Daniel 12:2 and the Threat of Shame
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Keywords

Hell
Book of Daniel
Honor and Shame
Non-Burial
Corpse Exposure
Afterlife
Threat
Sociology
Jewish Culture

How to Cite

Swartz, K. (2025). Daniel 12:2 and the Threat of Shame: Interpreting Sociological Themes Concerning Death, Burial and Corpse Exposure as Punishment in the Hebrew Bible. Old Testament Essays, 37(3), 1–21. https://doi.org/10.17159/2312-3621/2024/v37n3a6

Abstract

Since at least the post-Nicene period, Dan 12:2 has been cited often as a foundational text for the eschatological conception of hell within the Christian Bible. However, when examined within its original sociological context, this passage can be more accurately understood as reflecting a specific threat of shame deeply embedded in the honour-based society of the ancient Mediterranean during the Second Temple Period. The linguistic connection of דראון (“contempt, abhorrence”) to Isaiah, particularly concerning the fear of non-burial and corpse exposure, reinforces this interpretation by emphasising the concept of shame tied to one’s manner of death (Isa 66:24). This study employs a sociological approach to explore the language of “shame and contempt” in Dan 12:2 within its Judaic cultural framework, focusing on burial practices and the associated threat of non-burial. It argues that the author intended to depict an extremely specific and detailed punishment of shame by corpse exposure as a punitive consequence rather than implying a prototype of eternal torment in a place called “hell.”

https://doi.org/10.17159/2312-3621/2024/v37n3a6
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