5:1
In Bavel, Dani’el refuses to treat the image Bel as a living elohim and exposes the priests who secretly consume the food attributed to the idol.
5:2
Ash placed upon the floor reveals the hidden footprints by which priests and households entered through concealed doors.
5:3
Bel’s cult is discredited and its sanctuary destroyed.
5:4
Dani’el also confronts a living serpent or dragon revered by the Babylonians; rather than worship it, he destroys it through a prepared substance involving pitch/fat and other materials.
5:5
The enraged population again demands Dani’el’s death, but he is preserved. This chapter likewise belongs to the Daniel expansion missing from some early witnesses.