This chapter is the very heart of the Book of Daniel: Daniel contemplated the books of the Prophets, wrestled with the calculation of the seventy years, and stood in prayer, fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. In the section before us, we reach the climax of the prayer - Daniel's great plea before the Holy One, blessed be He, that redemption does not depend on our merits, but rather on the honor of His blessed Name - followed by the response of the angel Gabriel, who unfolds before him the calculation of the "seventy weeks," one of the most enigmatic visions in all the Prophets.
וְעַתָּה אֲדֹנָי אֱלֹהֵינוּ אֲשֶׁר הוֹצֵאתָ אֶת־עַמְּךָ מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם בְּיָד חֲזָקָה וַתַּעַשׂ־לְךָ שֵׁם כַּיּוֹם הַזֶּה חָטָאנוּ רָשָׁעְנוּ׃ - "And now, Lord our God, Who brought Your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and made for Yourself a name as of this day: we have sinned, we have acted wickedly."
Daniel says: We have already received the punishment; we have already drained the cup of poison to its dregs. And what could You say - that we are not worthy of redemption? But in Egypt, too, we were not worthy of redemption; there too we were sinners; there too we possessed no merits that would warrant You taking us out. Nevertheless, "Who brought Your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand." "With a mighty hand" means: because of Your mighty hand. Not by virtue of any merit we possessed, nor due to any righteousness within us, but solely so that Your great and holy Name would not be desecrated. And so the verse continues: "and made for Yourself a name as of this day" - the entire Exodus from Egypt was for the sake of magnifying and sanctifying Your Name in the world, not because it was rightfully coming to us.
And if so, Daniel says, all the more so, Master of the Universe, is it fitting that You redeem us today. For back then, Your Name was not yet renowned and revealed in the world, and there was a need for Your Name to be sanctified; but today, when Your Name is known and apparent to all, what a disgrace it is to see Your people in exile, downtrodden and afflicted. On the contrary, now You must act for the sake of Your Name even more, for the desecration of God's Name caused by Your people continuing to suffer is far greater. This is the meaning of "and made for Yourself a name as of this day": all the more so is it fitting that You do so today, when Your Name is even more widely known and revealed.
Furthermore: foxes roam upon it. Is it not a disgrace to Hashem's Name that someone comes and makes use of the King's scepter? That someone comes and sits in the holiest place which Hashem desired for His dwelling, and in that very place the nations come and establish their house of prayer? Daniel says: Master of the Universe, this is a terrible desecration of Your Name! Therefore, even if we are unworthy - act for the sake of my prayer, and for the sake of Your desire that Your great Name not be desecrated in the world, just as during the Exodus from Egypt You acted so that Your Name would be sanctified throughout the world.
הַטֵּה אֱלֹהַי אׇזְנְךָ וּשְׁמָע פְּקַח עֵינֶיךָ וּרְאֵה שֹׁמְמֹתֵינוּ וְהָעִיר אֲשֶׁר־נִקְרָא שִׁמְךָ עָלֶיהָ כִּי לֹא עַל־צִדְקֹתֵינוּ אֲנַחְנוּ מַפִּילִים תַּחֲנוּנֵינוּ לְפָנֶיךָ כִּי עַל־רַחֲמֶיךָ הָרַבִּים׃ - "Incline Your ear, my God, and hear; open Your eyes and see our desolations, and the city upon which Your Name is called; for not because of our righteousness do we cast our supplications before You, but because of Your abundant mercies."
This verse reiterates and doubles the three petitions that preceded it. Corresponding to what he said, "hear, our God, the prayer of Your servant" - he pleads, "Incline Your ear, my God, and hear," meaning, listen attentively to my prayer. Corresponding to what he said, that He shine His face upon the desolate Sanctuary, that He look upon Jerusalem and the Temple - he reiterates, "open Your eyes and see our desolations, and the city upon which Your Name is called," for this contains a desecration of God's Name. And corresponding to what he said, "To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgiveness," meaning that we rely solely on You being merciful and gracious - he explains: "for not because of our righteousness do we cast our supplications before You." It is not because we are so worthy that we ask and claim this is owed to us; we are owed nothing at all. Rather, "because of Your abundant mercies" - the mercy is Yours, and we plead because we know that You possess great mercy while we have no merits, and in the greatness of Your mercy we are worthy of being redeemed even though on our own we lack sufficient merit.
