The fool here is not Daniel but those of another religion who dare to plagiarize a Jewish prophecy to interpret it according to their own tools. Of course, such an interpretation is prone to fail at the onset. The 70 week/years of Daniel 9:24-27 were fulfilled according to his own Faith which was Judaism. You are only assuming when you think that that prophecy has anything to do with Jesus. A Jewish prophecy must be interpreted Jewishly and not according to another religion. This is bad plagiarism.
Ok, so Ben enlighten us to the interpretation of this scripture according to it’s “Jewishness”. I’m curious as to how Judaism views these prophecies in light of what Christians believe concerning these and how they relate to Jesus as depicted below.
Daniel 9:24 “** Seventy weeks
(707=490 years)* are determined upon thy people
(Israel) and upon thy holy city
(Jerusalem), to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.**”
Emphasis and parenthesis mine. The number of years are based upon the scriptures relating to Scriptural prophecies wherein we are told that God gives his prophets a day for a year, meaning that in prophecy whenever it speaks of a day we are to equate it to a year, therefore 70 weeks of days is the same as 490 years. This ONLY applies to prophecies so don’t go into a tirade about other days in the scriptures that have nothing to do with prophecies.
So does Gabriel give Daniel a starting point to begin the countdown?
Daniel 9:25 “
Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince (this is obviously the savior of the Jews, right?) shall be seven weeks (49 years) and threescore and two weeks (420 + 14 = 434 years): the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.”
So Daniel is told by Gabriel that the starting of the countdown begins when an order goes out from some authority figure to rebuild Jerusalem. Notice that it is not an order or permission to go build the temple in Jerusalem but Jerusalem itself. Is such a “decree” ever issued? The total number years to countdown here is 69 weeks or 483 years.
Ezra 7:12-13 “
Artaxerxes, king of kings, unto Ezra the priest, a scribe of the law of the God of heaven, perfect peace, and at such a time. I make a decree, that all they of the people of Israel, and of his priests and Levites, in my realm, which are minded of their own freewill to go up to Jerusalem go with thee.”
The command is issued and it is further stipulated that the governors around Jerusalem are to supply Ezra and all those with him the supplies to complete the construction of the city. When did this happen. Historical records and it is the consensus of historians that this occurred in 457 AD. So we now subtract 457 from 483 (add one for the no existent year 0) and our ending year is 27AD. To confirm any significant event that is of interest and could relate to this prophecy. When we look what we find is the baptism and the anointing of the Holy Ghost upon Jesus. This leaves us with one more week.
Daniel 9:27 “** 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 will make it desolate, even unto the consummation. And that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.**”
Jesus’ ministry lasted for 3 ½ years which at the conclusion of he was crucified. Upon that day the sky went dark and in the temple during the last sacrifice of the day, for it was the last day of Passover, the curtain between the Holy Place and the Holy of Holy was rent in twain. The sacrifice ceased and the priests were terrified, yelling Iccabod (sic).
But the prophecy stated that “he shall confirm the convent with many for one week”, this is where his disciples, now apostles, come in. For they continued to teach as he taught, to the Jews only for the next three and one half years until Stephen faced down the Jewish council and ended up being stoned outside the city as Saul watched. Soon after Saul, became Paul due to an encounter with Jesus himself. Paul, being commissioned by Jesus took the Gospel to the Gentiles because the Jews had rejected it. The fulfillment of Daniel’s Seventy Weeks prophecy as given by Gabriel was complete at that time.
Now, if you have a better explanation I’d love to hear it.
In Christ.
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