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OET interlinear DAN 5:1

◄ ↨ DAN 5:1 ↓ → ► ║ ©

Hebrew word order

    1. Hebrew word
    2. Hebrew lemma
    3. OET-LV words
    4. OET-RV words
    5. Strongs
    6. Role/Morphology
    7. Gloss
    8. CAPS codes
    9. OET tags
    10. OET word #
    1. בֵּלְשַׁאצַּר
    2. 513742
    3. Bēləshaʼʦʦr
    4. -
    5. 1113
    6. S-Np
    7. Belshazzar
    8. -
    9. Person=Belshazzar; Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359266
    1. מַלְכָּ,א
    2. 513743,513744
    3. Oh/the king
    4. -
    5. 4430
    6. S-Ncmsd,Td
    7. Oh/the=king
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359267
    1. עֲבַד
    2. 513745
    3. he made
    4. -
    5. 5648
    6. V-Vqp3ms
    7. he_made
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359268
    1. לְחֶם
    2. 513746
    3. a feast
    4. feast
    5. 3900
    6. O-Ncmsa
    7. a_feast
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359269
    1. רַב
    2. 513747
    3. great
    4. -
    5. 7229
    6. O-Aamsa
    7. great
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359270
    1. לְ,רַבְרְבָנוֹ,הִי
    2. 513748,513749,513750
    3. for nobles of his
    4. nobles
    5. 7261
    6. S-R,Ncmpc,Sp3ms
    7. for,nobles_of,his
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359271
    1. אֲלַף
    2. 513751
    3. a thousand
    4. -
    5. 506
    6. S-Acmsa
    7. a_thousand
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359272
    1. וְ,לָ,קֳבֵל
    2. 513752,513753,513754
    3. and (to) before
    4. -
    5. 6903
    6. S-C,R,R
    7. and,(to),before
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359273
    1. אַלְפָּ,א
    2. 513755,513756
    3. the thousand
    4. -
    5. 506
    6. S-Acmsd,Td
    7. the,thousand
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359274
    1. חַמְרָ,א
    2. 513757,513758
    3. (the) wine
    4. -
    5. 2562
    6. O-Ncmsd,Td
    7. (the),wine
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359275
    1. שָׁתֵה
    2. 513759
    3. he +was drinking
    4. drinking
    5. 8355
    6. V-Vqrmsa
    7. [he_was]_drinking
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359276
    2. 513760
    3. -
    4. -
    6. -x-sof-pasuq
    8. -
    9. -
    10. 359277

OET (OET-LV) Bēləshaʼʦʦr Oh/the_king he_made a_feast great for_nobles_of_his a_thousand and_(to)_before the_thousand (the)_wine he_was_drinking.

OET (OET-RV) Several years later when Belshatstsar was king, he put on a feast for a thousand of his nobles, and he was drinking wine with them all.

SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 5:1–31: God judged King Belshazzar

The author continued to write in the Aramaic language. He wrote about how King Belshazzar gave a big banquet and made use of the sacred treasures from the Jerusalem temple. Belshazzar saw a hand writing a mysterious message on the wall. Only Daniel was able to explain the message, that God was about to punish Belshazzar. That same night an army of Medes and Persians conquered the city and killed Belshazzar.

English versions give different headings to Daniel 5. These include:

The Handwriting on the Wall (GW)

The Writing on the Wall (NIV)

King Belshazzar’s Banquet (CEV)

In some languages it may be more natural to write the heading in the form of a clause. For example, you could say:

King Belshazzar saw a hand write on the wall.

King Belshazzar had/gave a banquet/feast.

Some versions give headings to the subsections of Daniel 5. For example, the NLT has two headings:

The Writing on the Wall (5:1)

Daniel explains the writing (5:13)

The NRSV has three headings:

Belshazzar’s Feast (5:1)

The Writing on the Wall (5:5)

The Writing on the Wall Interpreted (5:13)

You should decide the number of headings that is best in your translation. The purpose of headings is to help readers to follow the events of the story. Headings also help the reader understand the relationships between the different parts of the story. You should try not to have more headings than necessary.

Historical Background:

Nabonidus was the king of Babylon from 556 to 539 B.C. Historical records indicate that he married Nitocris, the daughter of Nebuchadnezzar, and that Belshazzar was their oldest son.See the ancient Greek historian Herodotus and the Nabonidus Chronicles. While Nabonidus was absent from Babylon during the last ten years of his reign, Belshazzar acted as king in his place.

Daniel 5 describes the last night of the Babylonian empire. From other historic sources we know that Cyrus, the king of Persia, attacked the Babylonian army during the 7th month of the year 539 B.C. On the 15th day of that month, they attacked the town of Sippar and King Nabonidus fled. The next day Cyrus’ army entered the city of Babylon without any battle and killed its ruler, Belshazzar. Daniel 5 describes what Belshazzar was doing on the last day of the Babylonian empire.

Paragraph 5:1–4

Daniel 5:1–4 introduces a new episode in the narrative. It identifies the time, place, and the major characters in this new episode.

5:1a

Later, King Belshazzar held a great feast for a thousand of his nobles,

Later: The text introduces the main character, Belshazzar, in the first clause. In some languages it may be natural to indicate first when these events happened. The word Later is not in the Aramaic text but the BSB has supplied it to indicate to the reader that the events that follow took place after the previously recorded events. The events in chapter 5 took place about thirty years after the events of chapter 4. Nebuchadnezzar had died in 562 B.C. This episode takes place in 539 B.C. So you may wish to supply a time phrase such as:

A number of years later (NLT)

One time

Later when Belshazzar was king

King Belshazzar held a great feast for a thousand of his nobles: The king of Babylon ordered his servants to prepare a banquet for his guests. Here are some other ways to translate this:

King Belshazzar organized/prepared a big feast for a thousand of his high officials.

