Israel's Future, Part 1 B

You have a prophecy here that stretches from Daniel's day to the time when the Messiah comes, when He does away with sin and sins and He atones, and He establishes a kingdom of everlasting righteousness, and He ends visions and prophecies. Marvelous thought. Welcome to Grace to You with John MacArthur.

I'm your host, Phil Johnson. It's the target of near-constant terrorist attacks. Other countries vowed to wipe this nation off the map, and of course I'm talking about Israel. Find out what Scripture says about the hardship Israel has faced and the explosive events yet to unfold there, events that affect you. That's John MacArthur's focus today on Grace to You as he continues a study that looks at prophecy from the book of Daniel, prophecy that John has described as the most incredible in all of Scripture, and our series is titled The Future of Israel.

So here's John now with the lesson. We come to chapter 9 verses 20 through 27. We come to the most marvelous, exact, amazing prophecy in all of the Bible. It is in the mind of some writers the single greatest defense of the divine authorship of Scripture. In fact, Sir Isaac Newton once said, quote, we could stake the truth of Christianity on this prophecy alone, made five centuries before Christ, end quote. We could stake the truth of Christianity on this prophecy alone.

Powerful statement, monumental prophecy. Now as this unfolds to us from verses 20 to 27, I want you to see three features, three features and three main characters. Number one, the circumstances of Daniel. Number two, the coming of Gabriel. And number three, the communication of God. Three features, three main characters, the circumstances of Daniel, the coming of Gabriel, and the communication of God. Let's look first of all at the circumstances of Daniel in verse 20. And by the way, we find him in very familiar circumstances.

And while I was speaking and what? Praying. If ever there is a man in the Bible who is associated with praying, it is Daniel, is it not? In fact, he was so committed to prayer that it got him in a lion's den. Daniel was a man of prayer. Daniel was praying, so he was praying. So he was praying the circumstances of Daniel. Secondly, the coming of Gabriel. Verse 21, and this is really a wonderful text.

Look and see what happens. Yea, while I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me. Now what an amazing thing. Daniel is still praying, and the angel arrives before he's even done. Now that will give you a little idea how fast angels fly.

Heaven is not very far away when you have a supernatural body. Notice it says Gabriel, the man, or the man Gabriel. Now that is not to deny that he is an angel. It is only to identify him with the previous appearance in chapter 8 verse 16. Because in chapter 8 verse 16, you remember when Daniel was by the banks of the the banks of the river Uli, he heard a man's voice, and the man's voice called and said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision.

So when he came near where I stood, and when he came I was afraid and fell upon my face. And he said unto me, understand, O son of man, and so forth and so on. In the 8th chapter, Daniel confronted Gabriel, the angel, in a human form. And the reason he is called here the man Gabriel is probably best understood as a way of identifying him with the same visible form. You see, if he had come only as a spirit being, Daniel would not have known that it was Gabriel because Daniel wouldn't have known what Gabriel looked like. But it was Gabriel. And I believe that God wanted Daniel to know it was Gabriel.

Why? Because I believe Gabriel is a number one class A messenger angel. And Daniel was to know that this was a high priority delivery and that he was getting Gabriel. So the reference to the man Gabriel is not a denial that he's an angel, but it serves to link him with the vision of chapter 8 verses 15 and 16 where he appeared in the form of a man. And Daniel makes that comment when he says, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning. By the way, you might also note, too, that the word for man here, the word ish, is sometimes used of a servant. And it could be in that sense, too, that he's called the man insofar as he acts as a servant of God. And by the way, the word Gabriel, have you ever thought about that word? The last two letters of that word signify the name of whom?

Of God. And literally, eil means the strong one, God the strong one. And the first part of Gabriel comes from the Hebrew word, basically the word is gibber. And gibber means the strong one. So it is man the strong one, God the strong one, or it is the strong man of God, the strong one of the strong God.

That's his name. And he was the key heavenly messenger. Who was it who announced to Zacharias the birth of John the Baptist? Gabriel.

