DANIEL CHAPTER FIVE
Belshazzar and Darius Rule
Dan 5:1-4 NKJV
1
Belshazzar the king made a great feast for a thousand of his lords, and drank
wine in the presence of the thousand. 2 While he tasted the wine, Belshazzar
gave the command to bring the gold and silver vessels which his father
Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple which [had been] in Jerusalem, that
the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines might drink from them. 3
Then they brought the gold vessels that had been taken from the temple of the
house of God which [had been] in Jerusalem; and the king and his lords, his
wives, and his concubines drank from them. 4 They drank wine, and praised the
gods of gold and silver, bronze and iron, wood and stone.
Nebuchadnezzar died in 625 B.C., and the throne went to his
son Belshazzar who ruled from 625-605 B.C.
The Babylonian word shazzar, the latter part of the new king's name,
means fire. Most often in ancient times,
names of people were an indication of their occupation, affiliation, or
temperament. Perhaps Belshazzar was
hot-headed -quick to anger.
Note: Daniel
does not say that the other kings mentioned in other writers did not reign
between Belshazzar and Nebuchadnezzar, namely, Evil-Merodach ( Jeremiah 52:31
), Neriglissar, his brother-in-law, and Laborasoarchod (nine months). BEROSUS [1]
[1] Scripture does not tell us the occasion of this special
massive celebration, with over one thousand guests including the king's lords,
which was a departure from his norm. [1] We will see towards the end of this
chapter that Cyrus was threatening the city the Persian king who eventually
concord the city in October 539 B.C.
(Dandamaev 1989, p. 71)
[1] The king must have known of Cyrus’s attempts to breach
the thick walls of the city. Could it be
he was more interested in celebrating his coronation than protecting the
city? Perhaps he thought the city was
safe because of its location (encircled by water) and its thick walls.[2] (Robert Bryce)
[2] After toasting with much wine Belshazzar, under the
influence of alcohol, made a disastrous error in judgment and called for the
sacred artifacts, stolen by his father from the Temple in Jerusalem. He and his nobles drank from these goblets
and cups of gold and silver while praising their gods.
This grievous sin will not go unpunished as God’s hand will
exact His vengeance.
The Message to the King
Dan 5:5-9 NKJV
5
In the same hour the fingers of a man's hand appeared and wrote opposite the
lampstand on the plaster of the wall of the king's palace; and the king saw the
part of the hand that wrote. 6 Then the king's countenance changed, and his
thoughts troubled him, so that the joints of his hips were loosened and his
knees knocked against each other. 7 The king cried aloud to bring in the
astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. The king spoke, saying to the
wise [men] of Babylon, "Whoever reads this writing, and tells me its
interpretation, shall be clothed with purple and [have] a chain of gold around
his neck; and he shall be the third ruler in the kingdom." 8 Now all the
king's wise [men] came, but they could not read the writing, or make known to
the king its interpretation. 9 Then King Belshazzar was greatly troubled, his
countenance was changed, and his lords were astonished.
[5] This incident
was not a vision in a dream but an actual occurrence as the king watched. This spectacle happened during a lavish
party. Up to this point Belshazzar had
not given any homage to the God of heaven being interested in his
aggrandizement. Imagine how terrifying
it must have been to see a disembodied hand and its finger write on a wall in a
language no one knew.
[6] If you
recall verse three told how the king commanded that the bounty from the Jewish
Temple be brought to the banquet that he and his revelers could drink from
them. We can’t be sure if this was the
cause of the inscription written on the wall.
However, we should not be surprised if this was God’s vengeance warning,
as the writing appeared in the light cast by the Jewish Menorah, one of the
Temple artifacts. It is believed the
writing on the plastered wall were in cuneiform letters[i].
[8] King
Belshazzar probably knew of the Hebrew God of heaven from the stories of King
Nebuchadnezzar. Knowing he had
dishonored God by using the Temple treasures for his pleasure, now trembled at
the sight of the writing.
Once again
we see the wise men being called to read the writing. Just as in the case of Nebuchadnezzar he
would give royal reward to anyone who could read and interpret the message.
The reward
was to be given to the one who could correctly interpret the writing on the
wall and that person would be made third ruler or the chief satrap.
