“This is the writing that was inscribed: ‘MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.’
Parallel Translations
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“This is the writing that was inscribed: ‘MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.’
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And this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.
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And this is the writing that was inscribed: MENE MENE, TEKEL UPHARSIN.
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain Daniel here explains these four verses which were written…
Daniel here explains these four verses which were written upon the wall. The king could not read them, either through stupor, or because God blunted all his senses, and blinded his eyes, as was formerly said. The same thing must be said of the magi and the soothsayers, for they could have read, had they not been rendered blind. First of all, Daniel recites the four words, Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsn, and then adds their interpretation. He repeats the word Mene twice. Some conjecture this to apply to the numbering of the years of the king’s life, and also to the time of his reign; but the guess seems to be without any foundation. I think the word is used twice for the sake of confirmation; as if the Prophet meant the number to be completed, since men usually allow calculations to be liable to error. To impress upon Belshazzar that his ‘life and kingdom were at stake, God affirms the number to be complete, meaning, not a moment of time can be added to the boundary already determined. So also Daniel himself interprets it: God, says he, has numbered thy kingdom; implying, God has appointed and prescribed a fixed end to thy kingdom; hence it must necessarily come to an end, since its period is fulfilled.
Although God here addresses but one king by the writing set before his eyes, we may still gather this general instruction — God has prescribed a certain time for all kingdoms. (Job 14:5.) The Scripture bears the same witness concerning the life of each of us. If God has prescribed to each of us the length of his life, surely this applies more forcibly to public empires, of so much greater importance. Hence we may know how not only kings live and die according to God’s pleasure, but even empires are changed, as we have formerly said. He fixes alike their origin and their destiny. Hence we may seek consolation, when we see tyrants rushing on so impetuously, and indulging their lust and cruelty without moderation. When, therefore, they rush on, as if they would mingle heaven and earth, let us remember this instruction, Their years are numbered! God knows how long they are to rage; He is not deceived; He knows whether it is useful to the Church and his elect, for tyrants to prevail for a time. By and bye he will surely restrain them, but since he determined the number of their days from the beginning, the time of his vengeance is not yet quite at hand, while he allows them a little longer to abuse without restraint the power and the sway which he had divinely granted them.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain This word is twice written for the certainty of…
This word is twice written for the certainty of the thing: showing that God had most surely counted: signifying also that God hath appointed a term for all kingdoms, and that a miserable end shall come on all that raise themselves against him.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Dan 5:25 And this [is] the writing that was…
Dan 5:25 And this [is] the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.
Ver. 25. MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.] These words signify, He hath perfectly numbered, he hath weighed, and it falleth in pieces. They were the Samaritan characters, saith one, {a} therefore the Babylonians could not read them, nor could the Jews understand them, though they knew the characters, because they understood not the Chaldee tongue as Daniel did. See on Dan 5:8.
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{a} Weemse.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And this is the writing that was written,.... They…
And this is the writing that was written,.... They are such and such letters, and so to be read, as follows:
MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN; which are Chaldee words, and may be literally rendered, "he hath numbered, he hath numbered"; that is, God hath certainly, perfectly, and exactly numbered; "he hath weighed", God hath weighed thee, Belshazzar; "and they divide the kingdom"; that is, the Medes and Persians, as appears from the following interpretation:
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 25. And this is the writing] Had the…
Verse 25. And this is the writing] Had the words been written in the Chaldean character, every wise man there, every one that could read the alphabet of his own language, could have read and interpreted them. Let it be observed, -
1. That the character which we now call Hebrew is the Chaldean character.
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2. That the true Hebrew character is that which we call the Samaritan.
3. Daniel could easily read this, for it was the character used by the Jews previously to the Babylonish captivity.
4. It appears that it was simply on account of the strangeness of the character that the Chaldeans could not read it.
I shall set down the words in both characters, by which the least learned reader may see that it was quite possible that one might be well known, while the other might be unintelligible.
