The Prophecies of Daniel - Part 4
So this week we broke down what I feel is the greatest prophecy in the bible. The word of God was breathed through Daniel, and from this prophecy we can know that God is who He says He is because he does what He says He will do. Everyone would like to know what the future holds. Work, kids, relationships…Sunday’s football game, you name it. A lot of people try to find the answers in all the wrong places. The Bible has so much to say about the future if we are just willing to read, study, and listen. God’s got it all planned out already. To me, this passage that we looked at last week, helps to clear up what God’s plan is for our lives. Not only does God reveal through Daniel when He was coming the first time, but He also revealed a lot of information about when he was going to come again. The passage is Daniel 9:24-27. It is entitled “Daniel’s 70 weeks prophecy” or “Daniel’s 70 sevens” and here it is:
24 "Seventy 'sevens' are decreed for 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.
25 "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 'sevens,' and sixty-two 'sevens.' It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble. 26 After the sixty-two 'sevens,' the Anointed One will be cut off and will 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 until the end, and desolations have been decreed. 27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one 'seven.' In the middle of the 'seven' 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.
First the Hebrew word for what is translated ‘sevens’ is ‘shabuwa’ and stands for a group of seven something. Much like we use our term dozen to refer to 12 things. Later verses lead us to understand that the group of seven is referring to seven years. So the angel Gabriel is telling Daniel that 70 groups of 7 years are decreed…or 490 years.
Notice next that Gabriel states that they are decreed for ‘your’ people and ‘your’ holy city. Daniel was a Jew and his holy city was Jerusalem. This is a very important fact to remember if we are going to get the interpretation correct.
From the list of items that follow in that first verse, the main thing that I want you to notice is that they will be completed only when Christ returns. Is there an end of sin? Are we surrounded by everlasting righteousness? Has all vision and prophecy in the bible been completed? I would however say that they are partially completed with Christ shedding His blood on the cross. That was our atonement.
Now to verse 25. When was the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem given? Well, as I’m sure you are all aware from your vast studies in the book of Nehemiah J, this can be found in the second chapter. It was during the month of Nisan during the 20th year of the reign of King Artaxerxes. This would be in spring of the year 445 BC. I read some research based upon some archeological discoveries that gave the date some more specificity of March 14th, 445 BC. I found nothing definite, but we’ll just call it mid March for the sake of the study. There were a few other decrees around that same time, or a little earlier in history, but they were all decrees to rebuild the temple. In those days a city wasn’t a city until the perimeter walls were properly constructed. And that is what Nehemiah did.
So from that date there will be ‘seven 'sevens,' and sixty-two 'sevens.'. and after the sixty-two sevens the Anointed One will be cut off and have nothing. Some translations say something more like the Messiah will be cut off, but not for Himself. The Hebrew term used here for ‘cut off’ can be translated ‘killed’ or ‘crucified’. And remember when Christ was killed, at that time he had received none of the promises that were made to him with regard to ruling here on earth. And if we look at the translation that includes ‘not for Himself’, that is also very appropriate because He died for us.
It is my understanding that the first seven ‘sevens’, or 49 years are the time that it took to rebuild and rededicate the city. Sixty-two ‘sevens’, or 434 years would then follow. That is a total of 483 years. A couple things to keep in mind is the fact that the bible is written based upon the lunar, or Babylonian calendar which has twelve, 30 day months for a total of 360 days per year. Our timetable is based upon a solar, or Julian calendar which contains 365.25 days per year. So watch out all you mathematically challenged individuals J here it goes:
483 years x 360 days = 173,880 days
173,880 / 365.25 = 476.06 years
There are some other slight adjustments for the Julian calendar and there is the fact that there was no year zero. The net result of all of this is the fact that if you start at mid March, 445 BC and move ahead just over 476 years you end up at the beginning of April, in 32 AD. To me it would make sense that this date references Palm Sunday when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on the donkey that was prophesied for him on April 6th, 32 AD. 173,880 days after King Artaxerxes issued the decree.
