LESSON V, “BABYLON’S GLORY DECLINES” (Lesson Material: Daniel 5)
A. Introductory Remarks:
1. Chapters 5, 6 form the conclusion to the historical section of Daniel’s book. In these chapters {5, 6} the circumstances and the times are quite different than those in chapters 1–4, where we read repeatedly about Nebuchadnezzar. In chapter 5 Belshazzar is in control. Belshazzar is not the son but the grandson of Nebuchadnezzar, who was a son of Nabonedus. The queen mentioned here is Belshazzar’s mother. It is likely that she was a daughter of Nebuchadnezzar.
2. Daniel is to be seen here as an elderly man whose great accomplishments and contributions of the past are all but forgotten. It is about 30 years after his appearance in the palace described in chapter 4. After Nebuchadnezzar’s death Daniel seems to have been lost in the multitude of bureaucratic servants which great governments seem always to create. We must remember that Daniel is not primarily a government official but a believer in God and a servant of his Word. This Word is to be spoken on behalf of the God of the Word, and in this instance it meant a long time of patient waiting until his faithful servant was once again brought before the king and his guests to fulfill his prophetic task. They who do the Lord’s work must often wait long for his time!
3. The feast arranged by Belshazzar took place at a very late and very dark moment in his reign. His enemy, Cyrus, had already captured everything but a small part of the city of Babylon, a section which by virtue of its stout military defenses had escaped capture. It is hard to believe that a king so obviously endangered would still find it possible to celebrate, but that is what he did. Is this, perhaps, a scene reflective of the world’s persistent dream of safety and success, no matter what?
4. Although the Chaldean·Babylonian empire is replaced by the Medo-Persian, the struggle between the Kingdom of God and the anti-Christian kingdoms of this world continues. The cast in this great drama changes, but the spiritual issues under dispute remain the same. In fact, we see an actual intensifying of the hostility. In chapter 1 the effort is made to destroy the Church by way of cunning and guile (by “Babylonizing” Israel’s elite youth), but in chapter 3 we see the use of raw physical power in the case of the fiery furnace. Looking forward to chapter 6 we find the world putting forth its most vigorous and dangerous attack by trying to take away the Church’s greatest and last weapon, prayer. Nevertheless, the Lord’s kingdom emerges from the fray victorious. His Name comes to be known among the heathen, and is even lauded in the official documents of the imperial government.
B. The Sin of Belshazzar:
1. The sin of Belshazzar is idolatry (vs. 23). The seriousness of his idolatry is to be seen against the background of his grandfather’s humiliation as recorded in chapter 4. As indicated above, the time of this idolatrous, wicked feast is marked by war, a war which has seen all but total disaster for Belshazzar and his friends. Here the world shows itself to be unconcerned so far as the warnings of God are concerned, an unconcern which persists even today when the signs of the Lord’s return for judgment are very plain.
2. The depth of human depravity is always shocking beyond description! This is to he seen on this occasion especially when the golden vessels originally taken out of the Temple at Jerusalem are used in the service of the Babylonian gods. You must not forget that the Babylonians were very broad-minded, so to speak. They honored all gods of all peoples, even subject nations. And they were afraid to desecrate things dedicated to the gods, no matter what they thought of the people to whom these kind of gods belonged. Their actions here are the deliberate expressions of contempt for and hatred of the Almighty God. Even in the very face of destruction and annihilation the wicked find pleasure in pouring out their scorn upon the One, holy God.
3. Daniel’s sermon before the king and his assembled guests (vss. 17–24) is most courageous, as is all true prophecy. True prophecy is always marked by complete fearlessness so far as its apparently inevitable consequences are concerned. Who can imagine saying such things to an oriental despot, without being killed? Daniel knows very well that this isn’t the way to save one’s own life, but he is not out to save his own life. And so he tells the king such very hard things as: (a) Nebuchadnezzar’s rule is to be understood as something which came from God, the God of the Jerusalem temple; (b) Nebuchadnezzar’s sin was pride, that is, refusal to recognize Cod as the One by whose appointment and in whose strength he might rule; (c) Nebuchadnezzar’s period of humiliation was something brought about by Daniel’s God; (d) Belshazzar could have known all this, but refused to humble his heart, preferring to worship the gods of silver, gold, brass, iron, wood and stone; (e) Belshazzar must now expect God’s wrath in judgment.
