Rich Toward God

King Belshazzar inherited a rich and powerful kingdom from his father. He had a wonderful opportunity to do much good for God and others. Was he a good example for us to follow? What happened to him? What about us? Are we on the path the leads to joy forevermore?

“Belshazzar the king made a great feast for a 1,000 of his lords and drank wine in the presence of the 1,000. While he tasted the wine, Belshazzar gave the command to bring the gold and silver vessels which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple which had been in Jerusalem, that the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines might drink from them. Then they brought the gold vessels that had been taken from the temple of the house of God which had been in Jerusalem; and the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines drank from them. They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold and silver, bronze and iron, wood, and stone.” Daniel 5:1-4

The gold and silver vessels from which Belshazzar drank wine had been dedicated to God’s service. He and his lords, his wives and his concubines were disrespecting the God who created and sustains the universe when they drank from these vessels and praised material gods made of gold, silver, bronze, iron, wood and stone. They were behaving proudly against the One who created them and gave them life.

In Leviticus 8:11, Moses set a precedent for the generations that followed him by dedicating items used in worship to God alone. Moses also set a good example for people to follow. In Hebrews 11:24-26, the Lord said of him, “By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward.” Moses put others before himself, knowing that someday God would reward him for doing so.

“In the same hour, the fingers of a man’s hand appeared and wrote opposite the lampstand on the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace; and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote. Then the king’s countenance changed, and his thoughts troubled him, so that the joints of his hips were loosened, and his knees knocked against each other. The king cried aloud to bring in the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. The king spoke, saying to the wise men of Babylon, ‘Whoever reads this writing, and tells me its interpretation, shall be clothed with purple and have a chain of gold around his neck; and he shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.’ Now all the king’s wise men came, but they could not read the writing or make known to the king its interpretation. Then King Belshazzar was greatly troubled, his countenance was changed, and his lords were astonished.” Daniel 5:5-9

The hand of God crashed the king’s party! The hand wrote undecipherable words on the wall where a lampstand was shining brightly. Belshazzar’s face, hips and knees were visibly impacted by the sight of this. God showed up in the blink of an eye. He was caught off guard. He could not read the writing on the wall. He called in his go-to people for interpreting signs, but none could decipher it. His offer of gold, garment and great promotion had no takers. His interpreters of signs did not have a relationship with the God of the words.

King Belshazzar had a great army and a great wall around his city. But this hand entered the room where he was behaving shamefully and shook him to the core.

“The queen, because of the words of the king and his lords, came to the banquet hall. The queen spoke, saying, ‘O king, live forever! Do not let your thoughts trouble you, nor let your countenance change. There is a man in your kingdom in whom is the Spirit of the Holy God. And 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, astrologers, Chaldeans, and soothsayers. Inasmuch as an excellent spirit, knowledge, understanding, interpreting dreams, solving riddles, and explaining enigmas were found in this Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar, now let Daniel be called, and he will give the interpretation.” Daniel 5:10-12

The queen of all people is the one who calms the king down and assures him that a man exists in whom God’s Spirit dwells. She testifies of him saying, “light, understanding and wisdom were found in him.” He is chief of the king’s interpreters of signs. The queen adds that he has an “excellent spirit” for “interpreting dreams, solving riddles, and explaining enigmas. She urges King Belteshazzar to call Daniel. She confidently declares, “He will give the interpretation.”

“Then Daniel was brought in before the king. The king spoke, and said to Daniel, ‘Are you that Daniel who is one of the captives from Judah, whom my father the king brought from Judah? I have heard of you, that the Spirit of God is in you, and that light and understanding and excellent wisdom are found in you. Now the wise men, the astrologers, have been brought in before me, that they should read this writing and make known to me its interpretation, but they could not give the interpretation of the thing. And I have heard of you that you can give interpretations and explain enigmas. 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 in the kingdom.” Daniel 5:13-16

According to Daniel 2:48, Daniel was already a ruler over the province of Babylon, and chief administrator over the wise men of Babylon. He sat in the gate of the king which meant that he was privy to much of the king’s business. Why would he want to have an extra duty of being third ruler over Babylon’s kingdom? King Belshazzar was likely the kind of leader who dumped his responsibilities on his staff and spent his time partying. Daniel probably had more on this plate than any one man could handle. He likely had little time to enjoy the perks of his position.

