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The Handwriting on the Wall: A Commentary on the Book of Daniel
The Handwriting on the Wall. A book in 24 chapters and eleven appendixes, explaining the historical context of Daniel s life and prophecies, what those prophecies meant to the first generation who heard them, and what they continue to mean. A commentary that for the first time in our day takes with total seriousness the fact that Daniel spoke and wrote for those of his own day first for those still living in Jerusalem who were supposed to submit to God's New Empire, and then to those living in exile and looking to the future. Unlike liberal commentaries, The Handwriting on the Wall takes seriously the claim that Daniel and his contemporaries put this book together. In this respect, this commentary stands within the mainstream of all Jewish and Christian commentaries. But unlike most conservative commentaries, the author, James B. Jordan, refuses to jump the prophecies off until the end of time, but takes seriously what they meant for those who heard them. Like any scholarly commentary, however, The Handwriting on the Wall is based on careful treatment of the grammar of the Hebrew and Aramaic text, and reflects a thoroughgoing familiarity with scholarly treatments of Daniel, liberal and conservative, up to the present day. Finally, The Handwriting on the Wall is written in a reader-friendly style, designed for layman, pastor, and scholar alike. Jordan successfully takes the reader both into the amazing stylistic features of the text and into the amazing adventures of the protagonists. The Handwriting on the Wall takes a Covenant Historical Approach to interpreting the imagery of God's prophecies revealed to Daniel. The prophecies of Daniel deal with the events in the Covenantal Era that were dawning in Daniel's the Restoration Era after the exile and the return of God's people back to the land, city, and temple. There are no historical parentheses or gaps, no leaps of thousands of years into the future. Nor is the book of Daniel concerned about predicting the course of European church history after the apostolic age and into our time. This book is not only a commentary on Daniel, but an education in how to read and study the texts of the word of God. PLUS receive with your purchase of this book Gary DeMar's 13 MP3 Download series How to Have Dominion in a Hostile World!*
- GenresTheology
733 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2007
10 people are currently reading
152 people want to read
About the author
James B. Jordan
56 books142 followersJames B. Jordan is a Calvinist theologian and author. He is director of Biblical Horizons ministries, a think tank in Niceville, Florida that publishes books, essays and other media dealing with Bible commentary, Biblical Theology, and liturgy.
Jordan was born in Athens, Georgia, and he attended the University of Georgia, where he received a B.A. in comparative literature and participated in Campus Crusade for Christ. He served as a military historian in the United States Air Force and attended Reformed Theological Seminary in Jackson, Mississippi but ultimately earned an M.A. and Th.M. from Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with a master's thesis on slavery in the Bible. In 1993, he received a D.Litt. from the Central School of Religion for his dissertation on the dietary laws of Moses. From 1980 to 1990 Jordan was an associate pastor of a Presbyterian church in Tyler, Texas.
Jordan was born in Athens, Georgia, and he attended the University of Georgia, where he received a B.A. in comparative literature and participated in Campus Crusade for Christ. He served as a military historian in the United States Air Force and attended Reformed Theological Seminary in Jackson, Mississippi but ultimately earned an M.A. and Th.M. from Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with a master's thesis on slavery in the Bible. In 1993, he received a D.Litt. from the Central School of Religion for his dissertation on the dietary laws of Moses. From 1980 to 1990 Jordan was an associate pastor of a Presbyterian church in Tyler, Texas.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
February 7, 2024
Outstanding—
A book that demonstrates the gift of teacher, the need for Biblical teaching, and the importance of reading commentaries. The majority of people simply can't attain to what Jordan does in this book on their own.
History, numerology, and biblical theology mark the book. A splattering of gold pastoral applications, I just wish there were more.
The most convincing read on preterism and post-millenialsim for me because he provides the OT groundwork for the entire system barely even mentioning the terms themselves.
A book that demonstrates the gift of teacher, the need for Biblical teaching, and the importance of reading commentaries. The majority of people simply can't attain to what Jordan does in this book on their own.
History, numerology, and biblical theology mark the book. A splattering of gold pastoral applications, I just wish there were more.
The most convincing read on preterism and post-millenialsim for me because he provides the OT groundwork for the entire system barely even mentioning the terms themselves.
July 2, 2019
Anything by James Jordan is well worth reading. His commentary on Daniel is a remarkable book, in that it deals with the wider picture--not just the book itself. Jordan goes to show that to understand Daniel, one must first understand a broader range of books first. In addition, he looks into future texts, such as Revelation, and even other prophetic literature such as Zecheriah.
