An Overview of the Book of Daniel

 Daniel's Answer to the King by Briton Rivière (1840–1920)

A few weeks ago, I gave a lesson on the book of Daniel as part of a Bible survey series. You can listen to the lesson on Daniel at this link. (You can also listen to my sermon series on Daniel here.) Here is the handout that I provided along with the lesson. 

Daniel and his three friends were some of the youths “of the royal family and of the nobility” (1:3) taken from Jerusalem to Babylon in 605 BC when Babylon first subdued Jerusalem (cp. 1 Kgs. 24:1). Isaiah had prophesied that this would happen in 2 Kings 20:18. Daniel would rise to prominence as a ruler and counselor in the courts of Babylon and Persia. His career recounted in the book of Daniel spans 69 years. 

The theme of the book of Daniel

God is sovereign over the kingdoms of men. He will deliver and exalt his people and humble proud rulers. He will establish his anointed one and his kingdom, which will fill the earth.

Outline

1 - Introduction: Daniel and his friends in Babylon

2-7 - In Aramaic

        2 - The vision of the image and the mountain

                3 - God saves Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from the fiery furnace
                        4 - God humbles King Nebuchadnezzar
                        5 - God judges King Belshazzar
                6 - God saves Daniel from the Lion’s Den
        7 - The vision of the four beasts and the son of man

8-11 - In Hebrew

        8 - The vision of the ram, the goat, and the little horn that becomes great
                9 - Daniel’s prayer and the vision of seventy weeks
        10-12 - The vision of the kings of Persia, Greece, the north (Seleucids), the south (Ptolemys).

The Four Kingdoms/Empires (as they are described in the referenced chapters)

Babylon: golden head (2), lion with wings (7)

Medes and Persians: silver chest and arms (2), lop-sided bear with three ribs in its mouth (7), lop-sided ram (8), kings of Persia (11).

Greece: bronze middle and thighs (2), leopard with four wings and four heads (7), the goat with one horn that becomes four (8), Greece’s mighty king, whose kingdom will be divided in four (11)

Rome: legs of iron and feet of iron and clay (2), the fourth beast with ten horns (7).

The Little Horns that Become Great

The third kingdom divides into four after Alexander the Great’s death. From one of them comes a ruler, Antiochus Epiphanes, described in chapter 8 and 11-12. He persecutes the saints and profanes the temple.

The fourth kingdom also has a little horn that rises to prominence and persecutes the saints, the Roman emperor, described in chapter 7. Rome also is used to destroy Jerusalem and the temple (9).

The Fifth Kingdom/Empire

The kingdom of God: a rock that becomes a mountain (2), the Son of Man and the saints (7), the anointed one, a prince (9). It arises in the days of the rulers of the fourth kingdom, Rome (2:44, 7:13-14, 18, 22, 27)

Timeline 

605 BC - Daniel taken from Jerusalem to Babylon, about 14 years old (1:1-16). 
605-562 BC - Nebuchadnezzar’s 43-year reign in Babylon.
553-539 BC - Belshazzar reigns as king, though technically a regent under his father Nabonidus.
539 BC - The Medes and Persians conquer Babylon; Daniel is about 80 years old. 
536 BC - The “third year” of Cyrus’ reign in Babylon, when Daniel receives his last recorded vision (10:1). 
336-323 BC - The reign and conquests of Alexander the Great
175-164 BC - The reign of Antiochus Epiphanes 
167-165 BC - The Maccabean revolt
64-63 BC - Rome conquers Jerusalem and finishes conquest of the Seleucid kingdom
49-27 BC - The rise of the Roman Empire under Julius Caesar and Caesar Augustus

33 AD - The death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ

Thoughts on the Vision of Daniel 7

Daniel's Vision of the Four Beasts, by Matthew Merian (1630)

This Lord's Day, I will be preaching on Daniel 7. This is a complicated and often debated passage. Some interpret this vision to be about Antiochus Epiphanes and the Maccabees, others interpret to be about the Antichrist and the second coming, and others interpret it as partly about Christ's ascension and partly about the Antichrist and the second coming. I do not think this passage has anything to do with the antichrists mentioned in 1 and 2 John, nor do I think that its focus is on Antiochus Epiphanes (although Daniel 8 will focus on him). While I am not equally certain of all the details of the chapter, here are a few points on this vision that begin to lay out my approach.

1. The vision of "one like a son of man" coming with the clouds to the "Ancient of Days" portrays the exaltation and ascension of Jesus Christ.  "The Son of Man" was the name that Jesus most used for Himself, identifying Himself with this figure in Daniel's vision. This is not a vision of Jesus' second coming, since it portrays Him coming, not to earth, but to the Ancient of Days in heaven. This same scene is portrayed in Revelation 4-5.

2. The "one like a son of man" is interpreted in Daniel 7 to symbolize the saints (7:18). Just as a given figure in Daniel's visions can symbolize both an earthly king and his kingdom, so also the "one like a son of man" symbolizes both Christ and the saints. Thus, just as Christ is exalted and receives the kingdom, so the saints (by virtue of their union with Christ) are exalted and receive the kingdom (Luke 22:29, Rev. 5:10, Eph. 2:6). Likewise, the suffering under the "little horn" that precedes this exaltation applies to both Christ and His people. As Jesus said, "it written of the Son of Man that he should suffer many things" (Mark 9:12).

3. The four beasts refer to four world kingdoms, the same as the four world kingdoms of the statue in Daniel 2, which are Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece (under Alexander and his successors), and Rome. The first empire is identified as Babylon in chapter 2:37-38. The empire to conquer Babylon was the that of the Medes and Persians. The third empire, which conquered the Medes and Persians, was the Greek empire of Alexander the Great, which continued to exist in a divided state under his four successors (see 7:6 and 8:8). The fourth empire, which conquered these divided kingdoms, was Rome. I think the best explanation of the horns of the fourth beast that I have read is the one given by John Calvin. He argued that the ten horns symbolized the multiplicity of rulers under the Roman Republic, and the little horn symbolized the rule by one man in the line of Roman emperors.

4. The son of man/saints are delivered over to the little horn of the fourth beast. Jesus is crucified and the saints are persecuted under Rome. But the Father makes His judgment in their favor. The beast/little horn looses its dominion and is destroyed (7:11-12, 26). The rebellious kingdom of man lost authority over Christ when He rose from the dead, and all the kingdoms under heaven were given to Christ as His royal inheritance (7:11-14). Although the Roman emperors sought to persecute the saints, their opposition was overcome by the gospel (7:24-27). Universal authority was given to Christ so that "all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him" (7:14), and ever since then, He has been exercising His dominion, bringing all nations into His service as the saints carry out His great commission.

Update: the sermon on Daniel 7 is now available online at this link.