Daniel 5:6, commentary and pictures

On the night Belshazzar led a thousand lords in drunken revelry drinking from God's sacred vessels while praising idols, a bloodless hand wrote words of doom on the palace wall and his face turned pale, his thoughts alarmed him, his strength failed, his knees knocked together and the cup fell from his hand. An unseen Witness was present at the feast though the revelers did not know it, even God Himself watching every movement and listening to every sentiment while an angel traced the characters. His terror was the fear of a conscience-stricken man standing before God's judgment, realizing he must answer for wasted opportunities, rebellion and mocked sacred things, yet unable to understand the writing or see his peril. The writing exposed his true condition and pronounced God's verdict that he had been weighed and found fearfully wanting, because he had crossed the limits of forbearance and ignored the light given to Nebuchadnezzar. The same Witness still stands in modern gatherings, feasts and secret impurity where sacred things are profaned, so the handwriting now confronts reckless churches and pleasure-seeking professors, warning that as Babylon fell in an hour of revelry so will it be at the end of the world unless they humble themselves and turn to the Lord without delay.

Setting and Occasion

The verse belongs to the final period of Daniel's life, when Babylon was passing under the unwise rule of Nebuchadnezzar's successors and gradually dissolving.

It occurs on the night of Belshazzar's drunken, sacrilegious feast in his palace, when wine clouded reason and he led a thousand lords and guests in revelry. In that profaning of what was sacred they drank from the sacred golden vessels of God's temple, vessels of Jehovah chosen as sacred, while praising gods of silver and gold and the idols of Babylon in sacrilegious mirth. An unseen Watcher was present as witness of the unholy scene, a messenger from heaven watching every movement, though the revelers were unaware that God witnessed their actions and took cognizance of their sacrilege. While they made light of what God had chosen as sacred, a bloodless hand traced mysterious characters on the palace wall announcing his destiny and the doom pronounced by the servant of the Most High, and Belshazzar and his courtiers were overcome with terror as God made clear He had witnessed their sacrilege.

It stands at the height of feasting and revelry when Babylon fell, for the fall came in an hour of feasting and revelry. At that height the supernatural writing on the wall announced the doom of the king and his kingdom, recording Belshazzar's doom and the end of the Babylonian kingdom. The doings of that night brought the figures of his evil works to their full measure, so he was no longer to be protected and shielded by God and the restraining power was no longer to ward off evil. He was to fall with his kingdom to pass into other hands and his body to be slain.

The King's Terror

The verse describes a total bodily collapse under sudden terror, with the king's countenance changed and grown pale, his thoughts alarming and troubling him, his confidence and strength failing, the joints of his loins loosed, and his knees knocking together and shaking. In the very midst of sacrilegious revelry the praised cup fell from his weakened hand, and in his great fear he called for the astrologers. His fear came as God's witness confronted him after he had profaned the sacred temple vessels and joined in idolatrous praise, humbling him before a power greater than himself.

The terror seized Belshazzar and his courtiers together when a bloodless hand appeared and wrote fiery, mysterious words of doom on the palace wall, and his doom was made known. In a moment the whole scene was changed from celebration to terror, as it can be when God is witness of the unholy scene, and the king's confidence collapsed. The king became conscience-stricken and fearful before the divine presence, for the unknown writing was a portent of doom and the divine Watcher who had witnessed the profanation made His presence felt.

His fear reflected an awakened conscience and the realization that he stood before God's judgment and must answer for his stewardship, wasted opportunities, rebellion and defiance, with no excuse to offer. The writing awakened his conscience to the sacred things he had mocked and to the knowledge of God's will he had neglected. Yet he was unable to understand the handwriting and unable to see his peril. His physical trembling pictures the inward conviction that comes when God's law is fully understood, startling a person out of spiritual dullness toward seeking mercy through Jesus.

The Unseen Witness

Amid the feasting and pleasure without regard for God, an unseen Witness was present in the palace though the revelers did not know it. That Witness was God Himself, Jesus Christ the world's Redeemer and eternal God, a messenger from heaven watching every movement. While they drank wine and indulged appetite, feasted themselves, spent money freely, and gave themselves to godless mirth, an angel traced the characters over against the walls.

That Witness was not deceived but took cognizance of every action and listened to every sentiment. He heard the praise given to the vessels and to idols, and saw the desecration of what had been dedicated to Him. With exact accuracy He registered the blasphemous and God-dishonoring words and the profaning of the holy vessels, reading the very intents and purposes of the heart.

When revelry was at its height His bloodless hand wrote condemnation and doom upon the wall of the banqueting hall. The writing changed the king's countenance and filled him with troubled terror, his thoughts alarming him and his knees shaking. It showed that a witness had recorded his deeds for judgment, that the profaning of sacred things had not escaped God's notice, and that God sees and weighs every word, action, plan and hidden motive.

That hand represents the unseen witness who records people's deeds and words in heaven. Even unkind speeches and dishonorable deeds are written in the books of heaven as the divine record. There the record stands as evidence for the judgment.

