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Dan 5:1-31  Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting

[Study Aired March 21, 2024]

Dan 5:1  Belshazzar the king made a great feast to a thousand of his lords, and drank wine before the thousand. 
Dan 5:2  Belshazzar, whiles he tasted the wine, commanded to bring the golden and silver vessels which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem; that the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, might drink therein.
Dan 5:3  Then they brought the golden vessels that were taken out of the temple of the house of God which was at Jerusalem; and the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, drank in them.
Dan 5:4  They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone. 
Dan 5:5  In the same hour came forth fingers of a man’s hand, and wrote over against the candlestick upon the plaister of the wall of the king’s palace: and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote. 
Dan 5:6  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. 
Dan 5:7  The king cried aloud to bring in the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. 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. 
Dan 5:8  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. 
Dan 5:9  Then was king Belshazzar greatly troubled, and his countenance was changed in him, and his lords were astonied. 
Dan 5:10  Now the queen, by reason of the words of the king and his lords, came into the banquet house: and the queen spake and said, O king, live for ever: let not thy thoughts trouble thee, nor let thy countenance be changed: 
Dan 5:11  There is a man in thy kingdom, in whom is the spirit of the holy gods; and in the days of thy father light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods, was found in him; whom the king Nebuchadnezzar thy father, the king, I say, thy father, made master of the magicians, astrologers, Chaldeans, and soothsayers; 
Dan 5:12  Forasmuch as an excellent spirit, and knowledge, and understanding, interpreting of dreams, and shewing of hard sentences, and dissolving of doubts, were found in the same Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar: now let Daniel be called, and he will shew the interpretation.
Dan 5:13  Then was Daniel brought in before the king. And the king spake and said unto Daniel, Art thou that Daniel, which art of the children of the captivity of Judah, whom the king my father brought out of Jewry?
Dan 5:14  I have even heard of thee, that the spirit of the gods is in thee, and that light and understanding and excellent wisdom is found in thee. 
Dan 5:15  And now the wise men, the astrologers, have been brought in before me, that they should read this writing, and make known unto me the interpretation thereof: but they could not shew the interpretation of the thing: 
Dan 5:16  And I have heard of thee, that thou canst make interpretations, and dissolve doubts: now if thou canst read the writing, and make known to me the interpretation thereof, thou shalt be clothed with scarlet, and have a chain of gold about thy neck, and shalt be the third ruler in the kingdom. 
Dan 5:17  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. 
Dan 5:18  O thou king, the most high God gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father a kingdom, and majesty, and glory, and honour: 
Dan 5:19  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. 
Dan 5:20  But when his heart was lifted up, and his mind hardened in pride, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took his glory from him: 
Dan 5:21  And he was driven from the sons of men; and his heart was made like the beasts, and his dwelling was with the wild asses: they fed him with grass like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven; till he knew that the most high God ruled in the kingdom of men, and that he appointeth over it whomsoever he will. 
Dan 5:22  And thou his son, O Belshazzar, hast not humbled thine heart, though thou knewest all this; 
Dan 5:23  But hast lifted up thyself against the Lord of heaven; and they have brought the vessels of his house before thee, and thou, and thy lords, thy wives, and thy concubines, have drunk wine in them; and thou hast praised the gods of silver, and gold, of brass, iron, wood, and stone, which see not, nor hear, nor know: and the God in whose hand thy breath is, and whose are all thy ways, hast thou not glorified: 
Dan 5:24  Then was the part of the hand sent from him; and this writing was written. 
Dan 5:25  And this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN. 
Dan 5:26  This is the interpretation of the thing: MENE; God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it. 
Dan 5:27  TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting. 
Dan 5:28  PERES; Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians. 
Dan 5:29  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. 
Dan 5:30  In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain. 
Dan 5:31  And Darius the Median took the kingdom, being about threescore and two years old.

Belshazzar represents our old man who is “weighed in the balances, and… found wanting.” Belshazzar, like our first man Adam, never learns and is why we must die daily and endure until the end in order to be saved in this life, which is only possible through Christ (1Co 15:31, Mat 24:13, Php 4:13). 

1Co 15:31  I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.

