For those who may wish to ‘study’ this chapter, the following simple resources are provided for you. Each passage has a four-Part approach to help you take in and think further about what you have read.

Passage: Daniel 5:1-9

1 King Belshazzar gave a great banquet for a thousand of his nobles and drank wine with them. 2 While Belshazzar was drinking his wine, he gave orders to bring in the gold and silver goblets that Nebuchadnezzar his father had taken from the temple in Jerusalem, so that the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines might drink from them. 3 So they brought in the gold goblets that had been taken from the temple of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines drank from them. 4 As they drank the wine, they praised the gods of gold and silver, of bronze, iron, wood and stone.

5 Suddenly the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall, near the lampstand in the royal palace. The king watched the hand as it wrote. 6 His face turned pale and he was so frightened that his legs became weak and his knees were knocking.

7 The king summoned the enchanters, astrologers and diviners. Then he said to these wise men of Babylon, “Whoever reads this writing and tells me what it means will be clothed in purple and have a gold chain placed around his neck, and he will be made the third highest ruler in the kingdom.”

8 Then all the king’s wise men came in, but they could not read the writing or tell the king what it meant. 9 So King Belshazzar became even more terrified and his face grew more pale. His nobles were baffled.

A. Find Out:

1. How was Belshazzar related to Nebuchadnezzar? v.2
2. What were the king and his nobles doing? v.1
3. Where had the golden goblets come from? v.3
4. What did they do as they drank? v.4
5. Where did the hand write? v.5
6. What was the king’s reaction? v.6
7. Who did he call in to help? v.7
8. What was their response? v.8,9

B. Think:

1. What do you think this king thought about God?
2. What sort of man does he appear to be?
3. How does he appear to differ from his father?

C. Comment:

First of all we see this new king showing off by holding such a large banquet and then by displaying and using the beautiful goblets that his father had taken from the temple in Jerusalem . Is God going to let him get away with misusing things that belong to Him? Will he be allowed to disdain the holy things of God?

Second, we see something supernatural happening. A hand appears in the air and writes mysterious words on the wall near the king.

Third, we see the king’s reaction to this wonder. He is terrified! He recognises that this is something totally beyond his understanding, so he calls for the so-called wise men, who once again are lost! Their inability to decipher the words throws the king into an even greater panic. They obviously need a man of God to help.

As we’ve seen previously, often when God moves it needs a man of God to interpret and bring understanding what is happening. The world frequently does not understand what is happening and miss the point of what God is saying. When Jesus came the religious and political world completely misunderstood!

D. Application:

1. Ask the Lord to help you become someone who understands His workings and who can recognise His hand at work in life around you.
2. Thank Him that He IS working in the world today.

Passage: Daniel 5:10-17

10 The queen, hearing the voices of the king and his nobles, came into the banquet hall. “May the king live forever!” she said. “Don’t be alarmed! Don’t look so pale! 11 There is a man in your kingdom who has the spirit of the holy gods in him. In the time of your father he was found to have insight and intelligence and wisdom like that of the gods. Your father, King Nebuchadnezzar, appointed him chief of the magicians, enchanters, astrologers and diviners. 12 He did this because Daniel, whom the king called Belteshazzar, was found to have a keen mind and knowledge and understanding, and also the ability to interpret dreams, explain riddles and solve difficult problems. Call for Daniel, and he will tell you what the writing means.”

13 So Daniel was brought before the king, and the king said to him, “Are you Daniel, one of the exiles my father the king brought from Judah? 14 I have heard that the spirit of the gods is in you and that you have insight, intelligence and outstanding wisdom. 15 The wise men and enchanters were brought before me to read this writing and tell me what it means, but they could not explain it. 16 Now I have heard that you are able to give interpretations and to solve difficult problems. If you can read this writing and tell me what it means, you will be clothed in purple and have a gold chain placed around your neck, and you will be made the third highest ruler in the kingdom.”

17 Then Daniel answered the king, “You may keep your gifts for yourself and give your rewards to someone else. Nevertheless, I will read the writing for the king and tell him what it means.

A. Find Out:

1. Who had an answer when no one else did? v.10
2. What 4 things does she first say Daniel has? v.11
3. What 6 things does she further say he has? v.12
4. What does the king promise if Daniel can help? v.16
5. How does Daniel respond to the offer? v.17

B. Think:

1. Why do you think the wise men didn’t refer to Daniel when they couldn’t help?
2. How would you describe Daniel’s reputation?
3. Does Daniel respond to the king with respect? How does he respond to him?

C. Comment:

We see first of all the arrival of one person who has got something sensible to say. The Queen was obviously not invited to the banquet with the nobles but must have been somewhere nearby. She hears the commotion caused by the sight of the hand in the air, and she dashes in to see what is happening. Immediately she realises that this is something beyond normal men and she is reminded of other strange events in previous years. The Queen clearly remembers all Daniel’s gifting that had been seen during the reign of her father-in-law and so she suggests calling him in. Daniel is apparently somewhere in the background.

