Daniel 5 (Bible Study) (The Writing on the Wall)
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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 third highest 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 humbled yourself, 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: God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to an end.
27 Tekel: You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting.
28 Peres: Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes & 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, was slain, 31 and Darius the Mede took over the kingdom, at the age of 62.
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Daniel 4
Introduction
Following the death of Nebuchadnezzar, the power of the Babylonian empire began to decline. After several short reigns by various kings, Nabonidus became emperor. Historians have known for a long time that he was the last king of the Babylonian Empire. That is why, for a number of years, critical scholars claimed that Daniel Chapter 5 was legendary. Since no “Belshazzar” appears in the ancient lists of emperors, this supposed “king” was thought to have been a figment of the biblical writer’s imagination. However, archaeology has revealed that in the later years of his reign, Nabonidus moved his royal residence far away, leaving his son Belshazzar as the crown regent in Babylon for ten years. The biblical record is not only true in calling Belshazzar the functioning “king” (5:1), but shows historical accuracy when Belshazzar offers Daniel the “third highest ruler in the kingdom” (5:7, 16, 29). Belshazzar would have been the second-highest ruler, so, the third-highest position was the best he could give.
Implication to this background.
For years, the story of Belshazzar seemed to be evidence for the Bible’s historical unreliability. The faith of many students and scholars in the infallibility of Scripture was undermined. Too often, we think we must judge which parts of the Bible are right or wrong rather than letting the Bible judge which parts of us are right or wrong. After many years, we know that Daniel 5 is evidence for the reliability of the Bible. People who thought they had found an error here were completely wrong.
When we encounter apparent “inaccuracies” in Scripture, we should not jump to the conclusion that we have found an error.
Another important thing to notice is that Nebuchadnezzar is called Belshazzar’s “father” (5:2, 11, 13, 18, 22). This does not mean this was literally true. In the Near East, any ancestor was called one’s “father”: the terms “grandfather” and “great-grandfather” were unknown. If Nebuchadnezzar was Belshazzar’s forebear in any way, this term would have been appropriate. The term is also used more generally to refer to a person in whose shoes one does (or should!)follow. (eg Elisha, the younger prophet, calls the older Elijah “my father” in 2Kings 2:12.) This highlights this use of the term. Belshazzar is warned by God about his arrogance, just as Nebuchadnezzar was. But the “son” does not walk in the footsteps of his “father.”
Tekel: ‘You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting.’ (Dan 5:27).
1.Read Daniel 5:1-4. (a) What hints are there that this party is more frenetic than usual? (b) Considering the fact that an army took over Babylon that night, what might have been the reason for the party?
First, in verse 2 we see that Belshazzar ordered that goblets from the temple in Jerusalem be used as drinking vessels for the party. Surely the emperor had plenty of goblets. This may have been an act of sacrilege, contempt for the God of the Jews. It was probably well known in the Babylonian court that Nebuchadnezzar had seemingly been won over as a devotee to this “supreme God” of all gods. This, then, was an intentionally arrogant assertion of power over this supposedly powerful deity.
Second, in verse 4 we see that this feast had a religious aspect: “They praised the gods of gold and silver, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone.” This leads us to ask: Was this great banquet . . . a bacchanalian festival designed to propitiate those ancestral divinities that Babylon for too long had neglected? If so, then the defilement of the temple vessels may well have been a public repudiation of Nebuchadnezzar’s known sympathies for the cult of Yahweh . . . which Belshazzar quite probably regarded as an unpatriotic foible on Nebuchadnezzar’s part.
Throughout history, most people have persisted in believing religion is just an extension and expression of culture. One’s beliefs are interwoven with one’s nationality and culture. Therefore, for e.g. an Arab Muslim would feel that, were he to become a Christian, he would no longer be an Arab.
This view is embodied in statements like, “I’m English, therefore I’m Anglican; I’m Scottish, therefore I’m Presbyterian; I’m Indian, therefore I’m Hindu.” Since this was almost certainly the case with Belshazzar, this feast was likely an expression of nationalistic passion. Almost certainly, Belshazzar was directly repudiating any honour and deference to the foreign god Nebuchadnezzar had been so keen on in his old age.
Third, in verses 2-3 we are told that the nobles had their wives and concubines together. Some commentators believe that this was the sign of a particularly wild and frenetic party. One did not ordinarily “mix” wives and concubines together in the same event. What might have been the reason for the party?
It would have been impossible for the entire Medo-Persian army to have come upon Babylon city by surprise. All the records show that the Babylonians had already been defeated by the advancing invaders; they had retreated into Babylon and shut themselves up. Since Babylon had strong fortifications and ample supplies, many (including Belshazzar) thought they could last out a siege.
So: First, the party is bravado. Belshazzar knew that the enemy was at the gate—and this is the way he reacted. He dealt with his anxiety by bravado. (If he had any anxiety, that is. If he had none, his ego had led him into delusions about reality.) He defied the God who claimed supremacy over all the kings of this world by taking the Lord’s things to lord it over him. He confidently praised his own gods as sufficient to maintain his power. He threw a huge party, an orgy, to show his disdain for the idea that there was any power that could make him cower. Here is “a self-made man who worships his creator.”
