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DANIEL – INTRODUCTION

HISTORY AND OVERVIEW

I. THE BOOK OF DANIEL

A. Located in the Hebrew Bible as part of the Kethubhim-Writings

1. Daniel

2. Ezra-Nehemiah

3. Chronicles

B. Located in the LXX as the fourth book of the Prophets, right before the Minor Prophets

1. Presented in the same order as in our English Bibles  

C. Can be divided into two sections:

1. Historical accounts of faith being exercised that will inspire young and old (Chapters 1-6)

2. Prophetic visions pointing towards future fulfillment in history (Chapters 7-12)

a. Establishing God’s kingdom – the church

b. Destruction of Jerusalem – A.D. 70

D. Two famous angels in Book: Michael and Gabriel

1. Michael (arch-angel) “one of the chief princes” (10:13); “your prince” (10:21); “the great prince” (12:1); giving powerful help to God’s people (Jude 9, Rev. 12:7)

2. Gabriel (giving understanding) (8:16); giving wisdom (9:21-23); (cf. Lk. 1:19, 26).

II. DANIEL

A. “Daniel” means “God is my judge.

B. Daniel possessed a deep, non-compromising faith.

1. In his youth (1:8)

2. Still abiding in old age (6:10)

C. God blesses Daniel because of his “faith.”

            1. Rises to great heights in the kingdoms of Babylon and Persia (2:48, 6:1-3)

            2. Counsels kings and serves as a prophet

D. Daniel was a contemporary with Jeremiah and Ezekiel

1. Jeremiah prophesied in Jerusalem before and during the Babylonian exile      (626-528 B.C.)

2. Ezekiel prophesied in Babylon among he exiles (592-570 B.C.)

3. Daniel prophesied in the capital of Babylon (605-586 B.C.)

E. Apart from this book, nothing is known of Daniel’s personal life.

            1. Descended from on of Judah’s prominent families – if not royal blood (1:3)

2. From an early age (12-18) he was taken from his family to be trained in

                                       the courts of Babylon (1:3-4).

III. THE TIMES IN WHICH DANIEL LIVED

A. 612 B.C. – Fall of Nineveh, capital of Assyria

1. Assyria had ruled the world since the days of Tiglath-Pileser (845 B.C.)

2. Nabopolassar came to the throne in Babylon and rebelled against the Assyrians in 625 B.C.

3. Nebuchadnezzar, son of Nabopolassar, was the general who led the Babylonian army against Nineveh, defeating

    it in 612 B.C.

B. 605 B. C. – The battle of Carchemish, establishing the Babylonian domination

            1. Pharaoh-Necho of Egypt came to fight the Babylonians at Carchemish.

            2. Nebuchadnezzar defeated the Egyptians, chasing them south through Judah.

            3. At Jerusalem, Nebuchadnezzar heard of his father’s death; returned to assume the throne in Babylon.

            4. The first group of Jewish captives were taken, along with Daniel and his friends (1:1-4)

C. 597 B.C. – A second remnant taken to Babylon

            1. Jehoiachin (Jeconiah, Coniah) followed the reign of his father, Jehoiakim

            2. He lasted three months, when Nebuchadnezzar took him and 10,000 Jews to Babylon (2 Kings 24:8-16).

            3. The second group of captives included Ezekiel (Ezekiel 1:1-3).

D. 586 B.C. – Fall of Jerusalem and the temple destroyed

1. Zedekiah was installed as king in Jerusalem but was weak and vacillating.

2. Eleven years later, Jerusalem was totally devastated by the Babylonians (2 Kings 25:1-10).

3. A third group of Jews was taken into Babylonian captivity, but Jeremiah was among those who stayed behind

   (2 Kings 25:11-12; Jer. 39:11-14; 40:1-6)

E. 536 B.C. – The first remnant returns to Jerusalem.

1. Babylon falls in 539 B.C.

2. Cyrus, King of Persia, sends the first remnant back under the leadership of Zerubbabel (Ezra 1:1-1-5; 2:1-2).

3. The foundations of the Temple were soon started, but the Temple was not completed till 516 B.C. (Ezra 3:8-13;                   6:14-16).

F. 457 B.C. – A second remnant returns to Jerusalem

1. Ezra, the priest, returns with this group (Ezra 7:1-8:36).

2. He begins much needed revival (Ezra 9:1-10:44)

G. 444 B.C. – A third remnant returns to Jerusalem

1. Group led by Nehemiah (Neh. 1:1-2:20)

2. With Nehemiah’s leadership, walls of Jerusalem were rebuilt (Neh. 3:1-7:73).

3. Together with Ezra, they restore much of Israel’s religion (Neh. 8:1-13:31).

H. Daniel lived through much of these times (605 B.C. – 534-B.C.)

1. He was among the first group of captives to Babylon (1:1-4)

2. Continued through the entire 70 years of captivity (1:21; 10:1; cf. 9:1-2; Jer. 25:12, 29:10)

IV. THEME OF THE BOOK

A. “God rules in the kingdom of men” (cf. 2:21, 4:17, 25, 32, 34-35, 5:21)

1. Manifested in the days of Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar, Darius and Cyrus, kings of Babylon and the Medes and Persians.

2. Foretold to occur in the days of the Persians, Greeks and Romans

3. Rule especially manifested with the establishment of God’s eternal kingdom (2:44); and in the vindication of the cause of the saints (7:27)

OUTLINE OF BOOK

I. GOD’S PROVIDENCE IN HISTORY (1:1-6:28)

A. Daniel and his determination to be pure (1:1-21)

B. Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and Daniel’s promotion (2:1-49)

C. Faith faces the facts of fire in Daniel’s friends (3:1-30)

D. Nebuchadnezzar’s second dream and temporary insanity (4:1-37)

E. The writing on the wall and fall of Belshazzar (5:1-31)

F. Darius and his den of lions (6:1-28)

II. GOD’S PURPOSE IN HISTORY (7:1-12:13)

A. Daniel’s dream of the four beasts (7:1-28)

B. Daniel’s dream of the ram and the goat (8:1-27)

C. Daniels’ prayer, and the vision of the seventy-weeks (9:1-27)

D. Daniel’s vision of the time of the end (10:1-12:13)