For seven periods of time, let him have the mind of a wild animal instead of the mind of a human.
Parallel translations
- WEB let his heart be changed from man’s, and let an animal’s heart be given to him; and let seven times pass over him.
- KJV 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.
- BSB Let his mind be changed from that of a man, and let him be given the mind of a beast till seven times pass him by.
- NKJV Let his heart be changed from that of a man, Let him be given the heart of a beast, And let seven times pass over him.
- NASB “Let his mind change from that of a human And let an animal’s mind be given to him, And let seven periods of time pass over him.
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
The figure's mind is to become like an animal's for "seven times." The king will be humbled to a beast-like state for a set period.
Overview
The loss of a human mind depicts the depth of Nebuchadnezzar's coming humiliation, stripped of the reason that made him proud. The "seven times" marks a divinely measured, limited duration. The judgment fits the offense: the man who exalted himself above God is reduced below the dignity of a man until he learns the truth.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Dan 4:23Whereas the king saw a watcher and a holy one coming down from the sky, and saying, Cut down the tree, and destroy it; 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 the sky: and let his portion be with the animals of the field, until seven times pass over him;
- Rev 12:14Two wings of the great eagle were given to the woman, that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, so that she might be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.
- Isa 6:10Make the heart of this people fat. Make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and turn again, and be healed.”
- Dan 4:25that you shall be driven from men, and your dwelling shall be with the animals of the field, and you shall be made to eat grass as oxen, and shall be wet with the dew of the sky, and seven times shall pass over you; until you know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever he will.
- Heb 1:11They will perish, but you continue. They all will grow old like a garment does.
- Dan 11:13The king of the north shall return, and shall send out a multitude greater than the former; and he shall come on at the end of the times, even of years, with a great army and with much substance.
- Luke 8:27–29When Jesus stepped ashore, a certain man out of the city who had demons for a long time met him. He wore no clothes, and didn’t live in a house, but in the tombs.
- Dan 4:31–33While the word was in the king’s mouth, a voice came from the sky, saying, “O king Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: The kingdom has departed from you.
- Dan 7:25He shall speak words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High; and he shall think to change the times and the law; and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and half a time.
- Mark 5:4–5because he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been torn apart by him, and the fetters broken in pieces. Nobody had the strength to tame him.
- Dan 12:7I heard the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand to heaven, and swore by him who lives forever that it shall be for a time, times, and a half; and when they have finished breaking in pieces the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished.
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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 4:16 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
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.