NOTICE
The book of Daniel is one of the most famous and popular books in the Bible. It is popular because of its visions and dreams that many people interpret differently. I am not here to set a final interpretation of the book and neither am I going to set a standard way of understanding the book. What I am about to do in the introductions to this book is to provoke our minds and perspectives on this book. At the end of these introductions, the reader will be able to think critically about the content of this book. It is my vision as the thesis of iTiS Well of Worship Fellowship (John 4:24) says; “Believing to Question and Questioning to Believe” that after reading this book, we won’t be skeptics but conscious believers.
TITLE
The book is one of those books in the Bible named after the key characters in the book. Daniel is a main character in the book and it is titled after his name. Daniel is a Hebrew name דָּנִיֵּאל (Daniyyel) meaning, “God is my judge”, from the roots דִּין (din) meaning “to judge” and אֵל (‘el) meaning “God”. In the future, I will discuss the Hebrew naming that surrounds God and his titles. For instance; Samuel, Ezekiel, and Daniel are names that end with ‘El’, while Nehemiah, Isaiah, and Jeremiah end with ‘Yah’. The two endings are specific descriptions of God.
Hebrews named after their God and the God of the Bible has two classes of names. There are those known as Elohistic names of God (El- Bashayim – God in Heaven, El-Shaddai – God Almighty or Almighty God, El-Kanna – The Jealous God, El-Olam -The Everlasting God or God of Eternity). The second class is the Yahovahistic names of the same God (Jehovah Nissi – The Lord My Banner, Jehovah Raah – The Lord My Shepherd, Jehovah Rapha – The Lord That Heals, Jehovah Shammah – The Lord Is There). Thus, Daniel was named and his name falls under the first classification of God’s names.
AUTHORSHIP
There are many theories surrounding the authorship of Daniel due to the internal evidence (in the book) and external evidence (outside the text). The external evidence suggests that the book of Daniel is “historical fiction” designed to “encourage the resistance movement against the tyranny of Antiochus Epiphanes” According to Gleason L. Archer, Jr. A Survey of Old Testament Introduction, 388; Brevard S. Childs writes,
The visions called the community of faith to obedience and challenged it to hold on because the end of time which Daniel foresaw would shortly come.
Because it was written in the form of vaticinium ex eventu (prophecies-before-the-event), the effect of this message would be electrifying. Daniel had prophesied about the rise and fall of the earlier three kingdoms and these events had occurred. Now his vision of the last days was being fulfilled before their very eyes. The ‘little horn’ had appeared; the persecution had reached its height; the end was imminent. Therefore ‘blessed is he who waits’ (Introduction to the Old Testament as Scripture, 615-16).
Others argue that the book was written by someone living during the time of Antiochus IV Epiphanes, while others, based on chapter 9, insist the time of the book goes beyond the Maccabean period by predicting the crucifixion of Christ and the following destruction of the city of Jerusalem. Others base on Daniel 8:2 to conclude it was in the time of the Chaldeans. According to Bruce K. Waltke, the manuscripts evidence indicates that Manuscripts discovered at Qumran (e.g., a Florilegium found in cave 4Q), which date from the Maccabean period make it very unlikely that the book was written during the time of the Maccabees (e.g., 168 B.C.). For it would have taken some time for it to have been accepted and included in the canon (The Date of the Book of Daniel. Bibliotheca Sacra 133 (1976): 321-322)
For the internal evidence scriptures testify that it was Daniel himself like 7:1; Matthew 24:15-16; Mark 13:14; Luke 21:20 the rest of the references are in terms of pronouns either third person or first person singular
CANONICITY
The book of Daniel qualifies to be part of the Canon for it fulfills and fits into the scope of Biblical theology and ably contributes to the body of divine knowledge. However, this hasn’t stopped Biblical Scholarship to contest its canonicity based on the fact that the traditional view considers the book part of the prophets, yet the Book was discovered long (written later than 200BC) earlier the canon of prophets was closed by the council of Jamnia (90 AD) and yet not included in the prophets. To me, this is not a canonicity contest but rather a genre one. This is will look into as we continue but for now, we must be assured that in the book of Daniel, we are dealing with God’s word as it appears in our accepted Canon.
OUTLINE
The book of Daniel can be outlined in three approaches, the first is by GR Harding Wood and the other two are suggested by my teacher Daniel B Wallace. Here are the approaches:
1-The Daniel Approach:
- A) From Captive to Courtier =chapter 1
- B) Daniel under Babylonian Kings =chapters 2-5
- C) Daniel under the Medo-Persian-Darius =Chapter 6
- D) Daniel’s Vision of World Governments =Chapter 7
- E) Daniel’s three Prophecies/Wisdom conclusions =Chapters 8-12
2-The Traditional approach:
- A)-chapters 1-6: historical
- B)-chapters 7-12: prophetic
3-The Linguistic approach:
- A) chapter 1-2:4a: Introduction (in Hebrew)
- B) chapters 2:4b-7: Aramaic (referring to Gentiles)
- C) chapters 8-12: Hebrew (referring to Jews)
These are the outlines (not interpretation modes) that any reader of the book can choose from. It is important to note that all these outlines are acceptable in the study of the book, however, the recommendation of any particular one depends on the intentions and goals of one’s study of the book. Next, I will begin on the theological contribution of this book in the entire library known as the Bible.
God bless you I invoke TRUTH, REASON, and FAITH (2Tim 2:7)
Priest M.I.T White (+256-775-822833 for further inquiries)
iTiS Well of Worship Fellowship (John 4:24)
@Think & Become
iTiS Well of Worship Fellowship (John 4:24) 