daniel

1576 Words4 Pages

The Book of Daniel is the account of the activities and visions of Daniel, which elaborates through journeys and lesson on him. The Book of Daniel is found in the Ketuvim section of the Tanakh (Matthews). The word Daniel means “God is my Judge”. The genre of the book of Daniel is a Narrative History (Cohn). In both the Hebrew and Greek canons the book is titled after its main character, Daniel. The book is made up of six court tales and four apocalyptic visions set in the time of the Babylonian captivity (Bergan). The Babylonian captivity was a time when Jews were captives in Babylon (Wallace). Daniel connects the Old and New Testaments through Daniel. God revealed the exact date month and year of Messiah death and events leading to his return. Daniel demonstrates God’s complete control and comprehension over time and nations by giving detailed prophecies about the succession of kingdoms and rulers. Daniel tells the ahead of eventual establishment of Messiah’s kingdom, which will overthrow the kingdoms of this world (Wallace). For the reason, Daniel is often the most attacked book in the Bible because of the controversial accusations and words he proclaims. The Book of Revelation completes the plan started in the Book of Daniel. There are twelve chapters in the Book of Daniel. Those are 1: Induction into Babylon, 2: Nebuchadnezzar's dream of an image, 3: The fiery furnace, 4: The madness of Nebuchadnezzar, 5: Belshazzar's feast, 6: Daniel in the lions' den, 7: Daniel's first vision, 8: Vision of the ram and goat, 9: Prophecy of Seventy Weeks, 10: Vision of a man, 11: Kings of the North and South, and 12: Epilogue. Key people of of this book include Daniel, Nebuchadnezzar, Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego, Belshazzar, and Darius. Alth...

... middle of paper ...

...t God blesses those who put their faith in him alone and are obedient and devout. This can be seen over and over again. All of these themes are helpful and thought about in daily life today.
In conclusion, the Book of Daniel is a group narrative stories telling of the events of the life of the main character, Daniel, set in the time of the Babylonian captivity. It foreshadows the events of Christ’s death and resurrection. It also prophecizes the succession of kingdoms and rulers and the end of the world through the apocalyptic stories. The Book of Daniel creates a bridge between the Old and New Testaments. For this reason, it is one of the most important books of the Hebrew Scriptures and of the entire Bible. However, it is also one of the most highly controversial and debated books of the Bible due to Daniel’s foretelling of the Messiah’s kingdom to come.

Open Document