Daniel 5:19
King James Version (1769)
Other translations
| Verse | KJV | BSB | ASV |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19 | And for the majesty that he gave him, all people, nations, and languages, trembled and feared before him: whom he would he slew; and whom he would he kept alive; and whom he would he set up; and whom he would he put down. | Because of the greatness that He bestowed on him, the people of every nation and language trembled in fear before him. He killed whom he wished and kept alive whom he wished; he exalted whom he wished and humbled whom he wished. | and because of the greatness that he gave him, all the peoples, nations, and languages trembled and feared before him: whom he would he slew, and whom he would he kept alive; and whom he would he raised up, and whom he would he put down. |
In context
AI-assisted, sourcedDaniel is answering King Belshazzar at his feast before he reads the writing on the wall. He reminds him that God gave Nebuchadnezzar such greatness that every nation feared him and he could kill, spare, raise or lower anyone. The next verses show that this same king was brought down when he grew proud. Daniel 5:17Daniel 5:18Daniel 5:19Daniel 5:20Daniel 5:21
SpeakingDaniel, a captive from Judah who served in the Babylonian court, speaks to the king. Daniel 5:13Daniel 5:17Daniel overview
ToKing Belshazzar, with his lords, wives and concubines present at the feast. Daniel 5:1Daniel 5:13Daniel 5:23
Also involvedNebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar's father, is the one described. The peoples, nations and languages under his rule are the ones who trembled before him. Daniel 5:18Daniel 5:19
Daniel describes the absolute power Nebuchadnezzar held. Nobody could stop him from killing or sparing, promoting or demoting whom he chose. Daniel 2:12-13 and 3:6, 3:20 show him using that power to order deaths. The verse stresses that this power came from the majesty God gave him. Daniel 5:19Daniel 5:18Daniel 2:12Daniel 2:13Daniel 3:6Daniel 3:20
In the banquet house of the king's palace in Babylon. Daniel 5:5Daniel 5:7Daniel 5:10Daniel overview
The eventsDaniel spoke on the night of Belshazzar's feast. That same night Belshazzar was slain and Darius the Median took the kingdom. Daniel 5:1Daniel 5:30Daniel 5:31
WrittenTraditional: written by Daniel in the 500s BC. Scholarly: many critical scholars date the book's final form to about 167-164 BC, while others hold to the 500s BC date. Daniel overview
HereDaniel sets up his rebuke of Belshazzar. Even the greatest king had his power only as a gift from God, and God humbled him for his pride. Belshazzar knew all this and still lifted himself up against the Lord of heaven. Daniel 5:18Daniel 5:20Daniel 5:21Daniel 5:22Daniel 5:23
In the whole of ScriptureThe book shows that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men and appoints over it whomsoever he will. Jeremiah 27:5 says the same: God made the earth and gives it "unto whom it seemed meet unto me." Jeremiah 27:7 adds that such rule lasts only "until the very time of his land come." Daniel overviewDaniel 5:21Jeremiah 27:5Jeremiah 27:7
For readersAll human power is given from above, and rulers answer to God for how they use it. Jesus told Pilate the same thing in John 19:11. Pride in such power brings judgment, as it did for Nebuchadnezzar and for Belshazzar. Daniel 5:19Daniel 5:20Daniel 5:23Daniel 5:27John 19:11
- gaveיְהַב
The word means to give or provide. Nebuchadnezzar's majesty was not his own; God gave it to him, as verse 18 says, and it could be taken from him (5:20). Strong's H3052Daniel 5:18Daniel 5:20
- wouldצְבָא
It means to desire, be pleased, or will. One sense listed is to will without hindrance, used of God. Here it describes how the king did whatever he pleased, yet verse 21 shows that God is the one who appoints whomsoever he will. Strong's H6634Daniel 5:21
- put downשְׁפֵל
It means to bring low or humble. The king who brought others low was himself brought down from his throne (5:20), and Belshazzar is condemned for not humbling his heart (5:22). Strong's H8214Daniel 5:20Daniel 5:22
Takeaway
The power to kill, spare, raise and lower people was real, but it was on loan from God. Nebuchadnezzar lost it when he grew proud, and Belshazzar lost his kingdom that very night for the same pride. Daniel 5:19Daniel 5:20Daniel 5:22Daniel 5:30
Drafted by AI from the Scripture and data shown under “Show sources,” then checked automatically and by a second AI pass. Updated 2026-10-28.
