New Living Translation
Daniel 5:23
23For you have proudly defied the Lord of heaven and have had these cups from his Temple brought before you. You and your nobles and your wives and concubines have been drinking wine from them while praising gods of silver, gold, bronze, iron, wood, and stone—gods that neither see nor hear nor know anything at all. But you have not honored the God who gives you the breath of life and controls your destiny!
Daniel 5:23 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)But hast lifted up thyself against the Lord of heaven; and they have brought the vessels of his house before thee, and thou, and thy lords, thy wives, and thy concubines, have drunk wine in them; and thou hast praised the gods of silver, and gold, of brass, iron, wood, and stone, which see not, nor hear, nor know: and the God in whose hand thy breath is, and whose are all thy ways, hast thou not glorified:
- New International Version (NIV)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.
- English Standard Version (ESV)but you have lifted up yourself against the Lord of heaven. And the vessels of his house have been brought in before you, and you and your lords, your wives, and your concubines have drunk wine from them. And you have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which do not see or hear or know, but the God in whose hand is your breath, and whose are all your ways, you have not honored.
- New King James Version (NKJV)And you have lifted yourself up against the Lord of heaven. They have brought the vessels of His house before you, and you and your lords, your wives and your concubines, have drunk wine from them. And you have praised the gods of silver and gold, bronze and iron, wood and stone, which do not see or hear or know; and the God who holds your breath in His hand and owns all your ways, you have not glorified.
Context of Daniel 5:23
21He was driven from human society. He was given the mind of a wild animal, and he lived among the wild donkeys. He ate grass like a cow, and he was drenched with the dew of heaven, until he learned that the Most High God rules over the kingdoms of the world and appoints anyone he desires to rule over them. 22“You are his successor, O Belshazzar, and you knew all this, yet you have not humbled yourself. For you have proudly defied the Lord of heaven and have had these cups from his Temple brought before you. You and your nobles and your wives and concubines have been drinking wine from them while praising gods of silver, gold, bronze, iron, wood, and stone—gods that neither see nor hear nor know anything at all. But you have not honored the God who gives you the breath of life and controls your destiny! 24So God has sent this hand to write this message. 25“This is the message that was written: Mene, Mene, Tekel, and Parsin.
Read all of Daniel 5Daniel 5:23 word by word
וְעַ֣ל מָרֵֽא־שְׁמַיָּ֣א׀ הִתְרוֹמַ֡מְתָּ וּלְמָֽאנַיָּ֨א דִֽי־בַיְתֵ֜הּ הַיְתִ֣יו קָֽדָמָ֗ךְ וְאַ֨נְתְּ וְרַבְרְבָנָ֜ךְ שֵֽׁגְלָתָ֣ךְ וּלְחֵנָתָךְ֮ חַמְרָא֮ שָׁתַ֣יִן בְּהוֹן֒ וְלֵֽאלָהֵ֣י כַסְפָּֽא־וְ֠דַהֲבָא נְחָשָׁ֨א פַרְזְלָ֜א אָעָ֣א וְאַבְנָ֗א דִּ֠י לָֽא־חָזַ֧יִן וְלָא־שָׁמְעִ֛ין וְלָ֥א יָדְעִ֖ין שַׁבַּ֑חְתָּ וְלֵֽאלָהָ֞א דִּֽי־נִשְׁמְתָ֥ךְ בִּידֵ֛הּ וְכָל־אֹרְחָתָ֥ךְ לֵ֖הּ לָ֥א הַדַּֽרְתָּ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- But hast lifted upרוּםrûm · to riseH7313
- thyself againstעַל‛al · uponH5922
- the Lordמָרֵאmârê' · lordH4756
- of heavenשָׁמַ֫יִןshâmayin · heavenH8065
- and they have broughtאֲתָה'âthâh 'âthâ' · to comeH858
- the vesselsמָאןmâ'n · utensilH3984
- of his houseבַּ֫יִתbayith · houseH1005
- beforeקֳדָםqŏdâm qedâm · beforeH6925
- thee, and thouאַנְתָּה'antâh · youH607
- and thy lordsרַבְרְבָןrabrebân · nobleH7261
- thy wivesשֵׁגָלshêgâl · consortH7695
- and thy concubinesלְחֵנָהlechênâh · concubineH3904
- have drunkשְׁתָהshethâh · to drinkH8355
- wineחֲמַרchămar · wineH2562
- in them; and thou hast praisedשְׁבַחshebach · to praiseH7624
- the godsאֱלָהּ'ĕlâhh · godH426
- of silverכְּסַףkesaph · silverH3702
- and goldדְּהַבdehab · goldH1722
- of brassנְחָשׁnechâsh · bronzeH5174
- ironפַּרְזֶלparzel · ironH6523
- woodאָע'â‛ · woodH636
- and stoneאֶ֫בֶן'eben · stoneH69
- which seeחֲזָהchăzâ' chăzâh · to seeH2370
- notלָאlâ' lâh · notH3809
- hearשְׁמַעshema‛ · to hearH8086
- knowיְדַעyeda‛ · to knowH3046
- in whose handיַדyad · handH3028
- thy breathנִשְׁמָאnishmâ' · breathH5396
- allכֹּלkôl · allH3606
- thy waysאֹ֫רַח'ôrach · wayH735
- glorifiedהֲדַרhădar · to honorH1922
Cross-references for Daniel 5:23
- Daniel 5:3So they brought these gold cups taken from the Temple, the house of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his nobles, his wives, and his concubines drank from them.
