· Translation: KJV

Daniel 5:26This is the interpretation of the thing: MENE; God has numbered your kingdom, and brought it to an end;

The setting

Babylon, 539 BC. Night. King Belshazzar's drunken feast stops cold as a disembodied hand writes on the palace wall. Modern-day Iraq, near Hillah.

The emotion here: trembling but speaking truth to power

The original word

menē (מְנֵא) — numbered, counted out completely, finished

Why it matters

This happened the very night Cyrus the Great's army was diverting the Euphrates River to march under Babylon's walls

Read with care

What most readers miss in Daniel 5:26

The king was using sacred vessels stolen from Jerusalem's temple as party cups when God's hand appeared

Common misconceptionPeople think this is about sudden judgment, but God had been warning Babylon for decades through multiple prophets. This was the final notice.

Bible Genome reading

Daniel 5:26 — Bible Genome reading

SpeakerDaniel
EraExile
Primary emotionanxious
Literary typenarrative
MarkProphecy

Emotional genome

Comfort power30%
Quotability80%
Memorability80%
Crisis relevance70%
Standalone60%
Themes:divine sovereigntyjudgmentfinality

In context

No verse stands alone.

Read the conversation around it.

Open Daniel 5

Daniel 5:26 comes from the book of Daniel, written during the Exile period. These words are attributed to Daniel. The dominant emotion in this verse is anxious, with a comfort power of 30% and a tone that is prophetic. It belongs to the narrative genre of biblical literature. Key themes include divine sovereignty, judgment, finality. Notable phrases: God has numbered your kingdom; brought it to an end. This verse contains prophecy.

Your reflection

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