The Handwriting on the Wall at Belshazzar's FeastBible World
5:25Daniel 5:25
And this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.
The writing appeared on the palace wall in the midst of Belshazzar's sacrilegious feast, when he and his lords drank from the vessels consecrated to God and gave themselves to idolatry, revelry and blasphemy. The repeated MENE declares that God had numbered the kingdom and brought it to an end, TEKEL declares that the king had been weighed and found wanting, and UPHARSIN declares that the kingdom would be divided and given to the Medes and Persians. That verdict came because of pride and independence of God, forgetting God and crediting human achievement for Babylon's glory, and refusing to humble himself and heed warning despite knowing how God had humbled Nebuchadnezzar. God was present at the feast as an unseen witness, and the same hand still writes everywhere and keeps faithful record in heaven of every act, word and motive, by which men are weighed in the balances of infinite justice and truth. Babylon's sudden fall in an hour of feasting pictures what will happen at the end of the world when many are unprepared, yet one whose heart is awakened to the meaning of God's law is convicted and roused to plead for mercy in Jesus, and God does not send the penitent away comfortless.
Setting and Interpretation
The inscription appeared on the palace wall in the midst of Belshazzar's sacrilegious feast with his thousand lords, when they drank wine from the vessels consecrated to Jehovah, praised the gods of gold and silver, and gave themselves to music, dancing, feasting, sparkling wine and blasphemy. Wine had beclouded reason and led them to forget God and profane the God of heaven, even while God was present as an unseen witness making a history to testify against the revelers to the close of time. The revelers could not understand the words, but their consciences recognized them as a denunciation.
The words were traced by a bloodless hand in few fiery characters, mysterious and unintelligible to king and courtiers. Their appearance showed that God's power was present, and the sight filled the king, his princes and his courtiers with condemnation and terror as doom was pronounced by the servant of the Most High. That writing reveals a person's true condition as fearfully wanting, though men judge by appearance.
The repeated MENE means God has numbered the kingdom and brought it to an end, TEKEL means Belshazzar has been weighed in the balances and found wanting, and UPHARSIN or PERES means the kingdom will be divided and given to the Medes and Persians. Daniel explained the meaning as God's testimony against the king's sacrilege and idolatry, declaring the king weighed and found wanting and his kingdom divided and given to the Medes and Persians. The writing means Belshazzar was weighed in the balances of God's sanctuary in motives, character, life and soul and pronounced wanting, and his record will stand so when the books of heaven are opened and the great Judge searches to see whose names are written there.
The verdict came because of pride and defiance and failure to learn from Nebuchadnezzar's experience, for Belshazzar refused to humble himself and heed warnings despite knowing how God had humbled Nebuchadnezzar. Its rulers regarded themselves as independent of God and credited the kingdom's glory to human achievement, forgetting God. By disregarding and rejecting the light God had given Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar forfeited the benefits obedience could have brought, for God gives lessons to instruct and reform His people and neglecting them brings judgment. The performance in that palace that night brought the figures of his evil works to their full measure.
The sentence was fulfilled in Babylon's sudden fall, which came in an hour and on a night of feasting and revelry. When the measure was full Belshazzar was no longer to be protected and shielded by God and the restraining power no longer warded off evil; he was to fall, his kingdom was to pass into other hands, and his body was to be slain. Babylon was shattered and sentenced to be swept with destruction, until left desolate in its ruined state with fallen towers and barren plain. The writing on the wall thus announced judgment on the king and his kingdom whose fall was soon to come, and the divine hand wrote Belshazzar's doom and the end of the Babylonian kingdom.
