Now the wise men and enchanters were brought before me to read this inscription and interpret it for me, but they could not give its interpretation. Now the wise men and enchantersIn the context of ancient Babylon, "wise men and enchanters" refers to a class of individuals who were considered knowledgeable in various forms of wisdom, including astrology, divination, and the interpretation of dreams and omens. The Hebrew term for "wise men" is "חכמים" (chakhamim), which denotes those who are skilled in wisdom and learning. Historically, these individuals were often advisors to the king, drawing from a blend of scientific knowledge and mystical practices. The "enchanters," or "אשפים" (ashaphim), were those who practiced incantations and sought to manipulate spiritual forces. This highlights the reliance of ancient rulers on human wisdom and occult practices, contrasting with the divine wisdom that Daniel, a servant of the Most High God, would later demonstrate. were brought before me
The phrase "were brought before me" indicates a formal summoning to the presence of King Belshazzar. In the royal courts of Babylon, such a summons was a significant event, often involving a display of authority and the expectation of service. This reflects the king's desperation and urgency in seeking answers to the mysterious writing on the wall. The historical context here is crucial, as it underscores the limitations of human wisdom when confronted with divine mysteries. The king's reliance on these men reveals his lack of understanding of the true source of wisdom, which is God Himself. to read this inscription
The task "to read this inscription" was not merely about deciphering the text but understanding its meaning and implications. The inscription, written by the hand of God, was a divine message that required spiritual insight beyond human capability. The Hebrew word for "inscription" is "כתבא" (ketav), which can mean writing or script. This moment is pivotal, as it sets the stage for the revelation of God's judgment upon Babylon. The inability of the wise men to read the inscription signifies the futility of relying on human wisdom to comprehend divine revelations. and to make its interpretation known to me
The king's demand "to make its interpretation known to me" reflects his desire for understanding and control over the situation. The word "interpretation" in Hebrew is "פשר" (pesher), which means to explain or solve a mystery. This highlights the king's dependence on his advisors to provide clarity and guidance. However, the failure of the wise men to interpret the writing emphasizes the theme of divine sovereignty and the insufficiency of human wisdom. It sets the stage for Daniel, who, endowed with God's Spirit, will reveal the true meaning of the inscription. but they could not give its interpretation
The phrase "but they could not give its interpretation" underscores the limitations of the Babylonian wise men. Despite their reputation and skills, they were powerless to understand the divine message. This failure serves as a powerful reminder of the supremacy of God's wisdom over human knowledge. It also foreshadows the introduction of Daniel, whose ability to interpret the writing will demonstrate the power of God working through His faithful servant. This moment is a testament to the truth that true wisdom and understanding come from God alone, and not from human efforts or occult practices. Persons / Places / Events 1. BelshazzarThe king of Babylon during this event, who is hosting a great feast and witnesses the mysterious writing on the wall. 2. Wise Men and EnchantersThe group of Babylonian magicians, astrologers, and diviners summoned by Belshazzar to interpret the writing. 3. DanielAlthough not mentioned directly in this verse, Daniel is the prophet who will later interpret the writing for Belshazzar. 4. BabylonThe setting of this event, a powerful empire known for its wealth and idolatry. 5. The Writing on the WallA mysterious inscription that appears during Belshazzar's feast, signifying divine judgment. Teaching Points The Limitations of Human WisdomThe inability of the wise men to interpret the writing highlights the limitations of human wisdom and understanding when it comes to divine matters. God's Sovereignty in RevelationGod chooses whom He will to reveal His mysteries, as seen in His choice of Daniel over the Babylonian wise men. The Importance of a Godly ReputationDaniel's reputation as a man of God precedes him, reminding us of the importance of living a life that reflects God's wisdom and power. Divine Judgment and AccountabilityThe writing on the wall serves as a reminder of God's judgment and the accountability of leaders and nations to His standards. Seeking Godly CounselIn times of confusion and uncertainty, seeking counsel from those who are grounded in God's wisdom is crucial. Bible Study Questions 1. How does the failure of the wise men and enchanters to interpret the writing reflect on the limitations of human wisdom? 2. In what ways does Daniel's ability to interpret the writing demonstrate God's sovereignty and power? 3. How can we cultivate a reputation like Daniel's, where others recognize God's wisdom in us? 4. What are some modern-day "writings on the wall" that might serve as warnings or calls to accountability in our lives or society? 5. How can we ensure that we are seeking and valuing godly counsel in our decision-making processes? Connections to Other Scriptures Daniel 2Earlier in Daniel's life, he interprets Nebuchadnezzar's dream when the wise men of Babylon could not, showcasing God's wisdom through Daniel. 1 Corinthians 1:20-25Paul discusses the futility of worldly wisdom compared to God's wisdom, paralleling the inability of Babylon's wise men to interpret the divine message. Isaiah 44:25God frustrates the signs of false prophets and makes fools of diviners, similar to the failure of Babylon's wise men. People Babylonians, Belshazzar, Belteshazzar, Daniel, Darius, Micah, Nebuchadnezzar, PersiansPlaces Babylon, JerusalemTopics Able, Arts, Astrologers, Cause, Caused, Clear, Conjurers, Declare, Enchanters, Explain, Inscription, Interpretation, Magicians, Making, Matter, Message, Purpose, Reading, Secret, Sense, Shew, Thereof, Users, Wise, WritingDictionary of Bible Themes Daniel 5:10-16 3050 Holy Spirit, wisdom Daniel 5:12-17 8130 guidance, from godly people Daniel 5:13-17 5325 gifts Library Mene, Tekel, Peres