Like the book of Daniel itself, the first half of the book is easier to understand and more engaging. The second half of both Daniel, and the commentary on it, are much deeper and much more difficult to understand. But readers will find there is great depth here and will profit from further study and re-reading.
One of the things that I admire most about Jordan is that he is firmly committed to a maximalist understanding of whatever book it is he is studying. He takes every jot and tittle seriously and is not easily contented with the pat answers and overlooking what most scholars are guilty of in one way or another.
For example, he takes numbers in the Bible seriously--and not just the numbers themselves, but the number of times keywords appear in a text. He shows there is meaning in this, and I've never seen this taken so seriously or consistently as with Jordan.
Jordan, unlike other commentators, seeks to answer all the questions a text raises--especially the difficult ones. Another fine feature to this commentary is Appendix A, in which he lays out the timeline of the history of Judah from the time of the last few kings through the restoration covenant. The research and argumentation is precise and easy to understand.
One of the most amazing nuggets hidden in this timeline, for example, is the fact that King Josiah fathered two sons (perhaps more) by the time he was 16. This is easy to see by doing the math as it is given, but who has ever taken the time to do the math and consider the findings?
This is a very large volume, with many appendices. But it is a treasure store of information and elucidation. I highly recommend it.
Like the book of Daniel itself, the first half of the book is easier to understand and more engaging. The second half of both Daniel, and the commentary on it, are much deeper and much more difficult to understand. But readers will find there is great depth here and will profit from further study and re-reading.
One of the things that I admire most about Jordan is that he is firmly committed to a maximalist understanding of whatever book it is he is studying. He takes every jot and tittle seriously and is not easily contented with the pat answers and overlooking what most scholars are guilty of in one way or another.
For example, he takes numbers in the Bible seriously--and not just the numbers themselves, but the number of times keywords appear in a text. He shows there is meaning in this, and I've never seen this taken so seriously or consistently as with Jordan.
Jordan, unlike other commentators, seeks to answer all the questions a text raises--especially the difficult ones. Another fine feature to this commentary is Appendix A, in which he lays out the timeline of the history of Judah from the time of the last few kings through the restoration covenant. The research and argumentation is precise and easy to understand.
One of the most amazing nuggets hidden in this timeline, for example, is the fact that King Josiah fathered two sons (perhaps more) by the time he was 16. This is easy to see by doing the math as it is given, but who has ever taken the time to do the math and consider the findings?
This is a very large volume, with many appendices. But it is a treasure store of information and elucidation. I highly recommend it.
October 18, 2021
This is a beast of a commentary. Took a while to work through but it was very enjoyable. If you know Jordan, you know you will get a ton of interesting insights and more than just a commentary on Daniel. Highly recommend.
April 23, 2024
Maybe 3.5...hard to keep track, for there were parts that were brilliant, others that leave you scratching your head.
His understanding of the chronology, history, and imagery are top-notch. You are thrown into all of these things head-first, drowned in Daniel's world, washed out of your own. It really helped to remove cultural imports from our day, especially ones surrounding dispensational eschatology obsessed with chronologies, time tables, and wicked predictions of Christ's exact return.
Some of the things that this commentary does that I do not remember reading in any other is his emphasis on certain literary patterns and types. He spends a lot of time showing how the rhythm of the creation week, the ten words of the Decalogue, the Exodus narrative, etc. are all woven into the different accounts and visions. It really opens them up in colorful detail.
One emphasis that this commentary makes is on God taking the kingdom from Israel and giving it to successive gentile empires, some of which Jordan argues are at times headed by godly rulers (Nebuchadnezzar and Cyrus for example). This transfer of the "oikumene" to the nations is an important part of the eventual coming of the Messiah, he argues, who will inherit the nations, which includes authority over them (the oikumene).
Some of the writing devices he uses, like composing his comments in the last few chapters from the perspective of Ezra reading Daniel, were not helpful. It is over bold to try to enter into another person's mind, especially one long dead, and then attempt to tell us how they would have seen something. This borders on the motivation of pseudepigraphal writers, who used well-respected names to lend credence to unknown arguments and stories. I highly respect Jordan, but when recommending him to others the common reservation about him that comes back to me is his over-confident assertions. Folks accuse him of unfounded conclusions and connections. That's sometimes true, often false, but almost always understandable by the way he writes.
