[4] Nebuchadnezzar II, King of Babylon, addresses a letter "to all peoples, nations and languages that live throughout the earth" telling them he will recount the "signs and wonders" that the Most High God has worked for me."

As the king watched he saw a "holy watcher" come from heaven and call for the tree to be cut down and his human mind changed to that of a beast for seven "times".

This sentence "is rendered by decree of the watchers ... in order that all who live may know that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdom of mortals..." Daniel is initially troubled, and he is reassured by the king.

The letter concludes with Nebuchadnezzar's praise of God, for "all his works are truth, and his ways are justice, and he is able to bring low those who walk in pride".

[1] Modern scholarship agrees that Daniel is a legendary figure;[6] it is possible that this name was chosen for the hero of the book because of his reputation as a wise seer in Hebrew tradition.

[7] The chapter opens with an introduction typical of Aramaic letters of the post-exilic period ("King Nebuchadnezzar to all peoples, nations and languages...May you have abundant peace!").

Told in the first person by King Nabonidus of Babylon (reigned 556–539 BCE), it tells how he was smitten by an inflammation for seven years while in the oasis-city of Tayma, in north-western Arabia, and how a Jewish seer explains to him that this is because he is an idol-worshiper.

The metaphor then switches to depict Nebuchadnezzar as a beast dependent on grace for its survival until he learns humility before God.

"[17]The "time" during which Daniel was troubled is expressed as "an hour" in the King James Version, but English commentator Samuel Driver records the doubts of many as to "whether shâ‘âh is meant here to denote exactly what we call an 'hour'" and commends "a moment" as a better translation.

[19]Biblical scholar Philip R. Davies notes that the restoration of Nebuchadnezzar comes "when the king 'lifts his eyes' and his reason returns; also 'when the period was over' exactly!