Attributed commentary excerpt
John Gill's Exposition on Daniel 5:30
A historical reference excerpt for this verse. Read it alongside the biblical text and other available sources.
Exposition of the Old and New Testament
John Gill (1697–1771) · 18th-century historical commentary
Source: BibleWord.ai's local reference edition of this named work.
In that night was Belshazzar, the king of the Chaldeans, slain.] Not by a servant of his own, as Jacchiades; or by an eunuch, one of his guards, as Saadiah and Joseph ben Gorionf219; but by Gadales and Gobryas, who led Cyrus’s army up the river Euphrates into the city of Babylon, its course being turned; the inhabitants of which being revelling and rioting, and the gates open, these men went up to the king’s palace; the doors of which being opened by the king’s orders to know what was the matter, they rushed in, and finding him standing up with his sword drawn in his own defence, they fell upon him, and slew him, and all about him, as Xenophonf220 relates; and this was the same night the feast was, and the handwriting was seen, read, and interpreted. This was after a reign of seventeen years; for so Josephus saysf221, that Baltasar or Belshazzar, in whose reign Babylon was taken, reigned seventeen years; and so many years are assigned to him in Ptolemy’s canon; though the Jewish chroniclef222 allows him but three years, very wrongly, no more of his reign being mentioned in Scripture: (see <270701>Daniel 7:1). His death, according to Bishop Usherf223, Mr. Whistonf224, and Mr. Bedfordf225, was in the year of the world 3466 A.M., and 538 B.C. Dean Prideauxf226 places it in 539 B.C.
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