DANIEL

Chapter 9

"The Desolation of Jerusalem."

This Bible Study is written by Roger Christopherson, and it's transcription is provided with written permission by http://www.theseason.org

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;"

"In the first year of Darius", would make this in the year 426 B.C., and in that the word "Darius" means "Maintainer, or Restrainer", this king Darius is King Cyrus. The son of "Ahasuerus", would identify Cyrus' father to be King Astyages, who was married to Queen Esther, of the Book of Esther. It was King Astyages who appointed Cyrus, his son, to be king of Babylon, after the fall of Babylon that we read about in Daniel Chapter five.

The following are excerpts from Nelson's Bible Dictionary:

Daniel 9:2 "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."

These "books" that Daniel understood, were what we call today, the Book of Jeremiah in our Bible. Those individual chapters represented books. Remember Jesus' words in Mark 13:14; "But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not, (let him that readeth understand,) then let them that be in Judaea flee to the mountains:"

Do you see where the words of prophecy from Jesus came from? Jesus was quoting from Daniel , and now we see that was quoting from Jeremiah, as recorded in Jeremiah 25:11-14. Jesus knew that this did not belong to the time period of the Medes, in a prophetic sense, but to the latter days. For He [Christ] was referring to the time when He would return at the seventh trumpet. Remember, Daniel wrote concerning his day, and this writing is an example, or recurrence of what will happen in the latter days.

Daniel 9:3 "And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes:"

When there is a problem in our lives, we take it directly to the Father. This is what Daniel did. Then we take our instructions from God's Word, and not from the words of men.

Daniel 9:4 "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;"

This is how you are to start our prayer, with confession, repenting and cleaning out your soul before God. If you love God and are right before Him, God will keep His covenant [promises] and mercies to you. We all try and fall short of keeping His commandments, however, when we repent in Jesus name, He is faithful to forgive us, and to cleanse us from all our sins.

Daniel 9:5 "We have sinned, and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even by departing from Thy precepts and from Thy judgments:"

This is a good prayer to remember in getting back in rightness with our heavenly Father. He is speaking for God's children as a body.

Daniel 9:6 "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."

Look around you. How may precepts do you see taught from the pulpits today? God's way to be taught is as we are instructed to learn; line upon line; precept upon precept. There are very few doing it God's way. These instructions are to all the people, for God left no one out.

Daniel 9:7 "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 whether Thou hast driven them, because of their trespass that they have trespassed against Thee."

These "confusion of faces" comes about because following the overthrow of Israel and Judah, their identity became confused. Today most of Israel still don't know their heritage, while the Jews of Judea have become intermingled with the Kenite race, to where many simply don't know, or even bother to know the difference. The offspring of Satan have taken over the Levites' duties, and the children of Judah simply didn't care. They don't know who they are, so how can they apply the word to themselves, or these times.

Notice that Daniel is dividing up these people, and identifying Judah (the tribe, including Benjamin), and Israel (the other ten tribes) which are scattered far off. Many of the inhabitants of Judah, following the captivity, were Kenites (Nethinims) and numbered a large body of those who returned out of Babylon. Today this also exists among the Jewish people, and Jeremiah refers to this when he talks about the good and bad figs which return in the final days to occupy Jerusalem.

Daniel 9:8 "O Lord, to us belongeth confusion of face to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against Thee."

The people deserve to not know who they are, because of their sins. A good education gives a good foundation in assisting in the knowledge of God's Word. This is to understand the world around us, and applying those tools in seeking out the truths of the Scriptures. Then apply that understanding to each of our lives, and develop our minds and character to be strong, as we prepare to stand against the Antichrist, and his one world system.

Daniel 9:9 "To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, though we have rebelled against Him:"

Daniel 9:10 "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."

The mercies of God are the compassion that God has for His people. Daniel is not only praying for himself, but for all of God's children. There is a great misunderstanding of the Scriptural laws, statutes, and ordinances. The blood ordinances are done away with in this age, for the blood of Jesus Christ that was shed on the cross paid for all sin of all time, for those who confess them. They don't apply any longer.

Many of the ritual ordinances and statutes simply are not practiced. However, the law, or ten Commandments, is a system of rules to apply to all lives and communities to keep order and respect amongst it's people.

One of the most foolish decisions ever put forth in the history of our entire nation was taking God and the ten Commandments out of our schools. This single move has created a nation of youth who respect little, if anything; Not our nation, nor it's leaders, their families, communities, nor personal property. To a degree, this foolish move has even removed the value of precious life, as kids kill kids, and commit suicide in large numbers. Today even the unborn is on the hit list of many organizations.

Daniel 9:11 "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."

We have seen in the past few years that there is a movement to eliminate God's laws and replace them with the individual's ability to reason, and that he be guided by his feelings. This was the path of ancient Israel, and the Israel of today, the Christian nations. By doing this we bring a curse upon ourselves.

Daniel 9:12 "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."

This evil to be brought on Jerusalem and Israel is a calamity to come shortly. That calamity is going to affect the entire world. It is from Jerusalem that the Antichrist, Satan, will rule his one world religious order. It shall happen, and this generation is the generation that will allow it to happen, and be part of it.

