Daniel 5
1 Belshazzar king the he made a feast great for nobles his a thousand and before thousand the wine [he was] drinking.
[Several years later, ] Belshazzar [became the] king [of Babylon. One day] he invited 1,000 of his officers to a big feast, and he drank [a lot of] wine with them.
2 Belshazzar he said - in [the] taste of wine the to bring [the] vessels of gold and silver which he had brought out Nebuchadnezzar father his from temple the which [was] in Jerusalem so they may drink with them king the and nobles his wives his and concubines his.
While he was drinking, he commanded [his servants] bring to him the gold and silver cups that the previous king, Nebuchadnezzar, had taken from the temple in Jerusalem. [He did that] because he wanted himself and his officials, his wives, and [even] his (concubines/slave wives) to drink from them, [making fun of the god that we Israelis worshiped].
3 Then they brought [the] vessels of gold which they had brought out from temple the which [was] [the] house of God which [was] in Jerusalem and they drank with them king the and nobles his wives his and concubines his.
So his servants brought in [all] those gold cups, that had been taken [many years previously] from the temple of [the true] God in Jerusalem. Then the king and his officials and his wives and his slave wives drank [wine] from those cups.
4 They drank wine the and they praised [the] gods of gold and silver bronze iron wood and stone.
They drank to praise/honor their idols that were made of gold, silver, bronze, iron, and [even] wood and stone.
5 At it moment the (they went forth *Q(K)*) fingers of a hand of a human and [they were] writing before candlestick the on plaster the of [the] wall of palace the of king the and king the [was] seeing [the] palm of hand the which [was] writing.
Suddenly they saw a man’s hand writing on the plaster of the wall opposite the lampstand. The king also saw the hand as it was writing.
6 Then king the brightness his they changed him and thoughts his they alarmed him and [the] joints of loin[s] his [were] loosened and knees his this [one] to this [one] [were] knocking.
He became very frightened, and his face became pale/white. His knees started shaking, and his legs became very weak, with the result that he could not stand up.
7 [was] calling King the with power to bring in conjurers the (Chaldeans the *Q(K)*) and astrologers the [was] replying king the and [was] saying - to [the] wise men of Babylon that any person who he will read aloud writing the this and interpretation its he will declare to me purple he will be clothed (and necklace the *Q(k)*) of gold [will be] on neck his and third in kingdom the he will rule.
[Then] he shouted to summon the men who worked magic, the men who studied the stars, and the fortune-tellers. He said, “I will [greatly honor] any one of them who can read this writing and tell me what it means. I will give him a purple [robe like I wear because I am the king], and I will put a gold chain around his neck. He will become a very important official in my kingdom; there will be only two others who will be more important than he will be.”
8 Then ([were] going in *Q(k)*) all [the] wise men of king the and not [they were] able writing the to read aloud (and interpretation its *Q(K)*) to make known to king the.
But when all those wise men came in, none of them could read the writing, or tell him what it meant.
9 Then king the Belshazzar exceedingly [was] alarmed and brightness his [were] changing on him and nobles his [were] dumbfounded.
So King Belshazzar became more afraid. His face became [even] paler/whiter. And [all] his officials [who were there at the feast] did not know what to do.
10 Queen the before [the] words of king the and nobles his to [the] house of feast the (she went in *Q(k)*) she replied queen the and she said king O for ever live! may not they alarm you thought[s] your and brightness your may not they be changed.
But when the mother of the king (OR, of the previous king) heard the king and his officials talking [loudly about what had happened], she entered the room where they were having the feast. She said [to Belshazzar], “(Your majesty/O King), I hope you will live for a long time! But do not be pale and afraid about this.
11 There [is] a man in kingdom your who a spirit of gods holy [is] in him and in [the] days of father your illumination and insight and wisdom like [the] wisdom of gods it was found in him and king the Nebuchadnezzar father your chief of [the] magicians conjurers Chaldeans astrologers he appointed him father your king the.
There is a man in your kingdom who has the spirit of the holy gods in him. When Nebuchadnezzar was ruling, they discovered that this man understood many things and was wise, just like the gods. The man who was king previously, Nebuchadnezzar, appointed him to be in charge of all the men [in Babylon] who worked magic, the men who worked sorcery, the men who studied the stars, and the fortune-tellers.
12 As to because that a spirit - extraordinary and understanding and insight an interpreter of dreams and declaring of riddles and loosening of knots it was found in him in Daniel whom king the he made name his Belteshazzar now Daniel let him be summoned and interpretation the he will declare.
That man’s name is Daniel; the king gave him a [new] name, Belteshazzar. He is very intelligent and is able to know and understand many things. He is [even] able to tell the meaning of dreams, and explain riddles, and explain things that are very difficult to understand. Summon him, and he will tell you what [this writing] means.”
13 Then Daniel he was brought before king the [was] replying king the and [was] saying to Daniel (you *Q(k)*) he [are] Daniel who [is] one of [the] sons of exile the of Judah whom he brought king the father my from Judah.
So they [went and] brought me in. The king asked me, “You [must] be Daniel [RHQ]! [They told me that you are] one of those who was brought [here] from Judah by the previous king.
14 And I have heard (concerning you *Q(k)*) that a spirit of gods [is] in you and illumination and insight and wisdom extraordinary it was found in you.
I have [also] heard that the spirit of the gods is in you, and that you are very wise and understand many things.
15 And now they have been brought before me wise men the conjurers the that writing the this they will read aloud and interpretation its to make known to me and not [they were] able [the] interpretation of matter the to declare.
My wise men and men who work magic have tried to read the writing on this wall and tell me what it means, but they are not able to do it.
