The Book of Daniel is a biblical apocalypse, incorporating prophetic history with eschatology (the last study) that is cosmic in its scope and politics in its focus. In a more mundane language, it is "a report of Daniel's activity and vision, a noble Jew who was exiled in Babylon," the message is that just as the God of Israel saves Daniel and his friends from their enemies, so he will save all Israel in their current oppression.
In the Hebrew Bible it is found in Ketuvim (writing), whereas in the Christian Bible grouped with the Main Prophets. The book is divided into two parts, a set of six court stories in chapters 1-6 followed by four apocalyptic visions in chapters 7-12. Deuterocanon contains three additional stories, Song of Three Holy Sons, Susanna, and Bell and Dragon.
Although this book is traditionally thought to have originated from Daniel himself, the consensus of modern science considers it to be the pseudonym, the first legendary half-story of the place of origin, and the vision of the two products of an anonymous writer in the Maccabean period (2nd century BC). Its influence has resonated to an older age, from the Dead Sea Scroll community and the author of the Gospels and Revelations, to movements from the second century to the Protestant Reformation and the modern millenialist movement - which continues to have a major influence.
Video Book of Daniel
Structure
Division
The Book of Daniel is divided between court stories from chapters 1-6 and 7-12 apocalyptic visions, and between Hebrews chapters 1 and 8-12 and Aramaic chapters of chapters 2-7. This division is reinforced by the chiastic arrangements of the Aramaic chapters (see below), and by chronological developments in chapters 1-6 from Babylonia to the Median, and from Babylonia to Persia in chapters 7-12. Various suggestions have been made by experts to explain the fact that the division of the genre does not coincide with the other two, but it seems that the division of language and the concentric structure of chapters 2-6 is an artificial literary device designed to bind two parts of a shared book. The following outline is provided by Collins in his commentary on Daniel:
PART I: Tales (Chapter 1: 1-6: 29)
- 1: Introduction (1: 1-21 - Babylonia era, written in Hebrew)
- 2: Nebuchadnezzar's dream of four kingdoms (2: 1-49 - the era of Babel; Aramaic)
- 3: Fireplace (3: 1-30 - Babylonia era; Aramaic)
- 4: Nebuchadnezzar's Madness (3: 31-4: 34 - the Babylonian era; Aramaic)
- 5: Belsyazar Party (5: 1-6: 1 - the era of Babylonia; Aramaic)
- 6: Daniel in the lions cave (6: 2-29 - The median period by mentioning Persia; Aramaic)
PART II: Vision (chapter 7: 1-12: 13)
- 7: Animals from the sea (7: 1-28 - the era of Babylon: Syria)
- 8: The ram and the female goat (8: 1-27 - the Babylonian era; Hebrew)
- 9: Jeremiah's prophetic interpretation of seventy weeks (9: 1-27 - Middle median; Hebrew)
- 10: Revelation of angels: kings in the north and south (10: 1-12: 13 - Persian era, mentioning the Greek age; Hebrew)
Chiastic structure in the Aramaic section
There is a clear chiasm (a concentric literary structure in which the main point of a section is placed at the center and framed by parallel elements on both sides in "ABBA" mode) in the chapter arrangement of the Aramaic section. The following is taken from Paul Redditt's "Introduction to the Prophet":
- A1 (2: 4b-49) - The dream of the four kingdoms is replaced by the fifth
- B1 (3: 1-30) - Three of Daniel's friends in a fireplace
- C1 (4: 1-37) - Daniel interpreted the dream for Nebuchadnezzar
- C2 (5: 1-31) - Daniel interprets handwriting on the wall for Belshazzar
- B2 (6: 1-28) - Daniel in the lion's cave
- B1 (3: 1-30) - Three of Daniel's friends in a fireplace
- A2 (7: 1-28) - The vision of the four kingdoms of the world is replaced by a fifth
Maps Book of Daniel
Content
Introduction in Babylon (chapter 1)
In the third year of King Jehoiakim, God allowed Jerusalem to fall into the power of Nebuchadnezzar II, king of Babylon. The young Israelite of the noble and royal family, "flawless, and handsome," experienced in wisdom and competent to serve in the royal court, was brought to Babylon to be taught the nation's literature and language. Among them was Daniel and his three companions, who refused to touch the royal food and wine. Their watchdog fears for his life in case of health cost him worse, but Daniel suggests experiments and four appear healthier than their counterparts from ten days of nothing but vegetables and water. They were allowed to continue to refrain from eating the king's food, and to Daniel God provide insight into vision and dreams. When their training was done, Nebuchadnezzar found them 'ten times better' than all the wise men in his service and therefore kept it in his palace, where Daniel continued until the first year of King Cyrus. Nebuchadnezzar's_dream_of_four_kingdoms_ (chapter_2) "> Nebuchadnezzar's dream of the four kingdoms (chapter 2) >
In the second year of his reign Nebuchadnezzar had a dream. When he wakes up, he realizes that the dream has some important messages, so he consults with his wise man. Aware of their potential for explanation, the king refused to tell the wise man what he saw in his dream. Instead, he demands that his wise men tell him what the content of the dream is, and then interpret it. When the wise people protest that this is beyond anyone's power, he punishes everyone, including Daniel and his friends, to death. Daniel received a clear vision from God: Nebuchadnezzar had seen a large statue with golden head, silver chest and arms, belly and bronze thighs, iron feet, and iron legs mixed and clay, then saw the statue smashed by a rock turned into a mountain which fill the whole earth. Daniel explained the dream to the king: the statue represents four successive kingdoms, beginning with Nebuchadnezzar, all of which will be destroyed by the kingdom of God, which will last forever. Nebuchadnezzar recognized the supremacy of the god Daniel, raised Daniel over all his wise men, and placed Daniel and his companions in the province of Babylon.
