What is Daniel’s 70 weeks?  Power-Point Web Presentation


2500 years ago in the land of Babylon a Hebrew prophet named Daniel wrote about future events involving the whole world and all mankind. The angel Gabriel revealed to Daniel how his nation Israel, his people the Jews, and his holy city Jerusalem would play a central role in God’s plan for all mankind.


They would serve the role of God’s prophetic clock. The clock of God’s plan for mankind and the world.


By being aware of this clock we are able to see God’s plan unfold before our eyes.

The Text………..

Background

            To understand Daniel’s 70 Weeks, we need to understand God’s unique relationship with the people and land of Israel.

            The relationship is 4000 years old and dates back to the time of  Abraham about 2100 BC.  Abraham lived in the city of Ur  located in present day Iraq. In Ur Abraham and his family set out for Canaan, present day Israel.  On the way, In the city of Haran, God appeared to Abraham and told him,

“Goto a land I will show you,….and “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; 
I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you”.
Genesis 12:1-3
When Abraham arrived in the land at Mt. Moriah, present day Jerusalem. God promised Abraham,  “To your offspring I will give this land” Genesis 12:7.

            In Canaan, some time after the birth his son Isaac, in a test of faith, God instructed Abraham to take his son Isaac to the top of Mt. Moriah and offer him as a sacrifice.  At the top of Moriah as Abraham was about offer Isaac as a sacrifice, the Angel of the Lord intervenes and prevents the sacrifice from taking place. God again declares to Abraham.

            “I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky…..and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because your have obeyed me”  Genesis 22:17,18

            God established a covenant relationship with Abraham and his descendants.  This “Abrahamic Covenant”  would later, be passed to Isaac and his son, Jacob, Abraham’s  grandson. Before Abraham died about 20 miles to the south of Jerusalem in the city of Hebron Abraham purchased a burial site, the cave of Machpellah, from the Hittites. To this very day lies the bodies of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob along with their wives, Sarah, Rebecca and Leah in the cave of Machpellah.  Apart from Jerusalem, this site known as the “Tomb of the Patriarch’s”  is the most hotly contested site between Jews and Palestinians.

            Before being buried in the cave of Machpelah, Jacob would move his  family to Egypt to escape the famine of the land of Canaan.  Joseph, Jacob’s 2nd youngest son, became the most powerful man in Egypt next to pharaoh.  Jealous of Jacob’s love for his son Joseph’s brothers sold him as a slave to Ishmaelite traders who took him to Egypt and sold him. In Egypt Joseph rose from slave to prime minister by the time he was 30 years old.  He would later welcome his brothers and family into the land of  his captivity. The descendents of  Joseph and his 11 brothers’ would be known as the “tribes of Israel”. Jacob’s  descendents would grow from the 70 who moved to Egypt  to over 1 million in the next 400 years. After Jacob died his body was taken to Hebron and buried with Isaac and Abraham.

            But after 400 years In Egypt his descendents were no longer welcomed.  Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, viewed the tribes of Israel as a hostile threat to Egyptian survival.  Egypt began a systematic plan to destroy the tribes of Israel. By killing the male children, they would assimilate Israel into Egypt  But Jacob’s descendents cried out to the God of Abraham.  And Moses, a Hebrew of the tribe of Levi, raised in the house of Pharaoh was called by God to lead his people out of Egypt into the land promised to Abraham 600 years earlier.

            At the hand of Moses God sent plagues on Egypt to free Israel from their reluctant masters. Finally after the 10th plague, the death of the “first born” in Egypt . Death “Passed over” those who put the blood of a lamb on their door posts whether Egyptian or Israelite. Egypt’s Pharaoh agreed to release the tribes of Jacob. And into the wildness of Sinai Moses would lead the descendents of  Jacob back to the land of promise where Jacob was buried.

