Daniel 5:1-10

1 Belshatzar the king gave a great banquet for a thousand of his lords, and in the presence of the thousand he was drinking wine.

2 While tasting the wine, Belshatzar ordered that the gold and silver vessels which his father N'vukhadnetzar had removed from the temple in Yerushalayim be brought; so that the king, his lords, his wives and his concubines could drink from them.

3 So they brought the gold vessels which had been removed from the sanctuary of the house of God in Yerushalayim; and the king, his lords, his wives and his concubines drank from them.

4 They drank their wine and praised their gods made of gold, silver, bronze, iron, wood and stone.

5 Suddenly, the fingers of a human hand appeared and began writing on the plaster of the palace wall by the lampstand. When the king saw the palm of the hand that was writing,

6 the king's face took on a different look. As frightening thoughts rose up within him, his hip joints gave way and his knees started knocking together.

7 The king cried out to bring in the exorcists, astrologers and diviners. The king said to the sages of Bavel, "Whoever can read this inscription and tell me what it means will be dressed in royal purple, wear a gold chain around his neck and be one of the three men ruling the kingdom."

8 But although all the king's sages came in, none could read the inscription or tell the king what it meant.

9 Then King Belshatzar became terrified; his face turned pale, and his lords were thrown into confusion.

10 At this point the queen mother, because of what the king and his lords were saying, entered the banquet hall. The queen mother said, "May the king live forever! Don't be scared by your thoughts or let your face be so pale.

Daniel 5:1-10 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO DANIEL 5

This chapter gives an account of a feast made by King Belshazzar, attended with drunkenness, idolatry, and profanation of the vessels taken out of the temple at Jerusalem, Da 5:1-4, and of the displeasure of God, signified by a handwriting on the wall, which terrified the king, and caused him to send in haste for the astrologers to read and interpret it, but they could not, Da 5:5-8, in this distress, which appeared in the countenances of him and his nobles, the queen mother advises him to send for Daniel, of whom she gives a great encomium, Da 5:9-12, upon which he was brought in to the king, and promised a great reward to read and interpret the writing; the reward he slighted, but promised to read and interpret the writing, Da 5:13-17 and after putting him in mind of what had befallen his grandfather Nebuchadnezzar, and charging him with pride, idolatry, and profanation of the vessels of the Lord, Da 5:18-23 reads and interprets the writing to him Da 5:24-28, when he had honour done him, and was preferred in the government, Da 5:29 and the chapter is concluded with an account of the immediate accomplishment of ancient prophecies, and of this handwriting, in the slaying of the king of Babylon, in the dissolution of the Babylonish monarchy, and the possession of it by Darius the Mede, Da 5:30,31.