Furnace burning (chapter 3)
Daniel's friends, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused to bow to the golden statue of King Nebuchadnezzar and thrown into the fiery furnace. Nebuchadnezzar was astonished to see the fourth figure in the furnace with all three, one "in the likeness of the son of the gods." So the king summoned all three to come out of the fire, and bless the God of Israel, and decided that whoever blasphemes it must be crushed from the limbs.
Nebuchadnezzar.27s_madness_.28chapter_4.29 "> Madness Nebuchadnezzar (chapter 4)
Nebuchadnezzar recounted a dream about a large tree that was suddenly felled on the command of the heavenly messenger. Daniel was called and interpreted the dream. The tree is Nebuchadnezzar himself, who for seven years will lose his mind and live like a beast. All this happened until, at the end of the appointed time, Nebuchadnezzar admitted that the "rules of heaven" and his kingdom and sanity were restored.
Belshazzar Party (chapter 5)
Belsyazar and his nobles blaspheme from the vessels of the holy shrine of Jews, offering praise to the innocent gods, until a mysterious hand appears and writes on the wall. The horrific king summoned Daniel, who raised him for lack of humility before God and interpreted the message: Belshazzar's kingdom would be given to Media and Persia. Belshazzar rewarded Daniel and appointed him to be the third in the kingdom, and that Belshazzar was killed the night and Darius the Mede took the kingdom.
Daniel in the cave of lions (chapter 6)
Darius lifts Daniel into high position, excites the jealousy of other officials. Knowing Daniel's devotion to his God, his enemies deceived the king into issuing a decree prohibiting the worship of god or other people for 30 days. Daniel continues to pray three times a day to the Lord to Jerusalem; he was accused and King Darius, forced by his own decree, tossed Daniel into a lion's den. But God shut the lions' mouths, and the next morning Darius rejoiced to find him unharmed. The king threw Daniel's accusers into the lions' pit along with their wives and children to step forward, while he himself acknowledged the Lord of Daniel as his kingdom would never be destroyed.
The sight of an animal from the sea (Chapter 7)
In the first year of Belshazzar Daniel had a dream about four beasts that emerged from the sea. The fourth, an animal with ten horns, devoured the whole earth, stepped on it and destroyed it, and the next little horn appeared and pulled out three previous horns. The Ancient of Days judges and destroys the beast, and "someone like a human son" is given the eternal kingdom over the whole world. The divine beings explain that the four beasts symbolize four kings, but that "the holy of the Most High" will receive the eternal kingdom. The fourth beast will become the fourth kingdom with ten kings, and another king who will bring down three kings and fight against the "saints" for "time, twice and half", after which a celestial judgment will be made against him and the "saints "will receive a permanent kingdom.
Vision of ram and goat (chapter 8)
In the third year Belshazzar Daniel has the vision of a ram and a goat. The ram has two big horns, one is longer than the other, and he attacks the west, north and south, defeating all the other animals. A goat with a single horn emerges from the west and destroys the ram. The goat becomes very strong until its horns are removed and replaced by four smaller horns. A small horn grows enormously, stopping the daily sacrifice of the temple and desecrating the sanctuary of two thousand and three hundred "nights and mornings" (which could be 1150 or 2300 days) until the temple is cleansed. The angel Gabriel told him that the ram represents Medes and Persia, the goat is Greek, and the "little horn" is an evil king.
