Third Writing Assignment: A Close Reading in the Book of Daniel
The book of Daniel can be reflected in chapter two verses 19-24. This book is about God given wisdom and its purpose. Wisdom in the book of Daniel is not gained through experiences, but given by God. The purpose of the wisdom is to invited nations, through their kings, into God’s kingdom; which is everlasting and will not tumble, because it is mountainous and fills the earth (Daniel, 2.35). I will argue that God given wisdom is temporary, specific, and strategic in its purpose of unifying nations under God.
One of the three characteristics of wisdom given by God in the book of Daniel is that it is temporary. In Daniel’s prayer to god in chapter two we learn that God, “gives the wise their wisdom…show more content… God’s wisdom is in specific in three ways: by whom it is given to, what the instantaneous goal for it is, and the details of the wisdom. First, God’s wisdom is specific because it is only given to specific people, such as Daniel. Daniel now understands that his wisdom is temporary; and as a result learns that it is also specific to whom it is given to. God could have chosen any of the others in Babylon to do this, but he specifically chooses Daniel. Daniel’s wisdom isn’t always relayed from God; sometimes there is a middleman between the wisdom and Daniel. Through this it can be implied that there are specific reasons that one might use the wisdom. For example in chapter two Daniel uses the wisdom to save himself and his colleagues from death. When in reality it sets Daniel up for a future of inviting earthly kingdoms into God’s everlasting kingdom. The in depth details are what truly gets this future going. The details that seem impossible to get are the specific ones that won Nebuchadnezzar over and key to Daniel’s wisdom. The combination of the temporary and tri-fold specificity in God’s wisdom is what makes moments in Daniel’s life