A.E. Gardner, «The «Little Horn» of Dan 7,8: Malevolent or Benign?», Vol. 93 (2012) 209-226
It has been claimed that Dan 7,8 is an addition to the vision in Dan 7,2- 14 and its «little horn» indicates a wicked character, usually Antiochus Epiphanes. By paying close attention to the description of the «little horn» and its context, it is demonstrated that allusions to earlier biblical passages, including Daniel 4, are present. These indicate that the «little horn» is a benign character who should be differentiated from the «other» horn(s?) of 7,20-21.24-25 and the «little horn» of Dan 8,9-11. As the latter represents Antiochus Epiphanes, the little horn of Dan 7,8 must be pre-Maccabean.
220 ANNE E. GARDNER
The Psalmist had described himself in the previous verse as God’s
“servant†and in the verses surrounding the pivotal one praises God’s
judgments and righteousness ending with the plea, “Give me under-
standing and I shall live†33, linking possibly with the notion of eternal
life in Daniel. If ry(c from this Psalm illuminates the “little hornâ€,
it suggests that the latter was a character who was devoted to God’s
commandments. This coheres with what has been discovered so far
about the “little hornâ€. Isa 60,21-22 may have something to say about
the future development of the “little hornâ€:
(v. 21) Your people (M(), all of them, will be
righteous forever: they will possess the land,
branch (rcn) of my34 planting,
work of my hands, that I may be glorified.
(v. 22) The small one (N+qh) will become a thousand
and the little one (ry(ch) a strong nation […]
This links with Dan 7,27 where the kingdom is given to “the
people (M() of the holy ones of the Most Highâ€.
6. The connection of the “little horn†with “One like a Son of Manâ€
in Dan 7,13
The most famous character in Daniel’s vision, the enigmatic “one
like a son of man†(Dan 7,13) — whatever one deems his identity
to be 35 — clearly has the favour of God. He is brought before the
Ancient of Days and given “dominion, glory and a kingdom†which
is to be everlasting (Dan 7,13-14). This character connects in several
ways with the “little hornâ€. On a superficial level they are linked
through the use of #n) for “one like a son of man†has the word as
part of his description while the eyes of the little horn were “like the
ry(c appears in the tzade section of Psalm 119. “Eyes†and “mouthâ€, part
33
of the description of the “little hornâ€, appear in the previous two sections (v.
123: “My eyes [yny(] fail for your righteous salvationâ€, and v. 131: “I opened
wide my mouth [yp] and panted, for I longed for your commandmentsâ€).
MT has “hisâ€.
34
For a review of scholarly opinions on the origin and identity of “one
35
like a son of man†cf. J. EGGLER, Influences and Traditions Underlying the
Vision of Daniel 7:2-14. The Research History from the End of the 19th Cen-
tury to the Present (OBO 177; Fribourg – Göttingen 2000) 55-110.
© Gregorian Biblical Press 2012 - Tutti i diritti riservati
FOLLOW US