The 70 Weeks Of Daniel. The Jewish/Christian Dispute
THE SEVENTY WEEKS OF YEARS PROPHECY SECTION 1 A Traditional Jewish Translation, Interpretation and Calculation of DANIEL 9:24-27 24. "Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city to finish the transgression, to end sin, to atone for iniquity, to bring in eternal righteousness, to seal vision and prophet and to anoint a Holy of Holies. 25. Know therefore and understand that from the going forth of the word to restore and to build Jerusalem until [mashiach] an anointed one, a prince, shall be 7 weeks; and for 60 and 2 weeks it shall be rebuilt, street and moat, even in troublous times. 26. And after the 60 and 2 weeks shall [mashiach] an anointed one be cut off and have nothing, and the people of a prince who shall come shall destroy the city and the Sanctuary, and its end shall be with a flood. Until the end of a war desolations are decreed. 27. And he shall make a covenant with many for 1 week; and in the middle of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering;...." To understand a passage one must always study it in context. At the beginning of Daniel 9 we find: Daniel 9:2 "In the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood from the Sacred Books, according to the word of the L-rd to Jeremiah the Prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last 70 years": In Daniel 9:3-20, Daniel prayed for the Jewish people, praised G-d, implored Him to finish the exile and rebuild the Temple and Jerusalem. Daniel 9:24 Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, 1 day = 1 year ....... 1 week = 7 years ....... 70 weeks = 490 years: The 490 years began from the first destruction of Jerusalem. That occurred in our Hebrew Calendar year 3338 or 3,338 years from Creation. They continued until the second destruction of Jerusalem (9:26). That the First Temple was destroyed in the Hebrew Calendar year 3338 is derived from Scripture: The construction of the First Temple began 480 years after the Exodus = 2928 (1 Kings 6:1). Daniel 9:24 to finish the transgression, to end sin, to atone for iniquity, and to bring in eternal righteousness, If the Jewish nation had properly repented, then at the end of the 490 years, directly after the Second Temple was destroyed in 70 C.E. the Messiah would have appeared. Thus, the twice used term "mashiach" in 9:25-26 were two "anointed" kings ruling before the Messiah could have arrived. Daniel 9:24-27 does not explicitly refer to him. Daniel 9:24 and to seal vision and prophet, During this 490 year period, vision and prophecy ceased with the Prophet Malachi. Daniel 9:24 and to anoint a Holy of Holies [Kodesh Kodashim]. The rebuilt and functioning Second Temple (Ezekiel 45:3). Daniel 9:25 from the going forth of the word to restore and to build Jerusalem This is referring to the word that had gone forth to Jeremiah: The Hebrew "debar" means word. It connects Jeremiah 29:10; Daniel 9:2, 9:25 & Cyrus' decree in Ezra 1:1-3. The Hebrew shuv means to restore - to bring back. The return of Jews from Babylon to Israel: Daniel 9:25 until [mashiach] an anointed one, a prince, shall be 7 weeks; Seven weeks of years after the destruction of the First Temple, Cyrus the first [mashiach] "anointed one" appeared as Isaiah the Prophet had foretold some 200 years earlier: And so it was, Cyrus fulfilled the word of G-d through His Prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah: Cyrus informed his governors, ruling in Syria, the details of his decree: In Ezra 4:12 our enemies complained that Zerubbabel and his group were rebuilding "the rebellious and bad city." Daniel 9:25 and for 60 and 2 weeks it shall be rebuilt, street and moat, even in troublous times. Jerusalem was fully constructed for 434 years (62 weeks x 7 years). It was a small city. The wall surrounding it was completed in 52 days (Nehemiah 6:15). The Temple was rebuilt in 4.5 years (Haggai 1:14-15 & Ezra 6:15). Daniel 9:26 And after the 60 and 2 weeks shall [mashiach] an anointed one be cut off and have nothing, This second "mashiach" was King Herod Agrippa II of Judea. He was dethroned and expelled from Jerusalem. Or the High Priest Phannias ben Samuel. He was killed in the fighting. Daniel 9:26 and the people of a prince who shall come shall destroy the city and the Sanctuary, The Roman army, led by Titus the crown prince, destroyed Jerusalem and the Second Temple. Daniel 9:26 and its end shall be with a flood. Until the end of a war desolations are decreed. Complete destruction is so described elsewhere: Daniel 9:27 And he shall make a covenant with many for 1 week; and in the middle of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering; Titus made a peace agreement with the Jewish leaders. He broke it after 3.5 years and prohibited sacrifices. *************** *************** *************** *************** SECTION 2 A Refutation of Christian Interpretations, Calculations and Translation of DANIEL 9:24-27 THE KING JAMES VERSION 24. "Seventy weeks are determined for your people and for your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Most Holy. 25. Know therefore and understand that from the going forth of the command to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be 7 weeks, and 60 and 2 weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. 