It is commonly known that if the foundation is faulty, the building will soon fall. The book of daniel, also called the prophecy 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. The book of daniel is an apocalyptic of the old testament. An example of chiastic structure would be two ideas, a and b, together with variants a. The scope of this book does not allow an extensive examination of the issues of authorship and dating of each book old testament book. This debate is a divisive factor in the overall understanding of the book. Structure, composition and authorship the book of daniel. First, the book claims to be written by daniel dan. With this conclusion in place, the books authorship is considered to be either a gradual accumulation of material throughout the period identified in the text 597 539 bc or a single composition which was produced near the end of daniels life. If we deny daniels authorship, then this places us in the uncomfortable position of calling this author a liar and a fraud. Sir isaac newton in his observations upon the prophecies of daniel and the apocalypse of st. The book does not mention his death, and no other book. In this case, even those who contend for a maccabean date of authorship must admit true prediction in the book of daniel for the roman empire did not appear in israels history until 63 b. If the claims of the book are taken at face value, it was written during the lifetime of daniel at various periods between the time he was captured and the third year of cyrus 605 to 536 b.
The proof of daniels authorship and the dating of the book of daniel as to the date of the composition of daniel, daniel was born between 620 b. It is the first major authorship book since 1916 without an ideological bias, and the first to undertake a systematic comparative analysis with other literary biographies. It is no accident that the three most attacked books of the bible are also the most significant gen. Who wrote the book of daniel biblical hermeneutics stack exchange. The book of daniel we are reaching a point in time where it is more and more difficult to be spiritually neutral for we find ourselves in a river with very strong currents. The author of the book of daniel tells us a lot about himself. Although the entire book is traditionally ascribed to daniel, chapters 16 are in the voice of an anonymous narrator, except for chapter 4 which is in the form of a letter from king nebuchadnezzar. The book unfolds details concerning the history of babylon, medopersia, greece, and rome. The writer of this chapter is nebuchadnezzar himself. Once it is admitted that the book of daniel is the work of one single author, there naturally arises the important question. Yamauchi 1981, daniel and contacts between the aegean and the near east before alexander, evangelical quarterly, 53. The authorship of the book of daniel patmos papers.
Kitchen 1970, the aramaic of daniel, in notes on some problems in the book of daniel london. The book of daniel does not contain an attribution or claim to authorship, but is nevertheless traditionally attributed to daniel, living during the entire period of the babylonian exile and in the early years of the persian period. Authorship daniel is one of a large number of jewish apocalypses. Objective evidence, therefore, appears to exclude the latedate hypothesis and indicates that there is insufficient reason to deny daniels authorship. While the book of daniel claims to be written roughly around 530 bc, critics of the ot claim that it was written in 167 bc, during the maccabean era. Authorship of the book of isaiah a prevalent belief exists among bible scholars that the book of isaiah was written by more than one person. That jesus concurred is clear from his reference to the abomination that causes desolation, spoken of through the prophet daniel mt 24. In order to make our way towards torah we cannot simply float along for we may be washed away and kayaking in such an environment is not for beginners although the experts who know how to steer such a craft can get very far. In th, bel and the dragon is apparently assumed to be by the same writer as the rest of the book of daniel. Jewish prophet and statesman during the babylonian captivity of the jews.
Daniel gives us the skeleton of prophecy on which all prophecy is placed. The book of daniel is an apocalypse, a literary genre in which a heavenly reality is revealed to a human recipient. The first half of the book chapters 16 contains stories in the third person about the experiences. The authorship of the book of daniel has been a matter of considerable debate among interpreters.
