The genre of the book of daniel is narrative history, prophetic oracle, and it includes apocalyptic material. Watch our overview video on the book of daniel, which breaks down the literary design of the book and its flow of thought. 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. Daniel watch our read scripture video on the book of daniel, which breaks down the literary design of the book and its flow of thought. The book of daniel begins with king nebuchadnezzar, the ruler of babylon, ransacking jerusalem. The book of daniel is the chief example of apocalyptic writing in the old testament, a form of writing that came into use largely in response to the disappointments that were experienced by the hebrews. Overview of the book of daniel third millennium ministries. The king saw a gigantic statue made of four metals, from its gold head to its feet of mingled iron and clay. This remarkable piece of scripture has encouraged the faithful for centuries. In the course of the books opening stories, the kings keep realizing that daniels god is, in fact, everybodys god, or the only godand then they immediately do something entirely disrespectful and ridiculous like.
Can there ever be faith again in the midst of darkness, rebellion, and gloom. Introduction to daniel bible exposition commentary. A brief synopsis the famous bible stories found in the scriptural text of the book of daniel contained in this short summary of daniel. By the time you finish reading daniel, youll probably be wondering how all these babylonian and persian kings could be so incredibly thick. Named after its writer, daniel s book is a product of his time in babylon as a jewish exile from israel. The dvd enables one to put the historical timeline together with the stories in the book. Daniel a nobleman like ezekiel, had been taken as a young man captive to babylon by nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadnezzar of babylon attacked jerusalem and carried off 10,000 of the most able jews including ezekiel and daniel. Daniel and his friendsshadrach, meshach, and abednegohave to navigate between the demands nebuchadnezzar is putting on them and. A brief overview of the book of revelation the rise and.
The book of daniel identifies the prophet daniel as its author daniel 9. While still a young man, daniel travelled to babylon with a group of young israelite nobles, men of promise whom the. Chapters and 14, which are not included in all versions of the book of daniel, are included in this summary. He ends up taking back the cream of the crop, the most elite and noble israelites, to serve at his court in babylon. Strictly speaking, the book does not belong to the prophetic writings but rather to a distinctive type of literature known as apocalyptic, of which it is an early specimen. In other words, the book of daniel could be a blend of thirdperson reports and a firstperson memoir. The book of revelation, or the apocalypse as it is also called, is the last book of the bible. Daniel belongs to the latter group, a type of writing that in many respects sharply contrasts prophetic literature. For centuries, they had looked forward to a reign of justice and righteousness on earth.
He may have descended from a noble family, perhaps he was even a prince, since normally the prominent people of a nation were taken captive 1. God will purify and preserve his people, and has set a limit of days to the time of trouble. Jesus mentions daniel as the author as well matthew 24. Chapters 8 and 11 have some sections that are hard to distinguish between the historical figure antiochus epiphanes and the antichrist. The book of daniel covers daniels age from 19 to 92. Daniel is told to shut up his words, and seal the book until the end of time. The dvd gave a most helpful overview of the book of daniel. The book of daniel is a 2ndcentury bc biblical apocalypse combining a prophecy of history with an eschatology cosmic in scope and political in focus. Intro to daniel biblica the international bible society. The oriental writers make daniel the author of a volume, entitled, principles relating to the explanation of dreams. That jesus concurred is clear from his reference to the abomination that causes desolation, spoken of through the prophet daniel mt 24. The book is named for a character from the babylonian exile see eras of jewish history exile and diaspora named daniel, although it. From daniel and his friends, we will learn the power of faith and commitment.