Hebrew
מנא מנא תקל ופרסין
Samaritan
[Samaritan]
In ancient times, no doubt, these letters differed more from each other than they appear to do now; for we know that the Samaritan on ancient coins, though radically the same, differs very much from that now used in printing.
It should be observed, that each word stands for a short sentence; מנא mene signifies NUMERATION; תקל tekel, WEIGHING; and פרש peres, DIVISION. And so the Arabic translates them. [Arabic] mokeeson, measured; [Arabic] mewzonon, weighed; [Arabic] mokesoomon, divided. All the ancient Versions, except the Syriac, read the words simply Mene, Tekel, Phares, as they are explained in the following verses; without the repetition of Mene, and without the conjunction ו vau, and plural termination, ין in, in Peres.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain And this is the writing that was written -…
And this is the writing that was written - The Babylonians, it would seem, were unacquainted with the “characters” that were used, and of course unable to understand the meaning. See Dan 5:8. The first thing, therefore, for Daniel to do was to read the writing, and this he was able to do without difficulty, probably, as already remarked, because it was in the ancient Hebrew character - a character quite familiar to him, though not known to the Babylonians, whom Belshazzar consulted. It is every way probable that that character “would” be used on an occasion like this, for
(a) it is manifest that it was intended that the true God, the God of the Hebrews, should be made known, and this was the character in which his communications had been made to men;
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(b) it was clearly the design to honor his own religion, and it is morally certain that there would be something which would show the connection between this occurrence and his own agency, and nothing would do this better than to make use of such a character; and
(c) it was the Divine intention to put honor on Daniel, and this would be well done by making use of a character which he understood.
There have been, indeed, many conjectures respecting the characters which were employed on this occasion, and the reasons of the difficulty of interpreting the words used, but it is most probable that the above is the true statement, and this will relieve all the difficulties in regard to the account. Prideaux supposes that the characters employed were the ancient Phoenician characters, that were used by the Hebrews, and that are found now in the Samaritan Pentateuch; and that, as above suggested, these might be unknown to the Babylonians, though familiar to Daniel. Others have supposed that the characters were those in common use in Babylon, and that the reason why the Babylonians could not read them was, that they were smitten with a sudden blindness, like the inhabitants of Sodom, Gen 19:11. The Talmudists suppose that the words were written in a cabalistic manner, in which certain letters were used to stand for other letters, on the principle referred to by Buxtorf (“Lex. Chal. Rabb. et Talm.” p. 248), and known as אתבשׁ 'âthebbash - that is, where the alphabet is reversed, and the Hebrew letter א (A) is used for the Hebrew letter ת (T), and the Hebrew letter ב (B) for the Hebrew letter ש (S), etc., and that on account of this cabalistic transmutation the Babylonians could not read it, though Daniel might have been familiar with that mode of writing. rabbi Jochanan supposed that there was a change of the order in which the letters of the words were written; other rabbis, that there was a change merely in the order of the first and second letters; others, that the words were written backward; others that the words were written, not in the usual horizontal manner, but perpendicularly; and others, that the words were not written in full, but that only the first letters of each were written. See Bertholdt, pp. 349, 350. All these are mere conjectures, and most of them are childish and improbable suppositions. There is no real difficulty in the case if we suppose that the words were written in a character familiar to Daniel, but not familiar to the Babylonians. Or, if this is not admitted, then we may suppose that some mere marks were employed whose signification was made known to Daniel in a miraculous manner.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Phares. These words consist of three letters, mona, thokol,…
Phares. These words consist of three letters, mona, thokol, pros, as we add o merely for pronunciation. Being unconnected and almost destitute of vowels, (Haydock) it is not easy even for the learned to read these words, or to ascertain their meaning. Thus d b r being placed in a similar situation, it would be impossible to determine the sense; as it may have ten different meanings, according as it is pronounced. (ver. 8. ) (Calmet) --- Mane is twice repeated, to shew the certainty and exactitude of the numbering. (Menochius) --- Yet in the sequel each word occurs once and unconnected, as it is here in the Vulgate; not Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin, (Protestant; Haydock) "He hath numbered, weighed, and the dividers or the Persians" are upon thee, (T. [Tirinus?]) as Dalila said to Samson. Only three words (Haydock) were written. (St. Jerome) --- The rest contain the prophet’s explanation. The Chaldean empire had now attained its utmost height. Its king brought ruin upon himself by his wicked life. (Haydock) --- He would soon be divided with the sword, and his kingdom shared between the Medes and Persians. (St. Jerome)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin--literally, "numbered, weighed, and dividers."
Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin--literally, "numbered, weighed, and dividers."
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 25. This was intended to be a puzzle, and…
25. This was intended to be a puzzle, and it has thoroughly served its purpose. Formerly there were great discussions among exegetes as to whether the grammatical forms used (for example, Peres for Persians) could be defended; but since it has been seen that this was a Babylonian pun or play on words this criticism has been abandoned. It was supposed by the rabbis that these words must have been written in a strange language which the magicians did not understand, or in the form of an acrostic or anagram; but although the incantations and magic charms of ancient Babylon were written generally in a dead language, which needed translation even for the priests, and although the double system of Babylonian writing (phonetic and ideographic) favored philological riddles, and although there is at least one example of a Babylonian acrostic in the British Museum, yet it is now seen that the “puzzle” was not chiefly in the deciphering of the words (though this was a part of it, see Dan_5:8), but in their explanation. The first clue to this Babylonian riddle was found by Clermont Ganneau, who published in 1886 his discovery that these words — Mene, Tekel, Peres — were simply names of Babylonian weights (Journal Asiatique; Hebraica, iii). This article was quickly followed by a careful philological discussion of the whole question by Noldeke (Zeits. fur Assy., 1886), and the general conclusions of these scholars have been accepted by Sayce, Hommel, Haupt, Prince, and other Assyriologists. The puzzle, therefore, written upon the wall was this: A mina, a mina, a shekel, and half-minas. A mina was a well-known Assyrian weight consisting of sixty shekels, or five hundred and thirteen grains (Hilprecht). The parsu, or barsu, although inadvertently stated by Sayce to have been “part of a shekel,” was really equal to the half of a mina. Numbers had a mystic significance among the Babylonians (see Introduction to Ezekiel, VIII), and it is not impossible that the double mina (1+1) may represent Nebuchadnezzar, the shekel (1) Nabonidus, and the divided mina (½) Belshazzar; although Paul Haupt has recently suggested that the mina, which is the largest Babylonian weight, was a cryptic representation of Nebuchadnezzar, the shekel of his little “son,” Belshazzar, while the broken minas referred to the division of Nebuchadnezzar’s empire between the Medes and Persians. (Compare Dan_2:39; Dan_8:5.) All the gods had their “numbers” in ancient Babylon, and it is not at all improbable that an unworthy son could then, as in later Talmudic times, be described as a “peras [half-mina], the son of a mina.” The doubling of the mina may be for the reason suggested above, or merely for emphasis, or, as Meinhold thinks, because a double meaning is hidden in the cryptogram; or, as Haupt has conjectured, the first “mina” may be an introductory verb meaning “reckon” or “there have been counted.” The latter supposition, however, does not approve itself to the writer. In the cuneiform inscription, therefore, the puzzle stood, mana, mana, sitkla, (u) parsn; that is, “A mina, a mina, a shekel (and) halves,” or, transliterated into the sacred Semitic tongue — often used in the incantations and other religious texts — “Numbered, numbered, weighed, divided;” while by another slight change of vowels the word which had already meant “half-minas” and “divided” was seen to be the very name of the conquerors of Babylon, Paras, “the Persians!” This, then, was a typical Babylonian puzzle, so archaic in its construction that no ancient version or commentary was able to catch its root meaning. Itis an interesting fact in connection with the above that Nebuchadnezzar boasts in one inscription that he had fixed the weight of the mina in his day to conform with the heavier standard established by king Dungi about 3000 B.C. It may also seem suggestive that at the beginning of many Babylonian incantations stands this mystic word Sitkalu, sitkalu, “Shekeled, shekeled,” or “Weighed, weighed.”
