Chapter 1: An Overview

Daniel 9:24: “Seventy (70) ‘Sevens’ or ‘Weeks’ (that is: 490 years) are determined for your people (Israel) and for your holy City (Jerusalem), to finish the transgression, to make an end of sins, to make reconciliation for iniquity (fulfilled by the Cross in AD 33), to bring in everlasting (or: ‘the Age of’) righteousness, to seal up (fulfil) vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Most Holy (to be fulfilled at the 2nd Coming).”

Daniel 9:25: “Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the command to restore and build Jerusalem (Nisan 1st, April 3rd, 458 BC, see Ezra 7) until (the Coming and Presentation of) Messiah the Prince, there shall be 7 ‘sevens’ or ‘weeks’ (49 years) and 62 ‘sevens’ or ‘weeks’ (434 years). The Street shall be built again, and the Wall, even in troublesome times.” This predicts the Messiah will be presented after 69 ‘sevens’ or ‘weeks’, that is 483 years from 458 BC, that is in AD 26, which is when John the Baptist started to proclaim His Coming.

Daniel 9:26a: “And AFTER the 69 ‘Sevens’ or ‘Weeks’ the Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself (or: ‘He shall have nothing, His Kingdom unrealised’)...” This predicts that sometime later, AFTER the start of the 70th Week, He will be cut off (killed) for our sins, that is as an atoning sacrifice (in agreement with Isaiah 53). Verse 24 indicates that this will actually take place at the end of the 70th Week, that is after 7 years of Messiah’s Presentation to Israel (3.5 years of John’s Ministry, followed by 3.5 years of Jesus’ Ministry). Notice how the Prophecy jumps over the 70th Week, without mentioning it directly. This is because it was cancelled by God, in order to be rerun at the End of the Age, as described in v27.

Daniel 9:26b: “...and the people of the prince who is to come (the Romans) shall destroy the City (Jerusalem) and the Sanctuary (the Temple). The end of it shall be with a flood, and till the end of the war, desolations are determined.”

This was all fulfilled in the Jewish War of 66 AD to 73 AD, exactly 40 years after the 7 years of Christ’s Presentation to Israel!

This destruction is a surprise, since from verse 24 we might expect the Messiah to come and make atonement for sin and then set up His Kingdom at the end of the 490 years (in 33 AD). This indicates that after His Atoning Death, the Messianic Kingdom is not immediately established, but rather a devastating Judgement would come upon Israel. This must be because Israel rejects her Messiah.

Daniel 9:27 (the future Tribulation): “Then he (‘the prince to come’ of v26, who is ‘the antichrist’) shall confirm a covenant with many for one Week (of 7 years), but in the middle of the Week (after 3.5 years) he (the antichrist) shall bring an end to Sacrifice and Offering (in the rebuilt Temple). And he shall set up on the wing of the Temple, the Abomination that causes Desolation (Judgement), even until the end which is determined, is poured out upon him (this is his final Judgement at Christ’s Return).”

In Daniel 9:25, the Messiah comes at the end of 69 Weeks (483 years) from the Ezra Decree in 458 BC, but instead of establishing His Kingdom at the end of the 70 Weeks (490 years), the Kingdom is postponed, and instead Judgement comes upon Israel. The Presentation of Messiah to Israel started right on time (at the start of the 70th Week), with the Ministry of John the Baptist (26 AD), lasting for 3.5 years until the Baptism of Jesus in AD 29. Then Jesus’ Ministry of 3.5 years completed the 70th Week, with His Death and Resurrection in AD 33, providing an initial exact fulfilment of the 70th Week. At this point, He had been ready to establish the Kingdom (v24), but Israel was not yet ready to receive Him, so the Mystery (Church Age) was introduced for 2000 years.

The Church is called a Mystery, because it had been hidden in God from eternity and was not revealed in the Old-Testament. Only when Israel’s rejection of Christ was clear did God start to introduce the Mystery, a major theme of the New Testament. God introduced the Mystery-Age after the Death and Resurrection of Christ. The authority and anointing of being God’s representatives shifted from Israel to Church for the duration of the Church-Age, however God will ultimately restore Israel and fulfil all His covenants and promises to her (Romans 9-11). The Church-Age will end with the Rapture of the Church (1Corinthians 15:50-58, 1Thessalonians 4:13-18), after which God will complete His dealings with Israel during the Tribulation, bringing her finally to repentance and full restoration.

Meanwhile (during the Church-Age), Israel came under a temporary Judgement for rejecting her Messiah, which included the destruction of Jerusalem and being scattered to the nations for 1900 years. Her Rebirth as a Nation in her Land in 1948 and the Jerusalem’s recapture are signs we are near the end of the Church-Age. God is getting Israel in position, ready for His final dealings.

Moreover, Israel’s rejection of her Messiah-King created a deeper problem as far as the fulfilment of the 70 Weeks was concerned. In Daniel 9:24, God had allotted 490 years to Israel (on her Clock), by the end of which the Messiah would provide the final Atonement for sin, and then establish His earthly Messianic Kingdom of righteousness, as foreseen by all the prophets. But now (in AD 33) that time was up, and although the ultimate Atonement had been made successfully, the Messianic Kingdom was still not established.

