The Pro. as it ftands in our Tranflation. V. 27. And He fball confirm the Co reject him, and kill him (a). And fo in all this their cruel, and despiteful ufage of him, the Prince of Life (b), they will most deservedly forfeit all their right, and title in him as their LORD; for hereupon they shall be no more HIS People (c). Nor is this all.Their punishment for so ungrateful, and foul an act, fhall not confift barely in their being rejected by him, who had been himself first caft out by them (d): but his juft Vengeance will proceed fo far, as that they (hall be no more a PEOPLE. For The ROMANS (e) fhall come, and take away both their place and nation (f). For over them as HIS people (g) will the Meffiah prefice, in order to their deftroying thy people, and to their utterly laying waste their City and Sanctuary, as they fhall come up against it like an overflowing, and raging Inundation, fweeping all before it for as War fhall furely be upon the Jewifb nation for their cutting off the Meffiah (b), as at their hands (hall his blood be required, fo it fhall be most fatal, and final to them, as it shall not be ended but with the entire fubversion both of their Church, and State. And therefore to the end of the War, nothing but a continued fucceffion of DESOLATIONS is determined. To the more effectual carrying on, and compleating of which determined Judgement B 3 (b) Acts iii. 15. of ואין לך(c) (a) Luke xx. 15. xvii. 30. Arav ò éprófuos. The People of the Roman Em They The Pro. as it ftands in our Tranflation. venant with Many for one week: And in the midst of the week, be fhall cause the Sacrifice, and the Oblation to cease; and for the overSpreading of abominations he shall make it defolate, even untill the Confummation; and that determined shall be poured upon the Defolate. of God upon the Jewish nation by the faid final (4) The Original word is fimply A Covenant without any prefix to make it the Covenant. (b) fignifieth the HALF part, and not the MIDST [Prid. p. 293. Con. Hift. in a bottom Note.] The accomplithment of the Event fhew'd it was the latter HALF. Super Alam, h. e. locum fan&tum. Sic Matt. iv. 5. lepuyov Ala dicitur Pinnaculum Templi. Willet ex Oecol. ἐπὶ τὸ ἱερὸν 1xx Vat. ἕως πλερυγίε 1xx Al. Erit in Templo Abominatio Defolationis V. L.----Super fanctuarium. Verf. Arab. (d) The idololatrical Enfigns of the Deftroyer, or Spoiler; the Enfigns of the Romans having on them painted the images of their falfe Gods, therefore abominated by the Jews. Hebrais funt Idola. Grot. Vide 1 Kings xi. 5, 7. 2 Kings xxiii. 13. (0) Mat. xxiv. 15. Mark xij. 14, The Pro. as it ftands in our Tranflation. final Defolation: Even the time of her being trodden down by the Gentiles (a). For in this Defolation fhe fhall continue irrecoverably, even until the confummation of God's determin'd Vengeance, with refpect to her the Defolate; and with refpect to the Gentiles her Defolators (b), even until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. (c.) TH INTRODUCTION. B Y way of Introduction into the enfuing Treatise, it may not be improper Firft, To premife fome few general Obfervati❤ ons concerning the Seventy weeks of this Prophecy, for the better understanding of what may be faid hereafter concerning them; Secondly, To lay down fome general rules, which are I conceive ever neceffary to be followed in the prosecution of a work of this nature; And Thirdly, To fet forth the method used in the ensuing Treatise. Firft, of the general Obfervations to be here premis'd concern ing thefe Weeks; They are fuch as relate either to the nature of them, or to their Divifion, or to their order, or course of reckoning. First, of the nature of the weeks of this Prophecy. And in few words, thefe weeks must be either weeks of Days, as a week contains feven Days, or else they must be Weeks of Years, as a Week in the Language of Prophecy contains seven Years; that is, feven Days prophetically denoting seven Years: An exprefs proof whereof we have in the Prophet Ezekiel (a), A Day for a Year, a Day for a Year. Thus by God's own immediate and exprefs Appointment to that Prophet, his three hundred and ninety Days were to be three hundred and ninety Years, and his forty Days were to be forty Years. And that thefe weeks of Daniel must be thus understood as being thus weeks of Years, and not