The triumph of the cross

by Girolamo Savonarola

Again, Holy Writ foretells the period in which the Messiah is to come. This period, as we perceive by the Scripture, is long since passed. If, then, no man has ever been seen on earth, possessing greater power, wisdom, or goodness than Jesus of Nazareth, how can we doubt, that, if the Messiah be already come, Jesus was He? Many passages in Holy Scripture indicate the time fixed for the advent of the Messiah. Thus we read in Genesis: “The sceptre shall not be taken away from Juda, nor a ruler from his thigh, till He come that is to be sent, and He shall be the expectation of nations” (Gen. xlix. 10). Again in Daniel we read: “Seventy weeks are shortened upon thy people, and upon thy holy city, that transgression may be finished, and sin may have an end, and iniquity may be abolished; and everlasting justice may be brought; and vision and prophecy may be fulfilled; and the Saint of saints may be anointed. Know thou, therefore, and take notice: that from the going forth of the word, to build up Jerusalem again, unto Christ the prince, there shall be seven weeks, and sixty-two weeks: and the street shall be built again, and the walls in straitness of times. And after sixty-two weeks Christ shall be slain: and the people that deny Him shall not be His. And a people, with their leader that shall come, shall destroy the city and the sanctuary: and the end thereof shall be waste, and after the end of the war the appointed desolation. And he shall confirm the covenant with many, in one week: and in the half of the week the victim and the sacrifice shall fail: and there shall be in the temple the abomination of desolation: and the desolation shall continue even to the consummation, and to the end” (Dan. ix. 24-27).

We can easily see from these words, that Jesus Christ is the true Messiah. For the seventy weeks mentioned have passed long ago; and there is no one except Christ with whom we can connect them. In the Holy Scriptures, as we learn from Leviticus xxiii. and xxv., a week may signify either seven days or seven years. Now, seventy weeks of years amount to 490 years. And this period has elapsed, four times, between the days of Daniel and our own. And, if any one should object, that Daniel meant by a week neither seven days nor seven years, but some longer period, we would ask him what the longer period may be? And as he will not be able to answer, except in our terms, it is clear that any period assigned by him, and unspecified by Holy Writ, will be his own invention. Surely, if by a week God intended to signify a number of days and years not mentioned in Scripture, He would, by not apprising Daniel of the fact, have rendered his prophecy useless, and a cause of confusion and error. It must, therefore, be conceded that the time appointed for the advent of the Messiah is past; and, that He has already come. It were vain to answer, that, although the weeks predicted by Daniel have elapsed, the Messiah has not arrived; and to argue that neither Daniel nor the other Prophets indicate how soon after the close of the seventy weeks Christ is to come. For, if this argument held good, it would follow that the Prophets never foretold, with any certainty, anything concerning the Messiah. However, Daniel expressly says, “Know thou, therefore, and take notice: that from the going forth of the word, to build up Jerusalem again, unto Christ the Prince, there shall be seven weeks, and sixty-two weeks”; and again: “He shall confirm the covenant with many, in one week: and in the half of the week the victim and the sacrifice shall fail”. The meaning of which words cannot certainly be applied to any one except to Christ. Thus we see that He is indicated by this text; otherwise God would have led us into error, letting us believe that what was spoken concerning another, referred to Christ.

But let us now proceed to an exposition of the words. It is manifest, from what has already been said, that Jesus came into the world, in order to dispel error, and to lead men to holiness of life. Hence, the time of His coming is plainly shown by the words, “seventy weeks are shortened upon thy people, and upon thy holy city”; for they indicate that He was to preach first to the Jews. And the next words, “that transgression may be finished, and sin may have an end, and everlasting justice be brought,” have been verified throughout the world. And, because all Prophets speak of Christ in the same strain, Daniel continues, “and vision and prophecy may be fulfilled, and the Saint of saints may be anointed,” by which we understand the anointing of Jesus Christ, at His Incarnation, with the unction of the Holy Spirit. But, as, at the same time, many different things were accomplished, Daniel describes them all without distinction. He makes mention, first, of “seven weeks,” because, in that time, as we read in Esdras and Nehemias, the temple and city, destroyed by Nabuchadonosor, were, with the greatest difficulty, restored. He next speaks of “sixty-two weeks,” because during that period, as we learn from the book of Maccabees, the Jews were grievously harassed by their enemies. Thirdly, Daniel refers to “one week,” because at the beginning of one week Christ began to preach, and in the middle of a week He was crucified, for He preached for three years and a half.[26]

He was followed by His Apostles, who taught the Jews, that the legal sacrifices and ceremonies need no longer be observed, since, as the Reality had come, it was meet that its type should have an end. The doctors of the Church show that Christ began to preach, and was slain, at the predicted time; and, as men may read their books for themselves, I will pass over the subject briefly. And as the Jews denied Christ before Pilate saying, “we have no king but Cæsar,” they were justly condemned by God, and the Gentiles chosen by Him in their stead. Their rejection is signified by the words, “the people that shall deny Him shall not be His”: i.e., in punishment of their sin they were dispersed. Therefore, the Prophet continues, “and a people”—i.e., the Romans—“with their leader that shall come”—i.e., Vespasian and Titus—“shall destroy the city and the sanctuary,” i.e., the Temple. And, as the Jews were completely routed and dispersed, the prophecy concludes with the words, “and the end thereof shall be waste, and after the end of the war the appointed desolation”.