            On the exodus journey, Israel after witnessing the plagues on Egypt, the miraculous parting of the Red Sea, and supernatural intervention by God rebelled. Moses was on Mt. Sinai, receiving the 10 commandments, the law of God. After Moses delayed returning from the top of the mountain, Aaron his brother made an idol, a golden calf to lead Israel back to Egypt.  This rejection of God’s authority, angered God to the point of judgment.  Speaking to Moses, God said,

"Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume them: and I will make thee a great nation." Exodus 32:9

     Only after Moses interceded did God relent.  But Israel’s rebellion would not end at Sinai. The Lord confirmed his  covenant relationship with Israel the descendents of Abraham.  His covenant with Israel came with promises of blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience (Deut.27-28).

            If Israel obeyed they would be blessed above all nations on the earth. But if Israel disobeyed they would be scattered amongst the nations.

64“Then the LORD will scatter you among all peoples, from one end of the earth to the other, and there you shall serve other gods, which neither you nor your fathers have known—wood and stone. 65And among those nations you shall find no rest, nor shall the sole of your foot have a resting place; but there the LORD will give you a trembling heart, failing eyes, and anguish of soul. Deut 28:64,65

            With one voice Israel agreed to the covenant with God on the border of Canaan.  But Moses was not to lead Israel into the land.

            After Moses died, Joshua led Israel into the promised land as described in the book of Joshua about 1400 BC.  Prophets and judges led the tribes of Israel for the next 400 years. But Israel wanted a king like the other nations.  God listened to their demands and Israel was established as a nation under King Saul by the prophet Samuel in 1050 BC. Saul’s disobedience caused him to be replaced by one of his commanders, David in 1025 BC.

            David was from the tribe of Judah.  David wanted to build a temple for the God of Abraham.  God rejected David’s offer, but God  would send Nathan the prophet to David and establish the Davidic Covenant.  Through David God would establish a eternal kingdom, throne and king.  Through David family line the promised Messiah would come into the world.  The Messiah would be a “Son of David”.

12“When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.  2 Samuel 7:12,13

            David’s son Solomon would build a temple on the very spot  his forefather Abraham was given the land by God.

On the top of Mt. Moriah where Abraham’s faith was tested, Solomon would construct the Temple of God. This is the only place  where  God would permit a temple to be built. After its completion God accepted the Temple built by Solomon and but warned if Israel disobeyed the Temple would be brought to ruins.

            After Solomon’s death the kingdom of Israel was divided into two kingdoms. The northern kingdom Israel made up of 10 tribes and the Southern kingdom Judah composed  the tribes Judah and Benjamin. 

     The sins of Israel and Judah were the same the same, the people rejected the God of Abraham and turned to idolatry. They began to worship the god’s of the neighboring nations. They followed Baal and Ashtorah of the Canaanites, Molech of the Ammonites, Chemosh of the Moabites and  Tammuz of the Phoenicians. 

            Prophets were sent to warn both , the northern kingdom and Judah the southern kingdom of the coming judgment. Elijah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Hosea and Ezekiel were sent to them among others.  These messengers  were rejected, mocked, and killed.  Isaiah was sawed in two during the rein of Manasseh.  Israel was judged first , in 722 BC the Assyrian kingdom defeated Israel and carried the Israelites into captivity.   Judah was sparred an Assyrian victory during Hezekiah reign.  In 690 BC the armies of Sennecherib king of Assyria surrounded Jerusalem. After Hezekiah secured the water supply by completing an underground water tunnel. Jerusalem was a place of refuge for those seeking escape from Assyrian armies. Isaiah prayed for the city and according to the book of Isaiah 185,000 Assyrian solders  were killed in one night by the Angel of the Lord.  Jerusalem was sparred an Assyrian victory.  Assyrian writers confirm the retreat from Jerusalem by the Assyrian forces. But 90 years later Judah  was no better then Israel in their apostasy.

            God, proving His case, for judgment takes Ezekiel into Solomon’s Temple, showing him the idolatry of the priests and leaders of Judah.  Idols at the gate of the altar, idols portrayed on the walls and  the seventy leaders of Israel worshipping them.  The women cried for the god Tammuz, and many worshipped the sun. The Lord asked Ezekiel,

Ezk. 8:17 "Is it a light thing to the house of Judah that they commit the abominations which they commit here?"

