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Basics
BOOK: Daniel
Description: The story of exiled Daniel in the court of Babylon, and visions received by him
Author: Daniel
Date written: probably completed about 530BC
Chapters: 12
Brief Synopsis
- Daniel and his three friends deported from Israel to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar
- Being faithful to the Lord they are taken into the king’s service
- As Jews in the pagan court they go through trials but God is there for them.
- Daniel is God’s voice for Nebuchadnezzar (ch.2-4), Belshazzar (ch.5) & Darius (ch.6) and is still there when Cyrus takes over (ch.10)
- Daniel receives visions for the future (ch.7-12)
Time Scales in Daniel
Exact timings always tend to be difficult in parts of the Old Testament and historians differ in their calculations and so what follows should be taken as a rough guide only. We have put then in order of time rather than how they appear in order in the book
| 1:1 | In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. | 605BC |
| 2:1 | In the second year of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; | 604BC |
| 7:1 | In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream | 553BC |
| 8:1 | In the third year of King Belshazzar’s reign, I, Daniel, had a vision, after the one that had already appeared to me. | 550BC |
| 5:1,30,31 | King Belshazzar gave a great banquet (son of Nebuchadnezzar)….. That very night Belshazzar, king of the Babylonians, was slain, and Darius the Mede took over the kingdom, at the age of sixty-two | 539BC |
| 9:1,2 | In the first year of Darius son of Xerxes (a Mede by descent), who was made ruler over the Babylonian kingdom– in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the LORD given to Jeremiah the prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years. | 539BC |
| 11:1 | in the first year of Darius the Mede…. | 539BC |
| 10:1 | In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia , a revelation was given to Daniel [Cyrus had taken Babylon in 539] | 536BC |
NB. Following these dates, approx. 69 years passed between the first one and last one. By the end Daniel must have been in his eighties.
So why read Daniel?
We usually ask this question first, but it needs seeing in the historical context because, whereas
- Jeremiah prophesied at this time to Jerusalem and Israel, and
- Ezekiel to the exiles in Babylon,
- Daniel’s activity throughout is seen in the royal court in Babylon.
He is God’s mouthpiece to the various kings of the all-powerful Babylonian and Persian empires and, indeed, his prophesies go way beyond those empires to others that follow.
The book of Daniel is in two parts, the first [chapters 1-6] which is all drama – threats to life, dreams, prophecies and miraculous deliverances – and the second is all prophecies. [chapters 7-12]
Contents
- Part 1: Historical Narrative
- Ch.1 – Daniel taken to Babylon
- Ch.2 – Daniel Interprets Nebuchadnezzar’s dream
- Ch.3 – Nebuchadnezzar’s idol & the Fiery Furnace
- Ch.4 – Nebuchadnezzar’s Downfall & Restoration
- Ch.5 – The Judgment on Belshazzar
- Ch.6 – Darius throws Daniel to the Lions
- Part 2: Prophecies
- Ch.7 – A New Vision in Belshazzar’s reign
- Ch.8 – The Second Vision in Belshazzar’s reign
- Ch.9 – Daniel Prays for his people
- Ch.10 – Vision Preparation in the reign of Cyrus
- Ch.11 – The Vision Continues
- Ch.12 – The Vision Concludes
Concluding Comments
- The story of Daniel is quite remarkable. As a young man taken in one of Nebuchadnezzar’s earlier raids on Israel, he ends up in the court of Nebuchadnezzar and becomes God’s voice to him.
- Nebuchadnezzar is also quite a remarkable figure. He appears all over the place in the records of that time and is clearly used by God to bring judgment on Israel and many other surrounding nations. However, he himself eventually has dealings with God that are revealed in this book that result in him submitting to and praising and worshipping the Lord.
- Daniel continues to be God’s mouthpiece in Babylonia right through the reigns (sometimes fairly short!) of Belshazzar, Darius the Mede, and eventually Cyrus the Persian. It is, of course, Cyrus who initiates the return to Jerusalem and the rebuilding of the Temple.
- Within the stories of Daniel and his three friends are two stories of remarkable deliverance – the fiery furnace and the lion’s den. The Lord is there for His servants.
- Essentially the whole book – history and prophecy – is all about the sovereignty of God. Nebuchadnezzar is simply a tool in God’s hand, and the Lord is there bringing dreams and revelations to work out His purposes and reveal Daniel as His servant.
- In the closing prophecies the message is always the same – kingdoms will come and go but it will only be the kingdom of God that will prevail. He IS the Lord! Let that reality grab you as you read this remarkable book.