his concubines

August 20, 2017

They drank wine from the sacred vessels (Dan 5:3-5:4)

“So,

They brought in

The vessels

Of gold,

The vessels

Of silver,

That had been taken

Out of the temple,

The house of God,

In Jerusalem.

The king,

His lords,

His wives,

His concubines,

Drank from them.

They drank

The wine.

They praised

The gods

Of gold,

The gods

Of silver,

The gods

Of bronze,

The gods

Of iron,

The gods

Of wood,

The gods

Of stone.”

So, the feast or party rolled on. The servants brought in these silver and gold vessels from the Temple of God in Jerusalem. Then the king, his lords, his wives, and his concubines drank wine from them. They praised the various idols or pagan gods of gold, silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone that were common in Babylon.

August 19, 2017

The king wants the sacred cups from the Jerusalem Temple (Dan 5:2-5:2)

“Under the influence

Of the wine,

King Belshazzar

Commanded

That they bring

In the vessels

Of gold,

The vessels

Of silver,

That his father,

King Nebuchadnezzar,

Had taken out

Of the temple

In Jerusalem.

Thus,

The king,

His lords,

His wives,

His concubines,

Might drink

From them.”

This King Belshazzar commanded his servants to bring the sacred gold and silver vessels that King Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the Temple in Jerusalem. Here the author calls Nebuchadnezzar his father, but he was his grandfather. Thus, the king, these invited lords, his wives, and his concubines might drink wine from these sacred silver and gold cups. I am not sure if there were that many sacred vessels to accommodate a 1,000 people.