Full Answer
Daniel 5:5-12 – What was the Meaning of the Handwriting on the Wall? The fingers of a “man’s hand” appear and write on the wall while the drunken party is continuing. This writing appears on A wall “near the lampstands” so the king can clearly see the hand writing the words.
- Reading Acts Daniel 5:5-12 – What was the Meaning of the Handwriting on the Wall? The fingers of a “man’s hand” appear and write on the wall while the drunken party is continuing. This writing appears on A wall “near the lampstands” so the king can clearly see the hand writing the words.
Belshazzar died the same night that the handwriting mysteriously appeared on the wall at his party. Of all the wise men and magicians in Babylon, only Daniel was able to read and interpret the handwriting because God gave him the meaning. In simple language, the message on the wall said: Your kingship is over.
What God did - The Writing is on the Wall! Daniel 5:5-9 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. His face turned pale and he was so frightened that his knees knocked together and his legs gave way .
Daniel reads the words "MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN" and interprets them for the king: "MENE, God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end; TEKEL, you have been weighed ... and found wanting;" and "UPHARSIN", your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.
According to the accounts in the Bible and Xenophon, Belshazzar held a last great feast at which he saw a hand writing on a wall the following words in Aramaic: “mene, mene, tekel, upharsin.” The prophet Daniel, interpreting the handwriting on the wall as God's judgment on the king, foretold the imminent destruction of ...
Nebuchad... IINabonidusBelshazzar/Fathers
Belshazzar's fate is not known, since none of the sources record it. It is often assumed that Belshazzar was killed by the Persians at Babylon when the city fell, on 12 October. He may have alternatively been killed already at the battle of Opis, captured and executed, or exiled together with his father.
(US also the handwriting is on the wall) said to mean that there are clear signs that something will fail or no longer exist. Failing and doing badly.
Definition of the writing/handwriting is on the wall —used to say that it is clear that something bad will probably happen soon I haven't lost my job yet, but the writing is on the wall: my company just laid off 50 more people today.
Nitocris of BabylonKaššayaBa'u‑asītuNebuchadnezzar II/Daughters
The Dead Sea scrolls found at Qumran in 1948 confirm that Nabonidus, not Nebuchadnezzar, was the mad king. A fragmentary document titled “The Prayer of Nabonidus” tells of a king NBNY (Hebrew uses no vowels) who, while at Tema, was diseased by the God of Israel.
mene, mene, tekel, upharsin in British English (ˈmiːniː ˈmiːniː ˈtɛkəl juːˈfɑːsɪn ) Old Testament. the words that appeared on the wall during Belshazzar's Feast (Daniel 5:25), interpreted by Daniel to mean that God had doomed the kingdom of Belshazzar.
This man 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.
[ bel-shaz-er ] SHOW IPA. / bɛlˈʃæz ər / PHONETIC RESPELLING. noun. a prince of Babylon, son of Nabonidus and co-regent with him, referred to in the Bible as a king of Babylon and son of Nebuchadnezzar.
IraqWhere is Babylon? Babylon, one of the most famous cities from any ancient civilisation, was the capital of Babylonia in southern Mesopotamia. Today, that's about 60 miles south of Baghdad, Iraq.
This writing appears on A wall “near the lampstands” so the king can clearly see the hand writing the words. This writing is an inscription and is a parody of Assyrian or Babylonian official writing. Just as the King of Babylon inscribes words on statues or walls, so too the Lord is inscribing his own imperial edict for the king to read.
Daniel is summoned and questioned by the King. The king asks him if he is Daniel, indicating his ignorance of the man. Belshazzar also promises him the same reward as offered to the wise-men, a promotion to the third highest in the kingdom, essentially riches and power.
Daniel interpreted the handwriting on the wall: Mene, mene, meaning that God has numbered Belshazzar’s days, the noun mene is taken as a verb, “to count, number.”. Tekel, God has weighed Belshazzar in the balance and found him wanting, he does not measure up to God’s standard. The root of the word shekel means “to weigh.”.