Vision of the Seventies Weeks (Chapter 9)
/span>Daniel 10: In the third year of Cyrus Daniel saw in his vision an angel (called "a human", but certainly supernatural being) explaining that he was in the middle of the war with "the prince of Persia", only helped by Michael, "your prince. " The "Prince of Greece" will soon come, but first he will reveal what will happen to Daniel's people.
Daniel 11: A future king of Persia will fight against the Greek king, a "mighty king" will appear and use power until his empire is broken up and given to others, and finally the southern king (identified in verse 8). like Egypt) will fight with the "king of the north". After many battles (described in great detail) "the abject" will be king in the north; This king will invade south twice, first successfully, but in the second he will be stopped by "the ships of Kittim." He will return to his own country, and in the course of his soldiers will desecrate the Temple, abolish everyday sacrifices, and set up hatred. He will defeat and subdue Libya and Egypt, but "reports from the east and north will warn him," and he will meet his end "between the sea and the holy mountain."
Daniel 12: At this moment Michael will come. It will be a great tribulation, but all those whose names are written will be delivered. "Many people who sleep in the dust of the earth will wake up, some for eternal life, the other to shame and despair; the wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like a star for a star forever. " In the last verses the remaining time until the end is revealed: "time, time and half time" (three and a half years). Daniel failed to understand and ask again what would happen, and told: "Since the time of daily sacrifice is abolished and the abomination that causes sorrow is set, there will be 1,290 days." Blessed is the man who waits and reaches the end of 1.335 days. "
Addition to Daniel (tradition of Greek text)
The Greek text of Daniel is much longer than Hebrew, for three additional stories: they were accepted by all branches of Christianity until the Protestant movement rejected them in the 16th century on the basis that they were absent from the Hebrew Bible, but still in the Catholic and Orthodox Scriptures.
- Azariah's Prayer and Song of the Three Holy Sons, placed after Daniel 3:23;
- The story of Susanna and the Elders, placed before chapter 1 in several Greek versions and after chapter 12 on others;
- Bel and Dragon Stories, placed at the end of the book.
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The vision of chapters 7-12 reflects the crisis that occurred in Judea in 167-164 BC when Antiochus IV Epiphanes, the Greek king of the Seleucid Empire, threatened to destroy the traditional Jewish worship in Jerusalem. When Antiochus came to the throne, the Jews were largely pro-Seleucids. The High Priest family is divided by competition, and one member, Jason, offers the king of large sums of money to serve as High Priest. Jason also asked - or rather, paid - to be allowed to make Jerusalem a policeman, or a Greek city. This means, among other things, that the city government will be in the hands of the citizens, which means that citizenship will be a valuable commodity, which must be purchased from Jason. None of these threaten Judaism, and reforms are widely welcomed, especially among the Jerusalem aristocracy and prominent priests. Three years later, Jason was overthrown when another priest, Menelaus, offered Antiochus an even greater sum for the office of the High Priest.
Antiochus invaded Egypt twice, in 169 BC successfully, but in the second attack, by the end of 168 BC, he was forced to retreat by the Romans. Jason, hearing the rumors that Antiochus had died, attacked Menelaus to take back the Great Priesthood. Antiochus expelled Jason out of Jerusalem, plundering the Temple, and introducing measures to calm his Egyptian border by imposing complete Hellenization: The Jewish Law is forbidden and on December 15, 167 BC a "sadness of sorrow", perhaps a Greek altar, was introduced to Temple. With Judaism now clear under the threat of resistance movement emerging, led by Maccabee's brothers, and for the next three years he won enough victory over Antioch to take back and purify the Temple.
The crisis written by the author of Daniel is the defilement of the altar in Jerusalem in 167 BC (first introduced in chapter 8:11): daily sacrifices that usually occur twice a day, in the morning and afternoon, stop, and the phrases "afternoon and morning "recurs through the following chapters as a reminder of unanswered sacrifices. But while the events that led to the dismissal of the Temple in 167 BC and soon after were very accurate (Chapter 11: 21-29), the predicted war between the Syrians and the Egyptians (11: 40-43) never happened. , and the prediction that Antiochus would die in Palestine (11: 44-45) was inaccurate (he died in Persia). The conclusion is that the story must be completed towards the end of the reign of Antiochus but before his death in December 164 BC, or at least before the news of him reached Jerusalem.
