Year 1635
Type of painting
canvas, oil
author
The size
167 см. × 209 см.
Location
London National Gallery, UK
The plot of the picture with the immediate appearance of the mystical hand was taken by Rembrandt from the Old Testament book of the prophet Daniel (Dan.5: 25-28) [5] [6]. After the death of King Nabahudnezzar, power in Babylon did not pass to his son, Belshazzar. On this occasion, a rich feast was arranged, which lasted for many days. When there was not enough dishes for all the multitude of concubines, nobles and guests, the king ordered to bring golden ritual instruments from the plundered temple of the Nebuchadnezzar in Jerusalem. After such blasphemy, a human hand appeared on the wall, which began to draw out letters. Recovering himself from horror, Belshazzar called fortune-tellers, sages and warlocks and ordered them to decipher the message. However, none of them coped with the task. After that, the king's mother advised him to turn to a man named Daniel. And he decoded the mysterious message: Mene, Mene, Tekel, Uparsin. Daniel told that for the acts displeasing to God and the desecration of the holy places of Belshazzar, destruction will overtake, and his kingdom will be divided between the Medes and the Persians. On the same night the city was taken by storm, the Akhaldean king was found dead.
"1 Belshazzar the king made a great feast for a thousand of his nobles, and drank wine before the eyes of the thousand.
It can be seen that the king is very rich that he was able to make a great feast.
He has a lot of spoofs. A nobleman is like a senior management. And we see that there were thousands of them.
Perhaps it was an annual summing up.
And we see that the feast is accompanied by drinking.
2 When Belshazzar tasted the wine, he ordered that vessels of gold and silver be brought, which his father Nebuchadnezzar had brought out of the temple in Jerusalem, to drink of them for the king, his nobles, his wives, and his concubines.
We see that wine takes away sober thinking. And the fact that he sober did not occur to him. After drinking wine. Suddenly the sea was also beaten.
After drinking wine, the tsar reached the point of koschunstvo. Like, look, I can do this.
3 Then they brought vessels of gold, which had been taken from the sanctuary of the house of God in Jerusalem; And the king and his nobles drank of them, his wives and his concubines.
And we see that the pieceworker goes crowd syndrome. Once you can the king, then everyone repeats.
4 They drank wine and glorified the gods of gold and silver, copper, iron, wood and stone.
I think they understood what they were doing. Because they began to praise their gods.
We know that our God is long-suffering. But there is a certain line through which the king crossed with his nobles.
5 At that very hour, the fingers of a man's hand went out and wrote against the lamp on the limestone of the wall of the king's palace, and the king saw the hand that wrote.
After this line is the finger of God.
6Then the king was changed in his face; his thoughts troubled him, the bonds of his loins weakened, and his knees began to beat one another.
And we see that even powerful people tremble with the finger of God. In the face of the Great God, where does that go.
7 The king shouted strongly to bring in the charms, the Chaldeans, and the fortunetellers. The king began to speak, and said to the wise men of Babylon: whoever reads this written and explains its meaning to me, he will be clothed in a purple robe, and a golden chain will be around his neck, and the third ruler will be in the kingdom. 8And all the king's wise men went in, but they could not read what was written and explain to the king its meaning.
Everyone wants an explanation. What if it's not so scary. But not everyone understands the face of the sky. This is open to those who have a close relationship with God.
9 King Belshazzar was greatly alarmed, and the appearance of his face changed on him, and his nobles were embarrassed. The king realized that there was something extremely serious here.
10 And the queen, concerning the words of the king and his nobles, entered the chamber of the banquet; The queen began to speak and said, O king, live forever! let not your thoughts confuse you, and let not the appearance of your face change! 11There is a man in your kingdom, in whom is the spirit of the holy God; In the days of your father, light, intelligence and wisdom, similar to the wisdom of the gods, were found in him, and your father king Nebuchadnezzar made him the head of the magicians, charms, Chaldeans and fortunetellers - your father himself, the king, 12 because in him, in Daniel, whom the king renamed Belshazzar, turned out to be a high spirit, knowledge and intelligence, capable of interpreting dreams, interpreting the mysterious and resolving knots. So let Daniel be called and he will explain the meaning.
Interestingly, the queen did not join the feast. But she saw the handwriting of the great God. Therefore, she clearly set deagnaz and knew who could read it.
And about you, people know that you have a close relationship with God. And that you can read the face of the sky. And that the spirit of the Holy God is in you.
13 Then Daniel was brought in before the king, and the king began to speak and said to Daniel, Are you Daniel, one of the captive sons of Judah, whom my father the king brought from Judah? 14 I heard about you that the spirit of God is in you, and light, and intelligence, and high wisdom is found in you. 15 Behold, wise men and charms were brought to me to read this written and explain to me the meaning of it; but they could not explain it to me.
16And I heard about you that you can about explain the meaning and resolve the nodes; so, if you can read this written and explain to me its meaning, then you will be clothed in a purple robe, and a golden chain will be around your neck, and you will be the third ruler in the kingdom.
What do people hear about you?
17 Then Daniel answered, and said to the king, Let your gifts remain with you, and give your honor to another. But what I have written I will read to the king and explain the meaning to him. 18 King! The Most High God gave your father Nebuchadnezzar kingdom, majesty, honor and glory. 19 Before the majesty that He gave him, all peoples, nations and tongues trembled and feared him: whoever he wanted he killed, and whom he wanted he kept alive; whom he would he exalted, and whom he would he humiliated. 20 But when his heart was puffed up and his spirit hardened to the point of insolence, he was cast down from his king's throne and deprived of his glory, 21 and was excommunicated from the sons of men, and his heart was like an animal, and he lived with wild asses; they fed him grass like an ox, and his body was watered with heavenly dew, until he knew that the Most High God rules over the kingdom of man and sets over him whoever he wants. 22And you, his son Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, although you knew all this.
How many people today who knew everything but act differently.
23 but ascended up against the Lord of heaven, and the vessels of his house were brought to you, and you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines, drank wine from them, and you glorified the gods of silver and gold, copper, iron, wood and stone, who neither see neither hear nor understand; but God, in whose hand your breath is, and with whom all your ways, you have not glorified. 24 For this, the hand was sent from him, and this scripture was inscribed. 25 And this is what is inscribed: Mene, Mene, Tekel, Uparsin. 26 This is the meaning of the words: me - God has numbered your kingdom and put an end to it; 27 Tekel - you are weighed on the scales and found very light;
There will be scales for everyone. And for you and for me. Outside, the king was a very weighty man. And the scales came - but in reality everything is the other way around Check yourself before the finger of God comes in your life.
28 Peres - your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians. 29 Then, at the command of Belshazzar, they clothed Daniel in a purple robe and put a golden chain around his neck, and proclaimed him the third ruler in the kingdom. 30, 31 and Darius the Mede accepted the kingdom when he was sixty-two years old. "(Daniel 5: 1-31)
"25 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites, for you cleanse the outside of the cup and platter, while inside they are full of robbery and unrighteousness. 26 Blind Pharisee, cleanse first the inside of the cup and platter, so that their outside may be clean. 27 Woe to you. scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, who are like painted tombs that look beautiful on the outside, but inside are full of the bones of the dead and all uncleanness; 28 so outwardly you seem righteous to people, but inside you are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness. " (Matthew 23: 25-28)
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