²⁵ “So you are to know and discern that from the issuing of a decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince there will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; it will be built again, with plaza and moat, even in times of distress. ²⁶ Then after the sixty-two weeks the Messiah will be cut off and have nothing, and the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. And its end will come with a flood; even to the end there will be war; desolations are determined.”(Daniel 9:25–26)

Who can hear the title Messiah without thinking of Handel’s oratorio by that name? Covering the central outline of biblical history, Handel focused on the prophecies concerning the coming of God’s solution to the sin problem, the unfolding of Christ’s redemptive work, and the eschatological culmination of His return for judgment and final resurrection of all. This is the story of Messiah.

The underlying Hebrew word means “the anointed one.” The term occurs in the Hebrew OT quite often, but is transliterated as “Messiah” only twice in most English translations. Most notably, though, it is applied to Jesus in the NT gospels. John’s account shows the connection clearly, when he adds an editorial comment to Simon Peter’s announcement to his brother Andrew, “We have found the Messiah’ (which translated means Christ)” (John 1:41, see also John 4:25). The fact that John includes this clarification indicates his audience was probably not well versed in Jewish culture, or they would have known that Christ is the Greek translation of “anointed one” or “Messiah.”

Daniel makes clear that the Messiah was the one who is to come, playing a prominent role in the end-time prophecies. The dispensational view interprets this passage as referring to the Messiah being executed at the end of 490 years (69 “weeks” of years), with an ensuing seven years of tribulation. With the rejection of Messiah, though, the prophetic time clock was put on hold until a future date. Dr. Harold Hoehner, in his definitive book “Herod Antipas,” includes a timeline showing that the end of the 69 weeks calculates to the very date of the passion week of Christ (precise dating is subject to a margin of error because of difficulty in correlating the various ancient calendar systems.)

The promise of Messiah to the people of Israel was a promise of salvation, as the whole prophecy of Daniel unfolds. The future course of humanity hangs on humanity’s treatment of this anointed One. Indeed, what a person does about the life and death of Jesus Christ will determine that person’s eternal destiny.

Lord, Messiah, I do believe in You and trust You for my eternal destiny.