Early parts of Book of Daniel clearly based upon Nabonidus
Part One:
Failure by scholars to make right connections
by
Damien F. Mackey
“Clearly these events from the «reign» of Belshazzar create a historical problem since we know from the ancient Near Eastern descriptions he was never truly the king of Babylon. Additionally, five times the book of Daniel refers to Nebuchadnezzar as Belshazzar’s father (5,2.11.13.18.22). This clearly contradicts the cuneiform sources that record Nebuchadnezzar as having only one son who assumed the throne (Amel-Marduk) and state that Nabonidus was the father of Belshazzar”.
Amanda Davis Bledsoe
A view such as Bledsoe’s here must also take into account the Book of Baruch, however, which, too, names Nebuchednezzar as the father of Belshazzar (1:11): “ … and pray for the life of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, and for the life of his son Belshazzar …”.
Historians and archaeologists can be peculiar in that, when they uncover an historical scenario that perfectly mirrors a significant biblical event - like, for instance, the catastrophic fall of ancient Jericho at the end of Early Bronze III (c. 2200 BC) - they must reject it as corresponding with the biblical incident (c. C15th BC) on the grounds that the dates of the ‘two’ by no means coincide - instead of their considering the possibility that the received dating system may indeed be seriously flawed.
A case somewhat parallel to the Jericho one can be found, for instance, with King Nabonidus, who - given his uncanny likenesses to the Book of Daniel’s king “Nebuchednezzar” - is thought to have been the Chaldean king, rather than Nebuchednezzar (II) himself, upon whom the author of Daniel must have based his “Nebuchednezzar”.
In previous articles I have considered some of the significant parallels that scholars have discerned between “Nebuchednezzar” and Nabonidus - for instance, Carol A. Newsom, in my:
Does King Nabonidus Reflect Daniel’s “Nebuchednezzar”?
and, again, John A. Tvedtnes in my:
Ashurbanipal and Nabonidus
Now, too, Amanda Davis Bledsoe has, in her article, “The Identity of the “Mad King” of Daniel 4 in the Light of Ancient Near Eastern Sources”, drawn further amazing parallels between Daniel’s “Nebuchednezzar” and Nabonidus.
It has apparently not occurred to any of these three scholars though, unfortunately, that Nabonidus might therefore be Nebuchednezzar, and that Nabonidus’s son, Belshazzar, might therefore be Daniel’s (and Baruch’s) “Belshazzar”.
For more on what I consider to be the necessary streamlining of neo-Assyrian/neo-Babylonian history, against that of Judah and a revised Egypt, see my series:
Ashurbanipal, Manasseh, Necho I-II, Nebuchednezzar. Part Two (i): Ashurbanipal as Nebuchednezzar
Ashurbanipal, Manasseh, Necho I-II, Nebuchednezzar. Part Three: Comparing Ashurbanipal and Nebuchednezzar II (= Nabonidus)
Part Two:
“Nebuchednezzar” and king Nabonidus
entwined
“… while Nabonidus was in Teima he had a
frightening dream, after which he returned to Babylon. The designation,
«frightening», is a remarkable parallel between this text and Daniel 4:5”.
Amanda Davis Bledsoe
In Part One:
https://www.academia.edu/37294739/Early_parts_of_Book_of_Daniel_clearly_based_upon_Nabonidus._Part_One_Failure_by_scholars_to_make_right_connections
we touched upon the perverse tendency of certain scholars,
who, whilst identifying an historical-archaeological situation that very much
mirrors one recorded in the Bible, do not even consider that there may be a need
to reform the conventional dating (historical-archaeological), in order to
bring that scenario right into line with the biblical one.
Or, perhaps the kings listed in
some dynasties might have been duplicated, meaning that there is a need to
truncate that particular dynasty.
The knee-jerk reaction seems
almost universally to insist that the biblical story is fictitious, but is loosely
based upon some real historical incident of a different time.
Again, some kings are in need
of alter egos.
King Nebuchednezzar II himself,
for instance, needs to be filled out with the equally long reigning Ashurbanipal,
in whose records is the missing evidence for Nebuchednezzar’s destructive path
through Egypt – which neither Jeremiah nor Ezekiel miss, however.
Now Amanda Davis Bledsoe whom we met in Part
One, whilst noting that “… it is clear that,
like Nebuchadnezzar, Nabonidus completed extensive building projects throughout
Babylon”, thinks nevertheless that: “However, unlike Nebuchadnezzar, Nabonidus
was a very controversial figure. He is said to have broken from the earlier
customs in every way: he disregarded his religious and festal duties; he
neglected his rule in Babylon residing instead in the desert oasis of
Teima …”.
Still, a Nebuchednezzar-enhanced-with-Ashurbanipal
might be found to be more Nasbonidus-like. On this, I have written previously:
Nabonidus is somewhat like an Assyrian king. He adopts Assyrian
titulature and boasts of having the Assyrian kings as his “royal ancestors”.
There is nothing particularly strange about his supposed long stay in Teima in
Arabia. This was a typical campaign region adopted by the neo-Assyrian kings.
