Biblical Hebrew Forum

[<tladatsi AT charter.net>]

One could believe that the author(s) of Daniel was/were 
both inspired by God and prophetic and were writing in the 
2nd century BCE.  They could have taken existing divinely 
inspired 6th century materials and added  new divinely 
inspired 2nd century materials.  Perhaps they prophesied 
the events of Antiochus Epiphanes merely 30 years before 
they occurred, instead of 300 years and set them in a 
historical context which might invite fewer political 
repurcussions.  Perhaps one might argue that Daniel 1 ? 6 
is 6th century because the prophecy was non-apocalyptic but 
the prophecy in Daniel 7 ? 12 is 2nd century because it is 
apocalyptic.  I offer these as a few of many possibilities.

Believing that Daniel is wholly or partially 2nd century 
does not automatically make one an atheist.  Believing that 
Daniel is wholly or partially 6th century does mean one is 
automatically a believer.

As I stated originally, if one is interested in dating the 
composition of the Book of Daniel, examining the faith of 
the investigator serves no useful purpose.  It is far more 
useful to examine the text and historical records.


Jack Tladatsi