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Daniel shares the Ugaritic use of seven periods for exclusion from settled life, making a king's time away from society a completed stage before his restoration.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
KTU 1.23:66
Cuneiform Texts from Ugarit
Ancient Near East
and from their left into their mouths, and were not satisfied. O wives whom I have married, O sons whom I have begotten, raise up a dais in the midst of the holy desert: there you will make your dwelling among the stones and trees. For seven whole years, for eight periods of time, the gracious gods went to and fro on the steppe; they roamed the edge of the desert. And they met the guardian of the sown land. And they cried out to the guardian of the sown land: O guardian, guardian! Open up! And he made an opening for them, and they entered. If there is food for us, give some that we may eat. If there is wine for us, give some that we may drink. And the guardian of the sown land answered them: There is wine: whoever enters let him come! Here is his measure of wine And his companions let him fill with wine.
Daniel 4:25
Hebrew Bible
25 You will be driven from human society, and you will live with the wild animals. You will be fed grass like oxen, and you will become damp with the dew of the sky. Seven periods of time will pass by for you before you understand that the Most High is ruler over human kingdoms and gives them to whomever he wishes. 26 They said to leave the taproot of the tree, for your kingdom will be restored to you when you come to understand that heaven rules. 27 Therefore, O king, may my advice be pleasing to you. Break away from your sins by doing what is right, and from your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor. Perhaps your prosperity will be prolonged.” 28 Now all this happened to King Nebuchadnezzar. 29 After 12 months, he happened to be walking around on the battlements of the royal palace of Babylon.
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Notes and References
“... Note also units of seven “periods,” for example the period of time that Nebuchadnezzar is driven from society to live like a beast (Dan. 4:20, 22, 29). Compare the “seven cycles” that the Goodly Gods are to sojourn in the “desert” (perhaps better, “outback”) in the Ugaritic narrative of “The Goodly Gods” (KTU 1.23.66–68); see Theodore J. Lewis, “CAT 1.23,” in UNP, 214. ...”
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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