OET interlinear DAN 9:27

9:27a

And he will confirm a covenant with many for one week: The subject of the clause he will confirm a covenant is not made explicit. It may be God or the Messiah, or it may be the foreign ruler mentioned in 9:26b. It is good to leave this ambiguous, as the BSB has done.

he will confirm a covenant with many: The Hebrew clause that the BSB translates as he will confirm a covenant with many indicates that the ruler, or possibly the Messiah, will make a treaty with many people, possibly many groups of people. Here is another way to translate this:

he will strike a firm alliance with many people (NJB)

for one week: The Hebrew phrase that the BSB translates as one week is literally “one seven.” Again, this phrase refers to a week or period of seven years. The text does not indicate when this one week will occur. Presumably this period of time occurs after the end of the sixty-nine weeks and forms the seventieth and last week. The translator should not try to identify this time period with a particular time in history.

9:27b

but in the middle of the week: The phrase the week here refers to the same time period mentioned in 9:27a. Other ways to translate this include:

halfway through this week (CEV)

after half this time (NLT)

when half this time is past (GNT)

he will put an end to sacrifice and offering: Many scholars consider that the pronoun he here refers to the foreign ruler. It is recorded that Antiochus Epiphanes had a pig sacrificed on the altar in the temple in Jerusalem in 167 B.C. In this way he desecrated the temple, making it unholy and unfit for the worship of Yahweh. All sacrifices and offerings to Yahweh then stopped. However, other scholars indicate that it could also be said that God or the Messiah chose to put an end to sacrifice and offering.See Steinmann p. 474. It is recommended that you leave the subject open or ambiguous, as in 9:27a.

The Hebrew, like the BSB, uses the singular forms sacrifice and offering. Since this refers to sacrifices and offerings in general, in some languages it will be natural to use a plural form. For example:

he will end all sacrifices and offerings (CEV)

he will put an end to sacrifices and offerings (GNT)

sacrifice: The Hebrew word that the BSB translates as sacrifice normally refers to an animal sacrifice burnt on an altar to honor and please Yahweh.

offering: The Hebrew word that the BSB translates as offering normally refers to grain, oil, or wine that worshipers offered to Yahweh.

9:27c

And on the wing of the temple: The Hebrew is literally “and on the wing.” The meaning of this is uncertain. It may refer to the top corner of the temple mentioned in Matthew 4:5 (“the pinnacle of the temple”). Or it may refer to the protrusions at the corners of the altar that are sometimes called horns (see 1 Kings 1:50, Psalm 118:27 and Revelation 9:13). You may wish to follow the translation most commonly used in your area. The NRSV says that the meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain and suggests the phrase “and in their place” (that is, in place of the usual sacrifices and offerings).

will come the abomination that causes desolation: In the year 167 BC, the Greek ruler Antiochus IV Epiphanes set up a statue of the Greek god Zeus in the temple in Jerusalem.You can read about these events in the Book of 1 Maccabees, chapter 1. This can be found in between the Old and New Testaments in a Roman Catholic Bible such as the NJB. Again, in the year AD 70, the Roman general Titus, son of the emperor Vespasian, set up an idolatrous sign of Roman power in the second temple.Jesus referred to this event as a fulfillment of Daniel’s prophecy. See Matthew 24:15 and Mark 13:14. You can read about the historical events in the writings of Josephus. Both these events can be understood as fulfilling this prophecy. Some scholars consider that there may still be a further fulfillment to come. It is best to translate literally and not to indicate when the fulfillment may have taken place. Other ways to translate this include:

The Awful Horror will be placed on the highest point of the Temple (GNT)

Then the “Horrible Thing” that causes destruction will be put there. (CEV)

the abomination that causes desolation: This is a slightly different Hebrew phrase from the phrase in 8:13e that the BSB translates as “the rebellion that causes desolation.” Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

the appalling abomination (NJB)

a revolting/disgusting object that destroys/devastates

the “Horrible Thing” that causes destruction (CEV)

In Matthew 24:15 and Mark 13:14, Jesus used this phrase to refer to the Roman army and the desecration of the temple that was to take place in AD 70. Therefore, there seem to be multiple fulfillments of this prophecy. In your translation, you should translate the Hebrew text without indicating how the prophecy was fulfilled.

9:27d

until the decreed destruction is poured out upon him: The Hebrew text is more literally “until the end that was/is decreed is poured out on the desolator.” This is a passive clause with two passive verbs (decreed destruction and is poured out). There are two ways to translate these verbs:

• using passive verbs. For example:

  until the fate that is decreed for this defiler is finally poured out on him (NLT)

  until the decreed end is poured out on the one who destroys (NET)

• using one or more active verbs. God is the implied subject. For example:

  until the one who put it there meets the end which God has prepared for him (GNT)

  until the time God has decided to destroy this one who destroys (CEV)

the decreed: The Hebrew verb that the BSB translates as decreed means “decided, determined.” It is implied that God is the actor. He decided or planned destruction of the one who was causing desolation. For example:

God has decided

God planned

destruction is poured out upon him: In many languages it will be impossible or meaningless to say that someone’s end is poured out on him. In those languages it may be necessary to translate the meaning, that this person has a violent or sudden death. In many languages that will be expressed in idiomatic language. For example:

he meets his doom

his fate comes upon him

him: The pronoun him here refers to the one who places the abomination in the temple. The Hebrew text says “the desolator,” that is, the destroyer. Here is another way to translate this:

the one who destroys (NET)