אֲדֹנָי שְׁמָעָה אֲדֹנָי סְלָחָה אֲדֹנָי הַקְשִׁיבָה וַעֲשֵׂה אַל־תְּאַחַר לְמַעַנְךָ אֱלֹהַי כִּי־שִׁמְךָ נִקְרָא עַל־עִירְךָ וְעַל־עַמֶּךָ׃ - "Lord, hear; Lord, forgive; Lord, listen and act; do not delay, for Your sake, my God, for Your Name is called upon Your city and upon Your people."
"Hashem, hear; Hashem, forgive" - he asks that You forgive for the sake of Hashem's Name, so that His Name may become magnified in the world: for the sake of Your Name, hear; for the sake of Your Name, forgive. "Hashem, listen and act, do not delay" - do not prolong the duration of the exile because of our sins and iniquities, but act immediately, and do not delay past the time determined through the mouth of Yirmiyahu. According to what we explained earlier, there are two timeframes here: one timeframe where seventy years have already passed, and a second timeframe where eighteen years still remain. Daniel pleads: act immediately, do not delay, so that at the first timeframe of seventy years You will redeem us - that is, right now.
And he adds: "For Your Name is called upon Your city and upon Your people" - whether the Temple, the city, or the people, if any of them are degraded and humiliated, it brings disgrace upon the honor of Your Name; but if they are exalted, then Your Name is exalted and elevated among the nations. Your Name is called upon all of them: we are Hashem's people and the city is Hashem's city, and consequently, when we are downtrodden and cast aside, Your honor is desecrated. Therefore, elevate our stature for the sake of Your Name, and redeem us so that Your Name may be magnified and sanctified in the world.
וְעוֹד אֲנִי מְדַבֵּר וּמִתְפַּלֵּל וּמִתְוַדֶּה חַטָּאתִי וְחַטַּאת עַמִּי יִשְׂרָאֵל וּמַפִּיל תְּחִנָּתִי לִפְנֵי יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהָי עַל הַר־קֹדֶשׁ אֱלֹהָי׃ - While I was still speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before Hashem my God for the holy mountain of my God.
That is to say, beyond what is recorded here, Daniel offered additional prayers. His prayer contained three components. The first component was tefillah (prayer) itself, which is the outpouring of the soul and cleaving to God. "Tefillah" is related to the word petilah (wick) - a wick is made of three strands twisted and intertwined together, and in the same way, tefillah is an attachment and bonding to Hashem, blessed be He. This corresponds to the korban (sacrifice), whose very essence is closeness to Hashem; so too through prayers do we cleave to Him, pouring out our souls and clinging to Hashem. This is "While I was still speaking and praying." The second component is "confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel." And the third component is "and presenting my supplication" (techinah): techinah is in the category of a personal petition, as it were, a personal request for the holy mountain and for Jerusalem, that the Master of the Universe restore the sacred place, the Beit HaMikdash, to its foundation.
וְעוֹד אֲנִי מְדַבֵּר בַּתְּפִלָּה וְהָאִישׁ גַּבְרִיאֵל אֲשֶׁר רָאִיתִי בֶחָזוֹן בַּתְּחִלָּה מֻעָף בִּיעָף נֹגֵעַ אֵלַי כְּעֵת מִנְחַת־עָרֶב׃ - And while I was still speaking in prayer, the man Gavriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, flown in swift flight, touched me about the time of the evening offering.
