<P> The Book of Daniel is a biblical apocalypse, combining a prophecy of history with an eschatology (the study of last things) which is both cosmic in scope and political in its focus . In more mundane language, it is "an account of the activities and visions of Daniel, a noble Jew exiled at Babylon," its message being that just as the God of Israel saved Daniel and his friends from their enemies, so he would save all of Israel in their present oppression . </P> <P> In the Hebrew Bible it is found in the Ketuvim (writings), while in Christian Bibles it is grouped with the Major Prophets . The book divides into two parts, a set of six court tales in chapters 1--6 followed by four apocalyptic visions in chapters 7--12 . The deuterocanon contains three additional stories, the Song of the Three Holy Children, Susanna, and Bel and the Dragon . </P> <P> Though the book is traditionally ascribed to Daniel himself, modern scholarly consensus considers it pseudonymous, the stories of the first half legendary in origin, and the visions of the second the product of anonymous authors in the Maccabean period (2nd century BC). Its influence has resonated through later ages, from the Dead Sea Scrolls community and the authors of the gospels and Revelation, to various movements from the 2nd century to the Protestant Reformation and modern millennialist movements--on which it continues to have a profound influence . </P> <P> The Book of Daniel is divided between the court tales of chapters 1--6 and the apocalyptic visions of 7--12, and between the Hebrew of chapters 1 and 8--12 and the Aramaic of chapters 2--7 . The division is reinforced by the chiastic arrangement of the Aramaic chapters (see below), and by a chronological progression in chapters 1--6 from Babylonian to Median times, and from (Babylonian to Persian) in chapters 7--12 . Various suggestions have been made by scholars to explain the fact that the genre division does not coincide with the other two, but it appears that the language division and concentric structure of chapters 2 - 6 are artificial literary devices designed to bind the two halves of the book together . The following outline is provided by Collins in his commentary on Daniel: </P>

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