In the book of Daniel, Daniel shared how Belshazzar “the king saw the part of the hand that wrote. Then the king's countenance was changed, and his thoughts troubled him, so that the joints of his loins were loosed, and his knees smote one against another. The king cried aloud to bring in the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. And the king spoke, and said to the wise men of Babylon, Whosoever shall read this writing, and show 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. Then came in all the king's wise men: but they could not read the writing, nor make known to the king the interpretation thereof . Then was king Belshazzar greatly troubled,
and his countenance was changed in him, and his lords were astonied”, and in chapter five and verse ten of his book Daniel said “the queen … came into the banquet house” where we read,
Now the queen, by reason of the words of the king and his lords, came into the banquet house:
and the queen spoke and said, O king, live for ever: let not your thoughts trouble you, nor let your countenance be changed:
The verse reads, “Now the queen, by reason of the words of the king and his lords, came into the banquet house:” Daniel began with the words, “now the queen” or at this time the female royal ruler and leader“”, “by reason of the words” which means “in view and because of the discourse, subject and commandment” “of the king” or “belonging to the royal ruler and leader” “and his lords” which means “and his, the royal ruler and leader’s, Belshazzar’s, magnates, nobles and princes”, “came into the banquet house” or “arrived and entered in the dwelling place and hall where the feast was held”. Daniel shared how the female royal ruler entered into the habitation where the festival was held because of the discourse of Belshazzar and his nobles.
The verse continues, “and the queen spoke and said, O king, live for ever: let not your thoughts trouble you, nor let your countenance be changed:” Daniel added the words, “and the queen” which means “and the female royal ruler and leader” “spoke and said” or “replied, responded, uttered, declared and proclaimed”, “O king” which means “O royal ruler and leader, Belshazzar”, “live for ever” or “remain alive perpetually, eternally and unto perpetuity”: “let not your thoughts trouble you” which means “do not allow and permit your, Belshazzar’s, cogitations and mental conceptions frighten, alarm or dismay you, Belshazzar”, “nor let your countenance be changed” or “no and not in any way your, Belshazzar’s, brightness, splendor and cheerfulness exist as altered”. Daniel shared how the female royal ruler responded and told King Belshazzar to remain alive eternally, not to allow his cogitations to frighten him and not to allow his splendor to be altered.
When we meditate upon the words in this verse, we learn through Daniel how Belshazzar’s “queen” got involved in this story. When she was aware of “King Belshazzar and his noble’s” response to the writing on the wall, she entered the place where the king was, wished him eternal life and told him not to be frightened or to allow his splendor to be altered. We shall see why in our next verse, but for now, let us imagine this scene. God was at work, and He is able to use whoever He desires to accomplish His will and dispatch His message. God wants everyone to know how He sent His Son Jesus into the world to die on the cross for the sins of all mankind and He raised Him from the dead after three days so when we yield our lives to Him as our personal “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and put His Holy Spirit within us to make us aware when He is at work in our lives and in the lives of others around us.
Next time Daniel says, “There is a man in your kingdom, in whom is the spirit of the holy gods”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
See more devotionals on the website "thewordfortodaywithray.com" or look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".
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