Daniel 9:24 - 27 and Antiochus Epiphanes

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Stephan Huller
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Joined: Tue Apr 29, 2014 12:59 pm

Re: Daniel 9:24 - 27 and Antiochus Epiphanes

Post by Stephan Huller »

The more I look at the evidence for this 'Acts of Pilate' it is clear that a Christianized text existed from at least the late second century where Pilate confesses that Jesus was the Christ according to the Jewish scriptures:
That the land of the Jews, then, was to be laid waste, hear what was said by the Spirit of prophecy. And the words were spoken as if from the person of the people wondering at what had happened. They are these: “Sion is a wilderness, Jerusalem a desolation. The house of our sanctuary has become a curse, and the glory which our fathers blessed is burned up with fire, and all its glorious things are laid waste: and You refrain Yourself at these things, and have held Your peace, and have humbled us very sore.” Isaiah 64:10-12 And you are convinced that Jerusalem has been laid waste, as was predicted. And concerning its desolation, and that no one should be permitted to inhabit it, there was the following prophecy by Isaiah: “Their land is desolate, their enemies consume it before them, and none of them shall dwell therein.” Isaiah 1:7 And that it is guarded by you lest any one dwell in it, and that death is decreed against a Jew apprehended entering it, you know very well.

There are the following predictions: — “Unto us a child is born, and unto us a young man is given, and the government shall be upon His shoulders;” Isaiah 9:6 which is significant of the power of the cross, for to it, when He was crucified, He applied His shoulders, as shall be more clearly made out in the ensuing discourse. And again the same prophet Isaiah, being inspired by the prophetic Spirit, said, “I have spread out my hands to a disobedient and gainsaying people, to those who walk in a way that is not good. They now ask of me judgment, and dare to draw near to God.” Isaiah 65:2, Isaiah 58:2 And again in other words, through another prophet, He says, “They pierced My hands and My feet, and for My vesture they cast lots.” And indeed David, the king and prophet, who uttered these things, suffered none of them; but Jesus Christ stretched forth His hands, being crucified by the Jews speaking against Him, and denying that He was the Christ. And as the prophet spoke, they tormented Him, and set Him on the judgment-seat, and said, Judge us. And the expression, “They pierced my hands and my feet,” was used in reference to the nails of the cross which were fixed in His hands and feet. And after He was crucified they cast lots upon His vesture, and they that crucified Him parted it among them. And that these things did happen, you can ascertain from the Acts of Pontius Pilate. [1 Apology 35]

And that it was predicted that our Christ should heal all diseases and raise the dead, hear what was said. There are these words: “At His coming the lame shall leap as an hart, and the tongue of the stammerer shall be clear speaking: the blind shall see, and the lepers shall be cleansed; and the dead shall rise, and walk about.” Isaiah 35:6 And that He did those things, you can learn from the Acts of Pontius Pilate. And how it was predicted by the Spirit of prophecy that He and those who hoped in Him should be slain, hear what was said by Isaiah. These are the words: “Behold now the righteous perishes, and no man lays it to heart; and just men are taken away, and no man considers. From the presence of wickedness is the righteous man taken, and his burial shall be in peace: he is taken from our midst.” Isaiah 57:1 And again, how it was said by the same Isaiah, that the Gentile nations who were not looking for Him should worship Him, but the Jews who always expected Him should not recognise Him when He came. And the words are spoken as from the person of Christ; and they are these “I was manifest to them that asked not for Me; I was found of them that sought Me not: I said, Behold Me, to a nation that called not on My name. I spread out My hands to a disobedient and gainsaying people, to those who walked in a way that is not good, but follow after their own sins; a people that provokes Me to anger to My face.” Isaiah 65:1-3 For the Jews having the prophecies, and being always in expectation of the Christ to come, did not recognise Him; and not only so, but even treated Him shamefully. [1 Apology 48, 49]

Pilate, who in his conscience was a Christian, sent Tiberius Caesar an account of all these proceedings relating to Christ; and the Caesars had been Christians too, could the ages have borne it, if either such Caesars had not been necessary and unavoidable in such times, or could Christians have come to be Caesars. [Tertullian Apology 21]
Stephan Huller
Posts: 3009
Joined: Tue Apr 29, 2014 12:59 pm

Re: Daniel 9:24 - 27 and Antiochus Epiphanes

Post by Stephan Huller »

Here is the critical piece of evidence that the text of Against the Jews has been tampered with. Peter the Venerable makes mention of the fact that he has found two different copies of the same treatise of Tertullian
But if you are so learned in history that you object that Tertullian was altogether silent concerning the years of Claudius Caesar and that he counted fewer years for the other caesars than some of the historians do, I answer: this has nothing to do with the argument. They disagree over the number of years from the Passion of the Lord, as is fitting for historians, although it follows that it is clearly proved, according to the oft mentioned prophecy of Daniel, that Christ was born within the seventy weeks, that Christ suffered, that “iniquity is abolished,” that “everlasting justice” has appeared, and that in fact the universal mysteries (sacramenta) of human salvation were completed in him and by him. But though I say this, although, as I once read, a certain false copy excerpted from Tertullian's principal book is silent concerning the years of Claudius Caesar among the years of the caesars, nonetheless the actual book of the author, from which no caesar is passed over from Augustus to Vespasian and Titus, just as it omits none of them when counting those that have succeeded one another, carefully describes the entire span of years during which they ruled over the empire. And when investigating the truth one ought to believe a painstaking author more than someone who heedlessly excerpts material copied from someone else, because the water of the source is always purer than that of the river.

