Daniel 4:6
in Daniel 4So I issued a decree that all the wise men of Babylon be brought before me to interpret the dream for me.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
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.
KJV
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.
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This verse in Daniel 4
Commentary
6 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Therefore made I a decree - The word here rendered decree (טעם ṭe‛êm) means, commonly, “taste, flavor,” as of wine; then “judgment, discernment, reason;” and then a judgment of a king, a mandate, edict. Compare Dan 3:10. The primary notion seems to be that of a delicate “taste” enabling one to determine the qualities of wines, viands, etc.; and then a delicate and nice discrimination in regard to the qualities of actions.
This site's exposition
at rest in mine house
on Daniel 4:4-6
I Nebuchadnezzar was at rest in mine house, and flourishing in my palace opens the narrative proper at the peak of the king's security, the same complacency chapter two's dream once shattered now settled again into comfort. A second troubling dream drives him to the same guild that failed him before, all the wise men of Babylon summoned by decree, though the bench notes he has learned nothing structural from the earlier failure, still trying the same court first.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
He did not give these details casually: it was in parallel so as to make clear to everyone the prophet's wisdom by comparison—hence his listing the nationalities of the wise men of Babylon so as to highlight the fact that whereas they understood absolutely nothing, …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
It is probable that these people had sometimes, in a like case, given the king some sort of satisfaction, and by the rules of their art had answered the king's queries so as to please him, whether it were right or wrong, hit or missed; but now his expectation from them was disappointed: He told them the dream (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
Therefore made I a decree,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
It may seem strange that Daniel was not first summoned. But it was ordered by God's providence that he should be reserved to the last, in order that all mere human means should be proved vain, before God manifested His power through His servant; thus the haughty king was stripped of all fleshly confidences.
The words behind it
12 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וּמִנִּי֙ | umini | and from me | H4481 → | 109 times |
| שִׂ֣ים | sim | it was made | H7761 → | 26 times |
| טְעֵ֔ם | teem | a decree | H2942 → | 28 times |
| לְהַנְעָלָ֣ה | lehanalah | to bring in | H5954 → | 14 times |
| קָֽדָמַ֔י | kadamai | before me | H6925 → | 42 times |
| לְכֹ֖ל | lekhol | <obj.> all | H3606 → | 82 times |
| חַכִּימֵ֣י | chakimei | [the] wise men of | H2445 → | 14 times |
| בָבֶ֑ל | vavel | Babylon | H895 → | 25 times |
| דִּֽי־ | di- | that | H1768 → | 345 times |
| פְשַׁ֥ר | feshar | [the] interpretation of | H6591 → | 31 times |
| חֶלְמָ֖א | chelma' | dream the | H2493 → | 22 times |
| יְהֽוֹדְעֻנַּֽנִי׃ | yehodunani | they will make known to me | H3046 → | 47 times |
וּמִנִּי֙and from me
uminiH4481 →109 times
שִׂ֣יםit was made
simH7761 →26 times
טְעֵ֔םa decree
teemH2942 →28 times
לְהַנְעָלָ֣הto bring in
lehanalahH5954 →14 times
קָֽדָמַ֔יbefore me
kadamaiH6925 →42 times
לְכֹ֖ל<obj.> all
lekholH3606 →82 times
חַכִּימֵ֣י[the] wise men of
chakimeiH2445 →14 times
בָבֶ֑לBabylon
vavelH895 →25 times
דִּֽי־that
di-H1768 →345 times
פְשַׁ֥ר[the] interpretation of
fesharH6591 →31 times
חֶלְמָ֖אdream the
chelma'H2493 →22 times
יְהֽוֹדְעֻנַּֽנִי׃they will make known to me
yehodunaniH3046 →47 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Isaiah 8:19When men tell you to consult the spirits of the dead and the spiritists who whisper and mutter, shouldn’t a people consult their God instead? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living?
it leads to
- 1 Chronicles 10:13
So Saul died for his unfaithfulness to the LORD, because he did not keep the word of the LORD and even consulted a medium for guidance,
- Leviticus 20:6
Whoever turns to mediums or spiritists to prostitute himself with them, I will also set My face against that person and cut him off from his people.
- 2 Chronicles 33:6
He sacrificed his sons in the fire in the Valley of Hinnom. He practiced sorcery, divination, and witchcraft, and consulted mediums and spiritists. He did great evil in the sight of the LORD, provoking…
- Psalms 106:28
They yoked themselves to Baal of Peor and ate sacrifices offered to lifeless gods.
- Leviticus 19:31
You must not turn to mediums or spiritists; do not seek them out, or you will be defiled by them. I am the LORD your God.
- 1 Chronicles 10:13
Through
Daniel 2:2So the king gave orders to summon the magicians, enchanters, sorcerers, and astrologers to explain his dreams. When they came and stood before the king,
it leads to
- Daniel 1:20
In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king consulted them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his entire kingdom.
- Exodus 7:11
But Pharaoh called the wise men and sorcerers and magicians of Egypt, and they also did the same things by their magic arts.
- Genesis 41:8
In the morning his spirit was troubled, so he summoned all the magicians and wise men of Egypt. Pharaoh told them his dreams, but no one could interpret them for him.
- Daniel 1:20
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies3
On this verse
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About Daniel
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Daniel; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Theodoret of Cyrus, COMMENTARY ON DANIEL 4:7-8.