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

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.

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.

4 They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.

5 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: and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote.

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?

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.

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.

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.

18 O thou king, the most high God gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father a kingdom, and majesty, and glory, and honour:

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.

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:

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.

22 And thou his son, O Belshazzar, hast not humbled thine heart, though thou knewest all this;

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:

24 Then was the part of the hand sent from him; and this writing was written.

25 And this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.

26 This is the interpretation of the thing: MENE; God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it.

27 TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting.

28 PERES; Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians.

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.

30 In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain.

As evidenced by the aforementioned scriptures, God does not permit His disobedient and rebellious children to continually mock Him.  He does not play with those who violate or desecrate His Law.  Of course, those who violate His Law will be punished eventually, whether it comes slowly or quickly.  Therefore, Americans must apply this story to their own personal lives.  They must wake up and see the handwriting on the wall now. 

What words would God write on the wall today?  How would God’s handwriting on the wall be interpreted today to the American people?   Possibly, God might just write the following words:

Abortion-You have killed my newborn children mercilessly. 

Homosexuality-You have committed an abomination unto me, man to man and woman to woman.

Racism-You have mistreated my different children just because of the different color of their skin.

Murder-You have killed my children because of hate.

Poverty-You have taken from my children because of your greed.

Fornication-You have lusted after my children for sexual pleasures.

Adultery-You have been unfaithful to your marriage vows.

Drugs-You have made your body useless to My Kingdom.

Alcohol-You have made your body useless to My Kingdom.

Reprobate-You have lived such a sinful, moral life that I will destroy you now and in the life to come.

Based on the words that God might write, it is extremely important that both Christians and non-Christians turn from their wicked ways.  God will forgive all sins, except blaspheming the Holy Ghost.  But, if He turns you over to a reprobate mind, you would be in danger of eternal damnation, also.  What is a reprobate mind?  According to Romans 1:28-32, people with a reprobate mind act as these scriptures suggest:

 28.  And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;

 29.  Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,

 30.  Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,

 31. Without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:

 32. Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.

Needless to say, there is a good possibility that some people in America are living their lives while being guided by a reprobate mind.  As a result, the very soul of America is at the point of death.  If the soul of America does die, will America be punished because it has failed to recognize the holiness of the Lord God Jehovah?  Also, could America be occupied by totalitarian leaders from another nation, just like King Belshazzar’s kingdom was in ancient Chaldea?  Of course, most Americans would never accept the tenet that another country could control the greatest nation in the world.  However, if God willed it, it would happen.    However, most likely God’s punishment for post-modern America is already here.  It might just be one or all of the following:

·        Hordes of illegal immigrants taking American jobs

·        Escalating gas prices over $4.00 per gallon

·        Outsourcing American jobs to other nations

·        A large percentage of Americans losing their homes

·        American servicemen losing their lives overseas

·        The failure of America’s public education system

·        Disturbing environmental issues

·        Violence throughout the land

Therefore, Americans need to open their spiritual eyes now and see God’s Handwriting on the Wall.  If not, the greatest Christian nation in the world will continue its downward spiral.  But, if America renews its covenant with the Creator of the Universe, America could once again be blessed by God, since God is not obligated to bless a nation that fails to honor His Holiness.    

Dr. Parnell is a retired public school educator and presently teaches social science courses at a private, Christian high school in Georgia.  He is the author of From Schoolhouse to Courthouse: Exposing America’s New Terror from Within (Wheatmark Publishing, ISBN: 1-58736-613-4).  He is also a guest columnist on several online websites.

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