Most of the book of Daniel is told about kings. This chapter is told by one. It opens as a public letter from Nebuchadnezzar himself, addressed to all people, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth.
He wanted the world to hear what happened to him: a dream that frightened him, a warning he was given a full year to heed, one sentence of pride spoken in his palace, and the time he spent living like an animal in the field. He tells it so that others would know who really rules.
The Story of Nebuchadnezzar Eats Grass
Nebuchadnezzar begins with praise: I thought it good to shew the signs and wonders that the high God hath wrought toward me. Then he tells his story. He was at rest in mine house, and flourishing in my palace, when he saw a dream which made me afraid. He called in the magicians, the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers and told them the dream, but they could not tell him what it meant. At the last Daniel came in, whose name was Belteshazzar, and the king told the dream to him.
He had seen a tree in the midst of the earth. It grew, and was strong, and the height thereof reached unto heaven. Its leaves were fair, its fruit was plentiful, the beasts of the field rested in its shade, the birds lived in its branches, and all flesh was fed of it. Then a watcher and an holy one came down from heaven and cried, Hew down the tree, and cut off his branches. Yet the stump of his roots was to stay in the earth, bound with a band of iron and brass, wet with the dew of heaven, with his portion among the beasts: 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. The reason was given: that the living may know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will.
Daniel was astonied for one hour, and his thoughts troubled him. The king told him not to let the dream trouble him, and Daniel answered, My lord, the dream be to them that hate thee. Then he gave the meaning plainly: It is thou, O king, that art grown and become strong. The decree of the most High was that they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times would pass over him, till thou know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men. The stump left in the ground meant his kingdom would be restored once he had known that the heavens do rule.
Daniel added counsel: break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by shewing mercy to the poor; if it may be a lengthening of thy tranquility. Then the chapter says simply, All this came upon the king Nebuchadnezzar.
At the end of twelve months he was walking in the palace of the kingdom of Babylon, and he spoke: Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty? While the word was in the king’s mouth, there fell a voice from heaven: O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee.
The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar. He was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagles’ feathers, and his nails like birds’ claws.
Then the story returns to his own voice. At the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most High. His reason came back, his counsellors and lords sought him out, he was established in his kingdom, and excellent majesty was added unto me. He closes with these words: 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.
Key Verses
“That the living may know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will” Daniel 4:17
“Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power” Daniel 4:30
“He was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven” Daniel 4:33
“I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me” Daniel 4:34
“Those that walk in pride he is able to abase” Daniel 4:37
Scripture quotations are from the King James Version (KJV), a public-domain translation.
What the Story of Nebuchadnezzar Eats Grass Teaches Us
The whole chapter is built around one lesson, stated by the watcher, by Daniel, and by the voice from heaven: that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will. Nebuchadnezzar ruled a kingdom whose dominion reached to the end of the earth, and it was still given to him, not built by him.
God was patient before he was severe. The king was warned in a dream, the warning was explained, Daniel urged him to break off his sins by righteousness and mercy to the poor, and twelve months passed before judgment came. It fell the moment he claimed the glory for himself – by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty.
The judgment was meant to restore, not just to punish. The stump of the roots was left in the ground, and when Nebuchadnezzar lifted up his eyes unto heaven, his understanding returned and his kingdom was given back. The proud king ended by writing a letter to the world in praise of the King of heaven, saying of God, those that walk in pride he is able to abase.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why did Nebuchadnezzar eat grass?
As judgment for his pride. While he boasted, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built… by the might of my power, a voice from heaven said the kingdom was departed from him, and the same hour he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen (Daniel 4:30-33).
What did Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of the tree mean?
Daniel said the tree was the king himself: It is thou, O king, that art grown and become strong (Daniel 4:22). Cutting it down meant he would be driven from men until he knew that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men (Daniel 4:25).
How long did Nebuchadnezzar live like an animal?
The text says seven times shall pass over thee (Daniel 4:25, 32). The chapter does not define the length of a time.
How long after the dream was Nebuchadnezzar humbled?
Twelve months. Daniel 4:29 says, At the end of twelve months he walked in the palace of the kingdom of Babylon, and that is when he spoke the boast that brought the judgment.
Did Nebuchadnezzar get his kingdom back?
Yes. His understanding returned, he blessed the most High, and he says, I was established in my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added unto me (Daniel 4:34-36).
Who wrote Daniel 4?
Most of the chapter is written in Nebuchadnezzar’s own voice, as a message to all people, nations, and languages (Daniel 4:1). A few passages, including verses 28-33, describe him in the third person before he picks up the story again in verse 34.