Intro: Daniel Chapter 5 Summary – The Writing on the Wall
The Daniel Chapter 5 Summary tells the famous story that gave birth to the modern phrase “the writing is on the wall” because the judgment writing on the wall God left for Babylon. With Nebuchadnezzar’s reign now ended, a new king named Belshazzar sits on Babylon’s throne, unaware that his kingdom is about to collapse. Through a mysterious handwriting on the palace wall, God delivers a chilling message that no earthly power can erase — a warning of pride, corruption, and divine judgment.
📖 Read Daniel 5 (KJV)
The Feast of Pride
King Belshazzar threw a lavish banquet for a thousand of his nobles. In a display of arrogance, he ordered that the gold and silver vessels taken from the Temple in Jerusalem — sacred items once dedicated to God — be used for drinking wine and praising false gods of gold, silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone.
The arrogance that began under Nebuchadnezzar — and should have been squashed when God humbled him — nonetheless rose again in another king. Belshazzar exalted human glory over God’s holiness. Babylon’s luxury, once the symbol of world power, had now become the stage for its downfall.
The Hand Appears
In the middle of the celebration, a supernatural event shook the room.
“In the same hour came forth fingers of a man’s hand, and wrote over against the candlestick upon the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace.” (Daniel 5:5, KJV)
The king watched in terror as the mysterious hand wrote words no one could understand. His countenance changed, his knees knocked together, and his strength left him. The same man who mocked God now trembled at His presence.
Belshazzar summoned his astrologers, magicians, and wise men — but none could read or interpret the writing. As in Nebuchadnezzar’s time, Babylon’s wisdom failed to reveal divine truth.
The Queen’s Reminder and Daniel’s Return
Then the queen (likely the queen mother) entered and reminded Belshazzar of Daniel, the prophet who had once interpreted dreams for King Nebuchadnezzar. Though now older and forgotten by the royal court, Daniel was summoned again — proof that true servants of God never lose relevance when the world’s wisdom fails.
Daniel refused Belshazzar’s offer of gifts and authority. He stood before the king as a messenger, not a politician, saying:
“Let thy gifts be to thyself, and give thy rewards to another; yet I will read the writing unto the king.” (Daniel 5:17, KJV)
Daniel’s Rebuke and Interpretation
Daniel began by reminding Belshazzar of Nebuchadnezzar’s pride and how God had humbled him until he acknowledged that “the most high God ruled in the kingdom of men.” But unlike Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar had learned nothing. He had lifted himself against the Lord of heaven, defiling the sacred vessels and glorifying idols.
Daniel then read the divine message written on the wall:
MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.
- MENE: God has numbered your kingdom and finished it.
- TEKEL: You have been weighed in the balances and found wanting.
- PERES (UPHARSIN): Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.
The interpretation was swift, final, and terrifying. God had measured Babylon’s greatness and found it hollow.
The Fall of Babylon
That very night, the prophecy was fulfilled. While the feast continued, the Medo-Persian army entered Babylon through the river gates and conquered the city without resistance. Belshazzar, the last king of Babylon, was slain, and Darius the Mede received the kingdom.
The golden age of Babylon ended not with a war trumpet, but with the sound of judgment written on a wall — a sobering reminder that no empire, no matter how grand, stands secure against God’s word.
Application for Today
The Daniel Chapter 5 Summary teaches that pride blinds the heart, and unrepentant sin invites judgment. Belshazzar’s feast symbolizes the world’s obsession with indulgence, luxury, and self-worship — distractions that make people ignore the spiritual writing already on their walls.
God’s warnings often appear long before destruction comes. Modern society, like Babylon, celebrates excess while dismissing the sacred. Yet the same God who wrote judgment on the wall also writes mercy on repentant hearts.
Daniel’s courage in confronting Belshazzar also challenges believers today: to speak truth without compromise, even when it offends kings or cultures. The world may ignore the message, but truth remains — God rules over all kingdoms and weighs every heart in His balance.
Conclusion of The Writing on the Wall Bible Story
The writing on the wall was not merely a warning for Belshazzar — it’s a message for all ages:
Power fades. Pride destroys. But those who honor God remain steadfast even when kingdoms fall.