Scriptural
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The Seventy Weeks of Daniel Ended in AD 34
The Seventy Sevens should never be split or divided!
By Nab B. June 23, 2022
Daniel inquired of God about the return of his people to Jerusalem. He got much more than what he bargained for! He got to know the fate of his people and the people of the whole world!
Six hundred years before Jesus’ birth, it was revealed to Daniel the exact year the Messiah would appear; his death, his murderers, and the outcome of his death.
The seventy weeks are described in three phases with no gaps in between them! Do not believe those who teach otherwise (sadly, most do!)
The Three Phases
PHASE 1
Rebuilding Jerusalem
(7x7 or 49 years)
PHASE 2
Awaiting the Messiah
(7x62 or 434 years)
PHASE 3
Messiah Arrives
(7x1 or 7 years)
__________
Another Way
( 7 weeks + 62 weeks + 1 week ) = 70 weeks
(OR)
( 49 year + 434 year + 7 year ) = 490 years
THE PROPHECY
Daniel 9:24 YLT
“Seventy weeks are determined for thy people, and for thy holy city, to shut up the transgression, and to seal up sins, and to cover iniquity, and to bring in righteousness age-during, and to seal up vision and prophet, and to anoint the holy of holies.”
What are the Seventy Weeks?
“Seventy weeks (Lit. seventy–sevens) are determined”: It means 70 X 7 by which we get 490 years. This was the period determined by God to seal the fate, not only of the people of Judah, Jerusalem, and its temple but also the fate of the whole world by the appearance of the Saviour, Jesus Christ.
The use of seventy is not coincidental! In Daniel 9, God determined seventy-sevens of years (the Hebrew word is not weeks but "sevens" indicating years). Seven (means full or complete) multiplied seventy times (7x70) refers to the complete perfection of God's plan.
Don't view seven and all its derivatives (7, 70, 490) solely as a number. It has a profound spiritual meaning. It pointed to God's plan being fully and most gloriously fulfilled through Jesus Christ. As the saying goes "saving the best for last", God saved His best plan at the last age in man's history, to turn His creation from corruption to incorruption, from mortality to immortality, all through one Man.
Interestingly and though not part of the seventy-week prophecy (but as a consequence of rejecting God's Messiah), Jerusalem and its temple worship were utterly destroyed in the year AD 70. Coincidence? Think again!
What is Accomplished By the End of the Seventy Weeks?
The seventy-weeks prophecy was about the appearance, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ through whom God accomplishes these wonderful blessings for mankind.
(The list below is based on Dan 9:24):
To shut up the transgression
To seal up sins
To cover iniquity
To bring in righteousness age-during
To seal up vision and prophet
To anoint the Holy of Holies
To show that all temple ordinances and sacrifices had completed their purpose, the thick and long Temple veil was torn in half the moment Jesus died. The act symbolized the removal of the barrier between sinful mankind and the Holy God through Jesus Christ, the ultimate High Priest offering himself as a "sin offering" on behalf of all mankind. Believe it or not, this has ushered the last age for humanity:
“And Jesus cried with a loud voice and gave up the ghost. And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom.” (Mk 15:37-39; see also Matt 27:50-52)
The Beginning of the 70 Weeks by a Decree.
Dan 9:25 NASB
“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 streets and moat, even in times of distress.”
Whether we count by solar or lunar calendar, Daniel’s prophecy was so accurate. It predicted to the day the appearance of the Messiah some 600 years in advance. Just to be clear, the prophecy was not predicting Christ’s birth; only his appearance, death, and the resulting consequences.
The 70 weeks began with Ezra issuing a decree to rebuild Jerusalem in c. 458 BC, in the 7th year of King Artaxerxes. (See Ezra 7:11-28)
Allow 69 weeks (69x7 or 483 years) to pass before the Messiah appears in c. AD 26. Here is how you do the math:
Calculating The First 69 Weeks
(We add the time it must pass until Christ appears)
7 x 7 = (49 Y rebuilding Jerusalem)
+ 62 x 7 = (434 Y awaiting the Messiah)
____________
483 years
These 483 years must pass before Christ appears on time!
Calculating The Messiah’s Arrival
(Subtract since we count from BC to AD)
(Also add 1 for year zero)
483 years (69 weeks in total)
− 457 BC (It started from Ezra's decree)
____________
26 + 1 = AD 27
(Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan)
The Messiah is Cut Off in the Middle of the Last Week
Daniel 9:26-27 (Berean Standard Bible)
“Then after the sixty-two weeks, the Messiah will be cut off and will have nothing. Then the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood, and until the end, there will be war; desolations have been decreed.”
