Book of Daniel

This article is about the Biblical book. For the novel by E. L. Doctorow, see The Book of Daniel (novel).

Unity of Daniel

The scholarship concerning the question of unity in Daniel differs greatly from the scholarship concerning the dating. Whereas almost all scholars conclude a 2nd century dating of the book in its final form, scholarship varies greatly regarding the unity of Daniel. Many scholars, finding portions of the book dealing with themes they do not believe fit with the time of Antiochus, conclude separate authors for different portions of the book. Included in this group are Barton, L. Berthold, Collins, and H. L. Ginsberg. Some historians who support that the book was a unified whole include J.A. Montgomery, S.R. Driver, R. H. Pfeiffer, and H.H. Rowling in the latter's aptly titled treatise The Unity of the Book of Daniel

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Those who hold to a unified Daniel claim that their opponents fail to find any consensus in their various theories of where divisions exist. Montgomery is particularly harsh to his colleagues, stating that the proliferation of theories without agreement showed a "bankruptcy of criticism." They also charge that composite theories fail to account for the consistent thematic portrayal of Daniel's life throughout the book of Daniel.

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