     The punishment  was destruction of the Temple and captivity in Babylon. This fulfilled  the  curses of the covenant  promised in Sinai. (Deuteronomy 28 (to be scattered in the earth).

The Captivity

Judah was judged and the promises fulfilled.  The city of Jerusalem, was conquered by the armies of Babylon in 605 BC.  Captives were taken to Babylon to secure peace.  A young man of the nobility named Daniel was included in the captivity. Eight years later Judah rebelled against Babylonian control in 597 BC.  Babylon again conquered the city taking more hostages and installing a new king.  Finally, after a third revolt in 586 BC, Babylon destroyed the city of Jerusalem, the walls and the majestic

Temple built by Solomon.  Most were killed, some taken captive and the poorest of the people were left to take care of the land.  Jeremiah wrote in the book of Lamentations about the pain of the event.

     Jerusalem was left a barren unprotected city with no temple. In 586 BC Daniel was a captive in Babylon for 19 years.  He rose to high government positions under  King Nebuchadnezzar. After Nebuchadnezzar’s death, his successors forgot about Daniel.  Then in the year 539 BC, 67 years after Daniel was taken captive, the Persian /Median Empire under Darius the Mede and Cyrus the Persian conquered the kingdom of Babylon and Daniel was again given a position of prominence in the Persian Empire.  The people of Judah had now been captive almost 70 years.  Daniel knew the time of captivity was limited as foretold by Jeremiah.  (Jeremiah 25:11-12)

  In the first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of the years whereof the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolation's of Jerusalem.   
Daniel 9:2     

Intercession of Daniel


     Daniel was 82 to 90 years old at  this point.  He was taken captive as a young man and he remained under the Babylonian and Persian kingdoms for almost 70 years. Time was at hand for the return of his people.  Daniel took the role of intercessor for Israel and the Temple.  

 And whiles I was speaking, and 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; Daniel 9:20

Answering Daniel's prayer, the Lord commanded the angel Gabriel to show Daniel his plan for the world and the role Israel would play.  Israel and Jerusalem would serve  the role as “God’s Prophetic Clock”. 

 Dan 9:21 Yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation.
Dan 9:22 And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding.
Dan 9:23 At the beginning of thy supplications the commandment came forth, and I am come to show thee; for thou art greatly beloved: therefore understand the matter, and consider the vision. Daniel 9:21-23

 

The Future Foretold

 "Seventy weeks are determined For your people and for your holy city, 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. Daniel 9:24

First we are given the time period involved “Seventy weeks” or 70 periods of 7 equaling 490 ( 70 x 7). The word for week in Hebrew means seven " shebha"

and could be used for days or years. The same root is used in Leviticus 25:8 regarding the year of Jubilee. The celebration of Jubilee takes place in 50th year after 7 periods of 7 years or 49 years.  The 490 represents years and not days.  The 490 years are “Determined for thy people”, Israel and “Thy holy city”, Jerusalem.  This sets the  parameters.  The time period is 490 years and the years revolve around Daniel’s people Israel/Jews and his Holy city Jerusalem.  Within these parameters seven events will take place:

• 1. “To finish the transgression”

• 2. “To make an end of sins”

• 3. “To make reconciliation for iniquity”

• 4. “To bring in everlasting righteousness”

• 5. “To seal up the vision”

• 6.  “And prophesy”

• 7.  “To anoint the most Holy”

            Transgression and sin are just as real today as they were in Daniel’s day and righteousness is a long way off.  War, murder, robbery and wickedness are a staple of everyday life. Yet we read within these 490 years there will be “An end to sin”, and the beginning of “Everlasting righteousness”.  More than 490 years have passed since Daniel penned these words 2500 years ago.  So is this a false prophecy?  What are the time qualifiers of Daniel's 70 weeks.