26. And after 60 and 2 weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself; and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. 27. And he shall confirm the covenant with many for 1 week; and in the middle of the week he shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering;...." 1 day = 1 year ....... 1 week = 7 years ....... 70 weeks = 490 years: a. The original 1611 C.E. edition punctuated 9:25 differently: b. Perhaps, it was altered because the Hebrew Bible and ancient sources do not record an event occurring at the end of their 7th week. And which year was that? They disagree: c. Their translation has one event occurring after 7 weeks and 62 weeks (49 + 434 = 483 years). The arrival of their one mashiach Jesus (9:25). But, from which decree and year? They disagree: d. The Hebrew has: "And after the weeks [ha shavuim] 60 and 2 shall ...." (9:26). They exclude "the" to make it less obvious that the 62 weeks is a distinct time period leading to the second mashiach. e. Conversely, the Hebrew does not have "the" before "mashiach" and "Prince" (9:25). They were inserted to stress that this is the Messiah. f. The Hebrew Scriptures could have plainly said: g. The Hebrew root letters: mem-shin-yud-chet (mashiach) appear in the Hebrew Scriptures 39 times. Except in 9:25-26, the King James Bible correctly translates it as "anointed" or "anointed one." h. be cut off: "But the person who does anything defiantly ... shall be cut off from his people" (Numbers 15:30). i. but not for himself: is wrong. The Hebrew "ve ein" means - and have nothing: THE 165 YEAR DISPUTE The following B.C.E. dates are accurate within two years: 421-369 B.C.E. ...... 52 years. First 7 weeks of years. A. Only the Secular Timeline is quoted from hereon. 1. Therefore, if we assume that King Darius was the Artaxerxes in Ezra 7, then 13 months after he rebuilt the Temple (Ezra 6:15), Darius sent Ezra "to beautify the House of the L-rd in Jerusalem" (Ezra 7:27). In the Hebrew Bible, the 1st month is always Nisan. Its the 1st month of the Jewish calendar: 2. Ezra 6:14: The Jews rebuilt the Temple according to the decree of Cyrus and Darius and Artaxerxes. Cyrus decreed that the Temple be rebuilt in 538 B.C.E. (Ezra 1:3-4). Darius decreed that the work be restarted in 520 B.C.E. (Ezra 6:7). Between their decrees, the 1st Artaxerxes stopped its construction (Ezra 4:21-24). The 2nd (Ezra 7-10) and 3rd Artaxerxes (Nehemiah) ruled after it was completed. The Secular Timeline is problematic: 4. Ezra was the son of Seraiah (Ezra 7:1), the last High Priest, who was killed before the First Temple was destroyed in 586 B.C.E. (2 Kings 25:18-21). Therefore, Ezra was above 128 years old if Artaxerxes Longimanus sent him to Jerusalem in Ezra 7 (586-458 B.C.E.). Compare Ezra 7:1-2 with I Chronicles 6:11-14. 5. If Artaxerxes Longimanus sent Ezra to Jerusalem in 458 B.C.E. (Ezra 7), then that was 58 years after the Temple was rebuilt in 516 B.C.E. (Ezra 6:15). It would contradict Ezra 7:1,6, which has a short time between these events: 6. Nehemiah 12:1-8 lists the Priests and Levites who left Babylon with Zerubbabel in 538 B.C.E. But, in the 20th year of Artaxerxes (Nehemiah 2:1), at least 17 of them, their names listed in the same order, signed a covenant with Nehemiah. If this king was Artaxerxes Longimanus, then it was 93 years later in 445 B.C.E. They were above 120 years old. Floyd Nolen Jones Th.D, Ph.D The Chronology of the Old Testament Page 241 23rd Edition: ARTAXERXES' DECREES The New Testament quotes verses from our Scriptures that Jesus allegedly fulfilled. However, it does not claim that Jesus is the mashiach foretold in Daniel 9:25-26. The Historical Messianic School declares: "from the going forth of the word to restore and to build Jerusalem" (Daniel 9:25) refers to Artaxerxes' 7th year decree in 458 or 457 B.C.E. (Ezra 7) and that the 490 years began from then. Artaxerxes' 7th and 20th year decrees can not be dated because it is not known if his reign began in 465 or 464 B.C.E. There is confusion when Xerxes, the previous king was killed (Artaxerxes 1 Encyclopedia Iranicaonline.org). Futhermore, no event in their calculations can historically be verified. ARTAXERXES' 7th YEAR DECREE 1st Month NISAN March-April (Spring) ****** 5th Month AV July-August (Summer) Ezra 7:1,6 "Now after these things, in the reign of Artaxerxes king of Persia,... the king granted [Ezra] all he requested."