But: Second, the party is denial. Like the addict who gets high to escape reality, Babylon’s elite used this party to avoid facing their plight, living in the illusion that their wealth and power would last.
Read Daniel 5:5-9. Why does Belshazzar seem more terrified than Nebuchadnezzar was (v 6 & 9)? Why is this response typical? What does it teach us about God and ourselves?
Nebuchadnezzar had two vivid dreams (chapters 2 and 4) and saw a miracle(chapter 3). But he never saw a visible apparition of God’s supernatural power.
In chapter 2, Nebuchadnezzar was troubled to the point that he could not sleep (2:1). In chapter 3 he was astonished. In chapter 4, he was “terrified” by the dream (4:5). But the description of Belshazzar certainly goes beyond that. We are told he could not stand up; his legs gave way & he collapsed (5:6), and he grew even more terrified than that (5:9). It is possible that Belshazzar senses the presence of God, which always leads a human being to feel weak and “undone.”
Despite the popular, sentimental idea that the presence of God is a warm and comforting experience, the Bible says it is not. Whenever anyone in the Bible draws near to God, it is a terrifying experience. Exodus 19:9-22 shows this. When God’s presence descends onto Mount Sinai, the whole mountain trembled, shook, and smoked. The people were warned to stay back lest the presence of God “break through” and kill them (Ex. 19:22). Why? Isaiah 6:1-8 reveals the answer. Isaiah was a prophet, and even he felt utterly dirty and “undone”—like he was falling apart—when he came into the presence of the Holy. The trauma of holiness is the trauma of comparison. In the presence of the Great, we finally feel small; in the presence of the Omnipotent, we finally feel weak and dependent; in the presence of the Good, we finally see how sinful and flawed we are; in the presence of the Creator, we feel our creaturely essence. If Isaiah and Moses trembled with a sense of their smallness and sinfulness—and they were at least intellectually committed to these principles—how much worse would Belshazzar have felt, who was utterly opposed to such truths? Romans 1:18-25 tells us that the very truth we most repress is the glory of God, namely, how absolutely dependent we are on him, and how incapable we are of being our own masters.
“The greatness of God and the fragility of any human king” was, of course, the very opposite of what Belshazzar was asserting in the feast. He was declaring to the world that he needed nothing, he was afraid of nothing, he was dependent on nothing—but his own power. But the presence of the Holy contradicts and destroys this illusion. John Calvin wrote, “Men are never duly touched and impressed, until they have contrasted themselves with the majesty of God.”
In his interpretation of the dream, Daniel provides a conundrum, it this dream a foretelling of what will happen or what may happen if the King does not repent. In Dan 4:26 he says that what will happen is certain. He also says that the command to retain the stump and roots “means that your kingdom will be restored to you when you acknowledge that Heaven rules” (4: 26). On the other hand, in the following verse, (4:27) Daniel pleads with the king to repent immediately to avoid the fall ahead. “Renounce your sins . . . and . . . it may be that then your prosperity will continue” (4:27). This indicates that the kings reaction to the dream and his decisions that follow will have real consequences.
Application: Throughout Scripture, there is an emphasis on both the sovereignty, control and power of God over all history and the reality and responsibility of our free choices (our free will). (Compare Peter’s fall and restoration in Luke 22:31ff). The conundrum is this, God’s sovereignty and our free will may appear to contradict each other, but it is only together that they really explain what happens in daily life. We are both safe in God’s plan and responsible for our actions and decision to follow his will.
Look at the similarity of this warning to the king and Jesus ‘warning to Peter. They are both told that they will be put to a test that they will fail. Their sinful hearts will be revealed and they will be broken. Further, in both warnings of failure there is a promise that they will repent and be restored. NB Jesus said “When you turn back (not if). Jesus saying ‘I have prayed for you,’ reveals that repentance is dependent on help from God. Yes, we are responsible for our choices but God opens our eyes so we can make right choices. We cannot generalise, but this message teaches us that sometimes trials in life can refine and humble us and make us holy. Most of our troubles are about being human. Some troubles are directly used by God to humble, chasten, and grow us. We must not assume the troubles are a punishment. Even if it is discipline or chastening, it is not retribution for what we deserve. It is loving discipline, working together for good, to help us. If we did get what we deserved, we be wiped out!
Read Daniel 5:10-12. Commentators have noted how odd it is that “the queen” comes in without permission, though all the king’s wives are in the hall (v 2-3). (compare Esther 4:11). (a) Who might she be? (b) What role does she play in the story?
Who might she be?
This woman is a very interesting figure. First, she is not in the banqueting hall, though all the highest of the “best and the brightest” of Babylon’s elite were there. Second, she is by no means a person of lower rank. She enters without being called and is taken quite seriously. Third, all of Belshazzar’s wives are said to have been in the feast already. Fourth, she has remarkable knowledge of past events.
