Hello everyone. I'm back! Charlie is away this week so I will be leading our discussion on Sunday.
Last week I believe we made it through 8:14. Thus, this week we will pick it up at 8:15 and hopefully make it through chapter 9. Before I dive into the text I thought it might be appropriate and helpful to take a step back and review what we've covered in the first 7 and 1/2 chapters. In doing so I also want to take a 30,000 foot view of the ground we've covered. Hopefully this will give us a broader perspective and make the text in the last half of chapter 8 and the text in chapter 9 easier to understand.
Let's get started.
I. Overview and Review
A. Daniel - Who is he?
1. Daniel belonged to those Jews who had been led away captive to Babylon
at the first siege of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar in the year 605 ( compare Dan. 1:1-2 with 2 Kings 24:1 and 2 Chron. 36:6-7).
2. Comes to Bablyon at a young age, probably a teenager.
3. Quickly recognized by Babylonian rulers as a leader. He and his friends are indoctrinated in the ways of the Babylonians.
B. Book of Daniel
1. First 6 chapters tell Daniel's story relative to his life in Babylon
2. Chapters 7 - 12 are prophetic.
3. Chapter 7 contains a second revelation on the four world empires. According to Arend Remmers in his commentary, The Prophet Daniel, this is God's view of the four world empires (Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome). Compare this to Nebuchadnezzar's human view in his dream captured in Chapter 2. (See insert above)
4. Chapter 8 tells us of the second and third empire (Persia and Greece)
5. Chapter 9 is about the end of the Babylonian exile and the coming Messiah
II. Second Half of Chapter 8
A. Recall first half (first 14 verses) is Daniel telling us his vision containing farm animals, a ram and a goat.
B. Second half (v.15 forward) is Gabriel interpreting the vision for Daniel.
1. Gabriel describes Daniels vision as being for "the time of the end." (v.17)
2. Ram with two horns represents the Medo-Persian empire.
a. one horn represents King of Media, second horn is King of Persia
3. Male goat represents King of Greece
a. great horn is first king (Alexander).
b. 4 kings supplant first king (Egypt, Asia, Macedonia, Syria)
4. 4 kingdoms supplanted by Rome. Last Grecian empire ruler was Antiochus Epiphanes
a. described in v.23-25
b. Charlie has in past weeks spoken extensively about him
5. in v. 26 Gabriel confirms the accuracy of Daniels vision regarding the 2300 evenings and mornings.
III. Chapter 9 - Three Part: 70 Years, A Prayer of Supplication, and 70 Weeks Prophecy
A. v.1-2 - Daniel is reading Jeremiah and determines 70 years must pass before Jews can return home.
1. This is said to occur in the first year of Darius's rein. That would make it 7 years after the vision described in chapter 8.
2. Daniels reading and meditation leads him to pray for his people and their sins.
B. v.3-19 - Prayer of Supplication
1. Daniel prays for sins of his people (i.e., why they are in exile)
2. Prays for God to once again shine favor on his desolated sanctuary (Jerusalem)
C. The Seventy Weeks
1. OK folks here is where it gets interesting
2. Seventy week prophecy concerns the timing of the appearance of the Messiah.
3. Seventy weeks actually represents (70 x 7) 490 years.
4. Starting point for counting the 490 years is commandment to rebuild temple (approx. 445 BC)
5. Here I am going to rely heavily on the position held by Arend Remmers.
a. 70 year weeks fall into 3 periods
1. 7 weeks (49 years)
2. 62 weeks (434 years)
3. 1 week (7 years)
b. 49 years - Jerusalem and the temple are rebuilt (see Nehemiah)
c. 434 years - takes us up through Maccabeeian revolt and Roman rule to AD 32/33
1. we all know what happened then...Jesus died on cross and was resurrected. "an anointed one shall be cut off and shall having nothing."
2. v. 26 foretells second destruction of the temple
d. Last seven years (or 70th week)
1. This is where it gets very interesting. According to Remmer (pre-millenial view) the 70th week doesn't immediately follow the 69th week.
2. 70th week follows "time of grace" - we're currently living in this time
3. 70th week starts after the rapture and is broken into two 3 1/2 periods.
4. First 3 1/2 year period is first half of tribulation period. Antichrist is friendly towards Israel and Jews
5. Second 3 1/2 period is last half of the tribulation period. Antichrist takes over Jerusalem, desecrates temple
6. End of 70th week - Our Lord and Savior returns.
7. A-millenial view
a. "prince who is to come" is Antiochus Epiphanes
b. "annointed one who is cut off" is high priest Onias III
c. First 3 1/2 year period of covenant is between Hellenizing Jews and Antiochus
d. Second 3 1/2 year period all sacrifice and offering ceases. Jews not allowed to worship their God.
e. 7 year period ends with Maccabeean revolt. Temple is purified and restored.
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