The Party’s Over-Daniel 5:13-31
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We sang earlier this morning of the Throne of God Above, let’s approach that throne in prayer right now.
Heavenly Father,
I am profoundly humbled this morning as I consider the reality that I, that we, can approach the very throne of You, The Most High God. We come before Your throne this morning with a strong and perfect plea, not based on anything we bring to the table, for we bring nothing but the filthy rags of our own righteousness. Our strong and perfect plea comes from the truth that we have a Great High Priest, Whose Name is Love, Who ever lives and pleads for us. He is able to do so because our name is graven on His Hands, our name is written on His heart. Our strong and perfect plea comes from the Scriptural truth that in heav’n He stands and because He is there as our advocate before God the Father, No tongue can bid me thence depart! Hallelujah, Praise the Lord, Risen Son of God.
But Father, even with that truth, we also know that Satan, our enemy, does not give up easily, and one of the greatest weapons in his arsenal is, he tempts us to dispair, he tells us of the guilt within. When he does, I pray that we would Upward look and see Christ there, Who made and end to all our sin, Because the sinless Saviour died our sinful soul is counted free. For God the Just is satisfied, To look on Him and pardon me.
Now Father, what a great privilege it is for us to open the very pages of Your Word, particularly this morning as we see, here in Daniel chapter 5, Your sovereignty even over pagan rulers, who completely disregard Your immeasurable power. Who show disdain for that which You have set apart as holy and use them to worship idols made by human hands.
Father, we ask that You would speak to us this morning, that the eyes of our minds would clearly see the powerful truths You have for us, and that we would take those truths to heart and apply them to our lives, that we would be transformed.
We pray these things in Jesus Name, Amen
Now, would you please turn in your copies of God’s Word to Daniel chapter 5? We will be looking at verses 13-31 this morning and will be reading verses 17-23 shortly, so please have those verses marked and ready for that time.
Last Sunday morning, in part 2 of the message The Golden Head is Crushed, we began by considering the truth that there are times we ignore God’s loving warnings too long, until all we have left is a notification of doom. That is exactly what we see taking place in Daniel chapter 5. Moving forward we looked at both the physical reaction and mental reaction of the king to the Handwriting on the wall. How instead of seeking godly council, the spiritually bankrupt king sought wisdom from his spiritually bankrupt advisors. Then how he tried to solve deeply spiritual problems with the offer of power, prestige and money. It was at that point where we were encouraged that when we are faced with uncertain circumstances, our response should always be to seek out wisdom, directions, guidance from the godly, not the ungodly.
We closed with the queen mother, identifying for the king the only one who could provide the solution the the Handwriting on the Wall.
With that as an introduction, would you please stand, in honor of the reading of God’s Word?
Then Daniel answered and said before the king, “Let your gifts be for yourself, and give your rewards to another. Nevertheless, I will read the writing to the king and make known to him the interpretation.
18 O king, the Most High God gave Nebuchadnezzar your father kingship and greatness and glory and majesty. 19 And because of the greatness that He gave him, all peoples, nations, and languages trembled and feared before him. Whom he would, he killed, and whom he would, he kept alive; whom he would, he raised up, and whom he would, he humbled.
20 But when his heart was lifted up and his spirit was hardened so that he dealt proudly, he was brought down from his kingly throne, and his glory was taken from him. 21 He was driven from among the children of mankind, and his mind was made like that of a beast, and his dwelling was with the wild donkeys. He was fed grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, until he knew that the Most High God rules the kingdom of mankind and sets over it whom He will.
22 And you his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, though you knew all this, 23 but you have lifted up yourself against the Lord of heaven. And the vessels of His house have been brought in before you, and you and your lords, your wives, and your concubines have drunk wine from them. And you have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which do not see or hear or know, but the God in Whose Hand is your breath, and Whose are all your ways, you have not honored.
May the Lord add His blessing to the reading of His Word, please be seated.
