{[Chapter 3:31 in Aramaic]}Nebuchadnezzar the king, unto all the peoples, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth: Peace be multiplied unto you.
It hath seemed good unto me to show the signs and wonders that the Most High God hath wrought toward me.
How great are his signs! and how mighty are his wonders! his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion is from generation to generation.
{[Chapter 4:1 in Aramaic]}I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at rest in my house, and flourishing in my palace.
I saw a dream which made me afraid; and the {Or, imaginations}thoughts upon my bed and the visions of my head troubled me.
Therefore made I a decree to bring in all the wise men of Babylon before me, that they might make known unto me the interpretation of the dream.
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.
But at the last Daniel came in before me, whose name was Belteshazzar, 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,
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.
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.
The tree grew, and was strong, and the height thereof reached unto heaven, and the sight thereof to the end of all the earth.
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.
I saw in the visions of my head upon my bed, and, behold, a watcher and a holy one came down from heaven.
He cried aloud, and said thus, Hew down the tree, and cut off its branches, shake off its leaves, and scatter its fruit: let the beasts get away from under it, and the fowls from its branches.
Nevertheless leave the stump of its roots in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the field; and let it be wet with the dew of heaven: and let his portion be with the beasts in the grass of the earth:
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 sentence is by the decree of the watchers, and the {Or, matter}demand by the word of the holy ones; to the intent that the living may know that the Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the lowest of men.
This dream I, king Nebuchadnezzar, have seen; and thou, O Belteshazzar, declare the interpretation, forasmuch as all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to make known unto me the interpretation; but thou art able; for the spirit of the holy gods is in thee.
Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was stricken dumb for a while, and his thoughts troubled him. The king answered and said, Belteshazzar, let not the dream, or the interpretation, trouble thee. Belteshazzar answered and said, My lord, the dream be to them that hate thee, and the interpretation thereof to thine adversaries.
The tree that thou sawest, which grew, and was strong, whose height reached unto heaven, and the sight thereof to all the earth;
whose leaves were fair, and the fruit thereof much, and in it was food for all; under which the beasts of the field dwelt, and upon whose branches the birds of the heavens had their habitation:
it is thou, O king, that art grown and become strong; for thy greatness is grown, and reacheth unto heaven, and thy dominion to the end of the earth.
And whereas the king saw a watcher and a holy one coming down from heaven, and saying, Hew down the tree, and destroy it; nevertheless leave the stump of the roots thereof in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the field, and let it be wet with the dew of heaven: and let his portion be with the beasts of the field, till seven times pass over him;
this is the interpretation, O king, and it is the decree of the Most High, which is come upon my lord the king:
that thou shalt be driven from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and thou shalt be made to eat grass as oxen, and shalt be wet with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over thee; till thou know that the Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will.
And whereas they commanded to leave the stump of the roots of the tree; thy kingdom shall be sure unto thee, after that thou shalt have known that the heavens do rule.
Wherefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and {Or, redeem}break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by showing mercy to the poor; if there may be {Or, as otherwise read, a healing of thine error}a lengthening of thy tranquillity.
All this came upon the king Nebuchadnezzar.
At the end of twelve months he was walking {Aramaic: upon.}in the royal palace of Babylon.
The king spake and said, Is not this great Babylon, which I have built for the royal dwelling-place, by the might of my power and for the glory of my majesty?
While the word was in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying, O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken: The kingdom is departed from thee:
and thou shalt be driven from men; and they dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field; thou shalt be made to eat grass as oxen; and seven times shall pass over thee; until thou know that the Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will.
The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: and he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hair was grown like eagles' feathers, and his nails like birds' claws.
And 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, and I praised and honored him that liveth for ever; for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom from generation to generation;
and all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can {Aramaic: strike.}stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?
At the same time mine understanding returned unto me; and for the glory of my kingdom, my majesty and brightness returned unto me; and my counsellors and my lords sought unto me; and I was established in my kingdom, and excellent greatness was added unto me.
Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven; for all his works are truth, and his ways justice; and those that walk in pride he is able to abase.
Querverweise zu Daniel 4,30 Dan 4,30
But when his heart was lifted up, and his spirit was hardened so that he dealt proudly, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took his glory from him:
And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.
Both riches and honor come of thee, and thou rulest over all; and in thy hand is power and might; and in thy hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all.
Now therefore, our God, we thank thee, and praise thy glorious name.
But who am I, and what is my people, that we should {Hebrew: retain strength.}be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of thee, and {Hebrew: of thy hand.}of thine own have we given thee.
O thou king, the Most High God gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father the kingdom, and greatness, and glory, and majesty:
They scoff, and in wickedness utter oppression:They speak {Or, from on high}loftily.
And it came to pass, as they journeyed {Or, in the east}east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there.
And they said one to another, Come, let us make brick, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for stone, and {That is, bitumen}slime had they for mortar.
And they said, Come, let us build us a city, and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven, and let us make us a name; lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.
And Jehovah came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded.
And Jehovah said, Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language; and this is what they begin to do: and now nothing will be withholden from them, which they purpose to do.
Come, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech.
So Jehovah scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off building the city.
Therefore was the name of it called Babel; because Jehovah did there {Hebrew: balal, to confound.}confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did Jehovah scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.
