Daniel and Jubileesslavery was to be released. It seems likely that Daniel's interpretation of Jere
miah was influenced by Lev 25. According to Gabriel's calculation, then, the
time from the Babylonian destruction of the first temple to the demise of
Antiochus IV spans seventy weeks of years, or ten jubilees, i.e., 490 years.
The critical themes associated with the jubilee year in Lev 25 — release, free
dom, renewal, return, and restoration — all assume new significance in their
eschatological context. The significance of Daniel's rendering of Jeremiah's
prophecy does not lie in its concrete calendrical use but in its symbolic value
and in the powerful promise that Antiochus's rule will be overcome.^28
The chronological system of Jubilees has often been analyzed, and
there is no point in rehearsing the details again.^29 It suffices merely to high
light some of its main features and to compare them with Daniel. Already
Jubilees' prologue underscores the primary importance the author places on
the exact calculation of the biblical events according to a sabbatical calendar.
The essential measurements of time are "years," "weeks," and "jubilees."
These are mentioned throughout the book and form a chronological grid
that is underlying the whole of the composition. How does this compare
with the book of Daniel? In Daniel heptadic calculations are found only in
chap. 9, while the book as a whole is organized along the lines of the four
world empires. As a consequence, the jubilee chronology remains somewhat
schematic; it is the principle that matters, not its exact calendrical applicabil
ity. In Jubilees, by contrast, the sabbatical chronology is the main organizing
principle for the entire book, as the prologue already makes clear. The book
seeks to demonstrate in some detail how Israel's earliest history followed the
heptadic chronology. For both authors the heptadic chronology was of ulti
mate theological significance — but "theological" here meant different
things entirely. For the author of Daniel, who looked to the future, the
heptadic calculation was an ideal vehicle to make his apocalyptic promise
that history is unfolding according to a preordained divine plan and that the
eschatological salvation will bring freedom and restoration as it was fore
shadowed already in Lev 25. For the author of Jubilees, who looked to the
past, the concern was with Israel's earliest history. For him the significance
of the heptadic chronology was to prove that the events of Genesis-Exodus
were all in compliance with the sabbatical calendar. In fact, it is noteworthy
- Fishbane, Biblical Interpretation, 482-89.
- J. C. VanderKam, "Das chronologische Konzept des Jubiliienbuches," ZAW 107
(1995): 80-100; VanderKam, The Book of Jubilees, 94-100. On the calendar specifically, see
A. Jaubert, "Le calendrier des Jubiles et de la sect de Qumran. Ses origins bibliques," VT 3
(i953): 250-64.