Commentary on Daniel, Chapter 9 · Doctrines 1 · Question 83 – Question 87
Quest. 83. How this couenant was ratified and confirmed.
Some doe expound these words, multis, with many, of the diuerse wayes and meanes whereby this couenant was ratified, Perer. but the word larabbini, to many, is beter vnderstood of the persons, with whom or for whom this couenant shall be ratified, as the pr…position lamed sheweth: yet true it is, that this couenant was ratified and confirmed many wayes. 1. First, it was ratified by many glorious testimonies of our Blessed Sauiour. 1. of the Angels,Of the …anifold and … testimo…ies of Christ. Luk. 2. 2. of the wisemen that came from the East and worshipped, Matth. 2. 3. of the holy men and women, then liuing at the time of Christs birth, as of Zacharie, Elizabeth, Sim…on, Anna, Luk. 1. 2. 4. of Iohn Baptist, who gaue witnesse to Christ. 5. of God the father from heauen, Math. 3. 6. of Moses and Elias, which appeared in the mount where Christ was transfigured, Matth. 17. 7. of the Pharisies themselues, as Nicodemus said, we knowe thou art a teacher come from God, Iohn. 3. 8. yea of the deuils themselues, who beeing cast out of men, cried out and confessed that he was Christ the Sonne of God. 2. The second kind of confirmation was by the prophecies of the old Testament concerning the Messiah, which were all fulfilled in Christ, as the historie of … Gospell sheweth. 3. The third ratification was by Christs wonderfull and most glorious miracles. 4. by his holy life and conuersation. 5. by the predictions of our Lord himselfe, which are noted to be seuen. 1. of the ruine and destruction of the citie, Luk. 19. 43. 2. of the miracles which should be wrought by his disciples, Mark. 14. 17. 3. of the great persecutions which his disciples should suffer for his name, Iohn. 16. 2. 4. of the preaching of the Gospell thorough the world, Act. 1. 8. 5. of the propagating of his Church ouer the world: Ioh. 10. 16. 6. of the continuance of the same Church, as hauing a most sure foundation beeing builded vponupon the rocke, Matth. 16. 18. 7. of his owne death, his resurrection, Mat. 16. 21. and the sending of the Holy Ghost, Act. 1. Perer.
6. But Lyranus also mentioneth sixe wayes, whereby Christ confirmed this couenant, praedicando, miracula faciendo, &c. by preaching, doing of miracles, in dying, rising againe, ascending, and sending the Holy Ghost.
7. But by two wayes chiefely was this couenant ratified and confirmed, by the declaration, and publishing thereof by his preaching, and by the sealing thereof by his most precious blood: like as a Testament, is first declared and written, and then confirmed by the death of the Testator; So in the death of our Blessed Sauiour, was the couenant before set forth by his preaching, fully established, as Oecolampad. Scimus, &c. in morte ipsa proprie foedus confirmari, &c. we know, according to the author of the epistle to the Hebrewes, that the couenant was properly confirmed in his death, &c. And this further may be made plaine thus. 1. by the type and figure: as Moses tooke the booke of the lawe, and reade in it, and then sprinkled the blood vponupon the people, saying, this is the blood of the couenant, Exod. 24. 8. so the booke of this couenant declared by Christs preaching was made sure in his blood. 2. This also appeareth by the institution of the Lords supper, where Christ saith of the cuppe representing his blood, this is the newe Testament in my blood, &c. Luk. 22. 20. that is, a signe, seale, and representation thereof. 3. the Apostle sheweth this also by the nature and condition of a Testament, which is confirmed when men are dead, Heb. 9. 17. and so in this place the Septuagint translate the Hebrewe word berith, by the Greeke word foreign, testament, for the word signifieth both a couenant and a testament, as Budeus sheweth in his commentaries: for the ratifying then and confirming of this will and Testament of our Sauiour, his death and passion was necessarie, with the shedding of his most pretious blood for the remission of our sinnes.
Quest. 84. When this testament beganne to be ratified and confirmed by the preaching of Christ.
1. Pererius deliuereth it as an auncient tradition, and a receiued opinion, that Christ beganne not to preach and worke miracles till a yeare after he was baptised: for the first miracle which he wrought in Cana of Galile, they hold to hauehave beene done the same day tweluemoneth, wherein he had beene baptised.
