August 28: OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE WAR (part 2)
And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; And the people of the prince who is to come Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, and till the end of the war desolations are determined. Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; But in the middle of the week He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate, Even until the consummation, which is determined, Is poured out on the desolate. Daniel 9:26-27
The climactic 70th week points to the Messiah with such pinpoint accuracy that, even today, Jews who study chapter 9 of Daniel are pronounced by their rabbis to be under a deadly curse. At the pinnacle of that seven-year period—exactly at the center—is the cross of Christ. And Jews are finding Him there!
We continue to examine the A/B format of these two verses. Yesterday we looked at the A (Jesus) and the B (Rome under Satan’s influence) of verse 26. We also looked at the A (Jesus) of verse 27. Now we will look a bit more closely at the B of verse 27.
And on the wing of abominations… A poetic reference to the chosen symbol of Rome: the eagle. Satan, for lack of creativity, counterfeits in order to put himself forward in the place of God (see Exodus 19:4; Isaiah 40:31). The counterfeiter’s methods of bringing abominations onto center stage are revealed in the way of Balaam: teaching leaders to lead the people of God into disobedience.
…shall be one who makes desolate… The one who makes desolate is Satan. When people are led astray by his deceptions to the point of preferring them over God’s truth, the Holy Spirit sadly turns away.*
Even until the consummation, which is determined, Is poured out on the desolate. Daniel’s book makes clear that the evil presence represented by Rome will be here until the LORD Himself consumes him and his body of followers (2:35,45; 7:11,26; 8:25; 11:45). The end, which is determined, is in sight!
While the truth of prophecy marches onward, it is God’s intention for each individual to perceive the reality of spiritual warfare and exercise their free choice regarding which side of the war he/she will join. Day-by-day, there is increasing exposure of how our spiritual archenemy works through people.
The end of the 70th week (the fall of 34AD) marked the close of probation for the Jews as a nation (Acts 7:57, Jeremiah 11:10-11). Mercy lingered for several years after the cross, but the stubborn Jews continued in the old sacrificial system, ignoring the sacrifice of Christ. In 70AD the temple finally went down. The fire that drove the Jews out to be slaughtered also melted the gold in the temple. After the fire went out and the gold cooled, Roman soldiers turned over every stone to retrieve the gold.
And Jesus said to [His disciples], “Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.” Matthew 24:2
Note: Volumes could be written on today’s passage. The seventy-week block of time (490 years) allotted to the Jews were perfectly fulfilled, exactly as the subdivisions of this time were described. The starting point to begin the count began in 457BC with the command of Artaxerxes (specifying the restoration of Jerusalem). The previous two—for the restoration of the temple—were preliminary. The “exodus” out of Babylon was “piece meal” and unimpressive as compared to the one out of Egypt, revealing how comfortable God’s people had become in Babylon during the 70-year exile. Sadly, most Christians are quite comfortable in the spiritual Babylon of today.
*Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is a deliberate rejection of truth from God and blocks the gift of the Spirit’s convicting power for repentance (Genesis 6:3; Matthew 7:22-23; 12:31; John 12:35; 1 Thessalonians 5:19; 2 Thessalonians 2:10)