Final Exam Q & A

Question 1

What two cities are used in the book of daniel to symbolize the ongoing conflict between good and evil?

Answer 1

Jerusalem (good) and Babylon (bad)

Question 2

What deportation strategies did the Babylonians use for the people of Judah?

Answer 2

1. Singled-out youth from the “sons of Isreal” Examples would be youth from royal families/ nobles, no defect, good-looking, intelligent, wise, full of understanding and abilities.
2. Exiled slaves are used as a workforce in Babylon
3. Exiled slaves lose their roots, identity, language, history, culture, and spirituality.
4. Exiled slaves undergo assimilation into the king’s service. Cultural and religious transformation
5. Given new names.

Question 3

How did Daniel and his friends resist the powerful regime of Babylon?

Answer 3

• Resisted through their education, food, and names. They stayed true to their faith in God.

Question 4

What were the four creatures Daniel saw in the vision in Daniel 7?

Answer 4

1. Lion with wings
2. Bear (lopsided) with three ribs in its mouth
3. Leopard with four heads and a set of four wings
4. Terrifying beast with crushing iron teeth and a head full of thorns

Question 5

What is the interpretation of the three ribs in the mouth of the lopsided bear in Daniel 7?

Answer 5

“The three ribs” in the mouth of the bear represent the three nations that were conquered by the Medo-Persion Empire: the Babylonians, the Lydians, and the Egyptians.

Question 6

What is the interpretation for the terrifying beast in Daniel 7?

Answer 6

Daniel knew of no creature in nature like the one he saw in his vision: “dreadful and terrible, iron teeth, devoured its prey, and stamped on the carcasses after it ravished them. The terrifying beast represented Rome. The practice of crucifixion illustrates Roman ruthlessness.

Question 7

According to Daniel 8, what does the ram and the goat represent? Also, what does the unusually large horn of the goat symbolize?

Answer 7

• The ram represented Medo-Persia(Modern day Iran) it charged toward the west and the north and the south.
• The goat represented Greece.
• The unusually large horn represents Alexander the Great

Question 8

In Daniel chapter 8, there were three aspects of the attacks against the sanctuary that were predicted in the prophecy of Daniel. What were they?

Answer 8

After the battle between the ram and the goat, a small horn appears and attacks the temple and all that is holy:

1. The commander of the army of the Lord
2. The daily sacrifice
3. Some of the starry host

Question 9

What does the vision in Daniel 8 bring to light that Daniel 7 does not and why is this important?

Answer 9

The vision in Daniel 7 says the judgment will take place after a time, times and half a time” which can be interpreted as after 1798. In Daniel 8 the vision is more explicit: the reign of the little horn lasts 2300 evenings and mornings (equaling 2300 years) because of the Day-Year principle followed throughout various texts in the bible. The angel Gabriel says understand that the vision concerns the time of the end. Until we know the start date the prophecy remains an abstraction and subject to doubt. To become the object of hope, the promise of re-creation must be in the chronology of history.

Question 10

What is significant about the way that God is depicted as a judge in Daniel 7?

Answer 10

The judgment takes on two aspects : a negative one against the little horn that defeats and crushes him, and a positive aspect for the saints who receive God’s kingdom. The Talmud alludes to this passage in Daniel when it mentions God’s hair as being black when He goes to war like a young man and white when seated in court like an old man. His clothing is as white as snow. Sitting in a throne of fire.

Question 11

What part of the vision in Daniel 8 was perplexing for Daniel?

Answer 11

The text alluded to the fact that the whole vision was perplexing and caused him to be sick for days.

Question 12

What prophecy does Jesus claim to fulfill while reading at the synagogue in Capernaum?

Answer 12

The prophecy of the messiah.

Jesus confirms that he is the messiah Isaiah prophesied.

Question 13

How did Daniel know that the exile would last for 70 years?

Answer 13

Daniel read in the writings of Jeremiah that the exile in Babylon would last 70 years.

Question 14

What did Daniel pray for in Daniel 9?

Answer 14

He was asking for forgiveness on behalf of the people and requested grace, mercy and compassion.

Question 15

In Daniel 9 what are the first three accomplishments during the “70 weeks” prophecy?