The world around the text
About 605-536 BC. King of Babylon: Nebuchadnezzar (605-562 BC). Where Daniel lived and served for about seventy years. The capital of the Babylonian empire, on the Euphrates south of modern Baghdad, in the land the Bible calls Shinar and Chaldea.
Who ruled
- King of BabylonNebuchadnezzar605-562 BC
The king who besieged Jerusalem, carried Daniel and the temple vessels to Babylon, and later destroyed the city and temple. His own building inscriptions boast of the Babylon he built. Daniel 1:1-22 Kings 24:12 Kings 25:8-10Jeremiah 25:1Babylonian Chronicles (ABC 5)
- Last king of Babylon, and his son who ruled in his placeNabonidus and Belshazzar556-539 BC
Nabonidus spent about ten years at the oasis of Tema in Arabia and left his son Belshazzar to rule in Babylon. That is why Belshazzar could only offer Daniel the place of "third ruler in the kingdom": he was himself second. Daniel 5:1Daniel 5:7Daniel 5:29Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7)Verse Account of Nabonidus
- Received the kingdom after Babylon fellDarius the MedianFrom 539 BC
Daniel says he "took the kingdom, being about threescore and two years old" and set 120 princes over it. Records outside the Bible do not name him; he has been identified with Gubaru, the governor Cyrus set over Babylon, or with Cyrus himself. Daniel 5:31Daniel 6:1Daniel 9:1Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7)
- King of PersiaCyrus559-530 BC
He united the Medes and Persians, took Babylon in 539 BC, and let the exiles go home to rebuild the temple, as Isaiah had named him beforehand. Daniel 1:21Daniel 6:28Daniel 10:1Ezra 1:1-4Isaiah 44:28-45:1Cyrus Cylinder
- King of JudahJehoiakim609-598 BC
Judah's king when Daniel was taken. Jeremiah warned him and his people that the land would serve Babylon seventy years. Daniel 1:1-22 Kings 23:36-24:6Jeremiah 25:1-11
What was happening, 612 BC to 167 BC
- 612 BCWarNineveh falls
Babylon and the Medes destroyed Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, as Nahum and Zephaniah had foretold. Babylon became the great power of the region. Nahum 3:7Zephaniah 2:13Fall of Nineveh Chronicle (ABC 3)
- 605 BCWarBattle of Carchemish
Nebuchadnezzar defeated Pharaoh Necho of Egypt at Carchemish on the Euphrates, in Jehoiakim's fourth year. The same year he came against Jerusalem and took the first captives, Daniel among them. Jeremiah 46:2Daniel 1:1-4Babylonian Chronicles (ABC 5)
- 597 BCWarJerusalem surrenders
Nebuchadnezzar took King Jehoiachin, his nobles and craftsmen to Babylon. The prophet Ezekiel went into exile with them. 2 Kings 24:10-17Ezekiel 1:2Babylonian Chronicles (ABC 5)
- 586 BCWarJerusalem and the temple destroyed
Babylon's army burned the temple and the city and broke down its walls. Daniel later prays over "the desolations of Jerusalem" and asks God to shine on his "sanctuary that is desolate." 2 Kings 25:8-10Jeremiah 52:12-14Daniel 9:2Daniel 9:17
- c. 575 BCBuildingBabylon rebuilt in splendor
Nebuchadnezzar rebuilt Babylon with great walls, palaces and the blue-glazed Ishtar Gate, and his inscriptions praise his own work. Compare his boast: "Is not this great Babylon, that I have built?" Daniel 4:30Nebuchadnezzar's East India House InscriptionHerodotus, Histories 1.178-183
