Daniel 5:27
TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting.
Original Language Analysis
Cross References
Historical Context
This judgment fell on October 12, 539 BC, when the Medo-Persian army conquered Babylon. Belshazzar was co-regent with his father Nabonidus, who was absent from the capital. The famous feast (5:1) occurred as enemy forces approached—epitomizing the regime's decadence and denial. Ancient historians Herodotus and Xenophon describe Babylon's fall: the Persians diverted the Euphrates River and entered through the river gates left carelessly open. Belshazzar's death ended the Neo-Babylonian Empire (626-539 BC), fulfilling Daniel's earlier prophecies about successive kingdoms (chapter 2).
Questions for Reflection
- By what standards do you measure success—worldly achievement or righteousness before God?
- If you were weighed in God's balances today, apart from Christ's righteousness, how would you measure up?
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Analysis & Commentary
TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting (תְּקֵל תְּקִלְתָּה בְמֹאזַנְיָא וְהִשְׁתְּכַחַתְּ חַסִּיר)—The second word of the mysterious handwriting declares Belshazzar's moral bankruptcy. Tekel (תְּקֵל) means "weighed," from the verb teqal meaning "to weigh" or "measure." The metaphor of divine scales weighing human deeds appears throughout Scripture (Job 31:6; Psalm 62:9; Proverbs 16:2). Ancient Near Eastern cultures used balances for commerce; here God uses them for moral reckoning.
The phrase found wanting (hishtekachat chassir, הִשְׁתְּכַחַתְּ חַסִּיר) literally means "you are found deficient" or "lacking." Despite Babylon's wealth, power, and sophistication, Belshazzar failed the ultimate test. The king who possessed everything material lacked what mattered most—righteousness before God. This verdict is final and irreversible; by the time judgment is announced, the weighing has already occurred. That very night Belshazzar died (5:30) and Darius the Mede took the kingdom (5:31).
The contrast between human standards and divine standards is stark. By worldly measures, Belshazzar succeeded—he inherited empire, commanded armies, enjoyed luxury. But God's scales weigh hearts, not achievements (1 Samuel 16:7). The king's desecration of temple vessels (5:2-4), pride, and idolatry revealed fatal spiritual deficiency. This principle applies universally: all humanity will be weighed in God's balances (Romans 3:23). Only those clothed in Christ's righteousness will measure up; all others are found wanting.