The angel Gabriel admonishes the reader to “Know therefore and understand”, that there is a starting point and several reference or focus points within the 490 year period or clock.  When does the clock start?  Daniel's original prayer was for the restoration of Jerusalem.  The angel Gabriel came to answer his prayer regarding his people and Jerusalem.  We read," from the going forth of the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem".  Daniel’s prayer took place in the first year of Darius son of Xerxes, about 539-538 BC.  Jerusalem is in ruins, without walls and a Temple, a shadow of it’s former glory.  The clock begins with the command regarding Jerusalem’s reconstruction.  The command actually comes 93 years later.  In the book of Nehemiah we have a record of the command.  Nehemiah was the cup bearer to the Persian king, Artaxerxes.  Nehemiah shared Daniel’s concern regarding the state of Jerusalem 94 years after Daniel’s prayer.   His prayer was for the restoration of his people’s city.  The king, seeing Nehemiah’s sadness, asked him why he looked sad?  Nehemiah told him, and Artaxerxes granted the request and gave Nehemiah (Nehemiah 2:8) orders to rebuild the city gates and walls. The order was given in March 444 BC.  God’s clock began to tick with the command. Daniel Timeline 1.

   With the starting point established at the “Going forth of the command” our next touch point is, “Unto Messiah the Prince” with a defined time  period between the two points, “Seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks:” totaling 483 years.  The 483 year period is segmented into 2 periods.  The first being 7 weeks or 49 years and the second being 62 weeks or 434 years totaling 483 years. The first 49 year period is described in the book of Nehemiah.  This portion of the prophesy  “The street shall be built again, and the walls”  was accomplished under the constant threat of war from the new occupants of Jerusalem’s countryside, it was as Daniel foretold  “even in troublous times”.  Daniel Timeline  2.

The second period to "Messiah the Prince" is another 434 years after the work by Nehemiah and his successors was completed.  Who is this prince Messiah or anointed prince?  Could it be any king or anointed ruler in Judah?  No, first, this Messiah must fit into the time line.  This means the Messiah would have to exist and be cut off at the end of 69 weeks or 483 years from the commandment given in 444 BC.  Daniel Timeline 3.

"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".  If we start at March 444 BC and subtract 483 years of time we arrive at 39 AD.  However, there is a problem that must first be addressed.   The length of a year in the time of Daniel is not same as our day.  As the earth rotates around the Sun and the moon revolves around the Earth, the Hebrews used the moon to calculate the number of days in a year.  This is known as a Lunar calendar.  We currently use the Gregorian calendar which is determined on a solar basis. 

•      The length of a year in terms of days in biblical accounting is different then the present Gregorian system used today. The biblical system was lunar while the Gregorian is Solar. Hence a month was 29 days and 30 days every other month with some adjustments every so often. We can observe from Genesis 7-8 that the flood continued for 5 months or 150 days, a month was 30 days.  A day was 24 hours in Daniel’s day and in our day.  By using days, instead of years, we can reconcile the two methods.

• 1. We know there are 360 days to a biblical year.

•       360 x 483=173,880 days

• 2. There are 365.242 days to a year in our calendar.          

• 3. If we divide our days 365.242 days into 173,880 days we  have 476 years and 24 days . 

• 4.  Subtract 476 years from 444 BC we  arrive at 33 AD and add 24 days (year 0 being 1) 

Thecommand was given in the month Nissan. Nissan corresponds with March/April in our calendar. Therefore, 69 weeks ends on 24th day of Nissan or about  March 29th 33 AD.

Once these years are reconciled to our calendar, we find  "Messiah the Prince" was cut off or killed in 33 AD.  Who died or was cut off in 33 AD and claimed to be Messiah?  Examining the biblical prophecies about Messiah we can only draw one conclusion.  The “Messiah the Prince" cut off was none other then Jesus of Nazareth who claimed to be Messiah or Christ (Greek word for Messiah).  Is the Messiah being cut off or killed supported by other scriptures?

The Suffering Messiah

Dan 9:26 " And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself:"

The idea of  " Messiah be cut off" not for himself means he was cut off for others.  In Zechariah 12:10, written about 520 BC, we read about one who rescues Israel and Judah from the armies of the world.  We read, “They shall look upon me whom they pierced.  They will all begin to weep and cry as if they are weeping for their first born son.  This one pierced talks in the first person and would indicate from Zechariah 12:2  this one pierced is none other then the Lord Himself.