“And he will confirm a covenant with many for one week, but in the middle of the week, he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of the temple will come the abomination that causes desolation, until the decreed destruction is poured out upon him.”
Calculation for the Last Week
27 AD (Christ’s Appeared)
+ 3½ years (Middle of the last seven years)
_______________________
c. AD 30
(The year of Christ's death)
This one event changed the course of mankind's history
After Jesus’ death and resurrection and for the next ( 3½ ) years (till AD 33 or 34), the door of accepting Jesus Christ was still open to Jews. When that opportunity was rejected (Stephen’s murder seemed to mark that event, please look up his fascinating account in Acts 6:8 – 8:8).
As the door of opportunity was closed to Israel, it was widely opened to Samaria and all the nations. To mark the power of that new era to “strengthen the covenant for MANY [Gentiles]”, the apostle Peter was given the key of the kingdom to open the door to the Gentiles with the first Gentile, Cornelius, to believe in Jesus Christ and receive the Holy Spirit. (See Acts chapter 10)
Who are the People of the Prince?
“The people of the prince who is to come will destroy the sanctuary and the city.” Most interpret this prince to be the Roman General Titus and his army. Although this has happened historically, I don't think the above verse applies to him! I believe the Jewish Ecclesiastical powers and their supporters living then were “the people of the prince”. They were the ones who destroyed the sanctuary (the temple) which was the body of Jesus (not the physical temple). By such an abominable and high act, they ruined their righteous standing and lost their city of worship, Jerusalem.
For more details, read my article: What is the Abomination of Desolation?
Christ issued God’s decrees against the Temple, the city of Jerusalem and its people (see His final rejection in Matt 23:13-37). War, trampling, and desolation were only part of these decrees which later included the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple between 66-70 AD. But do not dismiss that Israel's spiritual losses were much greater than any physical destruction, due to their stubbornness when they finally rejected Jesus Christ. What I'm saying will be clearer, once you read the "Murdered Son" parable in Mark 12:1-12.
Israel's ecclesiastical system, not only killed Christ but it continued to reject Him as the Messiah for the next 3½ years. In response, the tables were turned against their system which was left desolate and abandoned. Jerusalem ceased to be the city of God. The Kingdom of Heaven—the New Jerusalem—is God's celestial city with Jesus Christ her King and Lord. Any Jew or Gentile can partake of the New Covenant, but ONLY on the basis of accepting Jesus Christ wholeheartedly and leaving behind the old law!
The Deception of the Seventy Weeks Gap!
Erroneously, many Christians divide Daniel’s seventy weeks prophecy as follows:
69 weeks (483 years till the Messiah appears).
A forced GAP of Thousands of Years!!
Following the gap, they add one week or seven years of Tribulation. (see examples of incorrect charts below)
This method is unsupported scripturally. The 70-week prophecy should not be split, divided or gapped under any circumstances! It is one continuous prophecy from its first year to its 490th year.
The False View of the Seventy Weeks Prophecy!
Now I want to share with you some timeline charts of false teachings depicting the 70-week prophecy extending beyond Christ's death, even to our days!
Warning!
The Charts below may cause you headaches and possible confusion!
Wrong View ⟫
Wrong View ⟫
The Scriptural View of the Seventy Weeks Prophecy!
I have intentionally created this clear and simple timeline of the 70-weeks prophecy below to show you that there is no need to complicate such a profound prophecy beyond its intended meaning!
The entire seventy weeks (all 490 years) pointed to Christ’s death and resurrection. It fulfilled perfectly the will of God with nothing more to say or add! This was the whole purpose of the seventy-weeks prophecy!
I hope you do not go on believing in a seven-year tribulation, a church pre-rapture, or this gap (in Daniel's prophecy) which were not taught by Christ or His apostles. Do not wait for what will never come! Christ comes to each of us in the Spirit. It is rather more advantageous to use the time you have to build a strong relationship with Him and the heavenly Father. Leave behind any silly end-time teachings. Our current age will end sooner or later when God decides according to His knowledge, and this, my brothers, is not for us to know!
“It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority." (Acts 1:7 NKJV)
Dear readers, the seventy weeks of Daniel, besides many others, are misinterpreted and have become hard to understand and confusing. They deceive many with false hopes and promote carnal thinking. My hope is to show you that although God's shining truth is profound and deep, it does not need to be as complex or confusing as many false teachers made it out to be!
Related articles:
What is the Abomination of Desolation?
What is the Great Tribulation?