Shalom, my dear brothers and sisters. Will you please open your Bibles to Daniel chapter 5. And we are going to continue to study this fifth chapter. And in this ministry meeting, we will conclude with the second half of Daniel chapter 5. The verses that I will be reading now will be verses 17 to 31. And the topic of this message is the meaning of the writing on the wall. And so I am reading from verse 17 of Daniel chapter 5. And so we read: Then Daniel answered and said before the king, Let thy gifts be to thyself and give thy reward to another. Yet I will 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, nations, languages, trumbled and feared before him, whom he would he slew, and whom he would he kept alive, and whom he would he set up, and whom he would he put down. But when his heart was lifted up, and his mind hardened in pride, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took his glory from him, and he was driven from the sons of men, and his heart was made like the beasts. And his dwelling was with the wild asses.

They fed him with grass like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven. Till he knew that a most high God ruled in the kingdom of man, and that he appointed over it whomsoever he will. And thou, his son, O Belshazzar, hath 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 and thy wives and thy concubines have drunk wine in them, thou hast praised the gods of silver and gold, of brass, iron, wood, and stone, which see not, nor hear, nor know.

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 writing was written. And this is the writing that was written. Mene, mene, tekel hu farsin. This is the interpretation of the thing. Mene, God has numbered thy kingdom and finish it. Tekel, thou art weighed in the balances and are found wanting. Peres, thy kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians. Then commanded Belshazzar, and they closed Daniel with scarlet and put chain of gold about his neck and made a proclamation concerning him that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom.

In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaladins slain. And Darius, the Midian, took the kingdom being about threescore and two years old. Beloved brothers and sisters, these interesting verses are really a continuation of the first 16 verses of Daniel chapter 5. To remind you that in this fifth chapter which happened long after the end of chapter 4 where Nebuchadnezzar where Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon has experienced the disciplinary actions of God against him because of his pride. Years have passed by and in chapter 5 Now, we have arrived to 539 B.C. Again, to remind you, beloved brothers and sisters and dear friends, that Belshazzar was co-reigning with his father Nabonidus.

and he reigned over the city of Babylon for about 14 years. Now, when we arrived to the year of 539, the Med and Persian armies were surrounding the city of Babylon. For one reason or another, for one reason or another, Belshazzar being a king that was worshipping idols and a proud king, a king that was careless, not realizing the importance of not dishonoring the God of heaven, the God who had granted to his father the Babylonian kingdom and the rule over the whole world. This king Belshazzar actually grandfather was the one that received it, a kingdom of Babylon. Now, he's ruling over the city of Babylon in pride as we read in verse 1 he made a great feast to the thousand of his lord.

And of course, we read that he drank wine before the thousand. To remind you that Belshazzar then took the wine drank of the wine but did worse. He requested that the golden and silver vessels that his grandfather here we read the word father but it is really his grandfather Nebuchadnezzar brought from the city of Jerusalem when he carried the Jewish people to the land of Shinar to Babylon now Belshazzar made his great feast and as we have already read in chapter 5 and verse 4 he drank the wine him and his wives and his concubines and his princes and what does he do? He praised the gods of gold and silver and brass and iron and wood and stone the vessels that to be set apart for God's people use in the temple in the city of Jerusalem.

Well, at the same time beloved brothers and sisters if you remember God himself have dealt with Belshazzar the same hour we read in verse 5 of this chapter the king came forth fingers of a man's hand and wrote over against the candlesticks upon the plaster of the wall of the king's palace and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote and then if you remember we read in verses 6 on how the king was shaking this proud man Belshazzar the grandson of Nebuchadnezzar the son of Nebunidas in his pride now mocking we can see the God of heaven the God of Israel getting drunken worshipping false gods worshipping idols and then all of

a sudden everything changed seeing that hand the handwriting on the wall his countenance was changed his thoughts troubled him his joints of his loyens were loosed and his knees smote one against another he was shaking and then of course he called all the wise men of Babylon asking them to read what was written on the wall but they couldn't and then he was even more afraid until the queen verse 10 that is his mother Nitoris that she came she was the daughter of Nebuchadnezzar she was his mother she was the queen and she came and she told him that there is a man in his kingdom in whom the spirit of the holy gods is

and then she pointed to this one man by the name of Daniel and as we have already mentioned since time has passed by Daniel by this time is over 80 years of age he was taken in 605 B.C.

