Daniel's 70th week

Recently I read the following paragraph on a prophecy website:

Largely holding to the post-tribulation view, the Ecclesiastical Church has long believed that Christ will not return until after the seven-year Tribulation at the Second Coming. What conflicts with that theory, however, is the fact that Jesus warned of knowing the hour: ". . . Be you also ready: for in such an hour you think not the Son of man cometh" (Matt. 24:44). The Hour You Think Not!

Now I can spot an error here. The author has assumed a seven year tribulation period, therefore by knowing the start of the tribulation we can figure out that our Lord will return at the end of the seven years. Because scripture tells us that the son of man is coming when we do not expect him, therefore the post-trib rapture view is wrong. Now the whole argument is based on the great tribulation being seven years long.

"The seventieth week of Daniel is the basis for our understanding that the future Tribulation will be seven years in length. This is confirmed in Revelation, where there are references to two three-and-one-half-year periods. The ministry of the two witnesses occurs in the first three-and-one-half years (11:3), while other Tribulation events are said to occur in the second half of the seven years (12:6; 13:5)." p86 Thomas Ice, The Great Tribulation.

Daniel 9:24-27 is probably one of the most difficult passages in the entire Old Testament. There is some level of agreement that the end of the 69th week corresponds with either the beginning of the ministry of Jesus (Barton Payne) or triumphal entry into Jerusalem (Ice) or his crucifixion. The most difficult part is usually the final week.

Gap theory: This theory comes from assuming that there a gap between the 69th and 70th week of Daniels prophecy, and that the 70th week occurs at the end of time and is the time of the great tribulation. Just why there should be a gap of two thousand years between the 69th and 70th week is rather puzzling to me. Although it is required to produce a future seven year tribulation, this is eisegesis rather than exegesis (reading your ideas into scripture rather than getting your ideas from scripture). If there is not a gap between the first seven and the 62 seven's then why should there be a gap between the 69th and 70th weeks? Under dispensationalism this gap is called the church age parenthesis. One interpretation that I like is that the start of the seventieth week refers to the start of the ministry of Jesus, he was crucified in the middle of the week and the end of the week corresponds to the Gentiles coming to Christ (Cornelius).

I would also question that the great tribulation is a short period at the end of time. Many people would argue that the great tribulation of Mat 24 has already been fulfilled, by the fall of Jerusalem in AD 70, just compare Mat 24 and Luke 21. It also shows what 'the abomination that causes desolation' is, i.e. the Roman armies surrounding Jerusalem. In Mat 24 the great tribulation is clearly local to Judea and not world-wide. This understanding is available to anyone who compares scripture with scripture. Usually our understanding is limited because we are simply ignorant of history and the Roman siege of Jerusalem (which lasted about 3 and a half years). The Christians in Jerusalem escaped to Pella sixty miles northeast when the Roman forces withdrew for a short time.

What about the "half-weeks" in Revelation.

Further support for a seven year tribulation period may come from the "half-weeks" referred to in Daniel and Revelation.

(Dan 7:25 NIV) He will speak against the Most High and oppress his saints and try to change the set times and the laws. The saints will be handed over to him for a time, times and half a time.

(Dan 12:7 NIV) The man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, lifted his right hand and his left hand toward heaven, and I heard him swear by him who lives forever, saying, "It will be for a time, times and half a time. When the power of the holy people has been finally broken, all these things will be completed."

Now in Revelation things become a little more complicated because a "half week" is referred to no less than six times.

(Rev 11:2 NIV) But exclude the outer court; do not measure it, because it has been given to the Gentiles. They will trample on the holy city for 42 months.

(Rev 11:3 NIV) And I will give power to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth."

(Rev 11:9 NIV) For three and a half days men from every people, tribe, language and nation will gaze on their bodies and refuse them burial.

(Rev 12:6 NIV) The woman fled into the desert to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days.

(Rev 12:14 NIV) The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the desert, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent's reach.

(Rev 13:5 NIV) The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise his authority for forty-two months.

Further some of these periods are protection and some are persecution:

In the case of Rev 12:6 and possibly 12:14 the period of protection starts with the ascension of Jesus (see Rev 12:5). How long do the Gentiles trample on the Holy city? If we take the city as Jerusalem then the Romans lay siege to it for three and a half years leading up to AD70, after that it was trampled on by Gentiles until 1968.

Now it is possible that after the three and a half days the two witnesses are raptured (see Rev 11:12), we could argue for a mid-trib or post-trib rapture here. The beast in Rev 13:5 who exercises authority for forty-two months in Rev 13:7 "was given power to make war against the saints and to conquer them. And he was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation." There is no mention of a rapture and it looks like the saints are having a hard time, no start or end time is specified.

