Daniel

About Daniel

Daniel combines famous stories of faithfulness under pressure, like the lions' den and the fiery furnace, with sweeping visions of world empires rising and falling. Its message is steady throughout: human kingdoms come and go, but the God of heaven rules history and will set up a kingdom that never ends. In the Bible's story, Daniel teaches God's people how to stay faithful in a foreign culture and gives the New Testament its language of the Son of Man.

Written by

The book centers on Daniel, a Jewish exile serving in Babylon's royal courts; tradition holds that he wrote it, while many scholars believe it reached its final form much later, and readers still debate this honestly.

When

Its stories are set in the exile of the 500s BC; the traditional view dates the writing to that era, while many scholars date the finished book to the 160s BC during Greek persecution.

Themes

• Faithfulness under pressure
• God rules over empires
• The everlasting kingdom
• Courage in exile
• The Son of Man

Key verses

• Daniel 3:17-18If the God whom we serve exists, then He is able to deliver us from the blazing fiery furnace and from your hand, O king. But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden statue you have set up.”
• Daniel 2:44In the days of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will shatter all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, but will itself stand forever.
• Daniel 7:13-14In my vision in the night I continued to watch, and I saw One like the Son of Man coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into His presence. And He was given dominion, glory, and kingship, that the people of every nation and language should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and His kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.