Seemingly, he already said in the previous verse, "While I was still speaking and praying," so why does he repeat, "And while I was still speaking in prayer"? Is he merely repeating himself? Rather, as we explained, the order consisted of three parts: tefillah (prayer), vidui (confession), and techinah (supplication). Daniel performed this order once, and then began it a second time - once again tefillah, vidui, and techinah, in that same order. Therefore he says, "And while I was still speaking in prayer," meaning the second time I came to begin that same order, after having finished one cycle, and this was tefillah, which is the beginning of the order.
"The man Gavriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning" - the same Gavriel we saw earlier in the vision - "flown in swift flight (mu'af bi'yaf)." What does "mu'af bi'yaf" mean? Chazal taught: Gavriel flies in two. That is, in order to bestow divine influence upon us, he requires two flights. Whereas Michael does so in one, for as we saw, Gavriel receives influence from Michael: Michael is on a higher level, while Gavriel is merely in the role of a recipient, as we explained earlier that when Gavriel came to explain, he needed Michael to dispatch him and instruct him, "Make this one understand the vision." Therefore, Gavriel requires two flights: first flying upward to receive the divine flow, and then flying downward to transmit it, unable to do so in a single flight. And Eliyahu the Prophet flies in four - he requires four stages to arrive and receive the influence. All of this illustrates the relative degree of spiritual capacity between them: Gavriel, and above him Michael.
וַיָּבֶן וַיְדַבֵּר עִמִּי וַיֹּאמַר דָּנִיֵּאל עַתָּה יָצָאתִי לְהַשְׂכִּילְךָ בִינָה׃ - And he made me understand, and spoke with me, and said: "Daniel, I have now come forth to give you skillful understanding."
The Malbim explains: Seemingly there is redundant phrasing here - "and he made me understand (vayaven)," "and he spoke with me," "and he said." Rather, the angel was flying, as it were, on his own path, as if he did not know Daniel's location, and only when he touched him did he realize that Daniel was standing there, and paused to speak with him. Therefore it says, "and he understood and spoke with me" - he realized that I was here, and then spoke with me.
"And he said: Daniel, I have now come forth to give you skill and understanding" - you, Daniel, studied the books, contemplated, but could not find an answer to the question. And the angel tells you: you did not understand the matter properly, and that is why your question arose. For in one place it is written, "to complete seventy years for Babylon", and in another place it is written, "for the desolations of Jerusalem" - how can both be? Now I will clarify the matter to you.
בִּתְחִלַּת תַּחֲנוּנֶיךָ יָצָא דָבָר וַאֲנִי בָּאתִי לְהַגִּיד כִּי חֲמוּדוֹת אָתָּה וּבִין בַּדָּבָר וְהָבֵן בַּמַּרְאֶה׃ - At the beginning of your supplications a word went forth, and I have come to tell it, for you are greatly beloved; understand the matter and contemplate the vision.
"At the beginning of your supplications a word went forth" - as soon as you began to plead, the decree was already established; that is, the matter had been decreed from the outset, so do not assume that anything was altered by your prayer. And why was I sent to tell you? "For you are greatly beloved" - you possess wondrous virtues, and your character traits are precious. The term chamudot refers to something that anyone would desire for himself, something pleasing to behold that a person covets. Because your ways are so cherished, I was dispatched to come to you.
Furthermore, I did not come merely to influence you from afar in a dream or a vision, but to grant you the level of speaking face to face with an angel, which is a far higher plane. In a dream, a person's senses are diminished and he is not in full possession of them, whereas standing, seeing, and contemplating while awake is on a vastly superior level. As noted in the teachings on dreams, a person generally receives prophecy only while asleep, because bodily faculties run counter to spiritual faculties, forming a barrier that obstructs perception; therefore, one must sleep. Daniel, however, in his immense spiritual stature, was capable of standing and conversing with an angel. And Moshe Rabbeinu, in his unmatched greatness, could stand and speak with Hashem Himself, something no other prophet could ever achieve.
