Prophetic Implication Of Daniel 5

Open your Bibles, please, to the book of Daniel, chapter 5. We have already begun a discussion of this chapter, and we will not have time to review everything that we have said to you, but we do want to refresh your memories a bit.

We said that historically this chapter records the downfall of the city of Babylon when Belshazzar was king of the Babylonian Empire. We noticed how this thing came about as it is recorded in the Word of God, and we noticed how the account is supplemented by history and how history became the fulfillment of the prophetic Word.

We looked at what the hand, which was not attached to any arm, wrote upon the wall of the palace at the time when Belshazzar and his lords and ladies were feasting:

We are told that the individuals who were in the palace that day---wise men, astrologers, soothsayers, etc.---could not read the writing. This does not mean that they could not read these words; they could read them because they were ordinary Aramaic words, but they did not know their significance.

You will remember that the queen mother came into the banquet room when she heard of the things that were going on, and she reminded the king that there was an individual in the kingdom who would be able to translate the words and to give him their meaning. That individual was Daniel.

So Daniel was called, you will remember, and he did translate the words; he put the words into sentences that had very definite meanings.

We looked at the meaning of two of those words last week---three, if we count twice the one which was repeated. We looked at the interpretation presented in verse 26:

The word MENE means ``numbered." So Daniel put it into a sentence and said, ``Belshazzar, this means that God has numbered the days of your kingdom and has brought it to a conclusion." We discovered as we meditated upon that verse that that is exactly what happened. God watched the activities of Belshazzar until the time that his cup of iniquity was full. When his cup of iniquity was full, it became time for the end of the Babylonian kingdom.

The second word at which we looked was actually the fourth word in the group of words, and it is found in a sentence in verse 28:

If you will look at verse 25, you will find that that was not the last word at all. The last word in verse 25 is UPHARSIN, but in verse 28 it is the word PENES. Daniel put it in a sentence and said, ``Thy kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and the Persians."

The word UPHARSIN means ``divided," and the word PENES means ``divided," and there is no contradiction. It is simply an indication of the accuracy of the Word of God. When the hand wrote on the wall the word UPHARSIN, it was a prophecy of the accuracy of the Word of God. But while Belshazzar was dilly-dallying about the meaning of these words, the kingdom had already fallen, and the word was changed to the word PENES, another tense of the word. Daniel made the statement, ``Thy kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and the Persians."

We did not have time to deal with the third word in this series of words which were written on the wall, and we want to look at it as we conclude our remarks on the significance of this passage of Scripture from the standpoint of its primary, ordinary, literal meaning.

Look at verse 27 and you will see the word TEKEL, and you will find that Daniel placed it in a sentence which read:

The word TEKEL by itself simply means ``weighed." But Daniel put it into a sentence and said, ``Thou art weighed in the balances, and are found wanting." I wonder why he spoke thus of Belshazzar? I wonder exactly what he meant when he said, ``Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting."? I want to suggest to you three ways in which Belshazzar was weighed and was found wanting.

May I say first that he was weighed and found wanting because he knew, but he did not do. That is one of the greatest criticisms that can be leveled at any intelligent person. It is one of the greatest sins for which man will have to answer when he stands before God. He knew, but he did not do!

Notice the paragraph in Daniel 5, which begins with verse 18. You will keep in mind that Daniel was standing before the king, and he was about to give the interpretation of the words which were written on the wall:

This is not new information to those of you who have been studying the book of Daniel. You will remember that Nebuchadnezzar, the grandfather of Belshazzar, stood in the palace one day, looked out over the city of Babylon and said, ``See this great city that I have built." He was prideful about the whole accomplishment of his reign. And this, mind you, was after Daniel had said that God was going to have to deal with him for pride. No sooner had Nebuchadnezzar uttered those words than he lost his sanity, and for seven years he wandered about the fields of the royal palace as an ordinary beast. He wandered about the fields of the royal palace, eating grass like the oxen with whom he kept company. He remained in this condition until one day he turned his eyes toward Heaven, and in that look toward Heaven admitted his own sin and shortcomings and failures, and God restored him to his sanity.

Now this was not something that happened in a corner because no sooner was Nebuchadnezzar restored to sanity than he gave a public testimony of God's gracious dealings in his life, and he encouraged everybody to follow God as he had learned to follow Him.

Belshazzar knew this, but he did absolutely nothing about it! Even though he knew it, he went on his sinful way. Even though he knew that some day he would be called into account as was Nebuchadnezzar, he went on in his own sinful way. He was thus weighed in the balance and found wanting.

He was weighed in the balances in another fashion. Glance with me at Daniel, chapter 5, verse 2:

Then glance down at verse 23, where Daniel was leveling his accusations at him:

Belshazzar put something else in the place of God when he was well aware that he should not, and in doing so, he was wanting when he was weighed in the balances.

