The Night Belshazzar Died — déjà
vu?
 It
is nothing less than amazing to see how God works in
the affairs of people and nations. Judah went into captivity
to Babylon because of her unbelief and rebellion, thus
God used the evil Babylonians to punish them (Jeremiah
20). At the same time, however, He said the Babylonians
would also be punished for the way they would treat
His people during their captivity (Jeremiah 25). From
this we learn that though God does not deny the free-will
of humans, He uses that same free-will to accomplish
that which He has ordained to be. A good case in point
is the story of Belshazzar found in Daniel chapter five.
It all happened on the night of October 29th, 539 BC.
Belshazzar was a reckless, intemperate
and confirmed pleasure-seeker who was probably spoiled
rotten as a child. His father, Nabonidus, was somewhat
of a cultured man who had basically gone into retirement
and left his arrogant son in charge of the kingdom.
On that particular night Belshazzar gave a big party
for his nobles and everybody who was somebody in Babylon.
It became a drunken orgy with all his wives and concubines
present. If that were not bad enough he decided, for
specific reasons unknown, to blaspheme the God of Israel.
He commanded the gold vessels taken from Solomon’s
temple in Jerusalem be brought in and that everybody
drink from them. The king, with joyous spirit, went
on to praise the gods of gold and silver. This blasphemous
party was the last straw and God took action and intervened.
Without warning a hand appeared and
wrote something on the wall next to where Belshazzar
was sitting. The hand then disappeared just as suddenly
as it appeared. Such an event cannot make a drunk man
sober, but it can make a drunk man fearful. In fact,
Belshazzar was so scared that his knees knocked together.
He offered a great reward to anyone who could interpret
the writing, but none of his “wise men”
had a clue as to what was going on. The aged Daniel
was finally brought in and was offered the position
of being third in command to Nabonidus if he could interpret
the meaning.
The first thing the prophet Daniel
did was to rebuke the king for his pride and blasphemy
and then he told him he did not want the rewards. He
told Belshazzar the inscription meant he had been weighed
in the balance by God and had been found wanting. As
a result the king’s realm would be given to the
Medes and Persians, his enemies.
Then what happened next is the interesting
part. Belshazzar accepted the interpretation and insisted
Daniel be given the rewards: the purple robe, the necklace
of gold and the place of being third in the kingdom.
The text indicates Belshazzar had no anger toward Daniel
and, more importantly, no ominous sense of foreboding.
Yet, that very night some soldiers of the Medo-Persian
army diverted the Euphrates River which flowed beneath
the city walls, walked in and took the city. Belshazzar,
while drinking from God’s golden cups and reveling
in his pagan kingship, was killed that very night.
What was the problem with Belshazzar?
Actually, he had three major problems. He failed to
learn the lesson about Nebuchadnezzar regarding how
God deals with arrogance and pride (Daniel 4). He did
not really believe God would intervene in the affairs
of men, and he did not believe in the imminence of God’s
judgment, if any would come at all. He was a fool.
The life and death of Belshazzar presents
us with an excellent pre-type of the Gentile-ruled world
of the last days. As much as any man in history he exemplifies
the attitude of the anti-God system that will exist
in those days just prior to the removal of the church
from the world by way of the rapture. Take a look at
Belshazzar and superimpose his attitude upon our modern
secular society. It will be easy to see just how reflective
things are today of that evil king and the wickedness
of his day.
In the days of Belshazzar God was of
no genuine concern. Though some of the pagan Babylonians
acknowledged the existence of Jehovah, the God of the
Jews, they did not really pay much attention to Him.
To most of them He was just another god to be given
a measure of recognition, but to whom would be given
no serious credibility much less worship and heed.
In the culture of the 21st century
it seems this attitude is even more pronounced. That
is, though the pagan king Nebuchadnezzar acknowledged
the power of God (Daniel 4:34ff) 2500 years ago, modernists
often do not even believe in God. It has been reported
there are over 205 million atheists in the world and
about 30 million in America. 1
The die-hards among these people will not be swayed
by the obviously God-made complexity of nature, the
unassailable credibility of the Bible nor the loving
and selfless example of Christian friends. Their hearts
have been so deadened by the poison of humanism that
even the disappearance of millions of people at the
rapture will likewise have no genuine and lasting impact
on their belief system. Secularists go beyond simply
not learning lessons from the past about God —
they refuse to believe He even exists.
You see, to believe in God as the only
God is to acknowledge He just might have something to
say about the way people should live. And for the secularist
this is anathema. No secularist in his right mind in
this post-modern world would dare admit to consulting
God about anything much less heeding anything He might
say. This is the major problem with evolution. That
is, a growing number of researchers associated with
the life sciences admits the theory of evolution has
too many holes in it to be believable. Yet, at the same
time they reject the concept of “intelligent design”
because it would force them to admit the reality of
God, and if that is admitted then logic would require
them to at least consider what He has to say. And that
is simply unacceptable.
