Daniel #8: From Seventy to Seventy
an fx.church re:group study on Daniel 9
Under siege, government takeover, economic collapse, gender issues, defiled food supply, slave labor, immigration, competing visions, and uncertain futures. How do we live in and through this?! These are not new problems. The book of Daniel gives us the hope and future where we are all invited to discover THE GOD OF DANIEL.
Daniel Studies
#1: The Fantastic Four (1-2)
#2: Colossus of Dura (3)
#3: The Tree of Middle Earth (4)
#4: Handwriting on the Wall (5)
#5: Silver Kingdom Seal (6)
#6: Kingdom Age (7)
#7: The Ram, the Goat and the Small Horn (8)
#7.1: The Unified Kingdoms
Study Questions
70 YEARS FULFILLED 9:1-2
9 In the first year of Darius son of Ahasuerus, who was of Median descent and who had been appointed king over the Babylonian empire— 2 in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, came to understand from the sacred books that the number of years for the fulfilling of the desolation of Jerusalem, which had come as the Lord’s message to the prophet Jeremiah, would be 70 years.
At the start of King Cyrus reign (even Darius the Mede) in 538 BC, it would have been about 67 years after the first deportation of the Jews (605 BC). What causes Daniel to recognize that the time of captivity is about up. What does this motivate him to do?
11 This whole area will become a desolate wasteland. These nations will be subject to the king of Babylon for seventy years.’
12 “‘But when the seventy years are over, I will punish the king of Babylon and his nation for their sins. I will make the land of Babylon an everlasting ruin. I, the Lord, affirm it! - Jer. 2510 “For the Lord says, ‘Only when the seventy years of Babylonian rule are over will I again take up consideration for you. Then I will fulfill my gracious promise to you and restore you to your homeland. - Jer. 29
NOTE: there are two ways we can historically date the 70 years of captivity of the Jews:
it is 70 years from the first deportation in 605 BC (2 Kings 24:1-4) to the second temple reconstruction begins in 536 BC (Ezra 3:8)
it is also 70 years from the temple destruction in 586 BC (2 Kings 25:1-9) until the second temple is completed in 515 BC (Ezra 6:15)
If you knew God’s time of refreshing was about to come, what would you do to get you and yours ready? How might this actually be the case?
PRAYER OF DANIEL 9:3-19
3 So I turned my attention to the Lord God to implore him by prayer and requests, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. 4 I prayed to the Lord my God, confessing in this way:
“O Lord, great and awesome God who is faithful to his covenant with those who love him and keep his commandments, 5 we have sinned! We have done what is wrong and wicked; we have rebelled by turning away from your commandments and standards. 6 We have not paid attention to your servants the prophets, who spoke by your authority to our kings, our leaders, and our ancestors, and to all the inhabitants of the land as well.
7 “You are righteous, O Lord, but we are humiliated this day—the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far away in all the countries in which you have scattered them because they have behaved unfaithfully toward you. 8 O Lord, we have been humiliated—our kings, our leaders, and our ancestors—because we have sinned against you. 9 Yet the Lord our God is compassionate and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him. 10 We have not obeyed the Lord our God by living according to his laws that he set before us through his servants the prophets.
11 “All Israel has broken your law and turned away by not obeying you. Therefore you have poured out on us the judgment solemnly threatened in the law of Moses the servant of God, for we have sinned against you. 12 He has carried out his threats against us and our rulers who were over us by bringing great calamity on us—what has happened to Jerusalem has never been equaled under all heaven! 13 Just as it is written in the law of Moses, so all this calamity has come on us. Still we have not tried to pacify the Lord our God by turning back from our sin and by seeking wisdom from your reliable moral standards. 14 The Lord was mindful of the calamity, and he brought it on us. For the Lord our God is just in all he has done, and we have not obeyed him.
15 “Now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of the land of Egypt with great power and made a name for yourself that is remembered to this day—we have sinned and behaved wickedly. 16 O Lord, according to all your justice, please turn your raging anger away from your city Jerusalem, your holy mountain. For due to our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors, Jerusalem and your people are mocked by all our neighbors.
17 “So now, our God, accept the prayer and requests of your servant, and show favor to your devastated sanctuary for your own sake. 18 Listen attentively, my God, and hear! Open your eyes and look on our desolated ruins and the city called by your name. For it is not because of our own righteous deeds that we are praying to you, but because your compassion is abundant. 19 O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, pay attention, and act! Don’t delay, for your own sake, O my God! For your city and your people are called by your name.”
How might Jeremiah 29:12-14 have motivated Daniel to pray as such?
