Daniel in the Preterists’ Den: A Critical Look at Preterist Interpretations of Daniel

In recent years, there has been rise in popularity and visibility of the debate about the last things. Preterists and Futurists have published books, articles, and even movies promoting their respective views. This debate has elevated the interest of the Christian public in eschatological issues. Along with the increased interest in eschatology, there has been a rise in popularity of the Preterist view, which holds that most or all of the prophecies about Christ’s coming have already been fulfilled--that the ＂second coming＂ took place in 70 AD. Most of the discussion from those who espouse the Preterist view, however, revolves around certain passages in the New Testament, and their treatment of Old Testament passages is sporadic and selective. The importance of the book of Daniel in these discussions cannot be overstated. However, most commentaries on Daniel from a Futurist perspective have not dealt with the Preterists’ interpretations of the key prophetic passages. There simply is no detailed commentary on the book of Daniel that addresses the Presterist interpretations of this important book. This book is a commentary on the entire book of Daniel from a Futurist perspective that specifically addresses the Preterist interpretations of the key prophetic passages. This is not a book that selects passages out of the context of the book and attempts to explain their prophetic significance. Rather, this is a commentary on the entire book of Daniel that places these critical prophetic passages in their literary and historical context, and then deals with the various interpretations of these passages as they fit into the context of the book as a whole.

Thomas A. Howe is professor of Bible and biblical languages at Southern Evangelical Seminary. His focus of study and his continuing interest is in hermeneutics and philosophy of religion. He is the author of Objectivity in Biblical Interpretation (2005), which is a popular-level presentation of his dissertation. Thomas is a contributing coauthor to the Festschrift in honor of Norman L. Geisler. Howe has written Faith and Reason in the volume To Everyone an Answer: A Case for the Christian Worldview, edited by Francis J. Beckwith, William Lane Craig, and J. P. Moreland (2004); and he is coauthor with Norman L. Geisler of When Critics Ask (1992). Thomas Howe and his wife, Pat, have three children and six grandchildren.