- 562 BCRulersNebuchadnezzar dies
His son Evil-merodach became king and released Jehoiachin of Judah from prison. 2 Kings 25:27-30Jeremiah 52:31-34
- c. 553-543 BCRulersNabonidus leaves Babylon to Belshazzar
King Nabonidus stayed at Tema in Arabia for about ten years, and the yearly New Year festival in Babylon was not held. Belshazzar governed in Babylon. Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7)Daniel 5:1Daniel 7:1
- 550 BCWarCyrus unites the Medes and Persians
Cyrus of Persia defeated Astyages king of the Medes, joining the two peoples in one kingdom. Daniel's vision names the ram's two horns as "the kings of Media and Persia," the higher coming up last. Daniel 8:3Daniel 8:20Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7)Herodotus, Histories 1.127-130
- October 539 BCWarBabylon falls to Cyrus
Cyrus's army entered Babylon without a long siege. Herodotus says the people were feasting when the city was taken. Daniel records that "in that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain." Daniel 5:30-31Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7)Herodotus, Histories 1.191Cyrus Cylinder
- 538 BCGod's peopleCyrus lets the exiles return
In his first year over Babylon, Cyrus proclaimed that the Jews could go back and build the LORD's house in Jerusalem. Daniel "continued even unto the first year of king Cyrus." Ezra 1:1-42 Chronicles 36:22-23Daniel 1:21Cyrus Cylinder
- c. 536 BCGod's peopleThe temple's foundation is laid
The returned exiles rebuilt the altar and laid the foundation of the temple. In the third year of Cyrus, Daniel was still in the east, mourning and praying. Ezra 3:1-11Daniel 10:1-3
- 334-331 BCWarAlexander the Great conquers Persia
Alexander of Macedon crossed into Asia and overthrew the Persian empire within four years. Daniel 8:21 names the rough goat as "the king of Grecia" and its great horn as "the first king." Daniel 8:5-8Daniel 8:21Arrian, Anabasis of Alexander 1-3
- 323-301 BCWarAlexander's empire is divided
Alexander died young, and after twenty years of war his generals divided his empire, chiefly into four kingdoms. Daniel 8:22 says "four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in his power." Daniel 8:8Daniel 8:22Daniel 11:4Diodorus Siculus, Library 18-20Plutarch, Demetrius 28-30
- 167 BCWarAntiochus IV defiles the temple
The Greek king Antiochus IV banned Jewish worship and set up a pagan altar on the altar of burnt offering. 1 Maccabees calls it "the abomination of desolation." Two centuries later Jesus spoke of "the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet" as still to come. 1 Maccabees 1:54-59Josephus, Antiquities 12.5.4Matthew 24:15
The full picture: places, culture and daily life. Scripture first, then ancient records of these years (the Babylonian Chronicles, the Cyrus Cylinder, Nebuchadnezzar's inscriptions) and ancient writers (Herodotus, Arrian, Diodorus, Josephus). Drafted by Claude and not yet reviewed by a person.
Original Aramaic words
This passage was written in Aramaic, the common language of the Babylonian and Persian empires, which the Jews of the exile also spoke. It uses the same alphabet as Hebrew.
