Daniel Chapter 5

1 Belshazzar the king held a great feast for a thousand of his nobles, and he was drinking wine in the presence of the thousand. 2 When Belshazzar tasted the wine, he gave orders to bring the gold and silver vessels which Nebuchadnezzar his father had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem, so that the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines might drink from them. 3 Then they brought the gold vessels that had been taken out of the temple, the house of God which was in Jerusalem; and the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines drank from them. 4 They drank the wine and praised the gods of gold and silver, of bronze, iron, wood and stone.

 1. Wow, what happened to Nebuchadnezzar and who is Belshazzar?

Belshazzar came to power some nine years after Nebuchadnezzar had died.

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The events of this chapter therefore occurred about 66 years after those in chapter 1 and about 36 years after those in chapter 4. Daniel received the revelation in chapter 7 in the first year of Belshazzar (553 B.C., 7:1) and the revelation in chapter 8 in Belshazzar’s third year (551 B.C., 8:1). Thus chapter 5 follows chapters 7 and 8 chronologically by 14 and 12 years respectively. Daniel would now have been in his 80s. CN

At the death of Nebuchadnezzar his only son, Evil–merodach, succeeded him, in about 561 b.c. (see 2 Kings 25:27).

²⁷  Now it came to pass in the thirty-seventh year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, that Evil-Merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, released Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison. 

• The ancient historian Berosus gives us the following order of events:
• · Nebuchadnezzar died after a 43-year reign.
• · His son, Evil-Merodach (described in 2 Kings 25:27-30 and Jeremiah 52:31-34) ruled for only two years when he was assassinated by his brother-in-law Neriglassar, because his rule was arbitrary and licentious.
• · Neriglassar (mentioned as Nergalsharezer in Jeremiah 39:3, 13) ruled for four years until he died a natural death.
• His son, Laborosoarchod, only a child and of diminished mental capacity, ruled for only nine months when he was beaten to death by a gang of conspirators.
  • The conspirators appointed Nabonidus, one of their gang, to be king. He ruled until Cyrus the Persian conquered Babylon.

 For a long time, historians and archaeologists knew that Nabonidus was said to be the last king of Babylon, not Belshazzar (who was Nabonidus‘ eldest son). The solution to this so-called discrepancy was apparent when evidence was uncovered indicating not only Belshazzar’s association with Nabonidus on the throne, but also demonstrating that during the last part of his reign Nabonidus lived in Arabia and left the conduct of the Kingdom of Babylon to his eldest son Belshazzar

 i. There was no additional mention of Belshazzar, the eldest son and co-regent withNabonidus, until the Nabonidus Cylinder was discovered in this century. It is now displayed in the British Museum.

 ii. According to Babylonian records, Belshazzar became co-regent in the third year ofNabonidus‘ reign (553 B.C.) and continued in that capacity till the fall of Babylon (539 B.C.).

 iii. It is most likely that at the time of Daniel 5,Nabonidus had gone out to fight the Medo-Persian army and had been already captured. Those armies now surrounded Babylon, and were looking for a way into the strongly defended city.

⁶  And now I have given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, My servant; and the beasts of the field I have also given him to serve him. ⁷  So all nations shall serve him and his son and his son’s son, until the time of his land comes; and then many nations and great kings shall make him serve them. . 

In other words, the Babylonian kingdom would last through the reign of a son and a grandson of Nebuchadnezzar, and then the reign of the Babylonian kingdom as the head of gold would end.

We have further evidence of Belshazzar from a prayer of Nabonidus to the moon god for his son which was discovered on a clay cylinder: “My son, the offspring of my heart, might honor his godhead and not give himself to sin.” Herodotus, the Greek historian, also mentions this and confirms it.

During the time of the events recorded in chapter 5, Nabonidus was on the field of battle while Belshazzar his son remained in Babylon. We will notice that when Belshazzar offers Daniel a position in the kingdom, it is to be the third ruler in the kingdom. Why not second his father was really the king. JVM

We mentioned earlier that the book of Daniel was chronologically compressed and not necessarily in chronological ordered. 

