As I lay on my bed, I also saw in the visions of my mind a watcher, a holy one, coming down from heaven.
Parallel translations
- WEB I saw in the visions of my head on my bed, and behold, a watcher and a holy one came down from the sky.
- KJV I saw in the visions of my head upon my bed, and, behold, a watcher and an holy one came down from heaven;
- NKJV “I saw in the visions of my head while on my bed, and there was a watcher, a holy one, coming down from heaven.
- NASB ‘I was looking in the visions in my mind as I lay on my bed, and behold, an angelic watcher, a holy one, descended from heaven.
- NLT “‘Then as I lay there dreaming, I saw a messenger, a holy one, coming down from heaven.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
A holy "watcher" descends from heaven in the vision. A messenger of God comes to pronounce judgment.
Overview
The watcher is a heavenly being who carries out God's decree, emphasizing that what follows comes from above. His arrival signals that the fate of the great tree is determined in heaven, not on earth. The vision makes clear that even the mightiest king answers to the court of the Most High.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- Deut 33:2He said: “The LORD came from Sinai and dawned upon us from Seir; He shone forth from Mount Paran and came with myriads of holy ones, with flaming fire at His right hand.
- Dan 8:13Then I heard a holy one speaking, and another holy one said to him, “How long until the fulfillment of the vision of the daily sacrifice, the rebellion that causes desolation, and the surrender of the sanctuary and of the host to be trampled?”
- Dan 7:1In the first year of the reign of Belshazzar over Babylon, Daniel had a dream, and visions passed through his mind as he lay on his bed. He wrote down the dream, and this is the summary of his account.
- Dan 4:23And you, O king, saw a watcher, a holy one, coming down from heaven and saying: ‘Cut down the tree and destroy it, but leave the stump with its roots in the ground, and a band of iron and bronze around it, in the tender grass of the field. Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven, and graze with the beasts of the field till seven times pass him by.’
- Dan 4:5I had a dream, and it frightened me; while in my bed, the images and visions in my mind alarmed me.
- Zech 14:5You will flee by My mountain valley, for it will extend to Azal. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the LORD my God will come, and all the holy ones with Him.
- Ps 89:7In the council of the holy ones, God is greatly feared, and awesome above all who surround Him.
- Jude 1:14Enoch, the seventh from Adam, also prophesied about them: “Behold, the Lord is coming with myriads of His holy ones
- Luke 4:34“Ha! What do You want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!”
- Mark 1:24“What do You want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!”
- Dan 7:17‘These four great beasts are four kings who will arise from the earth.
- Dan 4:10In these visions of my mind as I was lying in bed, I saw this come to pass: There was a tree in the midst of the land, and its height was great.
- Matt 25:31When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, He will sit on His glorious throne.
- Rev 14:10he too will drink the wine of God’s anger, poured undiluted into the cup of His wrath. And he will be tormented in fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb.
- Dan 7:23This is what he said: ‘The fourth beast is a fourth kingdom that will appear on the earth, different from all the other kingdoms, and it will devour the whole earth, trample it down, and crush it.
- Ps 103:20Bless the LORD, all His angels mighty in strength who carry out His word, who hearken to the voice of His command.
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Christ at the center
Daniel sees the stone cut without hands that shatters the kingdoms, and 'one like a son of man' given everlasting dominion — titles and visions Jesus claims as his own.
How Daniel 4:13 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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