This month I'd like to look at a man named Daniel. Daniel's life was one of ups and downs. However, he always remained faithful. We begin in Daniel chapter 5 with the record of Belshazzar.
Daniel 5:1 Belshazzar the king made a great feast to a thousand of his lords, and drank wine before the thousand.
Now in order to find out who this Belshazzar is, we need to do some research.
Daniel 1:1 In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah came Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon unto Jerusalem, and besieged it.
Now according to 2 Kings 24 and following you have the last three kings of Judah; Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin and Zedekiah.
When Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, took Jerusalem he left the things standing under these three kings. He wanted to collect taxes and add Judah to his kingdoms. He deported some of the people (2 or 3 times) and imported others to live in Judah.
In Jerusalem they had a Judean king. However, these kings kept rebelling against Nebuchadnezzar until he finally came a besieged the city. He captured Zedekiah, killed his sons before his eyes, and then blinded him and led him in chains to Babylon. He then burned the temple, the city, and the wall. Here in chapter one of the book of Daniel we have the start of the rule of Babylon over Judah and several dispersions of the Jews. It is here that Daniel was taken from his home at a young age and deported to Babylon to be taught in the courts of Babylon.
So when we get to Daniel chapter five, whose kingdom are we looking at? It is the Babylonian Kingdom and regime.
So who is Belshazzar? He's the king of Babylon right? More importantly he's the last king before the kingdom is overthrown. However, if you check the annals of the kings of Babylon, you will see that there is no king named Belshazzar in their history. The last king of Babylon before the kingdom was taken by the Medes and Persians was Nabonidus.
However, verse one of Daniel 5 said Belshazzar the king. This is one of the reasons bible critics discount the book of Daniel and teach in schools of higher learning that the book of Daniel is full of mistakes. Nabonidus, in fact, was the king at the time of the Babylonian overthrow. However; if you study history, you will find that his oldest son was Belshazzar.
Belshazzar was co-ruler with his father. Nabonidus was a religious man and spent a large portion of his time serving, building, and rebuilding temples to the pagan gods of Babylon. He placed his son Belshazzar in charge of Babylon while he went around the country serving his gods. This is further verified in verse 7 where...
Daniel 5:7b... Whosoever shall read this writing, and shew me the interpretation thereof, shall be clothed with scarlet, and have a chain of gold about his neck, and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.
It was not within the power of Belshazzar to promote the one who showed the interpretation to second ruler in the kingdom because he already was second. The next position available would be third. Evil Merodach, Neriglissar, and Laborasoarchod were also kings in the Babylonia dynasty. However, Nabonidus was the last king to have been one of the people, raised to the throne by an insurrection before they were overthrown by the Medes and Persians.
Historians place Evil-Merodach as Nebuchadnezzar's son who reigned for 1or 2 years. He was dethroned by his brother in law Neriglissar, and after him there was Laborasoarchod who reigned for approx. 9 months.
Daniel 5:1 Belshazzar the king made a great feast to a thousand of his lords, and drank wine before the thousand.Daniel 5:2 Belshazzar, whiles he tasted the wine, commanded to bring the golden and silver vessels which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem; that the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, might drink therein.
Again bible critics cite this verse (that his father Nebuchadnezzar). Nebuchadnezzar was not his father. The word father here is used as a term of respect ascribing the greatness, honor, and respect shown for the life and accomplishments of the man. It is his ancestor.
2 Chronicles 17:3 And the LORD was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the first ways of his father David, and sought not unto Baalim; Jehoshaphat's father was Asa.2 Chronicles 16:13 - 17:1 13And Asa slept with his fathers, and died in the one and fortieth year of his reign. 14And they buried him in his own sepulchres, which he had made for himself in the city of David, and laid him in the bed which was filled with sweet odours and divers kinds of spices prepared by the apothecaries' art: and they made a very great burning for him.2 Chronicles 17:1 And Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his stead, and strengthened himself against Israel.Romans 4:1 What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found?
Again, the usage of the word father here is figurative. You will note by the time you get to verse 2 that the women are introduced. Two classes of women are present, the ones who had the privilege of a wife and the other of a concubine.
Daniel 5:2-4 2Belshazzar, whiles he tasted the wine, commanded to bring the golden and silver vessels which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem; that the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, might drink therein. 3Then they brought the golden vessels that were taken out of the temple of the house of God which was at Jerusalem; and the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, drank in them. 4They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.
It was a sensual affair with the presence of women among the men that was unusual in the ancient East as they drank wine before the thousand.
Esther 1:10-12 10On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was merry with wine, he commanded Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, and Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas, the seven chamberlains that served in the presence of Ahasuerus the king, 11To bring Vashti the queen before the king with the crown royal, to shew the people and the princes her beauty: for she was fair to look on. 12But the queen Vashti refused to come at the king's commandment by his chamberlains: therefore was the king very wroth, and his anger burned in him.
This was not only a breach in protocol, but showed great disrespect for the kings wives and the kingdom. Even at public feasts, Oriental kings (at least in Persian times) were screened from public sight.
Nebuchadnezzar, a great king, had real military exploits to his credit, and to a degree Nabonidus, Belshazzar father, had exploits in peaceful pursuits to his credit.
This yuppie Belshazzar had to throw a feast to get some attention from his court. This would be his one last great accomplishment that he would be remembered for. While he indulged in his sinful revelry, Gubaru, the general of Cyrus, was already at the gates of Babylon.
Daniel 5:5 In the same hour came forth fingers of a man's hand, and wrote over against the candlestick upon the plaister of the wall of the king's palace: and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote.
You need to understand that on the walls, inscribed on the very bricks and stones of a king's hall, the history of the kingdom would be written. Like our political history written by the bias incumbent party. In other words you would read things like Nebuchadnezzar, the great king, conquered all the world or Nabonidus the king ruler of all Babylon builder of the temple of the great goddess so and so. No negative history or defeat would ever be inscribed on these walls. All who would come into the hall would be awestruck by the great accomplishments of the king and the kingdom. Now note where God decides to place his message. On the very walls where the great accomplishments and proud boastings of the kingdom are.
To be continued… ÿ
Note: All scripture is from the King James Version unless otherwise noted. NIV indicates The New International Version, NKJV indicates the New King James Version, ASV means the American Standard Version, BBE means the Bible in Basic English, DBY means the Darby translation, NAU means the American Standard Version, 1995 Edition, and NAB means the New American Bible translation. For more information, go to the Works Cited page.