Therefore O Jews in order to reach more quickly the conclusion to the statements that have been proposed, it behooves you, it is necessary that you either reveal some other anointed one, some other saint of saints, some other that is plainly the Christ that was slain during the period of weeks already mentioned, during this same year of weeks, or to receive along with us our anointed one, our Saint of saints, our Christ, who was crucified not just by anyone whatsoever but by your fathers during those very same days and who was slain by the torment of the cross, even though he was their Redeemer and Savior. And because it has been proved that Christ was slain after sixty-two weeks but before the seventieth week, because that very week has been revealed in which it is written that he was slain, and because that year in which he was slain has been declared, do not, do not—if you properly understand things— seek further for another christ, do not wait for another.
Clearly then Peter the Venerable has before him two copies of Against the Jews - one of which (like our surviving copies) omits the reign of Claudius and his thirteen years - the other which includes them and is the source for Peter's knowledge that the correct number of years before Christ's death and the destruction in Jerusalem is 49 years (7 x 7) and more importantly that it is 62 weeks rather than 62 and a half weeks between the first year of Darius and the crucifixion. In other words 21 CE.

Just to make absolutely clear our surviving copies of Tertullian omit Claudius's reign as Peter notes. Our copies read:
Accordingly, showing, (as we have done, ) both the number of the years, and the time of the lx two and an half fulfilled hebdomads, on completion of which, (we have shown) that Christ is come, that is, has been born, let us see what (mean) other "vii and an half hebdomads," which have been subdivided in the abscision of117 the former hebdomads; (let us see, namely, ) in what event they have been fulfilled:--

For, after Augustus who survived after the birth of Christ, are made up xv years (15).
To whom succeeded Tiberius Caesar, and held the empire xx years, vii months, xxviii days (20 etc.).
(In the fiftieth year of his empire Christ suffered. being about xxx years of age when he suffered.)
Again Caius Caesar, also called Caligula iii years, viii months, xiii days (3 etc.).
Nero Caesar xi years, ix months, xiii days (11 etc.).
Galba vii months, vi days. (7 etc.).
Otho iii days.
Vitellius viii mos., xxvii days (8 mos.).

Vespasian, in the first year of his empire, subdues the Jews in war; and there are made lii years, vi months. For he reigned xi years. And thus, in the day of their storming, the Jews fulfilled the lxx hebdomads predicted in Daniel.
The strategy of the editor is obvious when you look at the effect of removing the reign of Claudius. Jesus is understood to have been born 1 BCE. But since he is counting 49 years back from 70 CE he only makes Augustus's reign 15 years rather than the correct number of 40 this because he has counted 62 x 7 years through a similar travesty of chronology to arrive at 1 BCE. Little bits and pieces have been shaved off Tiberius's reign (2 years), Claudius has been erased (13 years nine months), Nero's reign has had 2 years shaved off as well.

Clearly there were two copies of Tertullian's Against the Jews - one which properly dated the beginning of the 7 weeks period to 21 CE and another which did so according to 1 BCE which was completely falsified. Peter the Venerable knows of the true text.

Could it be that the 'excerpted false text' was found only in Jerome who Peter clearly employed?
Stephan Huller
Posts: 3009
Joined: Tue Apr 29, 2014 12:59 pm

Re: Daniel 9:24 - 27 and Antiochus Epiphanes

Post by Stephan Huller »

Indeed Jerome does indeed cite this very passage in his Commentary on Daniel:
And then a little later Tertullian says, "Let us see what is the meaning of (A) the seven and a half weeks, which in turn are divided up into a subsection of earlier weeks; by what transaction were they fulfilled? Well, after Augustus, (B) who lived on after Christ's birth, fifteen years elapsed. He was succeeded by Tiberius Caesar, and he held sway for twenty-two years, seven months and twenty-eight (C) days. In the fifteenth year of his reign (D) Christ suffered, being about (694) thirty-three when He suffered. Then there was Gaius Caesar, also named Caligula, who reigned for three years, eight months and thirteen days. [Note that Claudius' reign of 13 years is here omitted.] Nero reigned for nine years, nine months and thirteen days. Galba ruled for seven months and twenty-eight (E) days; Otho for three months and five days; and Vitellius for eight months and twenty-eight (F) days. Vespasian vanquished the Jews in the first year of his reign, bringing the number of years to a total of fifty-two, plus six months. For he ruled for eleven years, and so by the date of his |108 storming Jerusalem, the Jews had completed the seventy weeks foretold by Daniel."
Clearly then Peter cites between two different versions of the same text - one which omits Claudius another which does not, one which speaks of '62 and a half weeks' another which speaks only of '62' and a false text which ended the 70 weeks in 70 CE another which placed the destruction within the 70 weeks.
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