Daniel 5 When A Man Steps Over The Deadline!

Daniel 5

5:1  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. 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

13  Then Daniel was brought in before the king    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. 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. 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. 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." 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.

 

Daniel 5  When a man steps over the deadline.

Can a person spiritually pass the point of no return? Can a person be so willfully rebellious that God will give up on him?

The late P.C. Dawes was once on point duty in Oxfordstreet, London, when a boat-race fan flippantly asked, "I say, Bobbie, can you tell me the way to hell? " The policeman answered immediately, " Certainly, sir. Keep straight on."

Temperman writes: So what about Belshazzar? Until recently Belshazzar was thought to be one of those errors in the Bible's understanding of history that led many to doubt its accuracy. However, after the discovery and decipherment of cuneiform tablets began in the nineteenth century, we began to learn more and more about the period in question. As a result, Belshazzar emerged from the shadows as a definite historical character. Today we have abundant textual witness to the fact that he was the son of Nabonidus. More than that, Belshazzar was coregent and actually in charge of Babylon during his father's ten-year absence from the capital city, thus explaining the reference to him as king.2

The story of Nabonidus's absence from Babylon is an intriguing one, but we will only give the mere outline of the story.3 In short, Nabonidus was a devotee of the moon god Sin, the chief god of his ancestral homeland Haran. While not a monotheist, he was interested in promoting the interests of Sin, which apparently angered the powerful Marduk priesthood. Evidence exists that his son, Belshazzar, did not share his devotion to Sin and may even have led a party that, while not forcing Nabonidus to abdicate, did result in his abandonment of the capital to take up residence at a site called Teima, located at an oasis in what is today Saudi Arabia.

That banquet, according to Karen Jobes6 and others, was intended to unite the leaders of the empire on the eve of Xerxes' attempted conquest of Greece. The broader textual and historical setting of Daniel 5 suggests that a similar political-military purpose was at work in Belshazzar's mind.

In a word, the Persians are knocking at the door of the Babylonian empire. Indeed, as the end of the story indicates, they will take the city of Babylon the very next day. Extrabiblical sources, both cuneiform and Greek (Herodotus and Xenophon), give us more information about the events leading up to the fall of Babylon on October 12, 539 B.C.7

The final victory may have been a surprise attack on Babylon. Indeed, Herodotus and Xenophon indicate that the final raid on Babylon took place during a nighttime banquet. But even if the final raid was sudden, it could not have been unanticipated. The Babylonian Chronicle indicates that just a couple of days earlier, Cyrus the Persian had defeated Nabonidus and the Babylonian army near Sippar (approximately fifty miles from Babylon). Nabonidus had fled the scene, though not to the capital.

Belshazzar must have known that an attack would come sooner or later. It was in this context that the banquet described in our chapter took place. Was it to rally and encourage the leaders? To give them a diversion in the face of the onslaught? To feast today for tomorrow we die? Perhaps a bit of all three, but we are safe to assume that tension permeated the air in the Babylonian capital at this time.

Wine flowed abundantly at the banquet. The king and his nobles drank deeply together. The text does not emphasize the drinking, however, to provide a moral lesson on the dangers of thinking under the influence of alcohol. No, the focus shifts to the holy goblets that Nebuchadnezzar had removed from the temple. These precious temple vessels are about to be profaned by being pressed into common use.

The throne room of the kings of Babylon was excavated by Koldewey in 1899.12 Of course, the message recorded here has not been found, nor are the walls intact, but enough is left to show that the walls were coated with white gypsum, which means that the writing would be clear on the wall, especially considering the text's note that the writing took place "near the lampstand."  Temperman.

There are the words. Mene Mene Tekel, Parsin

 

The queen in this  passage may have been Nebuchadnezzar's wife, Nitocris, still exerting her influence more than two decades later. Herodotus, the Greek historian, celebrates her wisdom

 

Daniel begins by refusing the gift. He will interpret the writing on the wall free of charge.

 

"YOUR DAYS ARE numbered!"  "The handwriting is on the wall!"

Can a person spiritually pass the point of no return? Can a person be so willfully rebellious that God will give up on him?

