June 30 Daily Devotional

Daniel 5

After the death of Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar was king of Babylon. He made a great feast to a thousand of his lords, and drank wine before them. While they were drinking, the king commanded to bring the golden and silver vessels which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple at Jerusalem, that they might drink wine from them. And while they were drinking, they praised the gods of gold, of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone. In the same hour there came forth the fingers of a man’s hand and wrote over against the candlestick very strange words upon the plaster of the wall. The king became terrified and trembled; he cried aloud to bring in the wise men and soothsayers. But they could not read the writing, nor interpret it. Then the king’s countenance changed and his lords were perplexed. At this time the queen came in and said, “There is a man in thy kingdom, in whom is the spirit of the holy gods (namely Daniel). Now let Daniel be called, and he will show the interpretation.”

Then Daniel was brought in before the king. He promised Daniel rich rewards, if he would read the strange writing, and give the interpretation thereof. Daniel replied, “Let the gifts be to thyself, and give thy rewards to another; yet will I read the writing unto the king, and make known to him the interpretation.

O thou king, the most high God gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father a kingdom, and majesty, and glory, and honor; and for the majesty that he gave him, all people … feared him. But when his heart was lifted up, and his mind hardened in pride, he was deposed from his kingly throne … and he was driven from the sons of men; and his heart was made like the beasts … They fed him with grass like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven; until he knew that the most high God ruleth in the kingdom of men, and that he appointeth over it whomsoever he will. And thou … O Belshazzar, hast not humbled thine heart, though thou knewest all this, but hast lifted up thyself against the Lord of heaven; and they have brought the vessels of his house before thee, and thou, and thy lords, thy wives, and thy concubines, have drunk wine in them; and thou hast praised the gods of silver, and gold, of brass, iron, wood, and stone … and the God in whose hand thy breath is, and whose are all thy ways, hast thou not glorified. Then was the part of the hand sent from him … and this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN. This is the interpretation: MENE; God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it: TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting: PERES; thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians.”