Commentary on Daniel, Chapter 9 · Doctrines 1 · Question 60 – Question 61
Quest. 60. VntoUnto Messiah the Prince shall be seuen weekes, ver. 25. Who is here vnderstood by the Messiah.
1. R. Selam… who beginneth the 7. weekes at the destruction of the first Temple, will hauehave this Messiah, or anointed, to be Cyrus, as he is called, Isay. 45. 1. Thus saith the Lord to Cyrus his anointed: and from the desolation of the Temple vntounto Cyrus he counteth 52. yeares.
Paulus Burgensis thus confuteth this assertion, because none are simply in Scripture calleth annointed, but those which were annointed either with materiall oyle, as the kings and Priests, or with spirituall, as the Prophets; but Cyrus was neither of these wayes annointed. And whereas this place is vrged of Cyrus, he saith it is not to be vnderstood of Cyrus, but of the Messiah: this answer of Burgens. is verie weake: for in that the Prophet saith, Cyrus, his annointed, what is more euident, then that he speaketh of Cyrus, beeing expressed by name? Pererius answer also is vnsufficient, that Cyrus was long before the beginning of these weekes; whereas it hath beene alreadie shewed, that the weekes beganne in Cyrus time.
1. Thus therefore is this opinion rather refelled. 1. because he himselfe counteth 52. weekes vntounto Cyrus, which make aboue 7. weekes of yeares, Burgens. 2. Afterward by Messiah that should be slaine, he vnderstandeth Agrippa king of the Iewes; and so he changeth the person, taking the Messiah for two diuerse persons: whereas it is euident, that the Prophet speaketh of one and the same Messiah, Lyran. 3. he is called Messiah the gouernour, or principall, for so the word nagid signifieth: but none is called the principall Messiah but onelyonly Christ, of whom the Prophet speaketh, Isay. 55. 4. I hauehave giuen him for a witnesse to the people, for a Prince, &c. the word is nagid, Burgens.
2. Some by the Messiah vnderstand Nehemiah, as Ab. Ezra, some Zorobabel, some Iehoshua the high Priest, as R. Levi, Ben Gerso…. But these were in the beginning of the 7. weekes, at the returne of the captiuitie, Ezr… 2. 2. it cannot be therefore said, that there should be 7. weekes vntounto them: And againe, the office of this Messiah was to finish sinne, and reconcile iniquitie, which none of these could doe.
3. Some by Messiah, taking the singular for the plurall, doe vnderstand the annointed gouernours, whom Eusebius taketh to be the Macchabees, who were both Priests and kings: but vntounto the beginning of the raigne of the Maccabees, were aboue 7. weekes from the beginning of the 70. weekes, wheresoeuer they beginne them: for the regiment of the Macchabees beganne aboue an hundred yeares after the ende of the Persian Monarchie.
4. M. Liuely therefore in his Persian Monarchie, p. 205. taketh the word Messiah somewhat more largely, for the chiefe rulers and kings of the Iewes commonwealth, vntounto the beginning of whose setled estate are counted 7. weekes: for from the 2. of Darius Nothus when the Temple beganne to be reedified, of whose raigne there remained 17. yeares, to the 32. of Arrashasht, are iust 49. yeares, in whose 32. yeare the citie beeing builded, and set forme of gouernement established, Nehemiah returned vntounto the king, Nehem. 13. 6. of this his opinion he yeeldeth two speciall reasons. 1. from the Hebrewe point athnah, after 7. weekes, which beeing a perfect distinction, doth suspend it from the sentence following: so that he would hauehave these 7. weekes to the Messiah, taken by themselues, and not to be ioyned with the 62. weekes following. 2. these two things beganne together, the citie builded, and the annointed gouernour thereof: as Samballat in a letter to Nehemiah ioyneth them both together, Nehem. 6. 6. thou and the Iewes thinke to rebell, for the which cause thou buildest ihe wall, and thou wilt be the king thereof, to this purpose M. Liuely, p. 209.
Answ. 1. Oecolampadius to that obiection of the points, maketh this answer: we had rather followe in this place the Greekes and Latines, quam Iudaeos pro sua libidine punctum constituentes, then the Iewes setting the points according to their pleasure: but this is a dangerous answer: for if we make question of the Hebrewe pricks and points, we shall hauehave no certaintie of the Scripture: therefore I rather answer with Polanus, that although the perfect distinction athnah, be there set, yet the rest must be ioyned in sense, as the Angel at the first maketh but one whole number of 70. weekes.
