Author: Administrador

Following stories of trial and contest, the book of Daniel culminates in a series of apocalyptic visions in which the book’s hero, Daniel, is shown his people’s future. In Daniel 7:27, his people are given a special name: “the People of the Holy Ones of the Most High.” This name marks the special relationship among … Continue reading “Daniel 12:1-3 Commentary by Anathea Portier-Young”

It would be easy to preach our lectionary text for today as referring to Jesus coming on a cloud. After all the image of Jesus as the Son of Man who will come with the clouds of heaven to save the people from all that threatens them has been dominant in Christian imagination — the … Continue reading “Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14 Commentary by Juliana Claassens”

These verses from the Book of Daniel provide the reader with one of the most graphic depictions of God found in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament (HB/OT) (cf. Isaiah 6; Ezekiel 1; Exodus 33:17-23). In this passage, the God of Israel appears as the Ancient of Days (or “the Ancient One” in the NRSV translation); a … Continue reading “Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14 Commentary by Amy Merrill Willis”

The selection of Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14 as a lectionary passage for the Feast of Christ the King reflects nearly two millennia of interpretation that identifies Jesus with the “one like a human being” in Daniel 7. Jesus himself quotes this passage in Mark’s and Matthew’s gospels, foretelling that his disciples “‘will see the Son of … Continue reading “Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14 Commentary by Anathea Portier-Young”

Daniel Chapter 7: four great beasts, resembling a winged lion, a tusked bear, a four-headed leopard, and a ten-horned and iron-toothed monster. No wonder Daniel says, “My spirit was troubled within me, and the visions of my head terrified me.” Who wouldn’t react similarly? What are these creatures, and what are they doing in the … Continue reading “Daniel 7:1-3, 15-18 Commentary by Fred Gaiser”

As a commemoration of the dead, the festival of All Saints will always be an ill fit for the Bible.  Practices of necromancy (Leviticus 19:31, Deuteronomy 18:9-12) and veneration of the dead (1 Corinthians 15:29) are generally discouraged, but the act of remembrance of those who once struggled on earth is not inconsistent with the … Continue reading “Daniel 7:1-3, 15-18 Commentary by Steed Davidson”

Daniel 6:6-27 is written in Aramaic not Hebrew as most of the Old Testament is written. Scholars wonder why. Some suggest that this is to confuse the Persian oppressors. But Aramaic was the language of the empire so that theory falls flat. Some argue that the whole book was written in Aramaic and only later … Continue reading “Daniel 6:6-27 Commentary by Stephen Reid”

Commentary for these texts is forthcoming. PRAYER OF THE DAY God of deliverance,You rescued Daniel from the mouths of the lions when he was punished for worshiping you. Liberate all who are endangered for the sake of their faith, and rescue us from anything that separates us from worshiping only you, for the sake of the one who … Continue reading “Daniel 6:6-27 Commentary by Roger Nam”

No Other God — that assertion is at the core of this chapter as it is in the entire book of Daniel. Our religious culture has commonly appropriated the book of Daniel in one of two ways: 1) heroic examples of faith that we are to emulate. 2) predictions that we are to decode and … Continue reading “Daniel 3:1-30 Commentary by Richard W. Nysse”

As the story begins, the Babylonian king, Nebuchadnezzar, erects a massive golden statue and commands that all must bow before it. Initially, it appears that the central conflict of the story involves idolatry. However, as the story progresses, a different conflict emerges — that between the kingship of Nebuchadnezzar and the power of God. The … Continue reading “Daniel 3:1-29 Commentary by Amy Merrill Willis”