Commentary on Daniel, Chapter 9 · Doctrines 1 · Question 12 – Question 16
Quest. 12. Whether the Angels hauehave ….
By occasion of these words, that this Angel is called the man Gabriel, this question is briefly to be discussed, whether the Angels hauehave any bodies, or rather are altogether immateriall and without bodies.
1. Of the former opinion seemeth Augustine to be, that, damones sunt a…rea animalia, spirits are a…rie creatures, and because their bodies consist of the aire, which is an element more apt to worke and doe, then to suffer, they are not dissolued by death, lib. 2. de Gen. ad liter. c. 17. And in an other place he yeeldeth this reason of his assertion, that all Angels good and had are supposed to hauehave a kind of bodies, nihil incorporum credendum est praeter solu… Deum, nothing is to be held incorporeall beside God onelyonly: with Augustine consent Origen… lib. 1. periarch, Philo …. de opifici, …, dierum. Lanctanti…s, Hilarius, with others. And in the 2. Nycene Councel. action. 4. there was produced a treatise of Iohn Bishop of Thessalonica, to the same purpose, that Angels hauehave either … or fierie bodies, where that place in the Psalme is alledged, he maketh his Angels spirits, and his messengers flames of fire, Psal. 104. and therefore he concludeth, that they are … pictura, to be imitated and portraited by picture.
Contra. 1. The Angels beeing celestiall treatures, cannot be supposed to hauehave aerie bodies: the heauens are of a … pure essence and nature then is the aire, the Angels beeing celestiall, and of a more subtile nature the… the heauens, doe farre exceede the subtiltie of the aire. 2. God the creator is an infinite spirit farre remote from all bodily matter, in comparison of whom the Angels and created spirits may be said to be of a mixt and concret nature: yet they are in themselues of a spirituall and immateriall constitution: otherwise by the same argument, it would followe, that because God is a spirit, therefore the Angels are not spirits. 3. that place in the Psalme describeth not the making and constitution of the Angels, as though they should consist either of aerie or fierie bodies, but it sheweth their office onelyonly and ministrie, that God vseth his Angels as the winds and fire, to execute his will: to the which purpose the Apostle alleadgeth it, Heb. 1. 7. 4. And in that Angels are and may be portraited by picture, it prooueth not that they hauehave any bodily constitution, but that they appeared in some visible shape, which is expressed by picture.
2. The sounder opinion then is, that Angeli sunt corporis expertes, Angels are without bodies: which is the iudgement of Gregor. Nyssen. in tractat. de oration. of Chrysostome homil. 22. in Genes. of Cyrill in c. 12. Ioan. of Theodoret, in c. 12. Daniel. and of Thom. Aquin. And this assertion may further be confirmed by these reasons. 1. because Angels are called spirits in the Scripture: therefore they are of a spirituall nature. 2. the soule of man is of a spirituall substance, not of any corporall constitution, much more the Angels. 3. If Angels had bodies, it would follow, that they are circumscriptible, and occupie a place, as other bodies doe: but they cannot be hemmed in by walls, doores, or such like limits and bounds. 4. one bodie doth not penetrate or pierce another, but giueth way, as the aire to the water: but the spirits passe through substances, as through doores, walls, and the like; therefore they hauehave no bodies.
3. Pintus resolueth not of either of these opinions, because the Church hath not defined and determined what is to be held of this matter: and concludeth thus: quid hac in re verum sit, Deus ipse viderit, &c. what commeth neere vntounto the truth herein, God himselfe knoweth, &c. But it is more consonant and agreeable to Scripture, that Angels are altogether of a spirituall nature, as hath been shewed, and therefore we may safely rest in this as a true position, and well grounded conclusion.
Quest. 13. Why the Angel came about the time of the euening sacrifice, v. 21.
1. Some note herereby that Daniel perseuered and continued an whole day in prayer from morning to euening, gloss. and if it be obiected that the commandement was giuen vntounto the Angel in the beginning of Daniels prayer, and therefore it is not like that the Angel was so long in comming, to deliuer the message vntounto Daniel, it may be answered, that as soone as Daniel beganne to pray, God in heauen made known his decree for the reuealing of this secret to Daniel, Hugo. yet at that instant the Angel came not forth, but as God further directed him.
2. And beside, God by diuerse miraculous workes did consecrate the time of the morning and euening sacrifice: as about the time of the euening sacrifice at Elias prayer, fire came downe from heauen, which consumed the sacrifice, with the water powred vponupon it, and the verie stones of the altar, 1. king. 18. 36. &c. so according to the word of Elisha, in the morning when the meate offring was offred, water came by the way of Edom, 2. king. 3. Thus it pleased God to commend the times of publike prayer, that men might hauehave a greater desire vntounto those publike exercises, Polan.
3. Oecolampadius sheweth out of Ammonius, that the Angel Gabriel came in the euening, which is the ende of the day, to shew, that foreign, Christ should come in the latter dayes of the world.
4. But some obserue yet more exactly, that the Angel came about the time of the euening sacrifice, which was the ninth houre of the day, about three of the clocke in the afternoone, to shew the verie houre of the passion of Christ, who about the ninth houre yeelded vp his spirit, Matth. 27. 46. 50. H. Br.
Quest. 14. Why Daniel is called a man of desires, ver. 23.