16 And I I have heard (concerning you *Q(k)*) that (you are able *Q(k)*) interpretations to interpret and knots to loosen now if (you will be able *Q(k)*) writing the to read aloud and interpretation its to make known to me purple you will be clothed (and necklace the *Q(k)*) of gold [will be] on neck your and third the in kingdom the you will rule.
[Someone] told me that you can tell what dreams mean and explain things that are very difficult to understand. If you can read these words and tell me what they mean, [I] give you a purple robe [like I wear because I am the king], and I will put a gold chain around your neck. You will become a very important official in my kingdom; there will be only two others who will be more important than you will be.”
17 Then [was] replying Daniel and [say] saying before king the gifts your for yourself let them be and rewards your to another give! nevertheless writing the I will read aloud to king the and interpretation the I will make known to him.
I replied, “[I do not want] your gifts; keep them, or give them to someone else. But I will read for you the writing [on the wall], and I will tell you what it means.
18 (You *Q(k)*) king O God (Most High the *Q(k)*) kingdom the and greatness the and honor the and majesty the he gave to Nebuchadnezzar father your.
(Your Majesty/O king), the Supreme God caused the man who was king before you, Nebuchadnezzar, to become a great ruler, who was greatly praised and honored.
19 And from greatness the which he gave to him all peoples the nations the and languages the they were (trembling *Q(k)*) and fearing from before him whom he was pleased he was killing and whom he was pleased he was letting live and whom he was pleased he was lifting up and whom he was pleased he was bringing low.
Because God caused him to become [very] great, people of many [HYP] people-groups and nations and who spoke many different languages were very much afraid of him. He [commanded his soldiers to] kill those whom he wanted to be killed, and he (spared/allowed to live) those whom he wanted to spare. He honored those whom he wanted to honor, and he caused to be disgraced those whom he wanted to be disgraced.
20 And as that it rose up heart his and spirit his it grew strong to act presumptuously he was deposed from [the] throne of kingdom his and honor the they removed from him.
But when he became very proud and stubborn [IDM], he was removed from being king [MTY]. People did not consider him to be glorious/great any more.
21 And away from [the] sons of humankind he was chased and heart his - with animal[s] the (they made *Q(K)*) and [was] with wild donkeys the dwelling place his grass like oxen they fed him and from [the] dew of heavens the body his it became wet until that he knew that [was] having mastery God (Most High the *Q(k)*) over [the] kingdom of humankind and to whomever whom he will be pleased he will appoint (over it. *Q(K)*)
[His officials] sent him away in order that he would not be near [other] people. [God] caused him to have a mind like animals have. He lived among the wild donkeys. He ate grass like cows do, and dew from the sky caused his body to be damp/wet [each morning]. [He was like that] until he learned that the Supreme God is [really the one who] rules the kingdoms of this world, and that he appoints whomever he chooses to rule those kingdoms.
22 (And you *Q(k)*) son his O Belshazzar not you have brought low heart your as to because that all this you knew.
Now, Belshazzar, you have become the king. You [also] knew all those things, but you have not made yourself humble.
23 And against [the] lord of heavens the - you have lifted yourself up and vessels the of house his they have brought (before you and you and nobles your *Q(k)*) wives your and concubines your wine [are] drinking with them and [the] gods of silver and gold bronze iron wood and stone who not [are] seeing and not [are] hearing and not [are] knowing you have praised and God the who breath your [is] in hand his and all ways your [are] to him not you have glorified.
You have considered yourself to be greater than [God], the Lord of heaven. [So you have commanded your servants to] bring to you these sacred cups, [which were dedicated to the Supreme God, and which were taken] from his temple [in Jerusalem]. You and your officials and your wives and your (concubines/slave wives) have been drinking wine from these cups, while you have been praising [your own] gods—gods which are made of gold and silver and bronze and iron and wood and stone. [Those are gods] that cannot see, that cannot hear, and that do not know anything! You have not honored the God who gives you breath and who controls everything that happens to you.
24 Then from before him it was sent out palm the of hand the and writing the this it was inscribed.
So God sent that hand to write a message [for you].
25 And this [is] writing the which it was inscribed mene mene teqel and pharsin.
This is the message that it wrote: ‘Mene, mene, tekel, parsin.’
26 This [is] [the] interpretation of matter the mene he has numbered God kingdom your and he has finished it.
This is what those words mean: Mene [means] ‘numbered/counted’. [That means that] God has been counting the days that you will rule, and he has [now] decided that you will not rule any more.
27 Teqel you have been weighed in scales the and you have been found lacking.
Tekel [means ‘weighed’. It is as though God] has weighed you on a scale, and you do not weigh what you should, [which means that you have not been doing what you should; you are not fit to be a king] [MET].
28 Peres it has been broken in two kingdom your and it has been given to Medes and Persians.
Parsin [means ‘divided’. That means that God] has divided your kingdom. Some of it will be ruled by people from Media and some will be ruled by people from Persia.”
29 Then - he said Belshazzar and they clothed Daniel purple (and necklace the *Q(k)*) of gold [was] on neck his and they made proclamation concerning him that he will be having mastery third the in kingdom the.
Then Belshazzar [did what he had promised]. He put on me a purple robe [like the one he himself wore. He] put a gold chain around my neck. And he proclaimed that there would be only two others who would be more important than me in his kingdom.
30 On it on night the he was killed Belshazzar king the (Chaldeans the. *Q(k)*)
But that same night [soldiers from Media entered the city and] killed Belshazzar, the King of Babylonia.
31 And Darius (Median the *Q(K)*) he received kingdom the about a son of years sixty and two.
Darius, the King of Media, became the King [of Babylonia] when he was 62 years old.