The fact is that the "half week" occurs in four different forms:-

1. 1,260 days (twice)
2. 42 months (twice)
3. three and a half days
4. a time, times and half a time

It is certainly possible that the "half week" is symbolic or either protection or persecution. We should also note that this period of three and a half years is also the same time of drought that Elijah prayed for (1 King 17:1, Jam 5:17) and the time that he was miraculously cared for by Ravens and the widow with her flour and oil which were not used up (1 Ki 17:4-16).

What can be said about Revelation is that it is rather hard to get the book to predict the timing of future events, I feel that this is deliberate. The purpose of the book is moral rather predictive.

links

For a useful site that lists many of the bibles prophecies by prophet or theme visit AboutBibleProphecy.com

A TROJAN HORSE In the year of 1830 the church took into its midst a "Trojan Horse" - a new teaching or view on the Rapture (which can be traced back to John Darby and the Plymouth Brethren) - called Pretribulation Rapturism. This new view then made its way to the United States in the 1880’s, thus began an exciting new theology which appeals to the flesh and upon which multitudes pin their hopes. Pretribulation Rapturism provides a false sense of security, however sincerely proclaimed - an escape before the Seventieth Week of Daniel begins. Like sugared water, it may taste good, but it has no medicinal value. Even worse, it will keep the church from what can truly help - the urgent admonition to watchfulness (Matt. 22:42-44; Matt. 25:13), faithfulness (Matt.24:45-47), preparedness (Matt. 25:1-13), and fruitfulness (Matt. 25:14-30). It will prove to be the church’s Achilles Heel. This generation of believers could find itself inside the Seventieth Week, there to have occasion to resist the Antichrist and stand true to the King of Glory.

Danielís Seventy Weeks - early church fathers

What did early Christians believe about...? Uninspired records of how early Christians worshipped and what doctrine they believed! The 70 Weeks of Daniel 9 fulfilled in first century.

The 70 Weeks of Daniel 9 is 70 Jubilees!!! NOT 490 Years!!!

Dispensational

The Seventy Weeks of DanielOr, The Wisdom of God in All of the Seventy Weeks by Tom Stewart

Chapter V Understanding the Book of Revelation Written By S.R. Shearer , The "Antipas Papers" - dispensational

unordered

Daniel's Seventy Weeks by Ward Fenley

Daniel's "Seventy Weeks" prophecy: A detailed look at Daniel 9:24-27 George Konig AboutBibleProphecy.com

The 70th Week of Daniel Delusion Steve Wohlberg

Premillennialism in the Book of Daniel Kenneth L. Barker

Daniel 9:24-27

The Seventy Weeks of Daniel Nine By Harold Camping

The 2300 Days of Daniel 8:14 SDA

God's Countdown by Ray C. Stedman

The Seventy Weeks

The Seventy Weeks of Dan

Beasts, Horns and the Antichrist Daniel: A Blueprint of the Last Days? Brodrick D. Shepherd

Concerning Daniel’s Seventy Weeks W. J. Grier

Daniel's Seventy Week Prophecy and Millennialism

Daniel's Seventy Weeks By Dr. John Thomas

The 2300 Days of Daniel 8:14

The Return of the Messiah The Certainty of the Lord’s Coming Reign Dr. David R. Reagan

The Seventieth Week E. C. King

"Seventieth Week of Daniel" chart

Daniels Seventieth Week chart

The Seventieth Week-of-Years date setting

Daniel's "Seventy Weeks" An Historical and Exegetical Analysis - Fred G. Zaspel

The Seventy Weeks of Daniel 9 - Bible Versions Compared

The Seventy Weeks and the Great Tribulation - A Study of the Last Two Visions of Daniel, and of the Olivet Discourse of the Lord Jesus Christ By Philip Mauro Written in 1921

Daniel's Messiah in the Critic's Den by Steve Hinrichs

Books: linked to

Gary DeMar, Last Days Madness : Obsession of the Modern Church, 1999, see chap 25.

Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones The Church and the Last Things : Great Doctrines of the Bible Vol 3. 1998. At long last we have in print what the great doctor thought about the last things including Daniel (see ch 12 and 13) and Revelation. This book is full of common sense.

Thomas Ice and Kenneth Gentry Jr., The Great Tribulation, Kregel, 1999. Compares the partial preterist verses futurist view of Matthew 24.

J. Barton Payne, Encyclopedia of Biblical Prophecy

Keith A. Mathison, Dispensationalism : Rightly Dividing the People of God? Paperback - 160 pages (July 1995) Presbyterian & Reformed Publishing Company.

William E Cox, Biblical studies in Final things, 1992, Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing Co. 226 pages. Covers Daniels 70th week, Israel and the church, tribulation, antichrist, second coming, resurrection, judgement, millennium, Rev 20, etc.

Daniel by Joyce G. Baldwin, Donald J. Wiseman (Editor)

Daniel : The Key to Prophetic Revelation by John F. Walvoord

Daniel (New American Commentary, Vol 18) by Stephen R. Miller, Stephen B. Miller

For more commentaries on Daniel go here.