Ezra left Babylon with the decree, on the 1st day of the 1st month and arrived in Jerusalem on the 1st day of the 5th month in Artaxerxes' 7th year (Ezra 7:8-9,11). Artaxerxes did not order the city to be rebuilt. Inevitably, the Historical Messianic School posits different begin dates: Opinion B1: Nisan 1st, 458 B.C.E. - When Ezra left Babylon. The decree was signed and issued before Nisan. Persian law enabled preparations for the trip to begin immediately. Ezra completed his initial obligations to the king swiftly. After their arrival on Av 1st, they rested for three days. On the fourth day, they brought the silver and gold to the Temple and sacrificed animals. Artaxerxes did not need to wait until Ezra left or arrived. His servants were able to deliver its details speedily: Opinions A1 and A2: ************ Opinion B1: Nisan 458 B.C.E. -483 years = Nisan 26 C.E. +3.5 years = Tishrei 30 C.E. +3.5 years. = Nisan 33 C.E. 1. A 3.5 year ministry for Jesus is too long. Matthew 26-27, Mark 14-15 & Luke 22-23 have one Passover. And Jesus was crucified on its 1st day, the 15th of Nisan. Thus, his ministry lasted a maximum 1 year. 2. It is not known when Jesus was baptized and began his ministry: The Futurist Dispensational School's: 3. John the Baptist began his ministry "In the 15th year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar" (Luke 3:1-2). California State University, Northridge The claim that Jesus was baptized and began his ministry during the first year of John's ministry is unfounded. ARTAXERXES' 20th YEAR DECREE Because Cyrus' decree was issued in 538 B.C.E., the 483 year intervening period (69 weeks x 7 years) ended before Jesus was born. Therefore, the Futurist Dispensational School chose Artaxerxes' 20th year decree in 445 or 444 B.C. But, 483 years from 445 or 444 B.C.E. ended at 39 or 40 C.E. The decree is dated: The day it was signed and issued is missing. This School chose Nisan 1st because its the "Jewish New Year Day". Wrong. It's Tishrei 1st. An unknown begin date invalidates their calculations. Their begin day (Nisan 1st) and end day (Nisan 10th) were changed to Julian calendar dates. The other data in their calculations are not Julian. Their timelines are disqualified because they mixed different calendars together. Floyd Nolen Jones Th.D, Ph.D The Chronology of the Old Testament Page 225 23rd Edition: Robert Anderson. The Coming Prince. 1894: Harold Hoehner. Chronological Aspects Of The Life Of Christ. 1978: The Julian calendar's 365.25 days per year were not used: 476 years x 365.25 days = 173,859 days. Nasa (.gov) Julian day and civil date calculator: Hoehner: March 5, 444 B.C.E. is date number 1559316 ..... March 30, 33 C.E. is date number 1733200. Their 173,880th day was Palm Sunday, Nisan 10th. It ended the 69th week. The crucifixion (Nisan 14th), and the war against Jerusalem were thereafter (Daniel 9:26). But, because the war was 37 years later, this School placed both events
"after the 69th week but before the 70th week." This last week has not yet begun! Our Scriptures and Writings do not refer to a 360 day Prophetic year. But, some say its in Genesis: But, this is conjectural. Nothing is known about the flood calendar: The Hebrew calendar year has 354 days. Each month has 29 or 30 days. To regulate it with the 365.25 day solar year, a month is added 7 times during each 19 year cycle. As one should expect, a year in the Hebrew Bible began and ended on the same date. In their calculations, they do not: TALMUD SANHEDRIN 97b "Blasted be the bones of those who calculate the end. For people will say: since the awaited time has arrived and yet the Messiah has not come, he will never come." |