Other prophets, when communicating with Hashem, would be stripped of their physical faculties and collapse like someone suffering an epileptic seizure - Heaven protect us - lying entirely drained of strength upon the ground. Bilam would fall upon his uncircumcised member, for Bilam was uncircumcised; but the true prophets experienced a complete divestment of physical strength. Consider what is written regarding Shaul: when he received prophecy, he stripped off his garments and removed his robe, because from being so divested of all physical strength he had no endurance left, and even his cloak, the royal robe, was too heavy for him.
שָׁבֻעִים שִׁבְעִים נֶחְתַּךְ עַל־עַמְּךָ וְעַל־עִיר קׇדְשֶׁךָ לְכַלֵּא הַפֶּשַׁע וּלְהָתֵם חַטָּאת וּלְכַפֵּר עָוֺן וּלְהָבִיא צֶדֶק עֹלָמִים וְלַחְתֹּם חָזוֹן וְנָבִיא וְלִמְשֹׁחַ קֹדֶשׁ קׇדָשִׁים׃ - Seventy weeks are decreed upon your people and upon your holy city, to terminate the transgression, to end sin, to atone for iniquity, to bring everlasting righteousness, to seal vision and prophet, and to anoint the Holy of Holies.
It was decreed upon the Jewish people to remain in exile for seventy years. And corresponding to what were these seventy years? Corresponding to the seventy sabbaths of the land that were not kept, seventy Shemittah cycles. Corresponding to the seventy Shemittot they failed to observe, an exile of seventy years was imposed, just as the Torah promised: "Then the land will appease its sabbaths all the days of its desolation." We were required to let the land lie fallow for a total of seventy years - once every seven years - but we failed to do so. Hashem said: In the end, the land will rest, only you will not be dwelling upon it. The land will claim its due rest in any event.
The Vilna Gaon presents an elaborate calculation demonstrating precisely where those seventy unobserved Shemittot occurred: he examines each king, the era in which he lived and the duration of his reign, calculating according to the Shemittah cycle how many Shemittot fell during that monarchy. From the verses we know whether each king was righteous or wicked, and the Gaon shows that if one gathers all the Shemittot that occurred under the wicked kings, the total comes to exactly seventy Shemittot. It is well worth consulting the Vilna Gaon directly to follow the full accounting, but the calculation is exact down to the last detail: there were seventy Shemittah cycles that the Jewish people failed to observe.
In the language of the verses, a shavua ("week") refers to a Shemittah cycle of seven years, not its conventional meaning in modern usage. A period of seven days is referred to in Lashon HaKodesh as Shabbat: the first day is Yom Rishon b'Shabbat, the second is Yom Sheni b'Shabbat, the third is Yom Shelishi b'Shabbat - in that context, Shabbat means a week. However, when the text wishes to denote a unit of seven years, it uses the term shavua. We find the same in Chazal: a Sanhedrin that executes a person once in a shavua is termed a murderous Sanhedrin, or as some say, a destructive one - meaning once in seven years.
And if they failed to observe seventy Shemittah cycles, this amounts to a total of 490 years containing seventy Shemittot. The Malbim explains: presumably, during those years they did not merely neglect the Shemittah itself, but also sinned during the years between the Shemittot - for why would they have sought to rebel specifically during Shemittah? Thus, there were 490 years of rebellion here. However, for the sins committed during those years aside from Shemittah, exile is not the designated punishment; for those, they endured severe afflictions throughout the Second Temple era, being subjugated under the kings of Persia, Greece, and Rome, all of whom oppressed them. But for Shemittah - its specific retribution is exile: if you did not let the land rest through Shemittah while living in it, you are sentenced to have the land rest without you. Therefore, for their rebellion in the intervening years between Shemittot, they received their punishment during the Second Temple period, while for desecrating the Shemittah itself, they had to pay through exile.
