Daniel 4:16

4:16 Let his mind ¹  be altered from that of a human being,

and let an animal’s mind be given to him,

and let seven periods of time ²  go by for ³  him.

Daniel 3:19

3:19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with rage, and his disposition changed ⁴  toward Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He gave orders ⁵  to heat the furnace seven times hotter than it was normally heated.

Daniel 4:32

4:32 You will be driven from human society, and you will live with the wild animals. You will be fed grass like oxen, and seven periods of time will pass by for you before ⁶  you understand that the Most High is ruler over human kingdoms and gives them to whomever he wishes.”

Daniel 4:23

4:23 As for the king seeing a holy sentinel coming down from heaven and saying, ‘Chop down the tree and destroy it, but leave its taproot in the ground, with a band of iron and bronze around it, surrounded by the grass of the field. Let it become damp with the dew of the sky, and let it live with the wild animals, until seven periods of time go by for him’ –

Daniel 4:25

4:25 You will be driven ⁷  from human society, ⁸  and you will live ⁹  with the wild animals. You will be fed ¹⁰  grass like oxen, ¹¹  and you will become damp with the dew of the sky. Seven periods of time will pass by for you, before ¹²  you understand that the Most High is ruler over human kingdoms and gives them to whomever he wishes.

¹ tn Aram “its heart.” The metaphor of the tree begins to fade here and the reality behind the symbol (the king) begins to emerge.

² sn The seven periods of time probably refer to seven years.

³ tn Aram “over” (also in vv. 23, 25, 32).

⁴ tn Aram “the appearance of his face was altered”; cf. NLT “his face became distorted with rage”; NAB “[his] face became livid with utter rage.”

⁵ tn Aram “he answered and said.”

⁷ tn Aram “until.”

¹⁰ tn The Aramaic indefinite active plural is used here like the English passive. So also in v. 28, 29,32.

¹¹ tn Aram “from mankind.” So also in v. 32.

¹² tn Aram “your dwelling will be.” So also in v. 32.

¹³ tn Or perhaps “be made to eat.”

¹⁴ sn Nebuchadnezzar’s insanity has features that are associated with the mental disorder known as boanthropy, in which the person so afflicted imagines himself to be an ox or a similar animal and behaves accordingly.

¹⁵ tn Aram “until.”