And he shall confirm a covenant with the many [for] one week; and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and because of the protection of abominations [there shall be] a desolator, even until that the consumption and what is determined shall be poured out upon the desolate.
Commentary for this Verse
Daniel's last "week" of seven years fits into one verse. It holds a covenant, a betrayal halfway through, an idol, and judgment that runs to the end. Everything turns on one question — who is the "he" who makes this covenant?
Not the Messiah, but the Coming Prince
Older English translations said "the covenant," and many readers took that to mean Christ. The length of the agreement rules that out.
William KellyNow I ask those who argue that Christ was meant, what sense does that give here? One week can mean nothing but a period of seven years. Was the new covenant ever made for seven years? ... For Christ's is an everlasting covenant — this is only made for seven years. When and how did Christ make a covenant for seven years?
The "he" points back to the prince of verse 26, whose people destroyed the city and the temple. The mention of sacrifice also shows what must be standing again when he acts.
Edward DennettSo the claim is this. The future head of the revived Roman empire will make a covenant with "the many," that is, with most of the Jews, who by that time will be back in their own land. The mention of the sacrifice and the offering puts it beyond doubt that Jerusalem is in view, and that the temple has been rebuilt.
The Week That Was Never Counted
Sixty-nine weeks ran to the cutting off of the Messiah. The events of verse 26 — His death, then the ruin of the city — sit between the sixty-ninth week and this one.
The Bible TreasuryThese seventy weeks relate to Daniel's people and to Jerusalem. The church period, then, in which we now are, is no part of those weeks. As a matter of fact it is a gap between Daniel 9:26 and Daniel 9:27... So the whole present period is a gap. It runs from the cutting off of the Messiah to the appearance of the Roman prince who confirms a covenant with the many, and it forms no part of the seventy weeks.
"The Many" — and the Few Who Refuse
The covenant is not with the whole nation. The wording itself draws a line through the people.
William J HockingHe makes this agreement, not with all the Jews, but with "the many," that is, with most of the people, in contrast with the few, the "little flock."
Commentators point to the motive behind the deal. The nation refused God's foundation, so it looks for shelter under the strongest power it can find.
W. TrotterThey have refused the foundation God laid in Zion. So they will seek shelter under the wing of the one to whom Satan will then have given his seat, his authority, and his great power. (See Rev. 13:2.) But their covenant with death will be "annulled, and their agreement with hell will not stand." Daniel 9:27 refers to this.
The Betrayal at the Midpoint
Halfway through the seven years, the protector turns on the people he promised to protect.
Hamilton SmithThe Jews will lean on this man for protection from other enemies. Then he himself becomes their great enemy. He breaks his own covenant. In the middle of the week, at the end of three and a half years, "he shall cause the sacrifice and the offering to cease."
The Wing of Abominations and the Desolator
The next clause is hard, and translations differ. Several read "the wing of abominations" as the sheltering of idols, which then brings down a destroyer.
L. M. GrantMatthew 24:15 calls this image "the abomination of desolation." It will "stand in the holy place," the Jewish temple, as a bold challenge to the authority of God. Daniel 9:27 calls this image "the wing of abominations." That phrase points to the sheltering of idols. Because of this God sends "a desolator," the King of the North, against Israel.
How the Week Ends
The verse closes with judgment poured out to the end. But the end of the seventieth week is not the end of the story.
William KellyThat week still waits to be fulfilled in due time... the last week belongs to the Roman opponent of Christ. He is the future political head of the Roman empire, and he makes a covenant with the mass of Daniel's people, in Daniel's holy city. But that seventieth week ends with the Messiah coming in power and glory. Some will help and some will hinder, and Jerusalem will be full of wickedness. God will still keep every promise.
Summary
- Covenant — The deal lasts seven years, so it cannot be Christ's everlasting covenant. The maker is the coming prince of verse 26.
- Gap — The count stopped when the Messiah was cut off. The present period falls between verses 26 and 27, and no week covers it.
- Crowd — The deal is struck with "the many," the mass of the nation; a faithful minority stands outside it.
- Collapse — Halfway through, the protector breaks his word and stops the sacrifices. An idol then stands in the holy place.
- Consummation — Judgment runs to the end. Then the week closes with the Messiah coming in glory, and every promise kept.