The fact of verses 26,27 being added to the Prophecy shows God had anticipated this development, for He used these to clarify how the 70 Weeks would still be fulfilled. The interesting thing is that, as far as God is concerned, despite the 2,000 year delay in establishing the Kingdom (caused by Israel’s rejection), the original Prophecy in v24 of 490 years before the Messianic Kingdom is established still stands! This can only be because these years are counted by God on Israel’s Clock. Notice that v24 specifically says: “70 Weeks (490 years) are determined for your (Daniel’s) People (Israel).”

Part 2

*Now there are 2 things that God must have done on Israel’s Clock.

First of all, when Israel rejected Him, He must have STOPPED her Clock, because Israel were now (temporarily) cut off from the place of God’s favour as His Representatives. At this time, He introduced the Church to be His Representative, and so He now measures time by the Church-Clock instead. Thus Israel’s Clock has been stopped for the duration of the Church-Age. When the Church is removed, Israel’s Clock will start running again.

Secondly, God REWOUND the Israel-Clock by 7 years. Since Israel had rejected the 7-year Ministry of Grace of John the Baptist and Jesus Christ, God cancelled them in order to rerun them as the 7 years of the Tribulation (giving them a 2nd chance, just as they had a 2nd chance to possess the Promised Land 40 years later). Therefore, Israel still has 7 years to run on her Clock, according to Daniel’s 70 Weeks. These final 7 years are described in v27. When the Church is removed in the Rapture, God will return to Israel to be His anointed representatives, as shown by the sealing of the 144,000 Evangelists from the 12 Tribes of ISRAEL in Revelation 7, to spearhead the Evangelism and great Soul-Harvest of the Tribulation. This means the ‘Israel-Clock’ will start ticking again after the Rapture to complete the the last 7 years of the 490 years. These 7 years will be completed when Christ returns to set up His Kingdom.

Thus the 7 years of Grace to Israel under Christ (the 70th Week) were cancelled in order to be rerun as the 7 years of Tribulation under the antichrist, that will run after the Church-Age (v27), during which Israel will repent and return to her Messiah, and at the end of which is the Second Coming of Christ, Who will return to save Israel at Armageddon. Thus at the end of the Rerun of the 70th Week the Kingdom will be established on earth in fulfilment of v24.

Interestingly, verse 26 describes a more immediate Judgement upon Israel (the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple), that also took place over a 7 year period, the time of the Jewish War with Rome (AD 66-73), which was foreshadowing of the 7 year Tribulation. Thus the initial Judgement for their 7-year rejection of Christ was the 7-years (AD 66-73) under the Romans. These 7 years were exactly 40 years after the Time of Messiah (AD 26-33), ending with their complete defeat with the fall of Masada, 40 years, to the day, after the Cross in AD 33! Then after Israel is restored to her land near the close of the Church-Age, according to v27, there must also be another final 7-year time of Judgement (the Tribulation).

This Chart (click here for chart) shows these 2 Judgements upon Israel.

According to Daniel 9:24, there are 70 Weeks (490 years) on Israel’s Clock after which the Messianic Kingdom is to be established. The last 7 years (the 70th Week) are yet to run (again) as the yet future Tribulation (v27). Thus, the final Week of years will be the 7-year Tribulation that will lead to the national conversion of Israel and her Salvation at Christ’s Return (Roman 11:26). This will lead to a full and literal fulfilment of God’s entire program for His people, Israel. The Church (composed of Jews and Gentiles made into one single united Body of Christ) is something brand new (Matthew 16:18), a Mystery previously hidden in God (Ephesians 2,3) and so the Church-Age is something quite distinct from this program for Israel (outlined in the 70 Weeks), and cannot be included on Israel’s Clock. The Church-Age started at the Resurrection when God stopped the Clock on Israel. When the Church is removed in the Rapture, God will turn back to Israel and restart her Clock, for her last 7 years must run, until the 70th Week is fulfilled at Christ’s Return.

God allocated 490 years to Israel (from about 458 BC) after which the Messianic Kingdom would be established (v24). However, since then, more than 490 years have already passed. Moreover, v27 indicates that the last (70th) Week (of 7 years) is yet future! Therefore, this 70th Week has become separated from the rest of the Weeks. The only explanation (if Daniel’s 70 Weeks are to be fulfilled) is that since national Israel rejected Jesus as her Messiah, His Kingdom was postponed, and in the meantime, the Mystery of the Church was introduced instead. This Mystery had been hidden in God, and was only revealed in the New Testament.

This 70th Week has therefore been postponed in order to run as the future 7-year Tribulation. During the Church-Age, God is working through the Church, rather than Israel, as His Representative on earth, and so God has stopped Israel’s Clock for now. It must still have 7 years yet to run on it (Daniel’s 70th Week), but it can only start ticking again after the Church-Age ends. Thus, when the Church is removed in the Rapture, Israel will again take the place of being God’s Representative, and the last 7 years (of the 70 Weeks) will run on her Clock (the Tribulation). Thus, a literal fulfilment of Daniel’s 70 Weeks requires the Pre-Tribulation Rapture of the Church.

* This is also confirmed in the Book of Revelation: (1) by the Church’s Presence in Heaven (represented by the 24 elders) at the start of the Tribulation (Revelation 4,5),
(2) her Absence from the earth in all descriptions of the Tribulation (Revelation 6-18) and (3) her returning to earth with Christ from Heaven in Revelation 19.