2. Why would the king throw such a huge party?

The celebration was designed to boost morale and break the feelings of doom, because at this very time, armies of Medo-Persia (cf. v. 30) had Babylon helplessly under siege. MSBN

Nabonidus had gone out to fight the Medo-Persian army, and had been already captured. Those armies now surrounded Babylon, and were looking for a way into the strongly defended city. Made a great feast for a thousand of his lords: Belshazzar was not afraid of the siege surrounding the city. He was confident because of Babylon’s impressive defenses and his vast supplies.

 Conservative calculations set the dimensions of the ancient city of Babylon like this:·The outer walls were 17 miles long·These walls were 22 feet thick and 90 feet high·The outer walls had guard towers another 100 feet high·The city gates were made of bronze“In the ruins of Nebuchadnezzar’s palace archeologists have uncovered a large throne room 56 feet wide and 173 feet long which probably was the scene of this banquet. Midway in the long wall opposite the entrance there was a niche in front of which the king may well have been seated. Interestingly, the wall behind the niche was covered with white plaster as described by Daniel, which would make an excellent background for such a writing.”CN·A system of inner and outer walls and moats made the city very secure. GC

The invading Medes and Persians, led by Ugbaru, commander of the Persian army, would have already taken the surrounding countryside, and everyone in the city would have known of their intentions. However, Babylon had not fallen to an invading army for 1,000 years because of its strong fortifications. According to the ancient Greek historian Herodotus, Babylon occupied about 14 square miles with a double wall system enclosing a moat between the two walls. Belshazzar’s confidence in the security of his capital is evident in his banqueting and getting drunk while his enemy was at his door. His name, which means “Bel [also known as Marduk] has protected the king,” may have increased his sense of invulnerability. Herodotus also mentioned that a festival was underway in Babylon when the city fell.“With the armies of a conqueror pressing at the capital this deputy ruler took refuge in an orgy of wine.” CN

3. What was so special about a bunch of eating and drinking utensils?

For Nebuchadnezzar to take these vessels out of the Jerusalem temple (1:1-2)

 1  In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. 2  And the Lord delivered Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, along with some of the articles from the temple of God. These he carried off to the temple of his god in Babylonia and put in the treasure house of his god.  

This was according to accepted practice in war. To remove them from the national repository for a drunken feast was sacrilegious. Nebuchadnezzar, the great king, had real military exploits to his credit, and to a degree Nabonidus, the king’s father had exploits in peaceful pursuits to his credit. The spineless prince could only perform foolish sacrilegious acts to gain notoriety, if not fame.  Belshazzar’s behavior was sensual, unrestrained, wild, and sacrilegious. It was also stupid. Gobryas’ armies were already inside the city. WBC

 This man is not only defying the enemy outside, but now under the influence of alcohol he does an audacious thing which his grandfather would never have done. When Nebuchadnezzar took Jerusalem, he was an old, pagan, heathen king, and he took the vessels from the temple in Jerusalem. But when he came to the knowledge of the living and true God, he had them stored away. To Belshazzar as a boy growing up in the palace, I guess they were a no–no—he had to leave those vessels alone. Now he drags them out and is going to serve his guests with them.

The vessels were no longer holy vessels. Holy means “that which is set aside for the use of God.” However, Belshazzar is defying God by this act. 

Belshazzar knew that his grandfather had come to the knowledge of God and had praised and honored Him (see v. 22); yet he deliberately defied and profaned God. 

Proverbs 29:1 says, “He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.” JVM

A false sense of pride and self-sufficiency seems to have dominated the dinner party. The king remembered the expensive vessels which Nebuchadnezzar, his father, had taken when he defeated and captured Jerusalem. How much more impressive the evening would be if they drank their wine from the gold and silver vessels from the temple in Jerusalem.

