13. They were not perturbed, because under the table they had made a secret entrance through which they always came in to consume the food.
14. After they departed the king set the food before Bel, while Daniel ordered his servants to bring some ashes, which they scattered through the whole temple; the king alone was present. Then they went outside, sealed the closed door with the king’s ring, and departed.
15. The priests entered that night as usual, with their wives and children, and they ate and drank everything.
16. Early the next morning, the king came with Daniel.
17. “Are the seals unbroken, Daniel?” he asked. And Daniel answered, “They are unbroken, O king.”
18. As soon as he had opened the door, the king looked at the table and cried aloud, “You are great, O Bel; there is no deceit in you.”
19. But Daniel laughed and kept the king from entering. He said, “Look at the floor and consider whose footprints these are.”