I’m preaching my way through the book of Daniel, and I’m just loving it. It’s so refreshing, so wonderfully post-Christendom in its approach. I’m relishing the hard work that is involved – those visions need some serious digging to understand. And it grieves me that so many preachers and teachers seem to be content to parrot ‘this is that’ drivel – ‘the little horn is the UN Security Council’ and all that sort of stuff. When they could be doing something really worthwhile! Some rather awesome graphics abound, though – like this guy, in his wonderful lycra girdle!

But there is some truly brilliant material to be worked through as well. Let’s start with the obvious. Ronald Wallace (Bible Speaks Today series) is good; so too is Joyce Baldwin.

Many thanks to Andy, who lent me the study notes from Spring Harvest from 2005: ‘Sing the Lord’s song in a strange land’ – because the notes led on to the book by Gerard Kelly: ‘Stretch: lessons in faith from the life of Daniel’. It’s honestly brilliant, and a must-read book. I love the way that Gerard’s prose is close to poetry so much of the time. And one line in particular stands out:

The truly anointed evangelist, I believe, is not the person who loves the gospel so passionately that they cannot help sharing it with people; it is the person who loves people so passionately that they cannot but want the best for them.

(He goes on: ‘I admit to having met evangelists who don’t even seem to like people very much, let alone love them.’

I’ve also found a great deal of helpful material – in a very different way – in the rather academic commentary by Ernest Lucas in the Apollos series from IVP. Hard work, but rewarding. E. J. Young (Banner) and Leupold (Evangelical Press) have been worth reading, but not quite as helpful.

Daniel 2 tomorrow. I may refer to Kelly’s idea of ‘acoustic faith’ – being people who are prepared to do the hard work of double listening – listening both to our culture and to God. I don’t think it’s really the main point of Daniel 2, but it is helpful. But I’m really grateful to God for the insights that have come from so many people travelling with Daniel. I hope and pray that I can add my small contribution too, and convey even a little of the excitement I’ve found on the journey.