as a young teenager we might say we do not know the exact age but he was taken from Jerusalem from Judea at 605 B.C. and by now 539 many years have passed by and here Daniel is now called to come before King Belshazzar now King Belshazzar as we have already learned from the previous message in verses 13 to 16 Daniel appears now before the king and here we see the promise of that king about 60 years or 66 years have passed by since 605 B.C.

and if you add the teen age years together Daniel is about 80 85 years old and he is now as an older man standing before Belshazzar and now beloved brothers and sisters Belshazzar the king says I have heard of you I have heard of you after his mother told him of Daniel and he must have heard but forgotten because time has passed by Daniel was not longer for one reason or another in that position that Belshazzar's grandfather Nebuchadnezzar placed him in the early days but now we can see that he is standing before the king and the king Belshazzar making promises to Daniel he asked him to read the writing that was on the wall

he is asking him to provide for him the interpretation and also he made a promise that if you can read the writing and if you can make the interpretation known unto me you shall be clothed with scarlet and a chain of gold will be given unto you will be placed on your neck and you shall be the third ruler in the kingdom once again we are reminding ourselves that the reason that King Belshazzar using the word the third ruler in the kingdom because he was the second co-reigning co-regent over the city of Babylon with his father Nabonidus who was the son-in-law of King Nebuchadnezzar the husband of Nitochris which was the queen here in this

fifth chapter the mother of Belshazzar and so beloved brothers and sisters from here on verse 17 we learn of the response of Daniel to King Belshazzar you notice a few things here in these verses 17 to 31 number one we see Daniel's response to King Belshazzar verses 17 to 24 secondly we see Daniel read the writings of the wall and give Belshazzar the interpretation this is verse 25 to 28 and finally in verses 29 to 31 King Belshazzar elevate Daniel and then at that very same night he was killed by the Middle Persians army and so we read in verses 17 to 24 the response of Daniel you notice in verse 17 Daniel he answered

and he said before the king let thy gift be to thyself and give thy reward to another yet I will read the writing unto the king and make known to him the interpretation you notice that Daniel did not look for any gifts from that wicked king Daniel said let thy gift be to yourself and all the rewards give to another I don't need what you offer me in other words Daniel did not expect from Belshazzar to give him all the gifts and place and place him in a higher position you notice when it comes to king Nebuchadnezzar when king Nebuchadnezzar had a need concerning the interpretation of the dream of the huge tree which he

drank Daniel cared for Nebuchadnezzar because he was serving him for many years and Daniel could see that Nebuchadnezzar was appointed by God and yet he cared for Nebuchadnezzar and therefore when he was requested to give the interpretation to king Nebuchadnezzar Daniel spoke completely different when he spoke to Belshazzar you notice what we read about Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 4 and verse 19b Daniel said my lord the dream be to them that hates thee and the interpretation thereof to thine enemies apparently Daniel built a relationship with king Nebuchadnezzar but here we see his grandson who is abusing the privileges that he received to be co-reigning with his father Nebuchadnezzar and mocking the God of Israel by taking

the vessels that belong to the temple in Jerusalem drinking of them with his princes with the plurality of wives with the plurality of concubines and not only so praising the gods the idols of gold silver brass iron wood and stone and Daniel now saying to him no no no let your gifts be to yourself keep them let your reward be given to another yet I will read to you the writings of the wall and I will also make unto you the interpretation known so in verses 18 and 19 as Daniel prepared to read the writing on the wall Daniel is reminding Belshazzar of the position which God have allowed him and grant to his grandfather