Another knock, that is probably more a me issue, is the unhelpful emphasis on numerology and chiasms. Jordan is like the little boy who cried "chiasm". He sees them everywhere, even inside each other, overlapping each other, on top of each other. When everything is a chiasm, you stop believing in chiasms. Also, his numerical breakdowns do something similar. Every number has a meaning, and everything can then be converted into one and shown to be some kind of multiple of those basic numbers (4x3x70x1000 = Daniel's exact number of hairs ...ok, I made this one up, but this is how I felt when Jordan does it with any number of names, places, descriptions, or dates). Maybe he's onto something, but to me it looked like he was just stringing red yarn from word to word and waving crazy hands in a dark basement.
His understanding of the chronology, history, and imagery are top-notch. You are thrown into all of these things head-first, drowned in Daniel's world, washed out of your own. It really helped to remove cultural imports from our day, especially ones surrounding dispensational eschatology obsessed with chronologies, time tables, and wicked predictions of Christ's exact return.
Some of the things that this commentary does that I do not remember reading in any other is his emphasis on certain literary patterns and types. He spends a lot of time showing how the rhythm of the creation week, the ten words of the Decalogue, the Exodus narrative, etc. are all woven into the different accounts and visions. It really opens them up in colorful detail.
One emphasis that this commentary makes is on God taking the kingdom from Israel and giving it to successive gentile empires, some of which Jordan argues are at times headed by godly rulers (Nebuchadnezzar and Cyrus for example). This transfer of the "oikumene" to the nations is an important part of the eventual coming of the Messiah, he argues, who will inherit the nations, which includes authority over them (the oikumene).
Some of the writing devices he uses, like composing his comments in the last few chapters from the perspective of Ezra reading Daniel, were not helpful. It is over bold to try to enter into another person's mind, especially one long dead, and then attempt to tell us how they would have seen something. This borders on the motivation of pseudepigraphal writers, who used well-respected names to lend credence to unknown arguments and stories. I highly respect Jordan, but when recommending him to others the common reservation about him that comes back to me is his over-confident assertions. Folks accuse him of unfounded conclusions and connections. That's sometimes true, often false, but almost always understandable by the way he writes.
Another knock, that is probably more a me issue, is the unhelpful emphasis on numerology and chiasms. Jordan is like the little boy who cried "chiasm". He sees them everywhere, even inside each other, overlapping each other, on top of each other. When everything is a chiasm, you stop believing in chiasms. Also, his numerical breakdowns do something similar. Every number has a meaning, and everything can then be converted into one and shown to be some kind of multiple of those basic numbers (4x3x70x1000 = Daniel's exact number of hairs ...ok, I made this one up, but this is how I felt when Jordan does it with any number of names, places, descriptions, or dates). Maybe he's onto something, but to me it looked like he was just stringing red yarn from word to word and waving crazy hands in a dark basement.
November 23, 2021
A fantastic commentary on Daniel, sadly out of print, but coherent and clear. Really brings out the interconnectedness of scripture from beginning to end, and Daniel's pivotal role in linking the Old Testament and Jesus. I've learnt so much from this.
November 24, 2012
Going through again this year with a finer tooth comb. This book goes into Daniel in the whole Bible with exquisite depth teaching you much about the imagery of the ancient world.
One question I would definitely now ask anyone who was trying to predict the "end times" is how they believe Daniel and his friends saw the prophecies in the book of Daniel. After all, the prophecies were given firstly for them. Ask the same question about the book of Revelation, and I don't think you end up with cobra helicopters or some pending global holocaust.
I highly recommend this book for anyone who wants to understand the times subsequent to the kings of Israel, through the exile and return, and leading up to the New Testament. Not to mention one of the most amazing men in history: Daniel himself.
His careful unraveling of Daniel's difficult prophecies is done in a much more readable way than other commentaries I have seen. He brings in the best of scholarship and historical data as well as a depth of theological understanding from years of studying the Old Testament.
A huge strength of Jordan's thought process is his ability to carefully pay attention to chronology. He includes charts and time lines.
This book is a gem and I would listen to it on audio book-- it deserves careful reading by someone with a very rich voice!
One question I would definitely now ask anyone who was trying to predict the "end times" is how they believe Daniel and his friends saw the prophecies in the book of Daniel. After all, the prophecies were given firstly for them. Ask the same question about the book of Revelation, and I don't think you end up with cobra helicopters or some pending global holocaust.
I highly recommend this book for anyone who wants to understand the times subsequent to the kings of Israel, through the exile and return, and leading up to the New Testament. Not to mention one of the most amazing men in history: Daniel himself.
His careful unraveling of Daniel's difficult prophecies is done in a much more readable way than other commentaries I have seen. He brings in the best of scholarship and historical data as well as a depth of theological understanding from years of studying the Old Testament.
A huge strength of Jordan's thought process is his ability to carefully pay attention to chronology. He includes charts and time lines.