4. The severe reaction of the king and his party to the sudden appearance of the hand of God as it writes upon the palace wall is not to be attributed to anything but the fact that it is God’s hand which has appeared. Babylonian kings were quite used to seeing things which were interesting and arresting and even awesome, but these things do not make them feel so undone as vs. 6 indicates. Once again, how terrible will be the Day of the Lord, when every eye shall see Jesus Christ returning in glory to judge the living and the dead! Still more: Belshazzar is so troubled by a few words written by God. Why aren’t we more troubled by a whole Bible full of warnings and admonitions, all of which are likewise written by God’s hand?
5. God troubles Belshazzar. The pathway to the “peace that passes understanding” leads over the way of that kind of disturbance which God works by his Word of warning. God’s warnings are always merciful, even when they come at such a late moment as the one our chapter describes. It is, indeed, too late to prevent the destruction of Babylon, hut not too late to urge Belshazzar and his company to bow before Jerusalem’s great God. Men must know that God rules in the kingdom of men, and that he establishes and removes whomsoever he pleases. He alone is God, and his Kingdom is the only indestructible kingdom. Everyone will know this eventually, of course, but the wise will understand now and be saved.
6. The sign written on the wall is not decipherable by the wise men of Belshazzar’s kingdom. Again, this must be understood spiritually. These experts were well-trained, gifted, respected men whose accomplishments were by all merely human standards outstanding. But God reveals to his children in their humility and simplicity that which is hidden from the worldly wise.
7. The Queen-mother hears of the confusion in the banquet hall, and comes to investigate. She remembers Daniel, God’s prophet, and advises that he be summoned to interpret the writing on the wall. We have mentioned the fact that Daniel had apparently gone into obscurity. We must bear in mind that Babylon’s greatness was directly involved with Daniel’s presence in that kingdom. For the sake of Daniel, and because of his sanctified rule as a chief in Babylon, God had allowed that anti-christian kingdom to grow and exist. But the world always forgets the source of its strength and success, and so now Babylon must come to its destined overthrow.
8. We would miss a great deal if we would not see here the fact that the Word of God is involved in and determinative for everything in life, even politics. Political life is not something with which spiritual life has nothing to do. When politics is treated as if it were something from which Christians may keep themselves aloof, then it must become secular in character, that is, concerned only with gold, silver, brass, iron, wood, stone—the things which represent human advantage apart from God’s real blessing in Jesus Christ.
9. We think that the sign written by God on the wall was actually composed of just the first letters: M M T P P. To Daniel was revealed both the words themselves and the interpretation. The words, mene, tekel and upharsin are the names of weights (literally, a pound, a sixtieth of a pound, and two halves of a sixtieth of a pound). These stand for numbering or counting, weighing and dividing. The “interpretation” (the miraculous unfolding of something secret) applies to the destiny of Babylon. God has counted Belshazzar’s kingdom and has decided to put an end to it (mene). God has weighed the kingdom and found it to be deficient (tekel). The word upharsin is the plural of peres, which resembles the name Persia. The idea is that God is predicting and working both the breaking of Babylon’s rule and the handing over of the kingdom to the Persians.
10. Belshazzar’s reaction to Daniel’s prophecy is not given in much detail. It seems that he did what many do when they hear the Word preached, that is, applaud the preacher but refuse to believe and practise what is said. The proper response to God’s Word is not to say, “What a gifted preacher,” but to say, “Amen.”
11. We ought to see a very plain reference to our Lord Jesus Christ here. Daniel is made “the third ruler in the kingdom.” This means that he is the most important man after the king and the king’s father. This might have been a great honor if Belshazzar’s kingdom were not all but defeated. The reference to our Lord lies in the mockery which this represents. Daniel predicts the downfall of Babylon, and as a reward he is given a high title in that which he has, from God, revealed and exposed as quite worthless. Expired kingdoms are not very valuable. So our Lord was mocked when He served as our chief prophet while on earth.
12. That very night Belshazzar was killed and the new rule of the Medo-Persians is installed under Darius. The Fall of Babylon is predictive of the fan of the Antichrist (Rev. 18). Like Babylon, the kingdoms of this world will come to naught because “in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth.”
Suggested questions for discussion:
1. Why did Belshazzar make use of Jerusalem’s holy vessels, while none had done so before in Babylon?
2. Do you recognize the hand of Satan in this chapter, especially in the rejoicing of the king and his party on the eve of Babylon’s destruction?
3. How do we account for the consternation which follows upon the mysterious handwriting on the wall, and the unbelief add indifference which both precedes the appearance of the hand and follows the interpretation by Daniel?
4. How do you understand the description of Daniel as prophet found in vs. 12?
5. Was there really an opportunity for Belshazzar and his followers to be saved from their sin in this preaching of Daniel?
