Texts of Scripture Chaining the Holy Chronicle, Part 7
The Babylonians fall by Cyrus, who ſendeth the Iewes home, after Daniel was taught, the yeere of our Lord, his death, and the decree for buylding the Temple.
1 IN the firſt yeere of Cyrus king of Perſia (when theIer. 25. woroe of the Lord, ſpoken by the mouth of Ieremiah, was finiſhed) the Lorde ſtyrred vp the ſpirite of Cyrus king of Perſia, and he made a Proclamation through all his kingdome, and alſo by wryting, ſaying, Thus ſayth Cyrus king of Perſia, All the kingdomes of the earth hath the Lord God of heauen geuen me, and he hath commaunded me to buylde him an houſe in Ieruſalem, that is in Iudah. Who is among you of all his people, with whom the Lord his God is? let him go vp.
For when King Belſhazzar made a great feaſt to aDan. 5. 1. 5. 9. 27. 25. thouſande of his Princes, and dranke Wine before the thouſande: At the ſame houre appeared fingers of a mans hande, which wrote ouer agaynſt the candleſticke vponupon the playſter of the wall of the kinges palace, and the king ſawe the palme of the hand that wrote. Then was king Belſhazzar greatly troubled, and his countenance was changed in him, and his Princes were aſtonied. Then Daniel ſayd before king Belſhazzar, This is the writing that God hath written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL VPHARSIN. This is the interpretation of the thing, MENE, God hath numbred thy kingdome, and hath finiſhed it. TEKEL, thou art weighed in the balance, and art founde too light. PERES, thy kingdome is deuided, and geuen to the Medes and Perſians. Then at the commaundement of Belſhazzar, they clothed Daniel with purple, and put a chayne of golde about his necke, and made a proclamation concerning him, that he ſhould be the thirde ruler in the kingdome. The ſame nyght was Belſhazzar the king of the Caldees ſlayne: and Darius of the Medes cooke the kingdome, being threeſcore and two yere olde. But not alone: for the Perſians and they had a felowſhyp in the diuiſion: as expreſſed. wordes ſhewe.
Daniels Seuens.
2 IN the firſt yeere of Darius the ſonne of Ahaſhueroſh, of the ſeede of the Medes, which was madeDan. 9. 1. 2. 3. 20. to the end. king ouer the realme of the Caldeans, euen in the firſt yeere of his reigne, I Daniel vnderſtoode by bookes the number of the yeeres, whereof the Lord had ſpoken vntounto Ieremiah the Prophet, that he woulde accomplysh Seuentie yeres in the deſolation of Ieruſalem. And I turned my face vntounto the Lord God, and ſought by prayer and ſupplications with faſting and ſackcloth and aſhes. And while I was ſpeaking and praying, and confeſſing my ſinne, and the ſinne of my people Iſrael, and did preſent my ſupplication before the Lord my God, for the holy Mountaine of my God: yea, whyle I was ſpeaking in prayer, euen the man Gabriel, whom I had ſeene before in a viſion, came flying, and touched me about the time of the euenyng oblation: and he informed me, and talked with me, and ſayde, O Daniel, I am now come foorth to geue thee knowledge and vnderſtandyng. At the beginuyng of thy ſupplications the commaundement came foorth, and I am come to ſhew thee, for thou art greatly beloued: therefore vnderſtand the matter and conſider the viſion. Seuentie ſeuens (of yeeres) are cut out for thy people, and for thy holy Citie, to conſume wickednes, and to abolyſh ſinnes, and to make reconſiliation for iniquitie, and to bring in righteouſneſſe euerlaſtyng, and to ſeale viſion and prophet, and to ſhewe Chriſt the Holy of Holy. Know then and marke: From the outgoing of the Worde, to returne and to buylde Ieruſalem, vntounto Chriſt the gouernour, ſhalbe ſeuen ſeuens (of yeeres) and ſixtie and two ſeuens: in the other, it ſhalbe reſtored and buylded, ſtreete and wall: and troublous ſhall theſe times be. In that after the ſixtie and two ſeuens Chriſt ſhalbe killed: and not for him ſelfe: therevpon the Citie and holy place ſhall he deſtroy, the Gouernours owne people to come, and their ende ſhalbe with a Flood: and at the ende of warre, it ſhall hauehave a finall iudgement to deſolation. But he ſhall confirme the Teſtament for many the laſt ſeuen, when in Halfe that Seuen he ſhall ende the Sacrifice and Oblation. Afterwardes by an armie abominable he ſhall make a deſoliation, euen tyll vtter deſtruction and finall iudgement flow vponupon the deſolate.
The decree of buylding the Temple.
3 ANd there was founde in a coffer (in the palace thatEzra 6. 2. 3. 4. 5. was in the prouince of the Medes) a volume, and therein was it thus written, as a memoriall: In the fyrſt yeere of king Cyrus, king Cyrus made a decree for the houſe of God in Ieruſalem, Let the houſe be buylt, euen the place where they offered ſacrifices, and let the walles thereof be ioyned together: let ye height thereof be threeſcore cubites, and the breadth thereof three ſcore cubites, three orders of great ſtones, and one order of timber: and let the expenſes be geuen of the kings houſe. And alſo let them render the veſſelles of the houſe of God (of golde and ſiluer, which Nebuchadnezar tooke out of the Temple which was in Ieruſalem, and brought vntounto Babel) and let him goe vntounto the Temple that is in Ieruſalem to his place, and put them in the houſe of God.