Young states, The identity of Belshazzar has long caused difficulty to commentators. Putting this together, we might expect Belshazzar to have been 40+ at the fall of Babylon when he was slain (539 BC). the second year of Darius the King King of what, exactly ? 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. Under these circumstances, Belshazzar would indeed be king of Babylon in the absence of his father. The long chapter devoted to this incident which brought the Babylonian Empire to its close is undoubtedly recorded in the Word of God not only for its historic fulfillment of the prophecies relative to the Babylonian Empire but also as an illustration of divine dealing with a wicked world. The prophet Daniel, interpreting the handwriting on the wall as God's judgment on the king, foretold the imminent destruction of the city. The same was true in the Gentile world, and the dowager queen was able to enter the banquet hall without an invitation. Daniel 5:5-29, Belshazzar is killed when Cyrus of Persia invades Babylon. Not only the record in Daniel but also the external evidence is now sufficient to support the conclusion that Belshazzars coregency is almost beyond question. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. He was 62 years old. Montgomery, opposing the idea that the queen is Belshazzars wife, comments, Also the ladys masterful appearance on the scene betokens rather the queen-mother than the consort.274 Jeffery, likewise, writes, she speaks to him of his father in a way that suggests a mother speaking to a son rather than a wife to a husband.275. 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. Belshazzar (Balthazar), on the other hand, disappeared from history around 540 BC, when Darius the Great would have been roughly ten years of age. Much as Babylon fell on that sixteenth day of Tishri (Oc. Then came in all the kings wise men; but they could not read the writing, nor make known to the king the interpretation thereof. He knew for instance that Daniel was of the captivity of Judah and that he was one of the captives which Nebuchadnezzar had brought out of Jerusalem. Daniel 8:1-12, Belshazzar holds a great feast and uses the holy vessels taken from Jerusalem. [43], Regardless of any potential animosity between Nabonidus and Belshazzar, Belshazzar retained the status of crown prince and intended successor, as a handful of documents still reference the "son of the king". TEQEL means weighed, with the thought that Belshazzar has been put into the balances and found wanting, that is, short of true weight. The battle probably took place much as Herodotus records it.286. 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. A favorite target of critics of faith concerns two kings mentioned eight times each in the book of Daniel: Belshazzar and Darius the Mede. Since Belshazzar was the main beneficiary of the coup, through confiscating and inheriting Labashi-Marduk's estates and wealth, it is likely that he was the chief orchestrator. Some of these prophecies may have their ultimate fulfillment in the future (Rev 17-18). And Darius the Mede received the kingdom, being about sixty-two years old. And Darius the Median took the kingdom, being about threescore and two years old. The Cross And Our Response to Trials (1 Peter 4:12-19), 8. For further discussion, see exposition of Daniel 5:25-27. It is possible that Belshazzar had campaigned against the Persians on Lydia's behalf a year prior, in 547 BC. [25] October 543 BC is the return date most supported by surviving Babylonian documentation. With only the fingers of the hand visible and producing writing upon the wall, the spectacle immediately attracted attention. All Rights Reserved. The conspirators appointed Nabonidus, one of their number, who reigned for seventeen years before being defeated by Cyrus the Persian. - Daniel 5:5-29: Belshazzar is killed when Cyrus of Persia invades Babylon. John F. Walvoord, long-time president of Dallas Theological Seminary, was one of the most prominent evangelical scholars of his generation. Belshazzar's fate is not known, since none of the sources record it. To be clothed in scarlet and to wear a chain of gold about the neck were special tokens of the kings favor and certainly would have been coveted by any of the wise men. Herodotus gives a glowing account of Babylon as a monument to the genius of Nebuchadnezzar and undoubtedly a source of much pride to all the Babylonians. Critics of the authenticity and historicity of Daniel accordingly were free to question whether any such person as Belshazzar existed. [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. This implies a twofold difficulty. Then was king Belshazzar greatly troubled, and his countenance was changed in him, and his lords were astonied. E. J. Belshazzar then offers Daniel the same promise he made to the others of being clothed with scarlet and having a chain of gold and the privilege of being the third ruler in the kingdom, that is, the triumvir. Transliterated into English, they are given as MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN. There has been almost endless critical discussion as to what the meaning of this inscription is, and the interpretation is complicated by a number of factors.279 In the book of Daniel the words are given in Aramaic, but some have questioned this.280 If it was written in Aramaic script, however, only the consonants may have appeared. 