The answer to these questions is yes.

There is a deadline that, if we cross it, our doom is sealed and we have no hope.

God is a God of infinite love, but He is also a God of wrath and judgment.  It is truth that God is love; but when we take part of the truth and make part of the truth all of the truth, then that part of the truth becomes an untruth. We need to see and believe all of God's Word.

Proverbs 29:1 He who is often rebuked, and hardens his neck, Will suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.

We find four definite truths in this one verse that we will focus on in this message. 

RESISTERS OF SPIRITUAL CONVICTION (Proverbs 29:1)

God does convict us; we are often reproved.  No one goes to Hell unloved, unwarned and unconvicted.  God strives with us and knocks on our heart's door, calling to us over and over again.  God is merciful if He warns us just one time, but the Scripture says that He reproves us over and over and over again.

How does God speak and reprove us?

Through His servants. 

God speaks through songs, sermons and soul winners. The Holy Spirit of God speaks to each one of us.

The Testimony of a Transformed Father The conversion of Nebuchadnezzar provides one of the most thrilling accounts in Old Testament literature. An arrogant, unbelieving pagan had been reduced to a position of mental impotence; but when hope of his recovery had been abandoned, a miracle took place. Later, the restored monarch was able to say, "And at the end of the days, I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most High" (Dan. 4: 34). Returning to his palace, the converted king turned his home into a cathedral, and the charm of his testimony reached everybody. Except Bel.

Through sweetness.  

God loves us too much to let us go to Hell without being warned and reproved. This noble Babylonian queen was one of the lesser-known characters of the Scriptures, but she was a great soul. She is probably more keenly aware of what was going on than anyone else alive at this stage. She said, ". . . let not thy thoughts trouble thee, nor let thy countenance be changed: There is a man in thy kingdom in whom is the spirit of the holy gods, and in the days of thy father light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods, was found in him . . . ... (5: 1 0-1 1). Obviously, she had been attentive to Daniel's message when the King who replaced Nabonidus possibly her own grandson,  had remained indifferent; she had remembered when he had forgotten. Had he been more influenced by his gracious lady, he might have lived longer than he did. Her presence represented God's second fence. Alas, Belshazzar swept it from his pathway.

Romans 2:4 God will reprove us through the simple smile of a baby or through the beauty of a flower. Through Stupidity 

We can make decisions that blow up in our faces. That is what happened after Nebuchadnezzar's death.

Through His Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit of God will gently but strongly speak to our hearts, convicting us of our sin and our need to be saved. If the Holy Spirit is speaking to you today, please listen to the Spirit of God.

Through sickness. 

Psalm 119:67  Sickness is a messenger that reminds us that we will one day pass away. We will not be upon this Earth forever.

Through sorrows.

Perhaps God has spoken to you through the death of a loved one or through a financial hardship.

Through sweetness. 

Romans 2:4 God will reprove us through the simple smile of a baby or through the beauty of a flower.

God loves us too much to let us go to Hell without being warned and reproved.

REASONS FOR STUBBORN REBELLION (Proverbs 29:1)

To "harden your neck" means to say no; we might say today, "bowing up the neck."

How do you harden your neck?

By pride.

Proverbs 16:18  Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall.

First the king speaks. A close reading of the text reveals a condescending attitude by Belshazzar toward this man who played such a significant role in Nebuchadnezzar's life, a role concerning which he is fully aware (cf. v. 22). The king first identifies him as one of the captives: "Are you Daniel, one of the exiles my father the king brought from Judah?" (v. 13). Such an address intends to remind Daniel of his place before Belshazzar. Belshazzar is king; Daniel is his captive. Calvin understood the tone of the king's speech when he states that "the king does not acknowledge his negligence but interrogates Daniel without shame—and interrogates him as if he were a prisoner."18

Belshazzar then launches off a series of honorifics that cite Daniel's abilities and character, but again a close reading of the speech shows that the king himself does not endorse the reports. Twice he begins his words with "I have heard," once when speaking of Daniel's endowment with the divine spirit, insight, intelligence, and wisdom (v. 14), and again when saying that Daniel is one who can give interpretations and solve difficult problems (v. 16). Contrast this with what Nebuchadnezzar had earlier simply asserted: "I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in you, and no mystery is too difficult for you. Here is my dream; interpret it for me" (4:9). Belshazzar's flattery is more provisional and his request for interpretation, accordingly, is conditional: "If you can read this writing and tell me what it means …" (v. 16).

