Daniel 5 · Verse 7

Daniel 5:7

The king cried aloud to bring in the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. And the king spake, and said to the wise men of Babylon, Whosoever shall read this writing, and shew me the interpretation thereof, shall be clothed with scarlet, and have a chain of gold about his neck, and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.
Daniel 5:7, King James Version

Daniel 5:7 in other translations

BSBThe king called out for the enchanters, astrologers, and diviners to be brought in, and he said to these wise men of Babylon, “Whoever reads this inscription and tells me its interpretation will be clothed in purple and have a gold chain placed around his neck, and he will be made the third highest ruler in the kingdom.”
WEBThe king cried aloud to bring in the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. The king spoke and said to the wise men of Babylon, “Whoever reads this writing and shows me its interpretation shall be clothed with purple, and have a chain of gold about his neck, and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.”
ASVThe king cried aloud to bring in the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. The king spake and said to the wise men of Babylon, Whosoever shall read this writing, and show me the interpretation thereof, shall be clothed with purple, and have a chain of gold about his neck, and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.
YLTCall doth the king mightily, to bring up the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. Answered hath the king, and said to the wise men of Babylon, that, ‘Any man who doth read this writing, and its interpretation doth shew me, purple he putteth on, and a bracelet of gold is on his neck, and third in the kingdom he doth rule.'
DARBYThe king cried aloud to bring in the magicians, the Chaldeans, and the astrologers. The king spoke and said to the wise men of Babylon, Whosoever shall read this writing, and shew me the interpretation thereof, shall be clothed with purple, and have a chain of gold about his neck, and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.
BBEThe king, crying out with a loud voice, said that the users of secret arts, the Chaldaeans, and the readers of signs, were to be sent for. The king made answer and said to the wise men of Babylon, Whoever is able to make out this writing, and make clear to me the sense of it, will be clothed in purple and have a chain of gold round his neck, and will be a ruler of high authority in the kingdom.
WebsterThe king cried aloud to bring in the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the sooth-sayers. And the king spoke and said to the wise men of Babylon, Whoever shall read this writing, and show me the interpretation of it, shall be clothed with scarlet, and have a chain of gold about his neck, and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.

What does Daniel 5:7 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
7. He calls for the magicians, who more than once had been detected in imposture. He neglects God, and Daniel, whose fame as an interpreter was then well-established. The world wishes to be deceived and shuts its eyes against the light [Calvin]. The Hebrews think the words were Chaldee, but in the old Hebrew character (like that now in the Samaritan Pentateuch). third ruler--The first place was given to the king; the second, to the son of the king, or of the queen; the third, to the chief of the satraps.

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

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 7 Whosoever shall read this writing - He knew it must be some awful portent, and wished to know what.

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 5:7 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.

קָרֵ֤אka.Re'[was] callingH7123
מַלְכָּא֙mal.Ka'king theH4430
בְּחַ֔יִלbe.Cha.yilwith powerH2429
לְהֶֽעָלָה֙le.he.'a.Lahto bring inH5954
לְאָ֣שְׁפַיָּ֔אle.'A.she.fai.Ya'<obj.> conjurers theH826
כַּשְׂדָּאֵ֖יkas.da.'eChaldeans theH3779
וְגָזְרַיָּ֑אve.ga.ze.rai.Ya'and astrologers theH1505
עָנֵ֨ה'a.Neh[was] replyingH6032
מַלְכָּ֜אmal.Ka'king theH4430
וְאָמַ֣ר\׀ve.'a.Marand [was] sayingH560
לְחַכִּימֵ֣יle.cha.ki.Meito [the] wise men ofH2445
בָבֶ֗לva.VelBabylonH895
דִּ֣יdithatH1768
כָל\־khol-anyH3606
אֱ֠נָשׁ'E.noshpersonH606
דִּֽי\־di-whoH1768
יִקְרֵ֞הyik.Rehhe will read aloudH7123
כְּתָבָ֣הke.ta.Vah'writing theH3792
דְנָ֗הde.NahthisH1836
וּפִשְׁרֵהּ֙u.fish.Rehand interpretation itsH6591
יְחַוִּנַּ֔נִיye.chav.vi.Na.nihe will declare to meH2324
אַרְגְּוָנָ֣א'ar.ge.va.Na'<the> purpleH711
יִלְבַּ֗שׁyil.Bashhe will be clothedH3848
וְהַֽמְנִיכָ֤אve.ha.mon.kha'and necklace theH2002
דִֽי\־di-ofH1768
דַהֲבָא֙da.ha.Va'<the> goldH1722
עַֽל\־'al-[will be] onH5922
צַוְּארֵ֔הּtza.ve.Rehneck hisH6676
וְתַלְתִּ֥יve.tal.Tiand thirdH8523
בְמַלְכוּתָ֖אve.mal.khu.Ta'in kingdom theH4437
יִשְׁלַֽט\׃\ \סyish.Lathe will ruleH7981

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

Cross references for Daniel 5:7

  • Daniel 5:16

    And I have heard of thee, that thou canst make interpretations, and dissolve doubts: now if thou canst read the writing, and make known to me the interpretation thereof, thou shalt be clothed with scarlet, and have a chain of gold about thy neck, and shalt be the third ruler in the kingdom.

