MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN (mn, Nap ; Sept. Mamj, ; Vulg. Mane, Thecel, Phares), the inscription supernaturally written upon the plaster of the wall' in Belshazzar's palace at Babylon (Dan. v. 5-25) ; which the astrologers, the Chaldxans, and the soothsayers,' could neither read nor inter pret, hut which Daniel first read and then inter preted. Yet the words, as they are found in Daniel, are pure Chaldee, and if they appeared in the Chaldee character, could have been read, at least, by any person present on the occasion who understood the alphabet of his own language. To account for their inability to decipher this inscrip tion, it has been supposed that it consisted of those Chaldee words written in another character. Dr. Hales thinks that it may have been written in the primitive Hebrew character, from which the Samaritan was formed, and that, in order to show on this occasion that the writer of the inscription was the offended God of Israel, whose authority was being at that moment peculiarly despised (ver.
2, 3, 4), he adopted his own sacred character, in which he had originally written the decalogue, in which Moses could transcribe it into the law, and whose autograph copy was found in Josiah's days, and was most probably brought to Babylon in the care of Daniel, who could therefore understand the character without inspiration, but which would be unknown toe the wise men of Babylon' (New Analysis of Chronology, vol. i., p. 505, Land. iSt r). This theory has the recommendation, that involves as little as possible of miraculous agency. Josephus makes Daniel discourse to Belshazzar as if the inscription had been in Greek. The passage is certainly curious : 'Eli)Xov 66 7-6 TcE3e. MASH. roii-ro gXe.yev 'EXXciat 7XthrTv CriblCal•