Composition
Development
It is generally accepted that Daniel originated as a collection of Aramaic court stories then expanded by the Hebrew revelation. The court's story may originally be distributed independently, but the edited collection may have been compiled in the third century or early second century BC. When a complete collection is collected, it is likely that the brief introduction of the Aramaic language from chapter 1 is prepared to provide a historical context, introduce story figures, and explain how Daniel and his friends came to Babylon. In the third stage, the vision from chapters 7-12 is added and chapter 1 is translated into Hebrew.
Authorship
Daniel is one of the largest number of Jewish apathy, all pseudonim. Although all the books are traditionally considered to be from Daniel the fortune teller, chapters 1-6 are in an anonymous narrator voice, except for article 4 in the form of a letter from King Nebuchadnezzar; only the second half (chapters 7-12) presented by Daniel himself, introduced by the anonymous narrator in chapters 7 and 10. The actual writer/editor of Daniel may be a learned Jew, knowledgeable in Greek learning, and has a high standing in his community alone. This book is a product of the "Wisdom" circle, but the kind of wisdom it is mantic (the secrets of heavenly secrets of earthly signs) rather than learning wisdom - the ultimate source of wisdom in Daniel is God's revelation.
It is possible that Daniel's name was chosen for the book's hero because of his reputation as a wise prophet in the Hebrew tradition. Ezekiel, who lived during the Babylonian exile, mentions him in connection with Noah and Job (Ezekiel 14:14) as a legendary figure of wisdom (28: 3), and a hero named Daniel (more accurately Dan'el, but his spelling) is close enough to two to be considered as identical) features in the final 2 millennium mythology of Ugarit. "The legendary Daniel, known all along but still remembered as an exemplary character... serves as the main" hero "of man in the biblical book that now bears his name"; Daniel is a wise and righteous mediator capable of interpreting dreams and thereby conveying God's will to man, the visionary recipient from above who is interpreted to him by a heavenly mediator.
Dating
Daniel's prophecies were accurate to the careers of Antiochus IV Epiphanes, the king of Syria and the Jewish oppressors, but not in his predictions of death: the author seems to know about two Antiochus campaigns in Egypt (169 and 167 BC). ), the blasphemy of the Temple ("disgust of sorrow"), and the citadel of Acra (the citadel built inside Jerusalem), but he seems to know nothing about the reconstruction of the Temple or about the true state of Antiochus' death at the end of 164 BC. Chapters 10-12 should be written between 167 and 164 BC. There is no evidence of significant time intervals between the chapters and chapters 8 and 9, and chapter 7 may have been written only a few months earlier.
Further evidence from the date of this book is on the fact that Daniel was expelled from the canon of the Hebrew Bible from the prophets, which closed about 200 BC, and the Wisdom of Sirach, a work dating from around 180 BC, draws almost every Old Testament book except Daniel, the Leading experts assume that the author is not aware of it. However, Daniel is quoted in the Sibylline Oracles section generally dated to the middle of the 2nd century BC, and popular at Qumran at almost the same time, showing that it was known from the middle of the century.
Manuscript
The Book of Daniel is kept in the 12-chapter Masoretic Text and in two older Greek versions, the original Septuagint version, c. 100 BC, and later Theodotion versions of c. 2nd century. The two Greek texts contain three additions to Daniel: the Prayer of Azariah and the Song of the Three Holy Sons; the story of Susannah and the Elders; and the story of Bel and Dragon. Theodotion was closer to the Masoretic Text and became so popular that it replaced the original Septuagint version in all but two manuscripts from the Septuagint itself. The Greek addition seems to have never been part of the Hebrew text.
Eight copies of the Book of Daniel, all incomplete, have been found in Qumran, two in Cave 1, five in Cave 4, and one in Cave 6. Among them, they store texts from eleven of the twelve chapters of Daniel, and the twelfth are quoted in Florilegium (a scroll compilation) 4Q174, shows that the book at Qumran does not have this conclusion. All eight manuscripts copied between 125 BC (4Q and c ) and about 50 AD (4Q and b ), indicating that Daniel was being read in Qumran only about 40 years after his composition. All seem to preserve a 12-chapter Masoretic version rather than a longer Greek text. No one expresses massive disapproval of the Masoretic, and four reels preserving the relevant parts (1Q and a , 4Q and a , 4Q and b , and 4QDan d ) all follow the bilingual nature of Daniel in which the book was opened in Hebrew, turning to Aramaic in 2: 4b, then turning to Hebrew at 8: 1.
