DANIEL CHAPTER 9: THE SEVENTY WEEKS PROPHECY
Is The Book Of Daniel fact or fiction?
Creative ghost-writing by some later unknown or pure truth written by Daniel?
Does The Bible tell us?
WHAT does Jesus say about Daniel?
FORTUNATELY OUR JESUS knew the critics WOULD come; HE SAW IT thousands of years in advance, & so HE takes away ALL DOUBT on the matter. He tells us that IT WAS Daniel who wrote the book of Daniel: “Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet.” (Matthew 24:15; Mark 13:14)
But what FEW CRITICS ASK IS THIS: WHY such a strong attack AGAINST the Book of Daniel?
WHY has the lost world & satan SOUGHT to DISMISS & ERASE the words of Daniel?
Simply because Daniel contains MORE fulfilled PINPOINT ACCURATE prophecies than ANY other book in the Bible.
In New Testament prophecy, Daniel is referred to MORE than ANY other Old Testament book.
At times, Communist governments EVEN prohibited preaching from the Book of Daniel because it reveals God’s knowledge of the future, and it shows that in the end the Lord God and His people WIN.
It BEARS repeating…JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF CONFIRMS DANIEL TO BE THE ABSOLUTE TRUTH….I BELIEVE JESUS CHRIST, THAT SETTLES IT FOR ME, Amen?
Parts of Daniel 9 had always been a bit confusing for me UNTIL I began to study Hebrew calendars (their SABBATIC) & their “wording and meaning for weeks, days, years.” And then I began studying Sir Robert Anderson who was an AMAZING Christian and Hebrew history scholar who EXPLAINED the “70 weeks” from Daniel’s point in history, knowledge, & teaching….and then the LIGHTBULB flashed on…and with it AMAZING understanding of what had ALWAYS confused me. I pray that this study WILL enlighten you as well.
NOW…turn with me to DANIEL 9...
Daniel 9 tells us The Seventy Weeks of Daniel
Verses 1-2 tell us WHY Daniel is in DEEP prayer.
“In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the lineage of the Medes, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans; in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of the years specified by the word of the Lord through Jeremiah the prophet, that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.”
Daniel 9 is one of the MOST amazing and significant prophetic passages in the Bible, and it begins with Daniel's understanding and application of prophecy.
Daniel understood something from reading the words of God's prophets. Prophecy is meant to be understood - perhaps not in every detail, but certainly in its main points.
Jesus Christ tells us to SEEK HIM…SEEK TO KNOW HIM…SEEK TO UNDERSTAND HIM. Daniel knew this.
Daniel understood this by the books - the specific words recorded in God-inspired books. 2 Timothy 3:16, was written LONG AFTER Daniel’s death, but Daniel DID believe the truth of it, which says, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.”
Charles Spurgeon sums it up for you and me best, when he says, "Oh! That you studied your Bibles more! Oh! That we all did! How we could plead the promises! How often we should prevail with God when we could hold him to his word, and say, 'Fulfill this word unto thy servant, whereon thou hast caused me to hope.' Oh! It is grand praying when our mouth is full of God's word, for there is no word that can prevail with him like his own.”
“The number of years specified by the word of the Lord through Jeremiah”…Daniel knew that effective prayer comes out of knowing and praying both God's word and our present circumstances. His study of prophecy showed him a SPECIFIC number - the 70 years described in Jeremiah 25:11-13 and Jeremiah 29:10, and his knowledge of the times led him to know those passages applied to his time.
Jeremiah 25:11-13 says, “And this whole land shall be a desolation and an astonishment, and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. 'Then it will come to pass, when seventy years are completed, that I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation, the land of the Chaldeans, for their iniquity," says the Lord; "and I will make it a perpetual desolation. So I will bring on that land all My words which I have pronounced against it, all that is written in this book, which Jeremiah has prophesied concerning all the nations."
And Jeremiah 29:10 says, “For thus says the Lord: After seventy years are completed at Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to return to this place.”
It is important to note that Daniel regarded these as REAL, literal years. They were in no way understood as "symbolic" years.
Daniel was also familiar with Isaiah's prophecies concerning Cyrus in Isaiah 44:28-45:4. Daniel must have been encouraged to see a man named Cyrus rise in power over Persia.
“That He would accomplish seventy years”…If Daniel believed that God would accomplish seventy years of captivity, then why did he pray as passionately as he did in Daniel 9? Daniel knew that God's PROMISES INVITE our prayers and participation; they don't EXCLUDE our prayers and participation.
In other words, if we WANT our prayers HEARD and ANSWERED, the BEST THING we CAN DO, is to REMIND & ASK GOD FOR WHAT HE HAS ALREADY PROMISED US IN HIS WORD.
This principle is repeated in MANY passages.