And so the vessels were brought in. The wine continued to flow freely, and toasts began to be offered. That these pagans were engaged in a kind of drinking bout with the sacred temple vessels was bad enough, but the ultimate blasphemy was toasting the gods of gold, silver, brass, iron, wood, and stone.

God has a limit to how far He will allow men to go in their sin. In His longsuffering and mercy, God may allow men to continue in their sin for a time. But there is a time for judgment. The king and his Babylonian dinner guests crossed the line that fateful night in the banquet hall of Babylon. Judgment day had come, and the writing on the wall announced its arrival. RD

5 Suddenly the fingers of a man’s hand emerged and began writing opposite the lampstand on the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace, and the king saw the back of the hand that did the writing. 6 Then the king’s face grew pale and his thoughts alarmed him, and his hip joints went slack and his knees began knocking together. 

4. What was this?

Like Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar received an omen from God. In Nebuchadnezzar’s case it was two

 dreams (chs. 1; 4). In Belshazzar’s it was handwriting on a wall. The night of revelry became a night of revelation. CN

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 The fingers of a mysterious hand wrote on the plaster of the palace wall opposite the lampstand, where its message could be clearly seen, though not easily understood ESVN

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God now directly intervenes. He does not speak by dream or vision because this is a man whom He doesn’t intend to reach. God would not endure this impious insult to heaven, so He writes on the wall of the banqueting hall. Is it done in anger? Very frankly, I think it is, and I believe the One who wrote this is the same One who wrote in the sand when they brought a sinful woman before Him (John 8:1–11). At that time it was a message of forgiveness; here, for Belshazzar, it is a message of doom. He has ignored the God of heaven, as Daniel will soon make clear to him. JVM

5. Exactly what physical affect did this supernatural manifestation have on Belshazzar?

Knowing the power of the Babylonian kings, Belshazzar must have seen many men stand in fear and trembling before him. Now it was his turn to tremble. In that torch-lit banquet hall, the revelry had reached its peak, doubtlessly with loud boasting and toasting, laughter and celebration. Likely, the king was the life of the party. Perhaps he was closest to the sudden emerging of the mysterious hand in the light of the nearby lamp.

One might have thought the king was having a heart attack. Barely able to stand, his face was ashen and seized with terror. The raucous laughter turned to deafening silence with all eyes on the king. The king’s eyes were fixed upon the hand as it wrote. As a sense of foreboding and panic fell on the crowd, all eyes turned to the mysterious writing on the wall. The king’s actions alarmed all who were present.

One can only imagine the scene. Already affected by too much wine, the king’s terror robbed his legs of all strength. The lower part of his body seems to have lost control. RD

In reality Belshazzar lost control of his bowels and pooped his pants. 

7 The king called aloud to bring in the conjurers, the Chaldeans and the diviners. The king spoke and said to the wise men of Babylon, “Any man who can read this inscription and explain its interpretation to me shall be clothed with purple and have a necklace of gold around his neck, and have authority as third ruler in the kingdom.”

6. Why the third ruler?

Third ruler, which may refer to being next highest to King Nabonidus and the co-regent Belshazzar.ESVN

Clothing someone in purple meant giving him royal authority (cf. Esth. 8:15)

 When Mordecai left the king’s presence, he was wearing royal garments
of blue and white, a large crown of gold and a purple robe of fine linen. And
the city of Susa held a joyous celebration.

This gold chain would have had symbolic as well as monetary value. Belshazzar evidently offered to promote anyone who could interpret the mysterious writing to third ruler of the kingdom because he himself was the second ruler under his father, Nabonidus. Thus this was the highest official reward he could offer. CN

 8 Then all the king’s wise men came in, but they could not read the inscription or make known its interpretation to the king. 9 Then King Belshazzar was greatly alarmed, his face grew even paler, and his nobles were perplexed. 