Unseen Witness Weighs
Belshazzar feasted with his princes, drinking wine from the vessels consecrated to Jehovah while praising the gods of gold and silver, and in the midst of music, dancing, feasting, sparkling wine and blasphemy, with wine beclouding reason and making him forget God and profane the God of heaven, God was present as an unseen witness and holy Watcher making a history to testify against the revelers to the close of time. A messenger from heaven watched his every movement that night in the palace, seeing the revelry and the profaning of sacred things, so that every deception practiced, every false word uttered, and every unholy action had a watcher from whom no one can hide. At the height of the feast a bloodless hand wrote words of doom on the banquet-hall wall, announcing judgment against the king and showing that God takes account of human actions and that judgment comes upon those who dishonor Him.
The same hand that traced the mysterious characters still writes everywhere, declaring that God is present in every place and keeping faithful record in the books of heaven of every word, transaction, plan, action and hidden motive. Every denial of self and every grasping, covetous act is registered there, and every act of injustice or oppression committed against God's people is faithfully recorded. A holy Watcher notes every word and action of life, observes conduct openly, and weighs every motive that prompts action.
To be weighed is to be weighed in the balances of God's sanctuary and of infinite justice and truth in motives, character, life and soul, with all words, plans and secret motives brought into the balances. That record will stand when the books of heaven are opened and the great Judge searches to see whose names are written there. The writing is God's judgment revealing a person's true condition as wanting, fearfully wanting, though men judge by appearance.
That record warns in particular those who trace words of calumny and falsehood against the servants of Christ, for God is witness of their deeds and their slanderous touch profanes not soulless vessels but characters purchased by Christ's blood. False statements and misrepresentation are recorded, and deeds will appear in their true character in the judgment. The record of Belshazzar's condemnation shows that neglect and unfaithfulness are also recorded, and those who fail to meet their God-given obligations face the same judgment of being weighed and found wanting. People are accountable for how they use or misuse the opportunities and abilities God gives them, for selfishness and covetousness are recorded just as surely as self-denial. Those who rely on their own ideas and wisdom without reckoning with God will reap the consequences of their folly.
Belshazzar's example shows that people may persist in presumption and defiance until they cross the limits of God's forbearance, and that blasphemy and disobedience can exhaust the patience of the longsuffering God, after which God intervenes to end human insolence. The performance in that palace that night brought the figures of his evil works to their full measure, and when the measure was full he was no longer to be protected and shielded by God. Then the restraining power no longer warded off evil, he was to fall, his kingdom was to pass into other hands, and his body was to be slain.
Warning and Gospel Link
The writing on the palace wall stands as a warning that all who join in sacrilegious revelry are likewise weighed in God's balances and found wanting. People who disregard sin and turn away from divine warnings may, like Belshazzar, remain blind to their danger until it is too late to repent, understanding their peril only when the handwriting is made plain. This danger rests upon churches and institutions as well, which need a direct message to awaken those who are spiritually asleep.
Babylon fell suddenly in an hour of feasting and reveling, and that fall pictures what will take place at the end of the world in this period of peculiar and momentous importance. Many will then take the position that the Lord delays His coming and that all things remain as they were from the beginning of creation, while only the wise virgins with oil in their vessels with their lamps will be prepared to go forth to meet the Bridegroom. The same God who was present as a silent witness at Belshazzar's godless feast and traced the characters with His own hand is present now where people think no eye sees, beholding hidden pollution of soul and body. His judgments are abroad in the earth, Christ is coming, the Judge of all the earth stands before the door, and every case must pass in solemn review before Him. Those who harden conscience by continuing in sin will at last hear their course fixed forever.
As Belshazzar was confronted with the Almighty's handwriting, so a person whose heart is awakened by the Spirit to the full meaning of God's law understands the warning and is convicted. God's word rouses such a sinner from spiritual dullness to plead for mercy in Jesus. That plea God hears, and He does not send the penitent away comfortless.
The hand that wrote words of doom on Belshazzar's wall and ended the Babylonian kingdom is the same hand that acted when Christ died. It judged the Jewish nation unchurched and rent the temple veil from top to bottom. That rending was done by a bloodless, divine hand, opening access to God for everyone, Jew and Gentile, without priest or ruler.
