5:1 Baltasar the king made a great supper
for his thousand nobles, and [there was] wine before the thousand.
5:2 And Baltasar drinking gave orders as he tasted the wine that they should
bring the gold and silver vessels, which Nabuchodonosor his father had
brought forth fro the temple in Jerusalem; that the king, and his nobles,
and his mistresses, and his concubines, should drink out of them.
5:3 So the gold and silver vessels were brought which [Nabuchodonosor] had
taken out of the temple of God in Jerusalem; and the king, and his nobles,
and his mistresses, and his concubines, drank out of them.
5:4 They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, and of
brass, and of iron, and of wood, and of stone.
5:5 In the same hour came forth fingers of a man's hand, and wrote in front
of the lamp on the plaster of the wall of the king's house: and the king saw
the knuckles of the hand that wrote.
5:6 Then the king's countenance changed, and his thoughts troubled him, and
the joints of his loins were loosed, and his knees smote one another.
5:7 And the king cried aloud to bring in the magicians, Chaldeans, [and]
soothsayers; and he said to the wise men of Babylon, Whosoever shall read
this writing, and make known to me the interpretation, shall be clothed with
scarlet, and [there shall be] a golden chain upon his neck, and he shall be
the third ruler in my kingdom.
5:8 Then came in all the king's wise men: but they could not read the
writing, nor make known the interpretation to the king.
5:9 And king Baltasar was troubled, and his countenance changed upon him,
and his nobles were troubled with him.
5:10 Then the queen came into the banquet house, and said, O king, live for
ever: let not thy thoughts trouble thee, and let not thy countenance be
changed.
5:11 There is a man in thy kingdom, in whom is the Spirit of God; and in the
days of thy father watchfulness and understanding were found in him; and
king Nabuchodonosor thy father made him chief of the enchanters, magicians,
Chaldeans, [and] soothsayers.
5:12 For [there is] an excellent spirit in him, and sense and understanding
in him, interpreting dreams [as he does], and answering hard [questions],
and solving difficulties: [it is] Daniel, and the king gave him the name of
Baltasar: now then let him be called, and he shall tell thee the
interpretation of the writing.
5:13 Then Daniel was brought in before the king: and the king said to
Daniel, Art thou Daniel, of the children of the captivity of Judea, which
the king my father brought?
5:14 I have heard concerning thee, that the Spirit of God is in thee, and
[that] watchfulness and understanding and excellent wisdom have been found
in thee.
5:15 And now, the wise men, magicians, [and] soothsayers, have come in
before me, to read the writing, and make known to me the interpretation: but
they could not tell it me.
5:16 And I have heard concerning thee, that thou art able to make
interpretations: now then if thou shalt be able to read the writing, and to
make known to me the interpretation of it, thou shalt be clothed with
purple, and there shall be a golden chain upon thy neck, and thou shalt be
third ruler in my kingdom.
5:17 And Daniel said, before the king, Let thy gifts be to thyself, and give
the present of thine house to another; but I will read the writing, and will
make known to thee the interpretation of it.
5:18 O king, the most high God gave to thy father Nabuchodonosor a kingdom,
and majesty, and honour, and glory:
5:19 and by reason of the majesty which he gave to him, all nations, tribes,
[and] languages trembled and feared before him: whom he would he slew; and
whom he would he smote; and whom he would he exalted; and whom he would he
abased.
5:20 But when his heart was lifted up, and his spirit was emboldened to act
proudly, he was deposed from his royal throne, and [his] honour was taken
from him.
5:21 And he was driven forth from men; and his heart was given him after the
nature of wild beasts, and his dwelling was with the wild asses; and they
fed him with grass as an ox, and his body was bathed with the dew of heaven;
until he knew that the most high God is Lord of the kingdom of men, and will
give it to whomsoever he shall please.
5:22 And thou accordingly, his son, O Baltasar, has not humbled thine heart
before God: knowest thou not all this?
5:23 And thou ha been exalted against the Lord God of heaven; and they have
brought before thee the vessels of his house, and thou, and thy nobles, and
thy mistresses, and thy concubines, have drunk wine out of them; and thou
has praised the gods of gold, and silver, and brass, and iron, and wood, and
stone, which see not, and which hear not, and know not: and the God in whose
hand are thy breath, and all thy ways has thou not glorified.
5:24 Therefore from his presence has been sent forth the knuckle of a hand;
and he has ordered the writing.
5:25 And this is the ordered writing, Mane, Thekel, Phares.
5:26 This is the interpretation of the sentence: Mane; God has measured thy
kingdom, and finished it.
5:27 Thekel; it has been weighed in the balance, and found wanting.
5:28 Phares; thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians.
5:29 Then Baltasar commanded, and they clothed Daniel with scarlet, and put
the golden chain about his neck, and proclaimed concerning him that he was
the third ruler in the kingdom.
