Wednesday Bible Study Fellowship, June 4, 2008
Highly Esteemed
Daniel 9
Introduction: Charles Finney, the revivalist used mightily by God, said, “We have had instruction until we are hardened; it is now time for us to pray.” Daniel has seen a lot in his day. He has witnessed the hand of God which has judged Israel and protected as well as promoted him and his faithful friends. In this chapter we will gain insight into his prayers and discover something very fascinating about the coming of Christ.
I. The Time
A. The date is set as the first year of Darius. This would be 538 B.C., about 67 years after Jerusalem had first been captured and Daniel was taken into exile (605 B.C.) (Walvoord, 202)
B. If Daniel was born around 620 B.C., he would be 81 years old.
C. Darius, we are told, was 62. (Daniel 5:30)
D. The Bible notes Darius “…who was made ruler over the Babylonian kingdom” (vs. 1)
1. The verb “Homlak” i.e. was made king, indicates that someone, a higher authority, invested him with kingship.
2. The higher authority would have been Cyrus.
II. The Scripture
A. Daniel was a man who understood history in relation to the Word of God.
B. As a student of Scripture, he understood from Jeremiah that the time of captivity would be 70 years.
1. Jer. 25:11-12
2. Jer. 29:10-14
C. Based on these Divine promises, Daniel prayed for Jerusalem’s restoration and the re-gathering of Jews to Israel. Daniel would have witnessed this return:
1. Daniel worked at least until the 3rd year of Cyrus’s reign (10:1)
2. The first pilgrims returned the 1st year of Cyrus’s reign (Ezra 1:1)
III. The Prayer
A. Daniel turned “to the Lord.” What a great description of prayer- turning to the Lord! How did he turn at age 81?
1. Pleading in prayer- general prayer
2. Petition- specific prayer
3. Fasting- turning from food
4. Sackcloth and ashes- a symbol of grief and humility (Walvoord, 206)
B. In Daniel’s prayer I discover the following items:
1. A Holy Fear- “O Lord, the great and awesome God…” (4)
2. A Holy Relationship- “…who keeps His covenant of love with all who love Him and obey His commands” (4). God is loyal!
3. An Honest Evaluation- “We have sinned and done wrong…” (5)
a. God’s people have sinned:
i. Daniel is one of two men in the Bible for whom we find no condemnation.
ii. Yet Daniel identifies himself as a sinner. Remember he was a young teenager when he was captured. (8, 10)
b. God is righteous (7)
i. He is also merciful (9)
ii. He is also forgiving (9)
c. Because God is righteous- He must punish unrepented of sin (11)
i. The people had been warned in the law of Moses (11)
ii. God was fulfilling his promise (12)
iii. It is “Just as it is written…” (13)
iv. The people ignored God’s truth (13)
v. Because He is righteous- God had no choice but to punish (14)
4. A Pleading Prayer (15-18)
a. We have sinned we have done wrong (15)
b. Turn away Your anger and Your wrath (16). We haven’t seen His wrath yet- have we?
c. “…Hear the prayers and petitions…” (17)
d. “Give ear, O God, and hear; open Your eyes…” (18)
5. A Humble Prayer:
“…We do not make requests of You because we are righteous, but because of Your great mercy. O Lord, listen! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, hear and act! For Your sake, O my God, do not delay, because Your city and Your people bear Your Name” (18-19)
6. A Prayer for God’s Glory
a. “…The Lord our God…” (10, 13, 14, 15)
b. “…the law of Moses, the servant of God…” (11)
c. “…Your people…” (15)
d. “…Who made for Yourself a Name…” (15)
e. “…Your desolate sanctuary.” (17)
f. “…the city that bears Your Name…” (18)
g. “…because Your city and Your people bear Your Name” (19)
h. Daniel read in God’s Word that the captivity would last 70 years. Now as that time comes to an end, he prays that God will fulfill His Word for the glory of His Name!
i. Shouldn’t this be our primary concern as well? (Isaiah 43:7, I Peter 2:9)
IV. When will the Messiah come? (20-27)
A. Gabriel is dispatched by God to “…give you insight and understanding.” (22) Gabriel comes at “about the time of the evening sacrifice” (21)
1. Since the temple had been destroyed in 586 B.C. there had been no evening sacrifice (That’s 48 years!)
2. The evening sacrifice occurred around 3 p.m. and consisted of a perfect yearling lamb offered as a whole burnt offering along with a meal and drink offering.
