Antiochus IV on Seleucid Coin

In the Hebrew Bible, Daniel is found in the Writings, not in the Prophets, although some ancient traditions considered Daniel a prophet. (Christian Bibles include him among the prophets.) While most of the book of Daniel is in Hebrew, parts of it (2:4b–7:28) are in Aramaic. The first six chapters are stories set in the periods of Babylonian and (like Esther) Persian rule and are included in this volume in the section on Short Prose Narrative Books. Chapters 7–12 contain apocalyptic visions composed, for the most part, during the reign of the Seleucid king, Antiochus IV Epiphanes (175–164 BCE), whose persecution of Judaism provoked the Maccabean revolt of 167–165 BCE. Among their consequential themes are the presence of named angels as guardians of various nations, and the earliest statement of the belief in the resurrection of the dead (Daniel 12:2). See the introduction to Classical Prophetic Literature for more on the apocalyptic texts.

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