There is nothing particularly remarkable about his desire to restore the
Ehulhul temple of Sin in Harran. Ashurbanipal did that.
Nabonidus is said to have had two major goals, to restore that Sin
temple and to establish the empire of Babylon along the lines of the
neo-Assyrians. Once again, Ashurbanipal is particularly mentioned as being his
inspiration.
Nabonidus was not singular in not taking the hand of Bel in Babylon for
many years, due to what he calls the impiety of the Babylonians. Ashurbanipal
(and now you will notice that he keeps turning up) could not shake the hand of
Bel after his brother Shamash-shum-ukin had revolted against him, barring
Babylon, Borsippa, etc. to him. He tells us this explicitly.
Nabonidus is not singular either in not expecting to become king.
Ashurbanipal had felt the same.
…. They share many Babylonian building works and restorations, too.
[End of quote]
We follow Amanda Davis Bledsoe
now in some of her comparisons of Daniel’s “Nebuchednezzar” with Nabonidus:
….
Chapters one through six of the book of
Daniel have been loosely woven together by a later editor [sic], each chapter
representing a complete and distinct story that can stand on its own.
Of these six chapters, the first four
are attributed to the reign of Nebuchadnezzar and the latter two to the reign
of Belshazzar. Clearly these events from the «reign» of Belshazzar create a
historical problem since we know from the ancient Near Eastern descriptions he
was never truly the king of Babylon. Additionally, five times the book of
Daniel refers to Nebuchadnezzar as Belshazzar’s father (5,2.11.13.18.22). This
clearly contradicts the cuneiform sources that record Nebuchadnezzar as having
only one son who assumed the throne (Amel-Marduk) and state that Nabonidus was
the father of Belshazzar.
Mackey’s comment: How about Belshazzar =
Amel-Marduk?
Amanda Davis Bledsoe continues:
These instances begin to show how the
narratives concerning Nebuchadnezzar and Nabonidus are entwined in the biblical
account. I will now examine each of the three subsections of Daniel 4: the
king’s dream, his affliction, and his repentance and restoration, and look at
the parallels between each of these sections and the cuneiform sources
describing the reign of Nabonidus. ….
The King’s dream (Dan 4,1–15 MT/4,4–18
NRSV)
The first section begins with a
narration by the king describing his dream and his reaction. He asserts that,
«I saw a dream that frightened me; my fantasies in bed and the visions of my
head terrified me»(Dan 4,5 NRSV). The king then summons all the wise men of
Babylon to decipher the dream and tell him its meaning, but none are able except
Daniel.
There are two important elements in this
section of the narrative which I will examine: (1) the king’s frightful
dream and (2) his seeking an interpreter, which I will examine separately.2.1.
The Frightful Dream
Nabonidus has been referred to as «the
only known Babylonian dreamer».
That he had a strong preoccupation with
dreams is indicated in several cuneiform documents. One such text was
discovered in the royal palace at Babylon.
This inscription begins with a historical
prologue briefly detailing the reigns of the Neo-Babylonian kings. Beginning in
column V, it turns to Nabonidus’s reign and his accession to the throne.
Columns VI-VII report dreams and visions Nabonidus in which Nebuchadnezzar and
two Babylonian gods appear to him, showing their approval of his rule.
Another inscription, whose location and
date of discovery are unknown, was recorded on a bead originally inlaid in a
dagger. Here too, there is a report of a dream Nabonidus had where the god, Sîn
spoke to him and requested a dagger.
The most important text for our
discussion of Nabonidus’s fixation with dreams is the Harran stela.
This inscription recounts the reign of
Nabonidus and his restoration of a temple. Most importantly, it records that
while Nabonidus was in Teima he had a frightening dream, after which he
returned to Babylon. The designation, «frightening», is a remarkable parallel
between this text and Daniel 4:5. Though in this inscription Nabonidus had the
dream in Teima (as opposed to Babylon) and it caused him to return to Babylon
(rather than to leave), it is still clear that in each case the dream serves as
the cause for the king’s movements, explicitly linking his sojourn outside of
Babylon with his having a frightening dream.
Though there is no specific locale
mentioned in Daniel for where the king went, only that «he was driven away from
human society», we can relate this event to Nabonidus’s absence from Babylon
and his residence in the small oasis city of Teima as recorded in the cuneiform
inscriptions. It seems certain that the population living in the massive
capitol city of Babylon would have viewed this remote desert oasis as far from
«human society». As for the animalistic descriptions of the king’s
affliction in Daniel 4, though there are no exact parallels in the cuneiform
sources relating to Nabonidus’s reign, there are many ancient Near Eastern mythological
texts which attest the tendency of the urban population to view «groups living
outside of the civilized urban centers» as extremely primitive, «living like
and amidst wild animals».
An ex-ample of this is seen in Tablet I
of The Epic of Gilgamesh, where the character, Enkidu is transformed «from
wild beast to civilized man» as a result of his sexual encounter with a
prostitute.
Of additional importance is Berossus’s
reflection of primordial men where, drawing on a Sumerian text, he says,
«He does not know how to eat bread or to wear garments. Instead, he eats grass
like the animals, and drinks water from the watering places».
