Daniel Appear Before Belshazzar: Daniel 5 v 13 - 17

Daniel 5:13 "Then was Daniel brought in before the king. [And] the king spake and said unto Daniel, [Art] thou that Daniel, which [art] of the children of the captivity of Judah, whom the king my father brought out of Jewry?"

We see that this king was not acquainted with Daniel at all. Daniel had, probably, been demoted after the reign of Nebuchadnezzar. The king wants to make sure he is the right Daniel.

The word “father” is used in the same sense of grandfather which was probably a custom in those days to the Babylonians.

Daniel 5:14 "I have even heard of thee, that the spirit of the gods [is] in thee, and [that] light and understanding and excellent wisdom is found in thee."

Even the unsaved world recognizes a person who is in good relationship with God. We can see from the verse above, that this king's information is hear-say. He has heard of Daniel. 

Notice, light is mentioned in connection with wisdom and understanding. 

Isaiah 9:2 "The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined." 

II Corinthians 4:6 "For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to [give] the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ." 

This is all saying, that Daniel is inhabited of his God. His power is God's power in him.

Daniel 5:15 "And now the wise [men], the astrologers, have been brought in before me, that they should read this writing, and make known unto me the interpretation thereof: but they could not shew the interpretation of the thing:"

The wise men, spoken of in this verse, are the worldly wise. They have no power of God working within them. They would be of no help.

Daniel 5:16 "And I have heard of thee, that thou canst make interpretations, and dissolve doubts: now if thou canst read the writing, and make known to me the interpretation thereof, thou shalt be clothed with scarlet, and [have] a chain of gold about thy neck, and shalt be the third ruler in the kingdom."

Again, this is back to Daniel. He will be greatly rewarded of the king, when he tells what this writing is. All of the things mentioned, like the scarlet robe and the gold chain, show his authority to rule.

“The third ruler”: This trio included Daniel, along with Belshazzar (553 – 539 b.c.), and Nabonidus, (ruled 555 – 539 b.c.). The prizes turned out to be non-existent in light of the city’s conquest that very night. (Verses 29-30)

Daniel 5:17 "Then Daniel answered and said before the king, Let thy gifts be to thyself, and give thy rewards to another; yet I will read the writing unto the king, and make known to him the interpretation."

Daniel is saying to him, forget the gifts. He will interpret the writing on the wall. Not only will Daniel read the writing, but he will explain the interpretation of it, as well, to the king.

Belshazzar Seeks Dream Interpretation: Daniel 5 v 7 - 12

Daniel 5:7 "The king cried aloud to bring in the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. [And] the king spake, and said to the wise [men] of Babylon, 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."

This king is unfamiliar with Daniel. He calls for all the wise men, to see if anyone can tell him what this means. 

"Scarlet", here, is speaking of purple. Purple symbolizes royalty. This robe would be showing the wearer to be of very high rank. The third ruler of the kingdom is saying he would rule over one-third of the kingdom. 

This "chain of Gold" shows the power of authority he would have. We must realize that Daniel had been in the court of the kings for nearly 70 years at this point. Daniel had been one of the first captives, and this happens near the end of the captivity which was for 70 years. 

Without God’s help, the experts again failed as we see in the next couple of verses. But God’s man Daniel would not.

Daniel 5:8 "Then came in all the king's wise [men]: but they could not read the writing, nor make known to the king the interpretation thereof."

These wise men were speaking of the sorcerers, and the astrologers, and the soothsayers. They had no real power, so certainly they could not tell of this message from God.

Daniel 5:9 "Then was king Belshazzar greatly troubled, and his countenance was changed in him, and his lords were astonied."

It was surprising to them, that a hand, just out of nowhere, could write a message like this on the wall of the King Palace. Definitely, this message was for the consumption of the King and the entire empire. Their astonishment was at the hand that wrote! 

Daniel 5:10   "[Now] the queen by reason of the words of the king and his lords came into the banquet house: [and] the queen spake and said, O king, live for ever: let not thy thoughts trouble thee, nor let thy countenance be changed:"

This is speaking of the queen mother, who remembers the interpretations of the king's dreams by Daniel. Perhaps, this king was unfamiliar with Daniel, since it was Nebuchadnezzar who had benefited from the interpretations of Daniel. She, at least, brings hope.

Daniel 5:11 "There is a man in thy kingdom, in whom [is] the spirit of the holy gods; and in the days of thy father light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods, was found in him; whom the king Nebuchadnezzar thy father, the king, [I say], thy father, made master of the magicians, astrologers, Chaldeans, [and] soothsayers;"

Again, Belshazzar, the king is called the son of Nebuchadnezzar, when, in fact, he is his grandson. 

It appears from this, Daniel had not been prominent in this king's court. This is, also, different from interpreting dreams. Perhaps, this is why he did not call for Daniel before. This queen recognizes the fact that Daniel is a man of God.

Daniel 5:12 "Forasmuch as an excellent spirit, and knowledge, and understanding, interpreting of dreams, and shewing of hard sentences, and dissolving of doubts, were found in the same Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar: now let Daniel be called, and he will shew the interpretation."

We see from this, that Daniel had done much more than interpret two dreams for the king. He was in charge of the eunuchs, after he had interpreted the first dream for Nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadnezzar had renamed him Belteshazar. 

She has no doubt that Daniel can tell them what this handwriting is. He has made a good reputation, as being a man of God.

God Seeks To Punish Belshazzar: Daniel 5 v 5 - 6

Daniel 5:5  "In the same hour came forth fingers of a man's hand, and wrote over against the candlestick upon the plaster of the wall of the king's palace: and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote." 

These fingers and hand came out of the total darkness, and came to a lighted area of the wall near the lamp to write. This is where the statement {handwriting on the wall} came from. This is the hand of God.  The finger of God had written the Ten Commandments.

This is the same finger, but with an entirely different purpose. This judgment is for the eyes of the king.

Babylonian hands had taken God’s vessels (mentioned twice) and held them in contempt to dishonor and challenge Him. Now the hand that controls all men, and which none can restrain, challenged them. God’s answer to their challenge was clear as we’ll see in verses 23-28.

Archaeologists have unearthed a room on the site of ancient Babylon, located in Iraq, that is plastered and measures 165 feet by 55 feet. It may very well have been Belshazzar’s banquet hall.

Daniel 5:6 "Then the king's countenance was changed, and his thoughts troubled him, so that the joints of his loins were loosed, and his knees smote one against another."

The fear of the king is so great, when this happens, that horror came upon his face, and his knees began to quake. He was quaking so badly that the joints of his hips come loose.

The Scripture is similar to the following from the New Testament.

Luke 21:26 "Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken."