Many believe that Daniel 9:24-27 is the most important passage of prophecy in all of Scripture. Almost every mistake I’ve run across in studying the various interpretations of End Times Prophecy can be traced back to a misunderstanding of this passage. Let’s begin the year with an updated and expanded study of this important prophecy.

Before plowing into it we’ll back up a little and review the context. Daniel was an old man, probably in his eighties. He’d been in Babylon for nearly 70 years and knew from reading the recently completed scroll of Jeremiah’s writings (specifically the part we know as Jeremiah 25:8-11) that the 70-year captivity God had ordained for Israel was just about over (Daniel 9:2).

The reason for the captivity had been Israel’s insistence upon worshiping the false gods of their pagan neighbors. Its duration of 70 years came from the fact that for 490 years they had failed to let their farmland lie fallow one year out of every seven as God had commanded in Leviticus 25:1-7. The Lord had been patient all that time but finally had sent them to Babylon to give the land the 70 years of rest that were due it. (2 Chron. 36:21)

The beginning of Daniel 9 documents Daniel’s prayer, reminding the Lord that the 70 year time of punishment was nearly over and asking for mercy on behalf of his people. Before he could finish his prayer, the angel Gabriel appeared to him and spoke the words that we know as Daniel 9:24-27. Let’s read the whole thing to get the overview and then take it apart verse by verse.

Seventy weeks are determined upon your people and your HolyCity to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most Holy. 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 weeks and sixty two weeks. It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench but in times of trouble. After the sixty two weeks the Anointed One will be cut off and 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 till the end and desolations have been decreed. He will confirm a covenant with many for one week. In the middle of the week 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 9:24-27).

No prophecy in all of Scripture is more critical to our understanding of the end times than these four verses. A few basic clarifications are in order first, then we’ll interpret the passage verse by verse. The Hebrew word translated weeks (or sevens) refers to a period of 7 years, like the English word decade refers to a period of 10 years. It literally means “a week of years.” So 70 weeks is 70 X 7 years or 490 years. This period is divided into three parts, 7 weeks or 49 years, 62 weeks or 434 years, and 1 week or 7 years. Let’s begin.

Seventy weeks are determined upon your people and your Holy City to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most Holy (place) (Daniel 9:24).

Sitting upon His heavenly throne, God decreed that six things would be accomplished for Daniel’s people (Israel) and Daniel’s Holy City (Jerusalem) during a specified period of 490 years. (I’ve inserted the word “place” after Holy at the end of the verse to clarify the fact that it refers to the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem.)

We should be aware that in Hebrew these things read a little differently.  Literally, God had determined to;
1.  restrict or restrain the transgression (also translated rebellion)
2.  seal up their sins (as if putting them away in a sealed container)
3.  make atonement (restitution) for their iniquity
4. bring them into a state of everlasting righteousness
5. seal up (same word as #2) vision and prophecy
6. anoint (consecrate) the most Holy place (sanctuary)

In plain language, God would put an end to their rebellion against Him, put away their sins and pay the penalties they had accrued, bring the people into a state of perpetual righteousness, fulfill the remaining prophecies, and anoint the Temple. This was to be accomplished through their Messiah (Jesus) because no one else could do it.  Had they accepted Him as their savior their rebellion against God would have ended. Their sins would have all been forgiven, and the full penalty paid for them. They would have entered into a state of eternal righteousness, all their prophecies would have been fulfilled and the rebuilt temple would have been consecrated. It should be noted here that although it appears to have been accepted by Him, God never dwelt in the 2nd Temple, nor was the Ark of the Covenant and its mercy seat ever present therein.

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 weeks and sixty two weeks. It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench but in times of trouble (Daniel 9:25).

Here is a clear prophecy of the timing of the First Coming. When this message was given to Daniel by the angel Gabriel, Jerusalem had lain in ruin for nearly 70 years and the Jews were captive in Babylon. Counting forward for 62 + 7 periods of 7 years each (a total of 483 years) from a future decree giving the Jews permission to restore and rebuild Jerusalem, they should expect the Messiah.