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 25. written] inscribed (R.V.). The word is not the…
25. written] inscribed (R.V.). The word is not the one that ordinarily means to write, but one that means rather to print or stamp.
Mene (pron. mìnê, to rhyme with bewray), Mene, Tekel (pron. tìkêl, to rhyme with bewail), Upharsin] in the explanation (Dan_5:28), we have, for upharsîn, pĕrês (to rhyme with deface), which is just the singular of parsîn (or, where a vowel, as here u, precedes, pharsîn), u being ‘and.’ Mìnê as the pass. part, of Mìnâ, to number, might mean ‘numbered’; but if the present vocalization is correct, tìḳêl cannot mean ‘weighed,’ nor pĕrês ‘divided.’ These two words, as they stand, must be substantives. The true explanation of the four words is probably that which was first suggested by Clermont-Ganneau[260], and which has since been adopted by Nöldeke and others. They are really the names of three weights, mìnê being the correct Aramaic form of the Hebrew mâneh, the m’na (μνᾶ), tìḳêl being the Aramaic form of the Hebrew sheḳel, and pĕrês (or more correctly pìrâs), properly division, being a late Jewish word for a half-m’na. Thus the four words are really a m’na, a m’na, a shekel, and half-m’nas. The puzzle consisted partly in the character or manner in which they were supposed to have been written—an unfamiliar form of the Aramaic character, for instance, or, as the mediaeval Jews suggested, a vertical instead of a horizontal arrangement of the letters; partly in the difficulty of attaching any meaning to them, even when they were read: what could the names of three weights signify?[261] Here Daniel’s skill in the ‘declaring of riddles’ (Dan_5:12) comes in. Mìnê itself means ‘numbered,’ as well as ‘a m’na’: it is accordingly interpreted at once as signifying that the days of Belshazzar’s kingdom are ‘numbered,’ and approaching their end. Tìḳêl, ‘shekel,’ suggests tìḳîl, ‘weighed’: ‘Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting.’ Parsin, ‘half-m’nas,’ or pìrês (pìrâs), ‘a half-shekel,’ points allusively to a double interpretation: ‘Thy kingdom is divided (pìrîs)[262], and given to the Medes and Persians’ (Aramaic pâras).
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[260] Journal Asiatique, Juillet-Août, 1886, p. 36 ff. Reprinted in Recueil d’ Archéol. Orientate, i. (1888), p. 136 ff.
[261] For the names of common objects interpreted significantly, see Jer_1:11-12; Jer_19:1; Jer_19:7 (Heb.), Amo_8:1.
[262] The word occurs in Heb. in this sense, e.g. Lev_11:3-5; and of dividing bread, Isa_57:7 (‘deal’), Jer_16:7 (R.V. ‘break’).
25–28. The reading and interpretation of the writing.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (25) Mene . . .—It should be remarked that…
(25) Mene . . .—It should be remarked that the word Mene, which occurs twice in the inscription, is found only once in the interpretation, and that the “Medes” who are mentioned in the interpretation are not spoken of in the inscription. Hence it has been conjectured that the second Mene was originally Madai, or Media. This, though it appears plausible, has no external support. The word Mene, “numbered,” is repeated twice for the sake of emphasis. The days of Babylon are numbered; it is God Himself who has numbered them. “Mene” is used in the double sense of “numbering” and “bringing to an end.” Similarly, “Tekel” implies both the act of “weighing” and the fact of “being light.” The “u” in Upharsin is the conjunction “and,” while pharsin, or, rather, parsin, is the plural of peres, a noun which implies “divisions” and also Persians. It appears from Dan_5:28 that the divided empire of Babylon and the Medo-Persian empire are signified.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Vers. 25-28. And this is the writing that was…
Vers. 25-28. And this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN. This is the interpretation of the thing: MENE; God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it. TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting. PERES; Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians. The Septuagint has two versions of this passage, one m the text, the other in the portion at the beginning, which we think is really composed of marginal readings. In the text the Aramaic is not given at all. As we have already seen, the verse which corresponds to ver. 25 here is really the latter part of ver. 17 of the Septuagint, "This is the writing: It hath been numbered; it is reckoned; it has been carried away." In the verses which are