Israel's Future, Pt 1

Daniel 9:20‑24

Tonight I want to draw your attention back to the ninth chapter of Daniel where we left off three months ago.  And we got through the first 19 verses before we went away and we're going to pick it right up  there for our Bible study tonight.  What a great week it's been for me in the adventure of this tremendous tremendous chapter.  In fact, this afternoon, I spent a couple of hours just reading through another paper dealing with the intricacies of the prophecy of this particular text, just to fill my mind with even more of the wonderful things that the Spirit of God has given us here.

As 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."  A powerful statement, monumental prophecy and you'll see as it begins to unfold.  Frankly, I want to tell you at the beginning, we're not going to get through the whole thing tonight; it's just too rich, there's too much in it.  We're going to take our time so that you can understand the fullness of all the Spirit of God is saying.

Now let me remind you of the scene a little bit as we approach the ninth chapter of Daniel because it's been a few months since we talked about this and you may need some refreshing.  You remember, that after the reign of Solomon, the kingdom of Israel was divided into two parts:  the northern kingdom known as Israel, the southern kingdom known as Judah.  Israel had been taken into a form of captivity and they were dispersed and never really returned.  So, Israel at this particular time is out of existence as such, that is the northern kingdom.  The southern kingdom of Judah, the southern half of the divided kingdom has also been taken into captivity, this by the nation Babylon.

There were a series of three deportations.  Nebuchadnezzar came, first of all, in about 605, or 606, and he carried away the young men of the nobles and the princes, among them a young man named Daniel and his three friends‑‑Mishael, Hananiah and Azariah who became known as Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in Babylonian terms.  So, the nation of Judah, the people of God, had been captive in the land of Babylon.  Babylon was the first great Gentile world empire of which there would be four:  Babylon, Medo‑Persia, Greece and Rome.

Now Daniel, who was taken captive, because of the amazing commitment to God that he had and because of the marvelous quality of his character, had risen to become the prime minister of Babylon.  Even though he was a Jew in exile, his quality caused him to reach the very highest place in the land.  And so, Daniel, at this particular time in chapter 9, is the prime minister.

The Babylonian Empire has, however, been defeated.  And for one year the Medes and the Persians have been in power and the king by the name of Darius whom I believe is the same as Cyrus‑‑Darius being a title rather than a name‑‑is in power.  And so we find then, at this particular time, that the people of God had been in captivity for nearly 70 years.  They‑ have endured the Babylonian Empire and the fall of the Babylonian Empire and they are now living under the power of the Medo‑Persians.

Interestingly enough, Daniel again, because of the prowess of his nature, because of the character of his life, because of the impact he had made on society, maintained his position in the Empire even though the structure of the Empire changed.  So, Daniel is still prime minister in a foreign land.

Some scholars believe it's about 537 B.C., or so.  And Israel has been captive, or Judah has been captive, nearly 70 years by now.  In fact, some believe from the first deportation, it's in the sixty‑ninth year.

And since Daniel was in the first deportation, he's very concerned that the 70 years is fast coming to an end, for Daniel had been exposed to the writings of Jeremiah.

Look back at verse 2 of chapter 9.  "In the first year of the reign of Cyrus, or Darius, the son of Ahasuerus, I Daniel understood by books the number of the years.  He was reading in the Old Testament canon, "...Concerning which the Word of the Lord came to Jere