Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

understood by books--rather, "letters," that is, Jeremiah's letter (Jer 29:10) to the captives in Babylon; also Jer 25:11-12; compare Ch2 36:21; Jer 30:18; Jer 31:38. God's promises are the ground on which we should, like Daniel, rest sure hope; not so as to make our prayers needless, but rather to encourage them.

prayer . . . supplications--literally, "intercessions . . . entreaties for mercy." Praying for blessings, and deprecating evils.

my confession--according to God's promises in Lev 26:39-42, that if Israel in exile for sin should repent and confess, God would remember for them His covenant with Abraham (compare Deu 30:1-5; Jer 29:12-14; Jam 4:10). God's promise was absolute, but prayer also was ordained as about to precede its fulfilment, this too being the work of God in His people, as much as the external restoration which was to follow. So it shall be at Israel's final restoration (Psa 102:13-17). Daniel takes his countrymen's place of confession of sin, identifying himself with them, and, as their representative and intercessory priest, "accepts the punishment of their iniquity." Thus he typifies Messiah, the Sin-bearer and great Intercessor. The prophet's own life and experience form the fit starting point of the prophecy concerning the sin atonement. He prays for Israel's restoration as associated in the prophets (compare Jer 31:4, Jer 31:11-12, Jer 31:31, &c.) with the hope of Messiah. The revelation, now granted, analyzes into its successive parts that which the prophets, in prophetical perspective, heretofore saw together in one; namely, the redemption from captivity, and the full Messianic redemption. God's servants, who, like Noah's father (Gen 5:29), hoped many a time that now the Comforter of their afflictions was at hand, had to wait from age to age, and to view preceding fulfilments only as pledges of the coming of Him whom they so earnestly desired to see (Mat 13:17); as now also Christians, who believe that the Lord's second coming is nigh, are expected to continue waiting. So Daniel is informed of a long period of seventy prophetic weeks before Messiah's coming, instead of seventy years, as he might have expected (compare Mat 18:21-22) [AUBERLEN]. great and dreadful God--as we know to our cost by the calamities we suffer. The greatness of God and His dreadful abhorrence of sin should prepare sinners for reverent, humble acknowledgment of the justice of their punishment. keeping . . . covenant and mercy--that is, the covenant of Thy mercy, whereby Thou hast promised to deliver us, not for our merits, but of Thy mercy (Eze 36:22-23). So weak and sinful is man that any covenant for good on God's part with him, to take effect, must depend solely on His grace. If He be a God to be feared for His justice, He is one to be trusted for His "mercy." love . . . keep his commandments--Keeping His commandments is the only sure test of love to God (Joh 14:15).

Compare Nehemiah's confession (Neh. 9:1-38). sinned . . . committed iniquity . . . done wickedly . . . rebelled--a climax. Erred in ignorance . . . sinned by infirmity . . . habitually and wilfully done wickedness . . . as open and obstinate rebels set ourselves against God.

prophets . . . spake . . . to our kings . . . to all the people--They fearlessly warned all without respect of persons.

confusion of faces, as at this day--Shame at our guilt, betrayed in our countenance, is what belongs to us; as our punishment "at this day" attests. near, and . . . far off--the chastisement, however varied, some Jews not being cast off so far from Jerusalem as others, all alike were sharers in the guilt.

mercies--The plural intensifies the force; mercy manifold and exhibited in countless ways. As it is humbling to recollect "righteousness belongeth unto God," so it is comforting, that "mercies belong to the Lord OUR God." though we have rebelled--rather, "since," &c. [Vulgate], (Psa 25:11). Our punishment is not inconsistent with His "mercies," since we have rebelled against Him.

set before us--not ambiguously, but plainly, so that we were without excuse.

all-- (Psa 14:3; Rom 3:12). the curse . . . and . . . oath . . . in . . . law--the curse against Israel, if disobedient, which God ratified by oath (Lev. 26:14-39; Deu 27:15-26; Deu. 28:15-68; Deu. 29:1-29).

confirmed his words--showed by the punishments we suffer, that His words were no idle threats. under . . . heaven hath not been done as . . . upon Jerusalem-- (Lam 1:12).

yet made we not our prayer before--literally, "soothed not the face of." Not even our chastisement has taught us penitence (Isa 9:13; Jer 5:3; Hos 7:10). Diseased, we spurn the healing medicine. that we might turn, &c.--Prayer can only be accepted when joined with the desire to turn from sin to God (Psa 66:18; Pro 28:9). understand thy truth--"attentively regard Thy faithfulness" in fulfilling Thy promises, and also Thy threats [CALVIN]. Thy law (Dan 8:12), [MAURER].

watched upon the evil--expressing ceaseless vigilance that His people's sins might not escape His judgment, as a watchman on guard night and day (Job 14:16; Jer 31:28; Jer 44:27). God watching upon the Jews punishment forms a striking contrast to the Jews slumbering in their sins. God is righteous--True penitents "justify" God, "ascribing righteousness to Him," instead of complaining of their punishment as too severe (Neh 9:33; Job 36:3; Psa 51:4; Lam 3:39-42).

brought thy people . . . out of . . . Egypt--a proof to all ages that the seed of Abraham is Thy covenant-people. That ancient benefit gives us hope that Thou wilt confer a like one on us now under similar circumstances (Psa 80:8-14; Jer 32:21; Jer 23:7-8). as at this day--is known.