Genre, meaning, symbolism and chronology
(This section deals with the modern scientific reconstruction of the meaning of Daniel to the original authors and listeners)
Genre
The Book of Daniel is an apocalypse, a literary genre in which the heavenly reality is revealed to a human recipient; such works are characterized by visions, symbolism, other worldly mediators, emphasis on cosmic events, angels and demons, and disguises (false authorship). Apocalyptic production generally occurs from 300 BC to 100 AD, not only among Jews and Christians but also among Greeks, Romans, Persians and Egyptians. Daniel, the book's hero, was a representative apocalyptic apologist, a recipient of divine revelation: he had learned the wisdom of the Babylonian wizards and surpassed them, for his God was the source of true knowledge; he is one of the maskilim (??????), the wise men, who have the duty of teaching the truth and whose numbers may be considered the author of the book itself. This book is also an eschatology, because the divine revelation concerns the end of the age, a predictable moment in which God will intervene in history to usher in the final kingdom. He gave no real details about the end of time, but it seems that the kingdom of God will be on this earth, that it will be governed by justice and righteousness, and that the tables will be enlivened by the Seleucidians and the Jews who have worked with them.
Meaning, symbolism and chronology
The concept of immortality and resurrection, in exchange for the righteous and the punishment of the wicked, has deeper roots than Daniel, but the first clear statement is found in the last chapter of the book: "Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake, eternal life, and some for eternal shame and humiliation. "Without this belief, Christianity, in which the resurrection of Jesus plays a central role, will vanish, like the movement following other charismatic Jewish figures in the 1st century.
Daniel is quoted and referenced by Jews and Christians in the 1st century AD to predict the end of the age to come. The times of the national crisis and culture continually revived the apocalyptic spirit, through the 2nd/3rd Montanist, were persecuted for their millennium, to the more extreme elements of the 16th century Reformation such as the Zwickau prophets and MÃÆ'nnster Rebellion. During the British Civil War, the Fifth Monarchies took their name and political program from Daniel 7, demanding that Oliver Cromwell allow them to form "the reign of the saints" in preparation for the coming of the Messiah; when Cromwell refused, they identified him as the beast who seized the rightful place of the King of Jesus. Daniel remains one of the most influential apocalypses in modern America, foretelling the history of Jesus and the Second Coming.
Daniel's influence is not limited to Judaism and Christianity: In the Middle Ages Muslims created horoscopes whose authority was associated with Daniel. Recently the BahÃÆ'¡'Ã gerakan movement, which originated in Persian Shi'ite Islam, justified its existence in Daniel's prophecy 1260 days, stating that it prophesied the arrival of the Twelfth Imam and the age of peace and justice in that year. 1844, which is the year 1260 from the Muslim era.
Western culture
Daniel belongs not only to religious traditions but also to the wider intellectual heritage and Western art. It is the most popular prophetic books for the Anglo-Saxons, which are somehow treated not as prophecies but as history books, "the repository of dramatic tales of confrontation between God and a series of emperor figures representing the ultimate human reach." In the early modern period, physicist Isaac Newton paid special attention to him, and Francis Bacon borrowed the motto from it for his Novum Organum work. Philosophers, like Baruch Spinoza, have drawn it. In the 20th century, the second half of his apocalyptic drew Carl Jung's attention. The book also inspires the musicians, from medieval liturgical drama to the 20th century compositions of Darius Milhaud. Artists including Michelangelo, Rembrandt and EugÃÆ'¨ne Delacroix are all interested in their imagery.
See also
- biblical numerology
- Christian eschatology
- Daniel (Old English poem)
- The Greek Revelation of Daniel
Note
References
Quote
Bibliography
External links
- Jewish Translation
- Daniel (Judaica Press) * translation [with Rashi's comment] on Chabad.org
- Christian translation
- The Bible, King James Version ( "Bible, King James Version". quod.lib.umich.edu Retrieved 2016-01-17 . Ã, ) Daniel's Book
- Daniel in The Great Books *
- The Book of Daniel * (Full text from St-Takla.org, also available in Arabic)
- Daniel: 2013 Critical Translation with Audio Drama at biblicalaudio
- Daniel introduction
- Bible: Daniel public domain audiobooks in LibriVox Various versions
- Related articles
- Jewish Encyclopedia : Daniel
- Daniel: Wise Man and Visionary, by Elias Bickerman
- Aramaic Daniel, Patrick Henry College
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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