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Daniel 5 :: New American Standard Bible 1995 (NASB95)

Belshazzar's Feast

Dan 5:1

Dan 5:1Belshazzar the king [fn]held a great feast for a thousand of his nobles, and he was drinking wine in the presence of the thousand.

Dan 5:2

Dan 5:2When Belshazzar tasted the wine, he gave orders to bring the gold and silver vessels which Nebuchadnezzar his [fn]father had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem, so that the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines might drink from them.

Dan 5:3

Dan 5:3Then they brought the gold vessels that had been taken out of the temple, the house of God which was in Jerusalem; and the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines drank from them.

Dan 5:4

Dan 5:4They drank the wine and praised the gods of gold and silver, of bronze, iron, wood and stone.

Dan 5:5

Dan 5:5Suddenly the fingers of a man’s hand emerged and began writing opposite the lampstand on the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace, and the king saw the [fn]back of the hand that did the writing.

Dan 5:6

Dan 5:6Then the king’s [fn]face grew pale and his thoughts alarmed him, and his hip joints went slack and his knees began knocking together.

Dan 5:7

Dan 5:7The king called aloud to bring in the conjurers, the [fn]Chaldeans and the diviners. The king spoke and said to the wise men of Babylon, “Any man who can read this inscription and explain its interpretation to me shall be clothed with purple and have a necklace of gold around his neck, and have authority as [fn]third ruler in the kingdom.”

Dan 5:8

Dan 5:8Then all the king’s wise men came in, but they could not read the inscription or make known its interpretation to the king.

Dan 5:9

Dan 5:9Then King Belshazzar was greatly alarmed, his [fn]face grew even paler, and his nobles were perplexed.

Dan 5:10

Dan 5:10The queen entered the banquet [fn]hall because of the words of the king and his nobles; the queen spoke and said, “O king, live forever! Do not let your thoughts alarm you or your [fn]face be pale.

Dan 5:11

Dan 5:11“There is a man in your kingdom in whom is [fn]a spirit of the holy gods; and in the days of your father, illumination, insight and wisdom like the wisdom of the gods were found in him. And King Nebuchadnezzar, your father, your father [fn]the king, appointed him chief of the [fn]magicians, conjurers, [fn]Chaldeans and diviners.

Dan 5:12

Dan 5:12“This was because an extraordinary spirit, knowledge and insight, interpretation of dreams, explanation of enigmas and solving of difficult problems were found in this Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar. Let Daniel now be summoned and he will declare the interpretation.”

Daniel Interprets Handwriting on the Wall

Dan 5:13

Dan 5:13Then Daniel was brought in before the king. The king spoke and said to Daniel, “Are you that Daniel who is one of the [fn]exiles from Judah, whom my father the king brought from Judah?

Dan 5:14

Dan 5:14“Now I have heard about you that [fn]a spirit of the gods is in you, and that illumination, insight and extraordinary wisdom have been found in you.

Dan 5:15

Dan 5:15“Just now the wise men and the conjurers were brought in before me that they might read this inscription and make its interpretation known to me, but they could not declare the interpretation of the [fn]message.

Dan 5:16

Dan 5:16“But I personally have heard about you, that you are able to give interpretations and solve difficult problems. Now if you are able to read the inscription and make its interpretation known to me, you will be clothed with purple and wear a necklace of gold around your neck, and you will have authority as the [fn]third ruler in the kingdom.”

Dan 5:17

Dan 5:17Then Daniel answered and said before the king, “[fn]Keep your gifts for yourself or give your rewards to someone else; however, I will read the inscription to the king and make the interpretation known to him.

Dan 5:18

Dan 5:18“[fn]O king, the Most High God granted [fn]sovereignty, grandeur, glory and majesty to Nebuchadnezzar your father.

Dan 5:19

Dan 5:19“Because of the grandeur which He bestowed on him, all the peoples, nations and men of every [fn]language feared and trembled before him; whomever he wished he killed and whomever he wished he spared alive; and whomever he wished he elevated and whomever he wished he humbled.