Zec 12:10 And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.

In the book of Isaiah, chapters 52:13-53:12, written about 700 BC, 700 years before a man named Jesus would be born, we are presented with a picture of the death of a person who will be exalted, extolled and be  highly esteemed after initially being beaten, rejected and killed by men while dying for their sins.

 Isa 52:14-15 As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men:So shall he sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at him: for that which had not been told them shall they see; and that which they had not heard shall they consider.
Isa 53:5 -6 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Isa 53:8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.

      Earlier in Isaiah we see a different picture of the Messiah.  He is presented as a ruler of the earth bringing justice and judgment.  In the Jewish Bible or Old Testament we are presented with two pictures of the Messiah.  One is a suffering servant who dies and the other is a conquering king.

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.Isa 9:7 Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.
Ishaih  9:6-7 

Are we reading about two Messiahs or one Messiah?  We are reading about one Messiah who would play two roles.  His first role would be of an intercessory servant who would intercede on the behalf of mankind and be killed or “Cut Off” in the process.  The Messiah of Daniel 9:25-26 is the Suffering Servant  who was  killed in 33 AD.  Jesus of Nazareth was “Messiah the Prince” “Cut off” and died as a substitute for the sins of all mankind.

The Roman Empire
26 "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. Daniel 9:26

    From Daniel’s perspective, we are viewing the (future) destruction of Jerusalem after the restoration mentioned in Daniel’s pray and accomplished by Nehemiah.  This destruction will occur by "The people of a prince who shall come".   Daniel, at this point, is praying for the restoration of Jerusalem. The city was destroyed by the Babylonians when he, Daniel, was in Babylon 586 BC.  The angel Gabriel is informing Daniel that the city of Jerusalem will be destroyed again after it is rebuilt by the commandment given by Artaxerxes in Daniel 9:24.  In the year 70 AD, roman general Titus, son of the Emperor Vespasian, laid siege to Jerusalem. Today in the city of Rome, the Arch of Titus stands as a nearly 2000 year old monument to the victory of the Roman armies.  Engraved on the arch are the treasures taken from Jerusalem including a sculpture of the gold Menorah taken from the Temple.

    Following, "cutting off of Messiah the Prince" which occurred in 33 AD, we read, “The people” of a future prince would destroy the city and Temple. History verifies what happened next. The Jewish Temple was literally taken apart stone by stone as the Roman army searched for melted gold from the burned temple. The Jewish people  were dispersed throughout the world by the Romans who wanted to stop any future rebellions.  This event is recorded by the Jewish historian "Josephus" who witnessed the event.  Deuteronomy 28 was fulfilled as the children of Israel were scattered  throughout the Earth. 

The Roman scattering occurred 600 years after Daniel.  Rome became Byzantium and Byzantium control over Jerusalem fell to invading Muslim armies in 638 AD.  For the next 1300 years, Muslims controlled Jerusalem and the lands of Israel.

                        ISRAEL SCATTERED AND GATHERED

And the LORD shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even unto the other; and there thou shalt serve other gods, which neither thou nor thy fathers have known, even wood and stone. And among these nations shalt thou find no ease, neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest: but the LORD shall give thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and sorrow of mind: Deuteronomy 28:64-65

    The number of years have been determined at 490 with 483 years being fulfilled at the death of Messiah. Seven years have yet to be fulfilled to accomplish the seven events of Daniel 9:24. 

     The same covenant with promises of dispersion has a counterpart which affirms a day of gathering.   

 If any of thine be driven out unto the outmost parts of heaven, from thence will the LORD thy God gather thee, and from thence will he fetch thee: And the LORD thy God will bring thee into the land which thy fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess it; and he will do thee good, and multiply thee above thy fathers.
Deuteronomy 30:4-5

Is God true to his promise?  The Jewish nation of Israel came into existence in May 1948 after the near genocide of the Jewish people by  Nazi Germany.  The Jewish nation was formed from the remnants of the Roman dispersion 1900 years earlier.  In fact the gathering of the Jewish people is one of the most prophesied events in the scriptures.  

