Commentaries:
Adam Clarke
And for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate - This clause is remarkably obscure. kenaph shikkutsim meshomem , "And upon the wing of abominations causing amazement." This is a literal translation of the place; but still there is no determinate sense. A Hebrews MS., written in the thirteenth century, has preserved a very remarkable reading here, which frees the place from all embarrassment. Instead of the above reading, this valuable MS. has ubeheychal yihyey shikkuts ; that is, "And in the temple (of the Lord) there shall be abomination." This makes the passage plain, and is strictly conformable to the facts themselves, for the temple was profaned; and it agrees with the prediction of our Lord, who said that the abomination that maketh desolate should stand in the holy place, Matthew 24:15, and quotes the words as spoken , by Daniel the prophet. That the above reading gives the true sense, there can be little doubt, because it is countenanced by the most eminent ancient versions.
The Vulgate reads, Et erit in templo abominatio , "And in the temple there shall be abomination."
The Septuagint, ̔ , "And upon the temple there shall be the abomination of desolation."
The Arabic, "And upon the sanctuary there shall be the abomination of ruin."
The above reading is celebrated by J. D. Michaelis, Epist. De Ebdom. Dan., p. 120: Vix insignius exemplum reperiri posse autumem, ostensuro in codicibus Hebraeis latere lectiones dignissimas quae eruantur , etc. "A more illustrious example can, I think, hardly be found, to show that various readings lie hid in Hebrew MSS., which are most worthy of being exhibited." Vid. Bib. Hebrews Kennicott, Dis. Gen.
I have only to add that this mode of reckoning years and periods by weeks is not solely Jewish. Macrobius, in his book on Scipio' s dream, has these remarkable words: Sed a sexta usque AD septimam septimanam fit quidem diminutio, sed occulta, et quae detrimentum suum aperta defectione non prodat: ideo nonnullarum rerumpublicarum hic mos est, ut post sextam AD militiam nemo cogatur ; Somn. Scip., lib. 1 c. vi., in fine. "From the sixth to the seventh week, there is a diminution of strength; but it is hidden, and does not manifest itself by any outward defect. Hence it was the custom in some republics not to oblige a man to go to the wars after the sixth week, i.e., after forty-two years of age."
Various Readings of Daniel 9:24-27
Having now gone through the whole of this important prophecy, and given that interpretation which the original seemed best to warrant, I shall next proceed to notice the principal various readings found in the Collections of Kennicott and De Rossi, with those from my own MSS., which the reader may collate with the words of the common printed text.
Daniel 9:24
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Daniel 9:25
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Daniel 9:26
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Daniel 9:27
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Houbigant' s Translation of Daniel 9:24-27
Of the whole passage Houbigant gives the following translation: -
Daniel 9:24
Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people, and the city of thy sanctuary:
That sin may be restrained, and transgressions have an end;
That iniquity may be expiated, and an everlasting righteousness brought in;
That visions and prophecies may be sealed up, and the Holy of holies anointed.
Daniel 9:25
Know therefore and understand: -
From the edict which shall be promulgated, to return and rebuild Jerusalem, there shall be seven weeks.
Then it shall be fully rebuilt, with anxiety, in difficult times.
Thence, to the Prince Messiah, there shall be sixty-two weeks.
Daniel 9:26
And after sixty-two weeks the Messiah shall be slain, and have no justice.
Afterwards he shall waste the city and the sanctuary, by the prince that is to come.
And his end shall be in straits; and to the end of the war desolation is appointed.
Daniel 9:27
And for one week he shall confirm a covenant with many;
And in the middle of the week he shall abrogate sacrifice and offering; And in the temple there shall be the abomination of desolation,
Until the ruin which is decreed rush on after the desolation.
In this translation there are some peculiarities.
Instead of "the street shall be built again, and the wall," Daniel 9:26, he translates (with the prefix beth instead of vau in the latter word), "it shall be fully (the city and all its walls) rebuilt with anxiety."
Instead of "but not for himself," he translates, "Nor shall justice be done him;" supposing that "justice" was originally in the verse.
Instead of "the people of the prince," Daniel 9:26, he translates "by the prince," using im as a preposition, instead of am , "the people."
Instead of "and for the overspreading," he translates "in the temple;" following the Septuagint, ̔ . This rendering is at least as good as ours: but see the marginal readings here, and the preceding notes.
Houbigant contends also that the arrangement of the several members in these passages is confused. He proposes one alteration, which is important, viz., From the promulgation of the decree to rebuild Jerusalem shall be seven weeks; and unto Messiah the prince, sixty-two weeks. All these alterations he vindicates in his notes at the end of this chapter. In the text I have inserted Houbigant' s dots, or marks of distinction between the different members of the verses.