initially notice what we read in verses 18 and 19 oh thou king the most high God gave notice the word gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father a kingdom and majesty and glory and honor verse 19 and for the majesty that he gave notice once again the word gave that he gave him all people nations and languages trembled and feared before him whom he would he slew and whom he would he kept alive and whom he would he set up and whom he would he put down Daniel is refreshing you might say the mind of Belshazzar about his grandfather how God had given unto him the position that he had in other words Belshazzar you have to realize

you have to remember that the very fact that your grandfather and then your father and now you are in that position is because God is the one that has given to you this position and Nebuchadnezzar was a monarch he was to remind you beloved brothers and sisters as we learn together of the dream that he dreamed in the second chapter that represent the times of the Gentiles the period of time that began when the kingdom was taken away from the people of Israel because of disobedience to the Lord and handed over to the Gentile world that will begin with Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and will end at the end of the tribulation period at the

second coming of the Messiah Yeshua Jesus who will come at the end of the tribulation days during which time Israel the nation will receive back the kingdom that was theirs which they lost because of disobedience and to remind you beloved brothers and sisters we read in the scripture in chapter 1 of Daniel in verses 1 and 2 in the third year of the reign of Joachim king of Judah came Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon unto Jerusalem and besieged it and the Lord gave notice that Joachim king of Judah into his hand with parts of the vessels of the house of God which he carried into the land of Shinar to the house of his God and

he brought the vessels the treasure house of his God so in other words God gave Nebuchadnezzar the people of Israel God gave Nebuchadnezzar the king of Israel God gave Ioachim the king of Judah and God gave the vessels for Nebuchadnezzar to take also we did read in chapter 2 of Daniel and there beloved brothers and sisters we also read how God have set Nebuchadnezzar in such a high position in chapter 2 verse 37 and 38 Daniel said to king Nebuchadnezzar thou o king art king of king for the God of heaven hath given notice the word given thee a kingdom power and strength and glory and wheresoever the children of men dwell the beast of

the field and the fowls of the heaven he has given into thine hand and has made thee ruler over them all thou art this head of gold and that was in the plan and the program of God so Daniel refresh the mind the memory of king Belshazzar the grandson of king Nebuchad Netzer with an historical fact that God gave all these things to king Nebuchad Netzer his grandfather notice the things that we read here that whom he would he slew can you imagine and whom he would he kept alive and whom he would he would set up and whom he would he would put down in other words God have allowed king Nebuchad Netzer to

have power beyond measure if you want you slay someone if you want you kill someone if you want you set up someone and if you want you set him down it's almost like he made him a god small g here over the kingdom of Babylon amazing and when you think about it beloved brothers and sisters and dear friend how amazing that God placed you and me in various positions here in this world and how easy it is for us to receive the gifts of God but not to realize that it came from him and to remember this the rest of our life you see the book of James chapter 1 and verse 17 James Jacob

said to the early Hebrew believers to whom he ministered he said every good gift and every perfect gift is from above and cometh down from the father of lights with whom is no variableness neither shadow of turning so every good and every perfect gift is from above and it came down from the father of light God gave gifts to men God gave you and I everything that we have it's a gift of God Nebuchadnezzar received the highest position here during the times of the Gentiles and so now that he reminded Belshazzar of the gifts which his grandfather Nebuchadnezzar had received from God then in verse 20 of our chapter Nebuchadnezzar is presented by Daniel as

the one that grew in pride and that led him to fall you notice that two words are mentioned here in verse 20a but when his heart was lifted up and his mind hardened in pride notice this beloved brothers and sisters the heart and the mind the heart is where the affection comes out the mind is where the thoughts and the information is entered into ourself and here Nebuchadnezzar's heart was lifted up and his mind was hardened in pride this is fascinating you see remember beloved brothers and sisters we are often time are reminded of the need to be broken before the Lord and not to have this pride to remind you beloved brothers and sisters

