And Daniel was clothed in purple and was great and esteemed before king Darius, as he was knowledgeable and intelligent and a holy spirit was in him (Daniel 6:3, Old Greek)

And Daniel was above them, because an excellent spirit was in him, and the king appointed him over his whole kingdom (Daniel 6:3, Theodotion)

Robyn Faith Walsh has noted the importance of pagan philosophy for understanding pneuma/spirit in the New Testament. I would like to point out some connections between the New Testament and Daniel on pneuma.

One of the interesting things Paul says is that it isn’t just the cross, but if Christ is not raised your faith is useless and you are still in your sin (1 Cor 15:17). The popular interpretation of early Christianity of Jesus’s death as substitutionary atonement has a great deal of difficulty dealing with this passage, since the cross doesn’t conquer Sin, but there it is in First Corinthians.

The point is that Christ needed to die and be raised because he would then be able to possess you as a good/holy spirit (in contrast with demonic possession like the Gerasene Demoniac) and positively augment your ability to resist the influence of Satan – Christ being the ultimate resister of Satan by adhering to the “spirit” (e.g., adultery is even a lustful eye) rather than just the “letter” of God’s word (“spirit” in the sense we would say “the spirit” of the age: Zeitgeist in German). This is imitation / haggadic midrash of the resurrected Jesus as the new and greater pneuma/spirit from the book of Daniel.

Through trust and belief, you welcome Christ to be lord of your life, allowing him to take control of the reins and guide you through the sea of temptation that is life. So, the two parts to the ancient Christian faith are Cross and Resurrection: (1) CROSS: Realizing God sent his especially beloved (agapetos) into the world who proved who he was through his authoritative interpretation of the scriptures, wonders, etc., and the world nonetheless horrifically responded (like society did to Socrates) by giving Jesus an analogous and yet more humiliating and horrific death than the arch enemy of the Jews Haman from the book of Esther:

15 who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets (Other ancient authorities read their own prophets) and drove us out; they displease God and oppose everyone (1 Thess 2:15)

25 Then the people as a whole answered, “His blood be on us and on our children!” (Matt 27:25)

It is seeing yourself in the world that turned on God’s beloved Jesus that convicts you of your sin nature, in circumcising the Fleshly (in Paul’s sense) part of your heart and making you receptive for the spirit of Jesus to enter you and guide you in a holy life. (2) RESURRECTION: The realization of your culpability in the cross creates a blank slate that allows Jesus to take control and rewrite the story of your life. This angelic possession by Jesus, Paul’s “Christ in you,” seems to be creatively reappropriating (haggadic midrash) ideas from the Septuagint (Greek) Book of Daniel that the New Testament writers were working from.

During his government service, Daniel proved to be an outstanding official. His skill—and most importantly, his integrity (Daniel 6:4–5)—was far beyond others whom Darius put in positions of power (Danel 6:1–2). This verse credits Daniel’s success to an “excellent spirit.” This means his outstanding ability (Daniel 1:17, 20). Yet, it also seems to refer to Daniel being possessed and under the influence of a helpful good “spirit creature.” which would become the much greater figure of the resurrected Christ in the New Testament. Just as there were evil demonic possessions, there were good angelic possessions. We are also reminded of Socrates’s Daimon, an inner voice or sign spirit that warned him against making mistakes.

Linguistically, Strong’s Lexicon notes regarding this pneuma:

Usage: The term “pneuma” is used in the New Testament to denote various concepts related to spirit and breath. It can refer to the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, as well as the human spirit, demonic spirits, or even the general concept of wind or breath. In a theological context, “pneuma” often signifies the immaterial, life-giving force or presence of God. It is a key term in discussions of spiritual life, regeneration, and divine inspiration.

Cultural and Historical Background: In the Greco-Roman world, “pneuma” was understood as a vital force or essence, often associated with life and consciousness. In Jewish thought, the concept of spirit (ruach in Hebrew) was integral to understanding God’s interaction with the world, particularly in creation and prophecy. The New Testament writers, influenced by both Jewish and Hellenistic thought, used “pneuma” to articulate the presence and work of God in the life of believers and the church.

The apostle Paul expounded on this subject of a resurrected spiritual body in 1 Corinthians 15:42–52, showing that Jesus was the firstfruits (1 Corinthians 15:20) of what all Christians will someday experience. As all believers will at the general resurrection, the resurrected Jesus discards his fleshly body for a pneumatikos, a spiritual body that allows him to fragment and possess believers who welcome him as what Paul calls “Christ in you.” In the bible angels can’t be in two places at once because that is a trait of God. The resurrected Christ in his spiritual body, by contrast, can indwell and empower all believers simultaneously. This showed Jesus was not inferior to the Greek Gods. Greek Gods can appear in multiple places at once, so long as their domain is being invoked. Dionysus, for example, was able to manifest at a party despite the fact that his true self was buried under a mountain. Poseidon could appear on different seas at once due to his control over the ocean. The resurrected Jesus was thereby superior since he indwelled in all believers regardless of their location. This provides the ability for each Christian to have constant, personal, immediate, indwelling contact with Jesus. Instead of relying on someone “outside” of themselves, believers in Christ can focus on the voice of Jesus “inside” their hearts, as he dwells with them (John 14:17).

There is a lot of intertextualities between the Book of Daniel and the New Testament. For example, Jesus is the new and greater Son of Man, a position in Daniel referring to a powerful angelic figure second only to the Ancient of Days – God. The New Testament contrasts this by saying the Son of Man didn’t come to be served, but to serve and die. When King Nebuchadnezzar looks into the flames of a furnace where he had thrown three Hebrew men, he sees four men walking unharmed. The fourth man is described as “a son of the gods,” which the New Testament may have repurposed for the legendary material about Jesus. Daniel 9:24-27 may have been turned into the story of the first and second coming of Christ. Like Daniel escapes the Lion’s Den, Christ escapes the tomb.