Mat 24:13  But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

Php 4:13  I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

Christ must increase, and we must decrease (Joh 3:30). The statue of Daniel 2 is corrupt from the head to the foot (Isa 1:6), and the empires of mankind are waxing worse and worse, typified by the decreasing value of the metals that are used for the different parts of the statue that represent the empires of man. There’s never been a just empire, there is none righteous, no not one (Rom 3:10), only a series of empires that rise and fall revealing to us how our old man must completely fall seven times [completely] if we are going to go on to perfection on the third day (Pro 24:16, Luk 13:32). God set the prophetic stage since the garden of Eden to this present day, and right up until Gog and Magog come up against the camp of the saints, all to show mankind that we are beasts (Rev 20:8, Ecc 3:18).

Isa 1:6  From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment. 

Pro 24:16  For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief. 

Luk 13:32  And he said unto them, Go ye, and tell that fox, Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures to day and to morrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.

Ecc 3:18  I said in mine heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts.

If we are granted to be judged in this life (1Pe 4:17), we will be able to see that there is a tearing down of the old empires in our life, starting from the head of gold represented by Nebuchadnezzar and his son Belshazzar who is a chip off the old block [another representation of the carnal first man Adam], right down to the last empire represented by the legs and feet of the statue in Daniel 2:33. 

Dan 2:33  His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay. 

The transition of empires being looked at in this section of scripture (Dan 5:1-31) is from Babylon to Persia, and Daniel 7:4-5 describes these two sections of the statue in Daniel 2:32: the first empire being Babylon, “This image’s head was of fine gold”, then the torso and arms of the statue, “his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass”, representing Persia that will be ruled over by “Darius the Median” who “took the kingdom, being about threescore and two years old” (Dan 5:31). The age of Darius is significant and is a witness [#2] to the truth that the beast [#6] is still on the throne of this new leader’s heart who is controlling this new empire [62 years old].

Dan 7:4  The first was like a lion, and had eagle’s wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man’s heart was given to it. 
Dan 7:5  And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it: and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh. 

Dan 2:32  This image’s head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass,

Dan 5:1   Belshazzar the king made a great feast to a thousand of his lords, and drank wine before the thousand. 

Belshazzar being the son of king Nebuchadnezzar is a parable in itself, as the son represents the doctrine, and as we will see, this section of the book of Daniel is all about the heart of mankind that corrupts the word of God as we reap what we sow (Gal 6:7-8). Making a feast with the king’s food and feeding it “to a thousand of his lords, and drank wine before the thousand” shows us a couple of significant details. First, the number thousand demonstrates the fleshly state of affairs [multiples of 10 represents the unjudged flesh at this stage], with 1000 of his lords, and secondly, where Belshazzar is drinking wine before the thousand, which wine also represents false doctrines and the corrupted words of Babylon (Rev 17:4, Rev 18:6-8). God declares the end from the beginning with Belshazzar’s father Nebuchadnezzar by the “seven times pass over you” statement of Daniel 4:25 which represents the lake of fire, great white throne judgment, and Belshazzar his son, his own flesh and blood, is “weighed in the balances, and…found wanting” as a type of our own flesh and blood that cannot inherit the kingdom of God (1Co 15:50).

Gal 6:7  Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. 
Gal 6:8  For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.

Rev 17:4  And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:

Rev 18:6  Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double.
Rev 18:7  How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.
Rev 18:8  Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her [Gal 6:7-8].

Dan 5:2  Belshazzar, whiles he tasted the wine, commanded to bring the golden and silver vessels which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem; that the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, might drink therein. 
Dan 5:3  Then they brought the golden vessels that were taken out of the temple of the house of God which was at Jerusalem; and the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, drank in them. 
Dan 5:4  They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.

It is in Babylon that we eat our own food, drink our own wine, and wear our own apparel and yet want the name of Christ, represented by “the golden and silver vessels which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem” (Isa 4:1).

Isa 4:1  And in that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying, We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel: only let us be called by thy name, to take away our reproach.

Belshazzar wants his lords of thousands to partake of his wine as a type of Babylon controlling God’s word via the idol of mankind’s heart that worships God in vain, “teaching for doctrines the commandments of men” (Mar 7:7), represented by the wine of Belshazzar that further intoxicates the harlot so that other gods are worshiped rather than the true God who created all things: “They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.” It is “the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines“ who “drank in them“ as a type of the churches and the leaders of Christendom who perpetuate the lies of Babylon from generation to generation. They drink the wine and praised the gods that rule their hearts, “gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone“, telling us mankind has worshiped every type of false god, from gods of gold to gods of stone, “which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell” (Deu 4:28).

Mar 7:7  Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

Deu 4:28  And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men’s hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.

Dan 5:5  In the same hour came forth fingers of a man’s hand, and wrote over against the candlestick upon the plaister of the wall of the king’s palace: and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote.

Judgment is now coming upon Belshazzar as he sees a man’s hand writing “against the candlestick upon the plaister of the wall of the king’s palace.” The candlestick symbolizes the light of God’s word that is going to illuminate the minds of those who see this message written “upon the plaister of the wall of the king’s palace.” The king only sees “part of the hand that wrote” signifying that he does not know who the author of this event is, and it is written on “the wall of the king’s palace“, walls that signify the heart of Belshazzar that now have a message written on them which he can’t interpret. God’s word is spiritually discerned, and those who are drunk on the wine of Babylon are not going to be able to interpret the meaning of the words on the wall.

Dan 5:6  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. 
Dan 5:7  The king cried aloud to bring in the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. 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. 

Belshazzar was terrified, his face changed, his thoughts troubled him, so much so that he lost bodily control and his loins were loosed. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the Lord as Nebuchadnezzar learned, and now his son is experiencing this same fear and crying out as his father did for help from his own household, his own entourage: “The king cried aloud to bring in the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers“, which Nebuchadnezzar also did at first. Again, this group represents how, while in Babylon, we search answers to our spiritual dilemmas in life by turning to the carnal wisdom of men in Babylon [astrologers Chaldeans and soothsayers – another Jesus] instead of going to Christ and the church to which we must be dragged in order to come to know Him (Joh 6:44, Joh 17:3).

These circumstances were created to the glory of God who would give the answers to Belshazzar via Daniel, a type of the elect who can interpret the writing on the wall, which typifies for God’s elect how we can in like manner interpret or discern the word of God that is hidden from the world today, even though it is in plain sight (1Co 2:14-16).

1Co 2:14  But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
1Co 2:15  But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. 
1Co 2:16  For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.

The reward for being able to read the writing and interpret it is to “be clothed with scarlet, and have a chain of gold about his neck” symbolizing the reward of rulership God will give to those who are blessed to have the mind of Christ in this age (1Co 2:15-16). Being “the third ruler in the kingdom” has a physical interpretation according to history (history – Why did Belshazzar, King of Babylon name Daniel as the third ruler of his kingdom? – Biblical Hermeneutics Stack Exchange). However, the spiritual lesson is that our Father in heaven is first, the Great All in All, and Christ second, and those who rule under Christ are third in this God-ordained order. We are growing to become more and more like Christ, having His mind, and think it not robbery to be equal with Him, not in greatness (Joh 13:16, Joh 14:28) but in having the same spirit (1Co 12:8-9) that the Father gave Christ and has given to us who now believe (Php 2:6, 1Jn 4:17).

Joh 13:16  Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him.

Joh 14:28  Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.

1Co 12:8  For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit;
1Co 12:9  To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;

Php 2:6  Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:

1Jn 4:17  Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world [“the same spirit“].

Dan 5:8  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. 
Dan 5:9  Then was king Belshazzar greatly troubled, and his countenance was changed in him, and his lords were astonied. 

No one could read or interpret the writing on the wall, just as no one could interpret ‘the dream that is one’ in the earlier chapters with the statue and tree. This part of the story is no different, and again we’re shown the blindness of Babylon with this first verse: “Then came in all the king’s wisemen: but they could not read the writing, nor make known to the king the interpretation thereof.” This situation greatly troubled Belshazzar and left his lords astonished, seeing all his regular sources of wisdom come to nought in a second, representing how all the wisdom of mankind will not be able to interpret the word of God that can only be understood by the power of God. We all start off ever searching and never being able to come to the knowledge of the truth (1Co 2:5-6, 1Co 2:13, 2Ti 3:7).

1Co 2:5  That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. 
1Co 2:6  Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought:

1Co 2:13  Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.

2Ti 3:7  Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

Dan 5:10  Now the queen, by reason of the words of the king and his lords, came into the banquet house: and the queen spake and said, O king, live for ever: let not thy thoughts trouble thee, nor let thy countenance be changed: 
Dan 5:11  There is a man in thy kingdom, in whom is the spirit of the holy gods; and in the days of thy father light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods, was found in him; whom the king Nebuchadnezzar thy father, the king, I say, thy father, made master of the magicians, astrologers, Chaldeans, and soothsayers;
Dan 5:12  Forasmuch as an excellent spirit, and knowledge, and understanding, interpreting of dreams, and shewing of hard sentences, and dissolving of doubts, were found in the same Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar: now let Daniel be called, and he will shew the interpretation.
Dan 5:13  Then was Daniel brought in before the king. And the king spake and said unto Daniel, Art thou that Daniel, which art of the children of the captivity of Judah, whom the king my father brought out of Jewry?

