The book of Daniel
Daniel 9:1
In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the seed of the
Medes, which was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans; 2 In the
first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of the years,
whereof the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would
accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.
1.
Fore-mentioned Prophecy
Daniel has seen the kingdom of Babylon come carry him and the Jews away into captivity, beginning around 605 BC. Daniel has watched the Medes & Persians invade Babylon and conquer it. Now Daniel is living under the reign of King Darius of the Medes & Persians.
Daniel is a Scriptural Scholar. He
has studied all the writings available in his day and understands from the
prophecy of Jeremiah (Jer 25:11-13 & Jer 29:4-7,10) that the captivity of
the Jews will last for a period of 70 years. The current year of chapter 9 is
538 BC, so Daniel has served in Babylon for 67 of the 70 years of captivity.
Daniel hopes to be released from this captivity in a few short years. He thinks
he can see the light at the end of the tunnel, so to speak. But Daniel looks at
the Jews, living in this captivity, and instead of repenting and learning their
lesson by living in captivity, he notices they have little or no concern for
the things of God, still. Daniel also knows from facts and visions God has sent
his way, that there will be many future Gentile kingdoms. Thus Daniel is
concerned this 70-year captivity could be extended due to the negligence and sin
of the Jewish people in exile.
3 And I set my
face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and
sackcloth, and ashes: 4 And I prayed unto the LORD my God, and made
my confession, and said, O Lord, the great and dreadful God, keeping the
covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his
commandments;
2.
Fasting and Prayer
Daniel felt his people had not repented while in captivity and his burden for the people is heavy. Daniel begins to fast and pray, sitting in sackcloth and ashes and confessing his sin and the sin of the people. Daniel knew God could and would forgive sin, yet he also knew God will punish unconfessed sin. All Daniel can do is humble himself before God and hope for mercy.
Thus, Daniel begins to call upon the Lord in prayer. The book of Daniel certainly is a book of prophecy, yet in this chapter we see not only prophecy but also prayer. This is one of the greatest chapters in the entire Bible on prayer.
5 We have sinned,
and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even by
departing from thy precepts and from thy judgments: 6
Neither have we hearkened unto thy servants the prophets, which spake in
thy name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of
the land. 7 O Lord, righteousness belongeth unto thee,
but unto us confusion of faces, as at this day; to the men of Judah, and to the
inhabitants of Jerusalem, and unto all Israel, that are near, and that are far
off, through all the countries whither thou hast driven them, because of their
trespass that they have trespassed against thee. 8 O
Lord, to us belongeth confusion of face, to our kings, to our princes, and to
our fathers, because we have sinned against thee. 9 To
the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, though we have rebelled
against him;
Daniel begins to call upon the character and person of God. In verse 4, Daniel calls upon the great and dreadful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love him and to them that keep his commandments. Daniel knows that only God is completely faithful to hear and answer prayer. Daniel knows that only God can pardon and forgive sin.
Daniel calls upon the patience of God. In verses 5 & 6, Daniel confesses that “we have sinned”, but God has been patient and forgiven us many times. Yet when we wandered back in sin, God sent a prophet to preach repentance. When the people again straightened up, God forgave, yet the people went right back into sin again. Time and time again, God would send his servants to preach to the sinful people and would wait to hear from them and forgive their sin. God certainly has been patient.
Daniel realizes the punishment of God has come upon the people. There is a way God can use His patience and His punishment together to chastise the people, yet love the people and try to straighten out their lives. In verses 7 & 8, Daniel notes how God has driven the people away from their home because of sin.
In verse 9, Daniel calls upon the pity of God. Daniel states though we have rebelled against God, to the Lord belongs mercies (not just mercy singularly) and forgivenesses (not just forgiveness singularly, He has forgiven many times). Daniel calls Him the Lord our God.
10 Neither have we
obeyed the voice of the LORD our God, to walk in his laws, which he set before
us by his servants the prophets. 11 Yea, all Israel have transgressed thy law,
even by departing, that they might not obey thy voice; therefore the curse is
poured upon us, and the oath that is written in the law of Moses the servant of
God, because we have sinned against him.
12 And he hath confirmed his
words, which he spake against us, and against our judges that judged us, by
bringing upon us a great evil: for under the whole heaven hath not been done as
hath been done upon Jerusalem. 13 As it
is written in the law of Moses, all this evil is come upon us: yet made we not
our prayer before the LORD our God, that we might turn from our iniquities, and
understand thy truth. 14 Therefore hath the LORD watched upon the
evil, and brought it upon us: for the LORD our God is righteous in all his
works which he doeth: for we obeyed not his voice.
In verses 10 - 13, Daniel notes the demand of God’s commandments. We ought to obey the Lord and Him only. He has given His Word, unto us, to follow. When we sin, His commandments tell us that we are to confess our sin and turn from it. The Word of God is the Standard, which we should live our lives by, nothing short of that will ever do.