Judgment and Accountability

The handwriting on the wall exposed the king's true condition and pronounced God's verdict upon him, that he had been weighed and found wanting. He was wanting, fearfully wanting, and the same verdict is laid bare in others when testimony reveals their true condition, which no pleading on their behalf can cover. The doings of that night of sacrilegious feasting in his palace brought the figures of his evil works to their full measure. Then he was no longer to be protected and shielded by God, the restraining power was no longer to ward off evil from him, and he was to fall with his kingdom to pass into other hands and his body to be slain. The judgment scene shows that human character is assessed by God, deeds are recorded in heaven, and careless persistence in sin is not overlooked.

Amid feasting and forgetfulness of God he crossed the limits of God's forbearance in presumption and defiance, and judgment followed. The setting shows that God's patience has a boundary, and when people pass it God may intervene to end their insolence and disobedience.

A heavenly witness was surely present in the palace amid the drinking of wine mingled with praise of idols, and an angel traced characters over against the walls, writing the divine record just as unkind speeches are written in the books of heaven. The bloodless hand wrote his condemnation on the palace wall to show that a witness had recorded his deeds and that they would be judged. False statements and misrepresentations are also recorded and will appear in their true character in judgment. The witness who exposed the sacrilege was God Himself, present and aware of secret wrongdoing, and the record of dishonorable deeds stands as evidence for the judgment unless the sinner repents and receives healing from God.

Babylon's coming calamity resulted from disregarding the light God had given, for the king had ignored the lesson given to Nebuchadnezzar and thereby lost the benefit he might have gained from obeying it. The God who watched that feast and made His presence and judgment known also sees and records people's carelessness and neglect, and those who fail their God-given duties face condemnation. The fall came upon rulers who forgot God and credited human achievement with the kingdom's honor and glory, and their prosperity did not protect them. God tests people, and those who refuse to humble themselves and confess their sins receive the penalty of transgression.

Links to Other Scripture

The same bloodless divine hand that traced words of doom on the walls of Belshazzar's palace tore the strong rich veil of the temple in two from top to bottom at the moment Christ died. The writing on the palace wall and the rending of the veil are thus joined as acts of the same divine hand, the one announcing judgment upon the profaning king and the other wrought at the death of Christ.

That divine presence was the unerring witness who was present at the feast, registering with exact accuracy the blasphemous words uttered and the profaning of the holy vessels, reading the very intents and purposes of the heart. He revealed to the king the bloodless hand tracing its characters on the wall, making a record of words and acts that will be met again in judgment. Just so, He was present witnessing in the judgment hall at the trial of Christ.

Warnings for Today

The same unseen Witness who stood in Belshazzar's hall is present when men and women turn powers solemnly dedicated to God to unholy worship of man and woman, centering affection and words of praise and adoration that belong alone to God upon a sinful human being, and the sudden terror that rushed through every soul, altered the king's face, loosed his shaking knees and dropped the praised cup from his weakened hand warns that such idolatrous lust is seen and will be judged. The same unseen presence of Christ stands as Witness in modern gatherings, councils and feasts where people drink, indulge appetite, feast themselves, spend freely and profane sacred things with God-dishonoring words, so He cannot be associated with them. People who claim to be Christians while their hearts are set on worldly pleasure and worldly gain are watched by God in all their scenes of mirth and revelry, and in a moment He can change the whole scene from celebration to terror and collapse their confidence as He did that night. The terror that fell on Belshazzar and his thousand lords and courtiers for making light of what God had chosen as sacred, profaning the golden vessels of Jehovah and praising the idols of Babylon in sacrilegious mirth until a bloodless hand traced mysterious characters of doom pronounced by the servant of the Most High, warns those who trace words of calumny and falsehood against Christ's servants that God is witness of their deeds. Slander profanes not soulless vessels but the characters of those Christ purchased by His blood, and the same hand keeps faithful record of every act of injustice or oppression committed against God's people.

The same ever-present God is present as a silent witness where a person thinks no eye sees, watching hidden defilement and secret impurity of soul and body. Such impurity makes the sinner a spectacle to God and to the pure angels, who veil their faces and turn away from the pollution. The same handwriting that troubled Belshazzar, which he was unable to understand and unable to see his peril in, now confronts churches and institutions that are reckless, insensible of the results of sin, heedless of warning and sleeping. To them it is still unintelligible, but soon it will be read, so a straight testimony must be borne to arouse them to humble themselves before God, change their purposes, turn to the Lord and live. As Babylon fell in an hour of feasting and reveling, so will it be in the end of the world in a period of peculiar momentous importance, when students of God's Word work away from the customs and appointments of the world's great counselors and do not say the Lord delays His coming and all things remain as they were from the beginning of creation, and only the wise virgins prepared with oil in their vessels with their lamps go forth to meet the Bridegroom.

The bloodless hand tracing writing upon the wall in the palace in the hour of mad revelry revealed Belshazzar as wanting, fearfully wanting, and the same kind of writing exposes the same condition in others through testimony, as in the case of Mrs. Harris revealed as wanting, fearfully wanting, where pleading in her behalf cannot cover the writing upon the wall that reveals the true condition. The scene of the king growing pale and terrified when the mysterious writing appeared, his body shaking until he called for the astrologers, is an example of a king confronted with a warning from God while surrounded by people praising him and his feast. Every case must pass in solemn review before the Judge of all the earth who stands before the door while Christ is coming and His judgments are abroad in the earth and Jesus still pleads as Intercessor, so thorough confession, cleansing and pardon must be found without delay before it is forever too late.