     Thus saith the LORD, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, which divideth the sea when the waves thereof roar; The LORD of hosts is his name: If those ordinances depart from before me, saith the LORD, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me for ever. Jeremiah 31:35-36

Daniel’s 70th Week

    Only 69 weeks of years have passed on the Jewish People up to this point.  From the time the "Commandment was given" to restore and build Jerusalem unto " Messiah the Prince" was 483 years.  However, the number of years determined on Daniel's people were 490 years. Seven years are left to be fulfilled of the 490.  Did the seven years follow the death of Messiah?

      In Dan. 9:26  the, "Cutting off of Messiah"  occurred in 33 AD, to be followed by "The people of a prince who shall come"  who would destroy the city and temple. “The people”, who came were the Romans under Titus in 70 AD, but also mentioned is “A prince who shall come”. The people and prince are connected but separate. The people who destroy Jerusalem and the Temple would be descendants of the future prince.  The prince therefore would be of Roman or European origin.  At the end of the 69th week which ended with the death of Messiah the prince there was a period of 37 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.

The Future Roman Prince

27 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."  Daniel 9:27

Daniel Timeline 4.

       The temple and city of Jerusalem were destroyed following the death of  Messiah the Prince, thirty seven  years later.

This sequence is important for four reasons;

• 1.   The 70th week is part of the 490 years but would not immediately follow 69 weeks.

• 2.   The remaining 7 years will  focus on Israel and the future Jewish Temple.

• 3.   The  future "Prince who shall come" is linked to the Jewish people and Temple sacrifice.

• 4.   Titus and the Romans destroyed the Temple in 70 AD and there is no temple today.

•  So a future Jewish Temple must be built. 

      This prince is Roman  because Gabriel identifies him as a future prince of the people that would destroy the city of Jerusalem and the Temple.  The "Prince who shall come" was in the future tense. What function will this prince serve?  We find the answer in the 70th week (Dan 9:27) The Temple and city were destroyed in 70 AD.  The city has been restored but the temple to this very day remains destroyed.

     Today  the third most holy site to Islam, The Dome of the Rock, occupies  the spot where Temple stood. The last remaining vestige of the Temple is the Wailing Wall.  In Dan. 9:27 we are told that someone (he ), the "Prince who shall come" will make a covenant agreement to start up the sacrificial system of worship which has been stopped since the Temple was destroyed by the Roman armies.

"He shall confirm the covenant with many for one week:"

God only allowed one location for the Temple to be built.  In the city of Jerusalem on the top of Mt. Moriah. Where the Dome of the Rock now stands. Mohammed claimed to ascend into Heaven and meet Jesus, Moses, Abraham and God from this same location. The Muslim population is 1.3 Billion, over 20% of the Earth population.   The Jewish population is 20 million world wide with only 5 million living in  Israel. The Muslim world claims rights over east Jerusalem which includes the Temple Mount.

The Arab-Israeli War of 1967 gave Israel control of the Temple Mount.  Israel to this present time has allowed Muslim stewardship over this sacred location to preserve world peace.  But pressure is growing inside Israel to assert its territorial rights over Jerusalem as the “Eternal Capital” of the Jewish People.  This puts Israel at odds with the rest of the world.  Today Israel has one ally who guarantees their security, the United States.  Pressure is growing for Israel to make peace and give back the Temple Mount and make Jerusalem an international city.  Suggestions for peace Israel has rejected.   The world  views peace between Israel and its Muslim neighbors as key to world peace.   This creates serious problems for Israel. The prophets of Israel foretell great struggles over Jerusalem involving the nations of the world.  Over 3 billion of the Earth population has a spiritual connection with Jerusalem.  The Catholics are 1 billion, 1 billion Protestants, 1.3  billion Muslims and 20 million Jews.

   “And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it” Zechariah 12:3.

