It's structured on seven visions. First, three dreams/ visions are
given to other people and the interpreted by Daniel, each vision being
followed by a brief story. And, secondly, Daniel himself is given four
visions.
I’ve
glanced at several commentaries and none of them make this point. It
seems a basic structural feature, and I think this confirms C S
Lewis’ assessment that most modern scriptural commentators miss very
obvious literary features (in his essay, “Fern Seeds and Elephants”).
The
first three dreams/visions involve a progression. The first
dream tells the Babylonian king, that his empire is splendid but will be
followed by lesser empires at some unspecified time. The second dream
is more threatening, telling the king that he will lose his sanity but
will later be restored to his throne. And the third vision tells the
king’s successor that he will lose his throne the same night as the vision appears.
Perhaps there's another progression involved, with each vision being
less hidden than before. In the first, the king doesn't remember the
dream, and Daniel has to reveal both the dream and its meaning. The
king remembers the second dream, and Daniel again reveals the meaning.
But the third vision is more public still – written on the walls of the
king’s banquet hall.
Or at least, following
my childhood picture Bible, I’ve always assumed that everyone saw the
writing. Actually, we’re told that the king saw it (Dan 5:5)
and that the wise men “could not read the writing
or tell the king what it meant” (Dan 5:8). I think the wise men could
see the letters but could not decipher them, let
alone provide an interpretation. But I’ll accept that it’s an
open question and perhaps the writing was seen only by the king (and by
Daniel).
It could perhaps
be like the situation where Daniel later sees the angel at the Tigris River. His companions cannot see the angel, although they sense there is something there and flee in terror (Dan 10:4, 7).
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