God had promised to the Patriarchs and Prophets to send the Messiah, who should open Heaven to them and give them a new law. Thus we read in Jeremias: “Behold the days shall come, saith the Lord, and I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Juda. Not according to the covenant which I made with their fathers, in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt: the covenant which they made void, and I had dominion over them, saith the Lord. But this shall be the covenant, that I will make with the house of Israel, after those days, saith the Lord: I will give My law in their bowels, and I will write it in their heart: and I will be their God, and they shall be My people” (Jer. xxxi. 31-33). Therefore Daniel says, “He shall confirm the covenant with many in one week”. This means, that Christ should, by His Blood and His Preaching, with that of His Apostles, confirm the covenant of the New Testament, not to all, (for all would not believe), but to many in one week, the last week, “and in the half of the week the victim and the sacrifice shall fail,” because in the middle of this week Jesus Christ was crucified. And, as He was prefigured by the victims and sacrifices of the Old Law, it was meet that when He, the true Light, came, these shadows should flee away. The Temple was thus rendered useless; and by the will of God it was profaned and utterly destroyed. Therefore Daniel continues, “and there shall be in the temple the abomination of desolation”. This abomination signifies, that the statue of the Emperor Hadrian should be set up where the Ark of Moses had stood; for in the eyes of the Jews every idol was abominable. The expression “abomination” may also refer to the Jewish sacrifices, which were to become abominable before the Lord. Finally, as the Jews will not be converted to the faith, save at the end of the world,[27] Daniel concludes by saying, “the desolation shall continue even to the consummation and to the end”.

This is confirmed by the Prophet Osee in the words: “Thou shalt wait for me many days: thou shalt not play the harlot,” i.e., thou shalt not worship idols. This prophecy foretells the fact, that, after their return from Babylon, even to this day, the Jews have not fallen into idolatry, save for a little while at the time of the Maccabees. “And thou shalt be no man’s,” continues the Prophet, meaning that the Jews should not belong to Christ; “and I also will wait for thee. For the children of Israel shall sit many days without king, and without prince, and without sacrifice, and without altar, and without ephod, and without teraphim. And after this the children of Israel shall return, and shall seek the Lord their God, and David their King,” i.e., Christ, the Son of David, “and they shall fear the Lord, and His goodness in the last days” (Osee iii. 3, 5).

This prophecy most distinctly points to Jesus of Nazareth. And if we study the other Prophets carefully, we shall see His coming foretold by all. But, returning to our original point, we observe that the time for the advent of the Messiah has already passed,—not only the time determined by the Holy Scriptures, but also the time indicated by many Jewish doctors,—and, as no other man save Jesus of Nazareth, has appeared, bearing the characteristics which were to distinguish the Messiah, every one must conclude that Christ is the Messiah promised in the Law and the Prophets.

This truth is further borne out by the last Jewish captivity; as we shall see, if we compare it with the Babylonian captivity, by which it is typified. The captivity of Babylon was a punishment to the Jews for their many sins, especially for their idolatry, which of all crimes is the most heinous. Nevertheless, even during their captivity, they were always consoled by the presence of their leaders and prophets and holy men; and their exile did not last for more than seventy years. But their last captivity has lasted for more than 1400 years, which they have passed, deprived of all consolation; without leader, prophet, or holy man. Neither has God assigned any limit to the time of their captivity. Yet, they have not incurred this punishment by idolatry, since, as we have said, they have not, since the Babylonian captivity, fallen into this crime.

Why, then, have the Jews been scattered over the face of the earth? And why has their name been made a byword to all men? Surely, if idolatry be the greatest of all crimes, and if they have not committed it for hundreds of years, their punishment ought to be a lighter one than that which they once incurred for idolatry. They must, then, be suffering for an offence even more heinous. This offence is, that, with malicious perfidy and hatred, they have crucified the true Son of God, whom they knew by His life, His miracles, and the prophecies concerning Him, to be the Messiah. They have, with a few exceptions, persevered in this malice until now. And it is for this crime, and in order to render testimony to our faith, that they have been dispersed over the earth.