“Then Daniel answered, and said before the king, ‘Let your gifts be for yourself, and give your rewards to another; yet I will read the writing to the king and make known to him the interpretation. O king, the Most High God gave Nebuchadnezzar your father a kingdom and majesty, glory, and honor. And because of the majesty that He gave him, all peoples, nations, and languages trembled and feared before him. Whomever he wished, he executed; whomever he wished, he kept alive; whomever he wished, he set up; and whomever he wished, he put down. But when his heart was lifted up, and his spirit was hardened in pride, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took his glory from him. Then he was driven from the sons of men, his heart was made like the beasts, and his dwelling was with the wild donkeys. They fed him with grass like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till he knew that the Most High God rules in the kingdom of men and appoints over it whomever He chooses.” Daniel 5:17-21

God had a purpose in letting King Nebuchadnezzar experience seven years of insanity. It was so that he would know that “the Most High God rules in the kingdom of men and appoints over it whomever He chooses.”

Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 4:7, “Who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?”

In John 3:26-27, when an argument developed between a certain man and the disciples of John the Baptist, and the man told John about Jesus and His disciples baptizing people, and that everyone was leaving John to follow Jesus. John’s reply was, “A person can receive only what is given them from heaven.” John read the proverbial writing on the wall. In John 3:30-31, He added, “This joy of mine is fulfilled. He must increase, but I must decrease.” Then, in John 3:36, John preached the Gospel to the man saying, “He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”

King Nebuchadnezzar erred and his son erred by failing to direct all glory to God.

In Acts 12:21-24, there’s a similar testimony of God taking down a king who received the glory that belongs to God alone... “So on a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat on his throne and gave an oration to them. And the people kept shouting, ‘The voice of a god and not of a man!’ Then immediately an angel of the Lord struck him because he did not give glory to God. And he was eaten by worms and died. But the word of God grew and multiplied.”

In Revelation 13:11-12, 15, the Lord revealed to John the Apostle two beasts. The second beast “causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast.” He “causes as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed.” What happens to this pair of rulers? Revelation 19:20 says, “These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone.”

The Lord gave a word to King Belshazzar via His servant Daniel. Daniel told him...

“But you his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, although you knew all this. And you have lifted yourself up against the Lord of heaven. They have brought the vessels of His house 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, bronze and iron, wood, and stone, which do not see, hear, or know; and the God who holds your breath in His hand and owns all your ways, you have not glorified. Then the fingers of the hand were sent from Him, and this writing was written. ‘And this is the inscription that was written: MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.’” Daniel 5:22-25

Belshazzar failed to keep the first commandment which is to love the one true God. He failed to humble himself before God as the tax collector did in Luke 18:13-14. I like what C.S. Lewis wrote about humility. He wrote, “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it’s thinking of yourself less.” The Lord did not have a good word for King Belshazzar. The hand from God wrote...

“This is the interpretation of each word. MENE: God has numbered your kingdom and finished it; TEKEL: You have been weighed in the balances and found wanting; PERES: Your kingdom has been divided and given to the Medes and Persians.” Daniel 5:26-28

The Lord’s longsuffering and patience with Belshazzar’s ran out. Proverbs 29:1 says, “He who is often rebuked, and hardens his neck, will suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.”

“Then Belshazzar gave the command, and they clothed Daniel with purple and put a chain of gold around his neck and made a proclamation concerning him that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom.” Daniel 5:29

He rewarded Daniel, but to what avail? Babylon was conquered by the Medes and Persians that very night. Belshazzar was executed. A new government took control of Babylon.

“That very night Belshazzar, king of the Chaldeans, was slain. And Darius the Mede received the kingdom, being about 62 years old.” Daniel 5:30-31

In Luke 12:14-21, Jesus told a parable about a certain rich man. The richer he became the more treasure he put aside for himself. He said to his soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years. Take your ease! Eat! Drink and be merry!” Like the prodigal son in Luke 15:11, Belshazzar “wasted his possessions with prodigal living.” “God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’” “So is he who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”

Belshazzar is a good example for us NOT to follow.

In Matthew 25:14-27, Jesus told a parable in which two men cultivated and multiplied what God had given them, and one man did not. To the two, the Lord said, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You were faithful over a few things I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your Lord.” But to other, He said, “You wicked and lazy servant.” He was cast into the outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.

May each of us look to the Lord for grace and help to do His will with what He has given to us. May we keep our eyes on the Lord and live to glorify HIS Name!