The Malbim notes a profound idea: the years of the Second Temple are actually counted as part of the exile. The Second Temple was akin to a trial balloon - to see whether the Jewish people were worthy of the building of the Third Temple. Had they been worthy and righteous up to the end of the Second Temple era, the Third Temple - the future, eternal Temple - would have been built at the end of the Second Temple period. The Second Temple was a test to see if the Jewish people had transformed their spiritual state, whether they had become a renewed nation or not.
Notice that the Second Temple era itself was an ongoing process of exile: throughout the entire period of the Temple, we were subject to the kings of Persia, or the kings of Greece, or the kings of Rome - constantly under foreign dominion. What kind of redemption is that? Moreover, throughout the Second Temple era, five essential elements were missing: there was no Ark, the overt miracles of the First Temple were absent, along with many other miracles that were withheld from us. The Second Temple was a sanctuary in a very diminished form, serving primarily to test whether the Jewish people were worthy of redemption; under no circumstances was this the ultimate redemption, says the Malbim. The promised future redemption was meant to occur at the end of the Second Temple era: had we returned in complete repentance during that period, we would have merited that Hashem would gather all our dispersed at the end of that era. After all, only about fifty thousand people ascended to build the Second Temple, not millions; the entirety of Israel did not return, and therefore this was not the ultimate redemption. The hoped-for redemption was supposed to arrive at the end of the Second Temple era, at which point the Third Temple was to be built.
All of this was conditional: if they repented fully, Hashem would hasten the end; but since they did not return in complete repentance, they must wait until the end of wonders. Therefore, it is stated here that a time span was decreed: "Seventy weeks are decreed upon your people and upon your holy city," and this would serve "to restrain transgression" - the deliberate sins between man and fellow man; "and to put an end to sin" - referring to sins driven by physical desires, all the ways we provoked Hashem during the First Temple period.
"And to bring everlasting righteousness" - had we repented, the time of redemption would have arrived at the end of the 490 years from the destruction of the First Temple, and everlasting righteousness would have been established. "And to seal vision and prophet" - the prophecies of all the prophets and the visions they foresaw regarding the future redemption would have been fulfilled, prophecy itself would have returned, and the prophets would have been sealed with the seal of truth. As it is said regarding the redemption that prophecy will return: "I will pour out My spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and daughters shall prophesy." "And to anoint the Holy of Holies" - the Third Temple would have been anointed according to a prophet, for the Second Temple was never anointed, since it was destined to be destroyed and was missing five essential elements. Thus, a span of 490 years was decreed: if they were worthy, the Third Temple would be built; and if not, there would be a harsh and prolonged exile.
וְתֵדַע וְתַשְׂכֵּל מִן־מֹצָא דָבָר לְהָשִׁיב וְלִבְנוֹת יְרוּשָׁלַיִם עַד־מָשִׁיחַ נָגִיד שָׁבֻעִים שִׁבְעָה וְשָׁבֻעִים שִׁשִּׁים וּשְׁנַיִם תָּשׁוּב וְנִבְנְתָה רְחוֹב וְחָרוּץ וּבְצוֹק הָעִתִּים׃ - Know and understand that from the issuing of the word to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until an anointed ruler, there shall be seven weeks; and for sixty-two weeks it shall be restored and built, street and moat, even in troubled times.
This vision is deeply enigmatic and requires explanation. "Until an anointed ruler" does not refer to the arrival of the Messiah, but rather to an anointed Kohen who would serve in the Temple - a High Priest consecrated with oil. At first glance, there is a difficulty here: previously it said seventy weeks, while here it says seven weeks and another sixty-two - totaling sixty-nine weeks. Is there a contradiction between the verses? Let us examine how the Malbim explains this, and through it we will understand.
"From the issuing of the word to restore and rebuild Jerusalem" - from the destruction until the time permission would be granted to return and rebuild Jerusalem, which occurred in the first year of the reign of Cyrus, who permitted the exiles to return and rebuild Jerusalem, at which point many returned with Ezra to begin rebuilding. "Until an anointed ruler" - until the time there would be an anointed Kohen consecrated and presiding over the Jewish people throughout the period of the Temple's construction, or a prince who ruled over Israel, who is also called "anointed"; for mashiach means one anointed with the anointing oil, and he would be a "nagid" - a ruler and commander over them.
