DAN 5:25 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=small word differences Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

OET (OET-RV) This is how it reads, ‘Numbered, numbered, weighed, and divided,’

Key: khaki:verbs.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the OET-RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

ULT This is the writing that was inscribed: ‘Mene, Mene, Tekel, and Parsin.’

OEB No OEB DAN book available

WEBBE “This is the writing that was inscribed: ‘MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.’

WMBB (Same as above)

NET “This is the writing that was inscribed: MENE, MENE, TEQEL, and PHARSIN.

LSV and this [is] the writing that is noted down: Numbered, Numbered, Weighed, and Divided.

FBV What was written on the wall was this: ‘Number, number, weigh, divide.’[fn]

5:25 Literally in the Aramaic, “mene, mene, tekel, parsin.”

T4T This is the message that it wrote: ‘Mene, mene, tekel, parsin.’

LEB “Now this was the writing that was inscribed: ‘Mene, Mene, Tekel and Parsin.’

BBE And this is the writing which was recorded, Mene, tekel, peres.

Moff This is the inscription:
⇔ Mene, Tekel, Peres.

JPS And this is the writing that was inscribed: MENE MENE, TEKEL UPHARSIN.

ASV And this is the writing that was inscribed: MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.

DRA And this is the writing that is written: MANE, THECEL, PHARES.

YLT and this [is] the writing that is noted down: Numbered, Numbered, Weighed, and Divided.

Drby And this is the writing that is written: MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.

RV And this is the writing that was inscribed, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.

SLT And this the writing that was written: MENE, MENE, TEKEL and PHARSIN.

Wbstr And this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.

KJB-1769 ¶ And this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.

KJB-1611 ¶ And this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL VPHARSIN.
(¶ And this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL UPHARSIN.)

Bshps And this the writing that he hath writte: MENE MENE, THECEL, VPHARSIN.
(And this the writing that he hath/has writte: MENE MENE, THECEL, UPHARSIN.)

Gnva And this is the writing that he hath written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL UPHARSIN.
(And this is the writing that he hath/has written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL UPHARSIN. )

Cvdl And this is the scripture, that is written vp: Mane, Thetel, Phares.
(And this is the scripture, that is written up: Mane, Thetel, Phares.)

Wycl Sotheli this is the scripture which is discryued, Mane, Techel, Phares.
(Truly this is the scripture which is discryued, Mane, Techel, Phares.)

Luth Das ist aber die Schrift allda verzeichnet: Mene, mene, tekel, upharsin.
(The is but the writing there recorded: Mene, mene, tekel, upharsin.)

ClVg Hæc est autem scriptura, quæ digesta est: Mane, Thecel, Phares.
(This it_is however scriptura, which digesta it_is: Mane, Thecel, Phares. )

SOTN 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 5:25

Daniel read the message on the wall for King Belshazzar.

5:25a

Now this is the inscription that was written:

¶ “These are the words that the hand wrote:
¶ “This is what the hand wrote:

Now: This verse begins with the Aramaic common conjunction that the BSB translates as Now here because, in this context, it introduces the next thing that Daniel said, the climax of his speech. You should introduce what Daniel said next in a way that is natural in your language.

this is the inscription that was written: See the Notes at 5:24. This clause repeats information from 5:24b. It is a passive clause. There are at least two ways to translate it:

Using a passive verb. For example:
This is the writing that was inscribed. (RSV)
This is what was written
Using an active verb. For example:
This is what the hand wrote:
These are the words that the hand wrote:
The words are these:

this: The Aramaic word that the BSB translates as this here refers to what follows, the words in 5:25b.

5:25b

MENE, MENE, TEKEL, PARSIN.

Mene, mene, tekel, and parsin.

MENE, MENE, TEKEL, PARSIN: These words are from the Aramaic language.The three words could each have had various readings, depending on the vowels the reader supplied. The MT supplies vowels of nouns in the q^etēl form. When Daniel interprets the writing he vocalizes the words as passive participles. See the discussion by Lucas, pp. 132–33. Aramaic was widely spoken in the Babylonian empire. However, the king and the other experts had difficulty reading and understanding these words. This may have been because only the consonants were written, and so each word could have various meanings. There are several ways to translate these words:

Transliterate them. This is what most English versions do. For example:
Mene mene tekel and parsin (RSV)
Translate them. For example:
Numbered, Numbered, Weighed, and Divided (GW)
Number, number, weight, divisions (GNT)
Transliterate and supply the meaning. For example:
mene, which means, “numbered,” tekel, which means “weighed,” and parsin, which means “divided” (CEV)

The first option is usually best, since each of these words can have more than one meaning. See below.

MENE: This word could have more than one meaning, depending on what vowels were supplied. In the MT the first vowel is short and the second long. It is pronounced “menay.” The exact meaning is uncertain, but it probably comes from a root verb meaning “number, count.”

TEKEL: This word could also have more than one meaning. The word in the MT is pronounced “tekale,” with the first vowel short and the second long. It probably comes from a verb root meaning “weigh.”

PARSIN: This word could also have more than one meaning. The word in the MT is pronounced “uparseen.” The “u” means “and,” and the BSB has left it implied. The word PARSIN probably comes from a verb root meaning “divide.”

Parallel DAN 5:25

Section 5:1–31: God judged King Belshazzar

Paragraph 5:25

5:25a

5:25b