Writing on the Wall v2
Notes
Transcript
Did you have a kid that always asked why? What did you tell them? You tell me why. How do you think God answers that question?
13 Then Daniel was brought in before the king. The king answered and said to Daniel, “You are that Daniel, one of the exiles of Judah, whom the king my father brought from Judah.
14 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.
15 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. Now if you can read the writing and make known to me its interpretation, you shall be clothed with purple and have a chain of gold around your neck and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.”
17 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.
24 “Then from his presence the hand was sent, and this writing was inscribed.
25 And this is the writing that was inscribed: Mene, Mene, Tekel, and Parsin.
26 This is the interpretation of the matter: Mene, God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end;
27 Tekel, you have been weighed in the balances and found wanting;
28 Peres, your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.”
29 Then Belshazzar gave the command, and Daniel was clothed with purple, a chain of gold was put around his neck, and a proclamation was made about him, that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom.
30 That very night Belshazzar the Chaldean king was killed.
31 And Darius the Mede received the kingdom, being about sixty-two years old.
An old man who doesnt have a stomach for the foolishness of this young king.
Daniel was careful to express, verbalize the life Belshazzar saw in his formative years. He recounted the experiences of Nebuchadnezzar so they would be at the front of Bel’s mind when Daniel made the sobering accusation:
22 And you his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, though you knew all this,
“And you his son” elsewhere stated “But you” and it was stern with rebuke. Nathan/David “You are that man!”
There is judgement coming for everyone who does not humble their hearts, though they know all this. It is inevitable and it is imminent. What we see in our text today is the very day of judgement for the kingdom of Babylon. Their time of dominance ends abruptly and the Medes and Persians are coming on the world scene.
What we see in the world around us today is primed to be judged. It is inevitable and it is imminent! Believers will react to this truth one of two ways: Smug satisfaction at what they perceive is deserved or broken-heartedness at the end of the chance to be saved for those judged.
What was written on the wall:
Numbered, Numbered - I have kept up with your days and the end of them has come. Divine decision certain of fulfillment. God has numbered your kingdom and finished it! In the end there will be no kingdom but the kingdom of God that stands! All other kingdoms have been numbered.
Weighed - The Lord detests dishonest scales. A businessman would have scales to weigh payment. There would be a standard for what a certain amount of gold or silver would weigh. When the gold would be placed on one side of the scales and the standard on the other, the scale would tell the tale. It would show if it were impure gold or silver. Bel is shown to be lacking the necessary qualifications of wisdom, goodness, mercy, truth, and justice. A good king would have the good of his people in his heart and Bel had none of that.
Divided - PERES, PARSIN (PRS, PRSN) Word play on PERSIA, PERSIAN (PRS, PRSN) in ancient Aramaic and Hebrew they would have only written the consonants, no vowels.
Broken apart, dissolved, destroyed. It should remind us of the ultimate end: shattered to pieces like in Nebuchadnezzar’s first dream.
35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold, all together were broken in pieces, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, so that not a trace of them could be found. But the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.
Let’s be that 4 year old kid today. Let’s ask why! Sometimes the answer is not to be known when we ask God why. If you, from time to time, told your inquisitive child ‘because I said so’ you gave them real-world experience that ‘why’ doesnt always have a good answer.
Why did Belshazzar know all this and still refuse to humble his heart? Why do we? Why do we have access to the WORD OF GOD and still allow pride and anger to be part of our lives? We are clearly told to put away the works of the flesh. Why do we carry around the burden of shame or discouragement when we know He lifted that at calvary- we are FORGIVEN!
Because we tend to believe our circumstances more that we believe the Word. Because we tend to trust our lying hearts more that we trust the Word. It is of utmost and eternal importance for the believer to BE IN THE WORD!
What we teach those who come after us helps build an important foundation for who they will become. That’s one of the reasons children’s Sunday school teachers are so important. The relationships built help grow those kids into successful adults.
What they observe in us, however, carves the stone. Like a great sculpture, the foundation is important to it lasting. But the sculpture is shaped by the artists hammer and chisel. And what I’m telling you is your(our) actions make up the hammer and chisel.
Let’s make a list: what did Belshazzar see in his grandfather?
Inconsistency
Brilliance/intelligence
Pride
Anger
Shame
Humility
Praise
Let’s make a list: what do those who watch you see?
The shape of Belshazzar’s life and reign as king was a result of what he saw in Nebuchadnezzar. Yes his own desires and habits, but those things are so often a result of our formative years. His were spent knowing his Pop, his PaPaw, his GranDaddy was king. He would have grown up wanting to be just like him!
5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.
6 And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.
7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.
And when you are fishing. And when you are putting out hay for the cows. And on the way to the Rangers game. Because building the relationship around things you enjoy is important, but the conversation in the midst is the MOST important!
Whose life are you investing in? Dont know or dont have? Ask!