2 Peter 3:12 indicates that we can HASTEN JESUS’ coming by our holy conduct and godly lives.
Romans 11:25 tells us we can also hasten the Lord's coming through evangelism because Paul says that God's prophetic focus on Israel will resume when the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.
This means that we can also hasten the Lord's coming through prayer, even as Daniel asked for a speedy fulfillment of prophecy regarding captive Israel in Daniel 9.
Revelation 22:20 tells us we can ALSO pray, “Even so, come, Lord Jesus!” If you want Jesus to come soon, there is something you can do about it!
But a second important reason is that Daniel ASKED God, in His MERCY, to take the earliest of all possible starting points (Daniel's abduction) for determining the beginning of the 70 years. There were THREE "waves" of captivity:
605 b.c. - Jerusalem attacked, Daniel and other captives taken to Babylon.
597 b.c. - Jerusalem attacked, treasure taken from the temple.
587 b.c. - Jerusalem falls and the nation is exiled.
If Daniel can prevail with God in prayer, and God then takes the earliest starting point to determine the 70 years then His mercy comes to Israel 18 years EARLIER.
REMEMBER THIS…. At the time of THIS prayer it WAS still three or four years short of 70 years since 605 b.c. - it was not too soon for Daniel to begin praying.
“The word of the Lord through Jeremiah”…Even in God's eternal decrees, human agencies are essential. God's plan of the ages is declared, yet Jeremiah made a prophecy, Daniel made a prayer, and Cyrus made a proclamation.
By Jewish tribal heritage or calling Daniel was NOT uniquely qualified for a ministry of intercession. He did NOT belong to a priestly family like Ezekiel and he WASN’T a "career" prophet like Isaiah or Jeremiah. Yet like all of us, he COULD pray.
AND DID HE EVER PRAY….
In fact, Daniel's calling and station in life made it LESS LIKELY that he would be such a man of prayer. He was a high government official who almost certainly had a busy schedule - yet he TOOK THE TIME and ENERGY to pray.
Verse 3 tells us Daniel's preparation for prayer.
“Then I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.”
“I set my face”… implies DETERMINATION in prayer. Daniel had an objective to achieve in prayer, and he approached God as a man who would NOT be denied. He did this because he was rightly convinced that his prayer was in the will of God, and knew it was not motivated by any selfish desire.
“To make request by prayer and supplications”…means Daniel wasn't passive as God's prophetic plan unfolded before him. In his approach to God, he made a request, asking God to perform His promise in the way that Daniel thought would bring God most glory.
“With fasting, sackcloth, and ashes”…This reflected Daniel's HUMBLE heart in approaching God. Fasting, sackcloth, and ashes are visible symbols OF humiliation and mourning.
Verses 4-15 tells us Daniel confesses the sin of his people, and glorifies the goodness and righteousness of God.
“And I prayed to the Lord my God, and made confession, and said, "O Lord, great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and mercy with those who love Him, and with those who keep His commandments, we have sinned and committed iniquity, we have done wickedly and rebelled, even by departing from Your precepts and Your judgments. Neither have we heeded Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your name to our kings and our princes, to our fathers and all the people of the land. O Lord, righteousness belongs to You, but to us shame of face, as it is this day; to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, those near and those far off in all the countries to which You have driven them, because of the unfaithfulness which they have committed against You. O Lord, to us belongs shame of face, to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, because we have sinned against You. To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, though we have rebelled against Him. We have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God, to walk in His laws, which He set before us by His servants the prophets. Yes, all Israel has transgressed Your law, and has departed so as not to obey Your voice; therefore the curse and the oath written in the Law of Moses the servant of God have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against Him. And He has confirmed His words, which He spoke against us and against our judges who judged us, by bringing upon us a great disaster; for under the whole heaven such has never been done as what has been done to Jerusalem. As it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come upon us; yet we have not made our prayer before the Lord our God, that we might turn from our iniquities and understand Your truth. Therefore the Lord has kept the disaster in mind, and brought it upon us; for the Lord our God is righteous in all the works which He does, though we have not obeyed His voice. And now, O Lord our God, who brought Your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and made Yourself a name, as it is this day; we have sinned, we have done wickedly!”
“O Lord, great and awesome God”…Daniel began his prayer where we all should - by recognizing the greatness and goodness of God. Sometimes we approach God as a stingy person who must be persuaded to give us something. But Daniel knew the problem was NOT with God. God KEEPS His covenant and mercy with those who love Him.
THIS PRAYER IS remarkable for both its understanding and earnestness. Many pray with understanding but not earnestness; others are earnest but have no understanding in prayer. The two together are a POWERFUL combination.
“We have sinned and committed iniquity”…
DID YOU NOTICE THIS???