To avoid confusion, it’s important to distinguish the decree that freed the Jews from their captivity from the one that gave them permission to rebuild Jerusalem.

When he conquered Babylon in 535BC Cyrus the Persian immediately freed the Jews. It had been prophesied 150 years earlier in Isaiah 44:24-45:6 and was fulfilled in Ezra 1:1-4. But according to Nehemiah 2:1 the decree to rebuild Jerusalem was given in the first month of the 20th year of his reign by King Artaxerxes of Persia (March of 445 BC on our calendar, about 90 years later). Exactly 483 years after that decree the Lord Jesus rode in to Jerusalem on a donkey to shouts of “Hosanna”!  It was the only day in His life that He permitted His followers to proclaim Him as Israel’s King, fulfilling Daniel’s prophecy to the day! The Hebrew in Daniel 9:25 calls Him Messiah the Prince, denoting the fact that He was coming as the Anointed Son of the King and was not yet crowned King Himself.

In Luke 19:41-45, Jesus reminded the people of the specific nature of this prophecy. As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, “If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace–but now it is hidden from your eyes. The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you.” He held them accountable for knowing Daniel 9:24-27.

A few days later He extended that accountability to those who would be alive in Israel during the End Times. “So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel–let the reader understand– then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. (Matt 24:15-16) They will also be required to understand Daniel 9.

After the sixty two weeks the Anointed One will be cut off and 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 till the end and desolations have been decreed (Daniel 9:26).

First came 7 sevens (49 years) and then 62 sevens (434 years) for a total of 69 sevens or 483 years. The Hebrew word for Anointed One is Mashaich (Messiah in English).   At the end of this 2nd period their Messiah would be cut off, which means to be executed or literally destroyed in the making of a covenant, having received none of the honor, glory and blessing the Scriptures promised Him.

Make no mistake about it.  Jesus had to die so these 6 promises could come true.  No one else in Heaven or on Earth could accomplish this.  We can only imagine how different things would have been if they had accepted Him as their Messiah and let Him die for their sins so He could bring them into everlasting righteousness with His resurrection. But of course God knew they wouldn’t, so He had to do things the hard way.

Do you realize what that means?  It wasn’t killing the Messiah that put the Jews at odds with God.  After all He came to die for them.   No.  It’s that in killing Him, they refused to let His death pay for their sins so He could save them.  This had the effect of making His death meaningless to them. That’s what severed the relationship.

Because of that, we now get the first hint that all would not go well.

Following the crucifixion the people of a ruler yet to come would destroy Jerusalem and the Temple, the same Temple that God decreed would be consecrated.  The Israelites would be scattered abroad and peace would elude the world.

We all know that Jesus was crucified and 38 years later the Romans put the torch to the city and the Temple destroying both. Surviving Jews were forced to flee for their lives and in the ensuing 2000 years I don’t believe a single generation has escaped involvement in a war of some kind.

After the crucifixion something strange happened: The Heavenly clock stopped. 69 of the 70 weeks had passed and all that was prophesied to happen during those 483 years had come to pass but there was still one week (7 years) left. There are hints in the Old Testament that the clock had stopped several times before in Israel’s history when for one reason or another they were either under subjugation or out of the land. And in the New Testament we’re also given hints that while God is dealing with the Church, time ceases to exist for Israel (Acts 15:13-18). But the clearest indication of the stopped clock is that the events foretold in Daniel 9:27 simply haven’t happened yet.

He will confirm a covenant with many for one week. In the middle of the week 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(9:27).

It’s vital to our understanding of the End Times that we realize two things here.  First, the Age of Grace didn’t follow the Age of Law, it merely interrupted the Age of Law seven years short of its promised duration.  These seven years have to be completed for God to accomplish the six things the angel listed in verse 24 for Israel.

And second, the Age of Grace was not the next step in the progression of God’s overall plan, but was a deviation from it.  Once the rapture comes, nothing like the Age of Grace will ever happen again (Ephes. 2:6-7).  Even when Israel accepts the New Covenant, as Jeremiah 31:31-34 promises,  they won’t enjoy the same benefits the Church has enjoyed. The relationship the Church has with the Lord will never be repeated with any other group.  Ever.

