דניאל, פרק ה׳, פסוק ז׳

A sudden, mysterious message strikes deep fear into the heart of the king, prompting him to offer extravagant rewards to anyone who can unlock its secret. Gripped by panic, he does not wait to dispatch an official herald across the city. Instead, the terrified king shouts out loudly and personally [רש״י, מצודת דוד]. His urgency drives him to immediately summon the wise men of Babylon, who are renowned experts in interpreting dreams and uncovering hidden secrets [שטיינזלץ, אלשיך].

Recognizing that this supreme and wondrous script is exceptionally difficult to decipher, the king adopts a strategy of temptation. While his predecessor Nebuchadnezzar had threatened his advisors with death when they failed to interpret a dream, Belshazzar chooses to offer grand prizes [מלבי״ם]. Spoken in a drunken state [שטיינזלץ], these lavish promises are strategically designed to spread rapidly by word of mouth. The goal is for rumors of great wealth to travel quickly, causing all the wise men of Babylon to rush to the palace on their own accord [אלשיך].

The promised reward consists of three distinct signs of royal honor. First, the successful interpreter will be dressed in purple clothing, a highly prestigious color [מצודת ציון]. Wearing such garments is a mark of royalty, an honor typically reserved strictly for nobles and the ministers closest to the king [רש״י, מלבי״ם, שטיינזלץ]. Second, a massive necklace made of gold coins will be placed around his neck [אבן עזרא, מצודת ציון]. Finally, the interpreter is promised a position of immense power. The primary approach among commentators is that he will be granted rule over one third of the entire kingdom [רש״י, אבן עזרא, מצודת דוד]. However, another perspective suggests that this refers to a senior government appointment, elevating the interpreter to become the third highest ranking official under the king, or placing him among the empire's top three ministers [מלבי״ם, שטיינזלץ].