seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Daniel 9:1 In the first year of Darius son of Xerxes[a] (a Mede by descent), who was made ruler over the Babylonian[b] kingdom— 2 in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the Lord given to Jeremiah the prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years. 3 So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes.
4 I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed:
“Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments, 5 we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. 6 We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our ancestors, and to all the people of the land.
7 “Lord, you are righteous, but this day we are covered with shame—the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far, in all the countries where you have scattered us because of our unfaithfulness to you. 8 We and our kings, our princes and our ancestors are covered with shame, Lord, because we have sinned against you. 9 The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him; 10 we have not obeyed the Lord our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets. 11 All Israel has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you.
“Therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you. 12 You have fulfilled the words spoken against us and against our rulers by bringing on us great disaster. Under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done like what has been done to Jerusalem. 13 Just as it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come on us, yet we have not sought the favor of the Lord our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth. 14 The Lord did not hesitate to bring the disaster on us, for the Lord our God is righteous in everything he does; yet we have not obeyed him.
15 “Now, Lord our God, who brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hand and who made for yourself a name that endures to this day, we have sinned, we have done wrong. 16 Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts, turn away your anger and your wrath from Jerusalem, your city, your holy hill. Our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors have made Jerusalem and your people an object of scorn to all those around us.
17 “Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary. 18 Give ear, our God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears your Name. We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy. 19 Lord, listen! Lord, forgive! Lord, hear and act! For your sake, my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name.”
20 While I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel and making my request to the Lord my God for his holy hill— 21 while I was still in prayer, Gabriel, the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came to me in swift flight about the time of the evening sacrifice. 22 He instructed me and said to me, “Daniel, I have now come to give you insight and understanding. 23 As soon as you began to pray, a word went out, which I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed. Therefore, consider the word and understand the vision:
24 “Seventy ‘sevens’[c] are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish[d] transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the Most Holy Place.[e]
25 “Know and understand this: From the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One,[f] the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’ It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble. 26 After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be put to death and will have nothing.[g] The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. 27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’[h] In the middle of the ‘seven’[i] he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple[j] he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.[k]”[l]
a. Daniel 9:1 Hebrew Ahasuerus
b. Daniel 9:1 Or Chaldean
c. Daniel 9:24 Or ‘weeks’; also in verses 25 and 26
d. Daniel 9:24 Or restrain
e. Daniel 9:24 Or the most holy One
f. Daniel 9:25 Or an anointed one; also in verse 26
g. Daniel 9:26 Or death and will have no one; or death, but not for himself
h. Daniel 9:27 Or ‘week’
i. Daniel 9:27 Or ‘week’
j. Daniel 9:27 Septuagint and Theodotion; Hebrew wing
k. Daniel 9:27 Or it
l. Daniel 9:27 Or And one who causes desolation will come upon the wing of the abominable temple, until the end that is decreed is poured out on the desolated city
The easy English site has more information.
Darius was the first king of the kingdom of the Medes and Persians. Belshazzar was dead. The kingdom of Babylon was finished (Daniel 5:29-30). We read about Darius in chapter 6. Daniel served the kings of Babylon. Then he served the Medes and Persians.
We know that Daniel prayed three times each day (Daniel 6:10). Now we read that he was studying God’s holy books. In the book of Jeremiah he read that the Jews would return to Jerusalem after 70 years (Jeremiah 25:11-12; 29:10). Jeremiah was a prophet. He lived in Jerusalem when Daniel was very young. Now almost 70 years had passed since Nebuchadnezzar took the Jews away from Jerusalem. Daniel realised this but he was sad. There was a new kingdom and a new king. But the king had not allowed the Jews to go back to Jerusalem. Also the Jews did not think about God much. Perhaps they would not want to go to Jerusalem even if the king allowed them to. Most of them had been born in Babylon. Only the old people like Daniel had been to Jerusalem.
Daniel kept on praying. It was about the time of the evening sacrifice. The Jews could not give *acrifices to God in Babylon. Instead, Daniel prayed at the time of the sacrifice. (See Psalm 141:2.) While he was praying, Gabriel arrived. Daniel had seen Gabriel before in a dream (Daniel 8:16-17). Gabriel was flying quickly. He told Daniel that God had heard his prayer. As soon as he started to pray, God heard him. Then God sent Gabriel to give Daniel an answer. Gabriel told Daniel how much God loved him. Then he promised to explain what Daniel had read.
A new king (Cyrus) would allow the Jews to return to Jerusalem (Ezra 1:1-4). Not many of the Jews wanted to go to Jerusalem. Most of them had been born in Babylon. Only the old people like Daniel had been to Jerusalem. The people who did go to Jerusalem tried to build God’s holy house again. It was hard work. The other people in the country tried to stop them. Many years later, another king (Artaxerxes) allowed Nehemiah to go to build the walls of Jerusalem again (Nehemiah 2:4-6). This too was hard work. Again, the other people in the country tried to stop them.
Then there is a period of 62 times 7 years. After this, Jesus came into the world. He taught and he cured people for about three and a half years. But then the people killed him. He was the man whom God had appointed. Later the Romans came. They destroyed Jerusalem and God’s holy place.
God promised Daniel that he would remove evil things. He said that he would start a good time that would last for always. This has not happened yet. However, when Jesus died he defeated God’s evil enemies. Evil things will only last for a certain time. God has decided that time.
Some people think that the last part of Gabriel’s message has not happened yet. It will happen at the very end of the world. Then there will be no more evil things, as God has promised. Then he will start a good time that will last for always.
Those last few verses were still giving me some problems. So this is from gotquestions.org.
According to this prophecy, the Messiah would show up, present Himself as Messiah to the nation and then be “cut off” some time near AD 30. This was fulfilled as Jesus Christ presented Himself to the nation of Israel on Palm Sunday, was crucified on Preparation Day (the annual day on which the Passover Lamb was slain), and rose from the dead on Sunday.
The prophecy then goes on to say that, subsequent to the Messiah’s being killed, “the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary.” Within one generation of Christ’s crucifixion, Titus razed Jerusalem and destroyed the temple.
There is some debate about the exact date of the decree that began the 483 years. There is also debate as to whether the days should be counted on our modern 365-day calendars or the 360-day lunar calendar. Regardless, Daniel’s prophecy lays out an amazingly accurate time line. If we knew all the exact dates of Daniel’s prophecy and timing, we would find it predicted the very day of Christ’s death—over 600 years before it occurred.
Once again.... I am more concerned about the who than the when. It seems that all the Bible Studies I have been to.... got hooked up on when rather than who..... and they miss stuff. Titus razed Jerusalem and destroyed the temple...... is that the temple Nehemiah helped to rebuild? One thing for sure.... not everyone was affected by the love that Jesus of Nazareth passed along in His work and His teaching. There were people who hated him... and apparently they would join up with people like Titus [a conqueror] to destroy God's city and God's Temple.
IMHO.... getting hung up on when it will happen [and yes I do believe it will happen]..... might just leave me looking instead of ducking.
