Daily Devotion Thursday Thoughts | January 29, 2026
It’s Thursday’s daily devotion. In Daniel 5, Daniel is called when a drunk king dishonors God’s holy things and gets a hidden message. Daniel steps in and brings wisdom. In today’s daily devotion, the saying, when you know better, you do better, unfortunately, doesn’t apply to everyone, even kings.
A Great Feast
After many years, Nebuchadnezzar’s grandson, Belshazzar, is on the throne and has a great feast where the wine flows freely. He commands that the holy vessels his grandfather took from the temple in Jerusalem be brought and filled with wine. Everyone drinks up while praising their gods.
As they’re drinking, something troubling appears. Verse 5 says, “In the same hour came forth fingers of a man’s hand, and wrote over against the candlestick upon the plaister of the wall of the king’s palace.” The king panics; he’s so afraid, he starts shaking, and his knees begin knocking. In your daily devotion, know that pride goes before destruction.
Calling All Wise Men
The king calls the wise men to come in and interpret the writing, offering the one who interprets it clothing of scarlet, a gold chain, and a high-ranking post. However, there’s a problem. Verse 8 says, “Then came in all the king’s wise men: but they could not read the writing, nor make known to the king the interpretation thereof.” The king is deflated. Then the queen-mother enters the banquet hall.
She brings hope as she remembers the now-aged Daniel, master of the wise men during the time of Nebuchadnezzar. She says in verse 11 that in Daniel is “the spirit of the holy gods” and that he has “understanding and wisdom.” She continues in verse 12 by praising his gifts that include “interpreting of dreams, and shewing of hard sentences, and dissolving of doubts.” In this daily devotion, know that your reputation can precede you and invite you into unexpected spaces.
Daniel Enters the Hall
Daniel is summoned and stands before the king. The king recites Daniel’s impressive bio. He informs him that the wise men weren’t able to interpret the writing, but if he can, he’ll be given the rewards he promised earlier. In verse 17, Daniel replies: “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.”
Daniel asserts that the king saw the pride of his grandfather, Nebuchadnezzar, and how God humbled him, yet his heart remained unhumbled, and his pride led him to drink wine from God’s holy vessels. Belshazzar knew God was sovereign, yet he reveled in idolatry. In today’s daily devotion, when you know to do better, you should do it.
Daniel Interprets the Writing
The fingers disappear, the handwriting remains, and Daniel interprets it. The interpretation is in part: “God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it,” also “Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting,” and “Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians.”
To honor his word, the king commands that the rewards be given to Daniel. However, the Medo-Persian Empire, having besieged Babylon, breaks through and takes it by force, and Belshazzar is killed. He had thrown a lavish feast during an active siege, thinking pridefully that Babylon would never be overtaken. In today’s daily devotion, know there’s no one more powerful than your God.
Pride is a Trap
In Thursday’s daily devotion, Daniel rises to the occasion while operating in the gift God gave him. On the other hand, a king falls who is swallowed up in pride. In your daily devotion, determine to honor the only True and Living God.