Listen to chuck swindolls overview of daniel in his audio message from the classic series gods masterwork. This end of life bias, as the researchers call it, suggests that we believe peoples true selves are revealed at the endeven if their death is unexpected and the bulk of their lives evinced a far different self. Book of daniel overview insight for living ministries. The time of trouble will be for a time, times and half a time ie, three and a half years. This book takes its name not from the author, who is actually unknown, but from its hero, who was allegedly among the first jews deported to babylon, where he lived at least until 538 b. The rise and fall of the antichrist appendix four a brief overview of the book of revelation. Daniel gains renown as an interpreter of dreams and receives a series of apocalyptic visions. Daniel overview james burton coffman commentaries on the. A study of the book of daniel gene taylor3an introduction to daniel i. Summary the book of daniel is the chief example of apocalyptic writing in the old testament, a form of writing that came into use largely in response to the dis. Book of daniel is written in exile in babylon during the 6th century b. Today the common belief is that the book of daniel is a combination of writings. The book of daniel assures gods people that their situation in exile would not be permanent, that god would keep his promise to abraham, he would keep his. Daniel overview john gills exposition on the whole bible.
The book of daniel has sometimes been classified with the prophetic books of the old testament, a mistake owing largely to a failure to distinguish between the predominant characteristics of prophetic and apocalyptic writings. Conclusion as with all scripture, the book of daniel is profitable for our study 2ti 3. Daniels steadfastness to truth had no latitude and his faithfulness to god no longitude. Witness faith and visions come to pass in the book of. It is a revelation that was received by the apostle john while he was in romanimposed exile on the island of patmos in the eastern mediterranean around 90 a. This book is unique in that it is one of the only books of the bible that weaves prophecy through dreams and visions with a narrative account of what was happening at the time. This summary of the book of daniel provides information about the title, authors, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of daniel.
The reasons for grouping stories from different reigns then needs to be explored. Daniels superior way of life earns him great respect in the babylonian government. This offers the best explanation for the somewhat tumultuous composition, the varying languages used, and the varied structure and voice throughout the book. Daniel 2 the second chapter of the book of daniel tells how daniel interpreted a dream of nebuchadnezzar ii, king of babylon. The god of israel is consistently called the most high god in the book of daniel. Named after its writer, daniels book is a product of his time in babylon as a jewish exile from israel. Part of the section of the bible referred to as ketuvim the writings see the torah, it is an apocalyptic book, like the book of revelations in the new testament. He is the god of heaven, whose kingdom will never be destroyed dan 2. Daniel 1, new international version niv the bible app. Daniels prayer, and the vision of the seventy weeks dan 9. An overview of daniel calvary chapel ft lauderdale.
The story recounts how daniel and his companions are taken captive from judea and trained as oracles for the king of babylon. Yet there is quite a bit of evidence which points to daniel as the one whom the holy spirit used to record the words of this book. It is complex in its historical and prophetic account of things now past, and things to come. 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. Summary of the book of daniel the story of the bible. Book of daniel from the king james version of the bible. The book of daniel was likely written between 540 and 530 b. Among the captured jews were false prophets who assured the exiles that babylon. The book of daniel spans the 70 years of the babylonian captivity ca. The first look at the book of daniel is exciting and tough at the same time. There is one read scripture video dedicated to the book of daniel, which aims to help you see its unique contribution to the story of jesus, but also how they work within the bibles overall framework. The book of daniel introduction to the book of daniel in the bible. At that point, jeremiahs role was expanded to bring gods word to the jews in exile chapter 29.
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. The book implies that daniel was its author in several passages, such as 9. Summary of daniel the kjv bible scriptures the content of daniel according to the kjv bible scriptures contains a short overview of the main subjects, people, events and ancient topics in the following. An overview of the book of jeremiah bible commentary. His visions offer hope that god will bring all nations under his rule. It also describes the apocalyptic visions given by god, and reveals the events. Unlike many of the other prophetical books, the opening verses of the book do not state who the holy writer of the book is. The book of daniel is about how god shows his everlasting wisdom, power, and faithfulness through one of israels greatest prophets.
778 584 68 388 1464 445 1394 277 406 838 545 370 1347 1063 1039 1505 265 609 1011 1131 54 86 1615 660 978 976 394 432 1434 1120 1486 1170 730 1390 1298 95 112 731 1242 1056 218 978 1319