This queen comes on the scene and brings to Belshazzar’s attention that he should not be troubled because of the dream, seeing there is one who can interpret it, that being Daniel. She, not being able to interpret the dream herself, represents the churches of this world who don’t see the need for God’s judgment upon us in this age, and are not troubled in that regard, and so her advice to the king is ‘don’t worry about anything’, expressed this way: “O king, live for ever: let not thy thoughts trouble thee, nor let thy countenance be changed.“

Her description of Daniel goes back to how Nebuchadnezzar had initially described Daniel referring to “the spirits of the holy gods“, showing us that she, like Nebuchadnezzar, had no idea who the real God was who was giving Daniel the power to do all these works. She goes on to describe the history of Daniel and the excellent spirit within him, but always with a darkened sense of only knowing the outward works and not personally knowing the source of the power that was given to Daniel. The same mindset was found in the king when Daniel was brought before him as evidenced by this verse, “The king spake and said unto Daniel, Art thou that Daniel, which art of the children of the captivity of Judah, whom the king my father brought out of Jewry?” His focus is on what his father Nebuchadnezzar did for him, taking him out of captivity and bringing him out of Jewry, and not on God’s power that was working all things according to the counsel of His own will (Eph 1:11).

Dan 5:14  I have even heard of thee, that the spirit of the gods is in thee, and that light and understanding and excellent wisdom is found in thee. 
Dan 5:15  And now the wise men, the astrologers, have been brought in before me, that they should read this writing, and make known unto me the interpretation thereof: but they could not shew the interpretation of the thing: 
Dan 5:16  And I have heard of thee, that thou canst make interpretations, and dissolve doubts: now if thou canst read the writing, and make known to me the interpretation thereof, thou shalt be clothed with scarlet, and have a chain of gold about thy neck, and shalt be the third ruler in the kingdom.

Once again, from the same darkened heart that can only see the outward manifestation of Daniel’s gift (1Co 14:22), we hear Belshazzar go on as the queen did in regard to the gifts Daniel has, and how that if he can interpret the writing on the wall, he will be rewarded with rulership, as mentioned in the earlier verses. This is now twice mentioned, witnessing to God’s elect that this story is a type of what He is doing with the body of Christ who will be given rulership over the kingdoms of this world (Rev 11:15) as a result of God’s spirit sealing them “until the redemption of the purchased possession”, giving us the ability to discern the truth and believe: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.“

[being sealed (Eph 1:13-14, Eph 4:30) the resultant fruit of being sealed (Joh 6:26-27, Joh 5:19-20, 1Jn 4:17, Joh 14:12)].

Joh 6:26  Jesus answered them and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled.
Joh 6:27  Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed [1Jn 4:17].

Joh 5:19  Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.
Joh 5:20  For the Father loveth the Son, and sheweth him all things that himself doeth: and he will shew him greater works than these, that ye may marvel [1Jn 4:17, Php 2:12-13].

Joh 14:12  Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father [1Jn 4:17].

Dan 5:17  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. 

This opening statement of Daniel is akin to this verse in Revelation 19:10 where the servant of God is making clear that he is not a respecter of persons and does not want a gift (Pro 17:23) or adulation for that which is completely a gift given from God (Mat 6:2). Regardless of the message he is going to interpret, good or bad, Daniel goes on to say, “Yet I will read the writing unto the king, and make known to him the interpretation.“

Rev 19:10  And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

Pro 17:23  A wicked man taketh a gift out of the bosom to pervert the ways of judgment.

Mat 6:2  Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

Dan 5:18  O thou king, the most high God gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father a kingdom, and majesty, and glory, and honour: 
Dan 5:19  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. 
Dan 5:20  But when his heart was lifted up, and his mind hardened in pride, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took his glory from him: 
Dan 5:21  And he was driven from the sons of men; and his heart was made like the beasts, and his dwelling was with the wild asses: they fed him with grass like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven; till he knew that the most high God ruled in the kingdom of men, and that he appointeth over it whomsoever he will.