Before we dive into this morning’s verses, I want to look back at something I think is key from some of our closing verses last week. As you will recall, we looked at the way the queen mother paid some significant compliments to Daniel, but I don’t want us to miss what we see next. If you look back at the chapters we have already considered, when officials from the Babylonian Empire referred to Daniel of his 3 companions, they would use their Babylonia names rather than their Hebrew names. That is until we get to chapter 4. In chapter 4, when Nebuchadnezzar is speaking of Daniel from a past tense viewpoint, before he spent 7 years crawling around like a beast of the field, he refers to Daniel as Belteshazzar, his Babylonian name, but in speaking of Daniel after King Nebuchadnezzar had humbled himself before the Lord, he calls him Daniel.
Here in chapter 5, when the queen mother is brought in before the king, she calls him Daniel, she does point out his Babylonian name, but she calls him Daniel twice. The reason I bring this up is, it causes me to wonder if after King Nebuchadnezzar humbles himself before El Elyon, the Most High God, if he didn’t come to the realization, either on his own of through Daniel, that the Babylonian name honored a false god rather than the one true God. And if, out of respect and honor, he began to refer to him by his Hebrew name. Which is exactly what we see in the queen mother, who most believe was King Nebuchadnezzar’s daughter. I don’t know, it is just something that caught my eye this week.
Moving to this weeks passage, the next thing we see is;
The King Disrespects the Former Prime Minister. Vs. 13
Daniel had served as one of the top officials in the Babylonian government for over 40 years, yet when he is brought in before Belshazzar, the king refers to him as “one of the exiles of Judah, whom the king my father brought from Judah”. I don’t believe this was by accident. Don’t forget, in verse 2 we see the king profane the God of Judah by using the vessels taken from the temple in Jerusalem to honor the false gods of the Babylonian Empire. I believe his address of Daniel as “one of the exiles of Judah, whom the king my father brought from Judah” is a deliberate attempt to let Daniel know who was in charge and that Daniel was nothing more than an exile.
Then,
The King Softens His Insult. Vs. 14
All of the sudden it’s like the king realizes; “O, I need the services of this guy I just insulted”, and his tune quickly changes;
I have heard of you that the spirit of the gods is in you, and that light and understanding and excellent wisdom are found in you.
In other words, he quickly moves from insulting to trying to butter Daniel up a bit.
Then;
Daniel is Presented with the Problem. Vs. 15-16a
Once Daniel entered the banquet hall, the king reiterated for Daniel all that we read in the earlier verses;
Now the wise men, the enchanters, have been brought in before me to read this writing and make known to me its interpretation, but they could not show the interpretation of the matter. 16 But I have heard that you can give interpretations and solve problems….
Of course the king is desperate at this point, he had tried everyone but the one individual who could provide an answer to his dilemma.
Isn’t that the way it is for most of us much of the time? We relegate the Lord to a specific area of our life, we give Him a portion of our Sunday mornings, unless there is a big game or event, maybe we’re a little tired from a late Saturday night, and maybe perhaps during a weekly Bible study (if we are a part of one), but outside of that, we think little about Him, that is until we are faced with a crisis. Then God, Who was an afterthought at best, moves to the forefront of our minds.
In looking at these verses, W. A. Criswell, longtime pastor and theologian wrote the following;
Daniel (C. Wisdom of the Aging Prophet (5:10–16))
“We find our rightful places only in the crisis of life. At the banquet table the people are busy with the hum of conversation and the ordinary things of the day. They are talking alike, laughing alike, carrying on alike, the great, the small, the famous, the infamous, the good, and the bad, all of them. But when a crisis comes, there is an unexpressed law by which men somehow take their rightful places. It is then that the man with the keys of the kingdom stands up and cries out.”
You know, king Belshazzar had an excuse, not a good excuse, but he did have an excuse. He didn’t even believe in the God of Daniel, he wasn’t raised in a Christian home, he was raised in pagan home, so why would he even give a second thought to the God of Daniel. But for most of us that are listening this morning, whether present here or listening online, well we do believe in the God of Daniel, yet far too much of the time He is nothing more than an afterthought we approach when we are faced with a moment of crisis.
