The author of the Old Testament’s Book of Daniel claims to be writing in exile in Babylon in the 6th century B.C.E., but most biblical scholars believe the book was actually written in the 2nd century B.C.E., four hundred years later. The book is apocalyptic. It speaks of a cosmic war between God and the armies of darkness. The world at present is controlled by the forces of darkness, but a mighty clash is coming soon. God will destroy his enemies, and the world to come will be just and righteous. The dead will be resurrected and judged. Those who remained righteous in a world controlled by dark forces will be rewarded.
It is easy for Christians who read the Old Testament as a single piece to come away with the impression that this apocalyptic world view was there from the start, but it wasn’t. It’s a later development. Earlier writings indicate the ancient Jews were not much concerned with an afterlife or a resurrection of the dead or a cosmic war. The rise of apocalypticism could be viewed as a reaction to the little nation of Judea getting kicked around by larger and more powerful neighbors…Assyria, Babylon, Rome. The Jews were supposed to be God’s chosen people living in the promised land. So why are they being threatened so often? Have they displeased God? That would be the old answer. But apocalypticism had another answer. The world is at present is a messed up place because it is under the influence of dark forces. Many righteous people have suffered as a result, but a new world is coming. Everything will be put right. The dead will be resurrected. The righteous will be rewarded. (It just so happens that a nearby religious belief system, Zoroastrianism, has a similar world view.) Judging from New Testament accounts, Jesus was a proponent of apocalypticism. So was Paul.
Apocalypticism gave hope to those who felt oppressed. It explained why good people were often harmed in this life while bad people were often rewarded. It encouraged people to stick to their principles, and it promised they would eventually be rewarded. And the reward was supposed to come soon.
The trouble is, apocalypticism didn’t deliver. All of these centuries later, life can still be remarkably cruel, unfair, painful and short. It also encourages believers to define themselves as being one of the good guys. A self-identified “good guy” might not be self-critical. A “good guy” might not be willing to see a problem as complex. “Good guys” tend to define all those who appose them as “bad guys.” How can you bend or compromise when you’re fighting against the armies of darkness? Why should you try to see things from the other person’s point of view when that person is evil?
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