Daniel 5
The Writing on the Wall
5 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[a] 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.
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.
7 The king summoned the enchanters, astrologers[b]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 thirdhighest 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.
10 The queen,[c] 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? 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.”
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.
22 “But you, Belshazzar, his son,[d] have not humbledyourself, 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[e]: God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to an end. 27 Tekel[f]: You have been weighed on the scalesand found wanting. 28 Peres[g]: Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.”
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,[h] was slain, 31 and Darius the Mede took over the kingdom, at the age of sixty-two.[i]
Are you afraid of God?
The Bible tells us that the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 9:10). One of the defining attributes of our generation is a lack of fear of God. Many approach faith with a laissez-faire attitude, believing that God is here to make our lives better. The opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics caused outrage with a scene from the Last Supper recreated with drag queens, representing a sacred moment in the Christian story. It was a shameless and fearless mockery of Christ.
In this passage, Nebuchadnezzar had passed away and his son (or descendant) is now on the throne. They throw a party and demanded that the gold cups from the Jewish temple be used for their drunkenness and to celebrate the gods of the time. They took what was holy and used it to celebrate things that God abhors. However, God is not indifferent to sin, nor is he absent from the world. In the most dramatic of fashion, God passes judgment on the King and announces the end of him empire.
The message is clear: God is holy, powerful and present.
I asked my 13 year old son what he thought about this idea of fearing God and he said, ‘It is just like you. I love you because you are my father. However, I fear you as well. In case I do something wrong.’
Today, we don’t like the idea of fearing God. We are told not to be afraid of God but to come into his presence. He is our Father and He loves us. Which is all true. However, our Father is also the Holy Creator of the world and we should deeply respect him. God is a good Father, who you love and are in awe of. You are not afraid of him per se, and yet you should also fear him as you do not want to disappoint him or go against his wishes.
How often do you think about Gods opinions on your life and choices? How often do you think about Gods view on politics and media? We should be highly concerned about what matters to God. We do not need to be afraid of God but we should fear him.
Finish with the Lord’s Prayer:
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done; on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom the power and the glory. Forever and ever. Amen
Nebuchadnezzar has passed away and his son (or descendant) is now on the throne. They throw a party and demanded that the gold cups from the Jewish temple be used for their drunkenness and to celebrate the gods of the time. They took what was holy and used it to celebrate things that God abhors.
In this story, we see the two themes of Daniel stand clearly:
- God is holy and he calls us to live holy and righteous lives. This includes inward holiness, our morality as well as external holiness, how we treat others.
- God is not absent from culture and politics. He intervenes and judges rulers and authorities. He removes people from places of influence and protects his people.
The writing was on the wall has become a saying that we have used ever since to describe the moment when God says that enough is enough and that he will no longer tolerate our sin.
We may look at the world and see sin and evil go unpunished. However, Daniel teaches us that there always comes a time when God holds people to account and their sins are accounted for.
