Daniel 5 · Verse 4

Daniel 5:4

They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.
Daniel 5:4, King James Version

Daniel 5:4 in other translations

BSBAs they drank the wine, they praised their gods of gold and silver, bronze and iron, wood and stone.
WEBThey drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of bronze, of iron, of wood, and of stone.
ASVThey drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.
YLTthey have drunk wine, and have praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.
DARBYThey drank wine, and praised thegods of gold and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.
BBEThey took their wine and gave praise to the gods of gold and silver, of brass and iron and wood and stone.
WebsterThey drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.

What does Daniel 5:4 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
4. praised--sang and shouted praises to "gods," which being of gold, "are their own witnesses" (Is 44:9), confuting the folly of those who fancy such to be gods.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 4 And praised the gods of gold - They had gods of all sorts, and of all metals; with wooden gods, and stone gods, beside!

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Daniel 5:1-9

Belshazzar's impious feast; the hand-writing on the wall. (Dn 5:1-9) Daniel is sent for to interpret it. (Dn 5:10-17) Daniel warns the king of his destruction. (Dn 5:18-31) Verses 1-9 Belshazzar bade defiance to the judgments of God. Most historians consider that Cyrus then besieged Babylon. Security and sensuality are sad proofs of approaching ruin. That mirth is sinful indeed, which profanes sacred things; and…

Read the full comment on Daniel 5:1-9 →

Daniel 5:4 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

אִשְׁתִּ֖יו'ish.Tivthey drankH8355
חַמְרָ֑אcham.Ra'wine theH2562
וְ֠שַׁבַּחוּVe.sha.ba.chuand they praisedH7624
לֵֽאלָהֵ֞יle.la.Hei<obj.> [the] gods ofH426
דַּהֲבָ֧אda.ha.Va'<the> goldH1722
וְכַסְפָּ֛אve.khas.Pa'and <the> silverH3702
נְחָשָׁ֥אne.cha.Sha'<the> bronzeH5174
פַרְזְלָ֖אfar.ze.La'<the> ironH6523
אָעָ֥א'a.'A'<the> woodH636
וְאַבְנָֽא\׃ve.'av.Na'and <the> stoneH69

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Daniel 5:4

  • Daniel 5:23

    But hast lifted up thyself against the Lord of heaven; and they have brought the vessels of his house before thee, and thou, and thy lords, thy wives, and thy concubines, have drunk wine in them; and thou hast praised the gods of silver, and gold, of brass, iron, wood, and stone, which see not, nor hear, nor know: and the God in whose hand thy breath is, and whose are all thy ways, hast thou not glorified:

  • Habakkuk 2:19

    Woe unto him that saith to the wood, Awake; to the dumb stone, Arise, it shall teach! Behold, it is laid over with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in the midst of it.

  • Psalms 135:15-18

    The idols of the heathen are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands. They have mouths, but they speak not; eyes have they, but they see not; They have ears, but they hear not; neither is there any breath in their mouths. They that make them are like unto them: so is every one that trusteth in them.

  • Revelation 9:20-21

    And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk: Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.

  • Psalms 115:4-8

    Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands. They have mouths, but they speak not: eyes have they, but they see not: They have ears, but they hear not: noses have they, but they smell not: They have hands, but they handle not: feet have they, but they walk not: neither speak they through their throat. …

  • Isaiah 40:19-20

    The workman melteth a graven image, and the goldsmith spreadeth it over with gold, and casteth silver chains. He that is so impoverished that he hath no oblation chooseth a tree that will not rot; he seeketh unto him a cunning workman to prepare a graven image, that shall not be moved.

  • Jeremiah 10:4-9

    They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not. They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good. Forasmuch as there is none like unto thee, O Lord; thou art great, and thy name is great in might. Who would not fear thee, O King of nations? for to thee doth it appertain: forasmuch as among all the wise men of the nations, and in all their kingdoms, there is none like unto thee. …

  • Acts 17:29

    Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man’s device.

  • Isaiah 42:8

    I am the Lord: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.

  • Isaiah 46:6-7

    They lavish gold out of the bag, and weigh silver in the balance, and hire a goldsmith; and he maketh it a god: they fall down, yea, they worship. They bear him upon the shoulder, they carry him, and set him in his place, and he standeth; from his place shall he not remove: yea, one shall cry unto him, yet can he not answer, nor save him out of his trouble.

  • Isaiah 42:17

    They shall be turned back, they shall be greatly ashamed, that trust in graven images, that say to the molten images, Ye are our gods.

  • Hosea 2:8-13

    For she did not know that I gave her corn, and wine, and oil, and multiplied her silver and gold, which they prepared for Baal. Therefore will I return, and take away my corn in the time thereof, and my wine in the season thereof, and will recover my wool and my flax given to cover her nakedness. And now will I discover her lewdness in the sight of her lovers, and none shall deliver her out of mine hand. I will also cause all her mirth to cease, her feast days, her new moons, and her sabbaths, and all her solemn feasts. …

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
praised.
23; 4:37; Jud 16:23,24; Isa 42:8; Ho 2:8-13; Re 9:20,21
of gold.
3:1-7,8-18; Ps 115:4-8; 135:15-18; Isa 40:19,20; 42:17; 46:6,7
Jer 10:4-9; Hab 2:19; Ac 17:29; 19:24-28; Re 9:20

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Daniel 5:3

    Then they brought the golden vessels that were taken out of the temple of the house of God which was at Jerusalem; and the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, drank in them.

  • Daniel 5:4

    They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.

  • Daniel 5:5

    In the same hour came forth fingers of a man’s hand, and wrote over against the candlestick upon the plaister of the wall of the king’s palace: and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote.

Read all of Daniel 5

Daniel 5:4 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Bebieron vino, y alabaron á los dioses de oro y de plata, de metal, de hierro, de madera, y de piedra.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Ils burent du vin, et ils louèrent les dieux d’or et d’argent, d’airain, de fer, de bois, et de pierre.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Sie tranken Wein und rühmten die Götter von Gold und Silber, von Erz, Eisen, Holz und Stein.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Bibebant vinum, et laudabant deos suos aureos et argenteos, æreos, ferreos, ligneosque et lapideos.