7-6-10

DANIEL 5

Belshazzar, now the king of Babylon, holds a feast for at least a thousand of his nobles, dignitaries, you know, the important people to him in his kingdom. And, as the drinks are passed around, it is highly likely that the king is intoxicated, and he is not thinking clearly. He orders the drinking vessels that had been taken from the temple in Jerusalem to be brought to him, so that he may drink from them. Even for a pagan king, this would normally have been avoided at all costs, simply due to the superstitious fear of drinking from sacred vessels. As it turns out, this is a tremendous act of sacrilege against Almighty God. Up until know, the articles from the temples would have been on display in Babylon as spoils of war, majestic and beautiful as they must have been.

Suddenly, the fingers of a man appear and write on the wall of the gathering place, and the king, cannot recognize what is written, nor can anyone else. So, like his predecessor Nebuchadnezzar, he calls for his conjurers, diviners, wise men, etc., and offers a position of third in the kingdom to anyone who can interpret what is on the wall. (Side note, ever hear of a saying when something is done or certain, “the writing’s on the wall”? Guess where that comes from). And, just like in previous incidents, no success. By now, we know where this is going to go.

The Queen knows of Daniel, and his past success in such interpretation. The king offers him the same, third-highest position in the kingdom, if he can interpret the writing. Daniel declines the offer of the promotion, and first, beginning in verse 18, praises God for being in control, not just then, but also in past times in the life of Nebuchadnezzar. Daniel rehearses the pride issues of the great Nebuchadnezzar, how God had given so much to him and his kingdom, and how it took being a beast for seven years to finally get it.

There is much evidence that Belshazzar would have likely been eyewitness to the latter part of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign, and would have recalled the accounts of Daniel’s reminder.

The point to Belshazzar is this: he knew all that had gone on before, and yet he refused to humble himself, and he failed to recognize that his life is in God’s hands. And Daniel reveals what the writing on the wall means. God has numbered the days of his kingdom, and it has ended. Belshazzar has been weighed (basically, his heart has been evaluated and has been found wanting, he has displeased God by failing to recognize Him), and the kingdom has been given to the Medes and Persians (look back to chapter 2, part of the statue in that dream).

Daniel is rewarded anyway, and becomes third in command in Babylon. Keep remembering, the Jews are still in exile, and watching God take care of them.

That night, Belshazzar is dead. And the Medes and Persians are now in control.

SO WHAT...?

So, like these kings, how much have I been given by God, and how much have I done for Him with all that?

So, will I yield to God’s control in my life?

So, what is my reputation of following God. I pray for it to be one to be patterned after Daniel, always giving credit to God for the work He does or wants to do through me.