Daniel 5

23 years have passed since the events that happened in Daniel 4. King Nebuchadnezzar has been dead for a little over 20 years and the kingdom is on the edge of despair. Daniel 4 we see a man who was humbled by the God of this universe and now we are introduced to this man who thinks he is on the top of the world as he faces death.

Main Idea: God sees our sin and rebellion and brings about judgement on those who refuse to repent and trust in him.

I remember when my Dad used to yell at me all the time because I would do the same thing over and over again. I would continue to get in trouble because I would talk back and he would always tell me that his dad which is my grandpa would have whooped him if he talked to him the way that I talk to him. I do believe that is true, but I never truly believed him.

The same is happening for this king named Belshazzar. King Belshazzar is the grandson of King Nebuchadnezzar. His father is King Nabonidus and there is speculation on how he came to be in power. Some people believe that he married in to the lineage to be king. Which mean that he would have married King Nebuchadnezzar’s daughter. So at the time of the introduction of Chapter 5, King Nabonidus would be king over Babylon, but do to unknown reasons, he has allowed his son King Belshazzar to rule over Babylon.

Just so there is no confusion while we read the text, I want to point out that it does say the Nebuchadnezzar is the “father” of Belshazzar six times. Why would the texts ay that King Nebuchadnezzar is his father if he isn’t? That is because in Semitic languages “father” may refer to one’s immediate father, grandfather, ancestor, or as in the case of kings, a predecessor. My translation say predecessor, but some of yours may say “son”. This is similar to Jesus being referred to as the “son of David” in Matthew 1:1 “An account of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:” The Israelites called themselves “sons of Jacob” Malachi 3:6 ““Because I, the Lord, have not changed, you descendants of Jacob have not been destroyed.” and proclaimed Abraham to be their “father” John 8:53 “Are you greater than our father Abraham who died? And the prophets died. Who do you claim to be?”” We can see this many times and scripture of how people refer to others as “father”, but just mean that they are descendants of that said person.

1. Daniel 5:1-4 - Belshazzar’s Feast

Daniel 5:1–4 “King Belshazzar held a great feast for a thousand of his nobles and drank wine in their presence. Under the influence of the wine, Belshazzar gave orders to bring in the gold and silver vessels that his predecessor Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple in Jerusalem, so that the king and his nobles, wives, and concubines could drink from them. So they brought in the gold vessels that had been taken from the temple, the house of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his nobles, wives, and concubines drank from them. They drank the wine and praised their gods made of gold and silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone.”

In Daniel 5 we are introduced to this massive party. Archeologist have said that these temple halls that they had in Babylon could hold over 1,000 people comfortably. So just imagine this big all party filled with thousands of people.

When I imagine this I think of Iron Man 2 where it is Tony Stark’s birthday and he throws this massive party and he has his Iron Man suit on and he is making a full of himself. Everyone at the party loves it, but the people who truly care about him see how he is being stupid and reckless. His best friend ends up fighting against him and causing the entire party to leave. Daniel and King Belshazzar don’t fight in this narrative, but Daniel is very truthful with Belshazzar.

It was customary in that time period that the king would stay hidden during the party, but that wasn't the case at this party. King Belshazzar was the center of attention and he was encouraging everyone else around him to follow along.

If we look at this scene similar to the one in Iron Man 2, we can see how reckless King Belshazzar truly is. He causes everyone around him, including himself, to indulge in alcohol, so much that he would make the biggest mistake of his life. He would end up committing blasphemy against a Holy God.

Belshazzar gets so drunk that he goes over to the vessels of the God of Isreal and defiles them by drinking from them and proceeded to praise their god as they were doing this.

How does Belshazzar’s disregard for the sacred vessels relate to our own actions and how we treat what is Holy?

I don’t think it was just these vessels that he used I think he used many vessels from many different nations, but he was so impaired that he forgot who these particular vessels belonged to. He forgot about the time that his predecessor was humbled by the God that he is about to mock.

I sit here today a sinful man and just think of the times that I my mind has been blinded by my own pride. Yes I know that King Belshazzar is an evil man and never wanted to know the truth that God can give, but I to mock the God of this universe with how I hold myself on a daily basis. These past 2 weeks we have read about the destruction of pride and that is the whole point of these messages. We have seen 2 men that have lived in the midst of their pride and we have the choice to either compare ourselves to them our to look at the face of Gd and thank him for His mercy and grace. The choice is yours. Will you continue to allow your pride to control your thoughts and the way that you live or will you bend your knee to the lordship of Christ.