Answer 15

• “Finish the transgression”
• “Make an end to sin”
• “make atonement for iniquity”

Question 16

How did the vision of the goat get fulfilled by Alexander the Great in the historicist interpretation?

Answer 16

The goat represented Alexander the Great. Coming from the west with a vengeance, he attacked the ram (Medo-Persia), striking a death blow to this kingdom which had been instrumental in the return of the Jews to their land and in the rebuilding of the temple.

Question 17

What kingdoms do the four beasts in Daniel 7 represent?

Answer 17

Lion - Babylon
Bear - Media and Persia
Leopard - Greece
Terrifying beast - Rome

Question 18

Give a brief description of what the fourth beast looked like in Daniel Ch. 7 and describe its significance.

Answer 18

The fourth beast has bronze claws, large iron teeth, and ten horns. There is one little horn with eyes and a human mouth.
The beast represents the roman empire that crushed many of its enemies.
The ten horns represent ten kings who will arise from that kingdom
The little horn represents one truly evil king who will change laws and times. He will exert power over God’s people for three and a half years.

Question 19

According to the historicist interpretation, when did the “70 weeks” begin and when did they end?

Answer 19

It began with the decree given to Ezra by Artaxerxes I in 458/7 BCE (the terminus a quo) and terminated with the baptism of Jesus.

Question 20

Explain what happened in the year of Jubilee and how Jesus fulfilled the “70 weeks” = Jubilees prophesied in Daniel 9:24–25.

Answer 20

Jubilee represents the years of forgiveness of sins and reconciliation. After the “70 weeks” (or years), the Anointed One will come and put an end to sin to atone for wickedness and bring everlasting righteousness. Jesus fulfills this by coming in the flesh.

Question 21

Daniel chapter 7 is divided into two alternating scenes. What are they and what is their style of writing?

Answer 21

• Scenes on Earth: Narrative
  ——Unreal creatures, graphic images
• Scenes in Heaven: Poetry
  ——-Judgment, everlasting kingdom, “the Ancient of Days”

Question 22

What did King Antiochus Epiphanies do in 167 BCE?

Answer 22

• He stopped the Temple services in Jerusalem, including the daily sacrifices, and desecrated the Great Altar.
• He slaughtered priests and people, sold many into slavery, and erected altars to Greek gods in the Temple.

Question 23

Besides Daniel, who are the other people who receive a message from the angel Gabriel?

Answer 23

Virgin Mary and Zechariah

Question 24

What were the two parts of the vision in Daniel chapter 8 and what do they mean?

Answer 24

Vision about animals
- The ram and the goat are animals used for sacrifices but in the vision they act in aggressive ways; the ram is attacked by the goat. The ram is a symbol for Medo-Persia and the goat is a symbol for Greece (Alexander the Great) this is foretelling the conquering of Medo-Persia by Greece.
Vision/appearance of humans
- A man, a mighty warrior, called and said “Gabriel, give this man an understanding of the vision (mareh).” The warrior is possibly Jesus.

Question 25

Explain the differences between preterism, futurism, and historicism

Answer 25

Preterism: interprets prophecies of the Bible as events that have already happened. Holds that Ancient Israel finds its continuation or fulfillment in the Christian church after the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. Books of Daniel & Revelation.

Futurism: Christian eschatological view that interprets portions of the Book of Daniel and the Book of Revelation as future events in a literal, physical, apocalyptic, and global context.

Historicism: associates symbols with historical persons, nations, or events in a progressive and continuous fulfillment of prophecy covering the period from biblical times to the Second Coming.

Question 26

Who was the final power that destroyed Jerusalem including the Temple and when did it happen?

Answer 26

The Romans destroyed Jerusalem including the Temple in AD 70.

Question 27

According to the historicist interpretation of Daniel 8 when did the 2300 evenings and mornings begin and what event was believed to mark the end of this period?

Answer 27

2300 days = 2300 years.
Start 457 BC to the year 1844 when there would be an end to sin (Jesus would come again).

Question 28

What is the language used in Daniel 8–12?

Answer 28

Hebrew Language: Daniel’s visions are recorded in the sacred language of the Hebrew exiles in Babylon, the appropriate “voice” to discuss what is at the heart of Jewish life—the Holy, the Temple, or sanctuary.