Daniel 7 to 12.
Daniel was young when taken captive from Jerusalem, and he lived in Babylon many years, but he did not forget Jerusalem, and wished the people of Israel could return there, because there they could worship God; the people of Babylon worshiped idols.
At last Daniel read the writings of a man who had told God’s words to Israel long before, and he found that God had said that the captivity in Babylon would be ended in seventy years. Daniel had been taken with the early captives, and he knew the seventy years was nearly finished. Daniel knew it was because of wicked ways that they had been made captives, so he began to pray earnestly that the people would be sorry for their ways, and God could again bless them in their land.
Daniel was so anxious for the people to repent, that he went without his meals, wore coarse clothes, and put ashes on his head, as people did then in sorrow.
One evening while Daniel was praying, an angel came from God to tell Daniel very important things about the future of the nation of Israel. The angel spoke of a command to be made for Jerusalem to be rebuilt, and said just how many years afterward the Messiah would come.
The people of Israel counted time by a word meaning seven, in our Bible called “weeks”; they spoke of a “week” of years, meaning. seven years. The angel said that from the time of the command unto Messiah, the Prince, should be “seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks”, which would be 69 weeks of years, the same as 483 years.
These people had long expected the Messiah, the Anointed, Holy One, to rule and bless them, and the angel told Daniel how long it would be until He came. But the angel said Messiah should be “cut off”, yet spoke of a time when the Holy One would be anointed, and there worth everlasting righteousness, which must be at a later time. The time for the captives to return to Jerusalem cane while Daniel lived. The time for Messiah came many years after: when Jesus was on earth, He said He was Messiah, the Christ, Who was to come (John 4:25,26). He was “cut off”, crucified, at the time told to Daniel. The people then could reckon the time exactly from the command to rebuild their city, as the angel told Daniel. The time of “righteousness” has not come to Jerusalem, or to any city on earth, so we know that time is still future, but will as surely come.
Daniel was also shown by dreams and visions, of events to happen to nations, and was told of kings, so fierce, that he saw them like beasts in the visions; the countries named were all known to the people then, and some are still well known to us. Some of the events happened while Daniel lived, some later, and some have not yet happened.
Do you know why Daniel was told these things? Because when young he “purposed” to honor God, and he set his heart to understand God’s words (Dan. 10:12). Anyone now who wishes to uerstand what Daniel was shown, also be earnest for God’s honor. Future events are told in the Bible that all who read them shall more fully trust God, The Lord Jesus said,
“I have told you before it come to pass, that when it is come to pass, ye might believe.” John 14:29.
ML 08/02/1942