In what ways can we identify and confront our own pride that might be blinding us to God’s truth?

At this time of the party the Medo Persian armies are surrounding Babylon. There armies are actually at this point rerouting the Euphrates River so the can get inside the walls of Babylon. This party may have been an act of motivating the Babylonian citizens to have confidence that they will win this war. But think of it this way. The enemy is closing in, the enemy is about to destroy them and their kingdom, yet the people are only focused on pleasuring themselves. That is our world today, we are so focused on ourselves and the things that we can please ourselves with that we lose all sight of the things that God wants us to see. We are so focused on the things of this world that we forget the war that we are in now with the enemy. We want to believe that life is sunshine and rainbows, but we have to sober up and open our eyes to the reality that we are truly in.

2. Daniel 5:5-12 - The Handwriting on the Wall

Daniel 5:5–12 “At that moment the fingers of a man’s hand appeared and began writing on the plaster of the king’s palace wall next to the lampstand. As the king watched the hand that was writing, his face turned pale, and his thoughts so terrified him that he soiled himself and his knees knocked together. The king shouted to bring in the mediums, Chaldeans, and diviners. He said to these wise men of Babylon, “Whoever reads this inscription and gives me its interpretation will be clothed in purple, have a gold chain around his neck, and have the third highest position in the kingdom.” So all the king’s wise men came in, but none could read the inscription or make its interpretation known to him. Then King Belshazzar became even more terrified, his face turned pale, and his nobles were bewildered. Because of the outcry of the king and his nobles, the queen came to the banquet hall. “May the king live forever,” she said. “Don’t let your thoughts terrify you or your face be pale. There is a man in your kingdom who has a spirit of the holy gods in him. In the days of your predecessor he was found to have insight, intelligence, and wisdom like the wisdom of the gods. Your predecessor, King Nebuchadnezzar, appointed him chief of the magicians, mediums, Chaldeans, and diviners. Your own predecessor, the king, did this because Daniel, the one the king named Belteshazzar, was found to have an extraordinary spirit, knowledge and intelligence, and the ability to interpret dreams, explain riddles, and solve problems. Therefore, summon Daniel, and he will give the interpretation.”

In the same way that I am calling us to sober up from our pride. King Belshazzar has just sobered up from his intoxication. He has entered a literal horror movie moment. He is sitting their having a great time at his party and the next thing he sees his this hand writing on the wall. (Wednesday the movie)

What kinds of things does God use to wake us up to the foolishness of our sin? How does it feel when he does this?

Anybody would be scared of what is happening, but they should be more scared of who is writing. You see this hand is the same hand who carved out the ten commandments in the stone tablets, who brought the plagues on Egypt, and who formed the world. This hand belongs to the mighty God that he was just blaspheming.

King Belshazzar was terrified at what he saw. I would be to, I would most likely literally soil myself like it says here. Although, I would probably mess myself, this is not what the text means. When scripture speaks of “soiling oneself” it is speaking of one’s sinfulness. If a person has soiled their garments it would mean that they are defiled especially by the act of idolatry. We see this is again in Revelation 3:4 “But you have a few people in Sardis who have not defiled their clothes, and they will walk with me in white, because they are worthy.”

So King Belshazzar has defiled himself and he knows he has. I believe that he knows who’s hand this is and that why we falls to the ground and trembles.

Right after this he calls the wise men to try and help him interpret what is going on. He didn't learn from his grandpa that these guys cant do anything and they don’t know anything. But he offers them three things.

“clothed in purple” - In the ancient world this was a color that represented royalty

“gold chain” - This could only be worn by a person of rank and it had to be given by the king to be worn

“third highest position in the kingdom” - It is third because Belshazzar is second to his father Nabonidus.

Ended up that none of them could interpret what was happening and that made King Belshazzar even more terrified. Belshazzar has been confronted with his sin by a holy and omnipotent God, and he rightly trembles.

This is the turning point in the story, there is chaos happening and no one knows what to do then the queen comes to the banquet hall and sees what is happening. Many people believe that this is one of Nebuchadnezzars daughters. She knows the man that has the spirt of the Holy God, not the holy gods. She says the holy gods, but we know that Daniel has the spirit of the Holy God.

3. Daniel 5:13-24 Daniel Before the King

Daniel 5:13–24 “Then Daniel was brought before the king. The king said to him, “Are you Daniel, one of the Judean exiles that my predecessor the king brought from Judah? I’ve heard that you have a spirit of the gods in you, and that insight, intelligence, and extraordinary wisdom are found in you. Now the wise men and mediums were brought before me to read this inscription and make its interpretation known to me, but they could not give its interpretation. However, I have heard about you that you can give interpretations and solve problems. Therefore, if you can read this inscription and give me its interpretation, you will be clothed in purple, have a gold chain around your neck, and have the third highest position in the kingdom.” Then Daniel answered the king, “You may keep your gifts and give your rewards to someone else; however, I will read the inscription for the king and make the interpretation known to him. Your Majesty, the Most High God gave sovereignty, greatness, glory, and majesty to your predecessor Nebuchadnezzar. Because of the greatness he gave him, all peoples, nations, and languages were terrified and fearful of him. He killed anyone he wanted and kept alive anyone he wanted; he exalted anyone he wanted and humbled anyone he wanted. But when his heart was exalted and his spirit became arrogant, he was deposed from his royal throne and his glory was taken from him. He was driven away from people, his mind was like an animal’s, he lived with the wild donkeys, he was fed grass like cattle, and his body was drenched with dew from the sky until he acknowledged that the Most High God is ruler over human kingdoms and sets anyone he wants over them. “But you his successor, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, even though you knew all this. Instead, you have exalted yourself against the Lord of the heavens. The vessels from his house were brought to you, and as you and your nobles, wives, and concubines drank wine from them, you praised the gods made of silver and gold, bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which do not see or hear or understand. But you have not glorified the God who holds your life-breath in his hand and who controls the whole course of your life. Therefore, he sent the hand, and this writing was inscribed.”

So Daniel is here standing before the king and the king begins to ask who he is. The king tries to belittle him by pointing out that he is one of the Judean exiles that his grandfather brought to Babylon.

What is the difference between Belshazzar's description of Daniel’s spirit compared to his mothers?

Belshazzar completely leaves out the word holy in his description of Daniel’s spirit. This shows the lack of reverence that King Belshazzar has for the God of Isreal.

You may encounter people exactly like this. They have no respect for God or any religion, they think all religion is stupid and they make fun of anyone who believes in anything. Now that doesn’t reflect King Belshazzar but it does reflect his attitude towards the true living God. King Belshazzar worships all these idols and he blasphemes the God of the universe and now he is standing in front of the most well known man of God in Babylon. He tries to impress Daniel with how much he knows about him and his accomplishments, but Daniel gets straight to the point. He refuses Belshazzar’s gifts and refuses all the things that he could offer and goes straight at Belshazzar.

Before explain the handwriting on the wall, Daniel preaches a sermon to the king, using the king’s grandfather as his illustration. He warned the king about his pride and sin and reminded him that God judged Nebuchadnezzar severely.

I just want to pause for a second and talk about Daniel and his outlook and attitude towards life. People come to him on a daily basis for advice. He gets calls from the kings of Babylon wondering what is happening to them. Daniel knows the sinful lifestyle that they are living. He knows how they are rebelling against God. And all he has to do it explain what is happening, but he doesn’t do that. Every time he encounters the sinful kings of Babylon he lowers himself and begs that they repent, he pleads with them to surrender to the Lordship of God.

I don’t compare to Daniel, but I have friends like this and I would bet that you do to. They come to me for advice on how to do this and what certain things mean. And every time I do them a disservice by just telling them what they are searching for and they want to hear. But we need to be more like Daniel, giving them the answer that they are not looking for, the hard truth that they must repent. They must turn from their sinful ways and cling to the cross. As you go back to school tomorrow, give people the answer that they need, not what they want. Everyone needs the gospel so go spread it.

The best thing about Daniel’ sermon are the last two verses Daniel 5:23–24 “But you have not glorified the God who holds your life-breath in his hand and who controls the whole course of your life. Therefore, he sent the hand, and this writing was inscribed.”

