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Well now; we know who is the "first anointed" who was to come after 49 years so now let us focus out attention on the "second" who was to be "cut off" at or near the destruction of the Second Temple at the culmination of the 490 years.
The KJV translators render v. 26 the following way:
"... shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself ..." (v.26). Once again, the verse should not read "Messiah," but "an anointed one" as we have discussed the absence of capital letters in the Hebrew texts above and past articles. Additionally, the Hebrew phrase translated here as "not for himself" should read, "and there will be nothing to him" or "he will have nothing." Even the conservative Christian scholar, Dr. John Walvoord, states that the phrase "is probably best translated 'There is nothing for him'" (Walvoord, John.Daniel, p. 230) The significance of this will be discussed further on.
There is also the issue concerning the Hebrew word karet, which means "to cut off." Although there are a couple of instances in the Hebrew scriptures when this word refers to a righteous person (see 1 Kings 18:3,4; Jer. 44:7), in all other instances karet refers to an unrighteous person or to someone who has committed an unrighteous act. In the context of this verse, it seems clear that the one being "cut off" is not righteous, as the qualifying phrase, "he will have nothing," would be difficult to consider as referring to a righteous person. We will return to this point later in our studies when we deal with the identities of these two "anointed" ones.....one righteous and one unrighteous; one royalty and one not.
I find it rather amusing that the second "anointed" one that was "to have nothing" left to himself was unrighteous and that Christian commentators for centuries wish to make this be fulfilled in Jesus. Kind of ironic when you think of it.
26 And after the threescore and two weeks shall an anointed one be cut off, and be no more; and the people of a prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; but his end shall be with a flood; and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.
This 62 week period begins with Cyrus's (the Lord's first anointed) one year after Darius roughly in the year 3389. If we are to count these 434 years we come roughly to 3823 or so which is about 7 years before the destruction of the Second Temple. Without an understanding of who is anointed and Biblical history of the period then it is impossible to understand the events that unfolded in the fulfillment of this prophecy.
The original Hebrew refers to "an anointed" or a "messiah" first coming after 49 years following the decree and not some 483 years later as the Christian interpretation of these same Hebrew texts leads up to believe. The Hebrew texts also refer that 62 weeks or 434 years following this first "anointed one" that a second "anointed" will be cut off. This happens 3 1/2 years into the last week of years when the Temple sacrifices were stopped by Rome and the function of the Priesthood ceases. More on that in a minute.
Another major difficulty is that according to the simple, untwisted translation of verse 26, two events were to occur after the 62 weeks:
We must stop and notice that again the grammar is very important for Hebrew translation we find a "comma" used connecting two events in the same time period: the cutting off of an anointed at the same time the sanctuary is destroyed.
As you know, Jerusalem was destroyed in 70 A.D., which is 38 years after the death of Jesus which is more than five "weeks" off [over 38 years late]. The death of Jesus and the destruction of the Temple & Sadducee Priesthood were not a the same time period and passage as you can see cannot refer to Jesus as the fulfillment. Besides that Jesus did not come 49 years following the decree to restore and build Jerusalem. So on both counts so far Jesus cannot be the fulfillment of the Hebrew Scriptures according to the Hebrew Scriptures.
There is no acceptable answer for these missing five weeks according to the Christian interpretation and this other event of an anointed being cut off as applying to Jesus cannot possibly be the fulfillment at it happened 38 years too early!
Another difficulty is that the Jewish year is not really 360 days long. While the months are based on the lunar patterns, the years must coincide with the solar system. You only need consult Maimonides, Laws of Kiddush HaChodesh 1:1, 2 to see this, or simply study the Jewish calendar. You will see that since the solar year exceeds the lunar year by around 11 days, there will be an extra month added around every three years. Thus 445 B.C. plus 483 years (69 X 7) ends up 38 A.D., and by then everyone admits that Jesus was already dead.
Answer for yourself: So knowing this who is this "anointed" who is to be "cut off" in 70 A.D.?
Answer for yourself: When the Temple was destroyed in 70 A.D. what else ceased?
Well it should not be that hard to figure out when you realize that only 3 things were anointed by the L-rd in the Old Testament times:
Answer for yourself: So since Israel did not any longer have a King and since according to the Rabbis the Spirit of Prophecy has ceased in Israel then what remains as the only possible thing that was "anointed"? The Sadducee priesthood ceased at the same time as the destruction of the Temple. There you have the complete understanding of the "anointed" which was "cut off" in 70 A.D.
In closing let us look at the Hebrew word of "cut off":
If we look at the Strongs' Lexicon we find:
3772 karath (kaw-rath'); a primitive root; to cut (off, down or asunder); by implication, to destroy or consume; specifically, to covenant (i.e. make an alliance or bargain, originally by cutting flesh and passing between the pieces): KJV-- be chewed, be con- [feder-] ate, covenant, cut (down, off), destroy, fail, feller, be freed, hew (down), make a league ([covenant]), X lose, perish, X utterly, X want.
Answer for yourself: What do you see in this word study? You should see two basic ideas:
No where in this word is the idea of murder or killing of an individual that can be applied to a person but instead we find the idea of the destruction of a covenant.
Answer for yourself: Did the Sadducee Priesthood have their own special covenant with God? They sure did and it goes all the way back to the Levites and their refusal to worship the golden calf and God separated them out for His very own ever since. And following 70 A.D. the Sadducees (the Priests) & their Covenant with God ceased to exist as did their function in Israel since the Temple was destroyed. Since Priests were anointed then we clearly see how these "anointed ones" were destroyed along with the Temple and both events happened at the same time as the Hebrew prophecies said they would. To make this refer to Jesus again makes such fulfillment occur some 35 years or so too late! The Priesthood vanished along with the Temple and the prophecy of Daniel 9 was fulfilled: first with Cyrus in 49 years and the Priesthood being destroyed much later.