how actually sin came into the world do you remember how in Isaiah chapter 14 we read of Lucifer who was the one that is called the son of the morning Isaiah 14 we read about Lucifer who really became the enemy of God Satan how are thy falling from heaven oh Lucifer this is verse 12 of Isaiah 14 son of the morning how art thou cut down to the ground which did awaken the nation for thou have said in thine heart I will ascend into heaven I will exalt my throne above the stars of God I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation in the sides of the north I will ascend above the

heights of the clouds I will be like the most high my dear beloved brothers and sisters and dear friends this is what Lucifer the angel that was created to serve the living God that what he had in his heart I want to have God's authority I want to rule over all angels I want to be the king over the coming kingdom I want to receive all glory I want to be the possessor of the heavens and earth that's what he said in these five eyes in Isaiah 14 verses 12 13 and 14 and yet immediately we read in verse 15 yet thou had been brought down to hell to the sides of the pit in

other words God have brought him down pride comes before a fall beloved brothers and sisters and so because king Nebuchadnezzar's pride Daniel is reminding his grandson Belshazzar of that pride that his grandfather was elevating himself his heart was lifted up and his mind was hardened in pride then Daniel say the next thing about Belshazzar's grandfather Nebuchadnezzar he points to consequence of Nebuchadnezzar's pride and so notice that verse 20b and verse 21 we have the seven fall judgments of God upon Nebuchadnezzar which Daniel is reminding Belshazzar of what happened to his grandfather and so we read in verse 20b he was deposed from his kingly throne they took his glory from him he was driven from

the sons of men his heart was made like the beasts his dwelling was with the wild esses they fed him with grass like oxen his body was wet with the dew of heaven so you notice beloved brothers and sisters these seven fold judgments that fell upon king Nebuchadnezzar which Daniel is now reminding Belshazzar who is the grandson of Nebuchadnezzar with the judgment of God that fell upon Nebuchadnezzar his grandfather because his heart was lifted up and his mind was hardened in pride beloved brothers and sisters what a principle for us all to learn as we study hear what Daniel is sharing with king Belshazzar this is fascinating you see in the book of Proverbs king

Solomon who also fell because of his own pride we read that he mentioned more than once concerning pride in Proverbs chapter 11 verse 2 when pride cometh then cometh shame when pride cometh then cometh shame beloved brothers and sisters chapter 16 there we read again in verse 5 everyone that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord again I'm repeating this verse 5a of Proverbs chapter 16 everyone that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord we continue in the very same chapter in verse 18 of Proverbs 16 pride goeth before destruction and in haughty spirit before a fall what a principle what a principle that we need the grace of

God all of us to learn but as we mentioned before it seems to be that pride dies last we are struggling even as believers in the Lord Yeshua Jesus the Messiah during these days that's why we often find ourselves in a sad condition spiritually because pride dies last even among God's people and we constantly need to judge pride pride in our lives notice what we read in chapter 29 of the book of Proverbs there notice we read in verse 23 a man's pride shall bring him low a man's pride shall bring him low but on the other hand honor shall uphold the humble in spirit that's why Peter and James said humble yourself under the

mighty hand of God and he will exalt you in due time but that's what happened to Nebuchad Netzer and that is that which will just now we will learn what will happen to Belshazzar his grandson and so Daniel in chapter 5 verses 18 and 19 reminding Belshazzar of the gift that God gave his grandfather how he elevated him and gave him the position of being the head of gold in the image which would be the first monarch in the Babylonian kingdom during the times of the Gentiles then he reminded Belshazzar of the pride of his grandfather that his heart was lifted up and his mind was hardened and then thirdly he told him Daniel now

