Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
Daniel 5:4 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 4. 4They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
Daniel 5:4 completes this movement with “They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron…”.
Belshazzar drinks from Jerusalem's vessels and praises manufactured gods
This verse is one part of that explanation in Daniel 5:1-4. The complete section carries the connected meaning and how it should shape life.
Read It With
- Daniel 5:1–4
Read Daniel 5:4 with 5:1–4. Daniel 5:4 completes this movement with “They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron…”. The complete unit establishes this movement: Belshazzar's banquet turns Jerusalem's vessels into drinking cups while the court praises manufactured gods.
Why This Verse Appears Here
The scene makes sacred desecration, idolatry, intoxicated power, and failed expertise converge before Daniel speaks. “Feast and Profanation of Temple Vessels” opens that larger movement. Its final verse prepares “Handwriting Produces Royal Panic” in 5:5-9. Within that movement: Daniel 5:4 completes this movement with “They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron…”.
Phrase-by-Phrase Explanation
“They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron…”
In plain language: This wording completes this movement.
Belshazzar's banquet turns Jerusalem's vessels into drinking cups while the court praises manufactured gods. Daniel 5:4 completes this movement with “They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron…”.
Why it matters: This wording carries a material lexical, historical, theological, reception, or misuse boundary.
How certain? probableWhat This Verse Is Not Saying
Daniel 5:4 does not stand alone from Daniel 5:1–4. Daniel 5:4 does not establish a modern identification, date, guarantee, or command by itself. Its verse-specific role is: completes this movement with “They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron…”.
What Remains True
Power becomes morally blind when it turns another community's sacred loss into entertainment and assumes wealth can purchase an answer. Daniel 5:1-4 keeps that truth tied to this claim: Belshazzar's banquet turns Jerusalem's vessels into drinking cups while the court praises manufactured gods. In this unit: Daniel 5:4 completes this movement with “They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron…”.
Teach It Back
Explain Daniel 5:4's role in 5:1–4. Name the ancient setting, quote or paraphrase “They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron…”, state one material uncertainty, and name one conclusion the verse does not authorize.
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Continue in Context
Read the complete section for the connected explanation and how it should shape life. This verse is a doorway into that passage, not a saying that stands alone.
Read Daniel 5:1-4 — Feast and Profanation of Temple VesselsSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? probable
Where care is needed
Daniel 5:4 must be read with this unit-level uncertainty: Historical harmonizations, broad kinship usage, literary adaptation, and a later court tale are all proposed. The package states the evidence without pretending the title 'king' is archaeologically confirmed.
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact reader-facing KJV wording, paragraph markers, supplied-word markup, and complete verse coverage.
Exact location: Daniel 5:1-4, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus
Open source ↗hebrew aramaic text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Daniel
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew-Aramaic wording, morphology, language boundary, names, repeated roots, clauses, and lexical controls.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v.2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Dan.xml, 5:1-4; Hebrew 1:1–2:4a and 8:1–12:13, Aramaic 2:4b–7:28
Open source ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible: Daniel with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, 2006
Supports: Verse-level Hebrew-Aramaic, textual, historical, translation, chronology, angelic-language, and duration notes.
Exact location: NET Bible Daniel PDF, printed pp. 1653–1655, translation and translator notes on 5:1-4
Open source ↗