The root of the word shekel means “to weigh.”. (U)Parsin, literally split up or divided, meaning that the kingdom will be split between the Medes and the Persians. There is a double meaning here, the Aramaic root prs means to divide, and sounds like the name of the Persian Empire. Belshazzar does not live out the night.
The Queen (possible Belshazzar’s mother) tells him “Don’t look so pale,” basically “show some backbone!”. Belshazzar can look no worse, his mother publicly rebuking his cowardice!
Belshazzar’s reaction is absolute fear, he turns pale, and his legs give way. Literally this is the “bands / knots of his legs were loosed”, he comes very near to fainting.
According to Xenophon the city of Babylon was captured without much resistance while the inhabitants were celebrating a festival (Herodotus 1.191 and Xenophon ( Cyropedia VII v. 15-31).
To say these are the last days, takes on a whole new meaning as we watch the lies, corruption, deception, and demonic evil come to the conclusion they are finally reigning. Their greatest opportunity for world domination has arrived.
The handwriting on the wall had significant meaning that neither the king or the people surrounding him understood. All the attempts to understand the writing on the wall by the king’s wise men failed, so they called for Daniel. Daniel came and interpreted what the words meant. Why does the writing on the wall have such great importance?
Belshazzar was the the son of Nebuchadnezzar and the King of Babylon. King Nebuchadnezzar had defeated Jerusalem and taken the gold and silver vessels from the temple there. Now, Belshazzar, his son, holds a feast in which he and his guests will drink from those vessels.
Belshazzar is an example of what happens when we defy God. Those who deny and defy God have one thing in mind but God has another. We do not have to learn the hard way and we can choose not to stand against God.
Just like Belshazzar, many are defying God and pushing their agenda. Therefore, we are watching systematic loss of jobs, free speech, freedom of religion, etc. Not to mention those who are standing on God’s word consistently being persecuted.
It was a sad time. Well, Daniel chapter 5 is also about the departure of glory. Not from Israel, but from the greatest worldwide kingdom at that time - the Babylonian empire. And it is interesting to note some of the factors that led to the fall of Babylon because it has some very valid lessons for our age as well.
It's roots is Daniel 5 - that passage before us. It signifies some impending doom. Someone might say 'I haven't lost my job yet but the writing is on the wall'. 'Well that same is spoken of nations. Something inevitable is about to happen to Babylon. Something that no one can stop for it comes from the hand of God.
In anticipation of a blockade by Medo-Persia, the Babylonians supplied the city with enough food to maintain its population for more than twenty years. Ancient historians indicate that, in light of these great preparations, the people of Babylon laughed at the seige of their city by Medo-Persia.'. [4] ↩ Here is a clue.
As they drank the wine, they praised the gods of gold and silver, of bronze, iron, wood and stone. The chapter starts then, with a new king.
The chapter starts then, with a new king. King Belshazzar was believed to have been Nebuchadnezzar's grandson [1] and unfortunately, as we see above, the humility and faith that King Nebuchadnezzar had come into had not carried on with Belshazzar. The saying that God only has sons, not grandsons, is true indeed.
If you do remember however, then you will also recall how Eli's daughter in law gave birth to a wee baby and called her new born son 'Ichabod'. Nice name, although not overly popular today. It means 'no glory', for she said 'The glory has departed from Israel.'. It was a sad time.
Tell the class to turn to Daniel chapter five in their Bibles. Let them take turns reading the story of the handwriting on the king’s wall. Here are some suggested discussion questions to encourage them to dig deeper for some nuggets of truth:
Write the following words on the whiteboard with the dry erase marker: MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN. (Teacher’s note: These are the words from the KJV version. Other Bibles may use the word parsin or peres for the last word. Use the appropriate wording from the Bible of your choice.)