October 30, 2006 (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article) -

The following is from the Advanced Bible Studies course “Understanding Bible Prophecy,” which is available from Way of Life Literature.

“Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate” (Daniel 9:25-27).

This amazing passage of Scripture gives God’s timetable for restoring Israel and overthrowing the Gentile powers. The occasion of the 70 weeks was Daniel’s prayer that God would have mercy on Israel (vv. 3-20). The vision of the 70 weeks is God’s answer (vv. 21-23). In this vision, God reveals to Daniel the time schedule and major events which will lead to the establishment of Israel’s Messianic kingdom.

The people to whom the 70 weeks pertains (Dan. 9:24)

It has to do with “thy people” (referring to Daniel’s people, the Jews) and “thy holy city” (referring to Jerusalem).

The purpose of the 70 weeks (Dan. 9:24)

The purpose is to complete God’s promises to and covenants with and prophecies about Israel.

The length of time of the 70 weeks

The Hebrew term for weeks here (shebuah) simply means “sevens.” The context must determine whether it is a week of days or of years. For the following reasons, we know that it is weeks of years.

1. The weeks which have already been fulfilled demonstrate these are weeks of years rather than of days. Dan. 9:25 says that there will be 69 weeks between the rebuilding of the temple and Jerusalem until the coming of Messiah. There is some disagreement about exactly when this period starts and ends, but we know there was less than 500 years between the command to rebuild Jerusalem and the coming of Christ. 69 weeks of years would be 483 years. Thus, we see that the part of the prophecy that has already been fulfilled demands that we interpret the weeks as weeks of years. It is reasonable to believe that the 70th week shall also be a week of years, or a seven-year period.

2. The concept of weeks of years was familiar to Jewish thinking (Lev. 25:3-9). In Leviticus 25, God commanded that Israel think in terms of seven-year periods or weeks of years. Every seventh year the land was to rest.

3. At the time of the vision, Daniel had been thinking in terms of weeks of years. In Daniel 9:2, he was thinking about Jeremiah’s prophecy that Israel would be taken captive for 70 years. We find this prophecy in Jer. 25:11-12. If we look at 2 Chronicles 36:21, we find that the reason for the 70 years was because Israel had not obeyed God to keep the seventh-year sabbath commanded in Leviticus 25. Thus, Daniel was thinking in terms of weeks of years when the vision of Daniel 9 was given.

The Divisions of the 70 weeks

The 70 weeks or 490 years that complete God’s program with Israel are divided into three distinct periods. There are seven weeks (49 years), and 62 weeks (434 years), and the final week (7 years).

1. During the first 7 weeks (49 years) Jerusalem was rebuilt in troublous times. This is described in the book of Nehemiah. “The going forth of the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem is the decree of Artaxerxes as recorded in Nehemiah 2. During the next forty-nine years, the city was rebuilt” (Ironside).

2. The next 62 weeks (434 years) extended from the rebuilding of Jerusalem until the coming of the Messiah. “Then, 434 years later, our Lord rode into Jerusalem and was acclaimed by the multitudes as King, the Son of David, but a few days later was rejected and crucified. Thus, Messiah was cut off” (Ironside).

3. Between the 69th and 70th week is a period of undetermined time during which the Messiah is cut off (rejected and crucified), Jerusalem is destroyed by Roman armies (A.D. 70), and there are desolations until the end. The Hebrew word translated “desolation” is also translated “destruction” (Hos. 2:12). It refers to the fact that Jerusalem has been destroyed and overrun repeatedly throughout the interim period between the 69th and 70th weeks. Unforeseen by Daniel is the interlude of the church age, during which time the Messiah is resurrected and ascends back to Heaven to oversee the calling out of a people for His name from among the nations (Lk. 19:11-27; Acts 15:14-18). “The angel-revealer said to Daniel, ‘unto the end of the war desolations are determined’ (9:26). This gives the whole history of Palestine for the past nineteen hundred years. It has been a great battleground and a scene of almost unparalleled desolation because Israel knew not the time of her visitation. Their times are not in progress now. God is doing another work. While the Jews are blinded, in part, and are wanderers over the face of the earth, He is gathering out the church, the body of Christ, a heavenly company, who will reign with Christ when He establishes His kingdom of righteousness upon the earth” (Ironside).

4. The 70th week (the final seven years).

The prince of the revived Roman Empire will make a covenant with Israel. That the Antichrist arises from the revived Roman Empire is evident by the fact that he is called the prince of the people who destroyed Jerusalem after Messiah’s death; this was Rome.

In the middle of the seven years, the Antichrist will desecrate the Jewish temple (compare Mt. 24:15; 2 Th. 2:3-4). There will be desolations until Christ returns to overthrow the Antichrist (compare Mt. 24:16-21; Rev. 11:2). The abomination that makes desolate marks the middle of the seven years.

By comparing Matthew 24:15, we see that Jesus places this event in the Tribulation period. This abomination of desolation probably refers to the occasion when the Antichrist will set himself up as god (2 Th. 2:4).