The Writing on the Wall
Notes
Transcript
Prayer
June 6th, 1944 was just another normal day for Adolf Hilter, but we know it as the day that the tide in the Western Front of WW2 forever changed. For one thing, the necessary reinforcements weren’t able to be called up in time because the only person who was able to act because Hitler was fast asleep when the Allied forces landed on Normandy, also known as D-Day. His generals did not dare to order reinforcements without his permission, and no one dared to wake him up. When he finally woke up, at around 10am, he was excited at news of the invasion. However, he refused to send reinforcements to Normandy. He didn’t think it was the real thing because he had bought hook, line, and sinker the Allies’ deception campaign. He thought the real invasion would happen elsewhere, so he refused to send reinforcements. He was eventually convinced to release some Panzer divisions and divert the standing army at Calais.
See Hitler believed that the D-Day invasion at Normandy was a diversionary tactic. He fell for a successful Allied deception scheme called Operation Fortitude, which convinced German intelligence that the invasion would occur in Calais. The Allied Forces did this using inflatable tanks and radio chatter. He wasn’t angry or alarmed because he thought so little of the Allies’ efforts and so much of his own forces. You see for Hitler, at the time, June 6, 1944 was really by and large just another day in the war. The truth is that June 6, 1944 was the decisive day that brought the end to his reign as Führer.
Likewise, today we are going to be in Daniel 5, where we encounter a new king over Babylon. A king who like Hitler, was deceived in his own power and who was far from being alarmed at the battle raging at his doorstep when he was comfortable and safe inside his castle.
1 King Belshazzar gave a great banquet for a thousand of his nobles and drank wine with them. 2 While Belshazzar was drinking his wine, he gave orders to bring in the gold and silver goblets that Nebuchadnezzar his father had taken from the temple in Jerusalem, so that the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines might drink from them. 3 So they brought in the gold goblets that had been taken from the temple of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines drank from them. 4 As they drank the wine, they praised the gods of gold and silver, of bronze, iron, wood and stone.
Who is King Belshazzar?
He is the grandson of Nebuchadnezzar, and between Nebuchadnezzar and Belshazzar there were 4 other kings, including Belshazzars father Nabonidus.
In the 8 years following Nebuchadnezzars death there were 4 different kings that rose to power, and suffered untimely deaths or capture. Finally, Nabonidus and his son took reign over Babylon. The events we read about today happened in the year 539 BC. And just so you are aware, Daniel is well into his 80’s at this point of the story.
So King Belshazzar is ruler over Babylon and the man wasn’t known for being the most moral of characters…as Dr. David Jeremiah describes him, he “was a fellow who was addicted to wine, women and the song.”
And he decides to throw a feast, but this was no normal feast…this was a feast that can best be summed up with three words…
Sensuality, Sacrilege and Stupidity.
- This dinner party was a drunken mess of a show. The king broke all royal protocols by drinking with his lords and inviting women to the feast. Lets think for a minute to the story of Esther for a minute. In Esther chapter 1 King Xerxes held a banquet for his officials and the bible recounts that Queen Vashti also held a separate banquet for all the women. But when King Xerxes wanted all the men to gaze upon the beauty of his wife, he called for her to leave her own banquet. Combining the two and including alcohol only led to debauchery of every kind.
This party was also a slap to the face of God…Belshazzar ordered that the temple goblets from Jerusalem should be brought in and that they all might use them to get drunk. And then they praised false gods…
Lastly this party was blatantly stupid. History tells us that Belshazzar and his army knew that the Medes and Persian Army led by Cyrus was right outside the city wall, but like Hitler, Belshazzar was comfortable inside his fortified palace. He had a misplaced trust and confidence in the work of human hands and the walls and defenses they had built, so he felt comfortable enough to throw a feast and party when his defeat was at his door.
A Sign from Heaven
5 Suddenly the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall, near the lampstand in the royal palace. The king watched the hand as it wrote. 6 His face turned pale and he was so frightened that his legs became weak and his knees were knocking.
I get this funny feeling that the creators of the Addam’s family and Netflix’s new series Wednesday read this account in Daniel for inspiration of their character Thing.
Which is a hand that has it’s own personality, but that isn’t what is taking place here.
Literally, God is writing on the wall…and what the Spirit of God writes is significant enough that King Belshazzar sobers up very quickly.
The message from Heaven was so significant, the sign was so real that all the color drained from the Kings face. His legs became weak and his knees were knocking.
Sometimes the bible is uncouth. The NIV says that his color drained, his legs became weak and his knees were knocking, but a better translation is that his color drained from his face, and his loin joints became weak…and his knees were trembling. Well what is a loin joint? Have you ever heard the expression, that scared the crap out of me?
I’m sorry, I am not trying to be gross here, I know the younger generation will find this funny and our seasoned saints will think I’m being gross but we need to understand the severity of how scared Belshazzar became when he saw the writing on the wall. He was so scared he lost all the color, he made a mess in his pants and his knees were shaking. Talk about a horrible way to end a party!
But this miraculous sign comes from heaven and writes something on the wall and it disturbed the king, and I think it’s because he knew what the message meant in his soul, but he had no idea what it meant in his head. He understood deep down what was written but he couldn’t make heads or tails of it up here.
A call for understanding…
7 The king summoned the enchanters, astrologers and diviners. Then he said to these wise men of Babylon, “Whoever reads this writing and tells me what it means will be clothed in purple and have a gold chain placed around his neck, and he will be made the third highest ruler in the kingdom.” 8 Then all the king’s wise men came in, but they could not read the writing or tell the king what it meant. 9 So King Belshazzar became even more terrified and his face grew more pale. His nobles were baffled.
