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Bible Overview is a wonderful resource for anyone interested in Bible study. Each month we feature a book of the Bible (in order) by Bible scholar and lecturer, Mary Jane Chaignot.
This month’s entry is the Book of Daniel, named for its hero who was purported to be living in Babylon during the period of the exile – in the 6th century BCE. In the Christian Bible, this book is found as the last entry among the Major Prophets. In the Hebrew Bible, it is part of the Writings, along with Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. Some see Daniel as an historical figure; others believe the name was lifted out of Ezekiel 14:14-29, where he is listed as a righteous man along with Noah and Job. Notwithstanding these unresolved challenges, this book witnesses to the conviction that, in the end, evil will not prevail. Ultimately, God’s redemptive work will triumph. If you want to read some of the history previous to this selection, you can find the earlier books in our archives.
The Bible Time-Line is another quick reference for locating individuals or specific books. We encourage readers to share their Bible Study success stories on this site. Email us at overview@biblewise.com to be included on next month's site.
Daniel
The book of Daniel is an enigma. It is written in both Hebrew and Aramaic, and has two major divisions. The first six chapters involve court stories, while chapters 7-12 describe visions. However, the language difference is sprinkled throughout and does not follow the division between stories and visions. Scholars have devised many theories but no definitive explanation for addressing the bilingual aspect of the book. Most accept the theory of multiple authors over the centuries.
The literary setting for the first half of the book is the time of the exile. Its narrator, Daniel, was likely among those captured and taken hostage by Nebuchadnezzar in 605-604 BCE. Daniel remained in the court until the first year of Cyrus, approximately 535BCE. Many believe these memoirs reflect a Persian influence and think he composed them after Persian had become the official language. That would have made Daniel close to ninety years old, assuming he was a young man when he was captured. This is all possible, if indeed, Daniel was an historic figure.
Many scholars question this and believe the book was composed during the second century towards the end of the reign of Antiochus IV Epiphanes (175-164 BCE). There are many and varied reasons for this argument, but the main points are that the vocabulary and style more closely resemble the usage of the second century than the sixth. The historical details are more accurate in describing second century events rather than the sixth. And there is no mention of this book prior to the second century.
Notwithstanding the discovery of new findings, these debates will continue. It is possible, however, that even if the book was composed in the second century, it still contains certain elements that come from a much earlier period. That would make final authorship difficult to determine, but many scholars look to the Hasideans, identified in I Maccabees 2:42 and 7:13-17. These hasidim were from the observant school and were proponents of traditional religion. Scholars believe that both the Qumran community on the Dead Sea and the biblical Pharisees evolved from this group. During the first and second centuries, they would have been in opposition to the Hellenizing priests in Jerusalem and are strong contenders for being the authors of this book.
If this theory is correct, it will be helpful to know some of the relevant historical data of the second century. After the Babylonians, of course, came the Persians. By 490 BCE, however, the Greeks began battling them. This culminated with the successes of Alexander the Great. Upon his death in 323 BCE, his half-brother became king (in name only) for seven years, while Alexander’s four generals maintained military control. Ultimately, the generals divided up the empire among themselves. The one assigned to Egypt and Palestine was Ptolemy; Seleucus had Babylon and Phrygia. Around 198 BCE, the Seleucid ruler Antiochus III managed to wrest Judah away from Ptolemaic control. (Interestingly, that meant that Jews living both in Babylon and Palestine were under the same ruler.) Antiochus was succeeded by his son and then his grandson, Antiochus IV (175-63).
The stories swirling around about Antiochus IV are grim and probably accurate. He seems to have relished persecuting followers of Yahweh. Some of his more notable transgressions are: He replaced the high priest with someone of his own choosing. He established a gymnasium in Jerusalem wherein males participated in the nude, causing many young males to attempt to reverse their circumcision. He plundered the temple in Jerusalem. He ordered an attack on the Sabbath when many observant Jews refused to take up arms to defend themselves, resulting in a virtual slaughter. He stationed soldiers within the temple, thus transgressing its sanctity. He erected pagan altars and sacrificed unclean animals upon them and forbade certain Judaic practices. But the ultimate insult was when he set up an altar to Zeus in the temple and offered an unclean sacrifice upon it. Some Judeans tried to revolt, while others passively acquiesced.
If this book was written during this period, it would have been a “tract for the times,” written for encouragement and comfort to Jews who were living in a rapidly changing world. The stories from the sixth century showed Jews achieving success within a new culture. They could be in service to a benign king while remaining faithful to God, and, indeed, commending their God to the pagans around them. But by the second century, the reigning king was anything but benign, leading to a series of apocalyptic visions. The worldview of the visions looks for an in-breaking of God in a new kingdom where the Jews would have a secure place. Such an act from heaven would transfer power from an evil ruler to the people of the holy ones on high. The visions, then, are not a rejection of their earlier history, but an extension of it; hence the two parts – stories and visions -- were placed side by side. These apocalyptic visions would have given them reason to stand firm in the midst of their alien culture, much like Daniel and his friends had done centuries earlier. The message would have included the hope that deliverance was at hand.
There are two main divisions: The Court Stories 1-6; Apocalyptic Visions 7-12. |
