Daniel 4:12

“The leaves thereof were fair, etc.] Or “branches”f152, as some; and design either the provinces belonging to his empire, which were very large and flourishing; or the governors of them under him, as Saadiah, who made no small and contemptible figure; his princes were altogether kings: and the fruit thereof much; great revenues from all parts of the empire were brought to him: and in it was meat for all; the produce of the several countries, and the trade carried on in them, brought in a sufficient livelihood to all the inhabitants: the beasts of the field had shadow under it; the inhabitants of the several Heathenish nations under him, and even those that were most savage, were protected in…”

“beasts . . . shadow under it--implying that God's purpose in establishing empires in the world is that they may be as trees affording men "fruits" for "meat," and a "shadow" for "rest" (compare Lam 4:20). But the world powers abuse their trust for self; therefore Messiah comes to plant the tree of His gospel kingdom, which alone shall realize God's purpose (Eze 17:23; Mat 13:32). HERODOTUS [7.19] mentions a dream (probably suggested by the tradition of this dream of Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel) which Xerxes had; namely, that he was crowned with olive, and that the branches of the olive filled the whole earth, but that afterwards the crown vanished from his head: signifying his universal…”

“The leaves thereof were fair - Were beautiful. That is, they were abundant, and green, and there were no signs of decay. Everything indicated a vigorous and healthy growth - a tree in its full beauty and majesty - a striking emblem of a monarch in his glory. And the fruit thereof much - It was loaded with fruit - showing that the tree was in its full vigour. And in it was meat for all - Food for all, for so the word meat was formerly used. This would indicate the dependence of the multitudes on him whom the tree represented, and would also denote that he was a liberal dispenser of his favors. The beasts of the field had shadow under it - Found a grateful shade under it in the burning heat of…”

“the beasts: Jer 27:6, Jer 27:7; Eze 17:23, Eze 31:6 shadow: Lam 4:20 the fowls: Mar 13:32; Luk 13:19 Daniel 4:13”

“(4:9) At the same time the tree abounded with leaves and fruit, so that birds and beasts found shadow, protection, and nourishment from it. שׁגיא, neither great nor many, but powerful, expressing the quantity and the greatness of the fruit. The בּהּ the Masoretes have rightly connected with לכלּא, to which it is joined by Maqqeph. The meaning is not: food was in it, the tree had food for all (Hv., Maur., and others), but: (it had) food for all in it, i.e., dwelling within its district (Kran., Klief.). The words, besides, do not form an independent sentence, but are only a further view of the שׁגיא (Kran.), and return in the end of the verse into further expansion, while the first and the…”