Daniel
c. 620–c. 538 BCE · Ancient Israel
“And this is the writing that was written, Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin.”
The lineage through Daniel
Inspired(2)
who Daniel shaped
- Daniel judging Susanna — the wise young judge who turns a trial inside out — is the figure Shakespeare summons for the Merchant of Venice courtroom
- Shylock hails Portia twice: "A Daniel come to judgment! Yea, a Daniel! O wise young judge"
- Portia even tries the case under Daniel's Babylonian name, Balthasar — the borrowing runs that deep
- Daniel 5's writing on the wall — "Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin," the verdict that Belshazzar has been weighed and found wanting — becomes Melville's image for doom foreseen and unread
- The Bible was Melville's foremost source, and Moby-Dick hangs the Pequod's fate on this scene
- In the doubloon chapter, Starbuck watches Ahab and says "the old man seems to read Belshazzar's awful writing" — Daniel's prophecy of a kingdom already condemned
Famous Quotes
“Tekel; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting.”
“I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days.”
“My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths, that they have not hurt me.”
“Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.”
About Daniel
Traditional author of the book bearing his name, set during the Babylonian exile. The book's court tales and apocalyptic visions established the genre of apocalyptic literature that would culminate in Revelation.