12 When you call out to me and come to me in prayer, I will hear your prayers. 13 When you seek me in prayer and worship, you will find me available to you. If you seek me with all your heart and soul, 14 I will make myself available to you,’ says the Lord. ‘Then I will reverse your plight and will regather you from all the nations and all the places where I have exiled you,’ says the Lord. ‘I will bring you back to the place from which I exiled you.’ - Jer. 29
How is Daniel’s prayer a fulfillment of King Solomon’s prayer at the dedication of the first temple?
33 “The time will come when your people Israel are defeated by an enemy because they sinned against you. If they come back to you, renew their allegiance to you, and pray for your help in this temple, 34 then listen from heaven, forgive the sin of your people Israel, and bring them back to the land you gave to their ancestors. - 1 Kings 8
Break apart Daniel’s prayer of confession in 4-14 and his prayer of restoration in 15-19. How can we learn from these words as we pray?
GOD’S RESPONSE 9:20-23
20 While I was still speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel and presenting my request before the Lord my God concerning his holy mountain— 21 yes, while I was still praying, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen previously in a vision, was approaching me in my state of extreme weariness, around the time of the evening offering. 22 He spoke with me, instructing me as follows: “Daniel, I have now come to impart understanding to you. 23 At the beginning of your requests a message went out, and I have come to convey it to you, for you are of great value in God’s sight. Therefore consider the message and understand the vision:
How does God respond to Daniel’s prayer? Why does Daniel get a special response to his prayer? What happened the last time Daniel heard from Gabriel in 8:16ff? Here we go again!
70 WEEKS TO COME 9:24-27
(or FROM 70 YEARS TO 70 SEVENS)
(or THE ANOINTED ONE A PRINCE AND THE COMING PRINCE)
(or 7+62+1/2+1/2 = 70 x 7 = 490 years)
24 “Seventy weeks have been determined
concerning your people and your holy city
to put an end to rebellion,
to bring sin to completion,
to atone for iniquity,
to bring in perpetual righteousness,
to seal up the prophetic vision,
and to anoint a Most Holy Place.25 So know and understand:
From the issuing of the command to restore and rebuild
Jerusalem until an anointed one, a prince arrives,
there will be a period of seven weeks and sixty-two weeks.
It will again be built, with plaza and moat,
but in distressful times.26 Now after the sixty-two weeks,
an anointed one will be cut off and have nothing.
As for the city and the sanctuary,
the people of the coming prince will destroy them.
But his end will come speedily like a flood.
Until the end of the war that has been decreed
there will be destruction.27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one week.
But in the middle of that week
he will bring sacrifices and offerings to a halt.
On the wing of abominations will come one who destroys,
until the decreed end is poured out on the one who destroys.”
“In the concluding four verses of Daniel 9, one of the most important prophecies of the Old Testament is contained. The prophecy as a whole is presented in verse 24. The first sixty-nine sevens is described in verse 25. The events between the sixty-ninth seventh and the seventieth seventh are detailed in verse 26. The final period of the seventieth seventh is described in verse 27.” - Thomas Constable
Without getting into the math of 70 sevens, describe the prophecy as a whole presented in v. 24. What six things will happen during this period? What do the first three deal with? The last three? What is the big picture disheartening message from 70 to 70 for the Jewish people under gentile control?
Again ignoring the sevens math, what appear to be the bookends of the 7 weeks and 62 weeks in v. 25? What could these bookends mean in history or the pages of the New Testament? What do we know of the distressful times found during the inter-testamental period?
In v. 26 we find a break between the 69 weeks and the final 70th week. What happens during this period and how could we reconcile with history and the NT?
What does v. 27 tell us will happen in the final week, and what happens to split the week in half?
Answer Key
Daniel was reading the Jeremiah scrolls, prophesying 70 years of captivity. It motivates him to prayer.
Share your responses. Jesus’ second coming is drawing nigh.
Daniel called out, coming in prayer so that the Lord would hear him. He sought the Lord with all of his heart and soul so that the Lord would reverse their plight and bring them back from exile, because of His compassion and just as He promised to do.
In his temple dedication prayer before the people, King Solomon foresaw a time that his people would be defeated because of their sin against God. His prayer was that if they came back and renewed their allegiance, that God would listen, forgive their sin, and bring the back to the land given their ancestors. Daniel is praying and presumably leading his people to repentance and renewal.
Daniel begins with a prayer of confession in 4-14. God is great, awesome and faithful, but Daniel’s people have sinned, done wrong and wicked things, and rebelled by turning away from His commands. The people didn’t listen to the prophets who spoke by God’s authority to the kings, leaders, ancestors, and inhabitants of the land. God is righteous, but the people are humiliated. God is compassionate and forgiving, even as the people rebelled against Him. All Israel has broken the law, therefore calamity has come as written by the law of Moses. After 67 years, the people still have failed to pacify the Lord, turn from sin, and seek wisdom. The Lord is just.