As Daniel confesses Israel's sin he prays as if HE IS AS BAD AS the rest of Israel. This is a confession of WE, not THEY. In this sense, “THEY” prayers never really reach God; genuine “I & WE” prayers see self correctly and see our fellow saints with compassion.
Daniel's confession of sin might seem phony until we realize how passionately and completely he is focused ON God. AND face it, compared to God, even the most righteous among us falls FAR short.
“Righteousness belongs to You, but to us shame of face”…Daniel knew that Israel's sin was NOT God's fault; God was utterly righteous and blameless. Any shame of face belonged to Israel, NOT to God.
“We have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God”…Daniel does NOT make the slightest excuse for his NOR Israel's sin. The fault belongs to Israel and Israel alone. We are PRONE TO MAKE excuses for our sin and often even make excuses in our "confessions."
JESUS CHRIST DOES NOT WANT EXCUSES….BUT EARNEST REPENTANCE…ACCEPTING THE PERSONAL BLAME FOR OUR SINS, FAILINGS, & SHORT-COMINGS.
“He has confirmed His words . . . As it is written in the Law of Moses”…Daniel realized that even in His judgment against Israel, God was totally faithful to His word. He promised that curses would come upon a disobedient Israel (Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28) and they did.
“All this disaster has come upon us; yet we have not made our prayer before the Lord our God”…As Daniel confesses his sin and the sin of Israel, he comes to the sin of prayerlessness. Even when they faced great trial and calamity, Israel still did NOT make their prayer before the Lord.
REMEMBER THIS: When we SENSE trial or difficulty it should DRIVE US TO OUR KNEES IMMEDIATELY to prayer - when we are not so driven it should be a wake-up call to the COLDNESS of our heart.
“Who brought Your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand”…As Daniel prayed he remembered that the Lord delivered Israel from Egypt.
DANIEL REMEMBERS the Old Testament "standard" of God's power, the deliverance from Egypt.
CHRISTIANS SHOULD REMEMBER The New Testament "standard" of God's power is the resurrection of Jesus TOLD US IN Ephesians 1:19-20.
Verses 16-19 tells us Daniel ASKS God to forgive and to restore Jerusalem.
“O Lord, according to all Your righteousness, I pray, let Your anger and Your fury be turned away from Your city Jerusalem, Your holy mountain; because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and Your people are a reproach to all those around us. Now therefore, our God, hear the prayer of Your servant, and his supplications, and for the Lord's sake cause Your face to shine on Your sanctuary, which is desolate. O my God, incline Your ear and hear; open Your eyes and see our desolations, and the city which is called by Your name; for we do not present our supplications before You because of our righteous deeds, but because of Your great mercies. O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, listen and act! Do not delay for Your own sake, my God, for Your city and Your people are called by Your name.”
“Let Your anger and Your fury be turned away from Your city Jerusalem”…After his confession of Israel's sin and God's great righteousness, Daniel simply asks God to mercifully turn His kind attention to Jerusalem and the temple (cause Your face to shine on Your sanctuary) and that God would do this without delay (do not delay for your own sake).
Daniel prayed as a patriot MORE FOR the Kingdom of God than the Kingdom of Israel. We should pray with similar patriotism for the Kingdom of JESUS CHRIST.
Daniel asks for all this according to all GOD’S righteousness. It is as if Daniel prayed, "Lord, I'm not asking You to do anything against Your righteousness. I'm praying this to advance Your righteous glory."
“Cause your face to shine”…This is the heart of Daniel's plea. He knows that God's people need SOOOOOO much, but all their need can be summed up in this: they NEEEEEEED God's face to shine upon them.
“For the Lord's sake cause Your face to shine on Your sanctuary, which is desolate . . . Do not delay for Your own sake”…Daniel's prayer is consumed with the glory of God, not primarily the benefit of man. His purpose in prayer was to see God's work accomplished and His cause glorified.
It isn't wrong to pray for our own needs. Jesus invited us to ask, give us this day our daily bread. At the same time, we need to have an even greater passion for the glory and benefit of God.
We should pray with PASSION & CONCERN for the work of JESUS CHRIST in our congregations and communities.
We can pray the prayer of Psalm 85:6: “Will You not revive us again, that Your people may rejoice in You?” Alone and in groups we can pray for God to pour out the Holy Spirit, to bring repentance and revival among His people, and to awaken the unconverted.
“We do not present our supplications before You because of our righteous deeds, but because of Your great mercies”…Here Daniel prays on firm New Testament ground. His confidence isn't in his goodness, but in God's goodness.
This is what it means to pray in the name of Jesus. Those aren't words we tack on to the end of a prayer, but they should express the fact we are praying in merits and righteousness OF Jesus, not our own.