Did everyone see that? It was not some divine intervention. It was not based upon some additional information from an outside source. The Jewish leaders of that day had what we call Daniel Chapter 9, and it was just some MATH! I think it is in Luke somewhere where two characters Simeon and Anna are expecting the Messiah to come at a certain time. Did they have an angel visit? Maybe. But there is also the possibility they studied their bible and did their math homework.
When Jesus was riding the donkey into town it’s recorded in Luke 19:
41As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it 42and said, "If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes. 43The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. 44They 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."
Notice that he says if you had only known on ‘this day’. Remember, up until this time Jesus did not let the people proclaim that he was the messiah. But on the day of His triumphal entry the religious leaders asked Him to keep the people silent as they cried out that he was the Messiah and Jesus told the leaders that if the people were silent about it, even the very stones would cry out that He was who they proclaimed Him to be.
So put yourself in the shoes of a Jewish disciple of Jesus at that time. You’ve been taught Daniel 9. You know that 483 years of the 490 years have been completed. There are only 7 years to go before all of the promises made to the Jewish people were completed. Jesus had come into town, everything was going great. It’s now the Tuesday after Jesus came to town. You walk up on top of the Mount of Olives which overlooks the city of Jerusalem with Jesus and mention how beautiful the white limestone city and the temple that Herod had nearly completed look. And Jesus says this recorded in Matthew 24:
1Jesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings. 2"Do you see all these things?" he asked. "I tell you the truth, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down."
3As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. "Tell us," they said, "when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?"
Can you imagine their reaction? How could His glory be ushered in if the city was to be torn to the ground? They didn’t understand as we can see from the earlier passage in Luke 19 that the clock stopped. It would be hidden from their eyes. There are other passages that state that the Jewish people’s hearts would be hardened. Sometimes you may wonder how the Jewish people can deny Christ when there is so much evidence that proves He is who he said He is. They have the information. Hey, all they need is a calculator as we showed earlier. Even an abacus would work. It’s because their hearts are hardened. Their eyes are blinded to the facts that were in front of them. Praise the Lord, their blinders are being removed as we speak. There are a couple of Jews that get this email that could attest to that fact that they were once blind and now can see. Israel has become a nation again as was predicted for the end of the age. Jerusalem is under control of the Jews as was predicted for the end of the age. They are returning to their land as was predicted for the end of the age. And most importantly, they are coming to Christ like no other time in history which shows that their hearts are softening. God is preparing to deal with the Jewish people again after all these years.
That last 7 years still needs to be completed. When Jesus died on the cross for our sins at the hands of the Jewish religious leaders of that day, the clock stopped. Can you hear it ticking again?
Back to Daniel 9:
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 until the end, and desolations have been decreed. 27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one 'seven.' In the middle of the 'seven' 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.
For those of you that have done a study in Daniel and have looked at these verses before, I’m hopefully going to throw a little curveball in here. Most commentaries talk about the Roman legions that destroyed Jerusalem in 70AD. While that did take place at that time, I don’t think that is what Daniel is referring to here. I think Jesus was referring to the Roman invasion in the passage we saw from Luke, but I believe in Daniel the clock stopped right after the ‘Anointed One was cut off and had nothing’. This last portion of the prophecy is in regards to when the clock starts ticking again. The armies of the ‘ruler who will come’ (we know as the Antichrist) will come like a flood. We learned from back in Daniel 2 that the 4th kingdom will be the kingdom of the Antichrist and will be the one that is in power at the end of the age when Christ returns.
Now look at the things that this ruler will do. He will make a 7 year covenant with ‘many’ (this should read ‘the many’ which is a term attributed to the people of Israel) and he will break it in the middle. 3-1/2 years into it with 3-1/2 years to go. The great tribulation is the most precisely defined period of time in the bible. It is referred to as 1260 days, 42 months, 3-1/2 years, time times and half a time. If it was not shortened to this specific length, Jesus tells us that no one would survive.