points to the consequence of Nebuchadnezzar pride seven fall judgment of God as we have read them in verse 20b and verse 21 he was deposed his glory was taken from him he was driven from the sons of men his heart was made like a beast he became a madman his dwelling was with the wild asses he was fed grass like an ox and then his body was wet with the dew of heaven this seven fall judgment that we see here in this chapter let me just remind you if you will go please to chapter 4 of Daniel verse 33 and 34 there we read at the same hour when the thing fulfilled upon the book

of netzel and he was driven from men and he did eat grass as oxen and his body was wet and the dew of heaven until notice that his hairs were grown like eagles feathers and his nails like birds claws in other words beloved brothers and sisters according to chapter 4 when the book netzel was judged by God according to the verses that we have read he was judged by God and he really became like a madman to remind you that he had entered into a condition called bonotropia or bonotropia which is really psychologically disorder in which the one who suffered believed that he was like a cow or an ox and that's why we read

that he lived outdoor and he was judged by the God who placed him initially in such a higher position and now Daniel is turning to Belshazzar and you notice what we read beloved brothers and sisters in verses 22 23 and 24 Daniel is now turning to king Belshazzar and he charging him because of his own sinful behavior in this 539 BC during this day when he made this great feast to a thousand of his lord and you notice what Daniel is saying to Belshazzar notice he said to him in verse 22 first of all and thou his son actually you are his grandson you who knew all this you his grandson you his son his

grandson O Belshazzar you have not humbled thine heart though you knew it all this we read in verse 22 in other word see Daniel is now over eight years old he is an older man now he is telling to this king Belshazzar he is telling to him you see all Belshazzar you knew all this but you didn't humble yourself you see my dear friend what a lesson we learn here that knowing the necessity to be humble before God and neglecting to be so willfully will bring destruction upon all who do so sooner or later God will not be mocked whatsoever man's soul that shall he also reap God is declaring this in his word that

man who will mock God he will ultimately come to his end God is holy and he will judge sin especially when pride rises God resists the proud but give grace unto the humble notice what the apostle Paul said to the Galatians they were believers they were children of God he is not only speaking to unbelievers he is speaking now to believers in our Lord Jesus the Messiah with part of the body of Christ who belonged to a local assembly or assemblies at large Galatian assembly he said to them in verse 7 be not deceived Galatians 6 7 God is not mocked for whatsoever a man soweth that shall he also reap he is quoting what

the Proverbs tells us in Proverbs chapter 22 God is not going to be mocked whatsoever man is sowing he will also reap well Belshazzar Daniel chapter 5 he said to him you his son verse 22 you did not humble your heart though you knew all this in fact he continued and he said in verse 23 notice in verse 23 he said not only that you did not humble your heart but even worse in verse 23 you have lifted up yourself against the Lord of heaven and even more in verse 23 the next portion they this is does his servant they have brought the vessels of his house this is God's house the Lord's house Jehovah's

house in Jerusalem they have brought the vessels of his house before thee and thou and thy lords and thy wives and thy concubines have drank wine in them in other word you defiled the vessels that was brought from the city of Jerusalem which were once used by the people of Israel to the service of the Lord the service in the temple beloved brothers and sisters can you imagine the behavior of this man of this mere man though a king in a great position in a high position he was really mocking God you see these vessels initially when they among the people of Israel during the time when Israel was called to serve the Lord even

on the way from Egypt to the land when the tabernacle was built we read in Exodus chapter 40 and verse 9 thou shall take an an anointing oil and anoint the tabernacle this is this is the tabernacle this is the place where God dwelled and in all that is therein and shall hallow it and all the vessels thereof and it shall be holy even the vessels had to be sanctified and hallowed set apart for the service in the tabernacle in Ohel Amu'ed in Hebrew that they were to be set apart the vessels were roved and each shall be holy in other words these vessels were allowed by God to be taken to Babylon but they