King Belshazzar invited a thousand noblemen to a great banquet (GNT)

King Belshazzar: The Aramaic expression that the BSB translates as King Belshazzar is literally “Belshazzar the king.” This is the first time the text has referred to this person. Your language may have a special way to introduce new people into a story.

King: The Aramaic word that the BSB translates as King here refers to the son of the king, who was ruling in the king’s place. Belshazzar was probably acting as the king in the capital, while his father was living in another area of the empire. Use the normal word that you have used for king elsewhere in the book of Daniel.

great: The Aramaic word that the BSB translates as great here means “big, large, generous.” There was a lot of food and drink for the guests to enjoy.

feast: The Aramaic word that the BSB translates as feast literally means “bread.” Here it has the extended meaning of a meal. Use a word appropriate for a fine meal that a king might provide to important people on a special occasion. English versions also say:

festival (NRSV)

banquet (NIV)

a thousand of his nobles: The king may have had more than a thousand nobles. He invited one thousand of them to eat a meal at his palace. The number a thousand may be a round number for an impressive crowd rather than an exact head count.

nobles: The Aramaic title that the BSB translates as nobles refers to important men who participated in the king’s court. See the Notes at 4:33. Other ways to say this in English are:

lords (NRSV)

noblemen (GNT)

highest officials (CEV)

5:1b

and he drank wine with them.

and he drank wine with them: wine was an alcoholic drink that people made from a fruit called grapes. People usually drank wine on special occasions, especially when there was a celebration or feast. If your culture is not familiar with wine, see the options of how to translate this expression in the Notes at 1:5a.

with them: The Aramaic expression that the BSB translates as with them is more literally “in front of” or “in the presence of.” However, this does not mean that the king was the only person drinking wine. He probably sat at a high table facing the nobles as he drank wine along with them all.

them: The Aramaic literally says “the thousand,” referring to the noblemen mentioned in 5:1a. Refer back to these nobles in a way that is natural in your language.

uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: translate-names

בֵּלְשַׁאצַּ֣ר

Bēləshaʼʦʦr

Belshazzar is the son of Nebuchadnezzar who became king after his father.

Note 2 topic: translate-numbers

אֲלַ֑ף

thousand

“1,000 of”

וְ⁠לָ⁠קֳבֵ֥ל & חַמְרָ֥⁠א שָׁתֵֽה

and,(to),before & (the),wine drinking

Alternate translation: “and he drank wine in the presence of”

TSN Tyndale Study Notes:

5:1 Many years later: This chapter opens in October 539 BC (see study note on 5:30).
• The name Belshazzar means “Bel Protects [the King]” (Bel was a Babylonian god). Nabonidus (556–539 BC) placed his son Belshazzar on the Babylonian throne around 553 BC as ruler in his stead. Then Nabonidus moved to Tema in northwest Arabia, where he stayed for ten years. He returned to Babylon only in the unsuccessful attempt to oppose the Persians (cp. 5:30-31).

OET-LV English word order (‘Reverse’ interlinear)

    1. OET-LV words
    2. OET-RV words
    3. Strongs
    4. Hebrew word
    5. Hebrew lemma
    6. Role/Morphology
    7. Gloss
    8. CAPS codes
    9. OET tags
    10. OET word #
    1. Bēləshaʼʦʦr
    2. -
    3. 1041
    4. A
    5. 513742
    6. S-Np
    8. -
    9. Person=Belshazzar; Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359266
    1. Oh/the king
    2. -
    3. 4308,1
    4. A
    5. 513743,513744
    6. S-Ncmsd,Td
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359267
    1. he made
    2. -
    3. 5524
    4. A
    5. 513745
    6. V-Vqp3ms
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359268
    1. a feast
    2. feast
    3. 3724
    4. A
    5. 513746
    6. O-Ncmsa
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359269
    1. great
    2. -
    3. 7191
    4. A
    5. 513747
    6. O-Aamsa
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359270
    1. for nobles of his
    2. nobles
    3. 3705,7193,1978
    4. A
    5. 513748,513749,513750
    6. S-R,Ncmpc,Sp3ms
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359271
    1. a thousand
    2. -
    3. 165
    4. A
    5. 513751
    6. S-Acmsa
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359272
    1. and (to) before
    2. -
    3. 1987,3705,6788
    4. A
    5. 513752,513753,513754
    6. S-C,R,R
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359273
    1. the thousand
    2. -
    3. 165,1
    4. A
    5. 513755,513756
    6. S-Acmsd,Td
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359274
    1. (the) wine
    2. -
    3. 2220,1
    4. A
    5. 513757,513758
    6. O-Ncmsd,Td
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359275
    1. he +was drinking
    2. drinking
    3. 7531
    4. A
    5. 513759
    6. V-Vqrmsa
    8. -
    9. Y-538; TProphecies_of_Daniel
    10. 359276

OET (OET-LV) Bēləshaʼʦʦr Oh/the_king he_made a_feast great for_nobles_of_his a_thousand and_(to)_before the_thousand (the)_wine he_was_drinking.

OET (OET-RV) Several years later when Belshatstsar was king, he put on a feast for a thousand of his nobles, and he was drinking wine with them all.

Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.

Acknowledgements: The Hebrew text, lemmas, and morphology are all thanks to the OSHB and some of the glosses are from Macula Hebrew.OET logo mark

◄ ↨ DAN 5:1 ↑ → ► ║ ©