Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible
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Daniel
Book: Daniel
Chapter: 9
Overview:
Daniel considers the time of the
Captivity.
(1-3) His
Confession of
Sin, and
Prayer.
(4-19) The
Revelation concerning
the coming of the
Messiah.
(20-27)
1-3 Daniel learned from the books of the prophets, especially
from
Jeremiah, that the
Desolation of
Jerusalem would continue
seventy years, which were drawing to a close.
God's promises are
to encourage our prayers, not to make them needless; and when we
see the performance of them approaching, we should more
earnestly plead them with
God.
4-19 In every
Prayer we must make
Confession, not only of the
sins we have been guilty of, but of our
Faith in
God, and
dependence upon him, our sorrow for
Sin, and our resolutions
against it. It must be our
Confession, the language of our
convictions. Here is
Daniel's humble, serious, devout address to
God; in which he gives
Glory to him as a
God to be feared, and
as a
God to be trusted. We should, in
Prayer, look both at
God's
greatness and his
Goodness, his majesty and
Mercy. Here is a
penitent
Confession of
Sin, the cause of the troubles the people
for
So many years groaned under. All who would find
Mercy must
thus confess their sins. Here is a self-abasing acknowledgment of
the
Righteousness of
God; and it is evermore the way of true
penitents thus to justify
God.
Afflictions are sent to bring men
to turn from their sins, and to understand
God's
Truth. Here is
a believing
Appeal to the
Mercy of
God. It is a comfort that
God
has been always ready to
Pardon Sin. It is encouraging to
recollect that mercies belong to
God, as it is convincing and
humbling to recollect that
Righteousness belongs to him. There
are abundant mercies in
God, not only forgiveness, but
forgivenesses. Here are pleaded the reproach
God's people was
under, and the ruins
God's
Sanctuary was in.
Sin is a reproach
to any people, especially to
God's people. The desolations of
the
Sanctuary are grief to all the saints. Here is an
Earnest
request to
God to restore the
Poor Captive Jews to their former
enjoyments. O
Lord, hearken and do. Not hearken and speak only,
but hearken and do; do that for us which none else can do; and
defer not. Here are several pleas and arguments to enforce the
petitions. Do it for the
Lord Christ's sake;
Christ is the
Lord
of all. And for his sake
God causes his
Face to shine upon
sinners when they repent, and turn to him. In all our prayers
this must be our plea, we must make mention of his
Righteousness, even of his only. The humble, fervent, believing
earnestness of this
Prayer should ever be followed
By us.
20-27 An answer was immediately sent to
Daniel's
Prayer, and it
is a very memorable one. We cannot now expect that
God should
send answers to our prayers
By angels, but if we pray with
fervency for that which
God has promised, we may
By Faith take
the promise as an immediate answer to the
Prayer; for He is
Faithful that has promised.
Daniel had a far greater and more
glorious
Redemption discovered to him, which
God would work out
for his
Church in the latter days. Those who would be acquainted
with
Christ and his
Grace, must be much in
Prayer. The
Evening
Offering was a
Type of the great
Sacrifice Christ was to offer
in the
Evening of the world: in virtue of that
Sacrifice
Daniel's
Prayer was accepted; and for the sake of that, this
glorious discovery of redeeming
Love was made to him. We have,
in verses 24-27, one of the most remarkable prophecies of
Christ, of his coming and his
Salvation. It shows that the Jews
are guilty of most obstinate unbelief, in expecting another
Messiah,
So long after the time expressly fixed for his coming.
The seventy
Weeks mean a
Day for a
Year, or 490 years. About the
End of this period a
Sacrifice would be offered, making full
Atonement for
Sin, and bringing in
Everlasting Righteousness for
the complete
Justification of every believer. Then the Jews, in
the
Crucifixion of
Jesus, would commit that crime
By which the
Measure of their guilt would be filled up, and troubles would
come upon their nation. All blessings bestowed
On sinful
Man
come through
Christ's atoning
Sacrifice, who suffered once for
sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to
God.
Here is our way of access to the
Throne of
Grace, and of our
entrance to
Heaven. This seals the sum of
Prophecy, and confirms
the
Covenant with many; and while we rejoice in the blessings of
Salvation, we should remember what they cost the
Redeemer. How
can those escape who neglect
So great
Salvation!