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Daniel 5 says Belshazzar was king, and was making a great feast when (famously) a hand appeared and wrote a message of judgment on the wall. Daniel does not explain the difficulty in reading the writing on the wall, but the problem apparently was not that it was a strange language but rather what the words signified prophetically. It was hard for the Babylonians to believe that even the Medes and the Persians who had surrounded their beloved city could possibly breach the fortifications or exhaust their supplies which were intended to be ample for a siege of many years. The only other similar case is Neriglissar, though Neriglissar lacked royal blood and had not been the intended successor to the throne, and abandoned his estates upon becoming king, seemingly entrusting them to Labashi-Marduk, his crown prince, and a figure of unclear connections called Nabu-sabit-qate. Since the publication of Raymond Doughertys scholarly research .on Nabonidus and Belshazzar, based on the Nabonidus Cylinder and other sources, there is no ground for questioning the general historicity of Belshazzar; and only the details of the scriptural account unverified by extrabiblical sources can be challenged by the critics.247 Montgomery states that the story is unhistorical but nevertheless contains indubitable reminiscences of actual history.248. 266 Herodotus, History of the Persian Wars, 1:178-83. Drinking bouts such as characterized Babylon were also common among other peoples, such as the Persians. Belshazzar died after Babylon fell to the Persian general Gobyras without resistance on Oct. 12, 539, and probably before the Persian king Cyrus II entered the city 17 days later. It does imply, however, that Belshazzar was in descent from Nebuchadnezzar. [54] Belshazzar is killed that night, and Darius the Mede takes the kingdom. A. Brinkman, Probably the first recorded mention of Belshazzar, Prince of Babylonia under Nabonnedus is in a cuneiform text 135 in a collection at the Archaeological Museum in Florence published in 1958-60 by Professor Karl Ober-huber of the University of Innsbruck. The latter relates the story thus, Cyropd., lib. Her address is courteous, O king, live for ever, but directly to the point. Daniel 6:21-22, Darius orders Daniel to be freed out of the lions den and have the administrators thrown in instead, along with their wives and children. Although Babylon has been only partially excavated with but a small part of the original city recovered, the system of mounds which mark the city today more or less indicate its boundaries. (19011906). Daniel experiences a vision of the four terrifying beasts but kept the vision to himself. Norman Porteous, for instance, writes, On the other hand it is known that Belshazzar was a historical person, the son of the last Babylonian king Nabonidus, who acted as regent of Babylon for several years before its fall, while his father was absent at the oasis of Teima in Arabia.252 This would begin Belshazzars regency about 553 B.C., when Nabonidus went to Teima. [16] The sources suggest that while he was part of the conspiracy, Nabonidus had not intended, nor expected, to become king himself and he was hesitant to accept the nomination. As Young points out, however, the very character of this absolute authority delegated to Nebuchadnezzar by God also made Nebuchadnezzar responsible.277 This is demonstrated and supported by Nebuchadnezzars experience of insanity in Daniel 4 when, as Daniel expresses it, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took his glory from him. Daniel then itemizes in detail the characteristics of Nebuchadnezzars insanity, how he lived with the wild beasts, ate grass like the ox, and was wet with the dew of heaven. Although the precise identity of Belshazzar may continue to be debated, available facts support accepting Daniels designation of Belshazzar as king. Now Belshazzar was all too eager to have the gifts of this man exercised to interpret the writing. Belshazzar could grant royal privileges identical to those granted by kings. This would mean right about the time of his death, around 490-485 BC, since he was born around 550 BC, and lived for about 65 years. And Darius the Mede received the kingdom, being about sixty-two years old. . Nabonidus was allowed to live in Carmania until the time of his death, but he was not allowed to come to Babylonia.245, The account of Berosus preserved by Josephus is supported by other evidence such as the short fragment of Abydenus preserved by Eusebius.246, Until the discovery of the Nabonidus Cylinder, no mention of Belshazzar, whom Daniel declares to be king of Babylon, had been found in extrabiblical literature. As in the previous instances in Daniel 2 and 4, the wisdom of the world is demonstrated to be totally unable to solve its major problems and to understand either the present or the future. As Keil points out, the king was ready to listen to anyone who could interpret the writing.269. The temple in Jerusalem is completed. Daniel 5:1 Later, King Belshazzar held a great feast for a thousand of his nobles, and he drank wine with them. This articleincorporates text from a publication now in the public domain:Singer, Isidore; etal., eds. [5][6][7] Daniel's Belshazzar is not malevolent (he, for instance, rewards Daniel for his interpretation of "the writing on the wall"), but in later Jewish tradition Belshazzar was presented as a tyrant who oppresses the Jewish people. 279 In the end, even the critics accept either the interpretation of Daniel (mene, numbered; tekel, weighed; peres, divided); or the reading, a maneh, a maneh, a shekel, and a half-maneh, see exposition. 