And he was the greatest man who ever lived up until his time. Jesus said that in Matthew 11.11, important announcement. Who was it who announced to Mary the birth of Jesus Christ in Luke 1.26?

Gabriel. Now, this is a repeated function of holy angels in the Scripture. Angels were involved in the revelation of the law to Moses.

You can find that in the seventh chapter of Acts in the sermon of Stephen. Zacharias says, there was an angel that talked to me and interpreted the visions from God. Much of the book of Daniel, much of the book of Revelation came through the mediation of angels. Angels were used as God's messengers.

Now back to verse 21. This angel was caused to fly swiftly. So fast he got there before Daniel finished praying.

And by the way, just keep this in mind. Angels literally are not omnipresent, so they have to go from somewhere to somewhere else, right? So it is a question of speed.

That's right, it's an issue of speed. In fact, we find also in Daniel, don't we, that God had dispatched one angel to deliver a word to Daniel, and the angel got held up in space by some demons, and the Lord had to send Michael to loose him so he could finish the journey. So angels go from somewhere to somewhere else.

And this one went fast. By the way, the only other angel named in the Bible is Michael. The only other good angel is Michael, and he's a super angel, champion angel, the leader of the heavenly forces.

The one other angel who's mentioned is Lucifer. But notice at the end of verse 21, it says that he touched me. He was so intent in prayer.

I think it indicates something of the posture of prayer. Daniel was so intensely involved in prayer, no doubt his eyes were closed, his head was bowed, and the angel had to touch him to wake him up, to make him alert to his presence. Then verse 22, and he informed me and talked with me and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding. And Gabriel speaks to him about his mission. Now, Daniel's prayer was not for understanding, and Daniel's prayer was not for skill, and really those two words mean very much the same.

It's very hard to distinguish the two. But Daniel wasn't asking for something for himself. Daniel wasn't asking for insight into the future. Daniel was not some kind of a lurid prophecy buff.

O Lord, just show me what it's going to be. I mean, what concern Daniel was the purpose and the plan of God, not the fascination of the future. But the angel said, I want to inform you. I've come, O Daniel, to give you skill and understanding.

The Lord wanted to assure Daniel of his unwavering purpose to fulfill all of his promises, and he wanted to assure Daniel fully so there would be no question in his mind. Verse 23, at the beginning of thy supplication, when you first started this process of prayer, and that's why some commentators believe it was when he began to fast because that was the real beginning of the prayer, even before he'd uttered the prayer. But at the beginning, whenever it was, early in the day, the commandment came forth. Where do you think it came from? It came from God.

All of the angel's commandments come from God. And I am come to show thee. Now get this, for thou art greatly beloved. Isn't that tremendous?

Tremendous thought. Just when you began to pray, the commandment came. Send him an answer and take it firsthand, and I want Gabriel to deliver it in person. Now, how in the world do you ever tap that kind of a divine resource? I think it has to do with the character of your prayer and the quality of your life.

The Word went out. And by the way, the Word is in verses 24 to 27, as we shall see. Gabriel was the divine agent.

Why? Why did God answer his prayer? Not only because he prayed as he should pray, but because he was what he should be. See it in verse 23, for thou art greatly beloved. Oh, what a thought that is.

What a thought that is. I think a good parallel, I just really thought of this, just this moment, is in the book of Jude. There's a wonderful little verse in Jude, verse 20.

You don't need to turn to it, just listen to it. It says this, But ye beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God. Now what do you mean, keep yourselves in the love of God?

Boy, initially, that's a scary statement, isn't it? What do I have to do to stay in the love of God? What is he saying? Is he saying that I can step outside the love of God?

Well, not in the ultimate sense, but I think the way to perceive that is this. There is, if you will, you draw a circle on the ground somewhere, just for the mental imagery, a great big wide circle, and assume that within that circle, and by the way, that circle has an O around it, and that stands for a great word in the New Testament. What is it? Obedience. So I call it the circle of obedience, but you draw this great big circle, and as long as you stand in it, that's where it reigns, the love of God. That's where the love of God is releasing blessing in the fullness.