This book is a gem and I would listen to it on audio book-- it deserves careful reading by someone with a very rich voice!
June 29, 2023
Readable and clear. Great stuff.
February 3, 2019
Really fantastic! While you might not always agree with Jordan’s speculations on any given text, his instincts are always to view the Bible as the primary interpreter of scripture. This commentary will not only help you with Daniel, it will give you keen insight into the relationship between the OT & NT. The years from 600 BC to the time of Christ are often foggy in the minds of 21st c. Christians but they shouldn’t be. Jordan has dug deep into chronological issues and pulls back the veil on these centuries. Rather than years of silence, Jordan shows that the Book of Daniel has much to say about the “intertestimental” period.
March 29, 2024
I have only ever read Matthew Henry, Isaac Newton, Rushdoony, and Dale Ralph Davis commentaries on the book of Daniel, but based on that I can confidently say that Jordan's commentary is the best I have ever read on the book thus far. It is not as pastoral as Matthew Henry, yet it is thoroughly biblical.
James B. Jordan is a superb commentator because he is a fantastic biblical theologian. He sees throughlines in Daniel that go through all of redemptive history.
James B. Jordan is a superb commentator because he is a fantastic biblical theologian. He sees throughlines in Daniel that go through all of redemptive history.
Want to read
March 30, 2022I very much appreciate the high view of Biblical inspiration that James B Jordan demonstrates in this book. I greatly appreciate the insights that he has on Daniel and would recommend it to any serious student of the Bible. However, I did find some of his typology a bit stretched for my liking.
Rev. Paul Seiler
Rev. Paul Seiler
July 27, 2024
An extremely thorough commentary on Daniel. Jordan brings his usual style to this book and while I didn’t agree at every point he makes a compelling case for his position. One of the best things about this book is Appendix A which is a chronology from Josiah all the way down to Christ. An excellent commentary overall.
January 25, 2023
An incredible example of historical-grammatical method and a commentary that taught me a lot about the whole Bible (as is characteristic of Jordan's work). Jordan's background as a historian shines in this work. The introduction to Daniel and the historical timeline he has constructed from biblical texts amazes me. Also full of good applications for today. I could not go with him on all of his numerological observations, but am convinced that there there are things there, even if he hasn't put all the pieces together correctly.
Read
September 12, 2019The Handwriting on the Wall is not currently available at local libraries.
March 1, 2022
The introductory portion was the most fun I’ve had reading a commentary.
Very good!
Very good!
Want to read
October 2, 2024Read most of it, but got slogged down once we got to chapters 10-12. A great resource and commentary.
March 28, 2012
What I most appreciate about Jordan is his keen eye for observing the text of Scripture. He's a Bible hawk, and I'm the loyal eyas, longing to be like his papa.
That which I am much less excited about, however, is the frequency with which Jordan stacks up possibilities as propositions (A, B, and C are all possible) that produce certain conclusions (the text clearly states, therefore, that...). I gleaned tremendous insight from this commentary, but I must admit that after a while I started tuning out whenever I hit the word "clearly."
That which I am much less excited about, however, is the frequency with which Jordan stacks up possibilities as propositions (A, B, and C are all possible) that produce certain conclusions (the text clearly states, therefore, that...). I gleaned tremendous insight from this commentary, but I must admit that after a while I started tuning out whenever I hit the word "clearly."
July 27, 2022
This book is completely readable for the average person, but is full of depth. I would read a chapter, and think, “Oh yeah, I know exactly what he’s talking about.” And then I would come up for air and realize how swift and deep the waters had been before plunging in again. By the end it was Russian roulette of if I would make it through.
I highly recommend this for when reading Daniel. I know I will need to read this several more times before I feel like I’ve unearthed the actual meat of it, and Daniel.
Do yourself a favor and get you a copy.
I highly recommend this for when reading Daniel. I know I will need to read this several more times before I feel like I’ve unearthed the actual meat of it, and Daniel.
Do yourself a favor and get you a copy.
August 6, 2013
Great book. This book does not support dipensationalism. If you are looking for another book to verify your particular dispensational position you will be disappointed. This book takes Daniel seriously as dealing with historical situation of Daniel's day and the role the people of God were to play in exile and restoration period.
Want to read
February 1, 2010Unfortunately, I have no plans to teach Daniel or read Daniel in the near future. I have wanted to buy this commentary for a long time and recently just purchased it for future use and the occasional present skimming :+)
June 16, 2009
Really sad I don't own this one.
February 28, 2015
Excellent.
June 21, 2015
Will have to read again, so much information. Great book!
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews