Daniel 5:3 kjv
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 5:3 nkjv
Then they brought the gold vessels that had been taken from the temple of the house of God which had been in Jerusalem; and the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines drank from them.
Daniel 5:3 niv
So they brought in the gold goblets that had been taken from the temple of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines drank from them.
Daniel 5:3 esv
Then they brought in the golden vessels that had been taken out of the temple, the house of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines drank from them.
Daniel 5:3 nlt
So they brought these gold cups taken from the Temple, the house of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his nobles, his wives, and his concubines drank from them.
Daniel 5 3 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Daniel 5:2 | Belshazzar brought the golden vessels...; he and his officials, his wives, and his concubines drank wine and praised the gods of gold and silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone. | Explicitly refers to the act |
| 2 Chronicles 36:10 | When the year ended, Nebuchadnezzar sent and brought him to Babylon, along with the valuable articles from the house of the LORD, and he made Zedekiah, his father's brother, king over Judah and Jerusalem. | Nebuchadnezzar taking the vessels |
| Ezra 1:7 | Moreover, King Cyrus brought out the articles of the house of the LORD that Nebuchadnezzar had carried away from Jerusalem and placed in the house of his god. | Vessels' return context |
| Jeremiah 27:21 | indeed thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning the vessels that are left in the house of the LORD, in the house of the king of Judah, and in Jerusalem... | Prophecy about the vessels |
| Jeremiah 52:18 | The bronze altar, the movable stands, and the bronze Sea that were in the house of the LORD the Chaldeans carried away, and they carried the bronze to Babylon. | Description of taken articles |
| 2 Kings 25:15 | also the disciples and the cooks. He took the bronze articles in great quantities. | Plunder of the temple |
| Psalm 24:1 | The earth is the LORD’s, and the fullness thereof, the world and they that dwell therein. | Sovereignty of God |
| Psalm 115:4-8 | Their idols are silver and gold, a work of human hands. They have mouths, but do not speak; they have eyes, but do not see; they have ears, but do not hear; they have noses, but do not smell; they have hands, but do not feel; they have feet, but do not walk; and they do not make a sound in their throat. Those who make them become like them, so do the people who rely on them. | Idolatry comparison |
| Isaiah 42:17 | But those who trust in carved idols, who say to molten images, “You are our gods,” shall be put to shame, and confounded all together. | Shame of idol worship |
| Isaiah 44:9-20 | detailed refutation of idol making and worship | Idolatry's futility |
| Daniel 1:2 | Then the Lord gave into his hand Jehoiakim king of Judah, and some of the vessels of the house of God. He brought them to the land of Shinar, to the house of his god, and put the vessels in the treasury of his god. | Nebuchadnezzar's initial act |
| Revelation 17:4 | and the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. | Symbolic connection to harlotry/idolatry |
| Romans 1:21-23 | For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man, and birds and animals and creeping things. | Gentile idolatry/lack of gratitude |
| 1 Corinthians 10:21 | You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons. | Dual allegiance impossible |
| Matthew 6:24 | "No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money." | Devotion to God or something else |
| Deuteronomy 32:38 | They sacrificed to their demons, to a god they did not know, to new gods that had recently come up, whom your fathers had never dreaded. | Sacrificing to other gods |
| Judges 10:14 | Go and cry to the gods whom you have chosen. Let them deliver you in your times of distress. | Mocking false gods |
| 1 Samuel 5:2-5 | The Philistines took the ark of God and carried it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. And when the Ashdodites set it up in the house of Dagon, and when they saw that the ark of the LORD was stolen. ... So the hand of the LORD was heavy against Ashdod... | Desecration of holy things |
| Isaiah 10:5-6 | Oh Assyria, the rod of my anger, in whose hand is the staff of my fury! Against a godless nation I send him... | God using nations as instruments |
Daniel 5 verses
Daniel 5 3 Meaning
King Belshazzar, in a display of arrogance and disregard for divine authority, commanded the golden and silver vessels, previously dedicated to God and taken from the temple in Jerusalem by his ancestor Nebuchadnezzar, to be brought before him and his princes, wives, and concubines. This act was a direct challenge to the God of Israel, using sacred objects for pagan revelry.
Daniel 5 3 Context
Chapter 5 of Daniel details the final hours of the Babylonian empire under King Belshazzar. The preceding chapter describes Nebuchadnezzar's restoration and praise of the God of Israel. However, Belshazzar, unlike his grandfather, fails to learn from Nebuchadnezzar's humbling experience. He presides over a lavish banquet, an occasion of great excess and impiety. The act described in verse 3 directly illustrates his rebellion against the divine authority that had previously humbled his kingdom and allowed its prosperity. This banquet serves as the immediate backdrop for the miraculous handwriting on the wall and the subsequent downfall of Belshazzar and his empire, illustrating a stark contrast between Nebuchadnezzar's reverence and Belshazzar's defiance.
Daniel 5 3 Word Analysis
- and: conjunction, linking clauses.
- they: demonstrative pronoun, referring to Belshazzar and his entourage.
- brought: verb (Qal perfect, 3rd masculine plural), signifies the act of causing something to come.
- forth: adverb, indicating movement towards the outside or presence.
- the: definite article.
- vessels: noun (masculine plural), specifically refers to the consecrated items from the Temple. In the original Hebrew context (Aramaic for this chapter), the word used would be kelē (כְּלָיָא). This word in Scripture often denotes implements, instruments, or articles, and when associated with the Temple, carries the weight of sanctity and dedication. These were not mere pots; they were objects of sacred use, described in detail in books like Exodus and Chronicles, including golden basins, trumpets, and altar furnishings. Their sanctity made their misuse an act of extreme provocation.
- of: preposition, indicating possession or origin.
- gold: noun, a precious metal associated with purity and divine presence, used for sacred vessels.
- and: conjunction.
- of: preposition.
- silver: noun, another precious metal.
- with: preposition, indicating accompaniment.
- them: pronoun, referring back to the vessels.
- their: possessive pronoun, indicating ownership by the princes and Belshazzar.
- gods: noun (masculine plural), refers to the pagan deities worshiped by the Babylonians. This highlights the blasphemous nature of the act—using instruments consecrated to the God of Israel to honor false gods. The Aramaic word is elahē (אֱלָהִין), plural of elāh (אֱלָהּ), corresponding to Hebrew Elohim. The plurality underscores polytheism.
- And: conjunction.
- Belshazzar: proper noun, the last king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire.
- when: adverb, introducing a temporal clause.
- commanded: verb (Qal perfect, 3rd masculine singular), signifies ordering or directing.
- to: preposition.
- cause: verb (Hiphil perfect, 3rd masculine singular), causative action of bringing something.
- them: pronoun, referring to the vessels.
- to: preposition.
- be: infinitive, auxiliary verb.
- brought: verb (Qal perfect, 3rd masculine plural passive participle), carried or conveyed.
- to: preposition.
- the: definite article.
- house: noun (masculine singular), referring to Belshazzar's palace or treasury.
- of: preposition.
- his: possessive pronoun.
- king: noun (masculine singular), title of Belshazzar.
Words-Group Analysis
- "the vessels of gold and of silver": This phrase is highly significant. It explicitly identifies the sacred, consecrated objects stolen from Jerusalem. Their description in terms of precious metals underscores their value, but more importantly, their consecrated status. In Jewish tradition and scripture, vessels used in Temple worship were considered holy and set apart for God's service. To remove them from God's house was sacrilege; to use them for pagan feasting was an act of profound desecration. Scholars note that such objects were considered prime targets in conquest, serving both as war booty and as symbols of the conquered deity's subjugation.
- "to be brought forth with them their gods": This represents the apex of Belshazzar's hubris. He orders the holy vessels, belonging to the God of the heavens, to be brought out for a feast honoring Babylonian idols. The implied meaning is that his own gods were superior to Israel's God, or at least worthy of sharing in the veneration. This was a direct theological affront, placing the created (and in his view, powerless) gods of Babylon on par with, or above, the Creator God of Israel.
Daniel 5 3 Bonus Section
The bringing of sacred vessels to honor false gods is reminiscent of several biblical events:
- The Ark of the Covenant in the Temple of Dagon (1 Samuel 5:1-5): When the Philistines captured the Ark, they placed it in the house of their god Dagon. The subsequent disabling and breaking of Dagon before the Ark demonstrated the powerlessness of pagan gods and the supreme power of the LORD. Belshazzar, however, reversed this by attempting to use God's vessels to glorify his gods.
- Ezra's account of the return of vessels (Ezra 1:7-11): Cyrus the Great returned many of the vessels taken by Nebuchadnezzar. Daniel 5's account highlights the remaining vessels, now being desecrated by Belshazzar, thereby fulfilling the broader narrative of these sacred items being under threat until their complete restoration.
- The emphasis on "their gods" (plural) signifies a polytheistic mindset that refused to acknowledge the singularity and supremacy of Yahweh, a key theological contrast throughout the Old Testament. This particular act of defiance directly triggers the supernatural intervention foreshadowed by Daniel's ministry.
Daniel 5 3 Commentary
Belshazzar's action is not merely a display of decadence; it's a calculated insult to God. By bringing the sacred Temple vessels from Jerusalem, originally plundered by Nebuchadnezzar, to his own palace for a drunken feast dedicated to pagan deities, Belshazzar demonstrated complete contempt for Yahweh. This defiant act symbolized the perceived triumph of Babylonian gods over Israel's God. It was a blasphemous assertion of Babylonian dominance, utilizing sacred objects as mere party props and offering praise to idols instead of the God of all nations. This gross irreverence precipitates the immediate divine judgment announced by the writing on the wall.