And the house which I build is great; for great is our God above all gods.
and because of the greatness that he gave him, all the peoples, nations, and languages trembled and feared before him: whom he would he slew, and whom he would he kept alive; and whom he would he raised up, and whom he would he put down.
Pride goeth before destruction,And a haughty spirit before a fall.
And the great city was divided into into three parts, and the cities of the {Or, Gentiles}nations fell: and Babylon the great was remembered in the sight of God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath.
But who {Hebrew: retaineth strength.}is able to build him a house, seeing heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain him? who am I then, that I should build him a house, save only to burn incense before him?
when he showed the riches of his glorious kingdom and the honor of his excellent majesty many days, even a hundred and fourscore days.
He taketh up all of them with the angle, he catcheth them in his net, and gathereth them in his drag: therefore he rejoiceth and is glad.
and upon her forehead a name written, {Or, a mystery, Babylon the Great}MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF THE HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
For he saith, Are not my princes all of them kings?
Is not Calno as Carchemish? is not Hamath as Arpad? is not Samaria as Damascus?
As my hand hath {Or, reached}found the kingdoms of the idols, whose graven images did excel them of Jerusalem and of Samaria;
shall I not, as I have done unto Samaria and her idols, so do to Jerusalem and her idols?
Wherefore it shall come to pass, that, when the Lord hath performed his whole work upon mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will {Hebrew: visit upon.}punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his high looks.
For he hath said, By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom; for I have understanding: and I have removed the bounds of the peoples, and have robbed their treasures, and like a valiant man I have brought down {Or, the inhabitants}them that sit on thrones:
and my hand hath found as a nest the riches of the peoples; and as one gathereth eggs that are forsaken, have I gathered all the earth: and there was none that moved the wing, or that opened the mouth, or chirped.
Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith? shall the saw magnify itself against him that wieldeth it? as if a rod should wield them that lift it up, or as if a staff should lift up him that is not wood.
Man that is in honor, and understandeth not,Is like the beasts that perish.
Therefore he sacrificeth unto his net, and burneth incense unto his drag; because by them his portion is fat, and his food {Hebrew: fat.}plenteous.
standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Woe, woe, the great city, Babylon, the strong city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.
By thy servants hast thou defied the Lord, and hast said, With the multitude of my chariots am I come up to the height of the mountains, to the innermost parts of Lebanon; and I will cut down the tall cedars thereof, and the choice {Or, cypress-trees}fir-trees thereof; and I will enter into its farthest height, the forest of its fruitful field;
Bless Jehovah, O my soul.O Jehovah my God, thou art very great;Thou art clothed with honor and majesty:
Behold, his soul is puffed up, it is not {Or, straight}upright in him; but the righteous shall live {Or, in his faithfulness}by his faith.
And {Greek: one.}a strong angel took up a stone as it were a great millstone and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with a mighty fall shall Babylon, the great city, be cast down, and shall be found no more at all.
I have digged and drunk water, and with the sole of my feet will I dry up all the rivers of {Or, defence Hebrew: Mazor.}Egypt.
Of the glorious majesty of thine honor,And of thy wondrous works, will I meditate.
And men shall speak of the might of thy terrible acts;And I will declare thy greatness.
They shall utter the memory of thy great goodness,And shall sing of thy righteousness.
Jehovah is gracious, and merciful;Slow to anger, and of great lovingkindness.
Jehovah is good to all;And his tender mercies are over all his works.
All thy works shall give thanks unto thee, O Jehovah;And thy saints shall bless thee.
They shall speak of the glory of thy kingdom,And talk of thy power;
To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts,And the glory of the majesty of his kingdom.
{Or, And also because his wine…he is a haughty man}Yea, moreover, wine is treacherous, a haughty man, {Or, he shall not abide}that keepeth not at home; who enlargeth his desire as Sheol, and he is as death, and cannot be satisfied, but gathereth unto him all nations, and heapeth unto him all peoples.
Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyre, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Because thy heart is lifted up, and thou hast said, I am a god, I sit in the seat of God, in the {Hebrew: heart.}midst of the seas; yet thou art man, and not God, though thou didst set thy heart as the heart of God; —
behold, thou art wiser than Daniel; there is no secret that is hidden from thee;
by thy wisdom and by thine understanding thou hast gotten thee {Or, power}riches, and hast gotten gold and silver into thy treasures;
by thy great wisdom and by thy traffic hast thou increased thy {Or, power}riches, and thy heart is lifted up because of thy {Or, power}riches; —
Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.
And I will say to my {Or, life}soul, {Or, life}Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, be merry.
speak, and say, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I am against thee, Pharaoh king of Egypt, the great monster that lieth in the midst of his rivers, that hath said, My river is mine own, and I have made it for myself.
And the nations shall walk {Or, by}amidst the light thereof: and the kings of the earth bring their glory into it.
And the {Greek: portals.}gates thereof shall in no wise be shut by day (for there shall be no night there):
and they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it:
But God said unto him, Thou foolish one, this night {Greek: they require thy soul.}is thy {Or, life}soul required of thee; and the things which thou hast prepared, whose shall they be?
For every one that exalteth himself shall be humbled; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.
{Or, Likewise...elder; yea, all of you one to another. Gird yourselves with humility}Likewise, ye younger, be subject unto the elder. Yea, all of you gird yourselves with humility, to serve one another: for God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble.