Several years after Nebuchadnezzar died, his great-grandson, Belshazzar, became the king of Babylon. On the night when the Medo-Persian king defeated him, Belshazzar gave a great banquet for a thousand of his nobles and drank wine with them. They used the utensils of the temple of God that Nebuchadnezzar took from the temple in Jerusalem before he destroyed it to eat and drink from. As they drank the wine, they praised the gods of gold and silver, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone. While they were all drinking, the finger of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall: Mene, Mene, Tekel, Parsin. Belshazzar watched the hand as it wrote, and his face turned pale, for he was so frightened. His wise men couldn't interpret the writing, but the queen remembered Daniel, so they called for Daniel to interpret the writings on the wall. Belshazzar offered Daniel the third-highest position in the kingdom of Babylon to interpret the writings, but Daniel refused to take it. Daniel told Belshazzar these words before he interpreted the writings, "But you, Belshazzar, his son, have not humbled yourself... Instead, you have set yourself up against the Lord of Heaven. You had the utensils from his temple brought to you, and you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines drank wine from them. You praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or understand. But you did not honor the God who holds in his hand your life and all your ways." The writing on the wall means Mene: God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to an end. Tekel: You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting. Peres: Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians." (Daniel 5).
Thus, on that very night, the Medes and Persians were able to penetrate the walls of the Babylonian palace and killed Belshazzar. The Medes and Persians became the most powerful kingdom on earth, and it fulfilled Nebuchadnezzar's dream. Daniel then became one of the prominent wise counselors of the Medo-Persian kingdom. God is the God of time, and the existence of every kingdom or empire is in His hands. When it was time for God to end the Babylonian empire, it came to pass, and Babylon became a part of history.
As believers, we need to remind ourselves that God holds the very existence of our human life, and he determines our lifetime on this earth. Job 12:10 says, "In his hand is the life of every living thing and the breath of all mankind." So let us be confident that nothing will happen to us without going through God's hands. Let us appreciate and enjoy the life and time that God has blessed us with. All our struggles and pains will be replaced with unmeasurable joy someday when we get to the very presence of our Heavenly Father.
Ask yourself these questions: Who determines my time on this earth? How should I live my life according to the allotted time that God has given me?
Write down all the worries that you are facing today and lift them up to God.
Prayer:
Father in Heaven, I acknowledge that you are the God of time, and you hold the very existence of life. Thank you that my life is in your loving hands. Please help me to enjoy and appreciate the life that you have entrusted me. Please help me to live my life to its fullest in honoring your name. In the name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.