Major Prophets · Old Testament
Daniel
c. 605–536 BC
- Section
- Major Prophets · Old Testament
- Events span
- c. 605–536 BC
- Written
- c. 530 BC, from Babylon (near modern-day Hillah, Iraq)
- Author
- Daniel
Daniel, a Jewish exile in Babylon, rises to power under pagan kings while staying faithful to God. The first half tells famous stories of faith (the fiery furnace, the lions' den), and the second half unfolds apocalyptic visions of world empires and God's everlasting kingdom.
Historical setting: In exile in Babylon, later under Persia, serving in foreign royal courts; the book opens as the First Temple still stands (605 BC) and runs on past its fall, before the Second is rebuilt.
Chronological placement: Set during the Babylonian exile (c. 605–536 BC), where it is placed. Traditionally written then by Daniel; critical scholars date the book to c. 165 BC (see the dual dating above).
Key themes
- Faithfulness under pressure
- God's sovereignty over empires
- Deliverance
- Apocalyptic visions
- God's everlasting kingdom
Key events
Faithful in Babylon (Daniel 1–6)
- Daniel and his three friends refuse the king's rich food and are found healthier for it
- Daniel interprets Nebuchadnezzar's dream of a great statue representing four kingdoms
- Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego survive the fiery furnace, joined by a fourth figure
- Nebuchadnezzar is driven mad until he acknowledges God, then is restored
- Belshazzar sees the writing on the wall, and Babylon falls to the Medes and Persians that night
- Daniel is thrown to the lions for praying and is delivered unharmed
Apocalyptic Visions (Daniel 7–12)
- Daniel sees four beasts and the Ancient of Days giving dominion to "one like the Son of man"
- The vision of the ram and the goat foretells the rise of Greece and a coming tyrant
- Daniel prays, and the angel Gabriel gives the prophecy of the seventy weeks
- A final vision of future kingdoms, great tribulation, and the resurrection of the dead
Key lessons
- Faithfulness holds firm under pressure; Daniel and his friends refuse to compromise even when it means the furnace or the lions’ den, trusting God whether or not he rescues them. Dan 3:17–18
- God is sovereign over every empire and ruler; kingdoms rise and fall at his word, and even the proudest king must learn that “the most High ruleth.” Dan 4:17, 34–35
- History is heading somewhere: earthly empires give way to God’s everlasting kingdom, giving his people hope that outlasts every power of the moment. Dan 7:13–14
“And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.”
Critical scholarship view
Where mainstream critical scholarship dates or attributes this book differently from the traditional view above.
- Written
- c. 165 BC (during the Maccabean crisis)
- Author
- An anonymous author, c. 165 BC