WE NEED TO REMEMBER WE ARE POWERLESS IN OURSELVES. WE ARE NOT RIGHTEOUS IN OURSELVES. IT IS JESUS WORKING, LIVING, AND TOUCHING US THAT BRINGS POWER & ANSWERS.
WE LEARN A LOT FROM DANIEL’S PRAYER…Daniel was not great because he prayed. He was great because his prayer was the necessary expression of great trust and dependence on God. Many religious people spend countless hours in prayer but it achieves NOTHING because it is NOT rooted in the goodness and righteousness of JESUS CHRIST. Self righteous or self trusting prayer is of NO power before Jesus.
“O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, listen and act!” Sometimes we talk about "wrestling in prayer" and here Daniel prays like a great wrestler. He follows up one victory with another request with rapid movement.
Verses 20-21 tells us Daniel's prayer is interrupted by Gabriel.
“Now while I was speaking, praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the Lord my God for the holy mountain of my God, yes, while I was speaking in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, reached me about the time of the evening offering.”
This dramatic ANSWER to prayer came even AS Daniel prayed.
In Matthew 6:8, “Jesus said, your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.” Whenever there seems to be a DELAY in answer to prayer, there is REASON for the delay. When it is right to do it, God can answer prayer immediately.
Sometimes God answers prayer before we even pray!
In Isaiah 65:24, it says, “It shall come to pass that before they call, I will answer; and while they are still speaking, I will hear.”
“Being caused to fly swiftly”… This is one of the FEW places in the Bible where we are told that angels CAN FLY. Gabriel came quickly because there is no great distance between heaven and earth.
“The time of the evening offering”…This was a special time, when Moses offered the Passover lamb (Exodus 12:6) and when Jesus was crucified (Matthew 27:45).
Verses 22-23 tells us Gabriel announces that he has come to bring Daniel an answer to his prayer.
“And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, "O Daniel, I have now come forth to give you skill to understand. At the beginning of your supplications the command went out, and I have come to tell you, for you are greatly beloved; therefore consider the matter, and understand the vision:”
“I have now come forth to give you skill to understand”… In his prayer, Daniel didn't ask for understanding. His prayer demonstrated that his heart was close to God's heart, so God will “reveal much to Daniel as His friend” confirmed in John 15:15.
Daniel studied the passage in Jeremiah, but still didn't understand much. In this case, understanding came more through prayer.
Daniel seeks…Daniel prays…Daniel finds…Jesus answers.
“For you are greatly beloved”…Both Daniel and the Apostle John in John 13:23 ARE noted for their GREAT & CONSTANT love-relationship with God. Both Daniel and John were also noted for receiving amazing prophetic messages. Both were called BELOVED. Both were called a FRIEND.
Daniel had just considered a SET of "sevens" upon the nation of Israel - the 70 years of promised captivity prophesied by Jeremiah. It is as if God said through Gabriel, "I'll show you some 'sevens' that will really blow your mind."
REMEMBER THIS….When we seek JESUS CHRIST diligently, we often receive FAR MORE than we ask for.
The prophecy of the Seventy Weeks.
Verse 24 tells us SEVENTY WEEKS are determined for the Jews and Jerusalem.
“Seventy weeks are determined for your people and for your holy city…”
Bible scholars agree that this refers to seventy SETS of seven years, or "weeks of years."
In ancient Hebrew, WEEKS simply refers to A UNIT OF SEVEN. The Hebrew word here is often used to mean a unit of seven days, but it may ALSO be used for a unit of seven years.
The Jews had Sabbatic years, by which their years were divided into “weeks of years,” as in this important prophecy, EACH week OF THE 70 WEEKS containing 7 years."
Genesis 29:15-28 is an example of using this ancient Hebrew word (shabuwa') for both "seven days" and "seven years" in the same context.
“For your people and for your holy city”…The seventy weeks are focused upon Daniel's people (the Jews) and his holy city (Jerusalem).
Since THE CHURCH does NOT become ISRAEL, it is NOT viewed or mentioned. The 70 weeks is "God's calendar FOR ISRAEL & THE JEWISH PEOPLE".
Verse 24 tells us what will be accomplished in the seventy weeks.
“To finish the transgression, to make an end of sins, to make reconciliation for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Most Holy.”
This means SIMPLY THAT ISRAEL’S SINS WILL END. THAT ISRAEL WILL REPENT, THAT ISRAEL WILL TURN TO GOD & PRAY & THAT ISRAEL WILL ACCEPT THAT JESUS CHRIST IS THEIR MESSIAH.
WHEN ALL THIS HAPPENS…AN entirely NEW order on earth WILL FOLLOW, & SOON THE END OF THE WORLD’S & MANKIND’S REBELLION AGAINST ALMIGHTY GOD AND JESUS CHRIST WILL END.
“To make an end of sins”….Taking these words at face value, this means not only the end of the guilt of sin, but an end of sin itself. It means to "seal up" or "restrain" sins. This looks to a new, redeemed world, which shall ONLY be established when Jesus Christ comes to reign ON the earth, IN Jerusalem for 1000 years AFTER the Battle of Armageddon, when the Antichrist IS destroyed, by Jesus Christ‘s return when HE COMES AGAIN IN THE CLOUDS…THIS COMING FUTURE TIME JESUS CHRIST WILL ONCE AGAIN TOUCH EARTH, BY STEPPING DOWN ONTO MOUNT ZION TO SAVE ISRAEL FROM UTTER DESTRUCTION, & WITH HIM…THIS TIME….THE CHURCH, OLD TESTAMENT SAVED, & HIS WARRIOR ANGELS WILL COME WITH HIM, TO RESCUE ISRAEL.
“To make reconciliation for iniquity”…Man's iniquity must be reconciled to God's justice and holiness. This work was clearly accomplished at the cross BY JESUS CHRIST.
“To bring in everlasting righteousness”…this means a new order of society brought in by JESUS CHRIST, the Messiah.
“To seal up vision and prophecy”…This speaks of both the ending and fulfillment of prophecy, concluding the FINAL stage of human history and culminating with the reign of the Son of God.
“To anoint the most holy”…Taken at its simple, literal meaning, this refers to a place, not a person. There is a most holy place - the most holy place of the temple - that will be anointed and blessed.
Taken as a whole, Gabriel made a remarkable announcement to Daniel. He told him that each of these amazing things would happen within the period of seventy weeks.
Verse 25 tell us the course and dividing of the seventy weeks.
“Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the command to restore and build Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince, there shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublesome times.”
“From the going forth of the command to restore and build Jerusalem”…Here Gabriel reveals to Daniel the STARTING point for the seventy-weeks prophecy. There was a command to restore and build Jerusalem in history that began this specific time period.
The Bible presents four possible decrees that might fulfill this description:
1. Cyrus made a decree giving Ezra and the Babylonian captives the right to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple in 538 b.c. (Ezra in 1:1-4 and 5:13-17)
2. Darius made a decree giving Ezra the right to rebuild the temple in 517 b.c. (Ezra 6:6-12)
3. Artaxerxes made a decree giving Ezra permission, safe passage, and supplies to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple in 458 b.c. (Ezra 7:11-26)
4. Artaxerxes made a decree giving Nehemiah permission, safe passage and supplies to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the city and the walls in 445 b.c. (Nehemiah 2:1-8)
Only the LAST of these four decrees was a command to restore and build Jerusalem. The first three each focused on the temple, not on the street or on the wall (THE WHOLE OF JERUSALEM.)
“Until Messiah the Prince, there shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks”…Gabriel's message to Daniel is simple and striking. 483 years - that is, 69 units of seven years - would pass from the time of the command recorded in Nehemiah 2:1-8 until the appearance of Messiah the Prince on earth.
Some say the 483 years were completed at Jesus' birth (5 or 4 b.c.). Others say the 483 years were completed at His baptism, at the beginning of Jesus' ministry (if dated at 26 a.d.). This is possible if one begins with the earlier decree of Artaxerxes, and figures with our present measurement for years instead of the ancient measurement of years (360 days).
And Anderson says the 483 years were completed at the triumphal entry of Jesus (if dated at 32 a.d.) which is based on Luke 3:1.
Some say the 483 years were completed at the exact time of the crucifixion.
“Until Messiah the Prince”…Taking Anderson's calculations as reliable, we see a remarkable fulfillment of prophecy. A Gentile king made a decree and 483 years later TO THE DAY, Jesus presented Himself as Messiah the Prince to Israel.
Interestingly enough, there is only ONE occasion in our Lord's earthly ministry on which He is depicted as PRESENTING Himself OPENLY as Zion's King, the so-called 'Triumphal Entry,' recorded in each one of the Gospels and fulfilling Zechariah 9:9 and Psalm 118:26.
1. On that day, Jesus deliberately arranged the event to present Himself as Messiah in Mark 11:1-10.
2. On that day, Jesus welcomed praise in Luke 19:38-40, instead of quieting it as HE did in Luke 5:14 and 8:56.
3. On that day, Jesus made special reference to the importance of that day in Luke 19:41-42.
DO YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT THIS MEANS?
DANIEL TOLD THE JEWISH PEOPLE THE EXACT DAY, 100s of years in advance….THE EXACT DAY…THE EXACTS EVENTS THAT WOULD OCCUR AS CONFIRMATION WHO THEIR LONG-AWAITED MESSIAH WAS…BUT THEY IGNORED DANIEL…EVEN TODAY…THEY IGNORE OR DISMISS THIS PRECIOUS TRUTH…BUT ONE DAY…THEY WILL SEE, KNOW, & MOURN THE FACT THAT THEY REJECTED JESUS, PERSECUTED AND AIDED IN/GAVE LIES THAT CRUCIFIED THEIR MESSIAH.