These so-called «naturalistic descriptions
of uncivilized peoples,» are a running motif in ancient Near Eastern mythology,
found in Sumero-Akkadian spells, poems, and prayers.
In a recent article, Christopher Hays
shows how these texts associate animal imagery or transformation with chains or
fetters and divine judgment, thus corresponding to the king’s transformation in
Daniel 4. It is also not difficult to imagine that this same imagery could have
been invoked by the Babylonian population and applied to Nabonidus and his
abandonment of the capitol city.
Length of Absence
Another parallel between the Danielic
narrative and the cuneiform sources is the length of time given for the king’s
absence. In Daniel 4, the king’s affliction lasted seven years.
Based on the cuneiform documents, we
know that «Nabonidus left Babylon for Arabia from the second month of his third
year and returned in the seventh month of his thirteenth year»; approximately
ten years.
In the case of Daniel, it has been
proposed that the number seven was used «as a round figure», a number which has
tremendous significance in the biblical tradition, and this should be a close
enough approximation to reflect the same tradition.
Whether seven or ten years, this is
certainly a substantial amount of time for the king to be away from Babylon,
something that could not have escaped notice of the cuneiform records of
Nebuchadnezzar had it occurred during his reign. A further similarity
between the Danielic narrative and the cuneiform sources is their employment of
comparable phrases to signal the king’s exile. In Dan 4,33 it is said that
«immediately the sentence was fulfilled against Nebuchadnezzar» and in 4,34
«when that period was over», he returned.
In column III of the Harran inscription,
it is said that «fulfilled was the year, the appointed time arrived».
Both texts use the idea of a proscribed
amount of time that the king was away from Babylon, serving as yet another
parallel.3.3
Cause of his «madness»
The final consideration for the king’s
affliction is the apparent cause of his madness. The narrative of Daniel 4
takes for granted that the source of the king’s madness is affliction by God
for his excessive pride.
Dan 4,30-31 shows the king in his
palace, saying «Is this not magnificent Babylon, which I have built as a royal
capital by my mighty power and for my glorious majesty?» (my own emphasis). It was
«while these words were still in the king’s mouth» that a voice came from
heaven and the king’s sentence is carried out. An equivalent of this can
be seen in the Verse Account, where Nabonidus is portrayed as exceedingly mad
in his incredible prideful boasts:
He [Nabonidus] wrote upon his stel[as:
«I did cause him [Cyrus] to prostrate] at my feet. I conquered his countries. I
took his possessions to [my country]». He [Nabonidus] would stand up in the
assembly (and) praise him[self]: «I am wise. I am knowledgeable. I have seen
hid[den things]. (Although) I do not know the art of writing, I have seen
se[cret things]…I surpass in all (kinds of) wisdom (even the series)
uskar-Anum-Enlilla, which Adap[a]
composed…» (Yet) he would mix up the rites, confuse the omens… (Verse Account,
Col.V, 7-14).
That Nabonidus’s actions are associated
with inciting the wrath of the deity seems to especially parallel Daniel 4,
where the king is judged for his lack of humility and afflicted until he will
recognize the power of the Most High.4.
The King’s prayer and restoration (Dan
4,31-34 MT/4,34-37 NRSV)
In the final sequence of events of
Daniel 4, the king accepts and praises the sovereignty of God and is
re-established over his kingdom. There are two central motifs at play in this
section: (1) the king’s prayer and repentance and (2) his restoration and
celebration.4.1
Prayer and Repentance
First, we see that the prayer of the
king detailed in the last few verses of Daniel 4 serves as a repentance
narrative.
Some have taken the king’s «repentance»
a step further, in positing his «conversion». See M. Henze, Nebuchadnezzar, in The
Eerdmans Dictionary of Early Judaism, ed. A.M. Davis ….
…. his prior transformation and absence
from Babylon, the king now proclaims his reverence to the same God who caused
that affliction.
I blessed the Most High, and praised and
honored the one who lives forever. For his sovereignty is an everlasting
sovereignty, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation. All the
inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does what he will with
the host of heaven and the inhabitants of the earth. There is no one who
can stay his hand or say to him, «What are you doing?» (Dan 4,34b-35NRSV).
The various cuneiform inscriptions
discovered, which exhibit Nabonidus’s promotion of the moon god, Sîn, certainly
could have served as a basis for this tale of repentance in Daniel 4.
It is well attested that Nabonidus was
responsible for the reorganization of the Eanna temple bureaucracy in
Uruk. The extent of his devotion to Sîn is especially evident in a building
inscription from Ur, likely written after his return from Teima.
This inscription cites Nabonidus’s
rebuilding of the ziggurat Elugalgalgasisa of the Egishnugaltemple-complex at
Ur. It is in this inscription that we see Nabonidus’s strongest exaltation
of Sîn, as he prays to the deity on behalf of his son, Belshazzar. He
prays, «O Sîn, lord of the gods, king of the god sof heaven and the underworld,
god of gods, who dwells in the great heavens…». This is certainly a reverent
invocation and it has even been said that this is «probably the highest epithet
ever given to a god in the Mesopotamian tradition. ….
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