| dc.description.abstract | This dissertation argues that Daniel 11 is a typological prophecy and, thus, it should be read typologically. While agreeing that Daniel 11:36–45 does not fit the life of Antiochus IV in a strictly literal way, contra the scholarly consensus, this dissertation argues that Daniel 11:21–35 is not strictly literally true of Antiochus IV either. Discrepancies between the prophecy and historical accounts about Antiochus IV exist in both Daniel 11:36–45 and 11:21–35. However, the discrepancies between Daniel 11 and the historical accounts do not necessarily prove that Daniel gets history wrong. Rather, they are common characteristics of biblical typology. In Daniel 11, they signify that Antiochus IV typifies those who come after him (and also includes those who come before him). The study also shows that discrepancies between the prophecy/promise and the initial fulfillment is a feature of prophetical typology. The discrepancies do not negate the initial fulfillment, which is confirmed by Scripture; rather, they point to future fulfillment(s), which will also be affirmed by later biblical texts. The multiple fulfillments do not fulfill the type at the same level, but they all fulfill the same type that is promised/prophesied.
Chapter 1 reviews the scholarly interpretation of Daniel 11 and assesses the strengths and weaknesses of each interpretation. Chapter 2 briefly surveys the history from Cyrus the Great to Antiochus IV. Chapter 3 studies two OT passages (2 Sam 7:1216; Isa 7:14), concluding that both passages should be interpreted typologically, thus providing a model for a typological interpretation of Daniel 11. Chapters 4 and 5 are devoted to the interpretation of Daniel 11, beginning with verse-by-verse commentary. Chapter 4 allots a separate section to discuss the relationship between Daniel 11 and the so-called “Akkadian Prophecies.” While Daniel 11 bears stylistic similarities with the “Akkadian Prophecies,” it differs from these Akkadian texts in other ways. After the verse-by-verse study of Daniel 11, chapter 5 then compares Daniel 11 and the OT passages (2 Sam 7:12–16; Isa 7:14) and proposes a typological reading of Daniel 11. Chapter 6 summarizes the dissertation and provides implications of the study, which concludes with a proposal for a tentative definition of typological prophecy/promise. | en_US |
