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Spiritual Viewpoint
The content of this study is based on some spiritual views that you may or may not agree with. I present them here so you fully understand any bias before you embark on this journey:
1. The Bible is the inspired Word of God. This means that the original Scriptures as written in Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic are perfectly recorded, just as God intended. Every word is meant to be there. I personally believe that nothing is left to chance or accident by the human writers; that the Holy Spirit designed every word to be part of an intricate message system given through the Jewish people to the whole world.
At the same time, I accept that some passages may use a less-than-perfect translation into the English language. In this sense, certain passages may convey meanings not quite as originally intended. See the sidebar for details.
Never doubt your Bible, but use more than one translation to get a better idea of what may be meant when passages don't seem to make sense. During the Reformation, many people died horribly cruel deaths attached to a fiery stake simply for their efforts in making the English-language Bible possible. Honor them by making the most of the wealth of resources available today.
2. The Book of Daniel we read today is the same book he originally wrote. Some people, unwilling to accept that God can reveal history before it happens, insist that Daniel was written after the events it foretold. They argue that its use of more than one language is proof. This is absurd, since the entire book was translated into Greek as part of the Septuagint more than 100 years before many of the events it describes took place. Copies of Daniel found in the caves of Qumran among the Dead Sea Scrolls predate some of the history described in Daniel and are unchanged from versions found centuries later.
3. God reveals the future to demonstrate His existence. With roughly 27% of all Scripture verses made up of prophecy, this aspect of the Bible is vitally important as part of God's message and has a distinct purpose. He uses prophecy to prove His existence, just as He describes in Isaiah 44:6-7. It is a powerful way to bring people into a personal relationship with the living God. Furthermore, He appears to reveal the most intimate prophecies to those who follow Him most closely.
4. God chose the Jewish people as His instruments of revelation to the world. They are His chosen people, those with whom He has both an unbreakable covenant relationship and a comprehensive plan. Much anti-Semitism has resulted from misunderstandings about the role of the Jews in history. The Christian church has not replaced God's plan for Israel but merely interrupts it for a time. This is made quite clear in Daniel chapter 9. While part of Daniel is designed to show future history in a Gentile context, the ultimate purpose is to show it through the lens of Israel, with the Jews as the focal point of all history.
5. Jesus Christ is the promised Messiah, the King. He was revealed throughout the Old Testament, with more than 300 highly specific prophecies ranging from his ancestry to the place of his birth, from details of the crucifixion to his ultimate position as King of kings. Only through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ can we be accepted into Go d's perfect kingdom of Heaven and granted eternal life. Without a genuine commitment to follow Jesus we remain mired in sinful rebellion against God and cannot be granted access to Heaven.
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