Daniel 5:1-9

1Belshazzar the king 1held a great 2feast for a thousand of his nobles, and he was drinking wine in the presence of the thousand. 2When Belshazzar tasted the wine, he gave orders to bring the gold and silver 3vessels which Nebuchadnezzar his 4father 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. 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. 4They 5drank the wine and praised the gods of 6gold and silver, of bronze, iron, wood and stone.

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 7back of the hand that did the writing. 6Then the king’s 89face grew pale and his thoughts alarmed him, and his 10hip joints went slack and his 11knees began knocking together. 7The king called aloud to bring in the 12conjurers, the 13Chaldeans 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 14clothed with purple and have a 15necklace of gold around his neck, and have authority as 1617third ruler in the kingdom.” 8Then all the king’s wise men came in, but 18they could not read the inscription or make known its interpretation to the king. 9Then King Belshazzar was greatly 19alarmed, his 2021face grew even paler, and his nobles were perplexed.