5:1 伯沙撒王為他的一千大臣設擺盛筵，與這一千人對面飲酒。
5:2 伯沙撒歡飲之間，吩咐人將他父（或譯：祖；下同）尼布甲尼撒從耶路撒冷殿中所掠的金銀器皿拿來，王與大臣、皇后、妃嬪好用這器皿飲酒。
5:3 於是他們把耶路撒冷上帝殿庫房中所掠的金器皿拿來，王和大臣、皇后、妃嬪就用這器皿飲酒。
5:4 他們飲酒，讚美金、銀、銅、鐵、木、石所造的神。
5:5 當時，忽有人的指頭顯出，在王宮與燈臺相對的粉牆上寫字。王看見寫字的指頭
5:6 就變了臉色，心意驚惶，腰骨好像脫節，雙膝彼此相碰，
5:7 大聲吩咐將用法術的和迦勒底人並觀兆的領進來，對巴比倫的哲士說，誰能讀這文字，把講解告訴我，他必身穿紫袍，項帶金鍊，在我國中位列第三。
5:8 於是王的一切哲士都進來，卻不能讀那文字，也不能把講解告訴王。
5:9 伯沙撒王就甚驚惶，臉色改變，他的大臣也都驚奇。
1 King Belshazzar made a great feast for a
thousand of his lords and drank wine in front of the thousand.
2 Belshazzar, when he tasted the wine,
commanded that the vessels of gold and of silver that Nebuchadnezzar his father
had taken out of the temple in Jerusalem be brought, that the king and his
lords, his wives, and his concubines might drink from them. 3 Then they brought
in the golden vessels that had been taken out of the temple, the house of God
in Jerusalem, and the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines drank
from them. 4 They drank wine and praised the gods of gold and silver, bronze,
iron, wood, and stone.
5 Immediately the fingers of a human hand
appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall of the king's palace, opposite
the lampstand. And the king saw the hand as it wrote. 6 Then the king's color
changed, and his thoughts alarmed him; his limbs gave way, and his knees
knocked together. 7 The king called loudly to bring in the enchanters, the
Chaldeans, and the astrologers. The king declared to the wise men of Babylon,
"Whoever reads this writing, and shows me its interpretation, shall be
clothed with purple and have a chain of gold around his neck and shall be the
third ruler in the kingdom." 8 Then all the king's wise men came in, but
they could not read the writing or make known to the king the interpretation. 9
Then King Belshazzar was greatly alarmed, and his color changed, and his lords
were perplexed.
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伯沙撒王擺設筵席，用耶路撒冷聖殿的器皿飲酒，結果有指頭出現在牆上寫字，使得國王驚惶。這個事件發生的年代大約在拿波尼度王第17年，西元前539或538年10月，但以理應該已經八十歲左右了。此處距離第四章末尾記載的事件，已經過了三十年。在那之前幾日，波斯大軍才經過血戰後，攻下位於巴比倫北方八十公里的奧皮斯城。接著渡過幼發拉底河，西帕爾城不戰而降。拿波尼度在奧皮斯之役，城陷時逃走。後來是在巴比倫以南二十七公里處被俘。
「伯沙撒」的字義是「願『彼勒』（一個神名）保護皇帝」。是當時巴比倫王拿波尼度的兒子，因為拿波尼度長年留在他瑪城，西元前 550年任命伯沙撒攝政。瑪代波斯大軍攻陷巴比倫時，伯沙撒被殺。
其實，當時波斯軍隊已經進逼巴比倫城，舉行宴會只是想團結人心，做最後的抵抗。在這種情況下又看到奇怪的手寫字，巴比倫王的驚訝、害怕並不難令人想像。大概也就是在這種鼓勵自己與軍民的士氣宴會中，為要表現自己的國力還很強，才會做出平常不會做的貶低其他國家祭器行為來。
從這裡在一次讓我們看見，人不可以高抬自己高於上帝，竊取上帝的榮耀，這樣的下場是很可怕的！伯沙撒王的無知帶來自己的敗亡，同樣服事上帝的人更是要防止將榮耀歸給自己，一切都是上帝的榮耀！
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