Also notice that in the middle of the seven years the ruler will put an end to ‘sacrifice and offering’. Any idea what the Jewish people need to conduct sacrifice and offering? That’s right, a temple. Daniel makes reference to this temple. So does Paul, John, Jesus, and Ezekiel even gives the specific dimensions of this coming temple. The description that Ezekiel gives calls for the temple shows it to be different then the previous two temples that Solomon and Zerubbabel? or Herod built.
In that temple that is to come, an abomination is set up. This has happened before in history. It was 168BC and the abomination was carried out by the Seleucid Empire ruler known as Antiochus IV. Some may say that Daniel could have been referencing the goings on during that time since he was writing in the 500’s BC, but we can see that Jesus, in 32AD, is clearly speaking of something in the future when he states in Matthew chapter 24:
15"So when you see standing in the holy place 'the abomination that causes desolation,'[b] spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand— 16then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 17Let no one on the roof of his house go down to take anything out of the house. 18Let no one in the field go back to get his cloak. 19How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! 20Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath. 21For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again. 22If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened. 23At that time if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or, 'There he is!' do not believe it. 24For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect—if that were possible. 25See, I have told you ahead of time.
The occurrences in Jerusalem in 168BC are a type of what we should see happen again in the future. If you want to read more about this time in history I would suggest that you read the book of Maccabees. It is a good historical account of the revolt led by Judas Maccabee to finally get rid of Antiochus IV. When the Jewish people rededicated the temple there was a special prepared oil that was required to burn for 8 days. They only had one day’s worth of oil but decided to burn it anyway in hopes that it would be pleasing enough to God. That one day’s worth of oil burned for 8 days and it is still celebrated today around Christmas time as the festival of lights, or Hanukkah.
Notice one other thing from the passage in Matthew. In verse 20, Jesus says “Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath.” This tells us that Jesus is speaking exclusively to the Jewish people that will be in Jerusalem at the end of the age. Just because the passage is in the New Testament, doesn’t mean that this applies to the Church. If I’m a Christian living in Del Boca Vista, Florida, why would I care if the Antichrist shows up in the winter? I bet they would in Jerusalem sitting at an elevation of several thousand feet above sea level. Also, with regards to the Sabbath: I’m a believer that the Sabbath is not any specific day of the week, but that we find our Sabbath in Christ Jesus. But even if it was a specific day of the week, and the Antichrist was coming after me on that Sabbath day, I would run until I couldn’t run any more. I don’t want to be around any of that action. But the Jews, if they are accurately following their laws are not allowed to travel over 1000 paces on the Sabbath. That’s why there were so many things in the small towns that we located within a “Sabbath’s day’s walk” from the temple or where they lived. If Jesus told the Jews to get out of town when the see the abomination that causes desolation, and they could only go 1000 paces…better hope they are pretty big steps.
At the end of verse 27 we see that there is a specific time appointed for this ruler that is to come. We know from other parts of scripture that the end for the Antichrist will come when Christ returns and takes his proper place as ruler of this world. The Antichrist is chained up and thrown into the abyss. It has already been determined. God has seen the beginning from the end, and so have I. He wrote it down for us.
The information that I have presented above will play a vital role in how one sees the events of the end times playing themselves out. That is what we will be doing next week. Remember, we are supposed to know about the end. Jesus commanded us to know and understand the signs of His second coming. The events surrounding the end times are not supposed to come to us like a thief in the night. Actually, we are told quite the opposite in I Thessalonians 5:
1Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, 2for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.
4But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. 5You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. 6So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled.
If we know Jesus as our personal savior, we’re in the light and not in the darkness. Notice that destruction will come on ‘them’ suddenly. It should not take us by surprise. Would anyone be surprised if Jesus were to return for us today?
Next week we are going to build off of these 4 verses to look at what it has to tell us regarding the sequencing of events at it related to the end of the age. Should be interesting to say the least.
