The Writing is on the Wall

Belteshazzar

Recently, my friend, David, sent me a message about writing on the wall. He had recently seen an article on Rembrandt’s Belshazzar’s Feast (1635 - 1638). It reminded him of a biblical story from his youth. The story is about the writing on the wall.

The story starts with King Belshazzar having a great party. They drank wine and praised the gods of gold, silver, bronze and iron. Then, a mysterious hand appeared and wrote on the wall. The king was scared and asked many wise men what it meant. Unfortunately, they could not read it. Eventually, the queen came in the room and suggested that Belshazzar talk to Daniel, a local holy man.

Daniel was able to read the writing. The writing said, “MENE MENE TEKEL UPHARSIN.” Daniel interpreted the writing as a warning. MENE meant that the kingdom was doomed. TEKEL meant that god has judged the kingdom and decided that it wasn’t good enough. UPHARSIN meant that the kingdom was going to be divided and given to the Medes and Persians. Belshazzar was killed that night.

Idiom

In the story of Belshazzar, the writing on the wall was a warning. The idiom that we use today is based on this story. It means that something bad is going to happen. The consequence is usually implied by the speaker. For example, if a lot of people are getting fired, someone might say that the writing is on the wall. It is implying that the business will shut down, or that they will be fired.

Example: I got in a fight with one of my friends last month and he hasn’t talked to me since. I fear that the writing is on the wall.

Sometimes this phrase is slightly different, the handwriting is on the wall. Of course, this is more accurate to the Belshazzar story. Also, you can use the writing / handwriting on the wall to make a specific point. If you don’t want to imply the threat and just state it, you can use this phrase as if the writing were interpretable.

For example: My favorite football team has lost eight straight games. The writing on the wall says the coach will be fired.

What is the weirdest thing you have seen written on a wall? The first thing that comes to my mind is something I saw written on a wall at a Korean school. One of the programs we have at our institute is involves going to schools around the province and putting on a play. While waiting behind the stage, I spotted some handwriting. It said, “What color is This app”? It is the most non-sensical thing I have seen. First, the wall is not an app. Apps don’t have colors, app icons do. The wall is white, which is not a hue. Why is “This” capitalized? Also, who wrote this and why? Why is it in English? Who takes the time to do this? Greatest writing on the wall, ever. What is the strangest thing you have seen written on a wall?

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Reference:
https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/rembrandt-belshazzars-feast?fbclid=IwAR3P1xVE6TFimEneyG1dE2XgTzfo834uHLSPH4C15U5P1zvbxsueVR4642Q
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Daniel%205&version=NKJV