6. How does this chapter make plain the fact of the sovereignty of God in history?
7. Point out the points of conflict between Babylon and Jerusalem in this chapter; what do these mean?
8. Why is the anti-christian world in Rev. 18 compared to Babylon?
LESSON VI: “BY FAITH DANIEL STOPS THE MOUTH OF LIONS” (Discussion material: Daniel 6)
A. Introduction:
1. In chapter 6 we find the presence of a new world empire, the Medo-Persian, with Cyrus as “ruler of the world.” Although the Babylonian Empire has been defeated, things aren’t really much different—to the naked eye—in the great city of Babylon. Babylon was a great trade center, and in spite of Persian conquest remained a powerful and prosperous financial capital for many years of the Persian supremacy. It was “business as usual” in Babylon.
2. Cyrus appoints Darius the Mede as king of Babylon, an important post because of that city’s economic influence (and “money talks,” indeed I). Darius is probably the same as the one called Gobryas. He served Nebuchadnezzar’s regime as a politico-military leader, but seems to have gone over to the Persians in the time of the inept Nabonedus, father of Belshazzar. He was a capable, serious man, and there is reason to believe that the citizens of Babylon were glad for the change which brought him to their beautiful and important city as king. He is not a young man, having reached the age of sixty-two years (chapter 5:31).
3. Appearances were deceiving in Babylon at this moment, however, for God’s prophetic and incomparably powerful curse had been pronounced upon her. In just a few years her role as a royal city was ended, and within a few decades her walls were broken down. Babylon, whose pride had made her think of herself as the queen of the whole earth was doomed to a slow process of decay and decline. God had determined to bury her greatness under the desert sands in order that his people might always know that only his Kingdom is indestructible!
B. The Attack upon Prayer!
1. As we have said, Darius is a more competent and more earnest man than his predecessor, Belshazzar. He is an able organizer and administrator (cf. vs. 2), dividing his realm into 120 districts with three presidents, one of whom is Daniel. It takes but a little while and Daniel comes to the top as the very best of the presidents and the other district governors because “an excellent spirit was in him.” In our opinion we must not be afraid to recognize this as the indwelling Spirit of God, by virtue of which Daniel is wise, fair, and scrupulously honest. Since the great task of the governors and presidents is to administer the tax program, such qualities were both necessary and appreciated. We must not forget, of course, that integrity and righteousness are not typical of bureaucrats in a worldly empire.
2. The character of the opposition to Daniel is the familiar staff jealousy often seen in life. Sinful man cannot he reconciled to the thought that God is sovereign in the dispensation of His grace!
3. The Bible says that the governors and presidents were unanimous in their desire to get rid of Daniel, whose skill and excellence they could not endure. Their first attempt is to find something faulty in his daily work. Surely he is not perfect, and especially in a position in which one has to entrust many things to subordinates there ought to be some evidence of incompetence or dishonesty. This attempt fails miserably, because Daniel was, says the Bible, faithful. This means that Daniel did his work diligently, obediently, energetically, sincerely. He knew that a believer must also be faithful in the pursuit of his daily calling.
4. Then his enemies resolved to try something else. They would bring Daniel to disgrace and death (they knew that their efforts really constituted murder) by taking advantage of his piety, that is, his uncompromising devotion to his God and his faith. They knew that Daniel observed the practise of regular prayer. They knew that he was especially fervent in this practise because of his passionate interest in them who had returned to Jerusalem, who were even then busy to restore the City of God to its rightful position in the world. Daniel had not returned with the others because his God had things for him to do in Babylon, but his heart was with them. The plot was simple: Get the king to pass a law which would make Daniel’s religious exercises illegal, and one could count on his stubborn determination to do the things of his—in their opinion—ridiculous religion anyway. This would mean death for him, since law for the Medes and Persians was unchangeable and absolutely compulsory.
5. Even though Darius is very fond of Daniel, it becomes apparent that the real situation in Babylon has not changed. It is still the battleground between Jerusalem as City of God and Babylon as City of the World (Gen. 3:15). Darius seems to have fallen for the suggestion of his rulers without much effort on their part. The idea that none might perform an act of religious devotion for thirty days as an expression of loyalty to the crown is flattering, and he translates this evil suggestion into law. The trap has been set!
6. Prayer is the heart which pumps life and power for and into the Church, and so this attack is not a small matter. If the world could really close the mouths of believers, it would succeed to destroy the Cause of God. It was the intention of Daniel’s competitors to remove Daniel from his place of leadership. Behind this desire lurks a sly and deceptive Satan, whose purpose it is to shut up one of those righteous men whose supplications are unbelievably effective (Jas. 5:16). If this satanic objective is reached God’s people would be lost. For Daniel was in the world as one of God’s favorites, even as Job had been, and God blesses these because of their pure and uncompromising love for him. Still more, the pathway to heaven did lie over Jerusalem, the City of God, where he had chosen to dwell and from where he was pleased to dispense his blessings. Satan was trying to cut the tie between God and his people.
