“But at the last Daniel came in before me, whose name was Belteshazzar, according to the name of my god, and in whom is the spirit of the holy gods: and before him I told the dream, saying,”
The dream begins: Thus were the visions of my head as I lay in bed: I saw, and behold, a tree in the midst of the earth; and its height was great. The tree appears in the center of the earth, emphasizing its cosmic significance. Its great height suggests majesty and dominance, comparable to the great statue in chapter 2. Yet the tree differs fundamentally from the statue: trees grow and change, whereas statues are fixed and permanent. The tree's growth may foreshadow the dream's central narrative: a flourishing tree that will be cut down and transformed. The image of a single great tree standing in the center of the earth evokes various Near Eastern mythologies where a great tree connects heaven and earth, or stands as a symbol of cosmic order and royal power.
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