In each blog, I often reference many different topics that I've already covered (or will soon cover), and maybe you've missed. Please review my blogs to read more...
CLICK HERE! for an index to previous blogs.
________________
You'll have noticed in Daniel 9 - Part 2 that I was intentionally thorough. Part 3 will be no different. My intent is to remain diligent, and to answer Scripture with Scripture from the original language.
Again, to see the details concerning this verse please refer to Daniel 9:25 - Notes.
________________
Daniel 9:25
If you'll remember from Daniel 9 - Part 2, we covered Dan 9:24 in detail.
Dan 9:25 from the KJV translation is the start of a translation mess.
If you'll notice one example below (for now) in Dan 9:25, you'll see what I mean... they capitalized the word "Messiah" which comes from the Hebrew word mashiach, which means "anointed", or "anointed ones" plain and simple.
Neither punctuation or capitalization is found in the Hebrew manuscripts...
They capitalized it because of the theology they're trying to inflect upon the reader. Perhaps, they even had good intentions? I'll give them the benefit of the doubt, but if you're a reader of my blogs, you already know of my "skepticism" (to put it lightly).
We're still discussing what Gabriel was explaining to Daniel in Dan 9:24. I've covered this passage in depth in Daniel 9 - Part 2.
[NASB] Dan 9:24 Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy place.
From part 2 we learned that seventy weeks have been decreed to complete these seven requirements. To this day, these seven have not been completed.
___________________
First, from the KJV notice the capitalization and punctuation:
Dan 9:25 Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build 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.
Here is the difference in what I believe to a more accurate translation:
[ESV] Dan 9:25 Know therefore and understand that from the going out of the word to restore and build Jerusalem to the coming of an anointed one, a prince, there shall be seven weeks. Then for sixty-two weeks it shall be built again with squares and moat, but in a troubled time.
You should be able to clearly see the differences and I will justify the ESV's translation below while also referring back to the KJV translation.
___________________
Let's get started...
[ESV] Dan 9:25 [1] Know therefore and understand that [2] from the going out of the word [3] to restore and build Jerusalem [4] to the coming of an anointed one, [5] a prince, [6] there shall be seven weeks. [7] Then for sixty-two weeks [8] it shall be built again [9] with squares and moat, [10] but in a troubled time.
[1] Know therefore and understand [H7919 – sakal]
The LXX gives us more clear meaning of this statement in "and you shall know and perceive".
Gabriel is telling Daniel that he will know and discern. There is the sense with "discern" of an action on Daniel’s part to act wisely… to divide, determine.
The Hebrew word being the same as that rendered in:
Dan 9:13 … and gaining insight [H7919 – sakal] by your truth.
… and different from the one rendered understand in Dan 9:2; Dan 9:23.
___________________
[2] from the going out of the word
Daniel was studying the Words of Jeremiah (Dan 9:2).
Dan 9:23 At the beginning of your pleas for mercy a word [H1697 – dabar] went out [H3318 – yatsa], and I have come to tell it to you…
If we remain in the context of Daniel studying Jeremiah then we see that Jeremiah does indeed tell us of God’s Divine Word going out:
Jer 30:18 Thus says the LORD: Behold, I will restore the fortunes of the tents of Jacob and have compassion on his dwellings; the city shall be rebuilt on its mound, and the palace shall stand where it used to be.
Jer 31:38 Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when the city shall be rebuilt for the LORD from the Tower of Hananel to the Corner Gate.
Isa 55:11 so shall my word be that goes out [H3318 – yatsa] from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.
This phrase would be better translated literally as: "the going forth of the word" as from the original text.
Within the context of Daniel 9, the reference is to the Divine Word, spoken by Jeremiah as that is what Daniel was reviewing:
Dan 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.
Gabriel is about to show Daniel the meaning of those prophecies that he was investigating.
As a separate note, there are a few events in Scripture that have been proposed as candidates for this "decree"... "the going forth of the word". I will get to all of those "candidates" in a separate blog later.
We're in the Book of Daniel and Gabriel is declaring to Daniel what to watch for. Daniel obviously had a working background knowledge of the other prophets as well.
I don't think Daniel had any doubt as to whom, or which decree Gabriel was discussing.
___________________
[3] to restore and build Jerusalem
Jerusalem is to be rebuilt and reoccupied, or literally "re-peopled" just as prophesied.
The sense of "to restore" is not one of "rebuilding" the city, but re-inhabiting it. The Hebrew word shub is often directly used when speaking of exiles. It would be redundant to say "rebuild and build Jerusalem".
