How to Read Daniel

Beyond the familiar lions' den and fiery furnace, much of the book of Daniel seems baffling to modern readers. The first half recounts stories full of ancient Near Eastern protocol and imperial court drama; the second half features apocalyptic visions of monstrous beasts and cosmic conflict. Many Christians misunderstand or simply avoid the book. But failing to read Daniel well means missing a critical part of God's message to us. According to Tremper Longman III, when we read Daniel on its own terms and in its original context, we'll discover that all of the book is easier to understand than we might think. In this volume of the popular How to Read series, Longman brings his expertise as an Old Testament scholar and teacher to orient readers to a proper engagement with Daniel. He examines the book's genre, structure, historical background, and major theological message before diving deeper into each of the stories and visions. As we learn how to enter the world of Daniel, we find a message not only for his generation but also for ours: even in hostile circumstances, God is in control, and he will have the final victory. Longman draws out this theme of Daniel for the twenty-first century, finding help for faithful living in a toxic culture and hope in a troubled world.

About the Author :
Tremper Longman III is Distinguished Scholar of Biblical Studies at Westmont College in Santa Barbara, California. He is also visiting professor of Old Testament at Seattle School of Theology and Psychology and adjunct of Old Testament at Fuller Theological Seminary. He lectures regularly at Regent College in Vancouver and the Canadian Theological Seminary in Calgary. Longman is the author or coauthor of over twenty books, including How to Read Genesis, How to Read the Psalms, How to Read Proverbs, Literary Approaches to Biblical Interpretation, Old Testament Essentials, and coeditor of A Complete Literary Guide to the Bible. He and Dan Allender have coauthored Bold Love, Cry of the Soul, Intimate Allies, The Intimate Mystery, and the Intimate Marriage Bible studies. David Cochran Heath has worked in radio and theater for thirty-five years. He has voiced characters for computer games and public television, hosted an instructional video series for automotive repair, and was the narrator for a long-running radio program for kids. Additionally, he was the on-camera host for a documentary on the most violent courtroom shootout in US history. David lived in a village in the Philippines for four years as a teenager, and has lived with his wife in Michigan, Washington, and California. He was with Lamb's Players Theatre in Coronado, California, for thirty-one years, working full-time as a senior member of the acting ensemble and serving as the company's director of facilities. He left Lamb's Players in 2011 to concentrate on audiobooks, and has been the narrator of over 140 books, including three versions of the Bible as sole reader: ESV, KJV, and NIrV. David gets his love of stories from his father, who was a preacher for twenty-five years, a missionary for another eighteen years, and a lifelong lover of the most important story of all: God's plan of redemption in all sixty-six books of the Bible.