Prophecy that has been fulfilled shows the bibles divine origin

The Book of Daniel and Prophecy
Part 1, Dating the Book of Daniel

The Bible claims to be the word of God. In it we are constantly confronted by words like "God said" or that something is "the
word of the LORD." One of the purposes of prophecy is so that we become confronted with the reality of God. In scripture we
are often told of something that will take place then it is followed by telling us then "you will know that I am the LORD." It is not
unreasonable to wonder; how do we know God really said this? The sure fulfillment of the prophecy is given to us as one of the
means in which we should test a prophet to see if he is indeed speaking God's words.

Deut 18:21-22 "And you may say in your heart, 'How shall we know the word which the LORD has not spoken?' "When a
prophet speaks in the name of the LORD, if the thing does not come about or come true, that is the thing which the
LORD has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him.
(Another test of a prophet is if they tell us to follow after other god's Deut.13:1-4)

Fulfilled prophecy not only confronts us with the reality of God, but it also gives us conformation that the Bible really is the word
of God as it claims to be. I for one am glad that Christianity is not a "blind faith." Although we do go on faith there are sound
reasons to accept the Bible as the written word of God.

LATE DATING THE BOOK OF DANIEL
When it comes to prophecy many people try to claim that the prophecy was actually written after the actual event. They do this
simply because they do not believe in a God that can forecast the future. For example the book of Daniel is well known for its
prophecy which accurately foretold events that later took place in history and goes on to tell us of events that will still take place
in our future and tie in directly with the book of Revelation concerning end times and the return of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Unfortunately some scholars put inaccurate information which is based only on their biased opinion into reference works.
According to Baker encyclopedia of Christian apoplogetics late dating the book of Daniel did not start due to some
archeological discovery or historical fact, but rather it was late dated because certain scholars did not believe in miracles.
Daniel foretold the future accurately which is miraculous therefore they assumed a later date.
(While reading don't forget that on the time line numbers or dates get larger the farther back you go. BC 600, 500, 400, 300,
200, 100, 1, 100, 200, 300 AD)

Following is an example where the Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia has a problem with the dates.
Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia
Daniel, a book in the Old Testament of the BIBLE, is listed with the Major Prophets by Christians and with the Writings
(Ketuvim) by the Jews. It comprises six stories of the trials of Daniel and his companions while they served at the court of
Babylon, as well as four visions of the end of the world. The book takes its name, not from the author, who is actually unknown,
but from its hero, a 6th-century Jew. Internal evidence indicates that the book was written during the Maccabean wars (167-164
BC)

The "Internal evidence" that most people use to show a latter date is that Daniel wrote about things in the future that he could
not possibly know, but God can foretell the future. As we will see next in the Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia it is not possible
for the book of Daniel to have been written during the Maccabean wars. (167-164 BC)

Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia
The Septuagint, commonly designated LXX, is the oldest Greek version of the Old Testament of the BIBLE, the title "seventy"
referring to the tradition that it was the work of 70 translators (or 72 in some traditions). The translation was made from the
Hebrew Bible by Hellenistic Jews during the period 275-100 BC at Alexandria.

The problem here is that in the latter of the two dates there is a 108 year gap. (275 BC - 167 BC = 108 years) This would make
the book of Daniel being translated from Hebrew to Greek a 108 years before the book was actually written. Even if we say that
Daniel was not written until 167-164 BC as Grolier's suggest we would still have a problem. The Septuagint is only a translation
of the older Hebrew manuscripts. This means that the book of Daniel has to pre-date the Septuagint thus making the dating as
found for the book of Daniel in Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia inaccurate. At best one would have to argue that Daniel was
written in 167 BC and then translated into the Septuagint in 100 BC only 67 years later. It is very unlikely that the Jews were
fooled into accepting the book of Daniel as authoritative with Daniel as the author if in fact the book did not even exist 68 years
earlier. So why would they bother translating the book from Hebrew to Greek if it was not accepted as an authoritative work?

Flavius Josephus was a Jewish historian who lived A.D. 37-100.
The Works of Josephus, CHAPTER 10
1. (186) But now Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, took some of the most noble of the Jews that were children, and the
kinsmen of Zedekiah their king, such as were remarkable for their beauty of their bodies and comeliness of their
countenances, and delivered them into the hands of tutors, and to the improvement to be made by them. He also made some
of them to be eunuchs; (187) which course he took also with those of other nations whom he had taken in the flower of their age
and afforded them their diet from his own table, and had them instructed in the institutes of the country, and taught the learning
of the Chaldeans; and they had now exercised themselves sufficiently in that wisdom which he had ordered they should apply
themselves to. (188) Now among these there were four of the family of Zedekiah, of most excellent dispositions, the one of
whom was called Daniel, another was called Ananias, another Misael, and the fourth Azarias: and the king of Babylon changed
their names, and commanded that they should make use of other names. (189) Daniel he called Baltasar; Ananias, Shadrach;
Misael, Meshach; and Azarias, Abednego. (See Daniel 1:1-7)

Notice this early historian places Daniel in the reign of Nebuchadnezzar. Furthermore he gives an account of Daniel and his
friends having their names changed by the king. This happens to be the same as we find it in the book of Daniel indicating the
biblical account is historically accurate. The reign of Nebuchadnezzar was not 167-164 BC when we are told that the book of
Daniel was written. The reign of Nebuchadnezar was approximately 561 B.C - 605 B.C. Are we to really to believe that less
than a hundred years after the Maccabean wars this Jewish historian inaccurately places Daniel in the reign of
Nebuchadnezzar? Does Josephus have any credibility as a historian?

Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia
Flavius Josephus, b. AD 37, d. after 93, was a Jewish historian whose works are invaluable sources for the history of the
Jews under Roman domination. A Pharisee, originally named Joseph ben Matthias, he reluctantly joined the revolt against
Rome in AD 66 and served as commander in Galilee until captured by the Romans in 67. Through the patronage of
Vespasian, he later became a Roman citizen. Josephus's The Jewish War (75-79), a description of the tragic events of the
revolt, is based to a large extent on his firsthand knowledge. His Jewish Antiquities (93), although covering the history of the
Jews from the Creation on, gives a particularly full account of the Maccabees and the dynasty of Herod. Josephus has been
criticized for his subservience to the Romans, but he was a passionate defender of Jewish religion and culture, as shown in his
apologia entitled Against Apion as well as in his historical works.

(Josephus in another account makes reference to the book of Daniel.)
The Works of Josephus, The Antiquities of the Jews , Book 11, chapter 8, #4-5
4. (321) But Sanballat thought he had now gotten a proper opportunity to make his attempt, so he renounced Darius, and
taking with him seven thousand of his own subjects, he came to Alexander; and finding him beginning the siege of Tyre, he
said to him, that he delivered up to him these men who came out of places under his dominion, and did gladly accept of him for
their lord instead of Darius........
(In this context we can see that this is Alexander the Great. Then following the context down we read the following.)
(337) And when the book of Daniel was showed him, wherein Daniel declared that one of the Greeks should
destroy the empire of the Persians, he supposed that himself was the person intended;

Considering that Josephus was a credible Jewish Historian it is very unlikely that he would have been fooled into believing that
the book of Daniel existed at the time of Alexander the Great; if in fact it was only written a hundred years or so earlier. It seems
even more unlikely that he would be foolish enough to try to tell his readers of this account if he knew the book of Daniel did not
exist at the time of Alexander the Great. This puts the book of Daniel as already being completed and accepted about 200
years earlier than the date when it was supposed to be written according to Grolier's Encyclopedia. Alexander the Great was
born around 356 BC and Grolier's Encylopedia dated the book of Daniel as 167-164 BC.

Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia
Alexander the Great, King of Macedonia
Alexander III, king of Macedonia, the first king to be called "the Great," conquered the Persian empire and annexed it to
Macedonia. The son of PHILIP II and OLYMPIAS, he was born in 356 BC and brought up as crown prince.

We know that the book of Daniel was not written during the Maccabean wars (167-164 BC) as the Grolier Multimedia
Encyclopedia declares. We know this because the Hebrew manuscripts containing the book of Daniel are proven older than
that date by the dating of the Septuagint. Furthermore the early historian Josephus who is considered an accurate source of
information on the Jews and their religion dates Daniel in the reign of Nebuchadnezar. The reign of Nebuchadnezar was
approximately 561 B.C - 605 B.C.

Encyclopaedia Britannica, Copyright 1994-1998
Nebuchadrezzar II (b. c. 630--d. c. 561 BC), the second and greatest king of the Chaldean dynasty of Babylonia (reigned c.
605-c. 561 BC). He was known for his military might, the splendour of his capital, Babylon, and his important part in Jewish
history.

Daniel is also mentioned in the book of Ezekiel.
Ezek 14:12-16 Then the word of the LORD came to me saying, "Son of man, if a country sins against Me by committing
unfaithfulness, and I stretch out My hand against it, destroy its supply of bread, send famine against it, and cut off from it both
man and beast, even though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job were in its midst, by their own righteousness they could
only deliver themselves, "declares the Lord GOD. "If I were to cause wild beasts to pass through the land, and they
depopulated it, and it became desolate so that no one would pass through it because of the beasts, though these three men
were in its midst, as I live," declares the Lord GOD, "they could not deliver either their sons or their daughters. They alone
would be delivered, but the country would be desolate.

Since Daniel is mentioned in the book of Ezekiel in a non prophetic context it is reasonable to believe that Daniel must have
been around before or during Ezekiel's lifetime. So when did Ezekiel live?

Encyclopaedia Britannica, Copyright 1994-1998
Ezekiel also spelled EZECHIEL, Hebrew YEHEZQEL (fl. early 6th century BC), prophet-priest of ancient Israel and the
subject and in part the author of an Old Testament book that bears his name.

For the Christian that accepts the Bible as the word of God we need only to look to the words of Jesus for conformation. Jesus
referred not only to Daniel as a prophet, but also makes reference to what is found in the book of Daniel. If Jesus accepts
Daniel as a prophet and the book of Daniel as prophecy then the Christian has no reason to reject it.