The Book of Daniel Conclusion: Daniel and History
Many aspects of the text of Daniel, heavily loaded with often enigmatic sym-
bols and with religious meaning, have an important place in the history of
Judaism and Christianity. It is only necessary to note, firstly, the earliest un-
ambiguous appearance in Jewish literature of the notions of a day of judge-
ment and of the resurrection of the virtuous (:: ‘‘Of those who lie sleeping
in the dust of the earth many will awake, some to everlasting life, some to
shame and everlasting disgrace’’).^28 Secondly, there is the (highly enigmatic)
symbolism of the one ‘‘like a son of man’’ (KBR ’NŠ) seen ‘‘coming on the
clouds of heaven’’ (:–), whose relevance to New Testament imagery is
obvious.^29
My concern here is however only to stress, firstly, how closely integrated
the various sections of Daniel are one with another, and to suggest how pro-
foundly they are related to the Maccabean crisis. Cyrus is mentioned already
in :, and the Medes and Persians appear first in :, while the Hellenistic
monarchies and Antiochus Epiphanes are mentioned already in chapters –
. In chapter we have the first of three appearances (:; :; :) of
the suppression of the daily sacrifice in the Temple (TMYD), and the imposi-
tion of the ‘‘abomination of desolation.’’ Equally important, even the earlier
part of the work is dominated by concerns over the personal observation of
Judaism, concerns which it is tempting to interpret as reflecting the strains
imposed by the persecution under Antiochus from ..onwards, which
was noteworthy for being directed not only at the Temple cult, but at the
private observance of Judaism.^30 Hence there are references to the avoid-
ance of unclean food (chapter ); the worship of pagan gods (chapter ); and
the offering of prayers to deities, or supposed deities (chapter ). In spite of
the drastic successive shifts in ‘‘authorial voice,’’ literary form, and narrative
structure which characterise this quite brief work, it may be suggested that in
its conceptions and concerns it can be seen as a unity, and one which reflects
the great crisis of the s.
. See G. W. E. Nickelsburg,Resurrection, Immortality and Eternal Life in Intertestamental
Judaism(); E. P. Sanders,Judaism: Practice and Belief ...–..(), –.
. See, e.g., M. Black,An Aramaic Approach to Gospels and Acts^3 (), app. E (G. Ver-
mes); G. Vermes,JesustheJew(), –; Schürer, Vermes, and Millar,HistoryII, –;
C. Rowland,The Open Heaven: A Studyof Apocalyptic in Judaism and Early Christianity();
J. Ashton,Understanding the Fourth Gospel(), –.
. For my view of this, see ‘‘The Background to the Maccabean Revolution: Reflections
on Martin Hengel’s ‘Judaism and Hellenism,’ ’’Journ. Jew. Stud. (): – ( chapter
of the present volume).