Daniel’s Seventy Weeks

In this presentation, Geoff gives the historical context of chapter nine. Daniel is reading the prophecies of Jeremiah which were given in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, the first year of Nebuchadnezzar in 605 BCE. Daniel is reading these words around 538 BCE and he realises that the time is nearly up. He prays and the Lord answers by sending Angel Gabriel who gives him the outline of future history. In the New International Version of the passage, the angel says: “Know and understand this: From the issuing of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed one, the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’ It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble. After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed one will be cut off and will have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on a wing [of the temple] he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him (Daniel 9:25-27)”. The angel encourages us to “know and understand” but this is extremely difficult because all English translations of the Bible are very unhelpful. Nevertheless, many chronological schemes have been devised. Geoff considers the one put forward by Sir Robert Anderson. Geoff also presents an alternative Biblical chronology which is very straightforward to understand if one just uses Scripture to interpret Scripture. There are two separate historical characters in Gabriel’s future history recorded in Daniel chapter nine. The first is Cyrus the Great who appears on the scene after the first period of seven times seven years. The second character (also anointed) is the legitimate high priest, Onias III who was assassinated in 171 BCE which is exactly 434 years (62 weeks) following the giving of the word in 605 BCE. The two time periods are concurrent. The final week delineates the period from 171 BCE to 164 BCE (exactly seven years) which concludes with the victory of the Maccabees and the rededication of the Temple. This is Chanukah which is celebrated every year in the Jewish world. All of history is broken down into seven years periods. This constitutes the Laws of Shmita (Shemitah) which are described in the book of Leviticus. Geoff gives several examples including Jesus’ words in the Olivet discourse and, significantly, the Holocaust. We know that there will be another seven years period following the Gog and Magog war (Ezekiel 39:9). The characteristics of the week prior to the return of Jesus will parallel that which took place during that final seven years in the second century BCE.