was equally vain. Whether they attempted an interpretation of this dream does not appear; but if they did, it was wholly unsatisfactory to the king himself. It would seem more probable that they supposed that the dream might have some reference to the proud monarch himself, and that, as it indicated some awful calamity, they did not dare to hazard a conjecture in regard to its meaning.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
And yet this was it they stood upon before, that the king should tell the dream, and they would interpret it, which now they could not do: this shows them to be mere impostors, and that neither their natural skill nor diabolical help could unfold Gods secrets.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
Then came in the magicians, the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers,…. [See comments on Da 2:2],
and I told the dream before them, but they did not make known unto me the interpretation thereof; because they could not; before they pretended, if the dream was told, they could give the interpretation of it; but now, though it was told, they could not do it; which shows the vanity of their art, the falsehood of their pretensions, and that they were but jugglers and impostors.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
With respect to the words used above, we have formerly freed ourselves from all trouble, because we cannot accurately define what science each professed. Clearly enough they covered their shamelessness by honorable titles, although they gave themselves up to every possible imposture. They called themselves by the usual name of learned men, when they were really unacquainted with any art or science, and deluded mankind by miserable predictions; hence, by these words, Daniel comprehended all the Magi, soothsayers, astrologers, and augurs, who professed the art of divination. Here Nebuchadnezzar confesses that he sent; for these men in vain. Hence it follows, this whole science was a fallacy, or, at, least, Daniel’s exposition of the dream was not by human skill, but by revelation from heaven. I embrace this opinion, since Nebuchadnezzar wished clearly to express that Daniel’s power of interpreting his dream did not spring from man, but was a singular gift of the Spirit. He had considered it a settled point that, if any knowledge or skill in divination existed, it must belong to the Magi, soothsayers, augurs, and other Chaldeans who boasted in the possession of perfect wisdom. This, therefore, was with. out controversy—that the astrologers and the rest were most powerful in divination, and as far as human faculties would allow, nothing escaped them. Hence it follows, on the other hand, that Daniel was divinely instructed, since if he had been only an astrologer or magician, he must, like others, have required a long’ apprenticeship to this science. Nebuchadnezzar, therefore, wishes here to extol Daniel beyond all the Magi, as if he had said—He is a heavenly Prophet! And this, also, will appear better from what is added, as follows:
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
b. RULERS REVERIE RELATED, PART I
TEXT: Dan. 4:7-12
7
Then came in the magicians, the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers; and I told the dream before them; but they did not make known unto me the interpretation thereof.
8
But at the last Daniel came in before me, whose name was Belteshazzer, according to the name of my god, and in whom is the spirit of the holy gods: and I told the dream before him, saying,
9
O Belteshazzar, master of the magicians, because I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in thee, and no secret troubleth thee, tell me the visions of my dream that I have seen, and the interpretation thereof.
10
Thus were the visions of my head upon my bed: I saw, and, behold, a tree in the midst of the earth; and the height thereof was great.
11
The tree grew, and was strong, and the height thereof reached unto heaven, and the sight thereof to the end of all the earth.
12
The leaves thereof were fair, and the fruit thereof much, and in it was food for all: the beasts of the field had shadow under it, and the birds of the heavens dwelt in the branches thereof, and all flesh was fed from it.
QUERIES
a.
What does Nebuchadnezzar understand about the spirit of the holy gods?
b.
Was Daniel a magician? Doesnt the Law of Moses forbid this?
c.
Why did God choose to use a tree in Nebuchadnezzars dream?
PARAPHRASE
But when they came inall the scholars, astrologers, wise-men, and divinersand I told them the dream, they could not interpret it. At that moment Daniel came inthe man I named Belteshazzar after my godthe man in whom is the spirit of the holy deity, and I told him the dream. O Belteshazzar, chief of the wise-men, I said, I know that the spirit of the holy deity is in you and no secret is too difficult for you-behold! my dream that I have seen. Tell me what my dream means: I was dreaming and suddenly I saw a tree right in the center of the world all by itself and its height was very great. The tree was growing and becoming strong, and its height was reaching higher and higher into the sky until it could be seen by everyone in the world. Its leaves were fresh and green, and its branches were weighted down with fruit, enough for everyone to eat; wild animals rested beneath its shade and birds from all over the sky rested in its branches and all the people of the world were nourished from it,
COMMENT
Dan. 4:7 THEN CAME IN THE MAGICIANS . . . ETC. All these titles refer to the same general class of personsthose considered to be endued with superhuman wisdom; who were supposed to be qualified to explain remarkable occurrences, to foretell the future, and to declare the will of the gods from dreams, signs and wonders. It is not strange to find the occult in that age when there was yet a limited revelation; when so much of the worlds population dwelt in darkness and self-induced moral perverseness (cf. Rom. 1:18 ff); and when the boundaries of science were not as extended as they are today. But in the age of enlightenmentwith the Christian revelation and explosion in scientific knowledgeit is almost incredible that so many people today are becoming enmeshed in the superstitious and credulous web of the occult. Popular songs (Aquarius) and books by the thousands are hawking the wares of the mystic revolution all over the 20th century world. One weekly U.S. news magazine estimates that 10 million Americans are hard-core adherents to astrological forecasting. Another 40 million, it reported, dabble in the subject: It appears clear that what was once regarded as an offshoot of the occult is a rapidly evolving popular creed, it said. One American magazine publisher puts out some 30 separate horoscope magazines. During 1968 it sold 8 million copies of one edition. The executive editor of Doubleday & Co., said in the N.Y. Times of August 11, 1968, American publishers have discovered of late that there is a great deal of money to be made in convincing readers that the fault is not in themselves but in their stars . . . The public interest has been way ahead of the publishers response. . . . People in general want to read about these things. After all, there is the possibility of discovering the meaning of life. We cant get enough good books on the subject.