But before we try to understand the 70th week let’s review a rule of grammar that will help make our interpretation correct. The rule is this: Pronouns refer us back to the closest previous noun. “He”, being a personal pronoun, refers to the closest previous personal noun, in this case the “ruler who will come.” So a ruler who will come from the territory of the old Roman Empire will confirm a 7 year covenant with Israel that permits them to build a Temple and re-instate their Old Covenant worship system.  3 1/2 years later he will violate the covenant by setting up an abomination that causes the Temple to become desolate, putting an end to their worship. This abomination brings the wrath of God down upon him and he will be destroyed.

The most obvious way in which we know these things haven’t happened is that the Jewish Old Covenant worship system requires a Temple and there hasn’t been one since 70 AD when the Romans destroyed it.

Some say this prophecy was fulfilled during the Roman destruction but most believe it’s yet future, partly because of the term Abomination that causes Desolation. It’s a specific insult to God that has happened only once previously. Antiochus Epiphanes, a powerful Syrian king, had attacked Jerusalem and entered the Temple area in 168BC. There he had sacrificed a pig on the Temple altar and erected a statue of the Greek god Zeus with his own face on it.  He then required everyone to worship it on pain of death. This rendered the Temple unfit for worshiping God and so incensed the Jews that they revolted and defeated the Syrians. This is all recorded in Jewish history (1st Maccabees) where it’s called the Abomination of Desolation. The subsequent cleansing of the Temple is celebrated to this day in the Feast of Hanukkah.

Paul warned us that in the latter days a world leader will become so powerful that he will exalt himself above everything that is called god or is worshiped and will stand in the Temple proclaiming himself to be God (2 Thes 2:4). In Rev 13:14-15 we’re told that he’ll have a statue of himself erected and require everyone to worship it on pain of death. In Matt 24:15-21 Jesus said that the Abomination that causes Desolation spoken of by Daniel will kick off the Great Tribulation, a period of time 3 1/2 years long that coincides with the last half of Daniel’s 70th week. The similarities between this coming event and the one from history being so obvious, most scholars are persuaded that one points to the other since nothing in the intervening years fits so completely.

Soon And Very Soon

A new leader will soon emerge on the scene, a man with great personal charisma.  Following a devastating war in the Middle East he’ll present a plan to restore peace, by which he will quickly captivate and control the world. Since all true believers will have recently disappeared from Earth in the rapture of the Church, he’ll have no trouble persuading most remaining inhabitants that he is the promised Messiah, the Prince of Peace. He will astound and amaze them all with feats of diplomacy and conquest, even performing the supernatural.

When he claims to be God, all hell will break loose on Earth and 3 1/2 years of the most terrible times mankind has ever known will threaten their very existence. But before they’re all destroyed the real Prince of Peace will return and overthrow this impostor. He will set up His kingdom on earth, a kingdom that will never be destroyed or left to another.

Having given His life to finish transgression, put an end to sin, atone for wickedness and bring in everlasting righteousness, and having fulfilled all Biblical vision and prophecy, He will anoint the most Holy Place and receive all the honor, glory and blessing the Scriptures promise Him. Israel will finally have her Kingdom back and will live in peace with God in her midst forever.

Becoming An Adult
In the Jewish culture, becoming an adult  is one of the watershed events in a person’s life.  At age 12 for girls and 13 for boys Jewish children reach the age of accountability.  It’s a point in their life that has both spiritual and physical significance,  because they’re approaching puberty at the same time.  So as they make the transition from child to adult they also become responsible for their own sins.

They acknowledge their accountability in a ceremony called bat mitzvah for girls and bar mitzvah for boys.  Now it’s not that children don’t sin before puberty, it’s that they’re not held accountable for their sins. Judaism teaches that fathers are responsible for the sins of their children until they come of age. That’s why in the bar mitzvah ceremony, the father will often pray in effect, “Lord thank you for giving me this son, and thank you for relieving me of any further responsibility for him.”