5:30 In the same night was Baltasar the Chaldean king slain.
5:31 And Darius the Mede succeeded to the kingdom, being sixty-two years
[old]. |
5:1 Belshazzar the king made a great feast
to a thousand of his lords, and drank wine before the thousand.
5:2 Belshazzar, whiles he tasted the wine, commanded to bring the golden and
silver vessels which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple
which was in Jerusalem; that the king, and his princes, his wives, and his
concubines, might drink therein.
5:3 Then they brought the golden vessels that were taken out of the temple
of the house of God which was at Jerusalem; and the king, and his princes,
his wives, and his concubines, drank in them.
5:4 They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass,
of iron, of wood, and of stone.
5:5 In the same hour came forth fingers of a man's hand, and wrote over
against the candlestick upon the plaister of the wall of the king's palace:
and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote.
5:6 Then the king's countenance was changed, and his thoughts troubled him,
so that the joints of his loins were loosed, and his knees smote one against
another.
5:7 The king cried aloud to bring in the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the
soothsayers. And the king spake, and said to the wise men of Babylon,
Whosoever shall read this writing, and shew me the interpretation thereof,
shall be clothed with scarlet, and have a chain of gold about his neck, and
shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.
5:8 Then came in all the king's wise men: but they could not read the
writing, nor make known to the king the interpretation thereof.
5:9 Then was king Belshazzar greatly troubled, and his countenance was
changed in him, and his lords were astonied.
5:10 Now the queen by reason of the words of the king and his lords came
into the banquet house: and the queen spake and said, O king, live for ever:
let not thy thoughts trouble thee, nor let thy countenance be changed:
5:11 There is a man in thy kingdom, in whom is the spirit of the holy gods;
and in the days of thy father light and understanding and wisdom, like the
wisdom of the gods, was found in him; whom the king Nebuchadnezzar thy
father, the king, I say, thy father, made master of the magicians,
astrologers, Chaldeans, and soothsayers;
5:12 Forasmuch as an excellent spirit, and knowledge, and understanding,
interpreting of dreams, and shewing of hard sentences, and dissolving of
doubts, were found in the same Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar: now
let Daniel be called, and he will shew the interpretation.
5:13 Then was Daniel brought in before the king. And the king spake and said
unto Daniel, Art thou that Daniel, which art of the children of the
captivity of Judah, whom the king my father brought out of Jewry?
5:14 I have even heard of thee, that the spirit of the gods is in thee, and
that light and understanding and excellent wisdom is found in thee.
5:15 And now the wise men, the astrologers, have been brought in before me,
that they should read this writing, and make known unto me the
interpretation thereof: but they could not shew the interpretation of the
thing:
5:16 And I have heard of thee, that thou canst make interpretations, and
dissolve doubts: now if thou canst read the writing, and make known to me
the interpretation thereof, thou shalt be clothed with scarlet, and have a
chain of gold about thy neck, and shalt be the third ruler in the kingdom.
5:17 Then Daniel answered and said before the king, Let thy gifts be to
thyself, and give thy rewards to another; yet I will read the writing unto
the king, and make known to him the interpretation.
5:18 O thou king, the most high God gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father a
kingdom, and majesty, and glory, and honour:
5:19 And for the majesty that he gave him, all people, nations, and
languages, trembled and feared before him: whom he would he slew; and whom
he would he kept alive; and whom he would he set up; and whom he would he
put down.
5:20 But when his heart was lifted up, and his mind hardened in pride, he
was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took his glory from him:
5:21 And he was driven from the sons of men; and his heart was made like the
beasts, and his dwelling was with the wild asses: they fed him with grass
like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven; till he knew that
the most high God ruled in the kingdom of men, and that he appointeth over
it whomsoever he will.
5:22 And thou his son, O Belshazzar, hast not humbled thine heart, though
thou knewest all this;
5:23 But hast lifted up thyself against the Lord of heaven; and they have
brought the vessels of his house before thee, and thou, and thy lords, thy
wives, and thy concubines, have drunk wine in them; and thou hast praised
the gods of silver, and gold, of brass, iron, wood, and stone, which see
not, nor hear, nor know: and the God in whose hand thy breath is, and whose
are all thy ways, hast thou not glorified:
5:24 Then was the part of the hand sent from him; and this writing was
written.
5:25 And this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.
5:26 This is the interpretation of the thing: MENE; God hath numbered thy
kingdom, and finished it.
5:27 TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting.
5:28 PERES; Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians.
5:29 Then commanded Belshazzar, and they clothed Daniel with scarlet, and
put a chain of gold about his neck, and made a proclamation concerning him,
that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom.
5:30 In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain.
5:31 And Darius the Median took the kingdom, being about threescore and two
years old. |