1. Some doe expound it actiuely, because Daniel so earnestly desired to vnderstand visions and secret mysteries for his owne and others better instruction: so Hugo. 2. Some giuegive this sense, quia in te sunt multa desiderabilia, because there are many excellent things to be desired in thee. 3. or thou art a man of desires, that is, worthie to be beloued, Pintus. 4. But it is better vnderstood passiuely, he was beloued and accepted with God: and so Symmachus translateth foreign, a man desired or beloued of God, Oecolampad. and so it answeareth to the word foreign, freely beloued, with which word the Angel saluteth Mary Luk. 1. 28. that as here God had chosen Daniel to reueale this mysterie vntounto, concerning the Messiah, so Marie is elected of God to be the mother of Christ for the accomplishment of this vision: So then Daniel is called a man of desires, that is, Deo acceptus, accepted of God, Calvin. Iunius. D…o amabilis, beloued of God, Lyranus. Deo ch… rus, deere vntounto God, Sa. for things which are esteemed, and had in price, are called things of desires, as Esaus best raiment, which Rebeckah put about her sonne Iakob, are called garments of desires, Genes. 27. 15. and pleasant bread Daniel calleth bread of desires, c. 10. 3. Polan.
Quest. 15. v. 24. Seuentie weekes are determined, &c▪ How Daniels prayer is heard, praying for the peoples deliuerance.
Seeing Daniel made his request for the deliuerance of the people, the 70. yeares of captiuitie beeing expired, and the Angel doth open vntounto him an other vision of 70. weekes of yeares, the question is, how this is answerable vntounto Daniels prayer.
1. One answer is, that because Daniel had some reuelation of the Messiah, which should be incarnate, both by the vision of the stone cut out without hands, c. 2. and of the Sonne of man comming in the clouds, c. 7. he had an earnest desire to be further instructed concerning the comming of the Messiah, and therefore herein the Lord satisfieth Daniels desire.
2. Lyranu… addeth further, quia Dominus plus dat, quam ab eo petatur, because the Lord giueth and graunteth more then is asked of him: he doth not onelyonly assure Daniel of the temporall deliuerance of the people, now after 70. yeares captiuitie; but doth reueale also vntounto him, the spirituall and euerlasting deliuerance of the people of God after 70. weekes of yeares.
3. Father it is answered, that it is vsuall in Scripture, when any thing is spoken of, which is a type and figure of an other, that in the handling thereof many things are deliuered, which agree vntounto the thing that is prefigured, not vntounto the type: as in the Psalmes, Dauid and Salomon … as types of Christ: where many things (as Psal. 2. Psal. 7….) are declared, which … in no wayes agree vntounto them, but must be referred vntounto Christ. And so in this prophesie, the temporall deliuerance of the people beeing a type of their spirituall deliuerance by Christ,Rupert. in Dan. c. 16. vnderunder the one is signified the other, Perer. so also Rupertus, sic illam captiuitatem solvioptat, vt pro maiori sollicitus …it, he so desireth that captiuitie to be dissolued, as that yet he is carefull for a greater deliuerance.
4. But it may furthe… be answered, that beside that the Angel satisfieth Daniels desire concerning the deliuerance of the people, he also foretelleth of the spirituall deliuerance by Christ: that the people should not rest in that temporall benefit, but be in continuall expectation of the comming of the Messiah, by whom they should be redeemed from the bondage of sinne, Polan. As also because the people notwithstanding this captiuitie of 70. years, continued in their sinne, the Angel sheweth that God would yet giuegive them a longer time ofrepentance, euen of seuentie weekes of yeares: after which time, if they repented not, their citie should be destroyed, according to the determinate sentence of God, Iun. in commentar.
Quest. 16. v. 24. How the seuentie weekes must be vnderstood.
1. These seuentie weekes cannot be taken for so many weekes of dayes, as weekes are properly taken, as Leni…. 23. the feast of Pentecost followed seuen weekes after the feast of the Passeo…er: for 70. weekes of dayes make but one yeare, 4. moneths, and 14. dayes: so that then this prophesie should hauehave beene fulfilled in lesse time, then a yeare and halfe, Lyran. Bulling.
2. Orige… taketh these weekes not for weekes of dayes, or of single yeares, but of tenne yeares, that euerie one of these propheticall weekes, should comprehend 70. yeares, and so the whole … of 70. of these weekes, amounteth to 4900. yeares: Eusebius in part followeth this interpretation of the weekes, lib. 8. de d…monst. Euangel. for the last weeke of the 70. he extendeth to 70. yeares, counting vntounto the last weeke seuen times tenne yeares: But if this reckoning should stand, this prophesie of Daniel is not yet fulfilled, for from Daniels time vntill now, there are not aboue …00. yeares runne, so that their should remaine 2700. yerres of the 70. weekes: whereas we see that many yeares since Ierusalem was destroyed, and their sacrifices and ceremonies abolished.
3. Lyranus▪ reporteth the opinion of some, which vnderstand these to be Iubile weekes, and some, weekes of hundred yeares: they which take them for so many Iubilees or 50. yeares, make in euerie weeke 350. yeares, and the whole summe will rise to 24500. yeares: but if euerie day should be counted for an 100. yeares, the weeke shall containe 700. yeares, and 70. weekes, 49000. yeares. Against this exposition Lyranus alleadgeth these two reasons. 1. no where in Scripture is the name of a weeke taken in any such sense, either for 50. yeares, or an 100. yeares: but either it signifieth weeks of dayes, or weekes of yeares. 2. the world shall not continue so many thousand yeares, neither should this prophesie be yet fulfilled concerning the destruction of the citie and Sanctuarie: all which things we see came to passe aboue a 1500. yeare since.
4. It remayneth then, that we are here precisely to vnderstand 70. weekes of yeares: euerie weeke containing 7. yeares: for so is a weeke of yeares taken, Leuit. 25. 8. thou shalt number seuen Sabbaths of yeares vntounto thee, euen seuen times seuen yeares: so that 70. weekes of yeares make 490. yeares, Iun. Perer. Polan. Pellican. cum caeter.