It might be wise for us to remember that what Daniel said about the breath of Belshazzar is true of each one of us because our breath is in the hand of God. As someone has said, ``If God were to take his finger off your heart for one split second, you would go out into eternity." Your breath is in his hand. How foolish men are to deny God! How foolish men are to fail to glorify Him when our breath is in his hand.

Every word that was written upon the wall of the palace of Belshazzar was fulfilled, as we read in verse 30:

We said that we were going to consider chapter 5 of the book of Daniel from a prophetic standpoint as well as from a spiritual standpoint because the Lord Jesus Christ does not refer to Daniel as a historian. He does not refer to Daniel as a preacher. He refers to Daniel as a prophet, and He encourages us in the New Testament to take time to understand the prophecy of Daniel (Matt. 24:15). The Lord Jesus Christ said, ``There is a day coming upon the earth when men will need to fear for their lives as they have never feared before. There is a day coming upon the earth when men will suffer as they have never suffered before." That period of time is called ``the Tribulation." It is called in the Bible ``the day of Jacob's trouble." (Jeremiah 30:7). It is called in the Bible ``the Great Day of God the Almighty" (Rev.6:17; 16:14). It is a day which men in their right minds would never want to share, and thank God, we have assurance in the Word of God that the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ will not have to go through that hour of trial. The Bible very plainly says that God is going to save us from the hour of trial that is coming to try the world (Rev. 3:10).

Yet we must recognize what the Word of God has to say about the preparations that are already being made for that period of time which is yet to come upon the earth. I might add that it is amply proven by the Word of God that that period of time is not far off.

One of the chief characters, if I may use that word in an abstract sense, which will play a huge part in the Tribulation period to which I have just referred, is the city about which we have been thinking in Daniel, chapter 5---the city of Babylon.

The city of Babylon, we reminded you when we began a discussion of Daniel, chapter 5, is so important that God gives a large portion of the Word of God to a discussion of this city. Its beginning is presented in the book of Genesis and its doom is presented in the book of Revelation. During all the years that are covered from the time when Nimrod built the city of Babylon until the time when the city of Babylon will be destroyed in the future, this city has been a symbol of everything that is wrong religiously and everything that is wrong commercially in this world.

When I say that it is a symbol, I do not want to leave you with the idea that it is nothing but a symbol; it is a very literal city.

Go back with me to Genesis, chapter 10, in order that you may fix in your minds the beginning of the city of Babylon and that you may recognize the place that it holds in the prophetic Word. Notice with me verse 8:

We are primarily interested in the statement, ``The beginning of his kingdom was Babel..." Will you look at Genesis, chapter 11:

You will notice in verse 9 that the name of the place where these individuals built a tower as a testimony to heathen deity was called ``Babel." You will notice in verse 9 that they left off building the city of Babel. That is, they were discouraged by what happened and quit, but they did not stop for long. They began again to build the city of Babel, later known as ``Babylon," and the city of Babylon became the great city which we have been reading about in the book of Daniel. It was represented in the image of Daniel, chapter 2, as the head of gold, which was the central capital for the empire that ruled the whole earth.

We have been reading in Daniel, chapter 5, how this city came to an end. The prophecies related to the manner in which this city was to come to an end are recorded in those passages of Scripture at which we have looked---Jeremiah, chapters 50 and 51, and Isaiah, chapters 13, 14, and 45. Those chapters describe in detail the manner in which the city was to come to an end and the manner in which it did so.

You will recognize that the prophecies recorded in Jeremiah, chapters 50 and 51, and Isaiah, chapters 13, 14, and 45, were not fulfilled in detail. They were only partially fulfilled. Those prophecies which suggested that the city of Babylon would be utterly destroyed and never occupied again forever have not been fulfilled. There has always been a village on the site of the city of Babylon. That village is called Hillah.

Let me remind you that God's Word is true, and it will always be fulfilled. Let me remind you that if prophecies related to the city of Babylon have not been fulfilled, then those prophecies will be fulfilled. If that seems a problem to us, it does not need to be a problem long because when we compare Scripture with Scripture---which is the only way to interpret the prophetic Word of God---we discover that the city of Babylon is to be rebuilt and is to become the capital of the last world empire this world will know. It is to be the site of the last United Nations. It is to be the greatest commercial metropolis this world will ever see. When the city of Babylon, which is to be rebuilt, reaches the zenith of its power, the same spirit which was manifested in the people who began to build the tower which was to reach unto Heaven, the same spirit which was manifested in the people who attended the feast of Belshazzar and laid their hands on the vessels of gold which had been dedicated to the service of God, the same spirit which has caused all men down through the ages to defy God, will be manifested in that city. It will cause the wrath of God to rise in His nostrils, and He will destroy that city then just as certainly as He did in the days of Belshazzar.

