Devotions
Rev Gav
Wall
Daniel 5.1–28
Daniel 5.1–6, 13–14, 16–17, 23–28
King Belshazzar made a great festival for a thousand of his lords, and he was drinking wine in the presence of the thousand.
Under the influence of the wine, Belshazzar commanded that they bring in the vessels of gold and silver that his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple in Jerusalem, so that the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines might drink from them. So they brought in the vessels of gold and silver that had been taken out of the temple, the house of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines drank from them. They drank the wine and praised the gods of gold and silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone.
Immediately the fingers of a human hand appeared and began writing on the plaster of the wall of the royal palace, next to the lampstand. The king was watching the hand as it wrote. Then the king’s face turned pale, and his thoughts terrified him. His limbs gave way, and his knees knocked together.
Then Daniel was brought in before the king. The king said to Daniel, ‘So you are Daniel, one of the exiles of Judah, whom my father the king brought from Judah? I have heard of you that a spirit of the gods is in you, and that enlightenment, understanding, and excellent wisdom are found in you. But I have heard that you can give interpretations and solve problems. Now if you are able to read the writing and tell me its interpretation, you shall be clothed in purple, have a chain of gold around your neck, and rank third in the kingdom.’
Then Daniel answered in the presence of the king, ‘Let your gifts be for yourself, or give your rewards to someone else! Nevertheless, I will read the writing to the king and let him know the interpretation. You have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven! The vessels of his temple have been brought in before you, and you and your lords, your wives and your concubines have been drinking wine from them. You have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which do not see or hear or know; but the God in whose power is your very breath, and to whom belong all your ways, you have not honoured.
‘So from his presence the hand was sent and this writing was inscribed. And this is the writing that was inscribed: mene, mene, tekel, and parsin. This is the interpretation of the matter: mene, God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end; tekel, you have been weighed on the scales and found wanting; peres, your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.’
Reflect
Ever wondered where the idiom ‘the writing’s on the wall’ came from? Well, now you know!
Belshazzar was a descendent of King Nebuchadnezzar, and, although not a king himself, was ruling as prince regent for his father, Nabonidus, when the Neo-Babylonian Empire was conquered by the Persians in 539 BCE.
After a particularly spooky night on the wine, one where Belshazzar and his gang were partying hard, the regent summoned Daniel to help interpret the writing on the wall. Firstly, Daniel, being one of the Judean exiles in Babylon was connected with the holy vessels from which Belshazzar had been drinking, and secondly (after his dream work with Nebuchadnezzar) Daniel had a reputation as a divine interpreter and problem-solver.
The Aramaic phrase written on the wall was “Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin,” which means “numbered, weighed, and divided,” and Daniel interpreted this as meaning, “Belza mate, your days are numbered, your actions have been weighed, and your empire will be divided.” Yup, the writing was literally on the wall for Lord Belshazzar!
In the days of Daniel, The Temple in Jerusalem and its accoutrements represented God, therefore to dishonour and disrespect the vessels stolen from The Temple was to dishonour and disrespect God. Lord Belshazzar, through his actions, was displaying contempt for God.
Similarly, Jesus replaced The Temple as the locus for God, and after Jesus’ death and resurrection, Christians, through the infilling of the Holy Spirit became the locus of God. It is why the Apostle Paul wrote that our bodies are called ‘the temple of the Holy Spirit’.
To this end, this ancient story about Lord Belshazzar is a simple reminder not to desecrate, dishonour, or disrespect that which is precious to God, and this includes each other and all creation. It is a reminder that blasphemy is not simply using the Lord’s name in vain, but when our words or actions hurt that which God holds dear.
Pray
Holy God
I have disrespected
others and disregarded
your precious world.
Forgive me.
Help me to be a
person of integrity,
working towards justice,
equality, reconciliation.
This day and forever.
and then