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THE HANDWRITING ON THE WALL

Daniel V

Belshazzar the king made a great feast to a thousand of his lords, and
drank wine before the thousand. Belshazzar, whiles he tasted the wine,
commanded to bring the golden and silver vessels which his father
Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem;
that the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, might
drink therein. Then they brought the golden vessels that were taken
out of the temple of the house of God which was in Jerusalem; and the
king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, drank in them.
They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of
brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.

In the same hour came forth fingers of a man's hand, and wrote over
against the candlestick upon the plaister of the wall of the king's
palace: and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote. Then the
king's countenance was changed, and his thoughts troubled him, so that
the joints of his loins were loosed, and his knees smote one against
another. The king cried aloud to bring in the astrologers, the
Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. And the king spake, and said to the
wise men of Babylon, Whosoever shall read this writing, and shew me
the interpretation thereof, shall be clothed with scarlet, and have a
chain of gold about his neck, and shall be the third ruler in the
kingdom. Then came in all the king's wise men: but they could not read
the writing, nor make known to the king the interpretation thereof.
Then was the king Belshazzar greatly troubled, and his countenance was
changed in him, and his lords were astonied.

Now the queen by reason of the words of the king and his lords came
into the banquet house: and the queen spake and said, O king, live for
ever: let not thy thoughts trouble thee, nor let thy countenance be
changed: There is a man in thy kingdom, in whom is the spirit of the
holy gods; and in the days of thy father light and understanding and
wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods, was found in him; whom the king
Nebuchadnezzar thy father, the king, I say, thy father, made master of
the magicians, astrologers, Chaldeans, and soothsayers; Forasmuch as
an excellent spirit and knowledge and understanding, interpreting of
dreams, and shewing of hard sentences, and dissolving of doubts, were
found in the same Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar: now let
Daniel be called, and he will