7. There seems to be a pattern here. The wise me don’t seem so wise when it comes to deciphering Godly messages.

When Belshazzar finally got his senses back he had the wise men trotted in, and he asked them to give the interpretation of the writing on the wall. Although he offered them a handsome reward, they could only stand there looking at him. They didn’t know the answer, and they didn’t know what to do. This is the third time the wise men of Babylon have failed. On the third strike, you’re out, you know—I think maybe this incident put them out of business. JVM.

10 The queen entered the banquet hall because of the words of the king and his nobles; the queen spoke and said, “O king, live forever! Do not let your thoughts alarm you or your face be pale. 11 “There is a man in your kingdom in whom is a spirit of the holy gods; and in the days of your father, illumination, insight and wisdom like the wisdom of the gods were found in him. And King Nebuchadnezzar, your father, your father the king, appointed him chief of the magicians, conjurers, Chaldeans and diviners. 12 “This was because an extraordinary spirit, knowledge and insight, interpretation of dreams, explanation of enigmas and solving of difficult problems were found in this Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar. Let Daniel now be summoned and he will declare the interpretation.” 13 Then Daniel was brought in before the king. 

8. Who was this queen and why would she know about this long retired Daniel guy?

 The queen’ may be the wife of Nabonidus, and daughter of Nebuchadnezzar, but it is equally as likely that it means the mother of the queen, the wife of Nebuchadnezzar. In many ancient countries the queen of a past monarch was held in high esteem and had considerable authority (compare 1Ki_15:13; 2Ki_11:1-3; 2Ki_24:12; Jer_13:18; Jer_29:2). She came in because someone had brought news to her of what the king and lords were saying. The fact that she could enter of her own accord into the presence of the king and his assembly demonstrates her high authority. She remembered that great man Daniel who had so helped Nebuchadnezzar. She was of an age to do so. And she was concerned for her son (grandson). So she told him about Daniel. She said that he was a man full of the spirit of the holy gods, and that he had deep understanding and wisdom, and light where there was darkness for others. Indeed because of these things Nebuchadnezzar had made him master (Rab) of the wise men. He could interpret dreams, explain words which no one else could, and resolve puzzles and doubts (knotty problems). He was just the man to help Belshazzar. Let him be called for. PC

Daniel was an old man at this time, possibly 80 years old or older. Radmacher, 

The king spoke and said to Daniel, “Are you that Daniel who is one of the exiles from Judah, whom my father the king brought from Judah? 14 “Now I have heard about you that a spirit of the gods is in you, and that illumination, insight and extraordinary wisdom have been found in you. 15 “Just now the wise men and the conjurers were brought in before me that they might read this inscription and make its interpretation known to me, but they could not declare the interpretation of the message. 16 “But I personally have heard about you, that you are able to give interpretations and solve difficult problems. Now if you are able to read the inscription and make its interpretation known to me, you will be clothed with purple and wear a necklace of gold around your neck, and you will have authority as the third ruler in the kingdom.” 

9. Is this old man really the right guy?

When Daniel arrived, the king was eager to assure himself that this was the man the queen mother had recommended with the credentials to perform the task at hand. His questions all pertain to Daniel’s ministry during the reign of his “father” Nebuchadnezzar. They will, to some degree, become the basis for Daniel’s indictment of the king’s sin in the verses which follow.

The question then will not be whether Daniel demonstrated divine wisdom, but what this king did with the knowledge of such wisdom.The failure of all the other wise men in the kingdom is reported to Daniel in the words of verse 15. Daniel was being asked to do what no other wise man in Babylon could do, all having failed before Daniel was summoned. If Daniel was able to fulfill the king’s request, there would be a reward. The king promised royal clothing, a gold necklace, and a position of power directly under him. Obviously, the king was eager to know what those words on the wall meant. RD.