| English | Aramaic | Say it | Strong's | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| and from | וּמִן־ | u-min- | H4481 | fromמִן־ (min) 1) from, out of, by, by reason of, at, more than 1a) from, out of (of place) 1b) from, by, as a result of, by reason of, at, according to, (of source) 1c) from (of time) 1d) beyond, more than (in comparisons) |
| greatness the | רְבוּתָא֙ | re-vu-TA' | H7238 | greatnessרְבוּ (re.vu) greatness |
| which | דִּ֣י | di | H1768 | thatדִּי (di) part of relation 1) who, which, that mark of genitive 2) that of, which belongs to, that conj 3) that, because |
| he gave | יְהַב־ | ye-hav- | H3052 | to giveיְהַב (ye.hav) 1) to give, provide 1a) (P'al) 1a1) to give 1a2) to place, lay (foundations) 1b) (Hithp'al) 1b1) to be given 1b2) to be paid |
| all | כֹּ֣ל | kol | H3606 | allכֹּל (kol) 1) all, whole, the whole 1a) the whole of, all 1b) every, any, none |
| peoples the | עַֽמְמַיָּ֗א | 'a-mai-YA' | H5972 | peopleעַם (am) people Aramaic of am (עַם ": people" H5971A) |
| nations the | אֻמַיָּא֙ | 'u-mai-YA' | H0524 | peopleאֻמָּה (um.mah) people, tribe, nation Aramaic of um.mah (אֻמָּה "people" H0523) |
| and languages the | וְלִשָּׁ֣נַיָּ֔א | ve-li-SHA-nai-YA' | H3961 | tongueלִשָּׁן (lish.shan) 1) tongue, language 1a) tongue, language 1b) people (fig.) |
| they were | הֲו֛וֹ | ha-VO | H1934 | to beהֲוָא (ha.va) 1) to come to pass, become, be 1a) (P'al) 1a1) to come to pass 1a2) to come into being, arise, become, come to be 1a2a) to let become known (with participle of knowing) 1a3) to be |
| trembling | זָיְעִ֥ין | za-'a-'in | H2112 | to trembleזוּעַ (zu.a) (Pe) to tremble Aramaic of zu.a (זוּעַ "to tremble" H2111) |
| and fearing | וְדָחֲלִ֖ין | ve-da-cha-LIN | H1763 | to fearדְּחַל (de.chal) 1) to fear 1a) (P'al) 1a1) to fear 1a2) terrible (pass participle) 1b) (Pael) to cause to be afraid, make afraid |
| from | מִן־ | min- | H4481 | fromמִן־ (min) 1) from, out of, by, by reason of, at, more than 1a) from, out of (of place) 1b) from, by, as a result of, by reason of, at, according to, (of source) 1c) from (of time) 1d) beyond, more than (in comparisons) |
| before him | קֳדָמ֑וֹהִי | ko-da-MO-hi | H6925 | beforeקֳדָם (qo.dam) 1) before, in front of 1a) before 1b) from before |
| whom | דִּֽי־ | di- | H1768 | thatדִּי (di) part of relation 1) who, which, that mark of genitive 2) that of, which belongs to, that conj 3) that, because |
| he was | הֲוָ֨ה | ha-VAH | H1934 | to beהֲוָא (ha.va) 1) to come to pass, become, be 1a) (P'al) 1a1) to come to pass 1a2) to come into being, arise, become, come to be 1a2a) to let become known (with participle of knowing) 1a3) to be |
| pleased | צָבֵ֜א | tza-VE' | H6634 | to willצְבָא (tse.va) 1) to desire, be inclined, be willing, be pleased 1a) (P'al) 1a1) to desire 1a2) to be pleased 1a3) to will (without hindrance) (of God) |
| he was | הֲוָ֣א | ha-VA' | H1934 | to beהֲוָא (ha.va) 1) to come to pass, become, be 1a) (P'al) 1a1) to come to pass 1a2) to come into being, arise, become, come to be 1a2a) to let become known (with participle of knowing) 1a3) to be |
| killing | קָטֵ֗ל | ka-TEL | H6992 | to slayקְטַל (qe.tal) 1) to slay, kill 1a) (P'al) to be slain 1b) (Pael) to slay 1c) (Ithp'al) to be slain 1d) (Ithpael) to be slain |
