BIBLE BOOK GUIDE
Daniel
12 chapters
God's kingdom will ultimately prevail over earthly empires, and His faithful people are kept through times of persecution and upheaval.
Daniel
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Why this book was written
Written to exiles and persecuted believers, Daniel reveals that the Most High rules over history, that His kingdom outlasts every earthly empire, and that those who remain faithful to the covenant will receive ultimate vindication and resurrection glory.
Structure
- 1Captivity Begins: Daniel's Faithfulness
Major themes
God's Supreme Sovereignty
Daniel repeatedly shows that the LORD rules over history, changing times, deposing and establishing kings (Dan 2:21; 4:17, 25, 34–35), so that even pagan rulers are compelled to acknowledge His dominion.
Faithfulness Under Persecution
In a foreign land of exile, Daniel and his three friends refuse to defile themselves, bow to idols, or stop praying (Dan 1:8–16; 3:1–18; 6:10), modeling steadfast faith under pressure.
Eschatology and the Coming Kingdom
Through visions of the statue (ch. 2), the four beasts (ch. 7), the seventy weeks (ch. 9), and the end of the North–South conflict (ch. 11), Daniel reveals that the Son of Man's kingdom will be established forever, replacing all earthly dominions.
Prayer as a Response to God's Sovereignty
Chapter 9 contains one of Scripture's greatest prayers of confession, teaching God's people to respond to national crisis with repentance and intercession (Dan 9:3–19).
Wisdom, Dreams, and Revelation
God reveals mysteries to Daniel (Dan 2:28–30, 47), granting him wisdom surpassing all the wise men of the empire, positioning him as God's spokesperson for dream and revelation.
Resurrection, Judgment, and Reward
Daniel clearly teaches resurrection of the dead, final judgment, and the wise shining like the heavens (Dan 12:2–3, 13), injecting ultimate promises of eternal life and righteousness into Old Testament hope.
How it points to Christ
Daniel points to Christ on multiple levels: (1) The title 'Son of Man' in Dan 7:13–14, who comes with the clouds and receives an everlasting kingdom, is the very title Jesus applied to Himself (Matt 24:30; Mark 13:26; Luke 21:27) and affirmed before the high priest (Matt 26:64). (2) The Seventy Weeks prophecy (Dan 9:24–27), dated from the decree to restore Jerusalem, foretells Messiah making atonement and being 'cut off,' aligning precisely with Christ's first coming. (3) Nebuchadnezzar's humiliation and restoration in chapter 4 foreshadows the suffering-then-exaltation pattern of the Messiah. (4) Daniel's three friends find 'one like a son of the gods' walking with them in the furnace (Dan 3:25), previewing Christ's presence with His people in affliction. (5) Daniel's ordeal in the lion's den (ch. 6) anticipates the sinless Sufferer cast into death for sinners and vindicated from the pit. The whole book directs the reader to look for the coming Son of Man, Jesus Christ, who receives the everlasting kingdom.
Key verses
- 1:17God grants Daniel and his friends special wisdom and the ability to interpret visions, establishing the book's theme of divine revelation and protection.
- 2:44The God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed — the central kingdom thesis of Daniel.
- 3:17–18Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego declare faithfulness even if God does not deliver — pure trust under persecution.
- 4:34–35Nebuchadnezzar confesses that the Most High rules: a pagan king finally acknowledges God's sovereignty over all kingdoms.
- 6:10Daniel prays three times daily despite the decree — modeling a disciplined prayer life and unwavering loyalty to God.
- 7:13–14The Son of Man comes with the clouds and receives an everlasting kingdom — the messianic high point of Daniel, frequently quoted in the New Testament.
- 9:24The Seventy Weeks prophecy: to finish transgression, bring everlasting righteousness, and anoint the Most Holy — God's redemptive timeline.
- 12:2–3The resurrection of the dead at the end: some to everlasting life, some to shame — the righteous will shine like the stars.
Films & series on Daniel
Each has a guide: scripture sources, where it departs from the Bible, discussion questions, and where to watch
Reflections on Daniel
People in this book
Questions for reflection
- ·In Daniel 1:8–16, Daniel risked his life to avoid defilement. What 'king's food and wine' is God calling you to set yourself apart from today?