"Seven weeks" are seven Shemittah cycles, forty-nine years, and this is the time "to restore and rebuild Jerusalem." How does the calculation work? From the time of the destruction of the Temple until Cyrus gave the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem was 52 years. Afterward, there were eighteen years during which the construction was halted, and only after that did building resume and commence in the days of Darius - for the adversaries wrote accusations, as seen explicitly in the Book of Ezra, where gentile opponents opposed the building of the Temple and wrote slanderous letters to halt it.
And if it was fifty-two years, why does it say "seven weeks", which are forty-nine years? On this, both Rashi and the Malbim explain that the reckoning is in complete weeks of years, seven years by seven years; and since the seven-year cycle following forty-nine was not completed - as fifty-two years reaches only the middle of that week - it does not count the remaining years that do not complete a full cycle. Therefore, it stated "seven weeks".
And "sixty weeks" - until the time of the Destruction, until which point there will be an anointed leader from Israel who will be a ruler and prince over them. And the additional "two weeks" - "until it returns and is built with broad street and moat": from the time the construction of the Beit HaMikdash was halted in the first year of Cyrus, when they wrote accusations and the building ceased, until the second year of Darius, there were eighteen years. Within them there were no more than two complete Shemittah cycles - which are fourteen years - and the text counts only complete cycles. These are the "two weeks", the two Shemittah cycles during which the Temple stood desolate.
Thus, the angel showed him three reckonings. The first reckoning: seven weeks, until Cyrus would grant permission to build - forty-nine years plus three additional years, as we explained. This is what Yirmiyahu said: "For according to the fulfillment of Babylon's seventy years I will remember you", which was the first visitation in the days of Cyrus, immediately when Babylon fell. The second reckoning: another two Shemittah cycles, along with those remaining years between fourteen and eighteen that did not complete a Shemittah cycle, until they would begin to build in the days of Darius, at which point the construction would reach completion. For the initial building began after fifty-two years, followed by an eighteen-year hiatus, and after eighteen years the construction resumed and was renewed.
And with this lies the answer to Daniel's doubt. Daniel had questioned why at times the reckoning is counted from the desolation of Jerusalem, and at times from when Babylon began to reign - so which is the true calculation? The angel tells him: Both reckonings are correct, for the difference between them is eighteen years. The reckoning counted from the desolation of Jerusalem corresponds to the time of the initial permission to build the Beit HaMikdash, which occurred in the days of Cyrus; and the reckoning of seventy years counted for Babylon corresponds to the second time permission would be granted, after eighteen years during which the Temple construction was halted, which took place in the time of Darius.
Furthermore, we see from here that even during the era of the Second Temple, it was not termed a true redemption, but rather exile. And as we have mentioned, had they been worthy and conducted themselves properly during the Second Temple era, the complete redemption would have followed, and Mashiach would have arrived to build the Third Beit HaMikdash prophesied by Yechezkel. However, since that period served as a time of testing and trial, which they failed to endure - thereby causing the destruction of the Second Temple - we unfortunately remain in exile to this day, until Hashem redeems us.
וְאַחֲרֵי הַשָּׁבֻעִים שִׁשִּׁים וּשְׁנַיִם יִכָּרֵת מָשִׁיחַ וְאֵין לוֹ וְהָעִיר וְהַקֹּדֶשׁ יַשְׁחִית עַם נָגִיד הַבָּא וְקִצּוֹ בַשֶּׁטֶף וְעַד קֵץ מִלְחָמָה נֶחֱרֶצֶת שֹׁמֵמוֹת׃ - "And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut off and have nothing, and the people of the prince who will come shall destroy the city and the Sanctuary; its end shall be with a flood, and until the end of the war desolations are determined."
