Daniel and Jubileesliterature. Rather, the purpose of the tales is to introduce Daniel and to es
tablish his credentials as a worthy recipient of the apocalyptic lore. The reve
lations that form the core of the apocalyptic section of the book (chaps. 7—
12) are allegorical dream visions, i.e., reviews of history in the form of ex
eventu prophecies. It is important to note that the events portrayed here are
simultaneous and not sequential. In other words, the visions do not progress
chronologically from one historical event to the next, but each vision
roughly covers the same events, culminating in the Antiochean desecration
of the temple and the persecution of the Jews during the years 167-164 B.C.E.
The Seleucid ruler Antiochus IV Epiphanes is the "little horn... that spoke
arrogantly" (Dan 7:8) who "set up the abomination that makes desolate" in
the temple in Jerusalem (Dan 11:31; i2:n).^6
The fact that we can determine with some confidence the historical
crisis that triggered the composition of Daniel's visions provides us with im
portant clues for why the biblical book was written in the first place. Its
function is twofold, to explain the current misery and to console the perse
cuted. To explain the current conflict the author adopts a view of the world
that is found widely in apocalyptic literature. This view of reality is predi
cated on an elaborate construal of the heavenly world. Earthly and heavenly
reality stand in stark contrast to each other, and events on earth are the di
rect reflection of what is happening in heaven. The angelic discourse in
10:18-11:1 illustrates this well. There Daniel learns of a cosmic conflict among
the heavenly forces currently being waged in heaven. The prince of the Per
sian kingdom and the prince of Greece are in combat with Michael, the
guardian angel of Israel, and with the anonymous interpreting angel who is
speaking to Daniel, presumably Gabriel. The clash between Antiochus and
the Jews is merely the pendant to the current heavenly confrontation.
The second function of the book of Daniel is to console. The first vi
sion in chap. 7 is of central importance in this respect. Daniel witnesses a
heavenly courtroom scene in which God strips Antiochus of his power, puts
him to death, and hands dominion over to the "Son of Man" (7:13-14).^7 Simi
larly, 11:41-45 "predicts" the imminent death of the Seleucid villain. Such a
promise of the judgment and even death of Israel's persecutor must have
resonated strongly with the persecuted. The promise of judgment is ex-
- G. W. E. Nickelsburg, "Apocalyptic Texts," in EDSS, 29-35.
- J. J. Collins, A Commentary on the Book of Daniel, Hermeneia (Minneapolis: For
tress, 1993), 277-94; on the religio-historical background of the Son of Man, now see
G. Boccaccini, ed., Enoch and the Messiah Son of Man: Revisiting the Book of Parables (Grand
Rapids: Eerdmans, 2007).