were to be set apart for the service of the true and living God but what Belshazzar did you knew that you did not humble your heart you lifted yourself against the Lord of heaven you ask that his house before you and not only this you and your lords and your wives and your concubines have drank wine in them and notice what Daniel is saying to Belshazzar in verse 33 glory at the end you have praised the gods of silver and gold and brass iron wood and stone which see not no hear no no in other word you use these vessels getting drunk having all these parties there before the thousand of your lords getting drunk

there and praising the gods the idols that made out of silver gold brass iron wood and stone which do not see neither do they hear nor they know anything notice he continue at the end of verse 23 Daniel is emphasizing the evil activity of Belshazzar specifically during this day when it was coming the end of the Babylonian kingdom and the God in whose hand thy breath is and whose are all thy ways has thou not glorified beloved brothers and sisters that's what the charge that Daniel placed before king Belshazzar to remind us beloved brothers and sisters that in the book of Genesis in chapter 2 and verse 7 when God created men we read in

verse 7 and the Lord God formed men of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living soul in other words Belshazzar was merely a man whose breath is in the hand of the Lord and whose ways are all in the hand of the Lord his life is in the hand of God you remember the apostle Paul said today people at Mars Hill at Athens he pointed to the fact that the living God the unknown God in Acts 17 verse 28 he said to them to those again who worship idols for in him we live and move and have our beings in other words our

life is in the hands of the Lord every breast that you and I are taking beloved brothers and sisters is given to us from God and yet Belshazzar mocked God mocked the vessels of God and mocked all that which was of the Lord and then honored or praised idols in pride and arrogance doesn't it remind us of what the apostle Paul said in Romans chapter 1 verse 18 for the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who hold the truth in unrighteousness because that which may be known of God is manifest in them they have conscience for God that shows unto them for the invisible things of him

from the creation of the world are clearly seen this is creation man has conscience inside and creation outside being understood by the things which are made even his eternal power and God so they are without excuse you are without excuse because that when they knew God they glorified him not as God neither were thankful Paul continued to say in Romans 1 21 but became vain in their imagination and their foolish heart was darkened professing themselves to be wise they became fools and changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like the corruptible men into birds and four-footed beasts and creeping things and then we read in verse 24 wherefore God also gave

them up in other words beloved brothers and sisters it is unbelievable what we learn from the word unimaginable of the coming judgment that will fall upon Belshazzar as Daniel prepared him for that judgment so we continue to read now after he Daniel presented before Belshazzar all this that he was proud and arrogant and he didn't remind himself of what happened to his grandfather then he told him this is why the part of the hand was sent from him this is from the God of Israel from the God of heaven and this writing was written so Belshazzar because of your pride because what you have done because you didn't remember what happened to your grandfather the

God of Daniel Hananiah and Mishael the God of Israel humbled him for these seven years and you did not remember that yet you continue in your own way then this writing came upon the wall so beloved brothers and sisters after mentioning this to Belshazzar in verse 22 23 and 24 then in verse 25 to 28 Daniel now read the writing on the wall and then he gives Belshazzar the interpretation thereof and notice that what we read in verse 25 the writing that was written on the wall we read and this is the writing that was written that of course take us back to verse 5 where we read in the same hour came forth fingers

of a man's hand and wrote over against the candlesticks upon the plaster of the wall of the king's palace and the king saw the part of the hand that wrought so now Daniel is telling Belshazzar what was written on the wall and he said in verse 25 he says this is the writing that was written mene mene tekel parsin these names are really measures of weights in other words they are measured the word mene mene tekel parsin are really giving to us measures of weight and you notice how interesting because in verse 25 we have the whole line mene mene the word mene repeated twice tekel is the second word and parsin and ufarsin is

the third word and it is interesting because the word mene is the Aramaic word of the Hebrew word mene which simply means portion manah in Hebrew is a portion and secondly tekel it's the Aramaic for the Hebrew word shekel the money that is used in biblical days the shekel and then thirdly peres or ufarsin the word u is in another word is a connecting word and parsin is the word leforce in the Aramaic and the Hebrew meaning is to cut or to divide and the word sin i n at the end is like i am in Hebrew is a plurality in other words mene mene tekel u parsin daniel gives Belshazzar the interpretation of these