After those sixty-two weeks during which they had a prince and ruler from among their own people - "an anointed one shall be cut off and have nothing". This refers to the final anointed one, the last king who ruled over us, who was Agrippa; as well as the last Kohen Gadol who was killed. Agrippa was slain in Rome, and the last Kohen Gadol was also slain, so both of those who were anointed for priesthood and kingship over the people of Israel were killed.
"And the people of the prince who will come shall destroy the city and the Sanctuary" - the Romans will destroy the people of Israel and lay waste to the city and the Beit HaMikdash. "Its end shall be with a flood" - by Titus and his nation, who will come and flood the land, and in that flood the end will come upon the Beit HaMikdash and it will be destroyed. And until when? "And until the end of the war desolations are determined" - until the determined, final war, which is the war of Gog and Magog; it is decreed and determined that until then the Temple will remain in ruins. The verse does not specify a timeframe here, but only states that until the war of Gog and Magog, the Beit HaMikdash will not be rebuilt. And indeed, we see in reality that the Temple has not been rebuilt a third time, until the time of the war of Gog and Magog arrives.
וְהִגְבִּיר בְּרִית לָרַבִּים שָׁבוּעַ אֶחָד וַחֲצִי הַשָּׁבוּעַ יַשְׁבִּית זֶבַח וּמִנְחָה וְעַל כְּנַף שִׁקּוּצִים מְשֹׁמֵם וְעַד־כָּלָה וְנֶחֱרָצָה תִּתַּךְ עַל־שֹׁמֵם׃ - "And he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week, and for half of the week he shall cause sacrifice and meal offering to cease, and upon the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until the full decreed end is poured out upon the desolate."
The verse now explains how the Destruction would unfold. Chazal explain that for seven years Titus sought to make peace with them and wanted to forge a covenant with them; he told them that he would not even collect taxes from them, if only they would agree to accept his rule and make a covenant of peace with him. This is the meaning of "and he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week" - he proposed to the multitudes to enter into a peace covenant with him for one week, that is, seven years.
"And for half of the week he will cause sacrifice and meal offering to cease" - the siege lasted three years, which are half of the week: three years before the destruction the sacrifices ceased and they no longer offered sacrifices. "And upon the wing of abominations shall come one who desolates" - "upon the wing" means that they placed it on the corner of the Altar; Hadrian placed an idol inside the Beit HaMikdash, "an abomination that desolates," so that it would be an abominable and desolate thing.
And all this will continue "until a full end, and that which is decreed, is poured out upon the desolator" - until a full end and decree is poured out from Heaven upon that desolator, meaning until Hashem destroys the one who destroyed the Beit HaMikdash and total destruction is poured upon him. Just as we saw with Titus, who destroyed the Beit HaMikdash, and a gnat entered and pecked at his brain, and he died an unnatural death.
In this part of the chapter, Daniel teaches us the foundation of prayer in exile: we do not present our supplications based on our righteousness, but on His abundant mercies and for the sake of His great Name - just as He brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and made a Name for Himself, and all the more so now, when His Name is renowned in the world and the disgrace of His people and His city is a Chillul Hashem. His prayer is built of three parts - prayer that is cleaving, confession, and supplication - and when he repeated them a second time, Gavriel was sent to him "flying swiftly," at the rare level of speaking face to face while fully awake, because he was a greatly beloved man. The angel's reply is the resolution of the calculation of the end: seventy weeks corresponding to the seventy Shemittah cycles that were not observed, 490 years during which even the Second Temple was merely a period of testing within the exile. Had they been worthy - everlasting righteousness would have come, prophecy would have returned, and the Third Temple would have been anointed. Since they were not worthy - the anointed one was cut off, the city and the Sanctuary were destroyed by Rome, and it was decreed that the Temple would lie desolate until the war of Gog and Magog. Nevertheless, it was also decreed upon the destroyer: "destruction and decree shall be poured out upon the desolator," until Hashem redeems us.