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Daniel Chapter 9
Verses 25 |
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9:25 “Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah (The Anointed One) the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. (The broadway and the wall shall again be built, even in the end of the times.)”
The Weeks
This portion of the revelation given to Daniel a period of 69 weeks is specified. Once again we recognize that this is a series of sevens: 69 x 7's equaling 483 years. This prophecy is unique among all the prophecies in the scriptures, which deal with the specifying of time. The reason for this is that both the beginning of the 483 years and the ending of the 483 years are specified to historical known events. The marking of time begins with the “Command to restore and to build Jerusalem” and concludes with the “Messiah the Prince.”
The prophecy is foretelling of the conditions, which will exist when the City and the wall(s) will be rebuilt. The fact of this fulfillment is found in the book of Nehemiah. The people who returned with Nehemiah and began the reconstruction faced much opposition from the citizens of that area (Judea and the land in the vicinity of the destroyed Jerusalem). Who were these antagonist people? They were a mixture of the Jews who were not exported in the captivity and the gentiles who were imported to make the land productive and provide resources for the Babylonian Empire. From this mixture came cross-marriages. This produced a people who became known as the Samaritans of Jesus’ day. The leaders of these people desired that the Jews allow them a part in the rebuilding, but their insistence was refused. The reason was very clear. Only the Jews were to have a part in building their city, and hence no outside claim could ever be made to the rights of Jerusalem. It was to be exclusively Jewish. If they had hand in the rebuilding they could have laid claim to right s of the city. This caused much turmoil and strife, to see the entire account of this incident, the local people, and the building of the Temple read the books of Ezra and Nehemiah.
The Fulfillment of the First 69 Weeks
To say that the fulfillment of this prophecy (in respect to its timing) is a delight to the believer would be a gross understatement. The exact date of the command to rebuild Jerusalem is one of the most substantiated (authenticated by secular historians) dates in the Bible. We refer to Nehemiah 2:1-8 for the date of the proclamation. It was the king of the Medo-Persian Empire, Artaxerxes, who gave the command. It was recorded to be in his 20th year of reign in the month of Nissan on the first day. This has been verified to be March 14, 445 B. C. I will not present the proof of the fulfillment of the end of the prophecy at this time other than to comment that it must be remembered that the Jewish calendar, because of its 30-day months, varies from the solar calendar of 365 1/4 days. If the days are accurately counted, at precisely on the very day, 483 years after the command by Artaxerxes, Jesus Christ entered into Jerusalem riding on colt. We know that day as Palm Sunday. It was His triumphal entry into Jerusalem. It was the first and only time in which Jesus was publicly revealed, proclaimed and acknowledged as the Christ, Messiah. The date was April 6, 32 A. D. (Zech. 9:9 )[1]
King and Prince
A detail to be noticed in the text is that the Messiah in this prophecy is called a Prince. Essentially the Christ, the Messiah, is a King. This title “King” is repeated in substantial number of Scriptures both in the Old Testament and in the New Testament. But it is not at all uncommon to see Kings spoken of as Princes in the Scriptures. These titles do not preclude or contradict one another. God uses the terms interchangeably and speaks of them as being one and the same. This same interchange of “prince” and “king” is also applied to the “antichrist.” (see verse 26)
Summary
What is the significance of this verse? First, we are interested in the 70 “weeks” in verse 24. The 69 “weeks” in verse 25 are of the same 70 “weeks” in verse 24. It is agreed by all Bible commentators, scholars and interpreters that I have read that the 69 “weeks” are the first “weeks” of the 70. There is no other logical conclusion to be drawn from the evidence, as both have been Biblically and historically established. Hence we understand that 69 of the 70 “weeks” have come to past and that there remains the last 70th “week” or 7 years yet to be accounted. This week is manifested in verse 27. The continuity of the years of the 70 “weeks” has been broken. This last “week,” these last 7 years, have yet to occur. It begins with the “antichrist.” So far approximately 2,000 years have passed in an age we call the Church Age, or the Age of Grace in this interim or gap. This is the period of time in which the Jews have nationally been cut off from God's economy and the Gentiles grafted in. God is not now dealing with the Jews in a covenanted, direct abidance with them. The time will come in that 70th “week,” the last 7 years, when God will reestablish Himself with them, it is called the “time of Jacob's trouble.” We of the New Testament have been led to call it The Great Tribulation.
[1] In his book “The Coming Prince,” Sir Robert Anderson wrote a classic work on the dates and proof of this prophecy and Christ. It is strongly recommended reading for the student with interest in this subject.
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Next: Daniel Chapter 9:26
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This page last updated September 14, 2004 at 10:21am
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