three words the first word is repeated twice this is the interpretation of the thing in verse 26 mene god has numbered thy kingdom and finish it another word of saying it god have counted the length of your kingdom and the word and finished it means and appointed a time in which it will come to an end and then verse 27 tekel thou art weighed in the balance and are found wanting in other words the measure of a shekel the way of the value of a shekel made out of silver or so the weight of it you Belshazzar you were weighed in the balance of god's requirement from you Belshazzar but you were found lacking you

didn't measure to that which god expected from you and then thirdly notice he used the word peres in verse 28 which is really the singular of what we read in verse 25 it's a plural and he continued and he says and peres is thy kingdom is divided the word lifros in Hebrew or paras in Aramaic as well as in Hebrew means to cut to divide and your kingdom is now divided and given unto the Medes and Persian and the word paras is also the name of the nation the Persian paras and so really beloved brothers and sisters these words which present before us measures of weight is telling us what will happen to Belshazzar in

other words if we will read it this way mene mene so the word mene repeated twice mene counted and the second mene appointed God has counted the number of the years of the kingdom of Babylon and appointed an end to it and indeed the end to it came right here and now this 539 BC when Belshazzar was having this drunken feast and the Medo-Persians surrounding the city of Babylon ready to take the city over and then the second word tekel come from the Hebrew word shekel you are weighed as a shekel in a way and you were found insufficient that's what he's saying to him in verse 27 thou have been weighed in the balances

this is the weight scale and you have been found wanting you have been found insufficient didn't rise to God's expectation from you and then thirdly the final word the word Paris is your kingdom will be sliced or divided and will be given to Persia to Paras to the Medes and the Persian so the words the writing on the wall was a judgment that God pronounced upon Belshazzar and this judgment that was pronounced upon King Belshazzar will bring an end to the kingdom of Babylon let me just remind you that according to the prophet Jeremiah in chapter 27 we have read this before but it is good to see it because Jeremiah prophesied by the word

of the Lord to the people of Israel concerning that which will be allowed by God to be given to the Babylonian kingdom we read in Jeremiah chapter 27 and verse 5 these words God says to Jeremiah and to the nation of Israel I have made the earth the men and the beasts that are upon the ground by my great power and by my outstretched arm and notice that he continue in verse 5 and have given it unto whom it seemed meet to me and then he continued to speak through Jeremiah in verse 6 and now have I given all these lands unto the hand of Nebuchad Netzer the king of Babylon and he continued to

say he is my servant so in other word Nebuchad Netzer became a servant for God as God wanted to use him then he said after that and the beast of the field have I given him also to serve him in other word Nebuchad Netzer became a supreme ruler in fact as we have already read in the second chapter that God had given to Nebuchad Netzer the kingdom as Daniel of already a universal dominion Daniel mentioned concerning Nebuchad Netzer Nebuchad Netzer was that head of gold that began the times of the Gentiles but then notice what we read in verse 7 that Nebuchad Nebuchad Netzer Babylonian kingdom will come to an end he said in verse

7 all nations shall serve him this is Nebuchad Netzer and his son this is Nebuchad Netzer the son-in-law of Nebuchad Netzer who is the father of this king Belshazzar of Daniel 5 and his son-son until the very time of his land come in other words Nebuchad Netzer Nabonidaz Belshazzar will be the only three people that are mentioned here in Jeremiah chapter 27 now mind you there were others who reigned before Nabonidaz but they are not mentioned because the three individuals here are mentioned in Jeremiah chapter 27 Nebuchad Netzer and Belshazzar and then we read until the very time of his land come and then many nations and great kings shall serve themselves of him and

