Daniel
Apocalyptic · Old Testament · Traditionally the prophet Daniel · 6th to 2nd century BCE
The Book of Daniel combines court stories of Jewish exiles maintaining their faith in Babylon with dramatic apocalyptic visions of world empires and ultimate divine deliverance. The final chapters, including deuterocanonical additions in some traditions, emphasize God's supreme authority over human history. It encourages endurance under foreign persecution by assuring the ultimate triumph of God's kingdom.
Sovereignty of GodFaithfulness in exileKingdom of GodDivine judgment
14 chapters
- 1Daniel 1Daniel and his three Judean companions are exiled to Babylon, maintain their dietary faithfulness, and excel in the king's royal service.
- 2Daniel 2Daniel receives a revelation from God, allowing him to describe and interpret King Nebuchadnezzar's troubling dream of a great statue.
- 3Daniel 3Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refuse to worship Nebuchadnezzar's golden statue and are miraculously delivered unharmed from a fiery furnace.
- 4Daniel 4King Nebuchadnezzar experiences a period of madness and humbles himself after Daniel interprets his dream of a great, felled tree.
- 5Daniel 5Daniel interprets mysterious handwriting on the wall during Belshazzar's feast, foretelling the fall of Babylon, which occurs that night.
- 6Daniel 6Daniel is cast into a den of lions for praying to his God, but he is miraculously delivered.
- 7Daniel 7Daniel envisions four great beasts rising from the sea and receives an interpretation of their kingdoms and the ultimate divine triumph.
- 8Daniel 8Daniel sees a vision of a ram and a goat representing kingdoms, which the angel Gabriel explains to him.
- 9Daniel 9After Daniel confesses his people's sins in prayer, the angel Gabriel appears to reveal the prophecy of the seventy weeks.
- 10Daniel 10Daniel fasts and receives a powerful vision of a heavenly messenger who strengthens him and describes angelic warfare.
- 11Daniel 11An angel foretells wars between the kings of the North and South, culminating in a tyrant who desecrates the sanctuary.
- 12Daniel 12The angel predicts a final resurrection and deliverance, instructing Daniel to seal the book until the designated end times.
- 13Daniel 13
- 14Daniel 14