3. Daniel must have remembered as a child the smoke rising from the temple!
B. Daniel is described as “highly esteemed” (23)
C. Seventy-sevens are decreed for Israel (490 years)
1. To finish transgression: Israel will be restored, but their transgressions will have to be paid for. This hasn’t occurred yet.
2. To put an end to sin: Israel’s national sins will end at the second coming. There will be a final judgment of sin.
3. To atone for wickedness: During the 490 years, atonement for sin will come. This is Calvary! (2 Cor. 5:19)
4. To bring in everlasting righteousness: This will occur at the end of 490 years when Christ establishes His kingdom! (Jer. 23:5-6, Isaiah 11:2-5)
5. To seal up vision and prophecy: This means that all of the prophecies will be fulfilled and “to seal up” means “to stop.” Thus the prophecies of Old & New Testaments will be fulfilled and there will be no more “prophecy.” The Bible is complete revelation.
6. To anoint the Most Holy: This is the anointing of the Holy of Holies in the New Jerusalem. This is the millennial temple. (Ezek. 41-46, Rev. 21:1-3)
D. From the issuing of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem. “Most scholars, whether conservative or liberal, accordingly, accept the 445 B.C. date for Nehemiah’s [Neh.2:5-8] decree” (Walvoord, 227). McGee agrees (pg.157)
E. Until the Anointed One, the Ruler comes:
1. There will be 7 sevens: 49 years
2. There will be 62 sevens: 434 years
3. This is 69 sevens! (483 years)
a. “The Messiah will be cut off” is the crucifixion.
b. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The Romans destroyed the temple in A.D. 70.
c. 483-445= A.D. 38 (Add 1 year for the “0” year) you come to A.D. 39. Since the Jewish calendar worked off of 360 days, Bible scholars have gotten the date from A.D. 39 to A.D. 32 at which time “Messiah was cut off.” However this seems a little late for the Crucifixion.
d. If we use the decree issued by Artaxerxes I (464-424 B.C.) which he gave in 457 B.C. found in Ezra 7:12-26, we find:
i. 483 years - 457 = A.D. 26 (Add 1 year for the “0” year) you come to A.D. 27.
ii. “This seems a bit early at first. But it is probably just right if we are to understand Gabriel’s wording as referring to the start of Christ’s ministry. The ministry was three years long. So this would give us a date for Jesus’ death of A.D. 30…” (Boice, 109)
iii. Wycliffe Bible Encyclopedia has Jesus’ death at A.D. 30 (Vol. 1 pg.349)
iv. Swindoll has Christ’s death at A.D. 30
v. John MacArthur has Christ’s death at A.D. 33
e. Either way, people should have been expecting the Messiah! Shouldn’t we?
F. We have “one” 7 left (27). That is a period of 7 years.
1. Between the 69th week and 70th week is a gap of time. This period is:
a. The age of grace
b. The church age
c. Where we are today
2. After the rapture of the church this final period of 7 begins.
a. The antichrist (the little horn of Daniel 7, the beast of Rev.13) will make a peace covenant with Israel.
b. In the middle of the 7 years, he will break that covenant.
c. He will commit the abomination of desolation (Rev. 13).
G. God works on a specific time frame. The time for God’s people has been “decreed” or “determined” (24). The antichrist has a time that is “decreed” for his end (27). “Only the coming of Christ can end this frightful period (Matt. 24:27-31).” (McGee, pg.158)