Daniel: Does God Reign? Does God Care? - Reading PlanНамуна

Start with prayer, then watch the video and read Daniel 5.

Daniel 5 is a sumptuous story of the hubris and downfall of a proud and godless king. It speaks of the power and sovereignty of God, and in doing so, of the fragility and weakness of even the greatest empires and human power.

It’s a story that’s inspired great art and given us some of the most famous phrases in the English language – “The writing is on the wall” and “you have been weighed in the scales and found wanting.” It’s a cracker!

But what is its relevance to us today? In many ways the answer is obvious, because it’s all about power – and power still resonates today. Who has it? God or Belshazzar?

That’s a theme we’ve been exploring for the past few chapters, and which is at the heart of this first part of the book. But things are taken up a notch in this story.

It starts with a direct challenge and mocking of God. Belshazzar isn’t just proud, like Nebuchadnezzar. He mocks God. He calls for the treasures of God’s Temple in Jerusalem and uses them for a booze-up and debauchery. You don’t need to be a religious scholar to realise that that is a calculated insult!

And God’s response is swift and total. Firstly, he shows once again that he is lord over even the greatest and most powerful people on earth. Belshazzar is reduced to a quivering wreck by this awesome vision, judgement is pronounced, and his death swiftly follows. Daniel sums up the lesson for us – “you did not honour the God who holds in his hand your life and all your ways” (v23). That is not just a lesson for kings, but all of us – do you know that God holds your life and all your ways in his hand?

But that is not the end of it. God also shows he is Lord over the greatest powers on earth. One of the mightiest empires that has ever stood falls in a single evening. Babylon is overcome and consumed by a new empire – Medo-Persia. We can be so impressed by countries, or huge corporations, or international organisations and systems. But God is above them all. Do you realise and recognise that in how you live your life?