Found Wanting, Daniel 5, OT S1:E573

0:00Thanks for listening. Every time you listen, you are a blessing and encouragement to us as we leave the legacy of faith by journaling through the Bible. This is episode 573 season one of the Family Bible Journey Old Testament podcast. Today looking at Daniel chapter 5. The title of today's podcast is Found, Wanting, and Archive Verses for today, the entirety of Daniel chapter 5 where we read. King Belchazar made a great feast for a thousand of his lords and drank wine in front of the thousand. Belchazar, when he had tasted the wine, commanded the vessels of gold and silver that Nebuchadnezzar his father had taken out of the temple in Jerusalem, be brought, and that the king and his lords, his wives and his concubines might drink from them. When they brought in the golden vessels 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.

1:04They drank wine and praised the gods of gold and silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone. Immediately the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall of the king's palace, opposite the labstand, and the king saw the hand as it wrote. When the king's color changed and his thoughts alarmed him, his limbs gave way and his knees knocked together. The king called loudly to bring in the enchanters, the caldians, and the astrologers. The king declared the wise men of Babylon. Whoever reads this writing and shows me his interpretation shall be clothed with purple and have a chain of gold around his neck, and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom. Then all the king's wise men came in, but they could not read the writing or make known to the king the interpretation. When king Belchazar was greatly alarmed and his color changed and his lords were perplexed. The queen, because the words of the king and his lords came into the bank-witting hall, and the queen declared, oh, king, live forever, let not your thoughts alarm you or your color

2:06changed. There is a man in your kingdom in whom is the spirit of the holy gods. In the days of your father, light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods were found in him, and king Nebuchadnezzar, your father, your father, the king, made him chief of the magicians and chancers, caldians and astrologers, because an excellent spirit, knowledge and understanding to interpret dreams, explain riddles, and solve problems were found in this Daniel whom the king named Belchazar. Now let Daniel be called, and he will show you the interpretation. When Daniel was brought in before the king, the king answered and said to Daniel, you are that Daniel, one of the exiles of Judah whom the king my father brought from Judah. I have heard of you that the spirit of the gods is in you, and that light and understanding and excellent wisdom are found in you. Now the wise men, the chancers have been brought in before me to read this writing and make known to me its interpretation, but they could not show the interpretation of the matter,

3:08but I have heard that you can give interpretation and solve problems. Now if you can read the writing and make known to me its interpretation, you shall be clothed with purple and have a chain of gold around your neck and shall be the third ruler and the kingdom. Then Daniel answered and said before the king, let your gifts be for yourself and give your rewards to another. Nevertheless, I will read the writing to the king and make known to him the interpretation. Okay, the most high god gave Nebuchadnezzar your father, kingship and greatness and glory and majesty, and because of the greatness that he gave him, all peoples, nations and languages trembled and feared before him, whom he would he killed and whom he would he kept alive, whom he would he raised up and whom he would he humbled. But when his heart was lifted up and his spirit was hardened so that he dealt proudly, he was brought down from his kingly throne and his glory was taken from him. He was driven from among the children of mankind and his mind was made like that of a beast

4:10and his dwelling was with the wild donkeys. He was fed grass like an ox and his body was wet with the dew of heaven until he knew that the most high god rules the kingdom of mankind and sets over it whom he will. And you his son, Belchazar, have not humbled your heart though you knew all this, but you have lifted up yourself against the Lord of heaven and the vessels of his house have been brought in before you and you and your lords, your wives and your concubines have drunk wine from them and 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 hand is your breath and whose are all your ways, you have not honored. Even from his presence the hand was sent and this writing was inscribed and this is the writing that was inscribed, many, many, Teckel and Person. This is the interpretation of the matter. Many, God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end.

5:14Teckel, you have been weighed in the balances and found wanting. Paris, your kingdom is divided and given to the meads and Persians. When Belchazar gave the command and Daniel was clothed with purple, a chain of gold was put around his neck and a proclamation was made about him that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom. That very night, Belchazar, the Caldian king was killed and dearest to me had received the kingdom being about 62 years old. This is the word of the Lord. That was certainly a longer reading than we are accustomed to but I felt it was important that this Belchazar, the son of Nebuchadnezzar, is his chapter in the Bible. What do we learn about this son of Nebuchadnezzar? Well, my note in verses 2 to 4 says, the son showed no respect for the God who had humbled his father. And so he decides that he is going to party with the vessels of the Lord's house. He as wives, as concubines, as leaders, as nobles, they are just going to drink from these

6:17golden vessels as if they were no different than your favorite wine glass or beer-stine. And when this vision comes, we see that he loses his color, his limbs grow limp, his knees are knocking together, and it sounds to me like he may have had a heart attack. But regardless, everyone in the room saw the son. And his wife has more sense than him because she calls to his remembrance Daniel, Belchazar, to give an explanation for this troubling sign. And Daniel emerges, called almost maybe from the basement, the forgotten corner of the room, and he gives an interpretation that it is anything but kind to this king, this son of luxury who had been raised in the palace, who was now spending a nation's wealth and his own pleasure, who is proud of the accomplishments of a kingdom he had inherited

7:24that was the hard work of his father. This guy is a ruthless leader. He is a tyrant. And I do appreciate the words of Martin Luther on this particular chapter, where Luther said that this chapter is another example against the tyrants. The hardened and unrepentant tyrant, Belchazar, is punished mercilessly for his evil. At one blow, he loses everything, land, people, and his own life. This is surely written to terrify all similar tyrants. So anyone who has a position of leadership let them take this warning to heart that we are not called to positions of power or influence or governance to serve our own desires, but rather to serve those under us. And history corroborates this story recorded for us in the Bible, is there are a number of extra biblical accounts of the fall of Babylon. And what do we see? But that the Persians took the city without a fight, that their engineers successfully

8:31diverted enough of the Euphrates River that ran through ancient Babylon. So that they were able to walk right into the town. And that those who were supposed to be guarding the city, they were distracted by this king's party. So they came in unopposed and they killed the king and installed their own ruler, Darius, the meat who was the king of the Mito Persian, now Mito Persian Babylonian empire. This guy is the guy who is now the most powerful and important person on earth. And this Darius, he is quickly going to learn about this Daniel and I'm going to suggest in our next episode is even brought to faith through this Daniel as Daniel is going to demonstrate his worth yet again to another king, be elevated and yet another kingdom and through the chain of events that is the fall of one kingdom and rise of another, Daniel

9:35is going to emerge as a leader of multiple kingdoms, not only kingdoms, empires, nations that ruled the known world at that time. Not as a king or a monarch but as a man who is exceeding wisdom and faith are going to prove more powerful than even the greatest armies on earth at the time. In 2011 some friends of ours started a school in Kenya with 11 students by purchasing a farm field, a shed and a chicken coop and God has blessed their ministry. So now we have over 1200 students receiving a Christian education being cared for, protected and cherished with God's love in Kenya. If you would like to hear their story or see how you could support the wonderful work that is being done there in Kenya through our ministry, goodlwebsite forcaniaskids.org

10:41That's the number 4. KENYASKIDS.ORG We are blessing for today. May you honor the Lord and God and not cause your own demise as bellshas are did by trusting any other. Amen.