'Then Daniel answered and said before the king, Let thy gifts be to thyself, and give thy rewards to another: yet I will read the writing unto the king, and make known to him the interpretation. 18. O thou king, the most high God gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father a kingdom, and majesty, and glory, and honour: 19. And for the majesty 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; …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy ScriptureThe Scales of Judgment
There has never been a deed of persecution--there has never been a drop of martyr's blood shed yet, but shall be avenged, and every land guilty of it shall yet drink the cup of the wine of the wrath of God. And especially certain is there gathering an awful storm over the head of the empire of Rome--that spiritual despotism of the firstborn of hell. All the clouds of God's vengeance are gathering into one--the firmament is big with thunder, God's right arm is lifted up even now, and ere long the …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 5: 1859 "So Then they that are in the Flesh Cannot Please God. "
Rom. viii. 8.--"So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God." It is a kind of happiness to men, to please them upon whom they depend, and upon whose favour their well-being hangs. It is the servant's happiness to please his master, the courtier's to please his prince; and so generally, whosoever they be that are joined in mutual relations, and depend one upon another; that which makes all pleasant, is this, to please one another. Now, certainly, all the dependencies of creatures one upon …
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning Human Government.
Human governments a part of the moral government of God. In the discussion of this subject I will,-- I. Inquire into the ultimate end of God in creation. We have seen in former lectures, that God is a moral agent, the self-existent and supreme; and is therefore himself, as ruler of all, subject to, and observant of, moral law in all his conduct. That is, his own infinite intelligence must affirm that a certain course of willing is suitable, fit, and right in him. This idea, or affirmation, is law …
Charles Grandison Finney—Systematic Theology Eastern Wise-Men, or Magi, visit Jesus, the New-Born King.
(Jerusalem and Bethlehem, b.c. 4.) ^A Matt. II. 1-12. ^a 1 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem [It lies five miles south by west of Jerusalem, a little to the east of the road to Hebron. It occupies part of the summit and sides of a narrow limestone ridge which shoots out eastward from the central chains of the Judæan mountains, and breaks down abruptly into deep valleys on the north, south, and east. Its old name, Ephrath, meant "the fruitful." Bethlehem means "house of bread." Its modern …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel Messiah Unpitied, and Without a Comforter
Reproach [Rebuke] hath broken my heart; and I am full of heaviness: and I looked for some to take pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none. T he greatness of suffering cannot be certainly estimated by the single consideration of the immediate, apparent cause; the impression it actually makes upon the mind of the sufferer, must likewise be taken into the account. That which is a heavy trial to one person, may be much lighter to another, and, perhaps, no trial at all. And a state …
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 1 Sovereignty of God in Administration
"The LORD hath prepared His Throne In the heavens; and His Kingdom ruleth over all" (Psa. 103:19). First, a word concerning the need for God to govern the material world. Suppose the opposite for a moment. For the sake of argument, let us say that God created the world, designed and fixed certain laws (which men term "the laws of Nature"), and that He then withdrew, leaving the world to its fortune and the out-working of these laws. In such a case, we should have a world over which there was no intelligent, …
Arthur W. Pink—The Sovereignty of God Jesus Sets Out from Judæa for Galilee.
Subdivision A. Reasons for Retiring to Galilee. ^A Matt. IV. 12; ^B Mark I. 14; ^C Luke III. 19, 20; ^D John IV. 1-4. ^c 19 but Herod the tetrarch [son of Herod the Great, and tetrarch, or governor, of Galilee], being reproved by him [that is, by John the Baptist] for Herodias his brother's wife, and for all the evil things which Herod had done [A full account of the sin of Herod and persecution of John will be found at Matt. xiv. 1-12 and Mark vi. 14-29. John had spoken the truth to Herod as fearlessly …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel The Eternity of God
The next attribute is, God is eternal.' Psa 90:0. From everlasting to everlasting thou art God.' The schoolmen distinguish between aevun et aeternum, to explain the notion of eternity. There is a threefold being. I. Such as had a beginning; and shall have an end; as all sensitive creatures, the beasts, fowls, fishes, which at death are destroyed and return to dust; their being ends with their life. 2. Such as had a beginning, but shall have no end, as angels and the souls of men, which are eternal …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity That Upon the Conquest and Slaughter of vitellius Vespasian Hastened his Journey to Rome; but Titus his Son Returned to Jerusalem.
