Deeper Reflection
“Seventy weeks have been decreed” for six spiritual realities to happen to God’s people (v.24), which can be summed up as “the accomplishment of God’s purpose for all history”¹⁶ . It was “decreed” by God – that is, “it is God’s unbreakable will and commitment.”¹⁷ Bible scholar Christopher Wright has rightly said, “It is difficult, in my view, to read verse 24 as a fitting description of any events that took place in the centuries after the fall of Babylon other than the events of the life, death, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ”¹⁸ .God promised that the total sin – “transgression”, “sin” and “iniquity” (cf. Psa 32:1-2; 51:1-2) – of His people will “finish” and come to “an end” (v.24). In Jeremiah, Israel’s unfaithfulness had reached a point where exile to Babylon became the will of God, and resistance against Nebuchadnezzar’s rule was considered rebellion against God (Jer 27:6-8). But central in Jeremiah is the hope of the “new covenant” promise of spiritual restoration, where “I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more” (Jer 31:31-34). Thus, Daniel prayed for God’s forgiveness (Dan 9:19). However, only the “atonement” made through Jesus’ death – “the new covenant in My blood” (Lk 22:20) – can “make an end of sin” (v.24). This “atonement for iniquity” results in “everlasting righteousness” – God’s righteousness through faith in Christ (Phil 3:9).¹⁹ And the climax of “vision and prophecy” (v.24) of God’s purpose in history is found in Revelation²⁰ : “the mystery of God is finished” (Rev 10:7), concluding with “I am coming quickly” (Rev 22:20).

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¹⁶ Joyce G. Baldwin, Daniel, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (IVP, 1978), 169 ¹⁷ “Christopher J. H. Wright, Hearing the Message of Daniel: Sustaining Faith in Today’s World (Zondervan, 2017), 208 ¹⁸ Christopher J. H. Wright, 208 ¹⁹ Joyce G. Baldwin, 169 ²⁰ Richard Bauckham’s studies on the Book of Revelation is entitled The Climax of Prophecy.