Turn, please, to the book of Revelation to refresh your minds concerning the description of the destruction of the city of Babylon which is presented there, and to see how the destruction of the city of Babylon in the days of Belshazzar was but a foreshadowing of the final destruction of the last capital of the world.

In Revelation, chapters 17 and 18, we have presented to us the destruction of the city of Babylon, In chapter 17, we have a prophecy of the destruction of the city as it represents all the ecclesiastical power that will be extant in the world at the end of the age. We will not have time to look at these two chapters in detail. But we want just to glance at them and point out to you some things about them so that you can think intelligently with us. Any details you may want about these chapters you will find in the Living Bible Studies Printed Page discussions of Revelation, chapters 17 and 18.

You will notice in the first few verses of chapter 17 these words:

You will recognize that the angel referred to here was one of seven angels to whom was committed the manifestation of the judgment of God upon the earth during this time. You will keep in mind that when one of these angels poured out of the bowls of the wrath of God, some specific kind of judgment occurred upon the earth.

John is the one addressed in this first verse when he is invited to come and see what is going to happen to the great whore that sitteth upon many waters.

Look at the phrase, ``the great whore." This is a word which, when used symbolically in the Word of God, refers to any false, ecclesiastical system. We know immediately that this is a judgment of a great false church. This whore is sitting upon many waters. We learned, as we pursued the study of Revelation, chapter 17, in detail, that that is representative of the fact that this church has influence over many, many people.

You will notice in verse 2:

This suggests to us that at this time this church had a tremendous worldwide political influence. Verses 3 and 4 indicate that this church receives its power from those who are in authority. That is the thing that most of us do not want to see---a mixture of church and state, which will eventually evolve before this world is over. This church will be a great state church supported by the political powers of the day; and incorporated into this last great church will be all the false doctrine and all the false prophets that have ever walked across the stage of the world. That is indicated in verses 5 through 8.

When the angel begins to interpret the symbolism in this chapter, he reminds us in verse 9 that the city of Babylon is the city where this great church will have its existence. The city of Rome, which is the city of a great world church today, will give place to the city of Babylon, and the Roman church will be but a part of this great world church which will dominate the world.

I want to pause in this discussion to suggest to you that you ought to be very careful in giving support to any ecumenical movement of any kind. It is not God's intention that all the churches of the world be in one great ecclesiastical body. The Bible does not have anything to say about the union of churches. It has much to say about the unity of believers. There is a vast difference. If you find yourself lending aid to any movement which will eventually result in this church about which we are speaking, which will have its headquarters in the city of Babylon which will eventually be destroyed, you will find yourself in line for the chastening hand of God. You should not be supporting anything that belongs to the forces of evil. Mark what I tell you! With all due respect to sincere, misguided individuals who are fostering the ecumenical movement at the present time, that movement is of Satan. It does not have the blessing of God, and it will result in this church which will be in the place that will eventually be destroyed.

Revelation, chapter 17, describes for us the destruction of the church. Chapter 18 describes for us the actual destruction of the city. We are going to read this chapter and make a comment or two as we go along. I want you to notice several things about it. I want you to notice the literalness of this passage of Scripture. Someone says, ``Surely you don't think this is literally going to happen, do you?" Yes, I do. I think the only sensible way to interpret this passage of Scripture is to accept every word at its primary, ordinary, literal meaning. I want you to notice the similarity between the destruction of the Babylon of the end time and the destruction of the Babylon of Belshazzar's day.

May I pause to remind you that you should not interpret chapter 18 in the light of things which are happening today. We do not see the activity of angels today, but that does not mean that they will not be active. In the Old Testament there was much activity of angels, and they were seen with the human eye. When the Lord Jesus Christ takes the Church out of the world and this tribulation period about which we have been speaking begins, the activity of angels will increase. They will be seen with the naked eye just as they were in the Old Testament.

You may say, ``This is practically the same thing that was written in Jeremiah, chapter 51." John read that, and he just wrote it down here and it was fulfilled when Darius the Mede captured the city of Babylon in the midst of Belshazzar's godless feast. That is not true! For on the very site of the ancient city of Babylon, there is being brought to completion a great metropolis which will bear the name of the ancient city of Babylon. You will remember that when we were teaching the book of Revelation, we read to you from a current periodical a news account of the rebuilding of that very city.

If the Bible says there will come a day when the site of the city of Babylon will be the habitation of demons and the home of every foul spirit and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird, then the only conclusion to which we can come is that the city that is being rebuilt will be destroyed.

