Daniel 5:5–12

^5eIn the same hour the fingers of a man’s hand appeared and wrote opposite the lampstand on the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace; and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote. ⁶Then the king’s countenance changed, and his thoughts troubled him, so that the joints of his hips were loosened and his ^fknees knocked against each other. ^7gThe king cried ²aloud to bring in ^hthe astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. The king spoke, saying to the wise men of Babylon, “Whoever reads this writing, and tells me its interpretation, shall be clothed with purple and have a chain of gold around his neck; ⁱand he shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.” ⁸Now all the king’s wise men came, ^jbut they could not read the writing, or make known to the king its interpretation. ⁹Then King Belshazzar was greatly ^ktroubled, his countenance was changed, and his lords were ³astonished.

¹⁰The queen, because of the words of the king and his lords, came to the banquet hall. The queen spoke, saying, “O king, live forever! Do not let your thoughts trouble you, nor let your countenance change. ^11lThere is a man in your kingdom in whom is the Spirit of the Holy God. And in the days of your ⁴father, light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods, were found in him; and King Nebuchadnezzar your father—your father the king—made him chief of the magicians, astrologers, Chaldeans, and soothsayers. ¹²Inasmuch as an excellent spirit, knowledge, understanding, interpreting dreams, solving riddles, and ⁵explaining enigmas were found in this Daniel, ^mwhom the king named Belteshazzar, now let Daniel be called, and he will give the interpretation.”