Daniel 5:7-8

5:7 The king called out loudly ¹  to summon ²  the astrologers, wise men, and diviners. The king proclaimed ³  to the wise men of Babylon that anyone who could read this inscription and disclose its interpretation would be clothed in purple ⁴  and have a golden collar ⁵  placed on his neck and be third ruler in the kingdom.

5:8 So all the king’s wise men came in, but they were unable to read the writing or to make known its ⁶  interpretation to the king.

Daniel 5:15-16

5:15 Now the wise men and ⁷  astrologers were brought before me to read this writing and make known to me its interpretation. But they were unable to disclose the interpretation of the message. 5:16 However, I have heard ⁸  that you are able to provide interpretations and to decipher knotty problems. Now if you are able to read this writing and make known to me its interpretation, you will wear purple and have a golden collar around your neck and be third ⁹  ruler in the kingdom.”

Daniel 5:30

5:30 And in that very night Belshazzar, the Babylonian king, ¹⁰  was killed. ¹¹ 

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¹ tn Aram “in strength.”

² tn Aram “cause to enter.”

³ tn Aram “answered and said.”

⁴ sn Purple was a color associated with royalty in the ancient world.

⁵ tn The term translated “golden collar” here probably refers to something more substantial than merely a gold chain (cf. NIV, NCV, NRSV, NLT) or necklace (cf. NASB).

⁶ tc Read וּפִשְׁרֵהּ (ufishreh) with the Qere rather than וּפִשְׁרָא (ufishra’) of the Kethib.

⁷ tn The Aramaic text does not have “and.” The term “astrologers” is either an appositive for “wise men” (cf. KJV, NKJV, ASV, RSV, NRSV), or the construction is to be understood as asyndetic (so the translation above).

⁸ tn The Aramaic text has also the words “about you.”

⁹ tn Or perhaps “one of three rulers,” in the sense of becoming part of a triumvir. So also v. 29.

¹⁰ tn Aram “king of the Chaldeans.”

¹¹ sn The year was 539 B.C. At this time Daniel would have been approximately eighty-one years old. The relevant extra-biblical records describing the fall of Babylon include portions of Herodotus, Xenophon, Berossus (cited in Josephus), the Cyrus Cylinder, and the Babylonian Chronicle.