“THE PROPHETIC ENIGMA OF DANIEL 9,26”
“After the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut down with no one to help him. And the people of a leader who will come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. His end shall come in a flood; until the end of the war, which is decreed, there will be desolation” (Daniel 9,26)
Chapel of the Holy Sepulcher, Jerusalem
The Book of Daniel offers this singular prophecy that has fascinated theologians and historians alike. It predicts with astonishing precision the moment when the events of the work of Redemption would unfold.
The verse begins with an enigmatic phrase: “After the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut down.” This establishes a precise temporal framework for the death of the Messiah, an event that would mark a turning point in the history of the world.
A widely accepted interpretation holds that the sixty-two weeks mentioned in the prophecy can be added to the seven weeks of the previous verse. This results in a total of sixty-nine weeks, equivalent to 483 years. If these years are added to the date of Artaxerxes’ decree in Nehemiah 2:1-20, the resulting date aligns remarkably with the date of Jesus’ crucifixion.
Moreover, the prophecy boldly declares: “an anointed one shall be cut down” (“Anointed” or “Mashíaj” means Messiah), a fate unthinkable for the Messiah: his death; which, nevertheless, finds its fulfillment in the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ (Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23, John 19).
Furthermore, it continues by describing the consequences of the Messiah’s death: “And the people of a leader who will come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary….” This was historically fulfilled with the destruction by Roman forces of Jerusalem and the Temple in 70 A.D.
Prophet Daniel
The prophecy concludes with an apocalyptic description: “His end shall come in a flood; until the end of the war, which is decreed, there will be desolation….” For some, this destruction symbolizes the end of Jewish sacrifices and priestly mediation, replaced by the perfect and eternal sacrifice of Christ. For others, it represents a further elaboration of the announced destruction.
In summary, the prophecy of Daniel 9:26 is a fascinating enigma that presents a series of striking alignments with the life of Jesus: the temporal precision, the description of the Messiah’s fate, the consequences of his death, and the apocalyptic end make this prophecy a powerful testimony to the divinity of Christ and the veracity of Scripture.
By father Rafael Sanz, priest