How amazing it is that we worship the God who has our lives in his hands? He preserves us, He loves us, He protects us, He cares for us infinitely. We are His children and he holds not too tight, but not too loose. He loves us and he desires that we would joyfully sit within his mighty grasp. But how scary is it for the person that is living in rebellion to the God who has their life in his hands. They live as if they have control of their own lives. They live just like Belshazzar, living for the pleasures of this world and then they will meet the mighty hand of God. Instead of being met with His hands open ready to receive, they will see His hands writing judgement on the walls of their life.

4. Daniel 5:25-31 The Inscriptions Interpretation

Now after all of the rebuking and the preaching Daniel finally gets to the explanation of this writing on the wall.

Daniel 5:25–31 ““This is the writing that was inscribed: Mene, Mene, Tekel, and Parsin. This is the interpretation of the message: ‘Mene’ means that God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end. ‘Tekel’ means that you have been weighed on the balance and found deficient. ‘Peres’ means that your kingdom has been divided and given to the Medes and Persians.” Then Belshazzar gave an order, and they clothed Daniel in purple, placed a gold chain around his neck, and issued a proclamation concerning him that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom. That very night Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans was killed, and Darius the Mede received the kingdom at the age of sixty-two.”

“Mene, Mene, Tekel, and Parsin” What in the world does this mean?

If you had to take a guess what do you think these words mean?

Let’s break them down word by word.

The first word is “Mene” and it repeated twice for a reason. “Mene” means numbered and Daniel elaborates that it mans that God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it and end. So basically the inscription says “Numbered, Numbered”

The repetition of this word shows the judgement that Belshazzar is facing. What this means is that God set time for Belshazzar's kingdom to reign and to end. So what God is saying through this inscription is that He set the time, and Belshazzar’s time is up. It is over and there is no more hope.

The second word is “Tekel”. This word means weighed, and Daniel points out the Belshazzar was found deficient or that he didn't measure up. What this means is that the moral laws were placed on one side of the scale and Belshazzar was on the other side and Belshazzar did not measure up to God’s standard of righteousness.

This is a reminder to all of us that we must weigh ourselves daily and to put our heart on the scale.

The CSB Spurgeon Study Bible: Notes Chapter 5

We must not only see ourselves as others see us but as God sees us; for that, after all, is our real state.

By doing this we will stop comparing ourselves to others. To what they do and what we do, to what they and what we eat, to what they say and what we say. None of that matters to God. All that matters is your heart, where is your heart on the scale of God’s standard. If it doesn’t measure up then that is the call to stop comparing yourself to everyone else, and start comparing yourself to God’s Word. And as you do this you will recognize how much we need him and how sinful you truly are.

The third and final word is “Parsin” and it comes from the word “Peres” which means to be divided. and Daniel points out that it will Belshazzar’s kingdom that will be divided by and given to the Medes and Persians.

This word divided does not mean that they will be equally divided between the two nations. No, it means that it will be given to the nations, but ultimately the kingdom will be divided into pieces and destroyed.

So Belshazzar has been numbered of his days, has been weighed to the standard of God and found guilty, and now his kingdom will be divided.

Do you think Belshazzar believed the message from God?

No. We find no evidence of repentance and turning towards God. All we see is that he honors what he said he would do by making Daniel the third ruler of Babylon as though his kingdom would never end. If he truly believed that this was going to happen then he would get his armies ready for the battle that is to come.

As they were having there grand party the Medes and Persians were making there way into the kingdom. No one noticed because everybody was at the party. They came directly into the banquet and slaughtered the king. They literally executed king Belshazzar.

Proverbs 1:22–26 ““How long, inexperienced ones, will you love ignorance? How long will you mockers enjoy mocking and you fools hate knowledge? If you respond to my warning, then I will pour out my spirit on you and teach you my words. Since I called out and you refused, extended my hand and no one paid attention, since you neglected all my counsel and did not accept my correction, I, in turn, will laugh at your calamity. I will mock when terror strikes you,”

Belshazzar sat their listening to the counsel from the wisest man in Babylon, but he never humbled himself enough to understand what Daniel was saying. He was so blinded by his pride that he couldn’t see things of God. He couldn’t see his downfall because he was blinded by his sin.

Some of you may be blinded by the pleasures of this world, you are so focused on these worldly things that you don’t see the destruction that is coming. Tonight God is calling you to him, to repent, to turn to him and to take a hold of Him.