In verse 14, Daniel notes the doom in God’s commandments. When we sin, and do not confess our sin, but continue in sin (Prov 28:13), God will chastise. Daniel states that God is righteous in doing so. In fact, my friend, God is righteous in everything.
15 And now, O Lord
our God, that hast brought thy people forth out of the land of Egypt with a
mighty hand, and hast gotten thee renown, as at this day; we have sinned, we
have done wickedly. 16 O Lord, according to all thy righteousness, I
beseech thee, let thine anger and thy fury be turned away from thy city
Jerusalem, thy holy mountain: because for our sins, and for the iniquities of
our fathers, Jerusalem and thy people are become a reproach to all that are
about us. 17 Now therefore, O our God, hear the prayer of
thy servant, and his supplications, and cause thy face to shine upon thy
sanctuary that is desolate, for the Lord's sake.
We must realize that God has made a covenant with the people. He will be their God and they will be His people. He will never leave them nor forsake them.
In Verse 15, Daniel notes the arm of God’s deliverance. God had delivered the Jew from the bondage of Egypt, and it was God’s hand that delivered and His name that got glory.
In verse 16, Daniel makes an appeal to God to let His anger be turned away from Jerusalem. Daniel knows that the people living in sin are bringing a reproach upon the name of God. Those confessing the Lord as their God, while living in open sin, bring shame upon His name. By living in unconfessed sin the people are dragging the name of God through the mud.
In verse 17, Daniel asks that God act
for the name of God. Not for the people, not for the city, not for any other
reason than the name of God that had called the Jews His Own.
18 O my God,
incline thine ear, and hear; open thine eyes, and behold our desolations, and
the city which is called by thy name: for we do not present our supplications
before thee for our righteousnesses, but for thy great mercies. 19 O
Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive; O Lord, hearken and do; defer not, for thine own
sake, O my God: for thy city and thy people are called by thy name.
D. Compassion of God
In verse 18, Daniel calls upon the nature of God. His nature is a nature of mercy. I once read a story about a wicked young man who was being led away to be executed. The young mans mother, asked those who had caught and bound him, “Please have mercy upon my son.” The executioners responded, “He doesn’t deserve mercy.” His mother, with many a tear in her eye exclaimed “Sirs it would not be mercy if he deserved it!” How true, God certainly has had mercy upon us, when we were yet in our sins He loved us and died for us. We deserved hell and yet He loved us and extended to us, His mercy and has saved us.
In verse 19, Daniel calls upon the name
of God. The name of God is many and much. He is the Lover of our soul, Forgiver
of our sin, Savior of our lives and Messiah to come.
20 And whiles I
was speaking, and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people
Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God for the holy
mountain of my God; 21 Yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even
the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused
to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation. 22 And
he informed me, and talked with me, and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth to
give thee skill and understanding.
23 At the beginning of thy
supplications the commandment came forth, and I am come to shew thee; for thou
art greatly beloved: therefore understand the matter, and consider the
vision.
3.
Future Prediction
A. The
Messenger
While Daniel was praying, before he even had time to say Amen, Gabriel flew in and touched Daniel. This happened at the time of the evening oblation. The evening oblation is an offering made at 3 PM. This evening offering was made pointing towards the death of Jesus, for it was at 9 AM he was placed on the cross, at 12 PM the sun was darkened upon the face of all the earth and at 3 PM Jesus bowed His head and gave up the Ghost.
Gabriel was sent as an answer to Daniel’s prayer. Our God still hears and answers prayer.
Gabriel was also sent out of the affection
God has for the prophet, “for thou art a man greatly beloved.” My friend, it is a fact that God loves you
and I, just as He loved Daniel. Gabriel was also sent to give Daniel some advisement
on future events. God wants Daniel to understand and declare the truth that God
would present to the prophet Daniel.
24 Seventy weeks
are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the
transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for
iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision
and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.
25 Know therefore and understand,
that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem
unto the Messiah the Prince shall be
seven weeks, and threescore and
two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous
times. 26 And after threescore and two weeks shall
Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that
shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall
be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.
27 And he shall confirm the covenant
with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the
sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations
he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined
shall be poured upon the desolate.
Daniel had been studying the book of Jeremiah, where Jeremiah had dealt with a time period in years. In verse 24, the period of time is defined by the Hebrew word “shabua” which means a period of seven. The word “shabua” is interpreted here as “weeks.” There will be 70 periods of 7 or 70 X 7, which is equal to 490. The period of time to elapse will be 490 years. This sentence will be upon the Jews and Jerusalem. This period would be called the “times of the Gentiles”
In verse 24, it should be noted that this time would come upon the world to cancel all sin. God will deal with sin by sending His only Son to die at Calvary. By placing faith in Jesus, God will wash away and forgive sin. This time will also come upon the world to complete salvation. The Bible states “to bring in everlasting righteousness.” This time is also coming to confirm the scriptures, and by “seal up the vision and prophecy”; God means that all of His Word will be fulfilled.