Last Sunday morning, I challenged us all to follow the words of the song so many of us sang as children, that we would Dare to Be a Daniel. Daniel was a man so firmly committed in his relationship to the Lord that he was the one people sought out when they were faced with the crisis’ of life! Somehow they knew the wisdom he provided was like wisdom from above.
O that our commitment to Christ would be so firm, that what was true of Daniel became true of us as well.
Moving on to verse 17 we see;
Daniel Refused to be Rewarded for that Which God Gave him. Vs. 17
Kenneth Gangel, inn his commentary on Daniel wrote;
Daniel A. Historical Review (5:17–21)
“A true prophet’s services are not for sale; he deals only in the truth of God and makes it available to anyone who will listen.”
This type of response is not uncommon among God’s faithful. In 2 Kings 5:15-16 we see a similar response from Elisha. He had just healed Naaman, a commander of the Syrian army of leprosy. In an effort to show his gratitude to Elisha, Naaman offered to reward him. Elisha’s beautiful response in verse 16 is one worthy of all humble servants;
But he said, “As the Lord lives, before Whom I stand, I will receive none.” And he urged him to take it, but he refused.
King David had a similar response in 2 Samuel 24:24 when he was offered free land to build an altar to the Lord. David refused a free gift to make a sacrifice to God, insisting on paying for it because true worship requires personal sacrifice, cost, and dedication rather than convenience. His response to the offer;
…,I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God that cost me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.
At the end of verse 17;
Daniel Promises to Read and Interpret the Hand Writing on the Wall. Vs. 17b
“Nevertheless, I will read the writing to the king and make known to him the interpretation.”
I spent several years either working in sales or managing individuals working in sales, and ine of the things that the best sales trainers teach those working under them it,
Under promise, and over deliver.
Well perhaps Daniel is the one who started this sales philosophy, because while he promised to read the handwriting on the wall and provide its interpretation, he over delivered significantly. He begins by giving the soon to be dead monarch a
History lesson in Humility. Vs. 18-21
His history lesson in humility began with;
Lifting high the only One worthy of worship. Vs. 18
It was common in the ancient middle east to so revere monarchs that they worshipped them as if they were gods, and few in the history of the Neo-Babylonian Empire were more revered than King Nebuchadnezzar. The first thing Daniel does in his history lesson is point out that the only reason, let me repeat that, because Daniel wanted to make sure King Belshazzar understood this truth, the only reason Nebuchadnezzar ruled was because the Most High God placed him there as the ruler. He didn’t ascend to the throne because he was the son of a king, he didn’t ascend to the throne because he was a powerful warrior, he didn’t ascend to the throne because he was a great general, he ascended to the throne because God chose to place him there, period, end of sentence!
O king, the Most High God gave Nebuchadnezzar your father kingship and greatness and glory and majesty.
Daniel goes on to point to how significantly the Hand of God was on King Nebuchadnezzar’s life.
And because of the greatness that He gave him, all peoples, nations, and languages trembled and feared before him. Whom he would, he killed, and whom he would, he kept alive; whom he would, he raised up, and whom he would, he humbled.
Do not miss Who it was that gave him his greatness! “And because of the greatness that He gave him”
Again, his greatness came from God.
Next Daniel highlights;
The by-product of pride. Vs. 20-21a
Daniel pointed out that at some point in time King Nebuchadnezzar became so prideful that God decided to take him down a notch or two… or three… or four… ok, God decided to completely humble him… for 7 years!
Of course we remember from our time in chapter 4 that Daniel gave King Nebuchadnezzar fair warning, a warning that lasted a full year. To no avail though, because pride got the best of the king, and as a result;
God’s Hand of discipline was levied on the proud.
But anytime God brings down His Hand of discipline, there is always a loving heart behind it, it is never delivered maliciously or without a thought or purpose.