  • Daniel 5:29

    Then commanded Belshazzar, and they clothed Daniel with scarlet, and put a chain of gold about his neck, and made a proclamation concerning him, that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom.

  • Daniel 2:48

    Then the king made Daniel a great man, and gave him many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief of the governors over all the wise men of Babylon.

  • Genesis 41:42-44

    And Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand, and put it upon Joseph’s hand, and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck; And he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried before him, Bow the knee: and he made him ruler over all the land of Egypt. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I am Pharaoh, and without thee shall no man lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.

  • Daniel 2:6

    But if ye shew the dream, and the interpretation thereof, ye shall receive of me gifts and rewards and great honour: therefore shew me the dream, and the interpretation thereof.

  • Daniel 6:2-3

    And over these three presidents; of whom Daniel was first: that the princes might give accounts unto them, and the king should have no damage. Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king thought to set him over the whole realm.

  • Ezekiel 16:11

    I decked thee also with ornaments, and I put bracelets upon thy hands, and a chain on thy neck.

  • Daniel 2:2

    Then the king commanded to call the magicians, and the astrologers, and the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans, for to shew the king his dreams. So they came and stood before the king.

  • Numbers 22:7

    And the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian departed with the rewards of divination in their hand; and they came unto Balaam, and spake unto him the words of Balak.

  • Proverbs 1:9

    For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck.

  • Isaiah 47:13

    Thou art wearied in the multitude of thy counsels. Let now the astrologers, the stargazers, the monthly prognosticators, stand up, and save thee from these things that shall come upon thee.

  • Numbers 24:11

    Therefore now flee thou to thy place: I thought to promote thee unto great honour; but, lo, the Lord hath kept thee back from honour.

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
aloud. Chal. with might.
4:14; *marg:
to bring.
2:2; 4:6; Ge 41:8; Isa 44:25,26; 47:13
be clothed.
16,29; 2:6; Ge 41:42-44; Nu 22:7,17; 24:11; 1Sa 17:25
scarlet. or, purple. a chain.
Pr 1:9; So 1:10; Eze 16:11
the third.
2:48; 6:2,3; Es 3:1; 10:2,3

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

Context

  • Daniel 5:6

    Then the king’s countenance was changed, and his thoughts troubled him, so that the joints of his loins were loosed, and his knees smote one against another.

  • Daniel 5:7

    The king cried aloud to bring in the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. And the king spake, and said to the wise men of Babylon, Whosoever shall read this writing, and shew me the interpretation thereof, shall be clothed with scarlet, and have a chain of gold about his neck, and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.

  • Daniel 5:8

    Then came in all the king’s wise men: but they could not read the writing, nor make known to the king the interpretation thereof.

Read all of Daniel 5

Daniel 5:7 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		El rey clamó en alta voz que hiciesen venir magos, Caldeos, y adivinos. Habló el rey, y dijo á los sabios de Babilonia: Cualquiera que leyere esta escritura, y me mostrare su declaración, será vestido de púrpura, y tendrá collar de oro á su cuello; y en el reino se enseñoreará el tercero.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Le roi cria avec force d’amener les enchanteurs, les Chaldéens et les augures. Le roi prit la parole et dit aux sages de Babylone: Quiconque lira cette écriture et m’en indiquera l’interprétation sera revêtu de pourpre, et aura une chaîne d’or autour de son cou, et sera le troisième gouverneur dans le royaume.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Der König rief mit Macht, daß man die Beschwörer, die Chaldäer und die Wahrsager hereinbringe; und der König hob an und sprach zu den Weisen von Babel: Jeder, der diese Schrift lesen und ihre Deutung mir anzeigen wird, der soll mit Purpur bekleidet werden, mit einer goldenen Kette um seinen Hals, und er soll als Dritter im Königreich herrschen.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Exclamavit itaque rex fortiter ut introducerent magos, Chaldæos, et aruspices. Et proloquens rex ait sapientibus Babylonis: Quicumque legerit scripturam hanc, et interpretationem ejus manifestam mihi fecerit, purpura vestietur, et torquem auream habebit in collo, et tertius in regno meo erit.