Daniel realizes the 70 years captivity is almost up. He starts to pray because He believed what God promised.
Even while being punished and exiled at McNeil, the ear of God is open to His servants. That is the lesson of Gods dealings with a disobedient people. Yet through it all, He never abandons his people. Consider that.
(Dan. 9:1-3) In the first year of Darius, in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, observed in the books the number of the years which was revealed as the word of the LORD to Jeremiah the prophet for the completion of the desolation’s of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years. So I gave my attention to the Lord God to seek Him by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.
He is interrupted in his prayer of Daniel 9. This is prayer we prayed together in Shelton Prison and one I recommend for you all to pray. So Daniel prays and he is answered by an angel who not only tells him they are going home after 70 years but lays out a prophecy about the future Messiah who will remove all their sin in 70 times 7 years. (490)
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 shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: ( 70 weeks) the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.”
1. The “7 sevens” in Daniel 9:25.
2. The “62 sevens” in Daniel 9:25.
3. And the 70th “seven” in Daniel 9:27.
This is also known as 70 weeks prophecy
We combine the first two periods for a total of 69 “sevens.” to determine when the Prince was to appear. The time for the revealing of the Messiah will be 69 weeks or 483 years from the command to restore and rebuild Jerusalem. The key to this prophecy is the command to restore and rebuild the city of Jerusalem.
The focus of Daniel’s prayer had been the desolation of Jerusalem and that God would end the judgment and restore the people to the land and Jerusalem.
Daniel’s prayer actually made reference to the “desolation of Jerusalem.” The 70 years were in reference to destruction of Jerusalem. God honored Daniel’s prayer and used Jerusalem as the catalyst for identifying the exact time King Messiah would be revealed to Israel. Jerusalem plays a critical part in determining the timing of Messiah’s coming.
There have been a few time-lines set out to account for the 69 weeks. We can see that only the time span #2, beginning in the year 445 B.C. and terminating in 32 A.D. will fit.
This is the time span advanced by Sir Robert Anderson in his classic work, ‘The Coming Prince’. Only this time-line will succeed in connecting into two Nisan moons, the beginning Nisan moon being the Nisan of Nehemiah and the ending Nisan moon being the Nisan of the Passover of our Lord’s crucifixion.
I have not taken the time to document the reasons for using a 360 day prophetic year vs. our 365 day solar calendar and the effects of the leap years. Ask me if you have questions.
The decree from Artaxerxes to Nehemiah in 445 BC. (see Nehemiah 2:1-8) “The words of the decree are not given, but its subject matter can easily be determined. Nehemiah hears of the desolate condition of Jerusalem. He is deeply grieved.
The King asks the reason. Nehemiah replies, ‘the city, the place of my fathers’ sepulchers, lie waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with fire.’ The King bids him make request. He does so promptly, asking for an order to from the King that ‘I be sent to the city that I may build it.’ And, as we read, he was sent, and he rebuilt Jerusalem.”
So we start counting from 445 B.C, we arrive at approx 32 A.D. the year in time in which the Messiah was to appear. That would correspond to the time that Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. The reason the donkey is important is that in Zechariah 9:9, the prophet Zechariah speaks of a King riding a donkey and presenting himself as the King to Jerusalem. This was the only time He allowed the crowd to proclaim Him as King.
The 69 weeks, or 483 years, were broken in two segments. The first is seven weeks or 49 years while the second is 62 weeks or 434 years. There is a very important reason that God divided the 483 years for the coming of the Messiah into two sections. The first section is divided into 49 years to get the people ready for the coming of King Messiah.
Perhaps Jesus was speaking from His experience as the YHVH of the Old Testament, when He answered Peter…How many times one must forgive another.
Not just 7 times Matt 18:22 Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.