In astrology, says the president of a well-known astrological organization, the earth is at the center of the universe and the individual is the center of attention. Everybodys favorite topic is himself. A 22-year-old Boston girl put her finger on this point when she said, Astrology . . . is a very personal tying of the individual to the universe. Science led us away from God and now science (meaning astrology?!) will bring us back. The astrologer holds out the vision of a world ruled by forces operating with clockwork regularity. These forces supposedly guide the individual to greater heights of achievementthey help him succeed, attain, understand. When things go wrong, one can blame the stars. When good things happen, you thank your lucky star. Astrologers tell people what they WANT to hear. The thing that is so incredible is that 20th-century-man would have laughed at the way the soothsayers and diviners exploited the superstitions of Nebuchadnezzar, not realizing that they are being exploited in the same way today. Nebuchadnezzar learned that in the God of Daniel, Jehovah-Godthe God who has revealed Himself in history by miraculous deeds and direct propositional revelations in human language to selected prophets, is the only source of immutable truth. AND THAT IS STILL TRUE FOR 20TH-CENTURY-MAN! Daniels God is omnipotent and immutableHe changeth not!
Dan. 4:8 . . . AT THE LAST DANIEL CAME IN . . . IN WHOM IS THE SPIRIT OB THE HOLY GODS . . . Why Daniel was not with the other wise-men when they came into the presence of the king we do not know. Leupold suggests two possibilities: (a) he may have been busy assemblying. the wise men and could not come earlier; (b) he may have chosen to defer his coming, timing it carefully to coincide with the moment when the failure of the Chaldeans was most evident.
Most commentators insist that Nebuchadnezzars statement, in whom is the spirit of the holy gods, is an explicit expression of his polytheism. However, Young believes that the phrase is only rightly interpreted when the word god is made singular, god or deity, as in our paraphrase, The king was very much aware that the God of Daniel was different from his own gods, so, he reasons, The power or wisdom which is from the highest deity is to be found in Daniel. Young says there is a wealth of philological evidence (linguistic material) to support the position of a singular god, (cf. Gen. 41:38).
Dan. 4:9 O BELTESHAZZAR . . . TELL ME . . . THE INTERPRETATION . . . It is evident from the following context that the emperor does not this time insist that Daniel relate to him the content of the dream, for the emperor tells Daniel the details of the dream. He wants Daniel to tell him the meaning of the symbolism he dreamed.
For comments on Daniels Babylonian name, Belte-shazzar, see our notes on Dan. 1:7. Leupold claims that the translation chief of the magicians does not accurately represent to the modern mind the position of Daniel. In our day magicians are thought of as purveyors of slight of hand magic. This meaning was never connected with the Greek word magoi from which we get the word magician or, as the magi (wise-men) in the account of the birth of Christ. Leupold thinks a better translation would be chief of the scholars.
We are informed of the absolute confidence Nebuchadnezzar had in Daniels possession of divine wisdom! This does not seem to be for the purpose of proving to the king that Daniel has such abilities (as in Daniel 2). It almost seems as if the king had deliberately refused to hear Daniel until he was forced by necessity to turn to him as a last resort. Young believes that this is actually the caseIf others can interpret the dream, he will go to them rather than to Daniel. With this God, Nebuchadnezzar, as yet wanted no dealings. Calvin also believes that it was extreme necessity which compelled the ruler to turn to Daniel for interpretation of his dream. And hence we gather that no one comes to the true God, unless impelled by necessity. (Calvin) It is most certainly true that no one comes to God by accident! We are convinced more and more that most unbelief is due to moral resistance, not to intellectual ignorance. Every man has sinned and sinned because he deliberately chose to resist the moral light he possesses! (Romans, chapters 1, 2, and 3 and Joh. 3:19-21)
Dan. 4:10-11 . . . I SAW, AND, BEHOLD, A TREE IN THE MIDST OF THE EARTH . . . The phrase is progressive. The king was contemplating or studying the dream as he was dreaming. Not only so, but the tree was in the process of growing as he was dreaming. This tree was occupying a central position on the earth. Its centrality was to indicate its preeminence and importance for the entire earth. It grew until it reached into the sky, towering to the heavens, sending out its branches afar. It was a sight to behold to everyone in the earth.
