Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

MISHAEL

(Heb. mîšāʾēl)

1. A priestly figure of the wilderness period; a son of Uzziel in the line of Kohath (Exod. 6:22; Lev. 10:4).

2. An influential community member, perhaps a Levite, who stood at Ezra’s left hand during his public reading of the law (Neh. 8:4; 1 Esdr. 9:44).

3. The Hebrew name (“Who is what God is?”) of a companion of Daniel, also called by the Babylonian name Meshach (Dan. 1–3). 4 Macc. 16:3 highlights Mishael’s special association with Dan. 3’s fiery furnace. Mishael represents a brand of Israelite sage associated with bureaucratic circles. Some such circles survived, and even flourished (e.g., Dan. 2:49), in Diaspora environs through their shrewd wisdom and fresh apocalypticism. In Jewish literature subsequent to Daniel, Mishael came to serve as a classic example of heroic faith (Pr. Azar. 66; 1 Macc. 2:59; 4 Macc. 16:21; 18:12).

Bibliography. R. R. Wilson, “From Prophecy to Apocalyptic: Reflections on the Shape of Israelite Religion,” Semeia 21 (1981): 79-95.

Stephen L. Cook

Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

MISHAEL

Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible (2000)