This prophecy of Daniel SO specifically fulfilled that it has been a significant testimony to many, especially other Jewish scholars, by the evidence of these words, have been compelled to confess that Messiah is already come, and that he WAS that Jesus, their long awaited MESSIAH whom their forefathers crucified.
“The street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublesome times”…This indicates that the rebuilding of the streets and wall of Jerusalem would happen in the FIRST seven weeks mentioned. Then would follow another 62 weeks of years until the coming of Messiah the Prince.
The seventy weeks are divided into THREE parts:
1. Seven weeks (7 years time 7= 49) so it was 49 years, until the city and its walls are rebuilt. They WERE exactly.
2. 69 weeks= (7 years plus 62 years ), or 483 years from the decree, UNTIL Messiah the Prince appears ON EARTH. He did exactly.
3. THE FINAL 70th week (1 WEEK= 1 SEVEN YEAR PERIOD) to complete the prophecy. This is future…this is the GREAT TRIBULATION PERIOD OF THE LAST 7 YEARS.
Verse 26 tells us what happens after the FIRST sixty-nine weeks.
“And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; and the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, and till the end of the war desolations are determined.”
The Biblical term “cut off” is sometimes used to describe execution (see Genesis 9:11 and Exodus 31:14). The Messiah will be cut off for the sake of OTHERS, (OTHERS= THE GENTILES, SO WE CAN BE GRAFTED INTO THE VINE) not for Jesus Christ Himself.
“Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary”…After the Messiah is cut off, Jerusalem and her temple would be destroyed again by an overwhelming army (with a flood). Most all Bible scholars and commentators agree that this WAS fulfilled in the Roman destruction of Jerusalem in 70 a.d.
“The people of the prince who is to come shall destroy”…The destroying army is made up of the people of the prince who is to come. This coming prince is THE ANTICHRIST.
Verse 27 tells us the events of the seventieth week.
“Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; but in the middle of the week he shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate, even until the consummation, which is determined, is poured out on the desolate.”
“He shall confirm a covenant”…The "he" Gabriel mentions is the THE ANTI-CHRIST…the prince who is to come mentioned in the previous verse. If we know that the prince's people destroyed Jerusalem in 70 a.d., then we know this coming FUTURE prince has his ancestral roots in the soil of the ancient Roman Empire.
Therefore, the prince who is to come will in some way be an heir to the Romans, even as the final world government is an heir to the Roman Empire foretold in Daniel 7. If you look up the ROMAN EMPIRE OF OLD, YOU WILL SEE ALL THE PRESENT DAY COUNTRIES IT RULED & CONTROLLED. IT WAS HUGE, BUT WE CAN BE SURE THAT THE ANTICHRIST SHALL SPRING FROM ONE OF THESE COUNTRIES.
THESE MODERN DAY (Old Roman Empire) COUNTRIES ARE:
Portugal, Spain, Andorra, United Kingdom, France, Monaco, Luxembourg, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Liechenstein, Italy, San Marino, Vatican City, Malta, Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Albania, Greece, FYR Macedonia, Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Syria, Iraq, Kuwait, Cyprus, Lebanon, Jordania, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Sudan, Lybia, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco & Palestine (the territory of Israel that they WRONGLY claim as their heritage, WAS part of Judaea during the Roman Empire occupation).
“He shall confirm a covenant with many for one week”…The coming prince will make a covenant with Israel for the final ONE WEEK=ONE SEVEN YEAR PERIOD, completing the seventy weeks prophesied for the Jewish people and Jerusalem by Daniel.
“Covenant with many”…The word many here is a specific reference to Israel, not a general reference to a group. The ancient Hebrew says, "covenant with the many." AND TODAY THE JEWISH PEOPLE ARE STILL SCATTERED OVER THE EARTH, BUT MORE AND MORE ARE RETURNING TO ISRAEL. AND THIS COVENANT WILL INSURE THAT THEY ALL CAN AND DO RETURN TO ISRAEL & AS PROMISE PEACE FOR 7 YEARS.
With this covenant Israel WILL embrace the Antichrist as a political messiah, if not the literal Messiah. Jesus predicted this in John 5:43: “I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.”
Taking the description of what would be accomplished in the 70 Weeks from Daniel 9:24, we know that the 70 Weeks are NOT yet complete. Yet the events promised in the first 69 weeks ARE ALREADY fulfilled, indicated that there is a lengthy "pause" in the 70 Weeks, between the 69th week and the 70th week.