- 2 Kings 14:10“You have indeed defeated Edom, and you are proud of it. But be content with your victory and stay at home! Why stir up trouble that will only bring disaster on you and the people of Judah?”
- Isaiah 2:12For the Lord of Heaven’s Armies has a day of reckoning. He will punish the proud and mighty and bring down everything that is exalted.
- Isaiah 33:10But the Lord says: “Now I will stand up. Now I will show my power and might.
- Isaiah 37:23“Whom have you been defying and ridiculing? Against whom did you raise your voice? At whom did you look with such haughty eyes? It was the Holy One of Israel!
- Jeremiah 50:29“Send out a call for archers to come to Babylon. Surround the city so none can escape. Do to her as she has done to others, for she has defied the Lord, the Holy One of Israel.
- Ezekiel 28:2“Son of man, give the prince of Tyre this message from the Sovereign Lord: “In your great pride you claim, ‘I am a god! I sit on a divine throne in the heart of the sea.’ But you are only a man and not a god, though you boast that you are a god.
- Ezekiel 31:10“Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because Egypt became proud and arrogant, and because it set itself so high above the others, with its top reaching to the clouds,
- Habakkuk 2:4“Look at the proud! They trust in themselves, and their lives are crooked. But the righteous will live by their faithfulness to God.
- 1 Timothy 3:6A church leader must not be a new believer, because he might become proud, and the devil would cause him to fall.
- Revelation 13:5Then the beast was allowed to speak great blasphemies against God. And he was given authority to do whatever he wanted for forty-two months.
- Daniel 4:37“Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and glorify and honor the King of heaven. All his acts are just and true, and he is able to humble the proud.”
- Genesis 14:19Melchizedek blessed Abram with this blessing: “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth.
- Psalms 115:16The heavens belong to the Lord, but he has given the earth to all humanity.
- Daniel 5:2While Belshazzar was drinking the wine, he gave orders to bring in the gold and silver cups that his predecessor, Nebuchadnezzar, had taken from the Temple in Jerusalem. He wanted to drink from them with his nobles, his wives, and his concubines.
- 1 Samuel 5:1After the Philistines captured the Ark of God, they took it from the battleground at Ebenezer to the town of Ashdod.
Commentaries on Daniel 5:23
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 23But hast lifted up thyself against the Lord - And the highest evidence of this rebellion was, the profaning the sacred vessels of the Lord's house.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 18-31Verses 18-31 Daniel reads Belshazzar's doom. He had not taken warning by the judgments upon Nebuchadnezzar. And he had insulted God. Sinners are pleased with gods that neither see, nor hear, nor know; but they will be judged by One to whom all things are open. Daniel reads the sentence written on the wall. All this may well be applied to the doom of every sinner. At death, the sinner's days are numbered and finished; after death is the judgment, when he…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-30All earthly kingdoms eventually end. Nebuchadnezzar's dream suggested that Babylon would fall and a new kingdom would rise (Daniel 2:39). After Nebuchadnezzar died in 562 BC, violence and corruption grew in Babylon's palaces. During Belshazzar's feast in 539 BC, they even defiled God's holy vessels. God's judgment came quickly that night (Daniel 5:30), and the next kingdom took over (see 2:32, 39; 5:31).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2323. whose are all thy ways--(Jr 10:23).Read the comment
Topics related to Daniel 5:23
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Daniel 5
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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