thy righteousness--not stern justice in punishing, but Thy faithfulness to Thy promises of mercy to them who trust in Thee (Psa 31:1; Psa 143:1). thy city--chosen as Thine in the election of grace, which changes not. for . . . iniquities of . . . fathers-- (Exo 20:5). He does not impugn God's justice in this, as did the murmurers (Eze 18:2-3; compare Jer 31:29). thy people . . . a reproach--which brings reproach on Thy name. "All the nations that are about us" will say that Thou, Jehovah, wast not able to save Thy peculiar people. So Dan 9:17, "for the Lord's sake"; Dan 9:19, "for Thine own sake" (Isa 48:9, Isa 48:11).

cause thy face to shine--metaphor from the sun, which gladdens all that it beams upon (Num 6:25; Mal 4:2).

present . . . supplications--literally, "cause to fall," &c. (compare Note, see on Jer 36:7).

The short broken ejaculations and repetitions show the intense fervor of his supplications. defer not--He implies that the seventy years are now all but complete. thine own sake--often repeated, as being the strongest plea (Jer 14:21).

whiles I was speaking--repeated in Dan 9:21; emphatically marking that the answer was given before the prayer was completed, as God promised (Isa 30:19; Isa 65:24; compare Psa 32:5).

I had seen in the vision at the beginning--namely, in the former vision by the river Ulai (Dan 8:1, Dan 8:16). fly swiftly--literally, "with weariness," that is, move swiftly as one breathless and wearied out with quick running [GESENIUS]. English Version is better (Isa 6:2; Eze 1:6; Rev 14:6). time of . . . evening oblation--the ninth hour, three o'clock (compare Kg1 18:36). As formerly, when the temple stood, this hour was devoted to sacrifices, so now to prayer. Daniel, during the whole captivity to the very last, with pious patriotism never forgot God's temple-worship, but speaks of its rites long abolished, as if still in use.

to give thee . . . understanding-- Dan 8:16; Dan 8:26 shows that the symbolical vision had not been understood. God therefore now gives "information" directly, instead of by symbol, which required interpretation.

from the going forth of the commandment--namely the command from God, whence originated the command of the Persian king (Ezr 6:14). AUBERLEN remarks, there is but one Apocalypse in each Testament. Its purpose in each is to sum up all the preceding prophecies, previous to the "troublous times" of the Gentiles, in which there was to be no revelation. Daniel sums up all the previous Messianic prophecy, separating into its individual phases what the prophets had seen in one and the same perspective, the temporary deliverance from captivity and the antitypical final Messianic deliverance. The seventy weeks are separated (Dan 9:25-27) into three unequal parts, seven, sixty-two, one. The seventieth is the consummation of the preceding ones, as the Sabbath of God succeeds the working days; an idea suggested by the division into weeks. In the sixty-nine weeks Jerusalem is restored, and so a place is prepared for Messiah wherein to accomplish His sabbatic work (Dan 9:25-26) of "confirming the covenant" (Dan 9:27). The Messianic time is the Sabbath of Israel's history, in which it had the offer of all God's mercies, but in which it was cut off for a time by its rejection of them. As the seventy weeks end with seven years, or a week, so they begin with seven times seven, that is, seven weeks. As the seventieth week is separated from the rest as a period of revelation, so it may be with the seven weeks. The number seven is associated with revelation; for the seven spirits of God are the mediators of all His revelations (Rev 1:4; Rev 3:1; Rev 4:5). Ten is the number of what is human; for example, the world power issues in ten heads and ten horns (Dan 2:42; Dan 7:7). Seventy is ten multiplied by seven, the human moulded by the divine. The seventy years of exile symbolize the triumph of the world power over Israel. In the seven times seventy years the world number ten is likewise contained, that is, God's people is still under the power of the world ("troublous times"); but the number of the divine is multiplied by itself; seven times seven years, at the beginning a period of Old Testament revelation to God's people by Ezra, Nehemiah, and Malachi, whose labors extend over about half a century, or seven weeks, and whose writings are last in the canon; and in the end, seven years, the period of New Testament revelation in Messiah. The commencing seven weeks of years of Old Testament revelation are hurried over, in order that the chief stress might rest on the Messianic week. Yet the seven weeks of Old Testament revelation are marked by their separation from the sixty-two, to be above those sixty-two wherein there was to be none. Messiah the Prince--Hebrew, Nagid. Messiah is Jesus' title in respect to Israel (Psa 2:2; Mat 27:37, Mat 27:42). Nagid, as Prince of the Gentiles (Isa 55:4). Nagid is applied to Titus, only as representative of Christ, who designates the Roman destruction of Jerusalem as, in a sense, His coming (Mat 24:29-31; Joh 21:22). Messiah denotes His calling; Nagid, His power. He is to "be cut off, and there shall be nothing for Him." (So the Hebrew for "not for Himself," Dan 9:26, ought to be translated). Yet He is "the Prince" who is to "come," by His representative at first, to inflict judgment, and at last in person. wall--the "trench" or "scarped rampart" [TREGELLES]. The street and trench include the complete restoration of the city externally and internally, which was during the sixty-nine weeks.