258 M. E. L. Mallowan, Nimrud, in Archaeology and Old Testament Study, p. 62. Cf. Daniel read the writing and Belshazzar made him the third ruler in the kingdom. [29][1] The Verse Account of Nabonidus, a biased[13] document probably written after Nabonidus was deposed by Cyrus the Great, states that Nabonidus entrusted Belshazzar with the kingship, but there are no records of Belshazzar assuming the royal title. (30-31) The death of Belshazzar and the rise of Darius the Mede. Many of the streets were lined with buildings three and four stories high. On his return, the doorkeepers refused to admit him. He knew Daniel and knew the history of Nebuchadnezzars experience with Gods chastening. Cf. The Cross And Christs Suffering For Sins (1 Peter 3:18-22), 6. While the feast was in progress with its drinking of wine and shouting of praises to the gods of Babylon, suddenly there appeared the fingers of a mans hand which wrote on the plastered wall of the palace. She had not attended the banquet. A solution of the problem has depended largely on the premises of the scholars dealing with it. Daniel read the writing and Belshazzar made him the third ruler in the kingdom. [6] In the story, the conqueror who inherits Babylon is Darius the Mede, but no such individual is known to history, and the invaders were actually Persians. As Nabonidus was relatively old at the time, Belshazzar could expect to become king within a few years. Belshazzar's Impious Feast 1 Later, King Belshazzar held a great feast for a thousand of his nobles, and he drank wine with them. According to Berosus, Nebuchadnezzar died after a reign of 43 years and was followed by his son Evil-Merodach. Nebuchadnezzars humiliating experience in chapter 4 had been followed by his death in 562 b.c. Was Belshazzar actually king of Babylon and was he murdered on the night that Babylon was conquered? O thou king, the most high God gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father a kingdom, and majesty, and glory, and honour: And for the majesty that he gave him, all people, nations, and languages, trembled and feared before him: whom he would he slew; and whom he would he kept alive; and whom he would he set up; and whom he would he put down. If she were the wife of Nabonidus who was in captivity she probably would not have desired to come alone. On the other hand, such a careful scholar as Edward J. The crisis produced by the inability of the wise men to interpret the handwriting on the wall is met by the entrance of one described as the queen. Much speculation surrounds the identity of this person as it is related to the larger question of Belshazzars lineage. PERES; Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians. 5:17-23 Then Daniel answered and said before the king, Let thy gifts be to thyself, and give thy rewards to another; yet I will read the writing unto the king, and make known to him the interpretation. One possibility, suggested by Paul-Alain Beaulieu, is that Belshazzar was put in charge of Babylonia's defense and was moving with the army along the northern and eastern border. [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. Daniel 6:10-15, Darius orders Daniel to be thrown into the lions den and wishes Daniel that he be saved by his God. 5:29-31 Then commanded Belshazzar, and they clothed Daniel with scarlet, and put a chain of gold about his neck, and made a proclamation concerning him, that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom. [24] Nabonidus made Tayma his provisional seat and he would stay there for about a decade, not returning to Babylon until September or October of 543 or 542 BC. Daniel 12:13, Cyrus allows the Jews to return to Judea and rebuild the temple in Jerusalem. Against Apion, in Josephus 1:221-25. Knowing Daniel was a wise elder statesman, the new leaders gave him a prestigious place in their government (Daniel 6:1-2). This text indicates that a person known as Bel-sarra-usur was a res sarri, an officer of the king, under Neriglissar who came to the throne in 560 B.C., as had been earlier pointed out in a text YBC 3765:2 published by R. P. Dougherty in 1929 in Nabonidus and Belshazzar, pp. [15] Belshazzar's father came to the throne as a result of a conspiracy that saw the deposition and murder of the previous king, Labashi-Marduk. It is possible in the decline of the Babylonian Empire that the number of the wise men was far more limited at this point in history than it was under Nebuchadnezzars reign. He was known for his military might, the splendour of his capital, Babylon, and his important part in Jewish history. When Daniel was brought before the king, he addressed a natural question to reassure himself of the identity of Daniel. Daniel 6:16, Darius hurries to the lions den the following day to see what happened to Daniel and learns to his astonishment that Daniel is unharmed. (19011906). The Jewish Encyclopedia. Who succeeded Belshazzar as king of Babylon? It is possible that Nabonidus was married to one of Nebuchadnezzar II's daughters. The Bible refers to him as his son ( Daniel 5:2 ), but really the original language seems to hint they're family, or. Belshazzars situation and his knowledge of Nebuchadnezzars humbling made all the more blasphemous his taking of the vessels captured in Jerusalem from the house of the Lord and using them to drink wine in praising the gods of Babylon. Belshazzar is best identified as his son, whose mother was either a wife or a daughter of Nebuchadnezzar and thereby strengthened the claim of Nabonidus to the throne. (Cf. As Nabonidus was relatively old at the time, his reign could be expected to be brief and transitional, meaning that Belshazzar could expect to inherit the throne within a few years.[23]. As mentioned before, Belshazzar was the grandson of King Nebuchadnezzar. Darius notes Daniels good qualities and plans to elevate him to the highest administrative position. [35] These include: The events that transpired in Babylonia during Belshazzar's regency are not well known, owing to a lack of surviving sources. He was instead filled with terror to the point that the joints of his loins were loosed, and his knees smote one against another. In his excitement, he no longer could sit down but hardly had the strength to stand. That such a large feast should be held by a monarch like Belshazzar is not at all strange. In any case Daniel read the writing as Aramaic, and the suggestion of puns in the language (see later discussion) depends upon the Aramaic. After his murder the conspirators held a meeting, and by common consent conferred the kingdom upon Nabonnedus, a Babylonian and one of their gang. 7:1; 8:1). Babylonian chronicles refer to the crown prince being stationed at home in Babylonia with "his army". Through the deposition of Labashi-Marduk, Belshazzar had positioned himself to become the heir of one of Babylonia's wealthiest families. Only Babylon with its massive walls and fortifications remained intact. Young suggests, after some of the rabbis, that the characters may have been written vertically,281 and in that case in the Aramaic order they would have appeared as follows: If, in addition to the complications of the Aramaic, a language which was known, some unfamiliar form of their characters was used, it would indeed have required divine revelation to give a suitable explanation and interpretation, and may account for the difficulty in reading the writing. Daniel 5:30. Later, King Nebuchadnezzar had another dream, and again Daniel was able to interpret it. 184-85. Belshazzar may have been the son of the king who is said in the same chronicle to have commanded the Babylonian army in Accad from the 6th to the 11th year of Nabunaid I; or, possibly longer, for the annals before the 6th and after the 11th year are broken and for the most part illegible. [22], As he was clearly the main beneficiary of the coup, Belshazzar was likely the chief orchestrator of the conspiracy ended in the deposition and death of Labashi-Marduk. 5:24-28 Then was the part of the hand sent from him; and this writing was written. (30-31) The death of Belshazzar and the rise of Darius the Mede. For other uses, see, List of biblical figures identified in extra-biblical sources, "Nabonidus, Belshazzar, and the Book of Daniel: an Update", Prayer of Azariah and Song of the Three Holy Children, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Belshazzar&oldid=1147589796, Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from the 1906 Jewish Encyclopedia, Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from the 1906 Jewish Encyclopedia without a Wikisource reference, Wikipedia articles incorporating text from the 1906 Jewish Encyclopedia, Wikipedia pending changes protected pages, Short description is different from Wikidata, Pages with numeric Bible version references, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Belshazzar never assumed, and was not allowed to use, the title of king (. As Belshazzar was drinking his wine, he ordered his servants to bring the gold and silver cups. The king was drinking wine with them. Belshazzar's feast: analysis. And the king spake, and said to the wise men of Babylon, Whosoever shall read this writing, and shew me the interpretation thereof, shall be clothed with scarlet, and have a chain of gold about his neck, and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom. Also known as: Baltasar, Balthasar, Bel-shar-usur. 407-15. His grandfather Nebuchadnezzar had taken these cups from the Temple in Jerusalem. 278 There is a remarkably close parallel to the language of 5:23 in the Prayer of Nabonidus found in Qumran Cave 4:See J. T. Milik, pp. of natural causes. While the dimensions may be questioned, the magnificence of the city was not seriously exaggerated.267. What Daniel is saying is that he will give an unprejudiced interpretation with no attempt to seek favor from the king. exhibits its remarkable accuracy.249 The controversy over Belshazzar, because of the extensive investigation and great variety of findings, has become one of the most complicated problems in the entire book, but the problem itself is comparatively simple. The storehouses of Babylon were still abundant with food and wine, and there is evidence that there was plenty of both at this feast. Now, in chapter 5, this prophecy is about to be fulfilled. Within these walls were beautiful avenues, parks, and palaces. Since there is little change in the prominent members of Neriglissar's and Labashi-Marduk's former household under Belshazzar, it is probable that Belshazzar becoming the master of the household was met with relatively little opposition.
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