Daniel and the Gospel

Daniel and the Gospel

The evidence is overwhelming that the final composition of Daniel took place in the early second century BCE, though it incorporates material from much earlier. It would be a colossal mistake to think this makes the book a “fraud” or disqualifies it as inspired. Daniel, in fact, predicts the course of history in the broadest terms and gives us typology for the messiah both as conquering king/liberator and as a high priest who suffers martyrdom. Also, Daniel along with Isaiah sets the stage for the beginning of Jesus’s ministry. “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has drawn near. Repent and believe the gospel!” (Mark 1:15) refers directly back to Daniel 7:22: “the time arrived when the saints took possession of the kingdom.” Daniel 9:1-19 shows that when the time comes for a new step forward in God’s purpose, repentance must occur so that God’s people are prepared for that event. Near the end of his ministry, Jesus hearkened back to Daniel’s prophecy about the “abomination of desolation” in predicting the final destruction of the physical temple. By the time that occurred, however, a new temple made of living stones had already been inaugurated (1 Pet 1:5).