AUTHOR: This book has traditionally been attributed to Daniel based on statements printed within its pages [ Dan 9:2 - "In the first year of the his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the Lord given to the prophet Jeremiah, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years". ] and [ Dan 10:2 - "At that time I, Daniel, spent three weeks weeping". ], and in testimony of Christ [ Mt 24:15 - "So when you see 'the terrible sacrilege', spoken of by the prophet Daniel, in the holy place — whoever reads, let him understand —". ]. However, authorship is contested by modern critics. Daniel was from the tribe of Judah and probably a member of the royal family [ Dan 1:3-6
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3- Then the king commanded Ashpenaz, the chief of the officials of his court, to bring some of the Israelites from the royal family and nobility; 4- young people without physical defect, of good appearance, cultured, intelligent, who mastered the various fields of knowledge and were qualified to serve in the king's palace. He was to teach them the language and literature of the Babylonians.
5- The king assigned them a daily portion of food and wine from the king's own table. They would receive training for three years, after which they would serve the king.
6- Among these were some who came from Judah: Daniel, Hananiah, Misael and Azarias. ]. While still very young, he was taken captive to Babylon in the third reign of King Jehoiakim [ 2Ch 36:5 - "Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. He did evil in the eyes of the Lord his God". ], and eight years before Ezekiel, with the first group of captives, in Nebuchadnezzar's first attempt to take the city.

ORIGIN OF THE NAME: The name Daniel means “God is my judge”. It originates from the Hebrew "Daniyyel" and is formed by the combination of the elements "dan", which literally means "he who judges, judge", and "El", which means "Lord, God".

THEME: The narrative points from Nebuchadnezzar to Cyrus, covering a period of about 70 years; Daniel served six Babylonian and two Persian governor kings. The theme of this book is the sovereignty of God, as the one who raises and overthrows rulers and determines in advance the future of nations. Empires come and go, but in the end, the Lord will crush the opposition and establish His kingdom on earth. Because of its many visions, the Book of Daniel has been called "The Apocalypse of the Old Testament", it is an apocalyptic book in the true literal sense of the word, a "revelation" from God.

COMPILATION: Written between 605 and 530 BC, it comprises 12 chapters and 357 verses.