“Tekel: You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting.” Daniel 5:27
Daniel Chapter 5 starts with the heading “The Writing on the Wall.” We use this expression today to mean something is obvious, and the irony makes me smile. (If someone struggles with their eating, isn’t it a bit obvious, unfortunately?)
Anyway, if you’re unfamiliar with Daniel 5, I included a link above so you could read it in context. In a nutshell, an ungodly Babylonian king was holding a feast and, in his drunken state, ordered that goblets taken from God’s holy temple in Jerusalem be brought in for him, along with his wives and concubines, to drink out of. Then they praised various gods other than the Lord.
In her study of Daniel, Beth Moore pointed out that these goblets had been sanctified and consecrated as holy to the Lord for use in His temple and then stolen by Babylon. Up until this point, they had just been in storage, but this arrogant king decided to use God’s holy vessels to toast an unholy object, a created god.
Next, we see in this chapter that a hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall “Mene, Mene, Tekel, Parsan.” The king was terrified and no one could interpret the inscription, except for Daniel, a devout follower of God who had been given wisdom (as noted in Daniel 2:21). Daniel foretold the king’s death and the takeover of his kingdom.
In the Bible study of Daniel, we learned that using our holy vessels for unholy purposes ends in destruction and displeases God. Our bodies are meant to be holy vessels, consecrated to the Lord. Therefore, we need to be purposeful about what we celebrate or worship with them.
I’ll admit that there are times that I’ve put more emphasis on what I’m planning on eating that day than I’ve put on honoring God with my body. I’ve had to repent and ask for God’s grace in redirecting my thoughts and ways.
I love how God puts little reminders in His Bible that He hears you and your prayers. The verse “Tekel: Weighed on the Scales and Found Wanting” literally jumped off the page at me like it was in highlighting. God knows our struggle; He sees when we step on that scale in the morning; and He knows that we have been found wanting… He is our refuge and our strength. May we use our holy vessels for holy purposes today!
Dear God, we have been weighed on the scale and found wanting. We confess that we have used our holy vessels to “toast” unholy things and we’re sorry. We ask for your forgiveness and your help in using our vessels for your glory, that we may be consecrated and set apart for you. Help us today in this struggle to lose weight. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
VALGOOD 