- ·Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego's 'even if not' faith in the furnace (Dan 3:17–18) challenges us: can you trust God's faithfulness even when the outcome is unknown?
- ·Daniel's prayer in 9:3–19 begins with confession and grounds intercession in God's character. Is your prayer life similarly rooted in repentance and God's promises?
- ·How does the Son of Man receiving dominion, glory, and an everlasting kingdom in Dan 7:13–14 shape your confidence in Christ's return and your daily living?
- ·Daniel 12:2–3, 13 promises resurrection and everlasting light for the wise. How does this hope sustain you amid present injustice and suffering?
Where Daniel fits in the Bible's storyline
This book appears in the 12-stop storyline at:
Where to start reading the Bible? See the full 12-stop storyline
Want to read Daniel start to finish? Open the reader for parallel Chinese/English text and ask anything as you go.
Start reading DanielDaniel
Chapter 9
1In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the seed of the Medes, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans,
2in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of the years whereof the word of Jehovah came to Jeremiah the prophet, for the accomplishing of the desolations of Jerusalem, even seventy years.
3And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting and sackcloth and ashes.
4And I prayed unto Jehovah my God, and made confession, and said, Oh, Lord, the great and dreadful God, who keepeth covenant and lovingkindness with them that love him and keep his commandments,
5we have sinned, and have dealt perversely, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even turning aside from thy precepts and from thine ordinances;
6neither have we hearkened unto thy servants the prophets, that spake in thy name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.
7O Lord, righteousness belongeth unto thee, but unto us confusion of face, as at this day; to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and unto all Israel, that are near, and that are far off, through all the countries whither thou hast driven them, because of their trespass that they have trespassed against thee.
8O Lord, to us belongeth confusion of face, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against thee.
9To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgiveness; for we have rebelled against him;
10neither have we obeyed the voice of Jehovah our God, to walk in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets.
11Yea, all Israel have transgressed thy law, even turning aside, that they should not obey thy voice: therefore hath the curse been poured out upon us, and the oath that is written in the law of Moses the servant of God; for we have sinned against him.
12And he hath confirmed his words, which he spake against us, and against our judges that judged us, by bringing upon us a great evil; for under the whole heaven hath not been done as hath been done upon Jerusalem.
13As it is written in the law of Moses, all this evil is come upon us: yet have we not entreated the favor of Jehovah our God, that we should turn from our iniquities, and have discernment in thy truth.
14Therefore hath Jehovah watched over the evil, and brought it upon us; for Jehovah our God is righteous in all his works which he doeth, and we have not obeyed his voice.
15And now, O Lord our God, that hast brought thy people forth out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and hast gotten thee renown, as at this day; we have sinned, we have done wickedly.
16O Lord, according to all thy righteousness, let thine anger and thy wrath, I pray thee, be turned away from thy city Jerusalem, thy holy mountain; because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and thy people are become a reproach to all that are round about us.
17Now therefore, O our God, hearken unto the prayer of thy servant, and to his supplications, and cause thy face to shine upon thy sanctuary that is desolate, for the Lord's sake.
18O my God, incline thine ear, and hear; open thine eyes, and behold our desolations, and the city which is called by thy name: for we do not present our supplications before thee for our righteousness, but for thy great mercies' sake.
19O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive; O Lord, hearken and do; defer not, for thine own sake, O my God, because thy city and thy people are called by thy name.
20And while I was speaking, and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before Jehovah my God for the holy mountain of my God;
21yea, while I was speaking in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation.
22And he instructed me, and talked with me, and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee wisdom and understanding.
23At the beginning of thy supplications the commandment went forth, and I am come to tell thee; for thou art greatly beloved: therefore consider the matter, and understand the vision.
24Seventy weeks are decreed upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most holy.
25Know therefore and discern, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the anointed one, the prince, shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: it shall be built again, with street and moat, even in troublous times.
26And after the threescore and two weeks shall the anointed one be cut off, and shall have nothing: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and even unto the end shall be war; desolations are determined.
27And he shall make a firm covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease; and upon the wing of abominations shall come one that maketh desolate; and even unto the full end, and that determined, shall wrath be poured out upon the desolate.