Now, as long as you in the fullness. Now, as long as you stay within that circle, you are keeping yourself in the love of God. God's blessing is always going to be poured out on the obedient.

As soon as you step out of that circle and you begin to be disobedient, it isn't that God has stopped pouring out the blessing, it's just that you stepped outside of the parameters in which it's happening. It isn't that God says, oh, Daniel, I love you more than anybody else. What he's really saying is, Daniel, you are in a greater position than most to receive the blessing that I want to give all, but because of the character of their lives, I'm unable to do it. In other words, there's a certain kind of life that puts you dead center in the circle of the reigning of God's eternal blessing, and that's right where Daniel was. I don't know about you, but that's where I want to be.

You want to be there? I think about this, and then I think about John. He says, for thou art greatly beloved. And John, whenever he writes about himself, he says, and there was Peter, and there was Andrew, and there was James, and then there was the disciple whom, what? Jesus loved.

I mean, why call yourself John when you can call yourself that, right? And so Daniel, not only because his prayer life was so right, but because his character was so right, was greatly beloved by God. You know what that says to me also? That says to me that God has the capacity to respond to my obedience, that God actually does pour out blessing when I am obedient to Him. I want to be greatly beloved because I want to experience what that means for His glory. So he says in the end of verse 23, therefore, therefore, what? Because you're so greatly beloved, I want you to understand the matter and consider the vision.

You have to kind of get your thinking cap on and listen carefully and get it good. A better way to understand the word vision would be to translate it appearance because it isn't really a vision. This is the real angel Gabriel there in some kind of physical form. It's a real appearance of Gabriel rather than a vision. And so God sends His angel. We see the circumstances of Daniel and the coming of Gabriel.

That leads us, thirdly, to the communication of God, the communication of God. Verse 24 to 27, just listen to this, 70 weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city to finish the transgression and to make an end of sins and to make reconciliation for iniquity and to bring in everlasting righteousness and to seal up the vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy. Know therefore and understand that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the prince shall be seven weeks and threescore in two weeks.

The street shall be built again in the wall even in troubles times. And after threescore in two weeks shall Messiah be cut off but not for himself. And the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary and the end of it shall be with the flood and under the end of the war desolations are determined. And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease for the overspreading of the abominations he shall make it desolate even until the consummation and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.

Now do you know why the angel told him to listen carefully? You've read that many times and you probably don't understand everything that I just read. That is a very complex statement, highly complex and yet startlingly accurate.

Let me see if I can give you a little summary so you get a feel for it. First of all, the entire prophecy has to do with Daniel's people and Daniel's city, that is the nation of Israel and the city of Jerusalem. Secondly, there are two different princes mentioned. There is Messiah the Prince in verse 25 and there is the prince that shall come in verse 26.

One is Christ and one is Antichrist. Thirdly, the entire time period involved is exactly specified as 70 weeks, verse 24. And 70 weeks are divided into three sections. The first section is seven weeks, the next one is 62 weeks, and the last one is one week.

So you have three segments. The whole time period begins, according to verse 25, at the going forth of the commandment to restore and rebuild Jerusalem. The end of it all in verse 25 is when the Messiah the Prince comes.

Now, that's just a general view, and we'll see it as we go through this text. Look at verse 24. Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people.

Now, I want you to notice the word determined. This is a divine indication. This tells us that God has a plan, that God charts the course of history, that God has predetermined what's going on. It is the assumption of a comprehensive plan of God. In fact, the Hebrew word for determined is a most fascinating word.

It literally means to cut off something. And the idea is that in all of human history, in all of the flow of human history, God has cut off a segment of time and pulled it out for His own purposes with His own people. He has taken a period called 70 weeks and cut it off from the rest of history, and it is a period geared to the accomplishment of the deliverance of Israel. Notice again in verse 24 that it is thy people and thy holy city. Daniel had prayed in his prayer for the people. He had prayed for the city, and the answer came related to both. Now, what is the purpose of this prophecy? There are six purposes given in verse 24.