Another difficulty is that the Christians, for lack of a better answer, claim that the 70th week will take place when Jesus returns in his second coming as a king. The problem was caused because Daniel mentioned a total of 70 weeks, and then he specified 7 plus 62, leaving one remaining. The traditional Christian interpretation says that the first 69 weeks were consecutive, then there is at least a 1900 year gap, and sooner or later the 70th week will occur. This is obviously a very forced explanation, born of desperation. Again not only the grammar and punctuation of the Hebrew Scriptures reveal no break in the sequence of time here as it did before with the use of a "semicolon." The time runs consecutively according to Hebrew exegesis.
Answer for yourself: But what of the last 7 years period?
Well this is where you need to know Biblical history in order to understand this part of the prophecy. Roman and Jewish history records for us that 7 years before the 2nd Temple was destroyed Rome, who was occupying Palestine, agreed to allow the Jewish people and priests to maintain the sacrificial system and services. Joseph records that Nero wanted to stop these sacrifices and the sages of Israel pleaded with Nero that they be allowed to continue the sacrifices. Nero relents and allows Israel and the priesthood to continue the sacrificial system. Then 3 1/2 years later, in the middle of the Hebrew week of years, Rome broke that covenant and agreement that they had made with Israel and the priesthood.
27 And he shall make a firm covenant with many for one week; and for half of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the offering to cease; and upon the wing of detestable things shall be that which causeth appalment; and that until the extermination wholly determined be poured out upon that which causeth appalment.
What we find here is that again this prophecy was fulfilled when Rome violated their agreement or covenant if you wish with the priests of Israel. "He" refers in this passage to the picture of Rome in the use of a singular pronoun which is not uncommon in Hebrew. It is recorded that the Jews often traded with the Romans for lambs so that they could continue the sacrifices but as the soon as the lambs ran out the only animal that they had was pigs and the sacrifices was stopped. This [only having pigs to offer as sacrifices] refers to the "destestable things shall be that causeth appalment" to the sad condition to which Israel and the Temple had fallen. But this was not the end. The "extermination wholly determined" upon Israel had yet to be played out and this further degradation of the Temple and Israel causes "appalment." Hadrian would erect upon the site where the Temple had stood and idol worship would not take place on the very spot where God's Shekinah had once resided.
Now you know the truth about Daniel 9.
Please share this article as well as our other articles with your friends and Pastors as it is way past time to find out about the corruption of the Hebrew Bibles in it's translation and the forgeries and doctored versions we have today that force "fulfilled prophecies" and apply them to Jesus when they never referred to or were fulfilled by him in the first place. Let us both desire to want to know the truth about Jesus, the true Messianic prophecies, and why they were not fulfilled by Jesus or anyone else for that matter and what implications that holds for Jesus as the possible Messiah in waiting....waiting for us to merit the Kingdom of God and Israel's King.
At least three possible decrees may serve as the "terminus pro quo" (starting point) of the 70 "weeks"
This is the viewpoint that I believe is most accurate and discussed in this paper.
a) For Ezra to restore the Law and its worship b) Starting here, 490 Julian years would end the 70 weeks around 33 A.D. c) But 490 lunar years end the 70 weeks around 26 A.D. (seven years too early for Jesus' death) -- This decree is preferred by some amillenialists who hold to a literal 490 years, but not lunar years (Haley's Bible Handbook) But if we take into consideration what we learned in the Hebrew texts about the breaks in the 490 years by the diacritical Hebrew markers then such dating is worthless.
a) For Nehemiah to build the city b) Starting here, 490 lunar years end the 70 weeks around 38 A.D. c) This would place the start of the 70th week near the beginning of Jesus' public ministry (ca. 30 A.D.) d) There are problems with the first 7 weeks ending around 396 B.C., which some contend is too late for the restoration of the city. But if we take into consideration what we learned in the Hebrew texts about the breaks in the 490 years by the diacritical Hebrew markers then such dating is worthless.
So for obvious reasons I believe the Jewish interpretation of their own history and Bible is the most correct!
Over the last several articles we have seen how Christendom claims that the "end days Messiah" had to have come before the destruction of the Second Temple and this Messiah could only be Jesus of Nazareth. They used Daniel 9 in the KJV and other Christian translations for their understanding of this belief. The problem with this as I have shown repeatedly in these articles is that the texts of the Christians are manipulated and altered in order to slant the reader to assume these prophecies refer to Jesus when they don't. But when reading Daniel 9 and not knowing the Hebrew language nor reading the Hebrew Bible and texts and only reading the KJV or other Christian translations then it is easy to read these altered English translations and assume Jesus is the fulfillment of the passage.
However, we have seen repeatedly in these articles that upon close scrutiny and examination we found that Daniel 9 is a prophecy that deals mainly with the Babylonian exile, the punishment upon Israel for breaking the Sabbath year, and culminates with such punishment with the destruction of the Second Temple. Along the way we saw God's mercy and his justice; namely releasing Israel to return to their land in only 70 years but again enduring punishment during the Second Temple period that finally culminates in its destruction as well as the anointed Priesthood (the second anointed that is cut off). , Any allusion to the Messianic Age is secondary and nowhere do we find any reference to the person of the "end days Messiah" or his death. Therefore, Daniel 9 cannot be used honestly to demonstrate a Messianic prophecy fulfilled by Jesus.
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