Daniel has not missed the slight. The abruptness and the content of the king's lengthy speech indicates the prophet's annoyance and dislike for this second-rate monarch. In earlier chapters, when he spoke to Nebuchadnezzar, he used respect and concern. Again, Calvin has caught the flavor of the speech: "I have no doubt that he meant to speak roughly to the ungodly Belshazzar, a man beyond hope; but because there had been still some uprightness left in King Nebuchadnezzar and he had good hopes in him, he had treated him more gently."

By procrastination. Proverbs 27:1

Some have the idea that they will give their hearts to the Lord one day, maybe tomorrow.  Dr. R. G. Lee once said that tomorrow is a time only found on the fool's clock.  Exodus 8:9-10 Pharaoh entreated Moses to ask God to take away the plague of the frogs. When Moses inquired of Pharaoh when he'd like Moses to intercede for him, Pharaoh responded with, "Tomorrow." Many of us are like Pharaoh: we say we want to come to Jesus, but we'll wait until tomorrow.  We choose another night with the frogs.

By pleasures of this world.

2 Timothy 3:4  Some do not want to give up their sin and the pleasures of this world to come to Jesus.  Hebrews 11:25 The Bible also speaks about the pleasures of righteousness.  Psalm 16:11 Don't think that when we come to Jesus we give up something.  Psalm 84:11 God is a good God. If it will make us happy, holy and healthy, God says, "Help yourself." 1. 1 Timothy 6:17 Every time God says, "Thou shalt not," He is simply saying, "Don't hurt yourself." When God says, "Thou shalt," He is saying, "Help yourself to happiness."

RESPONSE OF SUDDEN DESTRUCTION (Proverbs 29:1)

There comes a time when we cross God's deadline. God will bring judgment. How may the sudden destruction come?

Destruction of the mind through strong delusion.

Destruction may come, not merely to your body or soul, but also to your mind. God will destroy your ability to think correctly.  2 Thessalonians 2:11-12  "Delude" means to be deceived. The opposite of truth is not error but sin; unrighteousness.  When we are reproved and faced with the truth but we embrace our sin rather than the truth, the baggage is strong delusion. The baggage is just judgment.

Destruction of the spirit through desertion.

John 6:44 Unless the Holy Spirit of God brings us under conviction, we will never be saved. The Bible teaches that we can say "no" to the Holy Spirit so many times that God's Holy Spirit will cease to work in our hearts.  Romans 1:24-28  Genesis 6:3  It is possible to come to a place of sudden destruction in your spirit, as well as in your mind, where the Holy Spirit no longer speaks to you and God no longer draws you.

Destruction of the body through death.

Proverbs 29:1 Eternity is only a heartbeat away. 1 Samuel 20:3

REQUIEM OF A SETTLED DESTINY (Proverbs 29:1)

Once we die, we will not stand before God and ask for a second chance.

There will be no second chance.  Hebrews 9:27 Luke 16:19-31 This passage tells of a rich man who died and went to Hell.  He looked for some alleviation from the suffering he was experiencing, but there was no second chance.  God describes Hell as a place of hellfire.  Hell is a bottomless pit from which no one who goes there can escape.

 "Without remedy" means "without hope," "without a cure."

CONCLUSION

God loves you with an infinite love and has spoken to you over and over again.

God reproves you because He loves you so much and wants to save you. If you're concerned about whether you've crossed God's deadline, please know that you haven't if you'll call upon Him. Anyone who wants to be saved can be saved.  The person who crosses God's deadline has no desire to be saved. If you have a desire to be saved, it is because the Holy Spirit is working in you. Do you know Jesus personally? If not, you can pray to Him today by asking Him to come into your life.  Call upon Jesus today. Repent (turn) from your sins, and turn to Jesus. Ask Him to forgive you of your sins, and acknowledge Him as Lord of your life.