The restored nation of Israel gathered from the nations of the world was an event Ezekiel wrote about over 2500 years ago.  Ezekiel 36 and 37 details events of a scattered and hopeless people being collected into a mighty army for God’s purpose.

‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “Surely I will take the children of Israel from among the nations, wherever they have gone, and will gather them from every side and bring them into their own land; Ezekiel 37:21

            What follows in chapters 38 and 39 of Ezekiel  is a future war in Israel distant future from Ezekiel’s time perspective.   Nations involved in this future attack on Israel involve Iran, Libya, Ethiopia and Russia.  Even more amazing we read of Israel’s victory and God’s hand in the war.   Chapters 40 to 43 of Ezekiel  give us details of a newly rebuilt temple with the exact measurements and specifications for Temple worship.

       Only with the guarantee of the nations and the defeat of Islamic power  will Israel be allowed to build the Jewish Temple. Mt. Moriah, the Temple Mount , is the most valued 30 acres of land in the world today.  For this reason will the “Prince {who shall come}” bring a temporary peace to the world by making an agreement with the nation of Israel.  The agreement will be a seven year agreement and will be with many indicating more then just Israel,  “He shall confirm the covenant with many for one week”. The “Prince who shall come” will  break this  same agreement he made with Israel and stop the Temple worship and sacrifice.  The covenant break will come at the 3 1/2 year mark of the 7 year agreement.

"And in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease",

What follows will be a period of time in the History of man that will be unparalleled for its horror and destruction and will end with the Kingdom of Messiah.   Jesus warns of this time in

 Matthew 24:15,16,21 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) 16Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:

For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.  Daniel Timeline 5.

Who is this Roman Prince?

      The kingdom of this coming prince is described for us in Daniel. 7. His kingdom will be unlike any that existed before. The kingdom will be religious, military and  will effect the whole earth. Ten countries or kings which lead these countries will compose this empire. This kingdom will be European, as spoken by Gabriel earlier, "The people of a prince who shall come", the people who came were the Romans, the possessions of Jerusalem were marched off to Rome and put on display as was the custom of the vanquishing Roman armies. The future leader will look back to glories of the Roman empire. European history shows  the rulers of Europe have always tried lay claim the title to Emperor of Rome. Charlemagne, Napoleon, Czar (Caesar) Peter of Russia, Kaiser (Caesar) Wilhelm of Germany and even Hitler claimed title to the Roman Empire. This kingdom will succeed where others have failed. .

    Today  a unified Europe is a fact of history. Although the confederacy is  loose, its hold on member states is becoming tighter as time moves on. There is a European congress, bureaucracy and control structure being exercised on member states. The Euro currency will take effect January 1st,  2002 the French Franc, the German Mark and other currencies will begin to fade into history.  Europe is in the process of creating its own military apart from NATO. Missing is a strong leader to take charge and unify the nations with a common theme.   Details of this future European leader are in the book of Daniel. His kingdom will come from a 10 nation alignment and be diverse from any other kingdom before its existence.

7:23 Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.
Dan 7:24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.Daniel 7:23-24

    His kingdom will be brutal, dictatorial and religious.   He will persecute any rival religions including those who follow after the true God, the God  of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.  This period of great persecution will last for 3 1/2 years and will take place after the Temple worship and sacrifice are stopped. This would complete the 7 years of the 70th Week.

Daniel 7:25 And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time. Daniel 7:26 But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end.Daniel 7:25-26

     His end will come with the appearing of Messiah who will put an end to the revived Roman kingdom and establish His own kingdom which shall never end. But till that time approaches the persecutions afflicted on those who follow God will be greater then any ever committed on this earth. Imagine  Adolph Hitler winning W.W.II and having a 3 1/2 year reign of terror on the earth. This will be the case with the Roman prince. But his end will not be the result of any human intervention. 

     Before Jesus was  crucified looking at Jerusalem from a distance he said to his disciples about Jerusalem fate, “Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.” Mathew 23:38-39 Jesus foretold a day when Israel would accept him as the Messiah, though He was rejected now.       This is the dual picture of the suffering Messiah and conquering King.  Jesus is rejected as suffering Messiah and accepted by a future helpless Israel as their only Messiah.  Preceding this would be time of great persecution for the Jewish people.