The FINAL 70th week (1 SEVEN YEAR PERIOD) WILL BEGIN when the coming prince=(THE ANTICHRIST) shall globally and openly confirm/demand a worldwide peace treaty with the Jewish people & the nation of ISRAEL. These "gaps" or "pauses" in prophecy may seem strange to us, but they are common. Comparing Isaiah 9:6 and Luke 1:31-33 shows another significant "pause" or "gap" in prophecy regarding the coming of the Messiah.
The Living Church=All JESUS LOVING/REDEEMED BELIEVERS will NOT be on earth at this point, & the dust/bones (ALL DNA of the dead who loved Jesus) will be removed from the face of the earth, THEN The Holy Spirit will be removed from the face of the earth, at the instant “catching away”=The Rapture.
Jesus Christ is TELLING US….that into the chaos that occurs at the INSTANT vanishing of maybe 1 billion Christians, that ONLY THEN CAN/WILL the AntiChrist FIRST APPEAR to the world. BUT…the LAST 7 years “COUNT DOWN”
will NOT begin UNTIL The Antichrist as world leader, steps in and makes a world-binding peace/protection covenant with ISRAEL. The VERY instant that peace treaty IS signed…Jesus WILL return 7 years later TO THE DAY!.
We can think of it in this way: God has appointed 490 years of special focus on Israel in His redemptive plan. The years were "paused" by Israel's rejection of Jesus. Now, there is no special focus on Israel in God's redemptive plan because THIS IS THE TIME OF THE CHURCH=the Gentiles who come to know, love, are redeemed through salvation in Jesus Christ. YES, there WILL be Messianic Jews WHO call/claim/believe that Jesus Christ is THE MESSIAH…who WILL be “caught up in an instant” with the GENTILE church=JESUS BRIDE.
BUT…………God's focus WILL RETURN to Israel AFTER the church is taken away (at the rapture) and the last seven years of man's rule on this earth begin.
“In the middle of the week he shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering”…The coming prince WILL BREAK the covenant with Israel in the MIDDLE of the seven years=(after 3.5 years of the final 7 years).
The Book of Revelation sees this seven year period with both its halves as yet future (Revelation 12:6, 13-14; 13:5-9, 14-15). The middle of the week and the end of sacrifice HAD NOT yet happened in 90 a.d. SO WE CAN KNOW WITH CONFIDENCE…THAT THIS IS FUTURE…
Remember ALMIGHTY GOD & JESUS CHRIST ARE PINPOINT SPECIFIC. IF ALL PARTS ARE NOT ACHIEVED AT THE SAME TIME…JUST PARTS ARE ACHIEVED…THEN WE KNOW IT HAS NOT YET HAPPENED.
“On the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate”… The ending of sacrifice will come with abominations, followed by tremendous desolation.
Abominations translates an ancient Hebrew word (shiqquwts) that is connected to horrific idolatry (Deuteronomy 29:17; 1 Kings 11:5-7; 2 Kings 23:13). The idea is that the coming prince breaks the covenant and brings an end to sacrifice and offering by desecrating the holy place of the temple with a unspeakable horrific & obscene idolatry.
Jesus HIMSELF CALLED THIS “the abomination of desolation” in Matthew 24:15 and indicated that it would be a pivotal sign in the Great Tribulation. Paul referred to the idolatry of the coming prince in 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4.
“Until the consummation, which is determined, is poured out on the desolate”…This breaking of the covenant and abomination of desolation has a promised consummation. Before the 70th week is completed, EACH of the things described in Daniel 9:24 WILL BE accomplished and everlasting righteousness WILL reign.
The Seventy Weeks of Daniel
As Understood by Sir Robert Anderson in The Coming Prince
Daniel 9:24-25 says that from the decree to rebuild Jerusalem to the coming of the Messiah there will be 483 years.
7 + 62 "weeks" = 69 groups of seven years. 7 x 69 = 483 years
Anderson sees a prophetic year as 360 days. This is based both on ancient history and on Revelation 11:2; 13:5; 11:3, and 12:6 which indicate that 42 months= 3 ½ years are equal to 1,260 days.
Therefore, 483 years x 360 days = 173,880 days
Artaxerxes started his reign in 465 b.c. The decree to rebuild Jerusalem was given on the first day of Nisan, in the 20th year of Artaxerxes. In our calendar system (the Julian calendar) that date is March 14, 445 b.c. by Nehemiah 2:1.
Jesus started His ministry in the 15th year of Tiberius. Found in Luke 3:1.
Tiberius started his reign in 14 a.d., so Jesus' ministry started in 29 a.d.
Anderson believes that Jesus celebrated FOUR Passovers during His ministry, one each in 29, 30, 31 and His final Passover in 32. With the help of lunar charts, we can calculate the exact date of ancient Passovers, so it is possible to calculate the exact day of Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem as April 6, 32 a.d.