| and whom | וְדִֽי־ | ve-di- | H1768 | thatדִּי (di) part of relation 1) who, which, that mark of genitive 2) that of, which belongs to, that conj 3) that, because |
| he was | הֲוָ֤ה | ha-VAH | H1934 | to beהֲוָא (ha.va) 1) to come to pass, become, be 1a) (P'al) 1a1) to come to pass 1a2) to come into being, arise, become, come to be 1a2a) to let become known (with participle of knowing) 1a3) to be |
| pleased | צָבֵא֙ | tza-VE' | H6634 | to willצְבָא (tse.va) 1) to desire, be inclined, be willing, be pleased 1a) (P'al) 1a1) to desire 1a2) to be pleased 1a3) to will (without hindrance) (of God) |
| he was | הֲוָ֣ה | ha-VAH | H1934 | to beהֲוָא (ha.va) 1) to come to pass, become, be 1a) (P'al) 1a1) to come to pass 1a2) to come into being, arise, become, come to be 1a2a) to let become known (with participle of knowing) 1a3) to be |
| letting live | מַחֵ֔א | ma-CHE' | H2418 | to liveחֲיָא (cha.ya) 1) to live 1a) (P'al) to live 1b) (Aphel) to let live, keep alive |
| and whom | וְדִֽי־ | ve-di- | H1768 | thatדִּי (di) part of relation 1) who, which, that mark of genitive 2) that of, which belongs to, that conj 3) that, because |
| he was | הֲוָ֤ה | ha-VAH | H1934 | to beהֲוָא (ha.va) 1) to come to pass, become, be 1a) (P'al) 1a1) to come to pass 1a2) to come into being, arise, become, come to be 1a2a) to let become known (with participle of knowing) 1a3) to be |
| pleased | צָבֵא֙ | tza-VE' | H6634 | to willצְבָא (tse.va) 1) to desire, be inclined, be willing, be pleased 1a) (P'al) 1a1) to desire 1a2) to be pleased 1a3) to will (without hindrance) (of God) |
| he was | הֲוָ֣ה | ha-VAH | H1934 | to beהֲוָא (ha.va) 1) to come to pass, become, be 1a) (P'al) 1a1) to come to pass 1a2) to come into being, arise, become, come to be 1a2a) to let become known (with participle of knowing) 1a3) to be |
| lifting up | מָרִ֔ים | ma-RIM | H7313 | to riseרוּם (rum) 1) to rise 1a) (P'al) to be lifted up 1b) (Aphel) to exalt 1c) (Hithpolel) to lift oneself up |
| and whom | וְדִֽי־ | ve-di- | H1768 | thatדִּי (di) part of relation 1) who, which, that mark of genitive 2) that of, which belongs to, that conj 3) that, because |
| he was | הֲוָ֥ה | ha-VAH | H1934 | to beהֲוָא (ha.va) 1) to come to pass, become, be 1a) (P'al) 1a1) to come to pass 1a2) to come into being, arise, become, come to be 1a2a) to let become known (with participle of knowing) 1a3) to be |
| pleased | צָבֵ֖א | tza-VE' | H6634 | to willצְבָא (tse.va) 1) to desire, be inclined, be willing, be pleased 1a) (P'al) 1a1) to desire 1a2) to be pleased 1a3) to will (without hindrance) (of God) |
| he was | הֲוָ֥ה | ha-VAH | H1934 | to beהֲוָא (ha.va) 1) to come to pass, become, be 1a) (P'al) 1a1) to come to pass 1a2) to come into being, arise, become, come to be 1a2a) to let become known (with participle of knowing) 1a3) to be |
| bringing low | מַשְׁפִּֽיל׃ | mash-PIL | H8214 | be lowשְׁפֵל (she.phal) 1) to be or bring low, humble 1a) (Aphel) to bring low, humble |
Words and meanings from STEPBible data (Tyndale House, Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). The capitalized syllable is the stressed one.