The LXX also gives us this same sense. The Greek word ἀποκριθῆναι would mean: to cause to return as a response. This is in full agreement with the Hebrew.
While I could not find this word in a concordance, it was almost always translated in the KJV in a sense of a "response" from or to someone.
We end up with the sense of "returning to Jerusalem, re-inhabiting it and building it again".
___________________
[4-5] to the coming of an anointed one
Or, as the KJV translates it: "unto the Messiah the Prince"
This is one of those times that I really want to scream. This is a prime example of the KJV translators inflecting their own theology into the text in order to influence their readers.
You can see above how the KJV capitalizes "Messiah" and "Prince". I'll get to "Prince" in a moment.
For starters, there is no use of capitalization or punctuation in the original Hebrew manuscripts. The Hebrew word mashiach means anointed - plain and simple.
[H4899 - mashiach] anointed: Anointed (1), anointed (34), anointed ones (2), Messiah (2).
From the concordance listing above, you can also see how this word is otherwise treated everywhere else in Scripture. The word mashiach is only translated as "Messiah" twice out of thirty-nine uses in the entirety of the Hebrew Scriptures and only here in the two verses of Dan 9:24-25.
If the Hebrew phrase read "ha mashiach" then the translators might have been able to justify "Messiah" over "anointed", but... "ha mashiach", or "the anointed" is not found anywhere in the Hebrew OT. The KJV translators also took liberties of their own concerning punctuation as we'll see in a moment.
We get our word "Christ" from the Greek word christos which means "anointed".
Jesus is the Christ... He is the Anointed... anointed by Jehovah. This may come as a shock to some, but Jesus is not the only one in Scripture anointed by God.
In the Hebrew OT "anointed" is most frequently used of a theocratic ruler over Israel but they are never referred to as "the anointed".
For a few examples, it is used as those anointed by Jehovah (1Sa 12:3; Psa 18:50), the high priest (Lev 4:3-5; Lev 4:16-21), the patriarchs (Psa 105:15), and also of particular interest to Daniel - Cyrus (Isa 45:1).
The Septuagint [LXX] uses the Greek word χριστοῦ (christou) and not once is this translated as Messiah, Christ, or Jesus out of twenty-two uses in the LXX... it is always translated in the form of the root word "anoint".
[5] a prince
Next, we find the Hebrew word nagid translated as "prince" and then capitalized in the KJV translation as if to say this is "the Prince", our "Prince of Peace".
[H5057 - nagid] a leader, ruler, prince: - chief (2), chief officer (3), commander (1), leader (14), noble things (1), nobles (1), officer (3), officers (1), officials (1), Prince (1), prince (5), princes (1), ruler (11).
The Hebrew word nagid is used throughout Scripture in reference to one in front, a leader, commander, superintendent, chief ruler of Israel, and even a foreign ruler.
The Greek word ἡγουμένου from the LXX has a similar definition:
[G2233 - hegoumenou] to lead, suppose: - chief (1), consider (3), considered (2), considering (1), count (4), counted (1), esteem (1), governor (1), leader (1), leaders (3), leading (1), led (1), regard (5), regarded (1), Ruler (1), thought (2).
The text should literally read along the lines of "anointed leader".
I hope (from above) you can clearly see that there is nothing whatsoever within the original text of this passage that dictates the misleading capitalization of "Messiah" or "Prince". There is also nothing within the original text that even justifies the use of "Messiah".
The translators want us to believe the passage is speaking specifically of Jesus, the Messiah, our Prince of Peace in this passage.
The KJV translation may suggest that, but the original text does not... we're looking for one who is an "anointed leader" if we're to stay true to the intent of the original text.
If we don't stay true to the original texts, we'll never find the correct answer.
___________________
[6] there shall be seven weeks.
Above you'll notice a "period" at the end of "seven weeks.".
The period placement above has a legitimate source text and reason for doing so.
The KJV translation puts forth a completely different sentence structure with no legitimate source text. However, the translators do have theological reasons for doing so, just as they did with the capitalization above.
Here is the KJV translation again:
"shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks:"
The reasoning for ending the sentence with a period after "seven weeks" is found in the Masoretic Texts (MT).
I've included a brief summary concerning ancient manuscripts in my post entitled Daniel 9:25 - Notes and it discusses this issue in more detail.
Briefly, the period ["."] is based on accents developed by the Hebrew scribes, called Masoretes, between 7-10 CE. This system of accents served three purposes:
[1] Indicate which syllable of the word is to be accented.
