SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 7/21/2013 8:48 AM
My Worship Time Focus: PT-2
Daniel-Judgment Described
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Daniel
5:25-29
Message
of the verses: Perhaps a bit of
review is needed at this point in our study of Daniel chapter five. We have been looking at different characters,
we got through this chapter, and we are now looking at Daniel for the second
day. We have already looked at
Belshazzar, The Lord, and the Queen mother. We did not copy and paste verses
18-24 in yesterday’s SD, but we did comment on what these verses were saying.
The Lord’s warning (Daniel 5:25-29): “25 “Now this is the inscription that was written out: ’MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.’ 26“This is the interpretation of the message: ’MENE’-God has numbered your kingdom and put an end to it. 27 “’TEKEL’-you have been weighed on the scales and found deficient. 28 “’PERES’-your kingdom has been divided and given over to the Medes and Persians." 29 Then Belshazzar gave orders, and they clothed Daniel with purple and put a necklace of gold around his neck, and issued a proclamation concerning him that he now had authority as the third ruler in the kingdom.”
I believe that there are times when
the Lord blinds the eyes of people to see what is actually very easy to
see. The words were written in Aramaic
and anyone who could read it would know what the words meant, but as far as
what God said in these words the men of Babylon could not understand what they
meant. Daniel was given this gift to be
able to understand these types of things as we saw in the very first chapter of
Daniel and so he will explain what God wanted the king to understand from these
words that were written by Him.
Dr. Wiersbe writes that the word “mina’ meant ‘numbered,’ and the repetition of the word indicated that God had determined and established the end of the kingdom and it would happen shortly. (See Genesis 41:32: “"Now as for the repeating of the dream to Pharaoh twice, it means that the matter is determined by God, and God will quickly bring it about.”)
“Tekel indicated that the king
himself had been weighed by God and found wanting; so the king’s days were
numbered. Who would bring an end to the
kingdom and the king of Babylon? The
answer was in the third word ‘divided’ and ‘Persia.’ Babylon would be divided between the Medes
and Persians whose armies were at the gates of the city that very night.”
We saw in chapter four that God gave
Nebuchadnezzar a year to repent, but he did not repent and so God humbled him
for seven years, but in the case of Belshazzar God judged him that very
night.
Belshazzar gave the gifts to Daniel
even though he did not want them, for Daniel knew what was about to happen and
being third ruler in a kingdom that would end in a few hours would not be
something that Daniel would want. As we
have mentioned before that the book of Daniel is not written in chronological
order and the events that happened in chapters seven and eight have already
happened and we will see from them when we get there that God had given Daniel
a vision as to who would follow the Babylonian kingdom. In chapter six, which we will look at next
month (Lord willing), we will see Daniel as he ministers in the kingdom of the
Medes and the Persians.
Spiritual
meaning for my life today: There
comes a point when God brings about judgment to people and to nations, a time when time is up. I pray for the mercy of God to be upon our
country for our country has sinned greatly and surely deserves judgment from
the Lord. Billy Graham said back in the
1980’s that if God did not soon judge the United States that He would have to
apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah.” In the
message from this fifth chapter of Daniel that I listened to from John
MacArthur he pretty much said the same thing and he recorded that message in
1980.
My Steps of Faith for Today: Proverbs
3:5-6.
Memory
verses for the week: Psalm 46:1-7
1 God is our refuge and strength, A
very present help in trouble. 2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth
should change And though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea; 3 Though
its waters roar and foam, Though the mountains quake at its swelling pride.
Selah. 4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, The holy
dwelling places of the Most High. 5 God is in the midst of her, she will not be
moved; God will help her when morning dawns.
6 The nations made an uproar, the kingdoms
tottered; He raised His voice, the earth melted. 7 The LORD of hosts is with
us; The God of Jacob is our stronghold. Selah.
Answer
to yesterday’s Bible Question: “Jesus,
thou Son of David” (Luke 18:38-39).
Today’s
Bible Question: “Who said ‘Lord, dost
thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone’?”
Answer
in tomorrow’s SD.
7/21/2013
9:19 AM
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