The author of the book of daniel seems to place the rule of cyrus after that of darius, again an inexplicable error for an author contemporary with these events. In other words, understand what god was doing with the jews and the world, and youll understand the book of daniel. Thank you for your question about the 1290 versus the 35 days in daniel chapter twelve. The first six chapters are a collection of historical papers written by. A study of the book of daniel gene taylor1preface the study of any of the old testament prophets is a worthwhile endeavor. First, the main theme of daniel is god is sovereign. The aim of the book is to show that the god of israel, the one true god, is greater than the pagan gods. The last six chapters contain prophecies written by daniel himself. Other kingdoms have arisen that seemed unstoppable in their power. Daniel was regarded as a prophet by the qumran scribe a qumran document, the florilegium 4q174, quotes dan 12. In more mundane language, it is an account of the activities and visions of daniel, a noble jew exiled at babylon, its message being that just as the god of israel saved daniel and his friends from their enemies, so.
Quotation given in full when space permits corresponding quotations from daniel. On the human level daniel is set against the babylonian magicians who fail to interpret the kings dream, but the cosmic conflict is between the god of israel and the false babylonian gods. Daniel who through the book received revelations from god. The second main part of the book in the hebrew bible viixii is taken up with four visions which daniel describes in the first person. But he also provides wonderful hope for those who submit their lives to god. Named after its writer, daniels book is a product of his time in babylon as a. As isaac newton in his observations on the prophecies of daniel 1732 put it.
What is the meaning of the 1290 days versus the 35 days in daniel 12. The book is organized very logically once the context and purpose of the book are known. What is the meaning of the 1290 days versus the 35 days. This is proved by daniel s personal experiences and by the prophecy, which runs through the book, of the establishment of the kingdom of god, a universal, eternal kingdom, a kingdom of peace and justice for all who prove faithful to him. This final chapter of the book of daniel focuses on the end timethe time just before and after jesus christ returns to earth.
The angel gabriel specifically told daniel to seal up these prophecies until the time of the end. The book of daniel is the apocalyptic book of the hebrew bible. The book of daniel, a book of the old testament found in the ketuvim writings, the third section of the jewish canon, but placed among the prophets in the christian canon. Daniel 4 niv nebuchadnezzars dream of a tree bible. The book of daniel is often read for its contribution to our understanding of endtimes events, but sometimes christians have been so obsessed with this that we have missed its main message. The first half of the book chapters 16 contains stories in the third person about the experiences of daniel and his. We know without a shadow of doubt that daniel was written before about 330 bc because josephus in antiquities of the jews 11. As such, daniel is similar to the book of revelation in the new testament, which is the oldest document actually claiming the title apocalypse or revelation. Roughly 2,600 years ago a judean teenager was taken captive by the rapidly ascending babylonian empirea governmental juggernaut of unstoppable military strength, great wealth and. The book of daniel is no exception for it provides a wealth of information to those who would diligently consider it and its teachings. Daniel bridges the entire 70 years of the babylonian captivity from 605 to 536 b. The book of daniel is a collection of papers written at several times. The book of daniel stands as a unique mix in the old testament, for while it begins with history, it makes a strong transition at chapter 7, where it contains visions of future events significant to the jews.
The book of daniel speaks of things that can be interpreted in many ways, and many scholars, who do not have any concept of an inner meaning, interpret them literally. What is the prophet daniels significance and purpose. Daniels three friends daniels friends shadrach, meshach and abednego served as advisers to king nebuchadnezzar of babylon. The book of daniel, though its likely derived from some oral traditions and legends that had been floating around for a long time, was put together in its final form sometime around 165 bce, when the israelites were squabbling with the evil antiochus iv epiphanes, a leftover greek general jockeying for influence in the postalexanderthegreat era. In daniel 7 the prophet records a night vision that god gave him concerning four world empires, symbolized as four beasts daniel 7. The prophetic book of daniel was written for our time.
In any case, daniel, like revelation the other book length apocalypse in the bible provides much valuable material relevant to work. The overall theme of the book of daniel is gods sovereignty over history. The beasts of revelation and daniel here a little, there. In the book of daniel the scriptures foretell how the lord will deal with the people of daniel the jews and the gentile nations. The interpretation of the book can be determined only by understanding its historical background. God is in control, no matter how things look, and his kingdom will one day fill the earth. Unlike other old testament prophecies, this book does not call its readers to. It says in context here that from the abolition of the daily sacrifice and the erection of the abomination. This article discusses the symbolic meanings of several end time prophecies and interlaces the book of daniel and revelation where they complement each other. Daniel served in the royal court of nebuchadnezzar and several rulers who followed nebuchadnezzar.