[2] Indicate how to "chant" the text musically.
[3] Indicate punctuation.
This became knows as...
... The Masoretic Text... this is now the authoritative text of the Tanahk for Rabbinic Judaism.
Based on the accents found in the MT, the punctuation of Dan 9:25 should look like this:
"... there shall be seven weeks. Then for sixty-two weeks it shall be built again..."
The point is that Jerusalem would be transformed from desolate to thriving again although it would not be an easy transition.
Some of these excerpts are from my personal notes copied from 30+ years of studying... some of these notes are direct copies of various sources - I do not claim to have authored every word of this... it's just a mass collection I've tucked away over the years for my own personal studies... I didn't consider a bibliography at the time I directly copied small excerpts from various authors. Also, any emphasis (underlines, bold text, all CAPS, etc.) noted above was only meant to capture my personal attention as I studied...
CLICK HERE! for an index to previous blogs.
________________
You'll have noticed in Daniel 9 - Part 2 that I was intentionally thorough. Part 3 will be no different. My intent is to remain diligent, and to answer Scripture with Scripture from the original language.
Again, to see the details concerning this verse please refer to Daniel 9:25 - Notes.
________________
Daniel 9:25
If you'll remember from Daniel 9 - Part 2, we covered Dan 9:24 in detail.
Dan 9:25 from the KJV translation is the start of a translation mess.
If you'll notice one example below (for now) in Dan 9:25, you'll see what I mean... they capitalized the word "Messiah" which comes from the Hebrew word mashiach, which means "anointed", or "anointed ones" plain and simple.
Neither punctuation or capitalization is found in the Hebrew manuscripts...
They capitalized it because of the theology they're trying to inflect upon the reader. Perhaps, they even had good intentions? I'll give them the benefit of the doubt, but if you're a reader of my blogs, you already know of my "skepticism" (to put it lightly).
We're still discussing what Gabriel was explaining to Daniel in Dan 9:24. I've covered this passage in depth in Daniel 9 - Part 2.
[NASB] Dan 9:24 Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy place.
From part 2 we learned that seventy weeks have been decreed to complete these seven requirements. To this day, these seven have not been completed.
___________________
First, from the KJV notice the capitalization and punctuation:
Dan 9:25 Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build 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.
Here is the difference in what I believe to a more accurate translation:
[ESV] Dan 9:25 Know therefore and understand that from the going out of the word to restore and build Jerusalem to the coming of an anointed one, a prince, there shall be seven weeks. Then for sixty-two weeks it shall be built again with squares and moat, but in a troubled time.
You should be able to clearly see the differences and I will justify the ESV's translation below while also referring back to the KJV translation.
___________________
Let's get started...
[ESV] Dan 9:25 [1] Know therefore and understand that [2] from the going out of the word [3] to restore and build Jerusalem [4] to the coming of an anointed one, [5] a prince, [6] there shall be seven weeks. [7] Then for sixty-two weeks [8] it shall be built again [9] with squares and moat, [10] but in a troubled time.
[1] Know therefore and understand [H7919 – sakal]
The LXX gives us more clear meaning of this statement in "and you shall know and perceive".
Gabriel is telling Daniel that he will know and discern. There is the sense with "discern" of an action on Daniel’s part to act wisely… to divide, determine.
The Hebrew word being the same as that rendered in:
Dan 9:13 … and gaining insight [H7919 – sakal] by your truth.
… and different from the one rendered understand in Dan 9:2; Dan 9:23.
___________________
[2] from the going out of the word
Daniel was studying the Words of Jeremiah (Dan 9:2).
Dan 9:23 At the beginning of your pleas for mercy a word [H1697 – dabar] went out [H3318 – yatsa], and I have come to tell it to you…
If we remain in the context of Daniel studying Jeremiah then we see that Jeremiah does indeed tell us of God’s Divine Word going out:
Jer 30:18 Thus says the LORD: Behold, I will restore the fortunes of the tents of Jacob and have compassion on his dwellings; the city shall be rebuilt on its mound, and the palace shall stand where it used to be.
Jer 31:38 Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when the city shall be rebuilt for the LORD from the Tower of Hananel to the Corner Gate.
Isa 55:11 so shall my word be that goes out [H3318 – yatsa] from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.
This phrase would be better translated literally as: "the going forth of the word" as from the original text.
Within the context of Daniel 9, the reference is to the Divine Word, spoken by Jeremiah as that is what Daniel was reviewing:
Dan 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.
Gabriel is about to show Daniel the meaning of those prophecies that he was investigating.