appended to the beginning of the chapter, we have the Aramaic words, but given in a different order, and without the repetition of the first word: "MANE, PHARES, THEKEL. MANE, It has been numbered; PHARES, It is carried away; TnEKEL, It has been set up." Here not only is the order different, but the meaning assigned to phares is singular. srp means in Syriac, "spread out." It would seem that ejxairw meant "stretched out" as well as "carried away." It is still more difficult to understand how thekel can mean "set up," unless the words, ejn zugw, "on the balance," are understood. The Septuagint of the best version is briefer than the Massoretic, though less so than it is in some of the other passages, "Numbered is the time of thy kingdom; ceases thy kingdom; cut short and ended has been thy kingdom; to the Modes and the Persians has it been given." The word interpreted is not repeated as in the Massoretic text, and lqit is derived from llq, which in some of the conjugations means "destroyed," whereas in ver. 17 it is rendered katelogisqh, "it is reckoned," a rendering of lqt which makes it mean "weigh." The Septuagint rendering of the first clause is an evident attempt at explaining the numbering implied. The Massoretic reading involves a pun in both the last words; there is a play between lqit (teqel), "to weigh," and llq (qelal), "to be light," although the introduction of jk rather conceals this. In the last the play is between srp, "to divide," and sdp, "a Persian." Theodotion avoids the repetition of the first word, otherwise he is in somewhat close agreement with the Massoretic text, "MANE, God hath measured thy kingdom; THEKEL, It is set on the balance, and found wanting; PHARES, Thy kingdom is cut asunder, and given to the Medes and the Persians." The Peshitta is in close agreement with the Massoretic text. The actual meaning of the words, taking them as they appear in the Massoretictext, as Aramaic words, is, to give English equivalents, "a pound, a pound, an ounce, and quarters;" hence the impossibility of interpreting the words. We find all these words, mena, teqel (shekel), pares, in the Ninevite inscriptions. As the words are interpreted, we cannot fail to be impressed with the peremptory style of the inscription, as Hitzig has it. Zockler refers to the sculpturesque style (lapidarstil). This brevity rendered it difficult for the soothsayers to put any meaning into the words at all. In all the versions the fact that the kingdom is to be given to the Medes and Persians is emphasized, but, moreover, the play on words in the last clause implies the Persians as the prominent assailants of the Babylonian power, but really that the two powers were united. It seems extraordinary that any one, in the face of this, should maintain that the author of Daniel separated the two powers, and thought the Median power succeeded the Babylonian, and then that the Persian succeeded the Median. We know now that Herodotus"s representation of the history of Media and Persia is utterly false and misleading.
Vers. 25-28.
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Found wanting.
The mysterious writing on the wall of Belshazzar"s palace is a revelation of the judgment which must certainly follow all misuse of the talents and opportunities of life. It brings vividly before us the summons, the trial, and the sentence which awaits every one who neglects and abuses his mission in the world.
I THE SUMMONS. "Numbered" is the first word. The days of the Babylonian supremacy are numbered, and the days of the life of King Belshazzar are numbered; their end has come, and now he and his nation are called to give account of their stewardship.
1. Every life has its limit. God gives us all sufficient time and opportunity for the work which he requires of us, and, conversely, he requires no more of us than our faculties are equal to. Therefore we have no reason to murmur at the brevity of life, and no excuse for neglecting our proper duties on account of it. But there is a limit to our opportunities. We have not the leisure of eternity before us. We cannot postpone the work of today till to-morrow, without interfering with the work of the morrow. (Joh_9:4) The dine draws on apace when the end will come to all these opportunities of doing our work in the world. How foolish not to consider what our position will be at "the end of the days"! How vain to be satisfied with present ease, since these days of sinful idleness are few and shortening! Who of us will be able to say at the end of life, "It is finished"?
