That Very Night Change Came

O. T. #1991 "That Very Night Change Came"

July 28, 2021

Daniel 5-Part 6

LET IT GLOW

That very night... How quickly things can change, circumstances can turn around. We must wait on the Lord for His timing and stay faithful to Him.

Daniel interpreted the handwriting on the wall for Belshazzar to mean his days and his kingdom's days were numbered by God and expired,;he was found lacking in spiritual matters; and Babylon was divided, given over to the Medes and Persians.

Looking at the last three verses, we find:

• After Daniel interpreted the handwriting on the wall, Belshazzar commanded that Daniel be dressed in purple robes and a gold chain hung around his neck.
• The king proclaimed Daniel to be the third highest ruler in the Babylonian kingdom.
• That very night Belshazzar was slain.
• Then Darius the Mede took over the kingdom of Babylon at the age of 62.

 

God was faithful to Daniel throughout his captivity. God keeps His Word, too. In Nebuchadnezzar's dream of the metal image, the head was made of gold (Babylon) and the breast and arms of silver (Medeo-Persian), but were smashed by the stone (Jesus Christ). So the Babylonian kingdom fell, just as was predicted.

When it is in God's timing, all the mighty kingdoms in our world will fall. Then Jesus will come as King over all peoples and governments, establishing His reign. He is Savior and Redeemer, awaiting that time. It is better for us to bow our knee to King Jesus now before we meet Him in our death. Have you? God keeps His Word.

LET IT GROW

"Our good historian, John MacArthur, has this to say about that night,

"One ancient account alleged that Persia's General Ugbaru had troops dig a trench to divert and, thus, lower the waters of the Euphrates River. Since the river flowed through the city of Babylon, the lowered water enabled besiegers to unexpectedly invade via the waterway under the thick walls and reach the palace before the city was aware. The end then came quickly, as guards, Belshazzar, and others were killed in 539 B.C."

Matthew Henry said that Cyrus was the nephew of Darius, and was given the presidency. Other commentators say "Darius" was a title for Cyrus or another name for Cyrus, king of all Persia. It is not clear in the historical records. At any rate, Daniel was not killed during the invasion. God had protected him. He had some prophesies to do and 7 more chapters to write.

God can raise us up and give us special assignments to do for His kingdom work. Just because we have gray hairs and are in the senior category, we can still be effective in God's work.

LET IT GO

Stay faithful to our God and He will reward us in due time.

Keep us in Your will, Father.

Bless those who read this today.