1King Belshazzar made a great feast for a thousand of his lords, and he drank wine in front of the thousand.
2While Belshazzar was tasting the wine, he gave an order to bring in the gold and silver cups that his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple in Jerusalem. He wanted the king, his princes, his wives and his concubines to drink from them.
3So they brought in the gold cups that had been taken out of the temple of the house of God in Jerusalem. The king, his princes, his wives and his concubines drank from them.
4They drank wine and praised the gods of gold and silver, of brass, iron, wood and stone.
5At that very hour the fingers of a man's hand appeared. They wrote on the plaster of the wall of the king's palace, opposite the lampstand. The king saw the part of the hand that wrote.
6Then the king's face changed, and his thoughts frightened him. His legs gave way beneath him, and his knees knocked together.
7The king shouted for the astrologers, the Chaldeans and the soothsayers to be brought in. He said to the wise men of Babylon, "Whoever reads this writing and tells me what it means will be dressed in scarlet, and have a chain of gold round his neck, and be the third ruler in the kingdom."
8Then all the king's wise men came in. But they could not read the writing, and they could not tell the king what it meant.
9Then King Belshazzar was greatly frightened, and his face changed, and his lords were amazed.
10Because of what the king and his lords were saying, the queen came into the banquet hall. The queen said, "O king, live for ever. Do not let your thoughts frighten you, and do not let your face change."
11"There is a man in your kingdom who has the spirit of the holy gods in him. In the days of your father, light and understanding and wisdom like the wisdom of the gods were found in him. King Nebuchadnezzar your father, your father the king, I say, made him master of the magicians, astrologers, Chaldeans and soothsayers."
12"This was because an excellent spirit, and knowledge, and understanding, and the skill to explain dreams, to make hard sayings clear, and to untie knotted questions, were found in this Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar. Now let Daniel be called, and he will tell you what it means."
13So Daniel was brought in before the king. The king said to Daniel, "Are you that Daniel who is one of the captives of Judah, whom the king my father brought out of Jewry?"
14"I have heard about you, that the spirit of the gods is in you, and that light and understanding and excellent wisdom are found in you."
15"Now the wise men and the astrologers have been brought in before me to read this writing and tell me what it means, but they could not explain it."
16"I have heard about you, that you can give meanings and untie knotted questions. Now if you can read the writing and tell me what it means, you will be dressed in scarlet, and have a chain of gold round your neck, and be the third ruler in the kingdom."
17Then Daniel answered the king, "Keep your gifts for yourself, and give your rewards to someone else. Still, I will read the writing to the king, and tell him what it means."
18"O king, the most high God gave Nebuchadnezzar your father a kingdom, and greatness, and glory, and honour."
19"Because of the greatness that God gave him, all peoples, nations and languages trembled and were afraid before him. He killed whoever he wished, and kept alive whoever he wished. He lifted up whoever he wished, and brought down whoever he wished."
20"But when his heart was lifted up and his mind grew hard with pride, he was pulled down from his royal throne, and they took his glory from him."
21"He was driven away from people, and his heart was made like the heart of an animal. He lived with the wild donkeys. They fed him grass like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven. This lasted until he knew that the most high God rules in the kingdom of men, and sets over it whoever he wishes."
22"And you, his son, O Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, though you knew all this."
23"Instead you have lifted yourself up against the Lord of heaven. They brought the cups of his house in front of you, and you and your lords, your wives and your concubines drank wine from them. You praised the gods of silver and gold, of brass, iron, wood and stone, which do not see or hear or know anything. But you have not given glory to the God who holds your breath in his hand, and who owns all your ways."
24"So the part of the hand was sent from him, and this writing was written."
25"And this is the writing that was written: MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN."
26"This is what it means. MENE: God has counted the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end."
27"TEKEL: you have been weighed in the scales, and you are found wanting."
28"PERES: your kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians."
29Then Belshazzar gave the order, and they dressed Daniel in scarlet, and put a chain of gold round his neck, and made a proclamation about him, that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom.
30That very night Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans was killed.
31And Darius the Mede took the kingdom. He was about sixty-two years old.