The writing appeared on the palace wall in the midst of Belshazzar's sacrilegious feast, when he and his lords drank from the vessels consecrated to God and gave themselves to idolatry, revelry and blasphemy. The repeated MENE declares that God had numbered the kingdom and brought it to an end, TEKEL declares that the king had been weighed and found wanting, and UPHARSIN declares that the kingdom would be divided and given to the Medes and Persians. That verdict came because of pride and independence of God, forgetting God and crediting human achievement for Babylon's glory, and refusing to humble himself and heed warning despite knowing how God had humbled Nebuchadnezzar. God was present at the feast as an unseen witness, and the same hand still writes everywhere and keeps faithful record in heaven of every act, word and motive, by which men are weighed in the balances of infinite justice and truth. Babylon's sudden fall in an hour of feasting pictures what will happen at the end of the world when many are unprepared, yet one whose heart is awakened to the meaning of God's law is convicted and roused to plead for mercy in Jesus, and God does not send the penitent away comfortless.
Setting and Interpretation
The inscription appeared on the palace wall in the midst of Belshazzar's sacrilegious feast with his thousand lords, when they drank wine from the vessels consecrated to Jehovah, praised the gods of gold and silver, and gave themselves to music, dancing, feasting, sparkling wine and blasphemy. Wine had beclouded reason and led them to forget God and profane the God of heaven, even while God was present as an unseen witness making a history to testify against the revelers to the close of time. The revelers could not understand the words, but their consciences recognized them as a denunciation.
The words were traced by a bloodless hand in few fiery characters, mysterious and unintelligible to king and courtiers. Their appearance showed that God's power was present, and the sight filled the king, his princes and his courtiers with condemnation and terror as doom was pronounced by the servant of the Most High. That writing reveals a person's true condition as fearfully wanting, though men judge by appearance.
The repeated MENE means God has numbered the kingdom and brought it to an end, TEKEL means Belshazzar has been weighed in the balances and found wanting, and UPHARSIN or PERES means the kingdom will be divided and given to the Medes and Persians. Daniel explained the meaning as God's testimony against the king's sacrilege and idolatry, declaring the king weighed and found wanting and his kingdom divided and given to the Medes and Persians. The writing means Belshazzar was weighed in the balances of God's sanctuary in motives, character, life and soul and pronounced wanting, and his record will stand so when the books of heaven are opened and the great Judge searches to see whose names are written there.
The verdict came because of pride and defiance and failure to learn from Nebuchadnezzar's experience, for Belshazzar refused to humble himself and heed warnings despite knowing how God had humbled Nebuchadnezzar. Its rulers regarded themselves as independent of God and credited the kingdom's glory to human achievement, forgetting God. By disregarding and rejecting the light God had given Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar forfeited the benefits obedience could have brought, for God gives lessons to instruct and reform His people and neglecting them brings judgment. The performance in that palace that night brought the figures of his evil works to their full measure.
The sentence was fulfilled in Babylon's sudden fall, which came in an hour and on a night of feasting and revelry. When the measure was full Belshazzar was no longer to be protected and shielded by God and the restraining power no longer warded off evil; he was to fall, his kingdom was to pass into other hands, and his body was to be slain. Babylon was shattered and sentenced to be swept with destruction, until left desolate in its ruined state with fallen towers and barren plain. The writing on the wall thus announced judgment on the king and his kingdom whose fall was soon to come, and the divine hand wrote Belshazzar's doom and the end of the Babylonian kingdom.