2. But this opinion may be easily refuted. 1. the words of S. Peter, Act. 1. 21. are directly against it: of these men, which hauehave companied with vsus all the time, that the Lord Iesus was conuersant among vsus, beginning from the baptisme of Iohn, vntounto the day that he was taken vp from vsus, must one of them be made a witnesse with vsus of his resurrection. Here it is euident, that Christ beganne to preach after he had receiued Iohns baptisme. Pererius by the baptisme of Iohn, here thinketh all that time to be vnderstood wherein Iohn baptized, till he was imprisoned: but that can not be: for Iohn beganne to baptize before Christ came vntounto his baptisme: and before Christ was baptized, he preached not, neither shewed himselfe publikely: therefore the beginning can not be vnderstood, to be from Iohns baptisme in that sense. 2. Seeing Christ was publikely in his baptisme called from heauen to the office of teaching, in that it is saide, Heare him, it is not like that our blessed Sauiour would intermit that holy function▪ a yeare together. 3. Before that miracle in Cana of Galile, he entertained Disciples, as is euident, Ioh. 1. as Andrew and Peter, Philip and Nathaniel: therefore euen then he beganne to be a publike teacher. 4. If Christs preaching beganne a yeare after his baptisme, in the beginning of his 31. yeare, then could he not preach and confirme the Couenant, halfe a weeke, that is, 3. yeares and a halfe, seeing he is generally held to hauehave died in his 33. yeare: wherefore euen presently after his baptisme, as soone as his 40. d…s fast was ouer, Christ beganne to preach, and shew his power in working of miracles.
85. Quest. v. 27. In the halfe of the weeke he shall cause the sacrifice to cease: when this halfe weeke beganne.
1. R. Shelamo thus interpreteth the halfe weeke, that a little before the destruction of Ierusalem, after the Iewes had violated the truce taken betweene them and the Romanes for 7. yeares, then in the middes of the weeke, that is, in the fourth yeare of those seuen, the Romanes came and besieged the citie. But it is shewed before, qu. 82. that this is but a Rabbinicall conceit, that any such truce was made betweene the Romanes and the Iewes.
2. Some doe likewise refetre this halfe weeke to the destruction of Ierusalem, that in the middes thereof, that is, the 5. yeare before the ouerthrow of the citie, the Romanes came & laid siege vntounto it: Iun. Polan. M. Lively. But this sense can not be admitted, because it hath beene prooued alreadie, qu. 49. that these 70. weekes, and eueryevery part thereof, determined in the death of Christ.
3. Iosephus Scaligor hath a conceit by himselfe, that this 70. and last weeke must be deuided: the one part thereof he alloweth for the time of Christs preaching, namely 4. yeares and an halfe, the other for the destruction of the citie, two yeares and an halfe more. But here two exceptions may iustly be taken: 1. he diuideth this weeke, the one part aboue 30. yeares from the other, whereas eueryevery part of these weekes must one succeede an other. 2. he diuideth two yeares and an halfe from the rest: but that maketh not halfe a weeke.
4. Some beginne this halfe weeke at the death of Christ, and continue it afterward, when the sacrifices and rites of the law beganne to be abolished by the Apostles, as we read Act. 15. Perer. Pint. Melancth. M. Lydyat in ann. 4043. Osiand. sauing that Osiander maketh it the first halfe of the last weeke, the other the latter: But it hath beene prooued alreadie, that these yeares must ende in Christs death.
5. This halfe weeke then is better taken for the latter halfe part of the weeke, which beginneth at the baptisme of Christ, and endeth at his passion: so Bullinger saith, per praedicationem Euangelij, & mortem Domini nostri Iesu Christi, constat legem esse abrogatam, by the preaching of the Gospel, and by the death of Iesus Christ, it is euident the law was abrogated: so also Hugo beginneth this halfe weeke in the 15. of Tiberius, at Christs baptisme: for then in the baptisme of Christ, hostiarum legalium purificatio paulatim coepit vilescere, the purifying of the legall sacrifices beganne by little and little to waxe vile. Thus also expoundeth the author of the Scholasticall historie, as Pererius sheweth in the very ende of his 10. booke vponupon Daniel: and vnlesse we ende the 70. and last weeke at the passion of Christ, it will not ende in a yeare of Iubile: for Christ is held to hauehave died in a yeare of Iubile, that the shadow may agree vntounto the bodie: see before, qu. 66. toward the ende.