Before it is destroyed, it will reach worldwide prominence. You do not need to keep your eyes upon Europe to see what is going to happen next. You do not need to keep your eyes fixed unswervingly on Russia, though you need to turn your eyes in that direction. If you want to know where the activity of the world is going to occur in the next few years, you keep your eyes on the Middle East. It won't be long until you see the thing that has been mentioned briefly in a rather obscure periodical become the headlines of the papers of the world. In verse 3, we read:

Here is another illustration of the fact that in judgment God always remembers mercy. God is getting ready to judge the city of Babylon. But in the midst of the city of Babylon, as in any great metropolis, there will be people who will bear the name of God. Those people will be remembered in that hour of judgment, and God will say to them, ``Come out of her, my people, that you may not be partakers of her sins, for her sins have reached unto Heaven."

The angel cries in verse 6:

Does that spark a bitter memory? Do you not remember reading in Daniel, chapter 4, how Nebuchadnezzar stood in his palace and looked out over the city of Babylon and said, ``Is this not great Babylon which I have built? Nobody can defeat me."?

The city of Babylon that is yet to be said:

Do you remember that no sooner had Nebuchadnezzar uttered words similar to this than he lost his sanity and went roaming over the fields as a wild beast? Do you remember that no sooner had Belshazzar defied the God of Heaven than Cyrus marched under the river of the city and the city was taken? The same thing is going to happen to the city of Babylon that shall be. The Babylon of Daniel is but a prophecy of the Babylon of Revelation.

That is the reason the Lord Jesus Christ said to study the prophet Daniel. When you see the things begin to come to pass of which Daniel speaks, then look up, because the end of all things is at hand.

In one day the new city of Babylon will lie in ruins. Do you remember that in one night the city of Babylon of Daniel, chapter 5, fell? It was but a forerunner of this later destruction. We continue to read in verse 9 the effect of the fall of Babylon upon the world:

This indicates the international aspect of the city of Babylon. If we were talking about the city of New York and it was suddenly demolished, we would bewail her destruction. But do you think the kings of the earth would bewail her destruction? Some of them might rejoice! Others of them might send their condolences, but they would not bewail its destruction.

But this is the capital of the world, and the kings of the world will bewail her destruction:

Not only in one day, but the fire was started and the city fell in one hour:

In verses 12, 13, and 14, there is described the trade which was carried on in the city of Babylon. We may think that the city of New York is a great trading city. We Texans are proud of Houston, but think of the greatest trading city that we know anything about, and it fades into insignificance in the light of the city of Babylon, as it will become the great commercial metropolis of the world in the end of time.

Look at verse 14. Not only does this city deal in material goods, but:

This city will deal not only in material goods, but in the souls of men as well. That is the sad thing about all commercialism. It affects the soul that belongs to God. In verse 15:

In one night the Babylon of Belshazzar's day fell. In one day, yea in one hour, the Babylon that is to be rebuilt will fall, and all the world will view her destruction and mourn at her demise.

Many years ago, when I first began to teach the book of Revelation, I had to say, ``This is what the Word of God says. I don't see how it can be, but I believe it because I believe the Word of God." I do not find that necessary now, save by way of emphasis about the brevity of time. For we who live in this generation do not wonder how we could see the destruction of a mighty city like this. We have sat in our living rooms in our homes and we have watched the destruction of cities in the same fashion as this. The invention of television simply emphasizes what John wrote way back yonder. John said that the world would see the destruction of this city.

Many years ago, when I began teaching this portion of the Word of God, I had to say that I believed it, though I did not see how it would be brought to pass. The Middle East was a darkened part of our world, and nobody cared much about what happened there except those who were interested in exploiting the peoples of those benighted lands.

But today we are fighting a war because of our concern for benighted peoples. Someday we may have to fight a war because of our concern for the peoples of the Middle East. Today the United Nations dare not make a move without giving consideration to the nations of the Middle East. Today on the very site of the ancient city of Babylon there rises a city which will bear its name, and which I believe, according to the prophecy of the Word of God, will become the commercial and political metropolis of the world. When it has reached the zenith of its power, it will fall; and when it falls, God will be vindicated, and righteousness will shine forth.

That is why in Revelation, chapter 18, verse 20, we read:

The remaining verses of the chapter describe a picture of utter desolation and ruin.

The Lord Jesus Christ, when He left this earth, left a message for us. It was, ``Watch for what Daniel has to say. Watch for the appearance of what Daniel has to say. Watch for the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet" (Matt. 24:12). Then the Lord Jesus Christ paused and laid a holy obligation upon every one of his followers when He said, ``Let him that readeth understand."

If you were to read about the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the Prophet and did not know what it meant, it would be your obligation to study the book of Daniel to find out what he was talking about. It is the only way you will be able to understand what God has planned for you.

The purpose of our study of prophecy is not to add a few facts to some already accumulated. The purpose of our study of prophecy is to remind our hearts that time is fast running out. The date of the return of our Lord is fast approaching. We should live as men who are looking for their Lord.