2. It followeth not, because when the citie was builded, the setled gouernement began, that therefore the gouernours were this Messiah: And if Nehemiah were the first gouerno…r, as it cannot be denied, after the building of the citie: to the beginning of his gouernement, there were not 7. weekes of yeares; seeing he was sent in the 20. of Artaxerxes, and there continued to the 32. yeare, when according to his account the 49. yeares expired.
5. Wherefore the best and most receiued interpretation is, that by Messiah here, we are to vnderstand our Blessed Sauiour Christ Iesus; as it may thus appeare. 1. one and the same Messiah is spoken of through this prophesie: but the Messiah which should be slaine, and confirme the couenant for one weeke, was Christ: therefore this Messiah here spoken of was Christ. 2. the weekes before spoken of, to finish sinne, and reconcile iniquitie, could onelyonly be performed by Christ.
6. Some doe vnderstand by Messiah, Christ, and make this the sense, that 7. weekes, that is, 49. yeares he should be their gouernour, and afterward cast them off: But it is euident, that the Lord did not onelyonly during those 7. weeks take vponupon him the protection of that people, but many yeares after also.
7. Some obiect, that in that Messiah is called here a captaine or gouernour, if it were meant of Christ, it would extenuate his dignitie: M. Calvin answereth, that therein the dignitie and excellencie of Christ is set forth, who was a captaine ouer all other kings and Princes: and this title is giuen also to kings, and to the chiefe earthly states; as Dauid is called the captaine of the people, 2. Sam. 3. 2. and Hezekiah, 2. king. 20. 5. Pererius addeth further, that this title, nagid, captaine, Prince, is particularly giuen vntounto Christ, as Isay. 55. 4. I hauehave giuen him for a prince or captaine: for he was our captaine, 1. to lead vsus by his holy example of life. 2. in teaching the way vntounto saluation. 3. in gathering together his church, and conducting them to eternall life, Perer. lib. 10. quest. 17.
Quest. 61. v. 25. The streetes shall be built againe in a troublesome time: how this was fullfilled.
1. Some doe referre this troublesome time to the 62. weeke, immediately before spoken of: which containeth 434. yeares to be counted, vntounto the Messiah from the ende of the 7. weekes: and then the meaning is this, that during all the continuance of that time, the commonwealth of the Iewes should hauehave much …uble: so Iun. Polan, and M. Liuely out of Saadiah giueth this sense, pag. 172. that Ierusalem beeing builded, shall continue 434. yeares before the desolation: but in that mention is made of building the streetes againe, that is, the citie, the words seeme to hauehave speciall reference to these troublesome times in the first 7. weekes, wherein the worke of the Temple and citie were intermitted.
2. Some by the streightnes of time, vnderstand the short time, wherein the citie was builded: for after it beganne to be reedified in the 2. yeare of Darius, it was finished in foure yeare, Hug. Cardinal. but it is shewed before, that it was from the first to the last 46. yeare in building, and therefore the 7. weekes are fingled from the rest, to note the streightnesse and troubles of those times.
3. Some hauing speciall reference vntounto the 7. weekes, doe vnderstand, onelyonly the troublesome building of the citie, because they hold the Temple to hauehave beene built before the 7. weekes beganne, so Bullinger, Iosephus Scalliger, Osian. as mention is made, Nehem. 4. how they built with one hand, and held their swords in the other: But seeing the building of the Temple was the principall worke, and was intermitted 46. yeares, it is not like that it should be omitted in this prophesie.
4. Wherefore by building here in a trouble some time, is vnderstood the building of the Temple and the citie: as Iunius in his commentarie, vnderstandeth the building of Ierusalem: that both of them should be in a troublesome time: So that as afterward the Angel sheweth what should happen after the 7. and 62. weekes: so here specially is intended what memorable thing should befall within the compasse of these 7. weekes in the building of the Temple: and after in the building of the citie, H. Br. Concent. as also thereby is signified, that their whole state should remaine troublesome still, as the booke of the Macchabees sheweth, Lyran. that they should not looke for any perfect outward estate, but be stirred vp to looke for their spirituall redemption by the Messiah.