We see hints of this transition, and its consequences, in Romans 7:9.  Being a Jew who was obviously still alive at the time, Paul wrote, “For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died.”  (The word for without also means “apart from”.)  Since he was physically alive he had to have been referring to the spiritual, or eternal life for which he had been qualified before coming of age.

The phrase “The commandment came, sin revived, and I died” means that as soon as Paul became old enough to be accountable for his sins he was scheduled for death, it being the wages of sin (Romans 6:23).  The Greek word for revived indicates Paul’s sin nature had always been there, but for accountability purposes it’s like it was dormant while he was a child.  As soon as he came of age, it woke up again, immediately disqualifying him from eternal life.

No official written references to the method for conducting bar or bat mitzvah ceremonies existed during Paul’s time. But the practice was obviously well known enough that Paul could expect his Gentile readers to understand what he was talking about. Since Paul was adamantly opposed to following tradition for its own sake, he must have known that belief in an age of accountability was legitimate from God’s perspective.

Reaching the age of accountability transformed children into adults but also robbed them of eternal life.  Since there was no longer someone else upon whom to place the burden for their sins, they became responsible themselves and an execution order was immediately entered against them from Heaven. It took their obedience to the Law and their annual participation in the ceremonies of Yom Kippur to delay this execution, and then only if these were accompanied by the belief that God would send the promised Messiah to redeem them for good.

Becoming A Child
We get the rest of the story from the New Testament. For Christians the watershed event is likened to becoming a child.  Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt. 18:3) What He meant was unless adults can somehow unburden themselves of the responsibility for their sins, there’s no way for them to enter God’s Kingdom.  Since children are not held accountable for their sins, adults have to become like children.

In the very beginning of his gospel account John explained how we do that. Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—  children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. (John 1:12-13)

Believing that the Lord’s death paid the full penalty due us for our sins gives us the authority to become God’s children, and in that way we unburden ourselves of the responsibility for our sins.  This is what it means to be born again.

Adoption
But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law,  to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship.   Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.”  So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.(Galatians 4:4-7)

 

Both this passage and Romans 8:15-17 convey the idea that adoption into the family of God is truly the most important event of our lives.  God sent His son to die for our sins so we could receive the right of adoption.  According to John 1:12-13 belief in Jesus gives us the authority to claim this right and when we do God adopts us as His children and we become heirs to his estate. When this happens the execution order is cancelled (Colossians 2:13-14).   The responsibility for our sins is transferred to Jesus (Isaiah 53:5) and once again we’re not responsible.  At that point we’re born again as a child of God and have eternal life.  According to 2 Cor. 5:17 we actually become a new creation.  The old has gone and the new has come. This is what happened to Paul, and has happened to every other born again believer as well.

This is not a new idea and was first acted out in the garden.  Adam and Eve were created with eternal life.  God told them if they disobeyed (sinned) they would die.  But they disobeyed and were scheduled for death.  God promised a redeemer to save them, and by believing God they were born again and restored to eternal life.

The Law is the story of death, because it wasn’t given to save anyone, but so that in trying to obey it man could see his need for a Savior (Romans 3:20). Being perfect it actually served to condemn  imperfect man to death (Romans 7:10-13).

Grace is the story of life because by faith in the Redeemer man can be born again into eternal life, even though he doesn’t deserve it (Ephesians 2:8-9).  By the power of the Holy Spirit, David understood this 1,000 years ahead of time when he wrote,

Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord does not count against him, and in whose spirit is no deceit(Psalm32:1-2).  Only by God’s Grace can we qualify for eternal life again after losing it when we reached the age of accountability.

No place in either the Old or New Testaments is the exact age of accountability specified.   The ages of 12 and 13 I mentioned above come from Jewish culture and were chosen for reasons that have more to do with tradition than the Bible. But from both these sources it’s clear that we’re all born as children of God, not responsible for our sins, and having eternal life.  When we’re intellectually mature enough to understand the sin/salvation issue we become accountable for our sins and are subject to spiritual death.  When we accept the Lord’s death as payment in full for all our sins, we are born again and go back to being children of God, no longer responsible for our sins, and are restored to eternal life.  We’ve come full circle.