Daniel: Week 5 King Nebuchadnezzar died in 562 BC, after a reign of 43 years. Nabonidus became king, but was “relocated” 500 miles from Babylon due to his passion for the moon god, Sin. His son, Belshazzar, functioned as de facto king in Babylon from 553-539 BC, and is where our story in Daniel 5 picks up. Daniel is in his 80’s now. Verses 1-4 tell us that the Medes and the Persians are on the doorsteps of Babylon, and King Belshazzar knows that he is about to be conquered. He decides to throw a party of wine and debauchery, knowing that he is about to lose power. He then “commanded that the vessels of gold and of silver that Nebuchadnezzar his father had taken out of the temple in Jerusalem be brought” and that his lords and concubines should drink from them. He did this to show superiority of the Babylonian gods over any other nation, especially knowing that he was about to be overtaken. This was an intentional insult. The king was declaring to everyone that with his hand He owned Yahweh. “Immediately, the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace…” Then the king’s color changed, and his thoughts alarmed him; his limbs gave way, and his knees knocked together.” In other words, this completely drunk king became sober in an instant! We see God’s finger throughout the Bible: Exodus 8:19 – with Pharaoh Exodus 31:18 – with Moses and the 10 commandments John 8:1-11 – Jesus writing on the ground Verse 7 says, “The king called loudly to bring in the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the astrologers.” These men had already failed twice before (Ch. 2&3). He was prepared to clothe the interpreter in purple robes, gold chains, and make him the 3rd ruler (again, Belshazzar was the de facto king, which made him the second ruler). These men failed again. Daniel was brought in before the king because he was known to be able to interpret dreams, and the queen remembered Daniel. The king said to Daniel (v13), “You are that Daniel, one of the exiles of Judah”. He was insulting Daniel by reminding this old man that he was defeated. He continued to be stubborn. Before Daniel interprets the handwriting, he takes a moment and reminds Belshazzar who God is as he recalls the history of Nebuchadnezzars life. He calls God, “The Most High God” (2x’s), “the Lord of heaven”, and “the God in whose hand is your breath.” He reminds Belshazzar that Nebuchadnezzar had it all, but when “his spirit was hardened so that he dealt proudly, he was brought down from his kingly throne, and his glory was taken from him.” He was made like a beast and was in the fields for 7 years. Nebuchadnezzar repented when confronted by God. Daniel then turns his attention to Belshazzar. He says to him in verse 22, “you have not humbled your heart, though you knew all this, but you have lifted up yourself against the Lord of Heaven.” The interpretation of the handwriting on the wall: Mene, God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end; Tekel, you have been weighed in tha balances and found wanting; Peres, your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians. We must all remember that a day is coming when “every knee will bow-in heaven and on earth and under the earth-and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Phil 2:10-11 While all of this was taking place, the Medes and Persians had diverted the Euphrates River around the city, and walked under the 56 miles of wall. By the time Belshazzar’s party was over, the entire army of the Persians were in town. Verse 30 says, ” That very night Belshazzar the Chaldean king was killed. And Darius the Mede received the kingdom, being about 62 years old.” (See Isaiah 21:10-11) One day we will all stand in a judgement hall with handwriting in books. (Revelation 20:12). The good news is found in Col 2:13-15. We must have a heart of repentance over resistance. We must have a soft heart over a hard heart. We must have humility rather than haughtiness.