As a separate note, there are a few events in Scripture that have been proposed as candidates for this "decree"... "the going forth of the word". I will get to all of those "candidates" in a separate blog later.
We're in the Book of Daniel and Gabriel is declaring to Daniel what to watch for. Daniel obviously had a working background knowledge of the other prophets as well.
I don't think Daniel had any doubt as to whom, or which decree Gabriel was discussing.
___________________
[3] to restore and build Jerusalem
Jerusalem is to be rebuilt and reoccupied, or literally "re-peopled" just as prophesied.
The sense of "to restore" is not one of "rebuilding" the city, but re-inhabiting it. The Hebrew word shub is often directly used when speaking of exiles. It would be redundant to say "rebuild and build Jerusalem".
The LXX also gives us this same sense. The Greek word ἀποκριθῆναι would mean: to cause to return as a response. This is in full agreement with the Hebrew.
While I could not find this word in a concordance, it was almost always translated in the KJV in a sense of a "response" from or to someone.
We end up with the sense of "returning to Jerusalem, re-inhabiting it and building it again".
___________________
[4-5] to the coming of an anointed one
Or, as the KJV translates it: "unto the Messiah the Prince"
This is one of those times that I really want to scream. This is a prime example of the KJV translators inflecting their own theology into the text in order to influence their readers.
You can see above how the KJV capitalizes "Messiah" and "Prince". I'll get to "Prince" in a moment.
For starters, there is no use of capitalization or punctuation in the original Hebrew manuscripts. The Hebrew word mashiach means anointed - plain and simple.
[H4899 - mashiach] anointed: Anointed (1), anointed (34), anointed ones (2), Messiah (2).
From the concordance listing above, you can also see how this word is otherwise treated everywhere else in Scripture. The word mashiach is only translated as "Messiah" twice out of thirty-nine uses in the entirety of the Hebrew Scriptures and only here in the two verses of Dan 9:24-25.
If the Hebrew phrase read "ha mashiach" then the translators might have been able to justify "Messiah" over "anointed", but... "ha mashiach", or "the anointed" is not found anywhere in the Hebrew OT. The KJV translators also took liberties of their own concerning punctuation as we'll see in a moment.
We get our word "Christ" from the Greek word christos which means "anointed".
Jesus is the Christ... He is the Anointed... anointed by Jehovah. This may come as a shock to some, but Jesus is not the only one in Scripture anointed by God.
In the Hebrew OT "anointed" is most frequently used of a theocratic ruler over Israel but they are never referred to as "the anointed".
For a few examples, it is used as those anointed by Jehovah (1Sa 12:3; Psa 18:50), the high priest (Lev 4:3-5; Lev 4:16-21), the patriarchs (Psa 105:15), and also of particular interest to Daniel - Cyrus (Isa 45:1).
The Septuagint [LXX] uses the Greek word χριστοῦ (christou) and not once is this translated as Messiah, Christ, or Jesus out of twenty-two uses in the LXX... it is always translated in the form of the root word "anoint".
[5] a prince
Next, we find the Hebrew word nagid translated as "prince" and then capitalized in the KJV translation as if to say this is "the Prince", our "Prince of Peace".
[H5057 - nagid] a leader, ruler, prince: - chief (2), chief officer (3), commander (1), leader (14), noble things (1), nobles (1), officer (3), officers (1), officials (1), Prince (1), prince (5), princes (1), ruler (11).
The Hebrew word nagid is used throughout Scripture in reference to one in front, a leader, commander, superintendent, chief ruler of Israel, and even a foreign ruler.
The Greek word ἡγουμένου from the LXX has a similar definition:
[G2233 - hegoumenou] to lead, suppose: - chief (1), consider (3), considered (2), considering (1), count (4), counted (1), esteem (1), governor (1), leader (1), leaders (3), leading (1), led (1), regard (5), regarded (1), Ruler (1), thought (2).
The text should literally read along the lines of "anointed leader".
I hope (from above) you can clearly see that there is nothing whatsoever within the original text of this passage that dictates the misleading capitalization of "Messiah" or "Prince". There is also nothing within the original text that even justifies the use of "Messiah".
The translators want us to believe the passage is speaking specifically of Jesus, the Messiah, our Prince of Peace in this passage.
The KJV translation may suggest that, but the original text does not... we're looking for one who is an "anointed leader" if we're to stay true to the intent of the original text.
If we don't stay true to the original texts, we'll never find the correct answer.
___________________
[6] there shall be seven weeks.
Above you'll notice a "period" at the end of "seven weeks.".