They are just astounding. First of all, the 70 weeks are cut out of history for God to work with your people and your city for these six objectives. Three are negative. Watch it.

And three are positive. Number one, to finish the transgression. Literally it means to restrain firmly the transgression. In the world in which we live today, sin has the freedom to express itself, but there's coming a day when that will not be the case. There's coming a day when every time sin rears its head, it'll be crushed with a rod of iron. It'll be firmly restrained, and the freedom of sin to express itself will be over. All apostasy will be over. All evil will come under divine control. And this seems to be a word, that is the word transgression, which has reference to a general perspective on sin. Now look at the second purpose. Not only to finish or to restrain firmly the transgression, but to make an end of sins, plural.

Not only is sin in total to be dealt with or in general, but sins in specific are to be dealt with as well. Now there's a lot of debate about what the verb means, to make an end. Some think it means to end. Some think it means to seal up. And every time the root word of to seal up is used, it speaks about divine judgment in the Bible.

It always assumes the idea of judgment. But the idea is that not only will God deal with sin as a totality, but God will deal with specific sins as well. In other words, there's a 70-week period of history, the end of which God will wipe out sin. Now that's a great finality in that thought.

Finally, the third negative statement. To finish the transgression, to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity. To make reconciliation for iniquity.

The verb is kapar. It simply means to cover iniquity, to cover sin. And literally, in the Hebrew, it is to atone for or to expiate. It is the normal Hebrew word for atonement. Now did you get it?

Now watch. There's coming a time when God is going to deal with sin in general, He's going to deal with sins in specific, and He's going to deal with it by bringing about an atonement for those sins. Summing up these three, they all refer to getting rid of sin. And that was a welcome word for it, Daniel, because it was sin that had brought Israel to captivity. The first deals with the idea of sin in general. The second, sin in specific. And the third tells how, by atonement. And I really believe that what Daniel sees, but doesn't see, what the Spirit of God speaks of here, here has to be the coming of Jesus Christ and His work on the cross. It was on the cross that sin in general was dealt with, right?

Even though the full application of that awaits His second coming. It was on the cross that sins in specific were dealt with as He bore them in His own body. It was on the cross that atonement was made. And so I see in those first three purposes of the 70 weeks a picture of the cross and its marvelous and amazing provision for sin. Then there are three positive purposes for the 70 weeks. Number one, to bring in everlasting righteousness.

What a great exchange. You do away with sin and you bring in everlasting righteousness. Literally, it is in the plural, it is the righteousness of the ages, the righteousness of the eons, the permanent righteousness of eternity. Righteousness takes permanent control.

Now mark this. The Jews never saw in the Old Testament the distinction between the first and second coming of Christ and the gap in between, so that you can have a prophecy in the Old Testament that comes to the cross and is followed immediately by an understanding of the kingdom, because the gap or the church age is a mystery. So the first three are how God is going to deal with sin, and the next three how He is going to establish eternal righteousness. The fifth one, it says He will seal up the vision and prophecy. In other words, there will come an end to revelation. There will come an end to prophecies. There will come an end to visions.

Why? Because in His great, glorious, and eternal kingdom, when it's finally established, we shall know as we are known. Revelation will cease. All knowledge will be ours. Some believe that, speaking of the completing of the New Testament, that it's saying that the New Testament canon will be finished. But I don't take that view for the reason that it says that there will be an end to prophecy, and prophecies and visions will occur in the time of the initiation of the kingdom, according to Joel 2. So there has to be room for that in the future. So I see this as the final consummation. And you can't get too picky about fitting it all in a little chronological thing. What the prophet is saying is there's coming a time when the Messiah will come, and the Messiah will end sin, and the Messiah will bring in the kingdom of everlasting righteousness, and there will be no need for us to be receiving little special revelations, because the Messiah will receive little special revelations, because everything will be disclosed to us.