God Bless,
Mike
24 "Seventy 'sevens' are decreed for 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.
25 "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 'sevens,' and sixty-two 'sevens.' It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble. 26 After the sixty-two 'sevens,' the Anointed One will be cut off and will 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 until the end, and desolations have been decreed. 27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one 'seven.' In the middle of the 'seven' 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.
First the Hebrew word for what is translated ‘sevens’ is ‘shabuwa’ and stands for a group of seven something. Much like we use our term dozen to refer to 12 things. Later verses lead us to understand that the group of seven is referring to seven years. So the angel Gabriel is telling Daniel that 70 groups of 7 years are decreed…or 490 years.
Notice next that Gabriel states that they are decreed for ‘your’ people and ‘your’ holy city. Daniel was a Jew and his holy city was Jerusalem. This is a very important fact to remember if we are going to get the interpretation correct.
From the list of items that follow in that first verse, the main thing that I want you to notice is that they will be completed only when Christ returns. Is there an end of sin? Are we surrounded by everlasting righteousness? Has all vision and prophecy in the bible been completed? I would however say that they are partially completed with Christ shedding His blood on the cross. That was our atonement.
Now to verse 25. When was the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem given? Well, as I’m sure you are all aware from your vast studies in the book of Nehemiah J, this can be found in the second chapter. It was during the month of Nisan during the 20th year of the reign of King Artaxerxes. This would be in spring of the year 445 BC. I read some research based upon some archeological discoveries that gave the date some more specificity of March 14th, 445 BC. I found nothing definite, but we’ll just call it mid March for the sake of the study. There were a few other decrees around that same time, or a little earlier in history, but they were all decrees to rebuild the temple. In those days a city wasn’t a city until the perimeter walls were properly constructed. And that is what Nehemiah did.
So from that date there will be ‘seven 'sevens,' and sixty-two 'sevens.'. and after the sixty-two sevens the Anointed One will be cut off and have nothing. Some translations say something more like the Messiah will be cut off, but not for Himself. The Hebrew term used here for ‘cut off’ can be translated ‘killed’ or ‘crucified’. And remember when Christ was killed, at that time he had received none of the promises that were made to him with regard to ruling here on earth. And if we look at the translation that includes ‘not for Himself’, that is also very appropriate because He died for us.
It is my understanding that the first seven ‘sevens’, or 49 years are the time that it took to rebuild and rededicate the city. Sixty-two ‘sevens’, or 434 years would then follow. That is a total of 483 years. A couple things to keep in mind is the fact that the bible is written based upon the lunar, or Babylonian calendar which has twelve, 30 day months for a total of 360 days per year. Our timetable is based upon a solar, or Julian calendar which contains 365.25 days per year. So watch out all you mathematically challenged individuals J here it goes:
483 years x 360 days = 173,880 days
173,880 / 365.25 = 476.06 years
There are some other slight adjustments for the Julian calendar and there is the fact that there was no year zero. The net result of all of this is the fact that if you start at mid March, 445 BC and move ahead just over 476 years you end up at the beginning of April, in 32 AD. To me it would make sense that this date references Palm Sunday when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on the donkey that was prophesied for him on April 6th, 32 AD. 173,880 days after King Artaxerxes issued the decree.
Did everyone see that? It was not some divine intervention. It was not based upon some additional information from an outside source. The Jewish leaders of that day had what we call Daniel Chapter 9, and it was just some MATH! I think it is in Luke somewhere where two characters Simeon and Anna are expecting the Messiah to come at a certain time. Did they have an angel visit? Maybe. But there is also the possibility they studied their bible and did their math homework.
When Jesus was riding the donkey into town it’s recorded in Luke 19:
41As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it 42and said, "If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes. 43The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. 44They 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."
