"One Like a Son of Man" in the Court of the Foreign King: Daniel 7 as Pointer to Wise Participation in the Divine Life

Abstract

ABSTRACT It is a commonplace of Danielic interpretation that ch. 7 functions as a literary hinge in the book of Daniel in that it affects the reading both of the court tales and of the visions. This article proposes that Dan 7, and particularly the figure of the one like a son of man, may also be interpreted as programmatic for a theological appreciation of the court tales in Dan 1–6. The central point of ch. 7 is the vision of the one like a son of man in the throne room of the Ancient of Days, a vision that is then interpreted in terms of its significance for "the holy ones," who emerge in the second half of ch. 7. The interplay between the one like a son of man and the holy ones reflects a dynamic of participation on the part of the holy ones in the divine life. I explore this dynamic further by looking at the gospel iteration of the Son of Man, other biblical strands of the theme of participation, resulting understandings of the theological doctrine of the incarnation as both "deification" and "inhominization," and the ethical significance of participation in the divine life. In the wider context of the Daniel tales, a theological understanding of the wise contextualization of their faith on the part of the young men at court may now be guided by the programmatic theme of participation in the divine life that emerges in Dan 7. The outcome is an appreciation of the role of the holy ones as participants with the one like a son of man in the throne room scene, from whence they exercise wisdom in the routine conduct of the life of faith. Their conduct arises out of their participation. And their stories become part of our own ethical participation in the divine life.