“Hew down the tree. . . leave the stump of his roots in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass . . . let a beast’s heart be given unto him; and let seven times pass over him” – Daniel 4:14- 16

This text comes from a dream of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon. Many things occur in dreams which are impossible in reality. That was true in this dream. Nebuchadnezzar saw a great tree which sheltered and nourished all the beasts of earth and fowl of heaven. “The height thereof reached unto heaven, and the sight thereof to the end of all the earth.” Suddenly this majestic tree was ordered of the angels to be hewn down, but to leave the “stump of his roots in the earth, . . . with a band of iron and brass.” (Dan. 4:10-15) The scene changed, and the tree became a man given over to the life of a beast. “Wet with the dew of heaven . . . 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.” (Vs. 15, 16)

FIRST INTERPRETATION

The prophet Daniel gives us dream’s immediate interpretation. The tree represented Nebuchadnezzar as king of the empire. His authority was cut down and he wandered insane as an animal for “7 times.”

But his reason and kingdom were subsequently restored. That his dominion was to return had been shown by the stump of the tree remaining in the earth. It was circled with iron and brass bands, suggesting that at some time the hands might be loosed, and the stump sprout again. “For these is the hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that the tender branch thereof will not cease.” (Job 14:7)

DEEPER MEANING

But the dream was recorded to inform us of affairs more important than Nebuchadnezzar’s period of insanity. We have long seen it to foretell 7 prophet times of 360 years each, when the beastly governments (lion, bear, leopard and “dreadful” beast of Daniel 7) would subordinate God’s typical kingdom, Israel. These “7 times” of gentile rule parallel the “7 times” of Israel’s national punishment spoken of in Leviticus 26: “I will punish you seven times more for your sins.” (Vs. 18) This was from 607 BC to 1914 AD, when the incoming actual kingdom of Christ began the disruption of the gentiles and the restoring of Israel’s nationhood. A comparison of Lev. 26:31-34 with 2 Chron. 36:17-21 shows that Israel’s 7 times of punishment began with their subjection to Babylon.

“7 TIMES” – 4 TIMES

An intriguing feature of both Daniel 4 and Leviticus 26 is that the warning of “7 times” appears exactly 4 times. (Daniel 4:16,23,25,32, Leviticus 26:18,21,24,28) This in itself forms another link between the two passages supporting the conclusion that they do refer to the same period. It is valuable at least for that.

But is there any special reason why it appears four times? This is the kind of question that we often cannot answer. But in this case we have a suggestion. We think it infers there are four intended applications of the 7 times. These are upon:

1. Nebuchadnezzar personally (7 X 1 year?)
2. Israel during 70 of bondage to Babylon (7 X 10 years)
3. Israel in bondage to Gentile power for 2520 years, 607 BC-1914 AD (7 X 360 years)
4. Mankind, who forfeited their dominion for 7000 years (7 X 1000 years)(1)is evident. Daniel gave us that interpretation. (3) and (4) are discussed in Volume 2, chapter IV (Footnote – That chapter does suggest a correlation between Adam and Nebuchadnezzar (pg. 96). It does not suggest the 7000 year period as a fulfillment of the 7 times, nor equate the tree with Israel’s sovereignty.) We add (2), and suggest the 70 years of servitude to Babylon (the “head,” representative of the entire image) was itself a small picture of the entire 7 x 360 years of the gentiles.

The dream showed a tree being cut down – a dominion lost. Each of these interpretations includes a lost dominion, and the hope of its restoration after the 7 times. The dominions lost in each case:

1. Nebuchadnezzar’s
2. Israel’s independent statehood lost to
3. Israel’s national independence lost to 4 world
4. The dominion of earth possessed by mankind in Adam

A CLOSER LOOK AT (2) & (3)

These 2 views are intimately related because they both refer to Israel. In fact, as before stated, (2) is a small model of (3). The subjection of Israel to the head of gold (Babylon) was the representative of the longer subjection to the entire gentile image.

In support of this note part of the prophecy against Israel in Leviticus. “. . . seven times . . . and I will break the pride of your power, (Footnote – Cf. Lam. 2:3,17. Power is symbolized by a horn. Lam. 2:3,17 seems to record the fulfillment of this Leviticus expression.) And I will make your heaven as iron, and your earth as brass.” (Lev. 26:18,19) (Deut. 28:23 reverses this: “thy heaven . . shall be brass, and the earth shall be iron.”)

This refers to the governmental forces which would subordinate Israel. They appear as the iron and brass bands around the tree stump (Dan. 4:15) to restrain growth. The breaking of these bands means the end of the 7 times, and Isaiah 45:1,2 prophesies of that breaking. “Thus saith the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden to subdue nations before him; . . .I will go before thee, . . . I will break in pieces the gates of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron.”

This speaks of the overthrow of Babylon by Cyrus. The cutting asunder of the restraining iron and brass led directly to the return of Israel to their land. But in the fuller and larger application

Cyrus is a type of Christ, God’s true “anointed.” He subdues the gentile image, freeing Israel in a greater sense from the restraints of “iron and brass” that they might sprout as an independent nation again. Those bands began to be broken in World War 1.

Psalms 107:11,16 refers to this. For Israel who had “rebelled against the words of God, and condemned the counsel of the most High,” the Lord breaks “the gates of brass, and cut[s] the bars of iron in sunder.” The brass and iron remind us of the metallic image.

WHAT IS A “TIME”?

 We are using a “time” variously in the 4 applications of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. We think this is justifiable. Prophetic teachings often encompass different but not contradictory applications.

E.g., notice how differently the famous prophecy of Isa. 7:14 was fulfilled in the case of Isaiah’s son and Jesus. (Isa. 8:3, Matt. 1:23) In this way God teaches several things with a few prophecies. Often this permits a lesser fulfillment to further illustrate a fuller and grander one. This is so in Malachi’s prophecy of Elijah. John the Baptist was a fulfillment, and in turn was himself typical of the greater fulfillment, the Church. Psalms 2:1-5 is another prophecy which clearly has two fulfillments.

Of course the primary meaning of a “time” is that carried most consistently in Scripture. It is a period of 360 years. This is gathered from Rev. 11:2-3, 12:6,14, 13:5 which refer to the same period as “[1] time [symbolic year] [2] times, and a half a time” (3 1/2), 42 months, and 1260 days. Using 30 days per month all are identical. Using the day-for-a-year reckoning of Ezek. 4:4,6 and Numbers 14:34, one “time” = 360 years.

ADDITIONAL TECHNICAL INFORMATION

 There are two manuscript words used for “time(s)” in Daniel. Strong’s 5732, iddan, Dan. 2:21, 4:16,23,25,32, 7:25. Strong’s 4150, mowed, Dan. 12:7. Since the last two scriptures refer to the same period (3 1/2 times) it seems either word can be used for the prophetic time of 360 years.

In Leviticus 26th chapter there is no direct Hebrew word for “times.” It is supplied; or perhaps more correctly, inferred by the use of “seven.” “I will chastise you seven [seven what?] for your sins.” (Lev. 26:28) Various translations of this: “seven times” (AV, ASV, Lamsa, Smith, NASB, Rotherham), “seven (times)” (Green), “sevenfold” (Leeser).

The fact that in Daniel different words are used helps us see that a specific word is not required in Leviticus. The concept of a seven-segment, “sevenfold,” or seven-staged punishment is sufficient to suggest a punishment of 7 prophetic times. Relating Moses’ prophecy to the dream in Daniel 4 fortifies the conclusion.

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