The Queen mother Introduces Daniel
Dan 5:10-12 NKJV
10
The queen, because of the words of the king and his lords, came to the banquet
hall. The queen spoke, saying, "O king, live forever! Do not let your
thoughts trouble you, nor let your countenance change. 11 "There is a man
in your kingdom in whom [is] the Spirit of the Holy God. And in the days of
your father, light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods,
were found in him; and King Nebuchadnezzar your father--your father the
king--made him chief of the magicians, astrologers, Chaldeans, [and]
soothsayers. 12 "Inasmuch as an excellent spirit, knowledge,
understanding, interpreting dreams, solving riddles, and explaining enigmas
were found in this Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar, now let Daniel be
called, and he will give the interpretation."
[10] Since all the
queens were already at the party, this queen must have been the kings mother
Nitocris. (Jamieson, Fausset, Brown) (Dan 5:2).
[11] The queen
mother reminds the King of what Daniel had done for king Nebuchadnezzar (Dan
4:8, 9 and 18).
[12] The queen
urged the King to send for Daniel because he had the strength and wisdom of the
heavenly God.
Dan 5:13-17 NKJV
13
Then Daniel was brought in before the king. The king spoke, and said to Daniel,
"[Are] you that Daniel who is one of the captives from Judah, whom my
father the king brought from Judah? 14 "I have heard of you, that the
Spirit of God [is] in you, and [that] light and understanding and excellent
wisdom are found in you. 15 "Now the wise [men], the astrologers, have
been brought in before me, that they should read this writing and make known to
me its interpretation, but they could not give the interpretation of the thing.
16 "And I have heard of you, that you can give interpretations and explain
enigmas. 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; yet I will read the writing to the king, and make
known to him the interpretation.
The king’s
wise men may have been able to read the letters but they could not decipher
what they meant. As with the kings
father Daniel did not want a reward. By
this time Daniel was quite old.
Was it
wrong for Daniel to refuse the kings reward?
No it wasn’t wrong in fact knowing what the writing said and
its interpretation Daniel may have felt it would not be right to accept an
honor for himself for God’s gift of interpretation.
Dan 5:18-21 KJV
18
"O king, the Most High God gave Nebuchadnezzar your father a kingdom and
majesty, glory and honor. 19 "And because of the majesty that He gave him,
all peoples, nations, and languages trembled and feared before him. Whomever he
wished, he executed; whomever he wished, he kept alive; whomever he wished, he
set up; and whomever he wished, he put down. 20 "But when his heart was
lifted up, and his spirit was hardened in pride, he was deposed from his kingly
throne, and they took his glory from him. 21 "Then he was driven from the
sons of men, his heart was made like the beasts, and his dwelling [was] with
the wild donkeys. They fed him with grass like oxen, and his body was wet with
the dew of heaven, till he knew that the Most High God rules in the kingdom of
men, and appoints over it whomever He chooses.
[18] Daniel reminds
the King the story of his father and how God gave him his power, and how God
also brought him down, and it was God who raised him up yet again from his
disgrace. Daniel was telling the king
these things to prepare him for the worst possible news, revealed by the
writing on the wall. This writing was a
message from the all-powerful God of heaven to Belshazzar.
“Knowing
what was to come of king Belshazzar, it is no wonder why Daniel was not the
least bit interested in the king's reward” (Bryce)
(Dan 5:18, 22-23 KJV)
22
"But you his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, although you
knew all this. 23 "And you have lifted yourself up against the Lord of
heaven. They have brought the vessels of His house 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, bronze and iron, wood and stone, which do
not see or hear or know; and the God who [holds] your breath in His hand and
owns all your ways, you have not glorified.
[22] Belshazzar,
who knew of his father’s story, failed to give honor to the God of heaven who
had seated him on his father’s throne.
Once again
it is apparent how power corrupts the soul of man. The more power received, the greater the
hunger for even more power, while at the same time the acknowledgment and
gratitude of its source are equally lessened.
[23] Daniel now
reveals that the hand he saw was from the God of heaven. The same God who dealt with his father is now
dealing with him. Daniel tells the king
of his great sin of taking and using the sacred objects from the Temple of
God. The king had compounded his sin by
giving honor to the idols of gold and silver instead of to God.
