Book of DANIEL
Compiled by WD Kemner January 2024
Chapter 9
Daniel’s Third Vision: Seventy Weeks of Years
|
Note: The reader needs to keep in mind and understand that all prophecies in Daniel are directed to the Jewish People. They are centered on their existence as a nation. When there is no nation, things related to prophecy may end up being on hold. It cannot affect the nation of Israel when there is no nation of Israel.
|
|
Daniel Chapter 9 verses 1-2 |
|
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; In the first year of his reign I Daniel
|
Occurs during the first year of reign of Darius
|
Daniel Chapter 9 verse 2b |
|
…understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah the prophet,
|
books = scrolls of Jeremiah
|
Daniel Chapter 9 verse 2c |
|
…that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.
|
Jeremiah 25:11 – “And the whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon for seventy years.”
Jeremiah was told specifically that Nebuchadnezzar was going to take the children of Israel captive for seventy years.
Daniel’s Prayer: Verses 3-19
Daniel began by fasting, wearing sackcloth and ashes. He prayed and made his confession. He cleared the ground between himself and God first. If that path was not clear, what was the point in continuing?
Daniel’s prayer should be a model for prayer. He recognizes and acknowledges:
- The greatness and mercy of God.
- His (Daniel’s) and the people’s sin.
- The lack of listening to prophets who God had sent.
Then Daniel pleads with God on behalf of entire nation which was scattered everywhere.
|
And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes: 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;
We have sinned, and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even by departing from thy precepts and from thy judgments: 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.
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.
O Lord, to us belongeth confusion of face, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against thee. To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, though we have rebelled against him; 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.
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. 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.
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. 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. 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.
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. 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.
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.
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.
|
Daniel is visited by Archangel Gabriel
|
Daniel Chapter 9 verses 20-23 |
|
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; 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.
And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding. 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.
|
Daniel is visited by Gabriel again. Gabriel says that at the beginning of Daniel’s supplications the command went out and he was here to answer Daniel. There was obviously some reason for Gabriel to be delayed in arrival.
Daniel’s vision of Weeks
Verses 24-25 of this chapter WILL ESTABLISH the most important foundation of Biblical Prophecy. This prophecy established the arrival and death of the Messiah!
|
Daniel Chapter 9 verse 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.
|
Here they have the entire plan being layed out before them. This is the reason for the establishment of the 70 week period. Seventy Weeks are determined upon Israel and Jerusalem to do the following things:
To finish the transgression.
To make an end of sins.
To make reconciliation for iniquity.
To bring in everlasting righteousness.
To seal up the vision and prophecy.
To anoint the most Holy.
|
Daniel Chapter 9 verse 25a |
|
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…
|
Two separate time intervals are listed.
From the day that Cyrus would announce a decree for the rebuilding of the Jewish temple UNTIL the Messiah (Jesus)…
Would be: SEVEN WEEKS……plus….
|
Daniel Chapter 9 verse 25b |
|
…threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.
|
score = 20 years, Therefore 3 x 20 = 60
SIXTY-TWO WEEKS
7 weeks + 62 weeks = 69 weeks total in this verse
|
Daniel Chapter 9 verse 26a |
|
And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off,
|
The 62 weeks will be the point in time and world history when the Messiah would die. The Jews had been given fore knowledge of the exact point in time that the Messiah would be killed. They were expecting the Messiah but could not accept the Messiah.
|
Daniel Chapter 9 verse 26b |
|
…but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary;
|
In 70 AD, Romans under Titus had finally had enough of the problems dealing with their subjects and came in to destroy Jerusalem. The siege was one of the bloodiest and nastiest experienced. The temple was destroyed with each stone being hauled down. Just as Jesus had declared before His arrest and crucifixion.
The Jews end up scattered across the globe. There would be no nation of Israel until 1948.
|
Daniel Chapter 9 verse 26c |
|
…and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.
|
The end will come when the “Abomination that makes Desolation” occurs during the “70th week”
|
The first 69 weeks of Daniel’s vision have already taken place in the events of world history and are completed. As in the earlier vision, there is now a “pause” in this vision until it can “resume” once again.
In order for the next verse to be fulfilled, a Jewish temple must be in existence in Jerusalem.
As of this writing there is not one in existence and therefore the reason for the “pause”.
|
|
Daniel Chapter 9 verse 27a |
|
And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week:…
|
He = Anti-christ One week = seven years.
He will make a covenant with the Jewish people for them to continue their temple sacrifices.
|
Daniel Chapter 9 verse 27b |
|
…and in the midst of the week…
|
Half way through a week = 3 ˝ years
|
Daniel Chapter 9 verse 27c |
|
…he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease,…
|
The antichrist will stop the Jews from making any further sacrifices.
|
Daniel Chapter 9 verses 27d |
|
…and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate,
|
It = Jewish temple.
|
Daniel Chapter 9 verse 27e |
|
…even until the consummation,…
|
Until the end of the 70th week.
|
Daniel Chapter 9 verse 27f |
|
…and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.
|
“determined” in Hebrew is “charats” – means to point sharply, to decide, to decree.
Further Resources for study of DANIEL’S WEEKS
These links may redirect away from this website.
|
An excellent resource site to aid in the study can be found at:
The Christian Resource Center of New Hampshire. https://www.crcnh.org/index.html
|
Below is an excellent chart explaining the “weeks”. The chart is by Clarence Larkin (1850-1924).
His writing entitled: “The Book of Daniel”, does a more complete review of Daniel.
Clarence Larkin’s – “The Book of Daniel” in PDF
(chart is Public Domain)