“And thou his son, O Belshazzar, hast not humbled thine heart, though thou knewest all this;”
My Notes
What Does Daniel 5:22 Mean?
Daniel's accusation of Belshazzar is five words in English: "thou... hast not humbled thine heart." The entire indictment is about posture, not behavior. The specific sin isn't the feast or the temple vessels or the idol-praise. It's the un-humbled heart. And the aggravating factor: "though thou knewest all this." The knowledge was available. The humility wasn't.
The word "humbled" (shephel — to lower, to bring down, to abase) means to voluntarily place yourself below where you are. Belshazzar's heart stayed high — exalted, proud, self-positioned above accountability. The lowering that should have happened (because the knowledge demanded it) never did.
"Though thou knewest all this" — the knowledge makes the pride criminal. Ignorance would mitigate. Knowledge condemns. Belshazzar watched Nebuchadnezzar's seven-year madness. He knew the lesson: the Most High rules. He knew the mechanism: pride produces humiliation. And he chose pride anyway.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Is there a truth you 'know' (like Belshazzar knew about Nebuchadnezzar) that you haven't let humble your heart?
- 2.Does 'though thou knewest all this' describe your condition — knowledge without the posture the knowledge demands?
- 3.How does informed arrogance (knowing but not humbling) differ from ignorance — and which is more dangerous?
- 4.What 'handwriting' might appear if the humbling continues to be refused?
Devotional
You didn't humble your heart. Even though you knew. That's the whole charge. Five words.
Daniel's indictment of Belshazzar isn't a list of sins. It's one sin: un-humbled heart. The feast, the temple vessels, the idol-praise — all of these are symptoms. The disease is the heart that wouldn't lower itself. The heart that stayed high when everything around it proved it should be low.
"Though thou knewest all this" — the five words that transform the charge from ignorance to rebellion. You KNEW. You watched your grandfather lose his mind for seven years because of pride. You saw the most powerful man alive eat grass like an animal. You heard the testimony (4:34-37: Nebuchadnezzar's own public declaration that the Most High rules). You had all the information. Every lesson. Every precedent. Every warning.
And you didn't humble your heart.
The knowledge without the humility is the ultimate condemnation. Ignorance can be forgiven. Knowledge without response cannot. Belshazzar's sin isn't that he didn't know. It's that he knew and didn't bow. The heart that stays proud after receiving the lesson is the heart that has chosen pride over survival.
The handwriting on the wall (verse 25-28) is the consequence: numbered, weighed, divided. Your kingdom is ending tonight. Your life is ending tonight. And the reason isn't complicated: you knew what your grandfather learned, and you refused to learn it yourself.
The most dangerous spiritual condition isn't ignorance. It's informed arrogance. The person who knows the truth about God's sovereignty and still refuses to humble themselves is the person the handwriting is aimed at.
You know. Now: will you humble your heart? Or will you wait for the hand on the wall?
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
And thou his son, O Belshazzar,.... His grandson; See Gill on Dan 5:1,
hast not humbled thine heart; so as to…
And thou his son, O Belshazzar, hast not humbled thine heart ... - As thou shouldst have done in remembrance of these…
Hast not humbled thine heart - These judgments and mercies have had no good effect upon thee.
Here is, I. The information given to the king, by the queen-mother, concerning Daniel, how fit he was to be consulted in…
But Belshazzar, in spite of the warning afforded by Nebuchadnezzar's fate, has sinned still more deeply, and by wanton…
Cross References
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