Unseen Witness Weighs
Belshazzar feasted with his princes, drinking wine from the vessels consecrated to Jehovah while praising the gods of gold and silver, and in the midst of music, dancing, feasting, sparkling wine and blasphemy, with wine beclouding reason and making him forget God and profane the God of heaven, God was present as an unseen witness and holy Watcher making a history to testify against the revelers to the close of time. A messenger from heaven watched his every movement that night in the palace, seeing the revelry and the profaning of sacred things, so that every deception practiced, every false word uttered, and every unholy action had a watcher from whom no one can hide. At the height of the feast a bloodless hand wrote words of doom on the banquet-hall wall, announcing judgment against the king and showing that God takes account of human actions and that judgment comes upon those who dishonor Him.
The same hand that traced the mysterious characters still writes everywhere, declaring that God is present in every place and keeping faithful record in the books of heaven of every word, transaction, plan, action and hidden motive. Every denial of self and every grasping, covetous act is registered there, and every act of injustice or oppression committed against God's people is faithfully recorded. A holy Watcher notes every word and action of life, observes conduct openly, and weighs every motive that prompts action.
To be weighed is to be weighed in the balances of God's sanctuary and of infinite justice and truth in motives, character, life and soul, with all words, plans and secret motives brought into the balances. That record will stand when the books of heaven are opened and the great Judge searches to see whose names are written there. The writing is God's judgment revealing a person's true condition as wanting, fearfully wanting, though men judge by appearance.
That record warns in particular those who trace words of calumny and falsehood against the servants of Christ, for God is witness of their deeds and their slanderous touch profanes not soulless vessels but characters purchased by Christ's blood. False statements and misrepresentation are recorded, and deeds will appear in their true character in the judgment. The record of Belshazzar's condemnation shows that neglect and unfaithfulness are also recorded, and those who fail to meet their God-given obligations face the same judgment of being weighed and found wanting. People are accountable for how they use or misuse the opportunities and abilities God gives them, for selfishness and covetousness are recorded just as surely as self-denial. Those who rely on their own ideas and wisdom without reckoning with God will reap the consequences of their folly.
Belshazzar's example shows that people may persist in presumption and defiance until they cross the limits of God's forbearance, and that blasphemy and disobedience can exhaust the patience of the longsuffering God, after which God intervenes to end human insolence. The performance in that palace that night brought the figures of his evil works to their full measure, and when the measure was full he was no longer to be protected and shielded by God. Then the restraining power no longer warded off evil, he was to fall, his kingdom was to pass into other hands, and his body was to be slain.
Warning and Gospel Link
The writing on the palace wall stands as a warning that all who join in sacrilegious revelry are likewise weighed in God's balances and found wanting. People who disregard sin and turn away from divine warnings may, like Belshazzar, remain blind to their danger until it is too late to repent, understanding their peril only when the handwriting is made plain. This danger rests upon churches and institutions as well, which need a direct message to awaken those who are spiritually asleep.
Babylon fell suddenly in an hour of feasting and reveling, and that fall pictures what will take place at the end of the world in this period of peculiar and momentous importance. Many will then take the position that the Lord delays His coming and that all things remain as they were from the beginning of creation, while only the wise virgins with oil in their vessels with their lamps will be prepared to go forth to meet the Bridegroom. The same God who was present as a silent witness at Belshazzar's godless feast and traced the characters with His own hand is present now where people think no eye sees, beholding hidden pollution of soul and body. His judgments are abroad in the earth, Christ is coming, the Judge of all the earth stands before the door, and every case must pass in solemn review before Him. Those who harden conscience by continuing in sin will at last hear their course fixed forever.
As Belshazzar was confronted with the Almighty's handwriting, so a person whose heart is awakened by the Spirit to the full meaning of God's law understands the warning and is convicted. God's word rouses such a sinner from spiritual dullness to plead for mercy in Jesus. That plea God hears, and He does not send the penitent away comfortless.
The hand that wrote words of doom on Belshazzar's wall and ended the Babylonian kingdom is the same hand that acted when Christ died. It judged the Jewish nation unchurched and rent the temple veil from top to bottom. That rending was done by a bloodless, divine hand, opening access to God for everyone, Jew and Gentile, without priest or ruler.