Daniel 9:13 "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."

Should we be surprised at what is happening today? No. It has been written by the prophets, and is reported as current events nightly on all the news channels. The curse that is to fall upon our nation, and those people who have not obeyed God and His word, can be avoided by you and I by repenting and doing things as God and the prophets have instructed us. Obey the laws of God. Repent of those things which come between us and our heavenly Father.

Daniel 9:14 "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."

It does not say maybe, it says, "it shall come...upon thee,"

Deuteronomy 28:15; "But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee:"

This isn't a threat from God, but a promise that shall come to pass. We had better pay close attention to it.

Deuteronomy 28:16; "Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed shalt thou be in the field."

How are our cities doing today? There is violence and gang war across the nation. Corruption is at an all time high in government, and you can't even be on the streets safely after dark. This generation of rulers, and the people have brought a curse upon our nation.

Deuteronomy 28:17; "Cursed shall be thy basket and thy store."

Have you seen how much food is in your basket, for what you allow for food. Not much; for what ten dollars bought forty years ago, you will now pay $150.00. Are we cursed?

Deuteronomy 28:18; "Cursed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy land, the increase of thy kind, and the flocks of thy sheep."

Though this was written 3,450 years ago by God, through the hand of Moses, the promises are true today as they were on that day that Moses gave it to the Israelites in the wilderness. The fruit of thy body is your children. They will be cursed for your violations of God's word.

On and on, verse after verse, from Deuteronomy 28:15 to Deuteronomy 28:63, you can read the curses upon those who violate God's laws and word. Do you have problems, friend? Are they listed here?

We know our nation is sick and under a curse because of our Godless leaders, and the people who allow themselves to be placed under a Godless system. Whereby God is removed from schools, homes, and even the churches are being led by men who think the Old Testament does not apply to them.

However, you can do it God's way. Repent, and get right with God. Purge your life of those sins of doubt and disbelief. Put the standards of God back into every part of your life, and at least try. When sin comes into your life, confess it immediately.

There can be a strong tendency to ride an ego trip, and look down on them that are under a curse of God. We must guard against it, and instead, look to the Lord with praise and thanksgiving. When was the last time that you told our Heavenly Father that you love Him. He will bless you for it.

Daniel 9:15 "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."

Daniel 9:16 "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."

Remember that this is Daniel's prayer for our generation, following a vision in the eighth chapter, of what each of us will experience, and think is common in our everyday life. This prayer is for Jerusalem, and thy people; and it is even more evident today than ever before. The entire Book of Revelation is coming alive, and the sin and wickedness is gaining footholds, and taking over in every area of thought of our minds.

As we see the defying and mocking of God's word, and of Jesus Christ, if it doesn't get you upset, you are treading in dangerous water, spiritually. The time of the Antichrist and his world wide deception coming upon us, is getting shorter, and there is simply not time to play church anymore, and gamble with your eternal soul.

Daniel 9:17 "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."

Daniel is praying that our Heavenly Father will be merciful for His name's sake.

Daniel 9:18 "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."

Daniel is pleading that we know we don't deserve His mercy, but, Lord, because of your mercies, let that forgiveness and blessing flow on your people. That is the prayer of all who have repented for their sins. If your life is all messed up today, our Heavenly Father is ready and able to fix it.

Daniel 9:19 "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."

Listen to us now, and do it for your own name's sake, because we carry your name.

Daniel 9:20 "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;"

When you submit; you repent [ask His forgiveness]; and then you present your case with honest feelings and intentions.

Daniel 9:21 "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,"

The evening oblation is the daily sacrifice. It is the gift, or donation offering.

Daniel 9:22 "And he informed me, and talked with me and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding."

Just like God heard Daniel's prayer and sent Gabriel, He will also hear your prayer, when you do it God's way. You will have understanding also, as you study, pray, and wait on the Lord, the Holy Spirit will reveal that skill of what you seek.

Daniel 9:23 "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."

The angel Gabriel is telling Daniel now to think back to the vision of the seventy weeks, that we read of in verse two.

Daniel 9:24 "Seventy weeks are determined upon thy People and upon thy holy city, to finesh 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."

There are six things that will come to pass before the transgression is completed upon Jerusalem. Then we will see our Lord Jesus Christ coming back to set up His kingdom upon the earth, and the transgressions will be no more.

Do you see sin around today? Of course; What these things are referring to is the first day of the millennium age. this is looking forward to when the Antichrist has come to earth, and has been cast into the pit.

It is a time when our Lord Jesus Christ is anointed in the most holy place in Jerusalem, showing the world that Jesus Christ is the only True Christ. The next three verses lets us know there is a difference between the true Christ and the false Christ.

Daniel 9:25 "Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to rebuild 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."

There are four times in history that the starting time of this seventy week period of prophecy could have started. This is what has made this starting date so controversial. During the time of Jewish captivity, four different commandments were issued, for the return to Jerusalem. These were:

First, was the command of Cyrus to return to rebuild the temple as seen in II Chronicles 36:22-23 and Ezra 1. the date of this command was given in 539 B.C.