The King calls upon his wise men…
Third highest ruler…Belshazzar was co-regent with his father, Nabonidus so he coundn’t give the second spot, that was occupied by him. But his dad was away, caring for the affairs of Babylon in foreign lands.
Where was Daniel?
The Queen’s encouragement…
10 The queen, hearing the voices of the king and his nobles, came into the banquet hall. “May the king live forever!” she said. “Don’t be alarmed! Don’t look so pale! 11 There is a man in your kingdom who has the spirit of the holy gods in him. In the time of your father he was found to have insight and intelligence and wisdom like that of the gods. Your father, King Nebuchadnezzar, appointed him chief of the magicians, enchanters, astrologers and diviners. 12 He did this because Daniel, whom the king called Belteshazzar, was found to have a keen mind and knowledge and understanding, and also the ability to interpret dreams, explain riddles and solve difficult problems. Call for Daniel, and he will tell you what the writing means.” 13 So Daniel was brought before the king, and the king said to him, “Are you Daniel, one of the exiles my father the king brought from Judah?
The Queen wasn’t one of his wives so it had to be his mother. But she remembers the faithfulness of Daniel, She recalled how he aided Nebuchadnezzar all those years.
The Kings request…
13 So Daniel was brought before the king, and the king said to him, “Are you Daniel, one of the exiles my father the king brought from Judah? 14 I have heard that the spirit of the gods is in you and that you have insight, intelligence and outstanding wisdom. 15 The wise men and enchanters were brought before me to read this writing and tell me what it means, but they could not explain it. 16 Now I have heard that you are able to give interpretations and to solve difficult problems. If you can read this writing and tell me what it means, you will be clothed in purple and have a gold chain placed around your neck, and you will be made the third highest ruler in the kingdom.”
Daniels reply…
17 Then Daniel answered the king, “You may keep your gifts for yourself and give your rewards to someone else. Nevertheless, I will read the writing for the king and tell him what it means. 18 “Your Majesty, the Most High God gave your father Nebuchadnezzar sovereignty and greatness and glory and splendor. 19 Because of the high position he gave him, all the nations and peoples of every language dreaded and feared him. Those the king wanted to put to death, he put to death; those he wanted to spare, he spared; those he wanted to promote, he promoted; and those he wanted to humble, he humbled. 20 But when his heart became arrogant and hardened with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory. 21 He was driven away from people and given the mind of an animal; he lived with the wild donkeys and ate grass like the ox; and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven, until he acknowledged that the Most High God is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and sets over them anyone he wishes.
Keep your treasures…I’ll tell you what it means.
The Lord’s Rebuke…
22 “But you, Belshazzar, his son, have not humbled yourself, though you knew all this. 23 Instead, you have set yourself up against the Lord of heaven. You had the goblets from his temple brought to you, and you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines drank wine from them. You praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or understand. But you did not honor the God who holds in his hand your life and all your ways. 24 Therefore he sent the hand that wrote the inscription. 25 “This is the inscription that was written: mene, mene, tekel, parsin 26 “Here is what these words mean: Mene: God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to an end. 27 Tekel: You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting. 28 Peres: Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.”
Threefold…
Called out his sin.
22 “But you, Belshazzar, his son, have not humbled yourself, though you knew all this.
Though you knew better, you did not humble yourself.
Called out his sacrilege.
23 Instead, you have set yourself up against the Lord of heaven. You had the goblets from his temple brought to you, and you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines drank wine from them. You praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or understand. But you did not honor the God who holds in his hand your life and all your ways.
Belshazzar took things that were meant to be set apart for the worship of God and degraded them. He used them improperly.
Called out his blasphemous worship of false Gods
Not only did he misuse the items of worship, but he worshiped false Gods, he worshiped inanimate objects.
But Pastor, what does all this have to do with me…Don’t worry, we will get there in a minute…
The writing on the wall is plain. Daniel interprets it for the king…Daniel 5:25-28
25 “This is the inscription that was written: mene, mene, tekel, parsin 26 “Here is what these words mean: Mene: God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to an end. 27 Tekel: You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting. 28 Peres: Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.”
Numbered, Weighed, Divided
You have been weighed, you have been measured and you have been found wanting.
King Nebuchadnezzar…God has numbered the days of your reign and has brought it to an end. You have been weighed ont he scales and you are not sufficient enough. And now your kingdom will be divided.
And that’s exactly what takes place…
29 Then at Belshazzar’s command, Daniel was clothed in purple, a gold chain was placed around his neck, and he was proclaimed the third highest ruler in the kingdom. 30 That very night Belshazzar, king of the Babylonians, was slain, 31 and Darius the Mede took over the kingdom, at the age of sixty-two.
Three lessons for today…
#1) God isn’t done with you yet. If you have breath in your lungs he isn’t finished. Daniel was in his 80’s. Was forgotten by the King, probably felt shelved…God what are you doing here. I feel like i’ve been put away. Unused…Forgotten.
But at the right time, he was plugged back in.
#2) Don’t live for this world or the things of this world…live to store up for yourselves treasures in the next. Matthew 6:30-34
30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
#3) Let us heed the warnings of the writing on the wall…
There will be a day when each and every one of us are judged by our righteous and holy God. When we will have to give an account for our actions. And on that day what will your defense be?
Because according to my works…I am numbered, weighed and found wanting. But the good news is that God loves me so much that even though I was still a sinner, Christ died for me…
Prayer..