An Age of Empires
- Jerusalem is destroyed twice:
- 586BC - Babylon
- 70AD - Rome
- For foreign empires rule Judah
Israel After Exile
- Three impulses shape post-exilic Judah
- A second impulse is expressed through apocalyptic writings, the voice of the
marginalized.
- The first impulse was the priests and scribes that had the idea that what you need
to do is see the world in disarray, but with good human effort it can be fixed if
they will dedicate themselves to the revealed Word of God.
- GOD PROTECTS THE FAITHFUL from an evil, dangerous world
Daniel - The Man, The Book
- An early exile like ezekiel (597 BC)
- Trained in Babylon and ends up serving as a government official
- Lives throughout the Babylonian empire as it transitions into the Persian Empire.
- The Book of Daniel
- Six chapters of hero stories
- Six chapters of visions
Hero Stories
- Israel's God protects the faithful
1. Daniel and his friends reject caf food and excel at their studies
3. Three friends refuse to bow to an idol, “even if God does not deliver us;” they
survive the fire
6. Daniel eddies a prayer prohibition, God’s angel protects him from lions
Dreams and Visions
- Israel’s God will protect the faithful to the end
2. Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream - 4 metals + rock
7. Daniel’s First Dream - 4 beasts + “son of man”
8. Daniel’s Second Dream - ram and goat horns, fierce king
Apocalyptic Literature
- Apokalypsis = “revelation”
- God’s future plans are revealed in symbolic visions
, - Escalating evil threatens a righteous remnant
- God will intervene at the darkest hour, it is then that he will establish His eternal rule
God of Apocalyptic
- Reassure beleaguered believers that God has the whole world in his hands
- Speaks to immediate suffering, foreshadows God’s final victory
- The ultimate movie spoiler
Apocalyptic Writings
- Three primary OT examples
- Ezekiel 40-48
- Daniel 7-12
- Zechariah 9-14
Of Rams and Goats
- Daniel 8 - it’s interpretation
- RAM with two horns = Medes and Persians (v.20)
- Goat with one big horn then 4 horns = Greeks (v. 21-22)
- A ‘fierce looking king’ = (Antiochus IV?) tramples the sanctuary, but will be struck down
(v.23-25)
Judah and the Greek Empire
- Alexander conquers persia, his empire splits into four kingdoms
- Two of the kingdoms claim Judah
- Ptolemies of Egypt
- Seleucids of Syria
- Antioshus IV, a Seleucid king, imposes worship of Greek gods (170BC)
- Judas MAccabeus leads a Jewish revolt (167BC)
Maccabean Revolt
- After three years of war, Jews regain JErusalem
- Priests rededicate the Temple HANUKKAH celebrates this event
- Many say that Daniel's visions interpret events leading up to the Maccabean Revolt
Lions and Tigers and Bears
- VIsion of Daniel 7
- 4 beasts = 4 kingdoms
- LION with eagle’s wings
- BEAR with three tusks
- LEOPARD with 4 wings and 4 heads
- Jerusalem is destroyed twice:
- 586BC - Babylon
- 70AD - Rome
- For foreign empires rule Judah
Israel After Exile
- Three impulses shape post-exilic Judah
- A second impulse is expressed through apocalyptic writings, the voice of the
marginalized.
- The first impulse was the priests and scribes that had the idea that what you need
to do is see the world in disarray, but with good human effort it can be fixed if
they will dedicate themselves to the revealed Word of God.
- GOD PROTECTS THE FAITHFUL from an evil, dangerous world
Daniel - The Man, The Book
- An early exile like ezekiel (597 BC)
- Trained in Babylon and ends up serving as a government official
- Lives throughout the Babylonian empire as it transitions into the Persian Empire.
- The Book of Daniel
- Six chapters of hero stories
- Six chapters of visions
Hero Stories
- Israel's God protects the faithful
1. Daniel and his friends reject caf food and excel at their studies
3. Three friends refuse to bow to an idol, “even if God does not deliver us;” they
survive the fire
6. Daniel eddies a prayer prohibition, God’s angel protects him from lions
Dreams and Visions
- Israel’s God will protect the faithful to the end
2. Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream - 4 metals + rock
7. Daniel’s First Dream - 4 beasts + “son of man”
8. Daniel’s Second Dream - ram and goat horns, fierce king
Apocalyptic Literature
- Apokalypsis = “revelation”
- God’s future plans are revealed in symbolic visions
, - Escalating evil threatens a righteous remnant
- God will intervene at the darkest hour, it is then that he will establish His eternal rule
God of Apocalyptic
- Reassure beleaguered believers that God has the whole world in his hands
- Speaks to immediate suffering, foreshadows God’s final victory
- The ultimate movie spoiler
Apocalyptic Writings
- Three primary OT examples
- Ezekiel 40-48
- Daniel 7-12
- Zechariah 9-14
Of Rams and Goats
- Daniel 8 - it’s interpretation
- RAM with two horns = Medes and Persians (v.20)
- Goat with one big horn then 4 horns = Greeks (v. 21-22)
- A ‘fierce looking king’ = (Antiochus IV?) tramples the sanctuary, but will be struck down
(v.23-25)
Judah and the Greek Empire
- Alexander conquers persia, his empire splits into four kingdoms
- Two of the kingdoms claim Judah
- Ptolemies of Egypt
- Seleucids of Syria
- Antioshus IV, a Seleucid king, imposes worship of Greek gods (170BC)
- Judas MAccabeus leads a Jewish revolt (167BC)
Maccabean Revolt
- After three years of war, Jews regain JErusalem
- Priests rededicate the Temple HANUKKAH celebrates this event
- Many say that Daniel's visions interpret events leading up to the Maccabean Revolt
Lions and Tigers and Bears
- VIsion of Daniel 7
- 4 beasts = 4 kingdoms
- LION with eagle’s wings
- BEAR with three tusks
- LEOPARD with 4 wings and 4 heads