1. And now, when Vespasian had given answers to the embassages, and had disposed of the places of power justly, [25] and according to every one's deserts, he came to Antioch, and consulting which way he had best take, he preferred to go for Rome, rather than to march to Alexandria, because he saw that Alexandria was sure to him already, but that the affairs at Rome were put into disorder by Vitellius; so he sent Mucianus to Italy, and committed a considerable army both of horsemen and footmen to …
Flavius Josephus—The Wars of the Jews or History of the Destruction of Jerusalem Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners Or, a Brief Relation of the Exceeding Mercy of God in Christ, to his Poor Servant, John Bunyan
In this my relation of the merciful working of God upon my soul, it will not be amiss, if in the first place, I do in a few words give you a hint of my pedigree, and manner of bringing up; that thereby the goodness and bounty of God towards me, may be the more advanced and magnified before the sons of men. 2. For my descent then, it was, as is well known by many, of a low and inconsiderable generation; my father's house being of that rank that is meanest, and most despised of all the families in …
John Bunyan—Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners There is a Blessedness in Reversion
Blessed are the poor in spirit. Matthew 5:3 Having done with the occasion, I come now to the sermon itself. Blessed are the poor in spirit'. Christ does not begin his Sermon on the Mount as the Law was delivered on the mount, with commands and threatenings, the trumpet sounding, the fire flaming, the earth quaking, and the hearts of the Israelites too for fear; but our Saviour (whose lips dropped as the honeycomb') begins with promises and blessings. So sweet and ravishing was the doctrine of this …
Thomas Watson—The Beatitudes: An Exposition of Matthew 5:1-12 The Life and Death of Mr. Badman,
Presented to the World in a Familiar Dialogue Between Mr. Wiseman and Mr. Attentive. By John Bunyan ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. The life of Badman is a very interesting description, a true and lively portraiture, of the demoralized classes of the trading community in the reign of King Charles II; a subject which naturally led the author to use expressions familiar among such persons, but which are now either obsolete or considered as vulgar. In fact it is the only work proceeding from the prolific …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 The Harbinger
The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD , make straight in the desert a high-way for our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain. And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it. T he general style of the prophecies is poetical. The inimitable simplicity which characterizes every …
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 1 The Greater Prophets.
1. We have already seen (Chap. 15, Nos. 11 and 12) that from Moses to Samuel the appearances of prophets were infrequent; that with Samuel and the prophetical school established by him there began a new era, in which the prophets were recognized as a distinct order of men in the Theocracy; and that the age of written prophecy did not begin till about the reign of Uzziah, some three centuries after Samuel. The Jewish division of the latter prophets--prophets in the more restricted sense of the …
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible Meditations Before Dinner and Supper.
Meditate that hunger is like the sickness called a wolf; which, if thou dost not feed, will devour thee, and eat thee up; and that meat and drink are but as physic, or means which God hath ordained, to relieve and cure this natural infirmity and necessity of man. Use, therefore, to eat and to drink, rather to sustain and refresh the weakness of nature, than to satisfy the sensuality and delights of the flesh. Eat, therefore, to live, but live not to eat. There is no service so base, as for a man …
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety The Chorus of Angels
Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour and glory, and blessing! I t was a good report which the queen of Sheba heard, in her own land, of the wisdom and glory of Solomon. It lessened her attachment to home, and prompted her to undertake a long journey to visit this greater King, of whom she had heard so much. She went, and she was not disappointed. Great as the expectations were, which she had formed from the relation made her by others, …
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 2 Daniel
Daniel is called a prophet in the New Testament (Matt. xxiv. 15). In the Hebrew Bible, however, the book called by his name appears not among the prophets, but among "the writings," between Esther and Ezra. The Greek version placed it between the major and the minor prophets, and this has determined its position in modern versions. The book is both like and unlike the prophetic books. It is like them in its passionate belief in the overruling Providence of God and in the sure consummation of His …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Daniel 5:15 NIVDaniel 5:15 NLTDaniel 5:15 ESVDaniel 5:15 NASBDaniel 5:15 KJV
Daniel 5:15 Commentaries
Bible Hub |