The period placement above has a legitimate source text and reason for doing so.
The KJV translation puts forth a completely different sentence structure with no legitimate source text. However, the translators do have theological reasons for doing so, just as they did with the capitalization above.
Here is the KJV translation again:
"shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks:"
The reasoning for ending the sentence with a period after "seven weeks" is found in the Masoretic Texts (MT).
I've included a brief summary concerning ancient manuscripts in my post entitled Daniel 9:25 - Notes and it discusses this issue in more detail.
Briefly, the period ["."] is based on accents developed by the Hebrew scribes, called Masoretes, between 7-10 CE. This system of accents served three purposes:
[1] Indicate which syllable of the word is to be accented.
[2] Indicate how to "chant" the text musically.
[3] Indicate punctuation.
This became knows as...
... The Masoretic Text... this is now the authoritative text of the Tanahk for Rabbinic Judaism.
Based on the accents found in the MT, the punctuation of Dan 9:25 should look like this:
"... there shall be seven weeks. Then for sixty-two weeks it shall be built again..."
The basis for the KJV punctuation? There is none, other than theological indoctrination.
Again, for full details refer to Daniel 9:25 - Notes.
The point is that Gabriel specified three distinct time frames... 7 sevens, 62 sevens, and 1 seven.
7 + 62 + 1 = 70
There's nothing to dictate that these must all be consecutive, or even grouped together at this point. Some will try to group the 7 with the 62... in which case, I would ask:
Why didn't Gabriel just say "sixty-nine sevens" if that was his intent?
Why didn't Gabriel just say "sixty-nine sevens" if that was his intent?
This was an intentional division of the three sets of seven, and we're to find out why.
______________
Getting back to our text at hand, we also find a Greek word that I brought attention to in Daniel 9 - Part 2.
The Greek word hebdomades is not found in any concordance that I have access to. It simply means "periods of seven".
It is found in Scripture in Lev 25:8 where it is discussing the year of Jubilee and also...
It is found in Scripture in Lev 25:8 where it is discussing the year of Jubilee and also...
... seven "periods of seven" [ἑβδομάδες] of years equaling forty-nine years.
[LXX] Lev 25:8 And you shall count out to yourself seven rests of years, seven years seven times. And they will be to you seven periods of seven [ἑβδομάδες] of years, nine and forty years.
It is also used in reference to "days" in Dan 10:2-3. Daniel prays for three εβδομάδας ["periods of seven"] of days, or in other words: 21 days.
What we then have is seven "periods of seven" are to elapse from the time the "word has gone out" commanding the restoration of Jerusalem, to… the arrival of an "anointed one".
What we then have is seven "periods of seven" are to elapse from the time the "word has gone out" commanding the restoration of Jerusalem, to… the arrival of an "anointed one".
At this point, we have yet to determine when the word went out, how to define the "periods of seven" (i.e., weeks, months, years), and who the anointed one is and we'll get to that in another blog.
___________________
[7] Then for sixty-two weeks
There isn't too much to discuss here, except in what follows.
"sixty-two weeks" or, "periods of seven" sixty-two.
___________________
[8-9] it shall be built again with squares [H7339 – rechob] and moat [H2742 – charuts]
Again, nothing too exciting to discuss here.
A "square" is a broad, open place, like a plaza. It's also used in Scripture to reference a space before the Temple.
The word "moat" isn’t used anywhere else in the OT. Most agree this should be "wall" or similar, and apparently the translators of the LXX felt the same by using the Greek word τεῖχος - a wall.
Whether "moat", or "wall" the consensus is usually the same, in that Jerusalem will be rebuilt with the typical completeness of an Eastern city.
___________________
[10] but in a troubled time.
This phrase has an alternate text:
εν
|
στενοχωρία
|
των
|
χρόνων
|
in
|
difficult / distress
|
of the
|
times
|
στενοχωρία can also be translated as "straits of the times" which suggests the construction would not be completed without obstacles. This is confirmed (Ezr 4:4-24; Neh 2:19-20; Neh 4:1-16).
The point is that Jerusalem would be transformed from desolate to thriving again although it would not be an easy transition.
Some of these excerpts are from my personal notes copied from 30+ years of studying... some of these notes are direct copies of various sources - I do not claim to have authored every word of this... it's just a mass collection I've tucked away over the years for my own personal studies... I didn't consider a bibliography at the time I directly copied small excerpts from various authors. Also, any emphasis (underlines, bold text, all CAPS, etc.) noted above was only meant to capture my personal attention as I studied...
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