Notice that he says if you had only known on ‘this day’. Remember, up until this time Jesus did not let the people proclaim that he was the messiah. But on the day of His triumphal entry the religious leaders asked Him to keep the people silent as they cried out that he was the Messiah and Jesus told the leaders that if the people were silent about it, even the very stones would cry out that He was who they proclaimed Him to be.
So put yourself in the shoes of a Jewish disciple of Jesus at that time. You’ve been taught Daniel 9. You know that 483 years of the 490 years have been completed. There are only 7 years to go before all of the promises made to the Jewish people were completed. Jesus had come into town, everything was going great. It’s now the Tuesday after Jesus came to town. You walk up on top of the Mount of Olives which overlooks the city of Jerusalem with Jesus and mention how beautiful the white limestone city and the temple that Herod had nearly completed look. And Jesus says this recorded in Matthew 24:
1Jesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings. 2"Do you see all these things?" he asked. "I tell you the truth, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down."
3As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. "Tell us," they said, "when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?"
Can you imagine their reaction? How could His glory be ushered in if the city was to be torn to the ground? They didn’t understand as we can see from the earlier passage in Luke 19 that the clock stopped. It would be hidden from their eyes. There are other passages that state that the Jewish people’s hearts would be hardened. Sometimes you may wonder how the Jewish people can deny Christ when there is so much evidence that proves He is who he said He is. They have the information. Hey, all they need is a calculator as we showed earlier. Even an abacus would work. It’s because their hearts are hardened. Their eyes are blinded to the facts that were in front of them. Praise the Lord, their blinders are being removed as we speak. There are a couple of Jews that get this email that could attest to that fact that they were once blind and now can see. Israel has become a nation again as was predicted for the end of the age. Jerusalem is under control of the Jews as was predicted for the end of the age. They are returning to their land as was predicted for the end of the age. And most importantly, they are coming to Christ like no other time in history which shows that their hearts are softening. God is preparing to deal with the Jewish people again after all these years.
That last 7 years still needs to be completed. When Jesus died on the cross for our sins at the hands of the Jewish religious leaders of that day, the clock stopped. Can you hear it ticking again?
Back to Daniel 9:
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 until the end, and desolations have been decreed. 27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one 'seven.' In the middle of the 'seven' 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.
For those of you that have done a study in Daniel and have looked at these verses before, I’m hopefully going to throw a little curveball in here. Most commentaries talk about the Roman legions that destroyed Jerusalem in 70AD. While that did take place at that time, I don’t think that is what Daniel is referring to here. I think Jesus was referring to the Roman invasion in the passage we saw from Luke, but I believe in Daniel the clock stopped right after the ‘Anointed One was cut off and had nothing’. This last portion of the prophecy is in regards to when the clock starts ticking again. The armies of the ‘ruler who will come’ (we know as the Antichrist) will come like a flood. We learned from back in Daniel 2 that the 4th kingdom will be the kingdom of the Antichrist and will be the one that is in power at the end of the age when Christ returns.
Now look at the things that this ruler will do. He will make a 7 year covenant with ‘many’ (this should read ‘the many’ which is a term attributed to the people of Israel) and he will break it in the middle. 3-1/2 years into it with 3-1/2 years to go. The great tribulation is the most precisely defined period of time in the bible. It is referred to as 1260 days, 42 months, 3-1/2 years, time times and half a time. If it was not shortened to this specific length, Jesus tells us that no one would survive.
Also notice that in the middle of the seven years the ruler will put an end to ‘sacrifice and offering’. Any idea what the Jewish people need to conduct sacrifice and offering? That’s right, a temple. Daniel makes reference to this temple. So does Paul, John, Jesus, and Ezekiel even gives the specific dimensions of this coming temple. The description that Ezekiel gives calls for the temple shows it to be different then the previous two temples that Solomon and Zerubbabel? or Herod built.
