We all know the ominous expression “the writing on the wall”.  Its meaning is clear, even if we don’t know its origin.  The origin of the expression is old, rooted in a mystical story that reaches back over more than two millennia.  If you’re interested, keep reading as I babble on. The expression comes from a story from the Bible, in the Book of Daniel, chapters 5-6.  This is the famous Feast of Belshazzar.  Belshazzar was king of a people the Bible calls the Chaldeans, but who are better known as the Babylonians.  He was a descendant of Nebuchadnezzar, one of Babylon’s (or Chaldea’s, if you prefer,) greatest kings.  In the story, Belshazzar is giving a great feast for about a thousand nobles, all of whom have gathered to eat, drink and be merry.  The party really gets underway when they bring out the good goblets, the gold and silver ones that had been stolen from the temple of God in Jerusalem.  Once they started into the wine, t...