Book of Daniel, Another Borrowed Myth
Biblical stories are never really sequential: they commonly have identical plotlines told under different circumstances. For example, the twenty-seventh book of the Old Testament is Daniel, which is regarded by many biblical scholars as being more apocalyptic in nature than prophetic.
In the book of Ezekiel (14:14), written 592-586 BCE, there is mention of a Daniel who, along with Noah and Job, is characterized as one of history’s most outstanding righteous men. The biblical tale of Daniel is set in the timeframe of the sixth century BCE when Nebuchadnezzar was king of Babylonia. The implied date in Daniel 1:1 is 606 BCE.
But this is Hebrew literature, and the book of Daniel is actually a make-over tale taken from a north Syrian poem dating c. 1500 BCE and updated c. second century BCE as part of the alleged historical background of the Judeans. We should note as well, the Syrian Daniel was from a city named Salem, meaning “peace,” which also just happened to have become part of the name Jerusalem.
In the Syrian original, Daniel was portrayed as an authoritative judge and lawgiver, ala Moses-style; and, Moses-style, provided for his people’s welfare. In the 1500 BCE timeframe of the original writing, the story of Daniel was well-known among many Near East cultures. It is this Daniel of whom Ezekiel refers, not the plagiarized priest version.
But history revision is too often a religionists’ specialty, and thus the transposed youthful Daniel is declared to be “skilful in all wisdom, cunning in knowledge, and understanding science” (Daniel 1:4). [It should be noted also that the storyline for Joseph in Genesis was closely structured upon this same Syrian poem.]
As the priest-authors revised the Syrian story, the name Daniel was interpreted as meaning “God is my judge;” a loose interpretation of the Syrian Daniel who was portrayed as a son of the god El—the same El that pops up in Genesis (as El and Elohim). The priest version portrayed Daniel as a pious and wise Jewish youth of a prominent family who was among those who had been deported to Babylon.
continued
https://timeframesandtaboodata.com/2010/11/06/book-of-daniel-another-borrowed-myth/
Biblical stories are never really sequential: they commonly have identical plotlines told under different circumstances. For example, the twenty-seventh book of the Old Testament is Daniel, which is regarded by many biblical scholars as being more apocalyptic in nature than prophetic.
In the book of Ezekiel (14:14), written 592-586 BCE, there is mention of a Daniel who, along with Noah and Job, is characterized as one of history’s most outstanding righteous men. The biblical tale of Daniel is set in the timeframe of the sixth century BCE when Nebuchadnezzar was king of Babylonia. The implied date in Daniel 1:1 is 606 BCE.
But this is Hebrew literature, and the book of Daniel is actually a make-over tale taken from a north Syrian poem dating c. 1500 BCE and updated c. second century BCE as part of the alleged historical background of the Judeans. We should note as well, the Syrian Daniel was from a city named Salem, meaning “peace,” which also just happened to have become part of the name Jerusalem.
In the Syrian original, Daniel was portrayed as an authoritative judge and lawgiver, ala Moses-style; and, Moses-style, provided for his people’s welfare. In the 1500 BCE timeframe of the original writing, the story of Daniel was well-known among many Near East cultures. It is this Daniel of whom Ezekiel refers, not the plagiarized priest version.
But history revision is too often a religionists’ specialty, and thus the transposed youthful Daniel is declared to be “skilful in all wisdom, cunning in knowledge, and understanding science” (Daniel 1:4). [It should be noted also that the storyline for Joseph in Genesis was closely structured upon this same Syrian poem.]
As the priest-authors revised the Syrian story, the name Daniel was interpreted as meaning “God is my judge;” a loose interpretation of the Syrian Daniel who was portrayed as a son of the god El—the same El that pops up in Genesis (as El and Elohim). The priest version portrayed Daniel as a pious and wise Jewish youth of a prominent family who was among those who had been deported to Babylon.
continued
https://timeframesandtaboodata.com/2010/11/06/book-of-daniel-another-borrowed-myth/