These verses simply recap what we already know about Nebuchadnezzar and are the words to witness against his son who also should know these things, and should have acted accordingly. Of course it was not given to him to do the right thing as he is a type of our old man that, regardless of the history and facts laid out plainly before us, we still rebel and do what we want because of the law of sin in our flesh (Rom 7:14-17). If the Lord is working with us, we will contend less and less if we are His workmanship in this age, being received through His chastening grace (Tit 2:11-12, Heb 12:6).

Rom 7:14  For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. 
Rom 7:15  For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. 
Rom 7:16  If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good. 
Rom 7:17  Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
Rom 7:18  For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. 
Rom 7:19  For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.
Rom 7:20  Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. 
Rom 7:21  I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. 
Rom 7:22  For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:  For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. 

Tit 2:11  For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, 
Tit 2:12  Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;

Heb 12:6  For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. 
Heb 12:7  If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? 

Dan 5:22  And thou his son, O Belshazzar, hast not humbled thine heart, though thou knewest all this; 
Dan 5:23  But hast lifted up thyself against the Lord of heaven; and they have brought the vessels of his house before thee, and thou, and thy lords, thy wives, and thy concubines, have drunk wine in them; and thou hast praised the gods of silver, and gold, of brass, iron, wood, and stone, which see not, nor hear, nor know: and the God in whose hand thy breath is, and whose are all thy ways, hast thou not glorified: 

Now we have the recap of Belshazzar’s actions, and it’s not sounding good at all. There is no evidence of repentance, and Daniel reminds him that the very breath he breathes is a gift of God, typifying the words he speaks are all given by God, like the breath we breathe (Joh 3:27). Belshazzar is left this witness from Daniel of his blindness that does not acknowledge God for past works with his father that God accomplished through him or present works that have been accomplished in his life by God as well, “and the God in whose hand thy breath is, and whose are all thy ways, hast thou not glorified.“ Belshazzar in that regard is twofold more the child of hell (Mat 23:15) than his father was in being self-willed and not acknowledging God’s hand in his life, even with all the evidence to the contrary, past and present, “and the God in whose hand thy breath is, and whose are all thy ways, hast thou not glorified.“

Joh 3:27  John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.

Dan 5:24  Then was the part of the hand sent from him; and this writing was written. 
Dan 5:25  And this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN. 
Dan 5:26  This is the interpretation of the thing: MENE; God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it. 
Dan 5:27  TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting.
Dan 5:28  PERES; Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians.

These words “MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN” are interpreted for us to mean that “God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it“, and this was written for our sakes upon whom the end of the ages are come (1Co 10:11). The end of our earthly kingdom that was ruled over by the powers and principalities of this life must come to an end. The king is found wanting just as our old man is found wanting, “TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting“, a kingdom divided against itself that cannot stand (Mar 3:24-26) “PERES; Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians.“

1Co 10:11  Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.

Mar 3:24  And if a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.
Mar 3:25  And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand.
Mar 3:26  And if Satan rise up against himself, and be divided, he cannot stand, but hath an end.

Dan 5:29  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. 
Dan 5:30  In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain. 
Dan 5:31  And Darius the Median took the kingdom, being about threescore and two years old.

The kingdoms of this world will become the kingdoms of our Lord and His Christ, and the powers that be will willingly give over the kingdom to God’s elect, as symbolized with these words, “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.“

It is in the night that our old man is killed, being cut off from the light of God’s truth that, as we continue (Joh 8:31-32), we will see the death of our old man in this life, symbolized by this verse, “In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain.“

Joh 8:31  Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
Joh 8:32  And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

The new king Darius has now come on the scene and he, like Belshazzar, will also be weighed in the balance and in due course be found wanting as well, all telling us that there is a process of judgment that takes our whole lifetime as all these kings are destroyed and found wanting in different and various ways within us. The ‘thou’ in this verse “TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting” is speaking about our old man, and the flesh of mankind who we don’t want to know anymore (Joh 17:15-17, 2Co 5:16). That is what is “weighed in the balances” and “found wanting” (Mar 10:18-21). 

2Co 5:16  Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more.

Joh 17:15  I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.
Joh 17:16  They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
Joh 17:17  Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
Joh 17:18  As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.

Joh 3:16  For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Joh 3:17  For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

Mar 10:18  And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God.
Mar 10:19  Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother.
Mar 10:20  And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth. 
Mar 10:21  Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.