17 Then Daniel answered and said before the king, “Keep your gifts for yourself or give your rewards to someone else; however, I will read the inscription to the king and make the interpretation known to him. 18 “O king, the Most High God granted sovereignty, grandeur, glory and majesty to Nebuchadnezzar your father. 19 “Because of the grandeur which He bestowed on him, all the peoples, nations and men of every language feared and trembled before him; whomever he wished he killed and whomever he wished he spared alive; and whomever he wished he elevated and whomever he wished he humbled. 20 “But when his heart was lifted up and his spirit became so proud that he behaved arrogantly, he was deposed from his royal throne and his glory was taken away from him. 21 “He was also driven away from mankind, and his heart was made like that of beasts, and his dwelling place was with the wild donkeys. He was given grass to eat like cattle, and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven until he recognized that the Most High God is ruler over the realm of mankind and that He sets over it whomever He wishes. 22 “Yet you, his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, even though you knew all this, 23 but you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven; and they have brought the vessels of His house before you, and you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines have been drinking wine from them; and you have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which do not see, hear or understand. But the God in whose hand are your life-breath and all your ways, you have not glorified.

10. Shouldn’t Daniel be afraid to speak to the king like this.

Daniel’s reply to the king was in every sense a sermon, and a powerful one at that. The prophet began by declining the offered gifts. This had the effect, whatever Daniel’s reason for doing so may have been, of helping Belshazzar realize that these gifts did not influence his interpretation of the writing.Daniel reminded Belshazzar, and undoubtedly everyone else in the room, of the lesson in humility that God had taught his forefather, Nebuchadnezzar (ch. 4). The Most High God had given his grandfather his authority and had taught him that he was under His greater sovereignty. Nebuchadnezzar’s pride had led him to behave arrogantly, as Belshazzar was doing by drinking from the sacred vessels of Yahweh, this Most High God. Even though Belshazzar knew all about this he had not humbled his heart before the Lord of heaven and glorified Him. Therefore the God who held Belshazzar’s life and his ways in His hand had sent the hand to write the inscription on the wall.“One of the most amazing spectacles in this world is how little men really profit from the judgments of God.”Daniel, Ezra, and Nehemiah used the title “the God of heaven” to describe Yahweh because this was the title of the chief Syrian god and a title that other people in the Persian Empire gave to their chief god (c. Ezra 1:2; 5:11-12;6:9-10; 7:12, 23; Neh. 1:4-5; 2:4, 20; Dan. 2:18-19, 34, 44; 5:23). This title implies God’s transcendence over all.[198]Nebuchadnezzar had heard a voice from heaven while he was outdoors (4:31), but Belshazzar saw a hand from heaven indoors. Both forms of revelation have been extremely rare throughout history, but these occasions in the Book of Daniel involved leaders of the greatest nation on earth.

24 “Then the hand was sent from Him and this inscription was written out. 25 “Now this is the inscription that was written out: ‘MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.’ 26 “This is the interpretation of the message: ‘MENE’—God has numbered your kingdom and put an end to it. 27 ” ‘TEKEL’—you have been weighed on the scales and found deficient. 28 ” ‘PERES’—your kingdom has been divided and given over to the Medes and Persians.” 29 Then Belshazzar gave orders, and they clothed Daniel with purple and put a necklace of gold around his neck, and issued a proclamation concerning him that he now had authority as the third ruler in the kingdom. 30 That same night Belshazzar the Chaldean king was slain. 31 So Darius the Mede received the kingdom at about the age of sixty-two.

