Sermon Tone Analysis

Adventist International Institute

of Advanced Studies

Theological Seminary

 

 

 

 

VERTICAL MOVEMENT ~/ TEMPORAL TRANSITIONS

AND JUDGMENT IN DANIEL

 

 

 

 

A Paper

Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the

Requirements of the Course

THST 663 Christian

Eschatology

 

by

Emmer Chacon

March 2007

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CONTENT

INTRODUCTION.. 1

/Definition and statement of the Problem/.. 2

/Purpose and significance of the research/.

2

/Delimitations of the Study/. 2

/Description of the methodology/.

3

 

VERTICAL ~/TEMPORAL TRANSITIONS AND JUDGMENT IN DANIEL 2. 4

 

VERTICAL ~/TEMPORAL TRANSITIONS AND JUDGMENT IN DANIEL 7. 9

/Daniel 7:9-14/.

10

/DANIEL 7:21-22/.

15

 

VERTICAL ~/TEMPORAL TRANSITIONS AND JUDGMENT IN DANIEL 8. 19

/The vision (Dan 8:3-12)/ 20

/The Audition (Dan 8:12-14)/ 25

/Links between Dan 8:14 and Lev 16/.

26

/Daniel 8:14 and NT Eschatology/* *28

/The Day of Atonement as Judgment/ 30

 

VERTICAL ~/TEMPORAL TRANSITIONS AND JUDGMENT IN DANIEL 9. 33

/Links between Daniel 8 and Daniel 9/. 34

Objectives of the Seventy Weeks: Daniel 9:24: 36

 

VERTICAL ~/TEMPORAL TRANSITIONS AND JUDGMENT IN DANIEL 12. 39

 

CONCLUSIONS.

45

Summary.

45

Conclusions.

47

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY.. 50

 

 

 

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INTRODUCTION

Movement in Scripture has been matter of study in recent times.

The available literature evidences that movement in Scripture does happen in narrative, ritual, legal and prophetic texts.

[1] This paper aims to explore, in some selected eschatological prophetic texts of the book of Daniel, vertical movement and its relations with transition from history to eternity as consequence of the eschatological judgment.

After a review in narrative, ritual and legal texts, Klingbeil suggests that movement in these genres might serve to five objectives:

1.

It can change the focus of the story from one scene to the other, thus leading the reader as a guide.

2. Movement can be used to depict similar events inside a main character (which the reader cannot really perceive without being able to see the non-verbal communication of the person)

3. It makes a story real.

Real names and places usually are part of a real story.

4. The interplay of specific references and non-specific references help the reader to think in abstract terms and learn a lesson from the story.

5. Space can connect different spheres of society.

Thus, legal texts can be connected to religious contexts.[2]

These elements derived from narrative, ritual, legal and prophetic biblical literature will be tested in reference to the judgment related texts in apocalyptic texts in Daniel in order to find out if some of them apply or at least might help in providing some light into the understanding of theses passages.

/Definition and statement of the Problem/

How vertical movement behaves in the prophetic sections of Daniel and how this movement does relate to temporal transitions and judgment in these passages.

/Purpose and significance of the research/ 

Judgment is a crucial topic in Daniel from the point of view of Seventh day Adventist exegesis.[3]

Therefore, any attempt to advance further in its comprehension is welcome.

The study of vertical movement in prophetic texts might help to understand connections between earth and heavens in reference to the relationships of God and His people as well as with those who oppose to God”s purposes.

The end-time oriented judgment and the temporal transitions that might happen in connection with it will be in scope.

/Delimitations of the Study/

            This paper aims at the analysis of vertical movement and its connections with temporal transitions and judgment in the prophetic passages of the book of Daniel.

Narrative passages are out of scope.

Issues related to paternity of the book of Daniel and other related issues are not to be addressed.

Any other issue might be approached as far as related to the topic of study.

/Description of the methodology/

The first step has to do with the identification and literary delimitation of the passages that deal with vertical movement in prophetic passages in Daniel.

Second, passages dealing with judgment must be identified, delimited, and compared with those that feature vertical movement and temporal transitions looking for possible intersections.

Third, the identified and delimited passages will be under analysis so the nuances of temporal transitions and vertical movement may be brought into evidence.

Attention to literary structures will provide key exegetical hints.

Fourth, the theological analysis will deal with those connections that might be identified between judgment and vertical movement.

The reader will find a sequential analysis of these aspects in Daniel 2, 7, 8, 9 and 12 and then a general summary and conclusions.

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VERTICAL ~/TEMPORAL TRANSITIONS AND JUDGMENT IN DANIEL 2

Daniel 2 features the prophetic frame for the whole book.

The sequential parallels between Dan 2 and Daniel 7 and 8 shows the kind of relationship between these chapters as the other prophetic series in Daniel build their presentation on this same pattern.[4]

This chapter features the King”s dream (2:1), Daniel gets the dream (2:19, 31-35) and the interpretation; and he gives the interpretation to the King (2:36-45).

This sequence of dream~/vision – interpretation will be present again in the next chapters and this sequence will provide some patterns.

This paper does not deal with the historical aspect of Dan 2 neither with the details of the interpretation of Dan 2:1-35.

The scope is in the section that contains Daniel”s interpretation (2:36-45) and particularly those verses which display the temporal and vertical transition, Dan 2:44-45.

44 And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, nor shall the kingdom be left to another people.

It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall stand forever,  45 just as you saw that a stone was cut from a mountain by no human hand, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold.

A great God has made known to the king what shall be after this.

The dream is certain, and its interpretation sure."

[5]    

Daniel”s interpretation of the King”s dream, verses 36-43, portrays the earthly (horizontal) and chronological succession of the human kingdoms.

Verse 44 implies a “vertical” (earth ~/ heavens) and temporal transition from history (“in the days of those kings” to eternity (aY")m;l.[“l.,[6]

“the eternity”) where God”s kingdom succeeds men”s kingdoms (which are just one as the image is only one[7]) in a once for all dramatic transition.

There is not one single element in common between men”s kingdoms and God”s kingdom.

A definitive transition as the one implied in Dan 2:44-45 requires some kind of previous evaluation that is not present in Dan 2. In Dan 2 the Aramaic root @Ws, “end” is used for the first time in the book.[8]

God”s kingdom -the stone-[9] will bring men”s kingdoms to “and end.”[10]

Daniel 2 does not elaborate the procedure that causes this “vertical” and temporal transition and leaves this task for the next prophetic sections.

Therefore, Daniel 2 is a kind of outline that serves as setting and backdrop for the rest of the prophetic sections in the book.

Some elements are evident in this passage.

There is a transition in the ultimate dominance from earth to heavens, from men to God, from history to eternity.

Therefore, vertical and temporal transitions are implied.

These transitions evidence connections between earth and heavens.

There is intervention from the Heavens into the earthly~/human issues.

God is involved in History as part of His strategy for guiding history into eternity.

This way, these transitions in the prophetic presentation shows the changes in the location of the focus in the text (earth~/heaven) and provides connections between the human and the Divine sphere, which show the way as history and eternity, relate to each other.

The analysis of the next key passages will show if they keep elaborating these elements and if they provide the identity and nature of the processes that give way for these transitions.

The next prophetic series will follow this basic format: a temporal, horizontal sequential transition of human kingdoms on earth followed by a dramatic temporal, vertical and definitive transition from earthly dominance to heavenly dominance.

The divine eternal kingdom, of heavenly origin, replaces the human earthly kingdoms definitively.

The elaborations of the next chapters will add new characters and more details to the “drama.”

A look into the general structure of the book of Daniel will help to see this whole paper in the context of the internal flow of the book.[11]