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King
Belshazzar gave a great banquet for a thousand of his nobles and
drank wine with them. While Belshazzar was drinking his wine, he
gave orders to bring in the gold and silver goblets that
Nebuchadnezzar his father had taken from the temple in Jerusalem,
so that the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines
might drink from them. So they brought in the gold goblets that
had been taken from the temple of God in Jerusalem, and the king
and his nobles, his wives and his concubines drank from them. As
they drank the wine, they praised the gods of gold and silver, of
bronze, iron, wood and stone.
Suddenly the
fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the
wall, near the lampstand in the royal palace.
The king watched the hand as it wrote. His face turned pale and he
was so frightened that his knees knocked together and his legs
gave way.
The king called out for the enchanters, astrologers and diviners
to be brought and said to these wise men of Babylon, "Whoever
reads this writing and tells me what it means will be clothed in
purple and have a gold chain placed around his neck, and he will
be made the third highest ruler in the kingdom."
Then all the king's wise men came in, but they could not read the
writing or tell the king what it meant. So King Belshazzar became
even more terrified and his face grew more pale. His nobles were
baffled.
The queen, hearing the voices of the king and his nobles, came
into the banquet hall. "O king, live forever!" she said.
"Don't be alarmed! Don't look so pale! There
is a man in your kingdom who has the spirit of the holy gods in
him. In the time of your father he was found to have insight and
intelligence and wisdom like that of the gods.
King Nebuchadnezzar your father-your father the king, I
say-appointed him chief of the magicians, enchanters, astrologers
and diviners. This man Daniel, whom the king called
Belteshazzar, was found to have a keen mind and knowledge and
understanding, and also the ability to interpret dreams, explain
riddles and solve difficult problems. Call
for Daniel, and he will tell you what the writing means."
So Daniel was brought before the king, and the king said to him,
"Are you Daniel, one of the exiles my father the king brought
from Judah? I have heard that the spirit of the gods is in you and
that you have insight, intelligence and outstanding wisdom. The
wise men and enchanters were brought before me to read this
writing and tell me what it means, but they could not explain it.
Now I have heard that you are able to give interpretations and to
solve difficult problems. If you can read this writing and tell me
what it means, you will be clothed in purple and have a gold chain
placed around your neck, and you will be made the third highest
ruler in the kingdom."
Then Daniel answered the king, "You may keep your gifts for
yourself and give your rewards to someone else. Nevertheless, I
will read the writing for the king and tell him what it means.
"O king, the Most High God gave your father Nebuchadnezzar
sovereignty and greatness and glory and splendor. Because of the
high position he gave him, all the peoples and nations and men of
every language dreaded and feared him. Those the king wanted to
put to death, he put to death; those he wanted to spare, he
spared; those he wanted to promote, he promoted; and those he
wanted to humble, he humbled. But when his heart became arrogant
and hardened with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and
stripped of his glory. He was driven away from people and given
the mind of an animal; he lived with the wild donkeys and ate
grass like cattle; and his body was drenched with the dew of
heaven, until he acknowledged that the Most High God is sovereign
over the kingdoms of men and sets over them anyone he wishes.
"But you
his son, O Belshazzar, have not humbled yourself, though you knew
all this. Instead, you have set yourself up against the Lord of
heaven. You
had the goblets from his temple brought to you, and you and your
nobles, your wives and your concubines drank wine from them. You
praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and
stone, which cannot see or hear or understand. But you did not
honor the God who holds in his hand your life and all your ways.
Therefore he sent the hand that wrote the inscription.
"This is the inscription that was written: Mene , Mene ,
Tekel , Parsin
"This is what these words mean: Mene:
God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to an end.
Tekel: You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting.
Peres: Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and
Persians."
Then at Belshazzar's command, Daniel was clothed in purple, a gold
chain was placed around his neck, and he was proclaimed the third
highest ruler in the kingdom.
That very night Belshazzar, king of the Babylonians, was slain,
and Darius the Mede took over the kingdom, at the age of
sixty-two.
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