86. Quest. How and when the sacrifices were caused to cease, and were abolished.
1. R. Shelamoh thinketh that this is vnderstood of the ceasing of the sacrifices in fact, when the citie and Temple were destroied by the Romanes: so also Polanus and M. Lively follow the same sense. But such ceasing of the sacrifices (de facto) actually and in fact, happened before vnderunder the tyrannie of Antiochus Epimanes, Dan. 8. v. 11. 12. here such a ceasing of them is signified, which was not before, namely, that by the Messiah all the rites and ceremonies of the law should be abolished.
2. Iunius ioyneth both these together: that the sacrifices were caused to cease, both in respect of the godly, whome Christ had sanctified by the one offering of himselfe, Hebr. 10. 14. so that they neede not to be purged by the sacrifices of the law: and in respect of the wicked they ceased, because the Romanes tooke from the Iewes both their Temple, altar, and sacrifices. But concerning the first, that was done many yeares before the destruction of Ierusalem, when Christ suffered: and therefore there is no reason to restraine that benefit to these last times: and for the other, that actuall ceasing of the sacrifices happened before, as is said, vnderunder Antiochi….
3. Others expound this ceasing of the sacrifices, of the time of the Apostles after the death of our Sauiour: as when the Apostles by their decree abrogated the ceremonies of the Law, certaine onelyonly excepted, in respect of the necessitie of the time, Act. 15. Melancthon, Osiand. But these doe not distinguish betweene the ceasing of the sacrifices in right, and in fact: they in fact ceased not in the death of Christ, but in right they were then abolished.
4. Wherefore I preferre Calvins exposition, that after Christ had offered himselfe vponupon the crosse, illic cessarunt omnes ritus legales, there all the legall rites ceased: and after that, as Oecolampad. well saith, lanienae erant, non sacrificia, the sacrifices were rather butchers slaughters and shambles, then true sacrifices: And he yeeldeth this as a reason thereof, because in the passion of Christ, the vaile of the Temple was rent, to shew that the sacrifices and rites of the law were abolished. Pintus addeth this reason, because the bodie beeing come, the shadowes must cease: like as a painter draweth his picture first with shadowed lines, but when he portraiteth the picture, he putteth out the first lines: so our blessed Sauiour bringing all fulnesse and perfection with him, hath dashed out the shadowes of the law, according to that saying in the Gospel, Ioh. 1. 17. The law was giuen by Moses, but grace and truth came by Iesus Christ.
87. Quest. What is meant by the ouerspreading of abomination, v. 27. of the best reading thereof.
The word canaph, signifieth a wing. 1. some therefore take it for the pinacle or wing of the Temple, the part for the whole, Oecolampad. 2. some vnderstand thereby the Temple, because it was as a wing and defence, wherein the Iewes put their confidence, Bulling. 3. Some take canaph, the wing, for the Cherubs which were winged, that euen vponupon them in the most inward parts of the Temple, this desplation should come. 4. Some by the wing, interpret the extremitie of desolation, applying it to the desperate state of the Iewes. 5. Vatablus thus expoundeth, adam vel extensionem, id est, longam seriem abominationum, the wing or extension, that is, the long continuance of these abominations: so also the Genev. the ouerspreading of abominations. 6. Some by the wing, vnderstand the armie of the Romanes: as the word is taken, Isa. 8. 8. The stretching out of his wings shall fill the breadth of thy land. Iun. Polan. 7. The Latine interpreter readeth, in the Temple shall be the abomination of desolation: by the wing, he vnderstandeth theaSee more hereof in the ende of the 88. quest▪ following. Temple: and this seemeth to be confirmed by that place, Matth. 24. 15. When ye shall see the abomination of desolation standing in the holy place, &c. And so the meaning is this, that euen in the inward Temple, where the winged Cherubims were, should be the abomination of desolation, Osiand. the word is meshomem, which is a participle signifying making desolate: But here it is taken substantiuely for desolation, as M. Lively obserueth the like in other places. Thus then the place is to be read, And vponupon the wing shall be the abominations of desolations, Oecolampad. that is, vponupon the very altar and holy place, where the winged Cherubims were.