From 445 b.c. to 32 a.d. there are 476 years on the Julian calendar
(not 477 years, because there is no year zero)
476 years x 365 days = 173,740 days
Adjusting for the difference between March 14 and April 6 adds 24 days
Adjusting for leap years over a period of 476 years adds 116 days
The total number of days from March 14, 445 b.c. to April 6, 32 a.d.
173,740 + 24 + 116 = 173,880 days
According to his calendar, Daniel told us there would be 173,880 days between the decree and the arrival of Messiah the Prince.
THAT’S PINPOINT ACCURACY PEOPLE.
Jesus said to the Jews of this day in Luke 19:42…“If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace!”
David said of this day in Psalm 118:24. “This is the day which the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.”
The revelations in DANIEL 9 ARE JAW-DROPPING.
THE OLD TESTAMENT PROPHETS & THEN DANIEL TOLD THE NATION OF ISRAEL, ITS POLITICAL/RELIGIOUS LEADERS THE EXACT DAY THAT THEIR MESSIAH WOULD ENTER JERUSALEM AND PROCLAIM THAT HE IS THEIR MESSIAH.
HAD THEY BOTHERED TO WATCH, TO CALCULATE, AND TO CONSIDER…they would have KNOWN that the man JESUS CHRIST was THEIR LONG-AWAITED MESSIAH.
THEY WOULD HAVE KNOWN THAT THEY WOULD KILL JESUS CHRIST.
BUT HAD THEY CALCULATED, KNOWN, & ACCEPTED JESUS CHRIST…THE GENTILE NATIONS OF THE WORLD WOULD HAVE BEEN LOST.
WE KNOW THAT ALMIGHTY GOD HAD A PLAN.
HE WANTED NONE TO PERISH.
SO HIS SON MUST SUFFER/PERISH FOR US.
PEOPLE WE NEED TO THANK JESUS EVERY DAY FOR THE CROSS.
DANIEL CHAPTER 9, ONCE AGAIN IS A PINPOINT ACCURATE TIME TABLE FOR THOSE LOST/UNSAVED WHO ARE LEFT BEHIND AFTER THE RAPTURE.
THERE IS ALSO HOPE FOR THEM WHO ARE LEFT BEHIND.
THEY WILL SUFFER HORRIFICALLY UNDER THE ANTI-CHRIST, WHEN THEY CHOOSE JESUS, BUT THEY CAN STILL BE SAVED FROM AN ETERNITY….FOREVER AND FOREVER IN THE LAKE OF FIRE.
THOSE WHO ARE LEFT BEHIND, WHO WILL THEN SEEK TO STUDY, KNOW, & LEARN THE BIBLE…CAN MARK OFF THE DAYS, AFTER THE ANTI-CHRIST SIGNS A TREATY WITH ISRAEL….THAT SEVEN YEARS LATER TO THE DAY….JESUS WILL RETURN.
THOSE WHO ARE LEFT BEHIND WHO WILL SEEK TO STUDY, KNOW, LEARN, & CALCULATE, WILL KNOW WITH PINPOINT ACCURACY THREE THINGS FROM DANIEL 9.
1. The day the world leader (personally) signs a global peace treaty with Israel….they will KNOW He IS Satan’s Son.. He IS the AntiChrist.
2. They will KNOW that from that moment/that VERY day the peace treaty is signed, that it will be EXACTLY 7 years before Jesus Christ returns to save Israel & those Gentiles who have accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord & Savior from utter destruction.
3. They will KNOW that they HAVE 3.5 years BEFORE THE ANTI-CHRIST BEGINS HIS OPEN INSANE REIGN OF TERROR/MASS SLAUGHTER OF ALL JEWS SAVED OR LOST & ALL GENTILES WHO ASK, REPENT, & ACCEPT JESUS CHRIST INTO THEIR HEART AND LIFE.
And what we TODAY know is that our Jesus Christ COULD appear in the eastern skies on the clouds, catching us away, at ANY moment.
ALL BIBLICAL SCRIPTURE/PROPHECIES LEADING UP TO THE “COMING IN THE CLOUDS, BUT DOES NOT TOUCH EARTH” RETURN OF JESUS HAVE ALREADY BEEN FULFILLED.
WE ARE IN REVELATION 2...AND WAITING FOR REVELATION 3:1 TO OCCUR.
ANY DAY….GFB FAMILY….OUR LORD JESUS COULD COME ANY MINUTE….
We need to be about JESUS’ BUSINESS.
WITNESS, SHINE & SHOW JESUS WHILE WE MAY.
AND BE WATCHFUL.
LOOK UP…LOOK TO THE EAST…
OUR REDEMPTION DRAWS NIGH.
EVEN SO, COME NOW LORD JESUS!