Daniel would now be quite old and the events she knows so much about show that she must be old as well. The commentators think that this was the Queen Mother, the widow of Nebuchadnezzar himself. (An NIV footnote on verse 10 calls her “queen mother.”) What role does she play in the story?
This, of course, creates a scene full of dramatic tension. This regal, older woman shows the greatest respect for Daniel. She remembers what the whole Babylonian court has forgotten. She remembers the wisdom contests in which the Lord God of Israel proved his supremacy and his sovereignty. She remembers the fiery furnace. Most of all, she remembers the insanity of Nebuchadnezzar and how he had to become a beast in order to become more human, and how he had issued a decree of testimony to this Lord. It is almost impossible to think that the Babylonian court did not know about Nebuchadnezzar’s illness. It may have been kept secret from the general public, so that no word would leak out to the empire’s enemies. But certainly the elites knew about it, and they would also have known of his decree, in which he told about what happened and the greatness of the Lord (4:1-37). But the Babylonian nobles did not want to remember. Most of all, Belshazzar did not want to remember. The Queen Mother stands as an irrefutable witness to the mighty acts of God that did take place, though the ruling class did not want to recall them.
Her repeated use of the term, “your father, Nebuchadnezzar” is probably her way of saying, “You should have been following his example but you didn’t! You knew all this.” This fact—of Belshazzar’s knowledge of the evidence for the Lord’s sovereignty does not come out explicitly yet.
It remains for Daniel to tell the king about this to his face (v. 22).
Read Daniel 5:18-24. Note the four things Belshazzar is accused of?
First, “you knew all this” (v. 22). This is the sin against knowledge. Belshazzar knew all about Nebuchadnezzar’s experiences and his testimony to the power of God to humble pride. He probably was a young man at court when the insanity befell Nebuchadnezzar. The decree of Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 4 was public record. But Belshazzar deliberately closed his eyes and heart to the evidence. The Bible says that all sin is to some degree a sin of repression of the truth.
Romans 1:18-21 says that all persons, to some degree, know there is a Creator we owe allegiance to.
Second, “you have not humbled yourself” (v. 23). This is the sin of pride. Again, we see that human pride is the main point of God’s indictment, just as it was with Nebuchadnezzar. This is apparently a basic root sin. Jesus made a categorical statement: “Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and everyone who humbles himself will be exalted”(Luke 14:11).
This truth is what differentiates biblical religion from others. “Pride” was not usually a vice (nor humility a virtue) in other religions or ancient ethical writings. Jesus goes beyond saying that pride is a sin. He says pride will always lead to a fall, and rising will only come through the humility of repentance and submission to God.
Third, “you set yourself up against the Lord of heaven” by drinking from the goblets (v. 23). This is the sin of using God’s gifts for your own purposes. This is a high-handed sin. Belshazzar knew that the articles of the temple were set apart exclusively for the worship of God, but he deliberately used them for his own pleasure and glory, to show his power. This is actually quite typical. We all have gifts God has given us—our abilities and our wealth, for example. When we use our money on ourselves, God does not call it “stinginess” but “robbery” (Mal. 3:8-9). How so? If God considers our money to be his. He is saying, “You must not use your resources as if they are yours. They are mine, and you must deploy them only in ways I see fit. You are stewards, not owners, of what you have.”
Belshazzar’s use of the temple vessels was his way of asserting ownership. But God, in turn, now exerts his rights of true ownership.
Fourth, “you did not honour the God who holds in his hand your life and all your ways” (v. 23). This sin seems to sum up the other sins. It isn’t a repression of the truth, an assertion of pride, or a refusal of stewardship. It is, in a way, a summary of them all. Belshazzar refused to admit his dependence on God. 6. How does God write on our wall? What are some ways he shows us our pride, our assumption of divine prerogatives for ourselves? This question has many, many good answers, but basically, “the writing on the wall” means that God will not allow any life that is built on pride to endure. There will be a crash to any such kingdom. The crash may be external: economic, political; it may be internal: psychological, relational. But it will come.
‘The decision is announced by messengers, the holy ones declare the verdict, so that the living may know that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes and sets over them the lowliest of people.’ (4:17)
Read Daniel 5:26-28. The strange words represented three “weights” or coins of value. Daniel’s interpretation uses numerous plays on words to communicate the idea of being “weighed in the scales and found wanting.”
What help is it to believers in an unbelieving world to know that there is a divine Judge with divine scales of absolute justice?
It is of enormous importance for people who are victims of injustice and persecution to believe in a God of justice and judgment. Otherwise, they will get sucked into the cycle of “payback”—endless violence in retaliation for retaliation of violence. In other words, unless we believe in a God of vengeance, we will not be able to forgive and live non-violently ourselves. We will feel the need to take up the sword to pay back. The only way I can live with peace and without bitterness in the world is if I know there is a Judge whose scales and balances are perfect—more true than my own—and who will not let anyone get away with anything.