Since Daniel’s interpretation
was not to Belshazzar’s benefit, why did Belshazzar
not kill him immediately? One reason is that Belshazzar
did have a type of religious belief system, though it
was definitely pagan to the core, and might have thus
granted at least a measure of interest in what Daniel
had said, for he had certainly been taught the history
of Babylon under Nebuchadnezzar. But, Belshazzar chose
to severely limit whatever interest might have been
in his heart.
Many think along this same line today.
They have some sort of belief system that lays the groundwork
for at least a cursory nod to the Bible, though they
would classify it as a work of literature instead of
the Word of God. These people feel the stories of the
great miracles of God are at best myths with morals
but are definitely not truths with consequences. The
immutable laws of God are smiled at condescendingly
and His warnings about imminent judgment are classified
as the tirades of an angry god conjured up by the imagination
of people too uncouth, uneducated and unsophisticated
to escape the clutches of superstition. God is simply
not taken seriously, if He is even believed in at all.
Belshazzar did not believe Daniel’s
God would take a hand in his personal matters and those
of his kingdom. He might have been called an ancient
deist. That is, he might have admitted the existence
of God, but he refused to really believe He is in any
way involved in the affairs of this world. Lots of people
are like that today. People must be warned: do not fail
to notice that God has previously intervened several
times in the natural course of events — the flood,
the judgment of Korah for his rebellion, the incarnation,
the resurrections, etc. — and He has specific
plans to intervene several times more in the future.
This is critical to an accurate understanding of Bible
prophecy.
God is indeed interested in what happens
to this world. He made it, and He has plans for it.
Do not think for one second He has removed His hand
from the affairs of the planet. This is somewhat difficult
for many people to accept. And a major reason for their
rejection of this truth is they know precious little,
at best, about the matter. These folks know more about
the stock market, the TV guide, the NFL draft and Washington
politics than they do about what God has said regarding
the future. They have little or no faith because they
avoid that which brings faith (Romans 10:17). Bible
prophecy to them is foreign to their thinking, uncomfortable
in any discussion, distressing in its analysis and dreadful
in its fulfillment.
If anything Daniel said would happen
at all, Belshazzar did not believe it would happen right
away. After all, he was secure behind those massive
city walls with an abundance of food and water, and
his army was on guard ready to repel any invader. He
placed his trust in his own wisdom, his own gods and
his own security measures. But mostly Belshazzar trusted
his own intuition which said nothing will happen any
time soon; eat, drink and have a good time for tomorrow
will be like today, only better.
Can you imagine his surprise when the
Medes and Persians came bursting into his throne room
that same night? In gut-wrenching fear he might have
screamed, “No!” in disbelief as the soldiers
quickly moved upon him to drive swords or spears into
his belly. When his great party started earlier that
evening this was the farthest thing from his pagan mind.
How quickly things can happen and how permanent the
results!
Like the appearance of the Medes and
Persians in Belshazzar’s throne room, the rapture
of the church will also be an absolute and total surprise
to untold multitudes. Some of those surprised will know
what has happened, but it will be altogether too late.
Most, however, will not understand and will therefore
be open to the lies that will be spoon fed to them by
all the false and apostate religious leaders who will
also be left behind.
But, when this happens will there be
any who will not be surprised? That is an easy question.
Those who get up each morning and go to bed each evening
thinking, “This might be the day” will not
be caught by surprise. It will be the consummate answer
to their fervent prayer, Maranatha! (1 Corinthians 16:22).
Even some professing Christians (a
loose term in this context) refuse to believe in what
we call the rapture. As was the case with Noah’s
neighbors, Korah and others like them, a very big and
terrible surprise is waiting for them right around the
corner! No prophecy must be fulfilled first, no event
in Israel must happen first, the anti-Christ will not
appear first, etc. Plainly said: it could happen at
any moment.
The “yes, but not now”
attitude is quite common in these last days. Many of
these same people were taught the truth in their early
years about sin, judgment, the cross, the rapture, etc.,
but as they grew older they put aside such “childish”
things. Essentially their hearts became calloused and
the conviction of the Holy Spirit no longer had any
effect. Somewhere, deeply embedded in the recesses of
their memory, lies the truth about the rapture, the
tribulation, judgment, etc., but they seldom think about
such things and their already hardened hearts are salved
by Satan’s lie that says, “Yes, its okay
to believe in all that, but just don’t take it
seriously. And, besides, all that prophecy stuff is
probably a thousand years away. And besides, you are
still young...”
The 2500 year old story of Belshazzar
is being repeated in these last days. Only this time
the character is not a specific man, but an entire world
of people. And the consequences will not be limited
to the taking of a city and the death of its king, but
the entire planet with billions of people will be thrown
into a seven year time of suffering and death that is
absolutely unprecedented. Though certainly not void
of a heart-felt attitude of love for lost people, the
Daniels of today understand the time for politically
correct, milquetoast diplomacy is over. Now is the time
to say what must be said. Déjà vu? Yes!
DLM
End Note:
1) “Number
of Atheists”. Cited 21 April 05
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