here we have the end of Belshazzar which is mentioned to us here in Daniel chapter 5 and so let us please go back to our chapter and you notice beloved brothers and sisters verse 25 26 27 and 28 here is the writing on the wall and their interpretation of the writing of the wall in in really in Hebrew it is Mane Mane Shekel who parsim with M at the end plural then the interpretation verse 26 27 and 28 where we do read beloved brothers and sisters concerning the interpretation Daniel is giving the interpretation God has counted the number of the years of your kingdom and appointed its end Tekel you are weighed as a shekel

is weighed and you were found insufficient and Peres your kingdom will be sliced and divided and be given unto the Mid and the Persian unto the Peres Paras and so beloved brothers and sisters here is the interpretation that was given to Belshazzar by Daniel the prophet and so beloved brothers and sisters as we are drawn towards the end and again remember that here God is clearly through Daniel showing to Belshazzar that this is the end of your kingdom because the end will come very shortly now notice that Belshazzar now seeking to fulfill what he promised to Daniel now that he received the reading of the writing on the wall he received the interpretation from him

verse 29 he is now placing Daniel as third in the kingdom it will not be for too long it may be for a couple of hours because because we read then commanded Belshazzar and they closed Daniel with scarlet and they put chain of gold about his neck and made a proclamation concerning him that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom this is in the kingdom of Babylon but beloved brothers and sisters at the very same night notice verse 30 in that night the very same night where he made this great feast to a thousand of his lord and got drunken and abused the vessels of God's house and mocked God and worshipped and

praised the gods that were made out of gold silver brass iron wood and stone at the very same night where the writing on the wall came here is the judgment of God notice what we read in verse 30 in that night was slain the very same night 539 BC sometime in the fall September October King Belshazzar the grandson of Nebuchadnezzar was slain by the Medes and the Persians and history said that the Medes and Persian armies were surrounding the city of Babylon by the Euphrates river that was surrounding the city in order to protect the city so what did the armies of the Medes and the Persians do they dug a canal underneath and they

diverted the waters that surrounded the walls of the city of Babylon then what happened the water that was surrounding the city was lowered underneath the huge walls of Babylon and as the waters that came from the Euphrates river was lowered then the armies of the Medo-Persians have entered into the city of Babylon they captured the city and ultimately slain king Belshazzar and that was the end of the Babylonian kingdom at 539 BCE and so we read at the end beloved brothers and sisters verse 31 and the Midian took the kingdom being about three score and two years old about 62 years of age and from there on beloved brothers and sisters the Middle Persian empire

began its ruling and to remind you one more time as we have started together in chapter two concerning the image which Nebuchadnezzar dreamed and then Daniel at that time gave Belshazzar the dream and its interpretation and I'm just going to read one more time Daniel 2 verses 31 32 to verse 35 thou king sawest and behold a great image this great image whose brightness was excellent stood before thee and a form thereof was terrible this image head was of fine gold his breast and his arm of silver his belly and his thigh of or or brass his legs of iron his feet part of iron and part of clay verse 34 thou sawest till that

a stone was cut out without hand which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay and break them to pieces then was the iron and the clay and the brass and the silver and the gold broken to pieces together and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floor and the wind carried them away that no place was found for them and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth my beloved brothers and sisters this is the dream that Nebuchadnezzar dreamed concerning the times of the Gentiles but you notice that the head of gold the Babylonian kingdom came to its end and here at

539 BC came the end of the Babylonian kingdom when King Belshazzar the grandson of Nebuchadnezzar was slain according to chapter 5 and verse 30 in that night was Belshazzar the king of the Caledin slain so beloved brothers and sisters we come to the conclusion of Daniel chapter 5 and it is fascinating to see that God is fulfilling his plan and his program come to fruition God has numbered thy kingdom and finish it thou art weighed in the balance and are found wanting thy kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and the Persians may may God bless his word and may God encourage us to continue to follow after him and after the person of

our Lord Jesus the Messiah who loved us and gave himself for us until the next time beloved brothers and sisters we say Shalom Shalom history