7. The greatest miracle of Daniel 6 does not take place in the Hon’s den. It is that Daniel perseveres as a praying prophet, and as a praying intercessor. He is, therefore, “a type of Christ.”
C. Persistence in Prayer!
1. Vs. 10 tells us that when Daniel heard of the king’s decree with its attendant threat of punishment he hastened to pray. This is for two reasons: (a) He was a believer, or, as we would say today, a Christian. A Christian always prays. One can no more compel a believer to give lip prayer than one can command the thunder to remain quiet. Prayer is natural for the believer. (b) Daniel was not of a mind to compromise his position before God. He does not give way to the kind of thinking which begins to speculate as to whether we ought to do right “when it won’t do any good” or, still worse, “when we can preserve our future testimony by remaining quiet for a little while” (in this case, just thirty days). Daniel knew that his prayers would bring about his personal downfall, but he offers them anyway because he can do nothing else.
2. Not only does Daniel find it impossible not to pray. even if it should cost him his life, hut he is also humble enough to pray. We must not forget that throughout his life this man of God has been honored with the highest honors men ever get in this life. To illustrate, there is little doubt but that Daniel knew a measure of authority and power which few in our time ever see. Nevertheless, he prays! He prays because he knows that he is but a child of God, and that he is nothing apart from God, and that whatever he might lose in the pursuit of God’s service is as nothing compared to the reward of the faithful.
D. Victory through Prayer!
1. By his fervent, sincere prayer Daniel overcame the world of his time! It might have seemed to be otherwise, for he is spied upon by his enemies, found to be in conflict with the unalterable law of the Medes and Persians, brought before the king, and sentenced to death. The horrors of a cold, heartless, unbelieving formalism are to be seen here, when we see a king compelled to sentence to death someone that he knows is not worthy of such punishment. Again: a reminder of Jesus Christ and another representative of a worldly empire, Judge Pontius Pilate of Rome. Neither Darius nor Pilate dare to do what is right.
2. Daniel’s downfall is in appearance only. In the first place, Daniel is the only one whose mind is at rest. His attackers are deeply troubled, knowing that they have perpetrated raw injustice. And his judge, King Darius, is so unhappy with the situation that he lost a night’s sleep on account of it. This is a primary result of true prayer, namely, peace of mind when everyone else, even one’s most hostile enemies, are upset.
3. The second fruit of Daniel’s prayer is that his faith stops the mouths of the lions (Heb. 11:33). This is the faith which is “assurance of things hoped for, a conviction of things not seen” (Heb. 11:1). This faith knows God as the Creator of heaven and earth, and releases the power of the only God when it is required for the coming of his Kingdom. An angel was dispatched by God to restrain the lions, because his servant Daniel had prayed. In his prayer he had pleaded innocency (vs. 22), which means that he asked God for help upon the basis of God’s promise to provide a “great highpriest” (Heb. 4:14). God’s answer to Daniel means that he recognizes that those who trust in him because of the promised salvation in Christ are perfectly righteous, indeed.
4. Things do not necessarily turn out as they did with Daniel. God is also honored by the martyrdom of his saints, and we are not to expect anything but that he will do that which the glory and well-being of his Kingdom requires. It was God’s desire that the annals of this anti-christian empire should contain a testimony to the supremacy of the God of the indestructible Kingdom, and therefore the lions could not consume Daniel. If we expect that everyone and anyone will be delivered according to his prayer, we will be expecting more than he has promised.
5. The victory included exposure and destruction of God’s enemies as well as Daniel’s deliverance. This is something which reminds us of the final judgment. In it, too, the unbeliever will be exposed as one who hates God and rejects his Son, Jesus Christ, and his treatment will be accordingly. Let us be sure to believe on the Son of God, lest we share in such a destruction!
Suggested Questions for Discussion:
1. Was Daniel right in his willingness to obey a worldly ruler representing an ungodly empire?
2. Does this chapter teach that we may disobey certain laws laid down under certain circumstances by the government?
3. Should we also pray with our faces set toward Jerusalem?
4. How must we evaluate Darius’ assurance to Daniel that God would take care of him in the lions’ den?
5. How must we account for Darius’ keen interest in and love for Daniel?
6. Should not Daniel have interceded with the king to spare the lives of his enemies? Was it right to include their families in this punishment?
