Overview Of The Book Of Daniel

“Daniel” means “Judge is God” or “God is my Judge”. This is the theme of the book of Daniel. The key text of the book of Daniel is Daniel 7:13. 

Daniel 7:13 says,

"I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him."

• Daniel shows the Person Who is residing over the Judgment, Who our Advocate is, the unfolding events in the Heavenly Sanctuary, when the time of Judgment will start through a magnificent time line of the 2300 year prophecy (Daniel 8:14) and the outcome of the Judgment. 

• Daniel also extensively describes and tells us about a counterfeit, earthly power who wants to be the god and judge of this world. It is called the “little horn”. The Judgment theme is portrayed in every chapter.

The book is basically divided into two parts: 

• The first 6 chapters tell us about Daniel, his friends and their interaction with Babylon, Medo Persia and its leaders. 

• The second half of the book, from chapter 7 to 12, is more prophetic in nature.

The main themes of each chapter 

• Chapter 1: Daniel and his friends are judged on their physical and mental capabilities

• Chapter 2: God sets up kings, judges them and then removes them 

• Chapter 3: Daniel’s friends are judged and thrown into a fiery furnace

• Chapter 4: Nebuchadnezzar is judged

• Chapter 5: Belshazzar is judged

• Chapter 6: Daniel is judged and thrown in a lion’s den

• Chapter 7: The Son of man coming to the Ancient of days for judgment

• Chapter 8: The Sanctuary is cleansed: Day of Atonement (Judgment)

• Chapter 9: The long time prophecy gives the starting of the judgment

• Chapter 10: The Great Controversy behind the judgment

• Chapter 11: The judgment of nations, the little horn and the close of probation

• Chapter 12: The book sealed until the judgment should start

We can see the following contrasts in Daniel

• Daniel 1: True Education vs False Education

• Daniel 2: Everlasting Kingdom (God in control) vs Temporal kingdoms (Babylon in confusion)

• Daniel 3: True Gold of character vs Earthly gold 

• Daniel 4: Humbleness vs Pride

• Daniel 5: Sealed vs Condemned 

• Daniel 6: True Worship (God’s Unchangeable Law) vs False worship (Medes and Persian “unchangeable” law)              

• Daniel 7: True Judge (Judgment by God) vs False judge (Judgment by little horn) (Who is my Judge?)

• Daniel 8: Cleansing of the Sanctuary (True Sanctuary system) vs Defilement of Sanctuary (False Sanctuary system)

• Daniel 9: Heavenly Messiah the Prince confirming the covenant after 490 years vs Earthly prince who destroys earthly sanctuary in 70 AD 

• Daniel 10: Michael the Prince vs Prince of darkness (Great Controversy)

• Daniel 11 and 12: Michael stands up (probation closes), He purifies and the Time of trouble vs Many leaders who stand up and a prince in sanctuary stands up to defile and persecute

The prophecies of Daniel and Revelation are complementary and should be studied together. Daniel’s prophecies deal with the sweep of History from his time until the Second Coming of Christ and the central focus is the Judgment. 

Comparison between Daniel and the characteristics of the 144 000 or true Christians living in the last days in the Book of Revelation

•Daniel had no blemish (Daniel 1:4; 6:4, 5) or fault. The same will be true of the end-time generation (Revelation 14:5). 

•Daniel was filled with the Holy Spirit (Daniel 6:3; 4:8, 9; 5:11-14) as will the end time generation. Daniel and his friends were men of prayer.

•Daniel was greatly beloved (Daniel 9:23; Revelation 3:9).

•Daniel witnessed in the courts of the kings of Babylon and Medo-Persia, God’s people will also stand in the courts of kings (Luke 21:12).

•The issues involved in the final conflict will be the same: God’s law and worship (Daniel 3 and 6).

•A death decree was proclaimed against Daniel and will be proclaimed against God’s people (Revelation 13:15).

•Daniel and his friends went through a severe time of trouble and trial but came through victoriously as will God’s faithful remnant at the end of time (Revelation 15:2; Daniel 12:1).

•Daniel was hated by the religious leaders of his day as will happen with the remnant at the end of time.

•Daniel denounced the placing of unholy wine in holy vessels. The same will happen at the end (Daniel 5; Revelation 17:4, 5).

•Daniel was in an insignificant faithful minority while the majority was in apostasy. The same will be true at the end.

At the end, God’s people will gain the victory in the four areas in which Daniel and his friends were victorious

•God’s people will not drink the wine of Babylon nor eat her food. The food and the wine represent Babylon’s false doctrines and traditions (John 4:34; Revelation 18:2-3).

•God’s people will refuse the name of the beast (Revelation 13:17; 15:2-4). In fact, they will have the name of God on their foreheads just as Daniel and his friends had godly names (Revelation 14:1).

•God’s people will not flinch at the false god of end time Babylon. Though all power will appear to be on Babylon’s side, though God’s people will be a small minority, He will deliver them because He is the King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 13:4; 17:14; Daniel 11:44; 12:1).

•God’s people will refuse to be brainwashed by the false theories and traditions of Babylon (Revelation 16:13, 14; 17:1-5).

Next: Daniel Chapter 1: Chapter Reading