Everything. And I think he sees, especially in a Jewish context, the glorification of the Jewish saints in the kingdom. Finally, and this is a good word at the end of verse 24, we'll stop with this, to anoint, now mark this the holy, or better, a holy of holies, or a most holy.

Now what is this? The best translation, beloved, is a holy of holies. And what it is saying is simple. The phrase holy of holies refers either to the holy of holies in the tabernacle, or the holy of holies in the temple. And I believe that what it's saying is that in the end, with everlasting righteousness and with full knowledge, and we shall know as we are known, there will also be the establishing of a kingdom temple. And all you have to do is read Ezekiel 40 to 48 to find that confirmation. This is the restored temple of the millennial kingdom.

So you get the picture, right? Summing it up, you have a prophecy here that stretches from Daniel's day to the time when the Messiah comes, when he does away with sin and sins, and he atones, and he establishes a kingdom of everlasting righteousness, and he ends visions and prophecies. Marvelous thought. And he builds a magnificent, incomparable millennial temple. This prophecy stretches from Daniel's day to the end. And the amazing thing is that the prophet tells us exactly how long it's going to be. 70 weeks.

70 weeks. That's John MacArthur, pastor, author, and chancellor of the Masters University and Seminary in the Los Angeles area. His current study here on Grace to You is titled, The Future of Israel. Well, today you saw the angel Gabriel make his first appearance in the Bible, appearing specifically to Daniel. And of course, John, looking ahead to the next major event in biblical prophecy, someone far more glorious and powerful is coming, and his appearing will be anything but private.

Well, that's right. His coming will be seen by everyone. Every eye will see him, everybody who's alive at the time our Lord comes. You know, people say, well, I'm not sure about the book of Revelation. I'm not sure about the book of Daniel. I'm not sure about the future. There are lots of different views.

Let me help you. There's one biblical view. That's right. The Bible teaches one eschatological scheme, and it's laid out clearly and simply. I've pulled everything that the Bible says about the second coming together in a manageable form in a book called, The Second Coming. That's the title, The Second Coming.

And it answers questions like, is Christ coming imminent? What about the rapture of the church? What about the tribulation? What's going to happen in the tribulation?

What are the signs to look for? Do we know when this is going to happen? All of that. We answer questions about amillennial, premillennial, pretribulational discussions. It's all in this one book, The Second Coming. It's a great help in our series on the future of Israel, because we're going to answer a lot of questions in the series, but we're going to raise some.

This book would give you the answers you need. So order a copy from our ministry. It'll take the confusion out. The title of the book, The Second Coming, available in soft cover from Grace To You, affordably priced.

That's right, friend. John's book, The Second Coming, is an ideal complement to this current radio study. It will help take the mystery out of prophecy and show you how you can live a life pleasing to God as you wait for Christ to come again. This book can also help you share the hope of Christ's return with others. To pick up a copy of The Second Coming, contact us today. You can order the book by calling 800-55-GRACE or go to our website, gty.org.

The book costs $15 and shipping is free. Again, to order John's book, The Second Coming, call 800-55-GRACE or visit our website, gty.org. And, friend, today may not be your first day listening to Grace To You, but it may be for others. Some of them may have just found this station.

Some of them may be new believers. Radio offers a wide and changing audience, and we are able to reach those people because of the support of listeners like you. If you'd like to partner with us, mail your tax-deductible donation to Grace To You, Box 4000, Panorama City, California 91412. You can also donate online at gty.org or call us at 800-55-GRACE. And be sure to take advantage of the thousands of free resources that are available at our website. That includes blog articles, daily devotionals from John, more than 3,600 sermons, all of it free to download. Our website again, gty.org. Now for John MacArthur, I'm Phil Johnson. Invite a friend to tune in tomorrow as John continues to unpack the future of Israel. It's another 30 minutes of unleashing God's truth one verse at a time on Grace To You.