Various Readings
Daniel 9:24
weeks written full, so to prevent mistakes, in thirteen of Kennicott' s, four of De Rossi' s, and one ancient of my own.
Seventy-one of Kennicott' s, and one of De Rossi' s, have "weeks, weeks, weeks;" that is, "many weeks:" but this is a mere mistake.
"to restrain." "to consume," is the reading of twenty-nine of Kennicott' s, thirteen of De Rossi' s, and one ancient of my own.
"and to seal up." Forty-three of Kennicott' s, twelve of De Rossi' s, and one of my own, have "to make an end." One reads , more full.
"sins." "sin," in the singular, is the reading of twenty-six of De Rossi' s; and so, in the second instance where this word occurs, two of my MSS.
"everlasting." Two of my oldest MSS read , and so in the next instance.
"and the prophet." The conjunction is omitted by two of Kennicott' s.
"and understand." One of my MSS. has .
Daniel 9:25
"from the publication." One MS. of De Rossi' s omits the "from," and instead of either, one of my oldest MSS. has "to the publication."
"Messiah." Nine MSS. read the word with the point sheva, which makes it read, in regimine , "the anointed of the prince." But this is evidently the effect of carelessness, or rather design.
"seven." Two MSS. add the conjunction vau , "and."
"and to build." One of mine omits the conjunction.
"seven weeks." One of Kennicott' s has "seventy years."
"and weeks." One of Kennicott' s has and a week."
"sixty." A few add the conjunction vau , "and sixty;" and another has "six;" and another "seventy." Wherever this word signifies weeks, two of my oldest MSS. write it full . In one of my MSS. are omitted in the text, but added by a later hand in the margin.
"and the ditch." One MS. has "the city." And for "street," one of mine has of the same meaning, but more full.
"and in straits," or anxiety. One MS. without and, as the Vulgate and Septuagint.
Daniel 9:26
"and the holy place or sanctuary." But two of my most ancient MSS., and four of Kennicott' s, leave out the vau , and read "and the holy city," or "city of holiness," instead of "the city and sanctuary." In one MS. is omitted in .
"and its end." One MS. omits the conjunction and; one omits the following "the end;" reading thus:" and unto the war." But a more singular reading is that of one of my own MSS. written about a.d. 1136, which has "and its summer."
"sixty." But one of Kennicott' s MSS. has "sixty weeks;" and another adds the conjunction, And sixty.
shall destroy." But one of De Rossi' s has "shall be destroyed."
"the people." im , "with," is the reading of one of Kennicott' s, with the Septuagint, Theodotion, Syriac, Hexapla, Vulgate, and Arabic.
"with a flood." One MS. has "the flood."
"and upon the wing." Nearly twenty MSS. have "and unto," etc.
Daniel 9:27
"and unto the end." ־ "to the end;" and one has "and upon."
"the end." One has "the time;" and another both, "the time of the end."
"and upon the wing (or battlement) abomination." Instead of this, one of the Parisian MSS. numbered three hundred and thirteen in Kennicott' s, has "and in the temple there shall be abomination." See the preceding notes. This is a similar reading to Theodotion, the Vulgate, Septuagint, Syriac, Hexapla, and the Arabic; and is countenanced by our Lord, Matthew 24:15. After all that has been said on this reading, (which may be genuine, but is less liable to suspicion, as the MS. appears to be the work of some Christian; it is written from the left to the right hand, and is accompanied by the Vulgate Latin), if this be an attempt to accommodate the Hebrew to the Vulgate, it should be stated that they who have examined this MS. closely, have asserted that there is no evidence that the writer has endeavored to conform the Hebrew to the Latin text, unless this be accounted such. The ancient versions give this reading great credit.
"abominations." One of mine has less fully .
"desolation." One of mine has more fully .
"and unto," is wanting in one of mine;
"and upon" is the reading in one other.
"until the desolation." "the desolation." One of mine has without the vau . is wanting; but is added in the margin, by a later hand, in another of these ancient MSS.
I have thus set down almost all the variations mentioned by Kennicott and De Rossi, and those furnished by three ancient MSS. of my own, that the learned reader may avail himself of every help to examine thoroughly this important prophecy. Upwards of thirty various readings in the compass of four verses, and several of them of great moment.
Other Adam Clarke entries containing Daniel 9:27:
Daniel 9:25
Daniel 9:25
Daniel 9:27
Daniel 9:27
Daniel 9:27
Daniel 9:27
Daniel 9:27
Daniel 11:36
Matthew 26:54
Mark 1:15
John 2:13
John 12:34
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