Dan 7:13 I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.
Dan 7:14 And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.
Dan 7:21 I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them;
Dan 7:22 Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom. Daniel 7:13-14,21-22

     In Daniel chapter 2 King Nebuchadnezzar has a dream Daniel is the only man in Babylon who knows the dream and its meaning.  God revealed the dream and meaning to him. The king saw a huge statue in the image of a  man. The images head was made of gold, his arms and chest  made of silver, his belly and thighs are  brass, his legs are  iron and his feet are of Iron and clay. As the image is standing a rock with no human involvement, cut from a mountain, crashes into the image at it base, the 10 toes made of Iron and clay. The image crumbles and is blown away with the wind. The rock becomes a great mountain that fills the whole earth. The Lord tells Daniel the mountain  represents  the Kingdom of God that will be established forever. The stone represents the Messiah who will defeat the armies of mankind that oppose the rule of God on Earth.

Dan 2:44 And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. Daniel 2:44

Messiah the Prince Returns

     The Messiah  cut off in 33 AD. Is the one who will return as conquering King to vanquish the armies of the earth and their future, “Prince who shall come” at the conclusion of the 70th week. The 490 years of determined time upon the Jewish People and Jerusalem will conclude with Jesus the Messiah who was spurned at His first coming. The scriptures  tell us someone of great importance would suffer at the hands of man but would be given the point of preeminence in the Earth.   Daniel Timeline 6.

14 Just as many were astonished at you, So His visage was marred more than any man, And His form more than the sons of men;
15 So shall He sprinkle many nations. Kings shall shut their mouths at Him; For what had not been told them they shall see, And what they had not heard they shall consider. Isaiah 52:14-15
 

    This person is none other then Jesus of Nazareth, "Messiah the Prince" cut off not for himself but for others. The others being all mankind so sins might be forgiven. His death was fulfillment of what the prophets foretold would happen. Even his  rejection  was foretold over 700 years before it happened.

Isa 53:3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Isaiah 53:3

 God proves  his word by revealing events before they occur.

Jerusalem Surrounded

         The scene before Messiah returns is revealed in detail in  Zechariah chapter 12.  Jerusalem will be a cause of great concern and fear for the whole Earth. The Jews and Jerusalem will be a cause of frustration to the political power structures of the world.

 Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. ..12:3 And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it. Zechariah 12:2

     "Messiah the Prince" returns to save his people who years earlier had rejected Him.  Israel’s Savior has marks identifying his earlier appearance.  The Messiah cut off , is the "Me whom they have pierced", the Messiah cutoff and killed in 33 AD has returned to the ones who pierced him. They will mourn for this one pierced as someone would mourn over the death of son. The will realize the one that they have rejected all along was their only hope.

And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn. Zechariah 12:10

Jesus speaks of this event in Matthew 24:30-31,

“And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.”

The Kingdom of the Messiah

    When Messiah reigns the 490 years of Daniels’ 70 weeks will be complete,  seven events of Daniel 9:24 will be accomplished. 

• 1. Finish transgression

• 2. Make an end of sins

• 3. Reconciliation for iniquity

• 4. Bring in everlasting righteousness

• 5. To seal up the vision

• 6.  And prophesy

• 7. To anoint the most Holy

    The Earth will be at peace the nature of man and animals will change with the kingdom of Messiah.

Isa 11:6 The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. Isa 11:7 And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. Isa 11:8 And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice' den. Isa 11:9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.

WHY WAIT ?

 On the cross next to Jesus on both sides two thieves were crucified.   One spit on Jesus and asked to see a miracle the other said Lord remember me when you come into your kingdom.  Jesus replied,  “Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise”. Today you can have the same promise of salvation.  Jesus the Messiah promised the thief, “Today thou shalt be with me in paradise” by believing and putting your trust in his work on the cross.    Jesus  told  Nicodemous about the way of salvation in the gospel of John.

John 3:15-17,  15That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. 16For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

Today the choice is yours to make. 

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