Trees were figurative, especially in Oriental dreams, of monarchs. Eze. 31:3 ff compares the Assyrian monarch with a cedar of Lebanon (cf. also Eze. 17:1 ff; Isa. 2:13; Isa. 10:18-19; Jer. 22:7; Jer. 22:23). Barnes notes, Nothing is more obvious than the comparison of a hero with a lofty tree of the forest, and hence it was natural for Nebuchadnezzar to suppose that this vision had a reference to himself. Herodotus relates a dream of Xerxes, who, ready to set out against Greece, beholds himself crowned with an olive shoot, the branches of which stretch out over all the earth; of Croesus that he will destroy the men of Lampascus like a fir since this tree when cut down, sends forth no fresh shoots, but dies outright; of Astyages the Mede who dreamed of a vine growing from the womb of Mandane, his daughter, and spreading over the entirely of Asia, the vine being Cyrus. This should in no way imply that the dream of Nebuchadnezzar was not unique. The record of Daniel is plain to indicate that the Babylonian monarchs dream was a divinely imposed dream, a revelation from God. It was supernaturally imposedit was unique.
Dan. 4:12 . . . AND IT WAS FOOD FOR ALL . . . All who lodged in the tree found fruit upon it. All living things on the earth are represented as finding sustenance and security in this great, towering, affluent tree. A really imposing sight! But this is not all of the dream. And what perplexed the king most was the remainder of the reverie!
QUIZ
1.
What is so surprising about finding a popularity of the occult today?
2.
What is meant by the spirit of the holy gods?
3.
What confidence did Nebuchadnezzar have in Daniels abilities?
4.
Why did the king wait until the last resort to seek Daniels interpretation?
5.
How great was the tree in the kings dream?
6.
Why would this portion of the dream not be so perplexing to the king?
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
‘Then came in the magicians, the enchanters, the Chaldeans and the soothsayers and I told the dream before them, but they did not make known to me its interpretation.’
This is confirmation of what we have said above. He knew from experience that it was no use asking these men to tell him his dream, so he accepted second best and informed them of the content of the dream. He was in a hurry, and he could always consult Daniel later. But even so they could not help him. It is possible that they had no idea what it meant, because it was not mentioned in their Babylonian books of dreams. But it is more probable that they had a very good idea of what it meant and dared not say so. For it was not so difficult to interpret, for men used to dealing with dreams. But who was going to tell the king what it meant, and face the consequences? (Even Daniel did it fearfully). Nebuchadnezzar might well have believed that they could not simply because of his poor opinion of them.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Dan 4:7 Then came in the magicians, the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers: and I told the dream before them; but they did not make known unto me the interpretation thereof.
Ver. 7. Then came in the magicians. ] As if they would do the deed. Seducers make up with boldness what they want of true worth. 2Pe 2:19
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
magicians, &c. See note on Dan 1:2.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Then came: Dan 2:1, Dan 2:2
but: Dan 2:7, Isa 44:25, Jer 27:9, Jer 27:10, 2Ti 3:8, 2Ti 3:9
Reciprocal: Gen 41:8 – the magicians of Egypt Gen 41:24 – I told this Exo 7:11 – wise men Exo 8:18 – they could 1Ki 4:30 – the children Est 1:13 – the wise Isa 19:3 – and they Isa 41:28 – I beheld Isa 47:9 – for the multitude Dan 1:20 – the magicians Dan 2:4 – tell Dan 4:18 – forasmuch Dan 5:8 – but
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Dan 4:7-8. It could be that the king did not specify by his decree just who of the wise men should he called in, and that Daniel might have responded to the call to bring in all the wise men, since he was thus classified by the men of the empire according to Dan 2:13. But whatever was the situation, we are not to think of it as being on the principle of the last resort for the king to call Daniel. Nothing is said about any specific call for him at all, only that at the last Daniel came. Spirit of the holy gods was Nebuchadnezzars way of describing Daniel to the people of his dominions. He had formed that opinion of him at the time he explained the prob-lem of the giant man recorded in the 2nd chapter.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
4:7 Then came in the magicians, the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers: and I told the dream before them; but {c} they did not make known unto me the interpretation thereof.
(c) In that he sent abroad to others, whose ignorance in times past he had experienced, and left Daniel who was ever ready at hand, it declares the nature of the ungodly, who never seek for the servants of God unless they absolutely have to, and then they flatter to a great extent.