When I read chapter 5 of Daniel years ago, I did not know about the controversy on the existence of King Belshazzar. What bothered me was the sudden capture of the Babylonian Empire by the Medes as described in the last few verses. Not even a fight? It just sounds unrealistic to me at that time.
Now I understand it a little bit better. Actually, there had been a lot of fighting inside and outside of Babylon at that point. King Nabonidus, Belshazzar’s father, had returned to Babylon which was then threatened by the Medes and the Persians. During the final days of Babylon, Nabonidus was trying to put down a rebellion inside the city while facing the invading enemies from the outside. Babylon was in bad shape. Many cities fell, but not the city of Babylon.
The situation in the city of Babylon was different. It was heavily fortified. According to Herodotus, the city of Babylon was about fourteen miles square, with great outer walls 87 feet thick and 350 feet high, and a hundred great bronze gates in the walls. Although many people believe Herodotus exaggerated these figures, people agree that the magnificence of the city was not seriously exaggerated. The Euphrates River flowed through the middle of the city from North to South and was bordered by walls on each side to protect the city from attack from the river.
Not only was Babylon a safe city surrounded by high and thick walls, but they also had lots of food and supplies inside the city that was prepared for a siege of many years.
Why did King Belshazzar hold a great feast during the troubled days of his empire? Possibly to reassert the faith of the King and the citizens inside the city in their Babylonian gods and bolster their own courage. It could be an effective way to send the message to the citizens that there was nothing to worry about. Let’s just keep partying!
How could the Babylonian Empire be taken over so suddenly as described in the last few verses of chapter 5 in the book of Daniel?
Herodotus told us that the invading king, Cyrus, could not advance much against the heavily fortified city of Babylon even though he had been defeating the Babylonians in other territories. In the end, he figured out a way to capture the city. He stationed a portion of his army near the passage of the river that entered the city, and another portion at where the river exited the city. Then he dug a canal to divert the water that flowed through the city. The water level dropped to man’s thigh level. By this time, the soldiers who had been stationed outside the city walked into the city through the subsided river and captured the King.
Herodotus wrote that the people at the front and back of the city had been taken by the invading armies early on, and those inhabited in the city center knew nothing of the capture (for it happened to be a festival); but they were dancing at the time, and enjoying themselves, till they received certain information of the truth.
Indeed, Babylon was taken over by surprise on the night of a festival. The date was Saturday, October 12, 539 B.C. according to the Babylonian Chronicles.
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