The Prophecy - Daniel 9:24-27 - Daniel's 70 Weeks |
Old Testament Prophecy |
24) Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy place. 25) So you are to know and discern that from the issuing of a decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince there will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; it will be built again, with plaza and moat, even in times of distress 26) Then after the sixty-two weeks the Messiah will be cut off and have nothing, and the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. And its end will come with a flood; even to the end there will be war; desolations are determined. 27) And he will make a firm covenant with the many for one week, but in the middle of the week he will put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering; and on the wing of abominations will come one who makes desolate, even until a complete destruction, one that is decreed, is poured out on the one who makes desolate. |
A gap in time between the 69th and 70th Week. In Dan. 9:26 the, "Messiah...cut off" occurred around 33 A.D., followed by "The people of the prince who is to come", who destroyed the city and temple. “The people”, who came were the Romans under Titus in 70 A.D., but also mentioned is “A prince who is come.” The people and prince are connected but separated by time. The people who destroy Jerusalem and the Temple would be descendants of the future prince. The prince would be a descendent of Romans who destroyed Jerusalem. At the end of the 69th week which ended with the death of Messiah the prince there was a period of 37-40 years before the rest of the 26th verse was fulfilled. We can see that the 70th week would not immediately follow the 69th week. There is a gap between the 69th and 70th week.(1)
A interval of in time is also seen in Zechariah 9:9 and 9:10. Verse 9 has Messiah entering Jerusalem on a Donkey and verse 10 has Messiah ruling over the nations. The time gap is known as Prophetic Compression. Prophetic compression is also demonstrated in Isaiah 9:6 and 9:7. Messiah is born a child in verse 6 and is ruling on David’s throne over the earth in verse 7. In Daniel 9:26 Messiah is cut off and the prophetic clock stops with one seven-year period yet to be accomplished. Daniel 9:27, tells us the circumstances surrounding this 70th Week.(1) Another time gap is seen between Isaiah 61:1-2.
Isaiah spoke of Christ coming "to bring good news to the afflicted...to bind up the broken hearted, to proclaim liberty to captives...to proclaim the favorable year of the lord" (Isa. 61: 1-2). Jesus Himself interpreted this passage in Luke 4:16-21, indicating these words referred to His first-advent ministry. In fact, Jesus stopped His reading in the middle of a sentence and commented that those words were presently being fulfilled. But the Isaiah passage goes on to speak of "the day of vengeance of our God." which speaks of activities at His second-advent.(2)
Since Christ's death took place sometime around 30-32 A.D. and the fall of Jerusalem around A.D.70, it seems reasonable to conclude that the natural sequence in the weeks has been interrupted.(3)
According to Daniel 9:26 the Anointed One was not “cut off” in the 70th “seven”; He was cut off after the 7 and 62 “sevens” had run their course. This means that there is an interval between the 69th and 70th “sevens.” Christ’s crucifixion, then, was in that interval, right after His Triumphal Entry, which concluded the 69th “seven.” This interval was anticipated by Christ when He prophesied the establishing of the church (Matt. 16:18). This necessitated the setting aside of the nation Israel for a season in order that His new program for the church might be instituted. Christ predicted the setting aside of the nation (Matt. 21:42-43). The present Church Age is the interval between the 69th and 70th “sevens.”(4)
When Israel's prophetic clock was put on hold (When Messiah was "cut off" ) the Church Age clock started ticking. The Rapture event will end the Church Age and Israel's clock will again start ticking for the final week (7 year period).(5)
The church clock is like the old Timex commercial: It has taken a licking but is has kept on ticking! The church of Jesus has been persecuted and slammed, burned and beaten but it still thrives. You and I are blessed to be able to live during this wonderful interval of grace when anyone who puts their faith in Jesus will receive God’s mercy and forgiveness. But we need to understand the church clock will stop ticking sometime in the future. When? Look at Romans 11:25 again. When the full number of Gentiles has come in. That is, when the last individual of “God’s elect” is added to the Church. BOOM! That’s it, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, the Father will say to His Son, “Go, collect your Bride.” Jesus will come to gather His church, His Bride and take us to his Father’s House for the Wedding Party. That’s what we often call the rapture of the church; we will be snatched out of here. That’s what Paul means when he writes in I Thessalonians 4:17, “We who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.” Whew! I get excited just thinking about it!!!(5)
The chronology may be linked to a 70 minute basketball game. For 69 minutes the game is played at a furious, continuous pace. Then, for some reason, the referee calls timeout with the clock in the red, showing one final minute to play. No one knows for sure when the action will resume; but at some point, the referee will step in and blow his whistle. At that moment the teams will gather to play out the last minute of the game. God stepped in and stopped the clock of prophecy at Calvary when Jesus gave His life as a sacrifice for our sins. The divine "time out" has already lasted 20 centuries. But soon the redeemer will blow the trumpet, and the final "week" (seven years) of action will be played on this earth.(6)
Other links of interest include:
1). www.truthnet.org/dan70.html
2). Understanding a End Times Comprehensive Prophecy Approach by Paul N. Benware p.25.
3). The Messiah in the Old Testament by Walter C. Kaiser Jr.
4). Walvoord, John F. ; Zuck, Roy B. ; Dallas Theological Seminary: The Bible Knowledge Commentary : An Exposition of the Scriptures. Wheaton, IL : Victor Books, 1983-c1985, S. 1:1363
5). David Dykes (Green Acres Baptist Church).
6). Friends of Israel; Israel my Glory; Harold L. Willmington, Sept./Oct. 2007 p.12.
