Old Testament · Major Prophets · Book 27 of 66

Daniel

Faithful in exile: God rules over every king and kingdom, and His kingdom will never end.

12 Chapters

Daniel 1–12

Author

Daniel

Written

c. 605 – 530 B.C.

Written For

Jewish Exiles in Babylon

Overview

Daniel Summary

Daniel tells how God’s people remained faithful while living in exile in Babylon and Persia. The book follows Daniel and his three friends, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who were taken from Judah as young men and trained for the king’s service. It shows them refusing to compromise their faith under pressure, and shows God rescuing them from the fiery furnace and the lions’ den.

The first six chapters are stories about Daniel and the Babylonian and Persian kings, where the theme is that “the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth” (4:32). Chapters 7–12 record Daniel’s visions, which include four beasts, the Ancient of Days, one like a son of man who receives an everlasting kingdom (7:13–14), the seventy “sevens” (9:24–27) and a final vision of the time of the end and the resurrection (12:1–3). Christians have interpreted these visions in different ways, and this outline simply follows the text.

The book is written in two languages, with Hebrew in 1:1–2:4a and chapters 8–12 and Aramaic in 2:4b–7:28. It encourages readers in every age to trust God, who rules over kings and kingdoms and whose kingdom will never be destroyed (2:44).

About the Name

Title

The book is named for its main character. Daniyyel is the Hebrew name for Daniel and means “God is my judge.” The name Belteshazzar was given to him in Babylon (1:7).

In English Bibles Daniel is placed with the Major Prophets after Ezekiel. In the Hebrew Bible it is found in the third section, the Writings.

Who Wrote It

Author Details

Tradition identifies Daniel as the author. He was taken to Babylon as a young man from the nobility of Judah (1:1–6), and he served under Nebuchadnezzar and later rulers until the time of Cyrus (1:21; 10:1). Parts of the book say that Daniel wrote down his visions (7:1; 12:4).

Many scholars think the book reached its final form in the 2nd century B.C. during the time of the Maccabees, and others hold that it was written by Daniel in the 6th century B.C. This page follows the traditional view.

When It Was Written

Date of Writing

The events of the book span from the first deportation to Babylon in about 605 B.C. (1:1) to the third year of Cyrus, about 536 B.C. (10:1), so the traditional date of writing is about 605–530 B.C. Scholars who see a later date for the final form place it around 165 B.C.

Daniel was written in Babylon and Persia to the Jewish exiles, and the Aramaic sections suggest readers in that setting.