Second, was the command by Darius to advance the construction of the temple, as we see in Ezra 6:1. This command was given in 518 B.C. or in 519 B.C.

Third, was the command of Artaxerxes to Ezra to purify the temple and reestablish the sacrifices and ordinances. This command is found in Ezra 4:17, and the command was given in 457 B.C.

Fourth, the command of Artaxerxes to Nehemiah to return to Jerusalem, to rebuild the city streets and walls, to make the city safe from the raids and plundering of the neighboring nations. We read of this in Nehemiah 2:1-9, and this puts this command in 444 B.C.

In Daniel 9:25 we read, "Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem..." The fourth command in 444 B.C. could be the only starting point for Daniel's seventy week prophecy. All three of the other commands were not relating to the city of Jerusalem, but to the building, finishing, and purification of the temple.

At the conclusion of the seventy weeks of years, Daniel saw in the vision that certain things would happen. Look ar Daniel 9:24, "... 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."

We know that each of these things above still exist and will exist until the end of the tribulation period. That time of testing for all Israel, and destruction for the rest of the world.

It is an historical fact that the time to rebuild the streets and walls of Jerusalem was 49 years, exactly as Daniel prophesied in Daniel 9:25. "...from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince (Jesus Christ recognized as the Messiah), shall be seven weeks, three score and two weeks."

The first seven weeks, then sixty-two more weeks of years were given in the vision of Daniel for the time of the Messiah. This then leaves us one week shy of the total seventy weeks prophesied by Daniel, for the Messiah to come and physically rule over Israel.

444 B.C. Jerusalem Rebuilt Messiah Messiah

7 weeks 62 weeks Gap 1 week

49 years 434 years time of Millennium age

Gentiles

there are three separate periods, with a gap between the second period of of 434 years, and the final period of seven years. This gap in the seventy years of weeks prophecy period is what the Apostle Paul calls the time of the Gentiles. In Romans 11:17-24 Paul talked about the time when Gentiles, the wild olive branch, will be grafted onto the good olive tree, the trunk of Abraham. This grafting period, or the gap, is what we now call "the Church age". The time from the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the head of the Church, to the start of the last seven week period, then is the time of grace, and peace that is offered to all.

Grace is the gift of total forgiveness by God, by simply accepting by faith the price that Jesus Christ's death on the cross, and his resurrection, paid for. For this God offers "peace", and whatever sins were ever committed, are blotted out and covered by the blood of Christ. This is spelled out in John 3:16.

When we consider the time span from 444 B.C to 33 A.D., and deduct for the fact of the one year between 1 B.C. and 1 A.D., we have a total of 476 solar years. That is 173,855 total solar days. The Jewish calendar year has 360 days to the year, and would show 483 years for the same time frame. (360 days X 483 years equals 173,880 Jewish calendar days.)

To be accurate, the actual date of the commandment was March 5th of our calendar year of 444 B.C. When we compute the solar calendar days of 173,855 to the starting date, and add the 25 days excess from the Jewish calendar, we find the date to be March 3oth, 33 A.D., the time Jesus rode into Jerusalem with a multitude of people around him; "...cried saying, Hosanna to the son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest." Matthew 21:1-12 They were claiming Jesus to be the Messiah.

In Daniel 9:27 continues thousands of years later, following the period we call the gap, or Church age. This is the one week of years God set aside to draw His people, called the Jews, back to himself. "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 consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate."

Halfway into the period, three and a half years, the Antichrist reveals his true colors, and Satan then turns on the Jews. He stops sacrifices and oblations, and brings the abomination to the temple. Then hatred, wrath and killing will be poured out on the nation of Israel. We will discuss each of these points later, as we look at various biblical passages in both the Old and New Testaments.

The thing that makes these four verses, Daniel 9:24-27 so important to Christians, and Bible prophecy, is that it identifies the time of the age of Christ's church on earth. The two important things to remember here is that the sacrifices and the oblation will cease, this is the communion, and the Passover feast offerings, and that is because the entire world, including Christians, will believe that Christ has returned to earth. They will believe that the Antichrist is the Messiah.

The second thins is that abomination that is to take place in Jerusalem, is when the Antichrist, Satan, shall stand in the temple and claim himself to be the true Christ.

Daniel 9:26 "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 unto the end of the war desolations are determined."

The emperor of Rome took sides with the Syrians, against the Jews, and Titus Vespian moved his huge Roman army against all Judea, to totally destroy the city, and as Jesus prophesied, dismantled the entire temple. The Jews that escaped with their lives were scattered throughout the countries of the world.

Daniel 9:27 "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."

In the translation, "the desolate", it is a person, and should be translated "desolator". That desolator is the Antichrist. and is Satan himself. It is not a king in Europe, or the middle east, for Satan is the "star" that fell to the earth in Revelation 9:1, and he will be given the key, or the authority to the bottomless pit.

When the seventh trump sounds, the seventy weeks of years are over, and you will face the Lord Jesus Christ, either as a happy bride [the church], or in shame for chasing after the Antichrist.

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