After this foundation of confession, Daniel moves on to a plea for restoration in 15-19. He reminds God of bringing His people out of Egypt with great power, making a name remembered to this day. He asks the Lord to turn away His raging anger from the holy city and mountain so they would no longer be mocked by the nations. He pleads with God to accept his prayer, and show favor to the devastated sanctuary. He asks God to look on the ruins of the city, not out of their righteousness, but from His great compassion. He reminds God the city and people are called by His name.
These words are an example to us of the “effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man” (James 5:16), of God’s faithfulness and compassion, and of our weakness and sinfulness. It shows the honesty of being told what to do, but doing the opposite. It also shows the right way to approach God in prayer, for His renown, not for our own greatness.God sent the angel Gabriel in response to Daniel’s prayer. Daniel is told that he will have understanding imparted to him, and he has great value in God’s sight. The last time he interacted with Gabriel (in a vision), he was sick and exhausted for days.
There will be 70 periods of times (likely 7 year periods) 1) to put an end to rebellion against Him, 2) to end human failure to obey God, 3) to bring atonement for sin, 4) to usher in a new kingdom of righteousness, 5) to authenticate the vision and prophecy of the OT as having happened, 6) and to bring about a new holy city (the new Jerusalem). The first three deal with sin and the last three the kingdom of God. The work of Christ on the cross is the basis for the first three, but all six will happen in entirety at the second advent. Daniel was discovering as the suffering of God’s people under gentile hand was coming to an end after 70 years, so there would be a new period of intense suffering by the gentiles that would last 490 years (70 sevens).
The 69 week period (of 7 weeks and 62 weeks) begins with the issuing of the command to rebuild Jerusalem, and the period ends with the anointed prince (Messiah) arriving. There are four historical decrees recorded in scripture concerning the rebuilding of Jerusalem. 1) Cyrus decree to rebuild the temple was in 538 B.C. (see 2 Chronicles 36:22-23 and Ezra 1:1-4). 2) King Darius I confirms Cyrus’ decree in 512 B.C. (see Ezra 6:1-12). 3) Artaxerxes’ decree in 457 B.C. makes provisions for animal sacrifices (see Ezra 7:11-26). 4) The final decree was Artaxerxes authorizing Nehemiah to rebuild the city of Jerusalem in 444 B.C. (see Nehemiah 2:1-8).
This final decree is the likely starting point of the 69 weeks (x70 = 483 years). Adjusting for 360d years (Jewish lunar calendar) places the endpoint squarely at A.D. 33 at the Triumphal Entry of the Christ (according to the scholar Sir Robert Anderson), when the anointed Prince arrived into the city (not His birthdate).
The intertestamental period (between Malachi and Matthew) was a time of distress for the Jews, under Greek and Roman occupation, including the persecution by Antiochus IV Epiphanes in 168 B.C., a forerunner to the Antichrist who desecrated the second temple and put a temporary end to the animal sacrifice. A son of David would never again city upon the throne, and they were occupied until driven away during the Diaspora of 70 A.D.
(Note: scholars believe it likely took 7 weeks (49 years) to fully restore Jerusalem as a thriving city).God appears to push pause after the 7 and 62 weeks (culminating in the triumphal entry of Messiah), as we await the future unfolding of the 70th and final week. We are told that the city and the sanctuary will be destroyed by the coming prince (Antichrist) during this interim period, which occurred in 70 A.D. with both the destruction of Jerusalem and the second temple by the Romans. Until his end will come destruction and war.
The 70th and final week (or 7 year period) begins with a covenant by the coming prince (Antichrist). In the middle of that week he puts an end to the animal sacrifices, and establishes an abomination of desolation upon the temple just as Antiochus IV Epiphanes did. We cannot reconcile this 70th seven with past history and are awaiting its fulfillment. Jesus speaks of this period of tribulation in greater detail in Matthew 24, and it ultimately ends with the great tribulation and His second coming.
Resources
listen on Bandcamp to original song and verse, based on fxchurch sermon series
find fxtalk podcast episodes on “The God of Daniel” by Mat Shockney
discover the re:group Vault for additional Bible Study content
Meet with others during the week and re:group in a smaller setting for Bible study and fellowship. Credits: background sources generally include Dr. Thomas L. Constable, Ray Stedman, and GotQuestions.org. All Scripture taken from the NET Bible except where noted. Based on a message series “The God of Daniel” from Daniel by Mat Shockney, lead pastor. Content by Jason Snyder, associate pastor. Artwork by Luke Bilotta.