The Writing Interpretation
Dan 5:24 - 28 KJV
24
"Then the fingers of the hand were sent from Him, and this writing was
written. 25 "And this is the inscription that was written: MENE, MENE,
TEKEL, UPHARSIN. 26 "This [is] the interpretation of [each] word. MENE:
God has numbered your kingdom, and finished it; 27 "TEKEL: You have been
weighed in the balances, and found wanting; 28 "PERES: Your kingdom has
been divided, and given to the Medes and Persians."
[26] The litteral translation of Mene, Mene, H4484
has its roots in the Hebrew word mᵉnâʼ, men-aw'; (Aramaic) or מְנָה mᵉnâh; (Aramaic), corresponding to H4487; to count, appoint:—number, ordain, set[3].
Therefore, the meaning of Mene, Mene is your days have been
counted or numbered and appointed. In
today’s vernacular “your number is up”
[27] The literal
meaning of Tekel is “ek-al'; (Aramaic)
corresponding to H8254;
to balance:—Tekel, be weighed.” Or put
another way put on the scale of justice and found to be outweighed by sin.
(Strong’s)
[28] Upharsin
literal translation is: pᵉraç, per-as'; (Aramaic)
corresponding to H6536;
to split up:—divide.
His kingdom would be divided between the Meads and the
Persians who during the king’s party had been outside the gates laying
siege. God had delayed the invasion of King
Cyrus.
(Dan 5:18, 29-31 KJV)
29
Then Belshazzar gave the command, and they clothed Daniel with purple and [put]
a chain of gold around his neck, and made a proclamation concerning him that he
should be the third ruler in the kingdom. 30 That very night Belshazzar, king
of the Chaldeans, was slain. 31 And Darius the Mede received the kingdom,
[being] about sixty-two years old.
[29] Once again
Daniel was restored to a position similar to the position given to him by
Belshazzar’s father (Nebuchadnezzar). (Dan 2:48)
[30] There was
very little time between the time of the writing and the death of Belshazzar at
the hands of the Persians. [ii]
Bibliography
Bryce, Robert. "About This
Book." Acts - Free Bible Commentary on the Book of Acts in Easy English.
March 2007. Accessed September 04, 2018. https://www.easyenglish.bible/bible-commentary/dan-lbw.htm.
Jamieson, Robert, Aaron R. Faussett,
and David Brown. "Bible Commentary Critical and Explanatory; Jamieson,
Fausset, Brown." Bible Study Tools. Accessed September 04, 2018. https://www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/jamieson-fausset-brown/.
[2] Dandamaev 1989, p. 71
Dandamaev, M. A. (1989). A political history of the Achaemenid empire.
Leiden: Brill. p. 373. ISBN 90-04-09172-6.
Strong, "H4483 - mĕna'
(Aramaic) - Strong's Hebrew Lexicon (ESV)." Blue Letter Bible. Accessed 4
Aug, 2018. https://www.blueletterbible.org//lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=H4483&t=ESV
Staff, "Daniel Bible Timeline, Accessed August 14,
2018.
End notes
[1] Robert
Jamieson, Aaron R. Faucet, and David Brown. "Bible Commentary Critical and
Explanatory; Jamieson, Fausett, Brown." Bible Study Tools. Accessed
September 04, 2018.
https://www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/jamieson-fausset-brown/.
[2] Robert
Bryce, "About This Book." Dan - Free Bible Commentary on the Book of Dan
in Easy English. March 2007. Accessed September 04, 2018. https://www.easyenglish.bible/bible-commentary/dan-lbw.htm.
[3] Strong,
"H4483 - mĕna' H8254-Takel H6536-Uparsin (Aramaic) - Strong's Hebrew
Lexicon (ESV)." Blue Letter Bible. Accessed 4 Aug, 2018.
[i] denoting or relating to
the wedge-shaped characters used in the ancient writing systems of Mesopotamia,
Persia, and Ugarit, surviving mainly impressed on clay tablets
[ii] “Cyrus diverted the Euphrates into a new
channel and, guided by two deserters, marched by the dry bed into the city,
while the Babylonians were carousing at an annual feast to the gods. See also
Isaiah 21:5, 44:27, Jeremiah 50:38 Jeremiah 50:39, 51:36.” (Jamieson, Faucet,
Brown)
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