11. What was the meaning of the graffiti ?

Belshazzar gave Daniel the promised reward (v. 29), but it was an empty gift because that very night Belshazzar’s rule ended, when the Medes and the Persians entered Babylon. Belshazzar was killed and replaced as king by Darius the Mede. Belshazzar’s feast is exposed as the ultimate act of folly: he was feasting on the brink of the grave and either did not know the danger or refused to acknowledge it. The identity of Darius the Mede and the exact nature of his relationship to Cyrus is not certain. It is clear that Cyrus was already king of Persia at the time when Babylon fell to the Persians (539 b.c.), and thus far no reference to “Darius the Mede” has been found in the contemporary documents that have survived. That absence, however, does not prove that the references to Darius in the book of Daniel are a historical anachronism. The book of Daniel recognizes that Cyrus reigned shortly after the fall of Babylon (1:1; 6:28), and knowledge of the history of this period, while substantial, may be incomplete. Until fairly recently there was no cuneiform evidence to prove the existence of Belshazzar either. Some commentators argue that Darius was a Babylonian throne name adopted by Cyrus himself. On this view, 6:28 should be understood as, “during the reign of Darius the Mede, that is, the reign of Cyrus the Persian.” Others suggest that Darius was actually Cyrus’s general, elsewhere named Gubaru or Ugbaru, and credited in the Nabonidus Chronicle with the capture of Babylon.ESVN

While Daniel had not given a time frame for when his kingdom would end, the inference of Daniel’s words was that time had run out for the king. Did the king even have time to sober up enough to understand what Daniel had told him? That very night the writing on the wall was fulfilled. Belshazzar was killed, and Darius the Mede came to power.

Secular history fills in much detail here showing how the Babylonian king felt secure within the walls of that great city and how Darius managed to lower the level of the River Euphrates which flowed through the city so that his army could enter the city unhindered. Daniel omits these details, perhaps because they diminish the impact of the swift and devastating fulfillment of prophecy.Daniel intends for us to grasp this one thing: the Word of God is sure. God brought about the downfall of Babylon and Belshazzar, its king, just as He said. The history books provide details of this defeat, but Daniel underscores the one thing they will all omit: the death of Belshazzar and the defeat of Babylon was the judgment of God on a city and a people who profaned the name of the God of Israel. God will not be mocked. RD.

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The historian Herodotus, writing about 80 years after these events, explained what happened on that night:

Hereupon the Persians who had been left for the purpose at Babylon by the river-side, entered the stream, which had now sunk so as to reach about midway up a man’s thigh, and thus got into the town. Had the Babylonians been apprised of what Cyrus was about, or had they noticed their danger, they would never have allowed the Persians to enter the city, but would have destroyed them utterly; for they would have made fast all the street-gates which gave upon the river, and mounting upon the walls along both sides of the stream, would so have caught the enemy as it were in a trap.

But, as it was, the Persians came upon them by surprise and took the city. Owing to vast size of the place, the inhabitants of the central parts (as the residents at Babylon declare), long after the outer portions of the town were taken, knew nothing about what had chanced, but as they were engaged in a festival, continued dancing and revelling until they learnt the capture but too certainly.

 

·         ESVN………….ESV Study Bible Notes

·         MSBN…….MacArthur NASB Study Notes                     

·         NIVSN…..NIV Study Notes. 

·         JVM ……………..J Vernon McGee,

·         ACC ……………. Adam Clarke’s Commentary

·         BN ……………..Barnes Notes

·         WBC…………….   Wycliffe Bible Commentary

·         CN …… …………..Constables Notes 

·         IC………………….Ironside Commentary

·         NET……………….Net Bible Study Notes.

·         JFB…………..Jamieson  Fausset  Brown Commentary

·         VWS……………..Vincent Word Studies

·         CMM………….Commentary on Matthew and Mark

·         BDB………….. Barclay’s Daily Study Bible (NT)

·         Darby………..John Darby’s Synopsis of the OT and NT

·         Johnson………Johnson’s Notes on the New Testament.

·         NTCMM…………..The New Testament Commentary:  Matthew and Mark.

·         EHS………………….Expositions of the Holy Scriptures

·         CPP…………………The Complete Pulpit Commentary

·         SBC…………………Sermon Bible Commentary

·         K&D……………….Keil and Deilitzsch Commentary on the OT

·         EBC…………………Expositors Bible Commentary

·         CBSC……………….Cambridge Bible for Schools and College

·         GC……………………Guzik Commentary

·         RD……………………. Robert  Deffinbaugh

       PC………………………..Pett’s Commentary

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