2. Abuse of opportunities will lead to the loss of them. The kingdom appears to be "numbered and finished," swiftly, abruptly, and in judgment. Both king and people might have been spared longer, if they had lived better. Time is a talent which is justly taken from those who do not make a good use of it (Psa_37:9; Mat_25:28, Mat_25:29) This applies with special force to kingdoms the judgment of which belongs to this world. (Isa_14:22)
II THE TRIAL. The second word, "weighed," is explained by Daniel to mean that Belshazzar and his kingdom have been "weighed in the balances, and found wanting.
1. There is a judgment awaiting us all. Our future will not be determined by chance, or fate, or easy indifference. It will depend on our past. This will be revealed, examined, proved, tested, weighed in every thought and word and deed, for every moment of life. None can expect to escape this trial. The greatest king is here subjected to its searching scrutiny.
This judgment will be effected by weighing our conduct, and testing it by a Divine standard. We shall be weighed in the balances. On Egyptian mummy-cases there may be seen representations of the soul weighed in scales with truth as a counterpoise. The truth or ideal conduct by which we shall be tested may be variously viewed as
1. absolute right;
2. God"s will;
3. God"s idea of our life;
4. duty and vocation; these being shaped and modified according to our powers, our opportunities, and our light. (Rom_2:6-12)
The ground of condemnation will be to be found wanting. " As darkness is the absence of light, so evil is the absence of good. We can only keep out sin by being filled with holiness. (Rom_12:21) To be "wanting" in truth, or purity, or love, is the essence of sin. More particularly we shall be judged by our defection of duty, not merely by our commission of offences. Mere negative harmlessness will be of no avail if we have failed in our positive service. (Mat_25:42-45)
III THE SENTENCE. The third word, "divided," is interpreted to mean that the Babylonian "kingdom is divided, and given to Media and Persia.
1. After a verdict of "guilty," there must be a sentence of punishment. Whatever be the nature of future punishment, justice, present analogies, and revelation concur in pointing to the certainty of its execution. For individuals this is mostly reserved to the future world; but for kingdoms, which remain in this world for successive generations, allowing time for moral laws to work out their ends here, it is executed on earth and is witnessed by history.
2. The most natural punishment is the loss of the honours and powers which have been abused. The kingdom is taken away. The unused talent is taken away. (Mat_25:28, Mat_25:29)
3. The worst form of punishment is death. The kingdom is to be divided to die as a kingdom. Corruption, disintegration, dissolution, spiritual death in outer darkness, are the awful mysterious doom of sin unrepented and persisted, in to the end, (Jam_1:15)
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 This is the writing that was done
This is the writing that was done
This can be stated in active form. AT: "This is the message that the hand wrote" (See: Active or Passive)
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Mene, Mene, Tekel, and Pharsin
These are the Aramaic words that were written on the wall. Spell these words with the sounds that fit your language. (See: Copy or Borrow Words)
'Mene,' 'God has numbered
"'Mene' means 'God has numbered"
'Tekel,' 'you are weighed
"'Tekel' means 'you are weighed"
'Peres,' 'your kingdom
"'Peres' means 'your kingdom."
Peres
This is the singular form of "Pharsin" in Dan 5:25.
you are weighed in the scales and are found lacking
Judging the worthiness of the king to rule is spoken of as weighing him. This means that the king is not worthy to rule. This can be stated in active form. AT: "God has examined your worthiness to rule, and he has found that you are not worthy" (See: Metaphor and Active or Passive)
your kingdom is divided and is given to the Medes and Persians
This can be stated in active form. AT: "God has divided your kingdom and given it to the Medes and Persians" (See: Active or Passive)
translationWords
God
kingdom
Medes
Persia
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 5:25-28 Mene, Mene, Tekel, and Parsin: These Aramaic units…
5:25-28 Mene, Mene, Tekel, and Parsin: These Aramaic units of measure are used on a balance to weigh quantities of goods being bought and sold. Belshazzar knew the words, but Daniel explained what they meant in this context. The God of Israel measures kings and kingdoms in the balances of justice and righteousness (cp. 4:27).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.