This 70-week period or 490 years will be divided into 3 periods.
Period # 1- Verse 25 states that this period will begin with the going forth of the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem. It is not a command to build the temple but a command to build the city. It is believed that this timetable began in Nehemiah 2:1-8 as Artaxerxes ordered that Jerusalem be rebuilt. This would have been on the first day of Nisan, 445 BC. Verse 25 also gives us the measure of time; it is 7 weeks or 49 years. This would take us to 396 BC, which is about the time of Malachi the prophet and the conclusion of the Old Testament Canon.
Period # 2- Verse 25 states the measure of time for this period as 62 weeks or 434 years. This time period would end as Messiah is cut off, but not for himself. We realize that Jesus rode into the city of Jerusalem on a donkey as the people threw down palm branches and proclaimed Hosanna. Yet, in just a few hours and days, the people would go on to reject Jesus as the Messiah and have Him crucified.
Now today we measure time by a year being 365 days. This 365 day year is called the “Julian” calendar. The Jews had their own measure of time for a year, which was 360 days. If you total 49 years in period #1 and add 434 years in period #2 your total would be 483 years or 69 of the 70 prophesied weeks. According to the Jewish calendar (360 days in a year), 483 years X 360 days in a year, is equal to 173,880 days.
From the edict of king Artazerxes on March 14, 445 BC to Jesus’ triumphant entry on April 6, 32 AD, we find that exactly 173,880 days would have passed, or 483 years. Is that not incredible? (I will on the next page include a helpful chart).
The timetable stops at 69 weeks, because, the Jews rejected Jesus and now God has rejected them. After the Messiah was cut off, for the sins of the world, not for Himself, we find an immeasurable interval of time. I believe that it is in this interval period of time that we now live in. We currently live in this “age of grace” known as “the church age” and will live in it until Jesus comes to rapture His church, home to heaven. No man knows the hour or the day of the rapture. But it WILL COME TO PASS (I Thes 4:14-18). When the rapture takes place, the third period will immediately begin and the antichrist will come into power.
Period #3- Verse 27 defines this final period as 1 week or 7 years. It will be the time of Jacob’s Trouble otherwise known as the Great Tribulation. It will begin right after the rapture of the church, with the antichrist coming into power and signing a peace treaty with Israel. This peace treaty will last for about 3 ˝ years, then the antichrist will come into the temple and put up an image of himself and tell the world to worship him. This will happen in the very temple that the Jews worship God in. Many of the Jews will see the antichrist as the imposter that he is and the peace treaty will be over and the second half of the Tribulation will last 3 ˝ years. This will be a time of pruning and purging for the nation of Israel.
This chapter closes with the antichrist in power, but my friend be it well known that the lake of fire is his future home. At the close of the Tribulation, Jesus will come and assert Himself as the Messiah and defeat the armies of the followers of antichrist and the devil. This Second Coming of Jesus will conclude the “times of the Gentiles”.
70 Weeks begin End of 69 weeks The Rapture
| | |
445BC 396BC Triumphant Entry AD 32 ? | Tribulation
| (vs 25) | (Vs 26) | – |— Interval | (Vs 27)
| 7 weeks= 49 years | 62 weeks = 434 years | |
Church
Age |
1 week= 7 yrs
|________________ |________________________| _____|_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ |____________
| | | |
| | Messiah | Tribulation
| | Cut off | antichrist
| | After
69 wks | 7 years
|
20th yr of Malachi Rapture
Artaxerxes End
of OT I Thes 4:13-18
445BC I Cor 15:51-52
(Neh 2:1-8)
Daniels Seventy weeks is divided into 3 periods
We must note this time is concerning the Jew
and the city of Jerusalem
We
must note
that each day of the seventy weeks represents 1 year thus 70wk X 7days = 490
yrs
Period
#1 - 7 weeks or 49 years
Period #2 - 62 weeks or 434
years
Totaling 483
Jewish years or 173,880 days
Period #3 - 1 week or 7 years
Totaling 70
weeks or 490 years
We must also note that we are in
Julian years (365 days/yr) not Jewish years (360 days/yr)
From 445 B.C. to 32 A.D. is 476 Julian years (not 477, because there is no year 0).
476 Julian years x 365 days in a year
= 173,740 days
Adjustment: from
March 14 to April 6, add 24 days
Adjustment: for leap
years in the period, add 116 days
The total number of days from March 14, 445 B.C. to April 6, 32 A.D is
173,880 days
173,880 days on
the Jewish calendar of years (360 days/yr) is 490 years.