7. Do you think that any of Darius’ subjects came to saving faith through the proclamation of the king (vss. 25–27)?
A. Introductory Remarks:
1. Chapters 5, 6 form the conclusion to the historical section of Daniel’s book. In these chapters {5, 6} the circumstances and the times are quite different than those in chapters 1–4, where we read repeatedly about Nebuchadnezzar. In chapter 5 Belshazzar is in control. Belshazzar is not the son but the grandson of Nebuchadnezzar, who was a son of Nabonedus. The queen mentioned here is Belshazzar’s mother. It is likely that she was a daughter of Nebuchadnezzar.
2. Daniel is to be seen here as an elderly man whose great accomplishments and contributions of the past are all but forgotten. It is about 30 years after his appearance in the palace described in chapter 4. After Nebuchadnezzar’s death Daniel seems to have been lost in the multitude of bureaucratic servants which great governments seem always to create. We must remember that Daniel is not primarily a government official but a believer in God and a servant of his Word. This Word is to be spoken on behalf of the God of the Word, and in this instance it meant a long time of patient waiting until his faithful servant was once again brought before the king and his guests to fulfill his prophetic task. They who do the Lord’s work must often wait long for his time!
3. The feast arranged by Belshazzar took place at a very late and very dark moment in his reign. His enemy, Cyrus, had already captured everything but a small part of the city of Babylon, a section which by virtue of its stout military defenses had escaped capture. It is hard to believe that a king so obviously endangered would still find it possible to celebrate, but that is what he did. Is this, perhaps, a scene reflective of the world’s persistent dream of safety and success, no matter what?
4. Although the Chaldean·Babylonian empire is replaced by the Medo-Persian, the struggle between the Kingdom of God and the anti-Christian kingdoms of this world continues. The cast in this great drama changes, but the spiritual issues under dispute remain the same. In fact, we see an actual intensifying of the hostility. In chapter 1 the effort is made to destroy the Church by way of cunning and guile (by “Babylonizing” Israel’s elite youth), but in chapter 3 we see the use of raw physical power in the case of the fiery furnace. Looking forward to chapter 6 we find the world putting forth its most vigorous and dangerous attack by trying to take away the Church’s greatest and last weapon, prayer. Nevertheless, the Lord’s kingdom emerges from the fray victorious. His Name comes to be known among the heathen, and is even lauded in the official documents of the imperial government.
B. The Sin of Belshazzar:
1. The sin of Belshazzar is idolatry (vs. 23). The seriousness of his idolatry is to be seen against the background of his grandfather’s humiliation as recorded in chapter 4. As indicated above, the time of this idolatrous, wicked feast is marked by war, a war which has seen all but total disaster for Belshazzar and his friends. Here the world shows itself to be unconcerned so far as the warnings of God are concerned, an unconcern which persists even today when the signs of the Lord’s return for judgment are very plain.
2. The depth of human depravity is always shocking beyond description! This is to he seen on this occasion especially when the golden vessels originally taken out of the Temple at Jerusalem are used in the service of the Babylonian gods. You must not forget that the Babylonians were very broad-minded, so to speak. They honored all gods of all peoples, even subject nations. And they were afraid to desecrate things dedicated to the gods, no matter what they thought of the people to whom these kind of gods belonged. Their actions here are the deliberate expressions of contempt for and hatred of the Almighty God. Even in the very face of destruction and annihilation the wicked find pleasure in pouring out their scorn upon the One, holy God.
3. Daniel’s sermon before the king and his assembled guests (vss. 17–24) is most courageous, as is all true prophecy. True prophecy is always marked by complete fearlessness so far as its apparently inevitable consequences are concerned. Who can imagine saying such things to an oriental despot, without being killed? Daniel knows very well that this isn’t the way to save one’s own life, but he is not out to save his own life. And so he tells the king such very hard things as: (a) Nebuchadnezzar’s rule is to be understood as something which came from God, the God of the Jerusalem temple; (b) Nebuchadnezzar’s sin was pride, that is, refusal to recognize Cod as the One by whose appointment and in whose strength he might rule; (c) Nebuchadnezzar’s period of humiliation was something brought about by Daniel’s God; (d) Belshazzar could have known all this, but refused to humble his heart, preferring to worship the gods of silver, gold, brass, iron, wood and stone; (e) Belshazzar must now expect God’s wrath in judgment.
4. The severe reaction of the king and his party to the sudden appearance of the hand of God as it writes upon the palace wall is not to be attributed to anything but the fact that it is God’s hand which has appeared. Babylonian kings were quite used to seeing things which were interesting and arresting and even awesome, but these things do not make them feel so undone as vs. 6 indicates. Once again, how terrible will be the Day of the Lord, when every eye shall see Jesus Christ returning in glory to judge the living and the dead! Still more: Belshazzar is so troubled by a few words written by God. Why aren’t we more troubled by a whole Bible full of warnings and admonitions, all of which are likewise written by God’s hand?