One of the things we have been learning as we have been studying the book of Daniel, is that pride is, in many ways, the source behind virtually all sin. From the fall of satan in heaven, to Adam and Even in the Garden of Eden, to the selfish things you and I do each day. Therefore, when God delivers a lesson recorded on the pages of Scripture, we should take to heart that lesson as well. And God’s Hand of discipline levied on King Nebuchadnezzar, which in turn is a lesson for us as well is;
God’s discipline is designed to bring about humble repentance. Vs. 21b
Look at the end of verse 21;
“He was fed grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, until he knew that the Most High God rules the kingdom of mankind and sets over it whom He will.”
Daniel then proceeds to deliver a powerful lesson to King Belshazzar;
It is Better to Learn From the Mistakes of Those Who Came Before You, than to repeat them. Vs. 22
Look at verse 22;
“And you his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, though you knew all this..”
This is a great lesson for us as well, those that have come before us have made plenty of mistakes. Parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, older siblings…… We would do well to learn from their mistakes and not repeat them!
Next we see Daniel drive home a very powerful lesson to King Belshazzar.
Don’t Mock the One Who Holds Your Breath in His Hands! Vs. 23
I was watching a sermon on this passage this week while we were in Reno NV to accompany Pam’s almost 92 year old mom to watch her grandson and wife, which makes them our nephew and wife, perform their magic show in a theater literally built for them! It was pretty cool! While I was there, I listened to a sermon on today’s passage. The pastor that was preaching was from California, and when he got to verse 23, right after he read from verse 23
English Standard Version Chapter 5
“
The entire church began to shake, they were experiencing an earthquake! Without missing a beat, the pastor said something along the lines of “which also leads to my next point rather well. God holds your breath in His Hands!”
Well while earthquakes are not something we worry about in the high plains of Colorado, the lesson is still an important one for us. We are to honor the One Who holds our breath in His Hands.
Fromm addressing the One Who holds our breath in His Hands, Daniel moves to something else His Hand can accomplish.
The Hand From God’s Presence is Sent. Vs. 24
Which brings us to;
Message Delivered, Fate Sealed. Vs. 26
Daniel proceeds to read theHandwriting on the Wall. “MENE, MENE, TEKEL, and PARSIN.”
“Mene”, which is written not once but twice, which is God’s way of adding to the significance of the word, meant “numbered, counted or measured” The ESV puts it well, where we read;
“Mene, God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end..”
The next word written on the plaster wall; “Tekel” which meant weighed, Daniel adds more to the word weighed, identifying what type of weighing was being done.
“Tekel, you have been weighed in the balances and found wanting..”
The weighing Daniel is referring to is King Belshazzar had been weighed on the balance scales of God’s justice and been found wanting.
There is a very valuable lesson for us here. The day will come when each one of us will, like King Belshazzar, face the scales of God’s justice, and in an of ourselves we will face the same exact message that the kings heard that day; “you have been weighed in the balances and found wanting..”.
Similar to the king “God has numbered (our) days” and they will be “brought it to an end..”
For the king, his end was literally on the doorstep. But we don’t know when the day of our end will take place. But one thing that the families of our church have learned over the years is, death rarely comes in what we would deem as perfect timing. We have had too many parents weep at the graveside of one of their kids who died too young.
What this means for us is, we should always be prepared for the day our life is brought to an end.
Which puts us at a dilemma, how can we possible be prepared for death and God’s scales of justice if we “have been weighed in the balances and found wanting..”
Thankfully, God, in His great and immeasurable love took care of that for us.
He did so by sending His Son Jesus, Who, through His death on the Cross of Calvary, and by the cleansing power of His blood, tipped the scales in our favor. Jesus took the heavy weight of our sin on His divine shoulders and lifted the cup of God’s wrath to His lips and drank every bit of it, that we, through placing our faith and trust in Him, would be saved.
Have you accepted the gift Jesus paid for you? If not, why not today?
Let’s close our time this morning in prayer.
