Daniel 12

Daniel 12 is the last chapter of the Book of Daniel. The final vision, which begins in chapter 10 and continues through the account of the kings of the south and the north in Daniel 11, concludes in this chapter.

Outline

• Verses 1–3 Michael, the great prince, stands up, and a time of trouble comes such as never was since there was a nation. Everyone found written in the book is delivered. Many of those who sleep in the dust awake, some to everlasting life and some to everlasting shame. The wise shine like the stars.
• Verse 4 Daniel is commanded to shut up the words and seal the book until the time of the end.
• Verses 5–7 One of two figures standing on either bank of the river asks a question. The man clothed in linen, who is above the waters of the river, lifts up both hands and swears that the end will come only after "a time, times, and an half."
• Verses 8–10 When Daniel, not understanding, asks what the outcome will be, he is told that the words are closed up and sealed. Many will be purified and tried, but the wicked will not understand.
• Verses 11–12 From the time the daily sacrifice is taken away there will be 1,290 days; blessed is the one who waits and comes to the 1,335 days.
• Verse 13 Daniel receives the promise that he will rest and then stand in his lot at the end of the days.

Key Verses

• Daniel 12:2 "And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life" — regarded as one of the clearest statements in the Old Testament on resurrection and judgment.
• Daniel 12:3 "And they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever" — frequently cited to express the value of turning people to righteousness.
• Daniel 12:13 "For thou shalt rest, and stand in thy lot at the end of the days" — a personal promise that brings the entire Book of Daniel to a close.

People and Places

• Daniel
• Michael — the great prince who stands for Daniel's people.
• The man clothed in linen — first appears in 10:5. Some interpret him as an angel, others as a manifestation of Christ.
• The river — the setting of the vision, introduced in 10:4 as the bank of the Hiddekel (the Tigris).

Points for Reflection

• "A time, times, and an half" and the numbers of days: This expression also appears in Daniel 7 and Revelation 12. Interpretations fall into three main approaches.
• Historical interpretation: sees it as referring to the suspension of temple sacrifice by Antiochus IV in the second century BC.
• Futurist interpretation: Dispensationalism and others see it as referring to the Great Tribulation in the time of the Antichrist.
• Historicist interpretation: calculates the figures by converting days into years.

Citing Mark 13:32–33, many denominations caution against attempts to use these numbers to fix the date of the end.

• Interpreting 12:4: A popular explanation reads this verse as a prophecy of modern advances in transportation and knowledge. Another interpretation reads it as a picture of people wandering to and fro in search of understanding.
• Connections with the New Testament
• Jesus refers to "the abomination of desolation" (Matthew 24:15).
• The language of John 5:25–29 resembles that of 12:2.
• The book in 12:1 is read in connection with the Book of Life.
• Revelation 10:5–6 also features an angel who lifts up his hand and swears. Revelation 22:10, in contrast to 12:4, commands that the prophecy not be sealed.

In the Korean Church

Daniel 12:3 is frequently cited in sermons encouraging evangelism and in appeals calling church school teachers to commitment.