of Days, It appears from the Prophet himself in his different way of fpeaking, when he cometh afterward occafionally to make mention of Weeks of Days: As he doth in the tenth Chapter (b). There hittorically making mention of twenty one Days, he exprefleth himself not fimply by fo many Days, but by their proportionate number of Weeks, as Weeks of Days, viz. three weeks of days. For herein the Original is exprefs, though in our Tranflation it be rendred only in the ordinary Senfe thereof three full Weeks. The Prophet hath also a second (c) time repeated (a) Exek. iv. 5, 6. (5) ver. 1, 2. (c) ver. 3+ repeated his three weeks of Days. In our Tranflation we read, 'till three whole Weeks were fulfilled: But our three whole Weeks are in the original as before, three Weeks of Days. This Addition of Days in both places is evidently explanatory (a), and fheweth that Daniel here fpeaks of ordinary Weeks or Weeks of Days, and not of such weeks as in the foregoing Chapter are spoken of as prophetical Weeks, or Weeks of Years. That the Reader might not be mistaken herein, Daniel did farther explain himself (b) by fhewing in what words the Angel excus'd his not coming to him all that Time. The Angel told him that it was because the King of Perfia withstood him twenty one Days. These twenty one Days here fimply expreffed by their number of Days as Day were plainly the fame space of time with that otherwife before expreffed by three Weeks of Days. This Proof might be made yet ftronger if it were neceffary. But the matter is fo plain, that it is acknowledg'd perhaps univerfally by all Jews, and by all Chriftians before our Country-Man Sir John Marsham, who would by all means to have these twenty one Days of the Prophet to have been twenty one Years. But this affertion is equally true with that other (c) which he hath advanced with it, namely, that Daniel's Abftinence in this tenth Chapter was the fame with his fafting in fackcloth and afbes mentioned in the foregoing Chapter. But furely he might as well have faid that the third Year of Cyrus was the fame with the firft of Darius, as he must have faid were he to have spoken here to any purpose; (and would his furprizing Hypothefis here [See note c] have allowed of it:) for this Faft was in the first year of Darius (d). And that Abftinence was in the third year of Cyrus (e). The Texts are express therein; and that in Daniel's evident fucceffive reckoning of the reigns of thofe Kings, as I fhall have occafion to fhew very fully hereafter (f). Where (a) So Abarbinel, and R. David Kimchi. See Wagenfel. p. 51---54. (b) ver. 13. (c) Another fuch Affertion is that of Sir J. Marsham's, of his telling us of another King between Darius and Cyrus, whereas according to Daniel there was no other King between: for the Prophet was careful to tell us that after Darius's death, the next King was Cyrus the Perfian. [Ch. vi. 28.] But here between, Sir J. M. hath clapt in the Abafuerus in the book of Esther, to whom he hath given a long reign of forty two years. [Can. Chron. p. 590.] Alas! where did he think Daniel was all that time? A like vain attempt is that of his bringing Daniel's four Vifions to terminate in one and the fame thing, and that to be only the prophaning the second Temple, by setting up Heathen Idolatry in it for three or four Years in Antiochus Epiphanes his time; and to make this third Vifion of no other ufe, but only to be a Chronology for it. And for his beginning the first vii Weeks of the lxx in the first year of Darius, what ftrange fancies he had to make him to be a Medo-Perfian, that was made King over the realm of the Chaldeans, as he faith, at Sufa, by taking that City and Kingdom from King Nebuchadnezzar, who for all that, within four or five years after, by this Gentleman's telling, ran mad with excefs of Profperity ?------These things are noted here occafionally, to fhew that Gentle. man's followers that he is not infallible. I fhall have farther occafion to obferve other inftances hereof in fuch matters as Mr Lancafter hath followed him, though in them they are both evidently mistaken. (d) Dan. ix. 1. (e) ch. x. I. (f) vix, in the next Chapter, wherein Mr. L. hath giv'n us occafion to fhew his great miftake in confounding the first year of the reign of Cyrus with the first of his Uncle, and Fatherin-law Darius. |