5. God troubles Belshazzar. The pathway to the “peace that passes understanding” leads over the way of that kind of disturbance which God works by his Word of warning. God’s warnings are always merciful, even when they come at such a late moment as the one our chapter describes. It is, indeed, too late to prevent the destruction of Babylon, hut not too late to urge Belshazzar and his company to bow before Jerusalem’s great God. Men must know that God rules in the kingdom of men, and that he establishes and removes whomsoever he pleases. He alone is God, and his Kingdom is the only indestructible kingdom. Everyone will know this eventually, of course, but the wise will understand now and be saved.
6. The sign written on the wall is not decipherable by the wise men of Belshazzar’s kingdom. Again, this must be understood spiritually. These experts were well-trained, gifted, respected men whose accomplishments were by all merely human standards outstanding. But God reveals to his children in their humility and simplicity that which is hidden from the worldly wise.
7. The Queen-mother hears of the confusion in the banquet hall, and comes to investigate. She remembers Daniel, God’s prophet, and advises that he be summoned to interpret the writing on the wall. We have mentioned the fact that Daniel had apparently gone into obscurity. We must bear in mind that Babylon’s greatness was directly involved with Daniel’s presence in that kingdom. For the sake of Daniel, and because of his sanctified rule as a chief in Babylon, God had allowed that anti-christian kingdom to grow and exist. But the world always forgets the source of its strength and success, and so now Babylon must come to its destined overthrow.
8. We would miss a great deal if we would not see here the fact that the Word of God is involved in and determinative for everything in life, even politics. Political life is not something with which spiritual life has nothing to do. When politics is treated as if it were something from which Christians may keep themselves aloof, then it must become secular in character, that is, concerned only with gold, silver, brass, iron, wood, stone—the things which represent human advantage apart from God’s real blessing in Jesus Christ.
9. We think that the sign written by God on the wall was actually composed of just the first letters: M M T P P. To Daniel was revealed both the words themselves and the interpretation. The words, mene, tekel and upharsin are the names of weights (literally, a pound, a sixtieth of a pound, and two halves of a sixtieth of a pound). These stand for numbering or counting, weighing and dividing. The “interpretation” (the miraculous unfolding of something secret) applies to the destiny of Babylon. God has counted Belshazzar’s kingdom and has decided to put an end to it (mene). God has weighed the kingdom and found it to be deficient (tekel). The word upharsin is the plural of peres, which resembles the name Persia. The idea is that God is predicting and working both the breaking of Babylon’s rule and the handing over of the kingdom to the Persians.
10. Belshazzar’s reaction to Daniel’s prophecy is not given in much detail. It seems that he did what many do when they hear the Word preached, that is, applaud the preacher but refuse to believe and practise what is said. The proper response to God’s Word is not to say, “What a gifted preacher,” but to say, “Amen.”
11. We ought to see a very plain reference to our Lord Jesus Christ here. Daniel is made “the third ruler in the kingdom.” This means that he is the most important man after the king and the king’s father. This might have been a great honor if Belshazzar’s kingdom were not all but defeated. The reference to our Lord lies in the mockery which this represents. Daniel predicts the downfall of Babylon, and as a reward he is given a high title in that which he has, from God, revealed and exposed as quite worthless. Expired kingdoms are not very valuable. So our Lord was mocked when He served as our chief prophet while on earth.
12. That very night Belshazzar was killed and the new rule of the Medo-Persians is installed under Darius. The Fall of Babylon is predictive of the fan of the Antichrist (Rev. 18). Like Babylon, the kingdoms of this world will come to naught because “in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth.”
Suggested questions for discussion:
1. Why did Belshazzar make use of Jerusalem’s holy vessels, while none had done so before in Babylon?
2. Do you recognize the hand of Satan in this chapter, especially in the rejoicing of the king and his party on the eve of Babylon’s destruction?
3. How do we account for the consternation which follows upon the mysterious handwriting on the wall, and the unbelief add indifference which both precedes the appearance of the hand and follows the interpretation by Daniel?
4. How do you understand the description of Daniel as prophet found in vs. 12?
5. Was there really an opportunity for Belshazzar and his followers to be saved from their sin in this preaching of Daniel?
