Quora.com posts an explanation for the origin of the expression, which refers to “…any bad omen that predicts a bad outcome,” after warning that both Albert Einstein and Abraham Lincoln both said, “Don’t believe quotes on the Internet.” Perhaps that is a hint the explanation that is given might not be accurate, but it is interesting. According to Chapter 5 of the Book of Daniel in the bible King Belshazzar sees strange words written on a wall (apparently by the hand of God). Daniel interprets to words to mean “Numbered, numbered, weighed, divided.” The “writing on the wall” was further interpreted to mean there were plans to invade and divide the kingdom.