Daniel 2 · Verse 38

Daniel 2:38

And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou art this head of gold.
Daniel 2:38, King James Version

Daniel 2:38 in other translations

BSBWherever the sons of men or beasts of the field or birds of the air dwell, He has given them into your hand and has made you ruler over them all. You are that head of gold.
WEBWherever the children of men dwell, he has given the animals of the field and the birds of the sky into your hand, and has made you rule over them all. You are the head of gold.
ASVand wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the birds of the heavens hath he given into thy hand, and hath made thee to rule over them all: thou art the head of gold.
YLTand whithersoever sons of men are dwelling, the beast of the field, and the fowl of the heavens, He hath given into thy hand, and hath caused thee to rule over them all; thou art this head of gold.
DARBYand wheresoever the children of men, the beasts of the field, and the fowl of the heavens dwell, he hath given them into thy hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all: thou art this head of gold.
BBEWherever the children of men are living; into whose hands he has given the beasts of the field and the birds of heaven, and has made you ruler over them all, you are the head of gold.
WebsterAnd wherever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thy hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou art this head of gold.

What does Daniel 2:38 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
38. men ... beasts ... fowls--the dominion originally designed for man (Ge 1:28; 2:19, 20), forfeited by sin; temporarily delegated to Nebuchadnezzar and the world powers; but, as they abuse the trust for self, instead of for God, to be taken from them by the Son of man, who will exercise it for God, restoring in His person to man the lost inheritance (Psa 8:4-6). Thou art ... head of gold--alluding to the riches of Babylon, hence called "the golden city" (Is 14:4; Jr 51:7; Re 18:16).

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 38 Thou art this head of gold - See on Dan 2:31-34 (note), and at the end.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Daniel 2:31-45

This image represented the kingdoms of the earth, that should successively rule the nations, and influence the affairs of the Jewish church. 1. The head of gold signified the Chaldean empire, then in being. 2. The breast and arms of silver signified the empire of the Medes and Persians. 3. The belly and thighs of brass signified the Grecian empire, founded by Alexander. 4. The legs and feet of iron signified the…

Read the full comment on Daniel 2:31-45 →

Daniel 2:38 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וּבְכָל\־u.ve.Khol-and over allH3606
דִּ֣יdithatH1768
דָֽיְרִ֣יןda.'a.rin[are] dwellingH1753
בְּֽנֵי\־be.nei-[the] sons ofH1247
אֲ֠נָשָׁא'A.na.sha'<the> humankindH606
חֵיוַ֨תchei.Vat[the] animal[s] ofH2423
בָּרָ֤אba.Ra'field theH1251
וְעוֹף\־ve.'of-and [the] bird[s] ofH5776
שְׁמַיָּא֙she.mai.Ya'heavens theH8065
יְהַ֣בye.Havhe has givenH3052
בִּידָ֔ךְbi.Dakhin hand yourH3028
וְהַשְׁלְטָ֖ךְve.hash.le.Takhand he has made ruler youH7981
בְּכָלְּה֑וֹןbe.kha.le.Honover all of themH3606
אַנְתְּ'an.tahyouH607
ה֔וּאHu'[are] itH1932
רֵאשָׁ֖הre.Shah'head theH7217
דִּ֥יdiofH1768
דַהֲבָֽא\׃da.ha.Va'<the> goldH1722

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Daniel 2:38

  • Daniel 4:21-22

    Whose leaves were fair, and the fruit thereof much, and in it was meat for all; under which the beasts of the field dwelt, and upon whose branches the fowls of the heaven had their habitation: It is thou, O king, that art grown and become strong: for thy greatness is grown, and reacheth unto heaven, and thy dominion to the end of the earth.

  • Psalms 50:10-11

    For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine.

  • Jeremiah 27:5-7

    I have made the earth, the man and the beast that are upon the ground, by my great power and by my outstretched arm, and have given it unto whom it seemed meet unto me. And now have I given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant; and the beasts of the field have I given him also to serve him. And all nations shall serve him, and his son, and his son’s son, until the very time of his land come: and then many nations and great kings shall serve themselves of him.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
the beasts.
4:21,22; Ps 50:10,11; Jer 27:5-7
Thou art.The Chaldean monarchy, over which Nebuchadnezzar was the only king of note; in whose time it extended over Chaldea, Assyria, Arabia, Syria, Egypt, and Libya: the head of gold represented its immense riches.
32

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Daniel 2:37

    Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory.

  • Daniel 2:38

    And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou art this head of gold.

  • Daniel 2:39

    And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth.

Read all of Daniel 2

Daniel 2:38 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Y todo lo que habitan hijos de hombres, bestias del campo, y aves del cielo, él ha entregado en tu mano, y te ha hecho enseñorear sobre todo ello: tú eres aquella cabeza de oro.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		et partout où habitent les fils des hommes, les bêtes des champs et les oiseaux des cieux, il les a mis entre tes mains et t’a fait dominer sur eux tous. Toi, tu es cette tête d’or.
German
Elberfelder 1871		und überall, wo Menschenkinder, Tiere des Feldes und Vögel des Himmels wohnen, hat er sie in deine Hand gegeben und dich zum Herrscher über sie alle gesetzt-du bist das Haupt von Gold.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		et omnia, in quibus habitant filii hominum, et bestiæ agri: volucres quoque cæli dedit in manu tua, et sub ditione tua universa constituit: tu es ergo caput aureum.