6. How does this chapter make plain the fact of the sovereignty of God in history?
7. Point out the points of conflict between Babylon and Jerusalem in this chapter; what do these mean?
8. Why is the anti-christian world in Rev. 18 compared to Babylon?
LESSON VI: “BY FAITH DANIEL STOPS THE MOUTH OF LIONS” (Discussion material: Daniel 6)
A. Introduction:
1. In chapter 6 we find the presence of a new world empire, the Medo-Persian, with Cyrus as “ruler of the world.” Although the Babylonian Empire has been defeated, things aren’t really much different—to the naked eye—in the great city of Babylon. Babylon was a great trade center, and in spite of Persian conquest remained a powerful and prosperous financial capital for many years of the Persian supremacy. It was “business as usual” in Babylon.
2. Cyrus appoints Darius the Mede as king of Babylon, an important post because of that city’s economic influence (and “money talks,” indeed I). Darius is probably the same as the one called Gobryas. He served Nebuchadnezzar’s regime as a politico-military leader, but seems to have gone over to the Persians in the time of the inept Nabonedus, father of Belshazzar. He was a capable, serious man, and there is reason to believe that the citizens of Babylon were glad for the change which brought him to their beautiful and important city as king. He is not a young man, having reached the age of sixty-two years (chapter 5:31).
3. Appearances were deceiving in Babylon at this moment, however, for God’s prophetic and incomparably powerful curse had been pronounced upon her. In just a few years her role as a royal city was ended, and within a few decades her walls were broken down. Babylon, whose pride had made her think of herself as the queen of the whole earth was doomed to a slow process of decay and decline. God had determined to bury her greatness under the desert sands in order that his people might always know that only his Kingdom is indestructible!
B. The Attack upon Prayer!
1. As we have said, Darius is a more competent and more earnest man than his predecessor, Belshazzar. He is an able organizer and administrator (cf. vs. 2), dividing his realm into 120 districts with three presidents, one of whom is Daniel. It takes but a little while and Daniel comes to the top as the very best of the presidents and the other district governors because “an excellent spirit was in him.” In our opinion we must not be afraid to recognize this as the indwelling Spirit of God, by virtue of which Daniel is wise, fair, and scrupulously honest. Since the great task of the governors and presidents is to administer the tax program, such qualities were both necessary and appreciated. We must not forget, of course, that integrity and righteousness are not typical of bureaucrats in a worldly empire.
2. The character of the opposition to Daniel is the familiar staff jealousy often seen in life. Sinful man cannot he reconciled to the thought that God is sovereign in the dispensation of His grace!
3. The Bible says that the governors and presidents were unanimous in their desire to get rid of Daniel, whose skill and excellence they could not endure. Their first attempt is to find something faulty in his daily work. Surely he is not perfect, and especially in a position in which one has to entrust many things to subordinates there ought to be some evidence of incompetence or dishonesty. This attempt fails miserably, because Daniel was, says the Bible, faithful. This means that Daniel did his work diligently, obediently, energetically, sincerely. He knew that a believer must also be faithful in the pursuit of his daily calling.
4. Then his enemies resolved to try something else. They would bring Daniel to disgrace and death (they knew that their efforts really constituted murder) by taking advantage of his piety, that is, his uncompromising devotion to his God and his faith. They knew that Daniel observed the practise of regular prayer. They knew that he was especially fervent in this practise because of his passionate interest in them who had returned to Jerusalem, who were even then busy to restore the City of God to its rightful position in the world. Daniel had not returned with the others because his God had things for him to do in Babylon, but his heart was with them. The plot was simple: Get the king to pass a law which would make Daniel’s religious exercises illegal, and one could count on his stubborn determination to do the things of his—in their opinion—ridiculous religion anyway. This would mean death for him, since law for the Medes and Persians was unchangeable and absolutely compulsory.
5. Even though Darius is very fond of Daniel, it becomes apparent that the real situation in Babylon has not changed. It is still the battleground between Jerusalem as City of God and Babylon as City of the World (Gen. 3:15). Darius seems to have fallen for the suggestion of his rulers without much effort on their part. The idea that none might perform an act of religious devotion for thirty days as an expression of loyalty to the crown is flattering, and he translates this evil suggestion into law. The trap has been set!
6. Prayer is the heart which pumps life and power for and into the Church, and so this attack is not a small matter. If the world could really close the mouths of believers, it would succeed to destroy the Cause of God. It was the intention of Daniel’s competitors to remove Daniel from his place of leadership. Behind this desire lurks a sly and deceptive Satan, whose purpose it is to shut up one of those righteous men whose supplications are unbelievably effective (Jas. 5:16). If this satanic objective is reached God’s people would be lost. For Daniel was in the world as one of God’s favorites, even as Job had been, and God blesses these because of their pure and uncompromising love for him. Still more, the pathway to heaven did lie over Jerusalem, the City of God, where he had chosen to dwell and from where he was pleased to dispense his blessings. Satan was trying to cut the tie between God and his people.