Dan 5:20

Dan 5:20“But when his heart was lifted up and his spirit became so [fn]proud that he behaved arrogantly, he was deposed from his royal throne and his glory was taken away from him.

Dan 5:21

Dan 5:21“He was also driven away from [fn]mankind, and his heart was made like that of beasts, and his dwelling place was with the wild donkeys. He was given grass to eat like cattle, and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven until he recognized that the Most High God is ruler over the realm of mankind and that He sets over it whomever He wishes.

Dan 5:22

Dan 5:22“Yet you, his [fn]son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, [fn]even though you knew all this,

Dan 5:23

Dan 5:23but you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven; and they have brought the vessels of His house before you, and you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines have been drinking wine from them; and you have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which do not see, hear or understand. But the God in whose hand are your life-breath and all your ways, you have not glorified.

Dan 5:24

Dan 5:24“Then the [fn]hand was sent from Him and this inscription was written out.

Dan 5:25

Dan 5:25“Now this is the inscription that was written out: ‘[fn]MENE, [fn]MENE, [fn]TEKEL, [fn]UPHARSIN.’

Dan 5:26

Dan 5:26“This is the interpretation of the [fn]message: ‘MENE’—God has numbered your kingdom and put an end to it.

Dan 5:27

Dan 5:27“ ‘TEKEL’—you have been weighed on the scales and found deficient.

Dan 5:28

Dan 5:28“ ‘PERES’—your kingdom has been divided and given over to the Medes and [fn]Persians.”

Dan 5:29

Dan 5:29Then Belshazzar gave orders, and they clothed Daniel with purple and put a necklace of gold around his neck, and issued a proclamation concerning him that he now had authority as the [fn]third ruler in the kingdom.

Dan 5:30

Dan 5:30That same night Belshazzar the Chaldean king was slain.

Dan 5:31

Dan 5:31[fn]So Darius the Mede received the kingdom at about the age of sixty-two.
See the NASB95 Preface (Especially for Parenthesis, Brackets, & Asterisks).
NASB95 Footnotes
Literally: made
Or, forefather, and so throughout the chapter
Or, palm
Literally: brightness changed for him
Or, master astrologers
Or, a triumvir
Literally: brightness was changing upon him
Literally: house
Literally: brightness be changed
Or, possibly the Spirit of the holy God
Or, O king
Or, soothsayer priests
Or, master astrologers
Literally: sons of the exile
Or, possibly the Spirit of God
Literally: word
Or, triumvir
Literally: Let...be for
Literally: You, O king
Or, the kingdom
Literally: tongue
Literally: strong
Literally: the sons of man
Or, descendant
Literally: inasmuch as you
Literally: palm of the hand
Or, a mina (50 shekels) from verb ``to number"
Or, a shekel from verb ``to weigh"
Or, and half-shekels (sing: peres) from verb ``to divide"
Literally: word
Aram: Pa
LB>ras
Or, triumvir
Ch 6:1 in Aram
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New American Standard Bible 1995
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by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif.
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For Permission To Quote visit http://www.lockman.org

For more information on this translation, see the NASB95 Preface.

Daniel Chapter 5 — Additional Translations:

King James Version New King James Version New Living Translation New International Version English Standard Version Christian Standard Bible New American Standard Bible 2020 Legacy Standard Bible Amplified Bible New English Translation Revised Standard Version American Standard Version Young's Literal Translation Darby Translation Webster's Bible Hebrew Names Version Latin Vulgate Westminster Leningrad Codex Septuagint Smith Van Dyck Arabic Bible Open New Arabic Version Brenton's English Septuagint Reina Valera 1909 Reina-Valera 1960 Bible in Basic English Chinese Traditional Union Espanol Moderno Korean Holy Bible Louis Segond German Luther Russian Synodal Translation Sagradas Escrituras

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