Skeptics insist that daniel could not have foreknown those details but must have written. The book of daniel identifies the prophet daniel as its author daniel 9. The book implies that daniel was its author in several passages, such as 9. Intro to daniel biblica the international bible society. This article will seek to refute the view that the book of daniel was written in the second century bc as many liberals claim and thus could not have been written. Though liberal scholars have questioned daniels authorship of the book, there is little doubt about that fact. I cant see those pages to see what exactly he says, but this is a very dubious claim. The first half of the book chapters 16 contains stories in the third person about the experiences of daniel and his friends under kings nebuchadrezzar ii, belshazzar, darius i, and. Introduction to the book of daniel, old testament seminary teacher manual 2014 daniel, old testament seminary teacher manual. In many ways, daniel is a book of paradox, offering very straightforward narratives revealing gods greatness and.
Overview of the book of daniel third millennium ministries. Is this sole writer the prophet daniel who composed the work during the exile 586536 b. The first six chapters are the history section, telling of a jew named daniel of royal descent, who was taken captive along with the rest of the people from the city of jerusalem. Jesus mentions daniel as the author as well matthew 24.
Even if we use 165 bce as the date of authoring daniel based on naturalist bias, daniels 70weeks prophecy contains a very accurate forth telling of the christian faith. This summary of the book of daniel provides information about the title, author s, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of daniel. Joyce, the musical instruments in nebuchadnezzars orchestra, notes on some problems in the book of daniel. The book of daniel contains some of the most beloved stories as well as some of the most hotly contested, disputed prophecies in all of scripture. While modern critics hold to this perspective, there are a number of reasons for believing in the biblical authorship of daniel. Based on the evidence, modern scholars naturalists are. The book of daniel says that daniel was a young boy when taken into exile by the babylonians.
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. In this video, we introduce the historical backdrop to daniel and the current debate over dating the authorship of the book. Since he most probably lived to the age of 85 or 90, we can presume that the book of daniel was not composed later than 530 b. That daniel is the author of this book has been received both by the jews and the christian church throughout the centuries. Although it does not actually claim to have been written in the sixth century bce, the book of daniel gives clear internal dates. Many scholars have dated the book between 170 and 165 b. They claim that this book was written for the purpose of encouraging jews who were revolting against the tyranny of antiochus epiphanes iv, who was a savage greek tyrant, intent on suppressing israel. Stylistically, thematically, and structurally, the book of daniel is a complex work, and there has been considerable scholarly controversy surrounding it. Some of the text is written in the first person, and after all, if the book is historically accurate, only daniel. Book of daniel encyclopedia volume catholic online. Deal, bakers pictorial introduction to the bible, p. Naturalists use 165 bce as the date of authorship for the book of daniel. Although it does not actually claim to have been written in the sixth century bce, the book of daniel gives clear internal dates such as the third year of the reign of king jehoiakim, that is, 606 bce. The book of daniel, according to its own testimony, is the record of the life and prophetic revelations given to daniel, a captive jew carried off to babylon after the first conquest of jerusalem by nebuchadnezzar in 605 b.
Waltke writes, if then the second and third kingdoms refer to medopersia and greece respectively, the fourth kingdom must be rome. The book of daniel was likely written between 540 and 530 b. New evidence of an authorship problem reopens the authorship question with an arsenal of new information and powerful arguments. The book of daniel does not contain an attribution or claim to authorship, but is nevertheless traditionally attributed to daniel, living during the. The two main sections of the book, daniel 27 and 812, are organized in what is known as a chiasm or a chiastic structure. The alleged reference to daniels expressions in the septuagint version of deuteronomy they easily explain as a later gloss, and the actual acquaintance of the first book of the machabees with the prophecy of daniel they naturally regard as compatible with the nondanielic authorship, and indeed with the composition of the book of daniel in the. The book of daniel provides an account of the experiences of daniel and other faithful jews who were taken captive to babylon. This will provide the framework for the rest of our study as we. We will, however, discuss the case for authorship and dating for the most disputed and vigorously attacked books. Dean of online studies, tyndale theological seminary. Daniel is one of a large number of jewish apocalypses, all of them pseudonymous. The authorship and date of daniel are two of the more contested issues in the field of. The historicity of daniel is found in his contemporary ezekiel, who speaks of him several times.