7. The greatest miracle of Daniel 6 does not take place in the Hon’s den. It is that Daniel perseveres as a praying prophet, and as a praying intercessor. He is, therefore, “a type of Christ.”
C. Persistence in Prayer!
1. Vs. 10 tells us that when Daniel heard of the king’s decree with its attendant threat of punishment he hastened to pray. This is for two reasons: (a) He was a believer, or, as we would say today, a Christian. A Christian always prays. One can no more compel a believer to give lip prayer than one can command the thunder to remain quiet. Prayer is natural for the believer. (b) Daniel was not of a mind to compromise his position before God. He does not give way to the kind of thinking which begins to speculate as to whether we ought to do right “when it won’t do any good” or, still worse, “when we can preserve our future testimony by remaining quiet for a little while” (in this case, just thirty days). Daniel knew that his prayers would bring about his personal downfall, but he offers them anyway because he can do nothing else.
2. Not only does Daniel find it impossible not to pray. even if it should cost him his life, hut he is also humble enough to pray. We must not forget that throughout his life this man of God has been honored with the highest honors men ever get in this life. To illustrate, there is little doubt but that Daniel knew a measure of authority and power which few in our time ever see. Nevertheless, he prays! He prays because he knows that he is but a child of God, and that he is nothing apart from God, and that whatever he might lose in the pursuit of God’s service is as nothing compared to the reward of the faithful.
D. Victory through Prayer!
1. By his fervent, sincere prayer Daniel overcame the world of his time! It might have seemed to be otherwise, for he is spied upon by his enemies, found to be in conflict with the unalterable law of the Medes and Persians, brought before the king, and sentenced to death. The horrors of a cold, heartless, unbelieving formalism are to be seen here, when we see a king compelled to sentence to death someone that he knows is not worthy of such punishment. Again: a reminder of Jesus Christ and another representative of a worldly empire, Judge Pontius Pilate of Rome. Neither Darius nor Pilate dare to do what is right.
2. Daniel’s downfall is in appearance only. In the first place, Daniel is the only one whose mind is at rest. His attackers are deeply troubled, knowing that they have perpetrated raw injustice. And his judge, King Darius, is so unhappy with the situation that he lost a night’s sleep on account of it. This is a primary result of true prayer, namely, peace of mind when everyone else, even one’s most hostile enemies, are upset.
3. The second fruit of Daniel’s prayer is that his faith stops the mouths of the lions (Heb. 11:33). This is the faith which is “assurance of things hoped for, a conviction of things not seen” (Heb. 11:1). This faith knows God as the Creator of heaven and earth, and releases the power of the only God when it is required for the coming of his Kingdom. An angel was dispatched by God to restrain the lions, because his servant Daniel had prayed. In his prayer he had pleaded innocency (vs. 22), which means that he asked God for help upon the basis of God’s promise to provide a “great highpriest” (Heb. 4:14). God’s answer to Daniel means that he recognizes that those who trust in him because of the promised salvation in Christ are perfectly righteous, indeed.
4. Things do not necessarily turn out as they did with Daniel. God is also honored by the martyrdom of his saints, and we are not to expect anything but that he will do that which the glory and well-being of his Kingdom requires. It was God’s desire that the annals of this anti-christian empire should contain a testimony to the supremacy of the God of the indestructible Kingdom, and therefore the lions could not consume Daniel. If we expect that everyone and anyone will be delivered according to his prayer, we will be expecting more than he has promised.
5. The victory included exposure and destruction of God’s enemies as well as Daniel’s deliverance. This is something which reminds us of the final judgment. In it, too, the unbeliever will be exposed as one who hates God and rejects his Son, Jesus Christ, and his treatment will be accordingly. Let us be sure to believe on the Son of God, lest we share in such a destruction!
Suggested Questions for Discussion:
1. Was Daniel right in his willingness to obey a worldly ruler representing an ungodly empire?
2. Does this chapter teach that we may disobey certain laws laid down under certain circumstances by the government?
3. Should we also pray with our faces set toward Jerusalem?
4. How must we evaluate Darius’ assurance to Daniel that God would take care of him in the lions’ den?
5. How must we account for Darius’ keen interest in and love for Daniel?
6. Should not Daniel have interceded with the king to spare the lives of his enemies? Was it right to include their families in this punishment?
7. Do you think that any of Darius’ subjects came to saving faith through the proclamation of the king (vss. 25–27)?