1., and Xenophon, inform us. So great was his genius that Nebuchadnezzar had made him master or chief of his wise men, which in itself was a remarkable position for one who was not a Chaldean; and this honor placed upon him testified to the confidence of Nebuchadnezzar in Daniels abilities. Writing on the Wall - Mission Bible Class Leupold cites the ancient historian Ktesias to the effect that Persian monarchs frequently were known to dine daily with 15,000 people.257 M. E. 50:Mallowan mentions the great feast that Ashusnasirpal II gave to 69,574 guests when he dedicated his new capital city of Calah (Nimrud) in 879 b.c.258. Through the deposition of Labashi-Marduk, Belshazzar had positioned himself to become the heir of one of Babylonia's wealthiest families. Daniel 12:13, Cyrus allows the Jews to return to Judea and rebuild the temple in Jerusalem. There was, however, nothing insolent or discourteous in Daniels address to the king; and the charges were stated in a factual and objective way. Belshazzar played a pivotal role in the coup d'tat that overthrew the king Labashi-Marduk (r.556 BC) and brought Nabonidus to power in 556 BC. . and the fall of Babylon 539 B.C. 89-93. Here the discussion is lost in a maze of conflicting facts in extrabiblical literature concerning which the critics themselves are not agreed. His grandfather Nebuchadnezzar had taken these cups from the Temple in Jerusalem. The large reward that was offered, however, was to no avail, for the wise men who assembled could not read the writing nor interpret it. This is the interpretation of the thing: MENE; God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it. His widespread troopstheir number, like that of the water of a river, could not be establishedstrolled along, their weapons packed away. Daniel, in his condemnation of Belshazzar before interpreting the handwriting on the wall, honors King Nebuchadnezzar . Problems of his relationship will be considered at the proper place in the exposition, including the possibility that Belshazzars mother was a daughter of Nebuchadnezzar and thus in the royal line, whereas Nabonidus was not. But we have to acknowledge that this is speculation. Belshazzar Babylonian King - Amazing Bible Timeline He was 62 years old. [58], The Midrash literature enters into the details of Belshazzar's death. Daniel read the writing and Belshazzar made him the third ruler in the kingdom. Midway in the long wall opposite the entrance there was a niche in front of which the king may well have been seated. 184-85. All 66 books; Old Testament books; . New York: Funk & Wagnalls. He was 62 years old. B. Pritchard, ed., Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, pp. The command given to Abraham to cut in pieces three heifers (Genesis 15:9) as a part of the covenant established between him and his God was thus elucidated as symbolizing Babylonia, which gave rise to three kings, Nebuchadnezzar, Amel-Marduk, and Belshazzar, whose doom is prefigured by this act of "cutting to pieces" (Midrash Genesis Rabbah xliv.). Belshazzar's reign as king (not when he was acting in his father's stead) was incredibly brief and he only ruled two years before the Persians took over Babylon in 539 B.C. 00:00. Daniel 5:30-31. The storehouses of Babylon were still abundant with food and wine, and there is evidence that there was plenty of both at this feast. Corrections? Some of these prophecies may have their ultimate fulfillment in the future (Rev 17-18). 5:10-12 Now the queen by reason of the words of the king and his lords came into the banquet house: and the queen spake and said, O king live for ever: let not thy thoughts trouble thee, nor let thy countenance be changed. Belshazzar was killed that night, and the city taken by the Medes and Persians. Belshazzar's fate is not known, since none of the sources record it. Belshazzar, being greatly alarmed at the mysterious handwriting on the wall, and apprehending that someone in disguise might enter the palace with murderous intent, ordered his doorkeepers to behead anyone who attempted to force an entrance that night, even though such person should claim to be the king himself. Putting this together, we might expect Belshazzar to have been 40+ at the fall of Babylon when he was slain (539 BC). Some have denied his historicity The kings name, however, has now appeared upon the cuneiform documents, so that there can be no question as to his historicity. Some have found, in the six materials mentioned, a typical reference to the number of the world amenable to judgment because of its hostility to God.264 In the original, the gods of gold and silver are separated by the conjunction and, not true of the listing of the gods of brass, iron, wood, and stone, as if there were two classes of deities. Young states, The identity of Belshazzar has long caused difficulty to commentators. 275 Arthur Jeffery, The Book of Daniel, Introduction and Exegesis, in The Interpreters Bible, 6:426. 7:1; 8:1). It may even have been Belshazzar who convinced his father to stay away from Babylonia in the first place, fearing a confrontation with the Babylonian oligarchy and clergy over his father's religious beliefs. Because his rule was arbitrary and licentious, he was assassinated by Neriglisar after he had reigned only two years. The inscription on the wall may have appeared like this, MN MN TQL UPRSN. The order of the letters in the Aramaic, of course, would be the reverse of this, that is, from right to left. Daniel 5:18-21 . Belshazzar, Neo-Babylonian Bel-shar-usur, Greek Baltasar, or Balthasar, (died c. 539 bc), coregent of Babylon who was killed at the capture of the city by the Persians.