Daniel 5:9
in Daniel 5Then King Belshazzar became even more terrified, his face grew even more pale, and his nobles were bewildered.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Then was king Belshazzar greatly troubled, and his countenance was changed in him, and his lords were perplexed.
KJV
Then was king Belshazzar greatly troubled, and his countenance was changed in him, and his lords were astonied.
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This verse in Daniel 5
Commentary
7 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
the third ruler in the kingdom
on Daniel 5:7-9
The king's wise men are called for exactly as Nebuchadnezzar once called for his, and fail exactly as they once failed, the second such scene in the book and the second time Babylon's own experts cannot read what Babylon's own God has written. The promised reward, scarlet clothing, a gold chain, and the third ruler in the kingdom, has puzzled readers expecting first or second place, and the evidence lane answers it directly below rather than treating it as a slip of the pen. Verse 9 leaves the whole court astonied, the same word used of Nebuchadnezzar's counselors, tying this failure to the pattern the book has already established twice.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
From this it is clear that the Lord was concerned for the welfare of the others and did not take the king's life on the spot, instead giving a glimpse of the writer's fingers. But having startled him by this and instilled fear, he caused …
And so while they were begging, the heart of the king was disturbed and his form was changed and his magistrates were troubled.
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
25 And this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN. 26 This is the interpretation of the thing: MENE; God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — verbatim-scripture
Then was King Belshazzar greatly troubled,....
The interpretation of the mystical characters by Daniel, who was at length brought in to him, and dealt plainly with him, and showed him his doom written,
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Then was king Belshazzar greatly troubled - Not doubting that this was a Divine intimation of some fearful event, and yet unable to understand its meaning. We are quite as likely to be troubled by what is merely “mysterious” in regard to the future - by anything that gives us some undefined foreboding - as we are by what is really formidable when we know what it is.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
The queen, in response to the words of the king The queen, because she heard the words of the king and his princes, came to the banquet hall.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 2 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
10 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| אֱ֠דַיִן | ʾedayin | then | H116 → | 57 times |
| מַלְכָּ֤א | malka' | king the | H4430 → | 180 times |
| בֵלְשַׁאצַּר֙ | veleshatzar | Belshazzar | H1113 → | 7 times |
| שַׂגִּ֣יא | sagi' | exceedingly | H7690 → | 13 times |
| מִתְבָּהַ֔ל | mitbahal | [was] alarmed | H927 → | 11 times |
| וְזִיוֹ֖הִי | veziyohi | and brightness<es> his | H2122 → | 6 times |
| שָׁנַ֣יִן | shanayin | [were] changing | H8133 → | 21 times |
| עֲל֑וֹהִי | alohi | on him | H5922 → | 104 times |
| וְרַבְרְבָנ֖וֹהִי | veravrevanohi | and nobles his | H7261 → | 8 times |
| מִֽשְׁתַּבְּשִֽׁין׃ | mishtabeshin | [were] dumbfounded | H7672 → |
אֱ֠דַיִןthen
ʾedayinH116 →57 times
מַלְכָּ֤אking the
malka'H4430 →180 times
בֵלְשַׁאצַּר֙Belshazzar
veleshatzarH1113 →7 times
שַׂגִּ֣יאexceedingly
sagi'H7690 →13 times
מִתְבָּהַ֔ל[was] alarmed
mitbahalH927 →11 times
וְזִיוֹ֖הִיand brightness<es> his
veziyohiH2122 →6 times
שָׁנַ֣יִן[were] changing
shanayinH8133 →21 times
עֲל֑וֹהִיon him
alohiH5922 →104 times
וְרַבְרְבָנ֖וֹהִיand nobles his
veravrevanohiH7261 →8 times
מִֽשְׁתַּבְּשִֽׁין׃[were] dumbfounded
mishtabeshinH7672 →
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Daniel 5:6his face grew pale and his thoughts so alarmed him that his hips gave way and his knees knocked together.
it leads to
- Ezekiel 7:17
Every hand will go limp, and every knee will turn to water.
- Daniel 7:28
Thus ends the matter. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts troubled me greatly, and my face turned pale. But I kept the matter to myself.”
- Nahum 2:10
She is emptied! Yes, she is desolate and laid waste! Hearts melt, knees knock, bodies tremble, and every face grows pale!
- Psalms 69:23
May their eyes be darkened so they cannot see, and their backs be bent forever.
- Ezekiel 7:17
Through
Daniel 2:1In the second year of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams that troubled his spirit, and sleep escaped him.
it leads to
- Daniel 4:5
I had a dream, and it frightened me; while in my bed, the images and visions in my mind alarmed me.
- Daniel 4:5
Through
Jeremiah 6:24We have heard the report; our hands hang limp. Anguish has gripped us, pain like that of a woman in labor.
it leads to
- Jeremiah 49:24
Damascus has become feeble; she has turned to flee. Panic has gripped her; anguish and pain have seized her like a woman in labor.
- Jeremiah 4:31
For I hear a cry like a woman in labor, a cry of anguish like one bearing her first child—the cry of the Daughter of Zion gasping for breath, stretching out her hands to…
- Jeremiah 50:43
The king of Babylon has heard the report, and his hands hang limp. Anguish has gripped him, pain like that of a woman in labor.
- Jeremiah 49:24
Where this verse is studied
About Daniel
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Daniel; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Hippolytus of Rome, Commentary on Daniel 3.15.4; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Theodoret of Cyrus, COMMENTARY ON DANIEL 5:9.