Perhaps with the passing of Nebuchadnezzar, Daniel took a back seat and the wise men come to the fore with this new, foolish and godless king. When Daniel is brought, this foolish and godless king, who appears to have learnt nothing about God from his father, offers Daniel material reward if he can help. Daniel, however, is not holding this king in high regard and so he gives him no honorary titles and simply refuses his gifts in a somewhat curt manner. We’ll see why tomorrow.

D. Application:

1. When the world is desperate, are you the sort of person they turn to for help?
2. Thank and praise the Lord that He has ALL the answers for them.

Passage: Daniel 5:18-24

18 “Your Majesty, the Most High God gave your father Nebuchadnezzar sovereignty and greatness and glory and splendor. 19 Because of the high position he gave him, all the nations and peoples of every language dreaded and feared him. Those the king wanted to put to death, he put to death; those he wanted to spare, he spared; those he wanted to promote, he promoted; and those he wanted to humble, he humbled. 20 But when his heart became arrogant and hardened with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory. 21 He was driven away from people and given the mind of an animal; he lived with the wild donkeys and ate grass like the ox; and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven, until he acknowledged that the Most High God is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and sets over them anyone he wishes.

22 “But you, Belshazzar, his son, have not humbled yourself, though you knew all this. 23 Instead, you have set yourself up against the Lord of heaven. You had the goblets from his temple brought to you, and you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines drank wine from them. You praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or understand. But you did not honor the God who holds in his hand your life and all your ways. 24 Therefore he sent the hand that wrote the inscription.

A. Find Out:

1. What had God given Nebuchadnezzar? v.18
2. What power had Nebuchadnezzar had? v.19
3. What happened to him when he became arrogant? v.20
4. What had he had to acknowledge? v.21c
5. What hasn’t Belshazzar done? v.22
6. What has he done? v.23
7. Who therefore had written the message? v.23,24

B. Think:

1. What sort of king is Belshazzar?
2. What sort of man is Daniel that he dares speak to the king in this manner?
3. How do you think Daniel felt having to say all this to the king?

C. Comment:

First we note the picture that Daniel paints of the king’s father, Nebuchadnezzar. He portrays him as a great and mighty king, but one who had to be disciplined by God for his foolish arrogance. Eventually he had come to see that God is God! The inference is clear and Daniel is going to spell it out, this king needs to learn the same things!   Second, we observe Daniel’s boldness in the forthright way he speaks to this king. He pulls no punches and says quite directly that the king ought to have humbled himself before God, but instead he has opposed God.

It is clear by what Daniel says about God that it is because he has learnt the truth about the Lord’s sovereignty that he can speak out so boldly. Do WE have that assurance? He declares that the king’s father was great because GOD had made him so, and for no other reason. Daniel goes on to declare that God has intervened and has sent this hand to write on the wall. Tomorrow we will see the end of it. When God speaks there is no way of escaping it!

D. Application:

1. May we know God in such a way that we can speak the truth just as  boldly and without fear.
2. Praise and worship Him who is in control over all things.

Passage: Daniel 5:25-31

25 “This is the inscription that was written:

mene, mene, tekel, parsin

26 “Here is what these words mean:

Mene: God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to an end.

27 Tekel: You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting.

28 Peres: Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.”

29 Then at Belshazzar’s command, Daniel was clothed in purple, a gold chain was placed around his neck, and he was proclaimed the third highest ruler in the kingdom.

30 That very night Belshazzar, king of the Babylonians, was slain, 31 and Darius the Mede took over the kingdom, at the age of sixty-two.

A. Find Out:

1. Who has brought the king’s reign to an end? v.26
2. What does He say he has done with the king? v.27
3. What does He say He is doing with his kingdom? v.28
4. What was done for Daniel? v.29
5. How soon was it fulfilled? v.30
6. Who took over? v.31

B. Think:

1. How many words had God written? Look up their meaning in the notes at the bottom of the page in your Bible.
2. How would you summarise the type of message they bring?
3. Why do you think the king couldn’t understand what God was saying?

C. Comment:

First of all God uses single words: Numbered, Weighed, Divided. The king is unable or unwilling to recognise what is being said, and his wise men perhaps, are too afraid to pronounce what is obvious. It takes the fearless man of God, Daniel, to come into the situation and know straight away in his spirit that God is speaking about this godless king, and he’s not afraid to communicate the truth to this foolish man.

The king’s reaction is strange: he rewards Daniel for bringing such a message! Perhaps he didn’t believe it but wanted to show that he still was king and had the power to bless who he would bless. Foolish man, that would last only a few hours longer! Yet again we see the foolishness of sin exhibited. We are not told who or how but the king is dead before the night is out. God’s word has been fulfilled! Whenever God speaks a word of judgement, it doesn’t really matter what godless men think about it, it WILL be fulfilled. God always keeps His word and does what He says He will do.

D. Application:

1. Do we sometimes expect God to speak in strange complex ways, so we miss the simple & obvious things He says to us as we read His word?
2. Ask Him to speak to you daily through His word.