Posted on may 8, 2005 by john oakes wrote in daniel, general, historical and messianic prophecy. The four empires are the same as nebuchadnezzar saw in his dream in daniel 2, although in that dream they are pictured as various metals in a statue. Daniel looks forward to a time when god will restore his people and fulfill all of his promises made to abraham, david, and the prophets. His visions offer hope that god will bring all nations under his rule. Mr luginbill, could you please tell me why the difference in days mentioned in daniel 12. Even as a young man, daniel had a knack for understanding visions and dreams daniel 1. And in fact the book of revelation is largely a christian interpretation of the. On a theological level, the book of daniel is clear god established babylon as an empire and has replaced babylon with persia.
Daniel is the only old testament book written completely in apocalyptic language. Understanding the book of daniel free bible booklets. The book of daniel in the early church canon what critics say the book of daniel was never listed with other books of the canon until after the 2nd century b. The key to the book is revealed in the relationship between the future gentile dominion and the jewish historical context. The book of daniel records the actions, prophecies, and visions of the prophet daniel. The babylonian king of 605 562 bce was in fact called nabukuddurriusur which should be transliterated into hebrew script as neuchad r ezzar as it is in eg. D records that when alexander the great approached jerusalem, the high priest jaddua met him and showed alexander part of the book of daniel where the greeks would overcome the persians. Book of daniel overview insight for living ministries. He ends up taking back the cream of the crop, the most elite and noble israelites, to serve at his court in babylon.
Daniel, as many other authors of the antiquity and the bible, writes of himself in the third person throughout the first part of the book. It is essential to rely on him and know his word since even the elect will be deceived in the end times, if it were possible. The book of daniel is a 2ndcentury bc biblical apocalypse combining a prophecy of history with an eschatology a portrayal of end times cosmic in scope and political in focus. Daniel with book summary versebyverse bible commentary.
The widely held view that the book of daniel is largely fictional rests mainly on the modern philosophical assumption that longrange predictive prophecy is impossible. The title of the book comes from the name of its chief character and author. As it happens, the book of daniel offers a readymade framework for unpacking its meaning in the workplace. That god is sovereign over the world is a theme found throughout scripture but it is in the forefront of the book of daniel. Daniel 5 declares those prophecies are fulfilled in a spectacular manner. Proper usage and audio pronunciation plus ipa phonetic transcription of the word book of daniel. The book of daniel the book of daniel is one of the most significant prophetic books in the bible. So now the meaning of the book of daniel is becoming clearer to us. Does the book of daniel have any significance for us today. The purpose of daniel is to show that only the kingdom of god is eternal. The book of daniel begins with king nebuchadnezzar, the ruler of babylon, ransacking jerusalem. Daniel is one of the most controversial books of the bible, yet its message is clear and unmistakable.
That framework is a nested parallelism structure in technical terms, a chiasm. The story of daniel motivates faithfulness despite exile in babylon. Worldchanging inventions like penicillin, the atomic bomb, heart transplants, travel to the moon, and the internet have seemingly arrived almost together. Interesting facts about daniel barnes bible charts meaning. Topics covered are the beast, satan, abaddon, apollyon, the antichrist and leviathan. In todays excerpt from the most recent edition in the story of god bible commentary series, author wendy l. Through a series of dreams and visions and their interpretations daniel is shown an outline of future kingdoms of the world.
Theyeyewitnesses of these eventsconsidered his words prophetic of the timesevents. Nine of the 12 chapters relate revelation through dreams and visions. It is my pleasure to tell you about the miraculous signs and wonders that the most high god has performed for me. Daniels unique position in the old testament can also be seen in its purpose. The book of daniel is a 2ndcentury bc biblical apocalypse combining a prophecy of history. Nebuchadnezzars dream of a tree king nebuchadnezzar, to the nations and peoples of every language, who live in all the earth. As a resident of the worlds premier capital city and an honored wise man in king nebuchadnezzars court, daniel demonstrated gods superiority over the pagan. Information and translations of book of daniel in the most comprehensive dictionary definitions resource on the web. Daniel, theology of definition and meaning bible dictionary. The result is a forcing of the word to fit into preconceived notions, and this in turn, unfortunately leads into misunderstanding. Its prophecies speak with increased meaning to this generation. Daniel 1 new international version niv daniel s training in babylon 1 in the third year of the reign of jehoiakim king of judah, nebuchadnezzar king of babylon came to jerusalem and besieged it. The big picture of the book of daniel bible commentary.
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