In that temple that is to come, an abomination is set up. This has happened before in history. It was 168BC and the abomination was carried out by the Seleucid Empire ruler known as Antiochus IV. Some may say that Daniel could have been referencing the goings on during that time since he was writing in the 500’s BC, but we can see that Jesus, in 32AD, is clearly speaking of something in the future when he states in Matthew chapter 24:
15"So when you see standing in the holy place 'the abomination that causes desolation,'[b] spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand— 16then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 17Let no one on the roof of his house go down to take anything out of the house. 18Let no one in the field go back to get his cloak. 19How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! 20Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath. 21For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again. 22If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened. 23At that time if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or, 'There he is!' do not believe it. 24For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect—if that were possible. 25See, I have told you ahead of time.
The occurrences in Jerusalem in 168BC are a type of what we should see happen again in the future. If you want to read more about this time in history I would suggest that you read the book of Maccabees. It is a good historical account of the revolt led by Judas Maccabee to finally get rid of Antiochus IV. When the Jewish people rededicated the temple there was a special prepared oil that was required to burn for 8 days. They only had one day’s worth of oil but decided to burn it anyway in hopes that it would be pleasing enough to God. That one day’s worth of oil burned for 8 days and it is still celebrated today around Christmas time as the festival of lights, or Hanukkah.
Notice one other thing from the passage in Matthew. In verse 20, Jesus says “Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath.” This tells us that Jesus is speaking exclusively to the Jewish people that will be in Jerusalem at the end of the age. Just because the passage is in the New Testament, doesn’t mean that this applies to the Church. If I’m a Christian living in Del Boca Vista, Florida, why would I care if the Antichrist shows up in the winter? I bet they would in Jerusalem sitting at an elevation of several thousand feet above sea level. Also, with regards to the Sabbath: I’m a believer that the Sabbath is not any specific day of the week, but that we find our Sabbath in Christ Jesus. But even if it was a specific day of the week, and the Antichrist was coming after me on that Sabbath day, I would run until I couldn’t run any more. I don’t want to be around any of that action. But the Jews, if they are accurately following their laws are not allowed to travel over 1000 paces on the Sabbath. That’s why there were so many things in the small towns that we located within a “Sabbath’s day’s walk” from the temple or where they lived. If Jesus told the Jews to get out of town when the see the abomination that causes desolation, and they could only go 1000 paces…better hope they are pretty big steps.
At the end of verse 27 we see that there is a specific time appointed for this ruler that is to come. We know from other parts of scripture that the end for the Antichrist will come when Christ returns and takes his proper place as ruler of this world. The Antichrist is chained up and thrown into the abyss. It has already been determined. God has seen the beginning from the end, and so have I. He wrote it down for us.
The information that I have presented above will play a vital role in how one sees the events of the end times playing themselves out. That is what we will be doing next week. Remember, we are supposed to know about the end. Jesus commanded us to know and understand the signs of His second coming. The events surrounding the end times are not supposed to come to us like a thief in the night. Actually, we are told quite the opposite in I Thessalonians 5:
1Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, 2for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.
4But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. 5You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. 6So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled.
If we know Jesus as our personal savior, we’re in the light and not in the darkness. Notice that destruction will come on ‘them’ suddenly. It should not take us by surprise. Would anyone be surprised if Jesus were to return for us today?
Next week we are going to build off of these 4 verses to look at what it has to tell us regarding the sequencing of events at it related to the end of the age. Should be interesting to say the least.
God Bless,
Mike
posted by blogawakening at 7:42 PM
1 Comments:
Hi Mike.
Great to see that someone realizes that the great tribulation is only 3 1/2 years just as the bible says.
I wondered if you are aware that there is a 7 year covenant made as we speak. It is exactly according to scripture in that it was mad over a long period of time but confirmed on a specific date.
This is the European Neighbourhood Partnership Instrument, ENPI. It is the confirmation of many agreements that Joveir Solana, who can be considered the prince or chief or commander who is of the European Union or the leg of iron which was the Roman Empire.
These agreements will require a great outlay of money to maintain so they had to be figured into the budget. The EU has a 7 year budget that was cinfirmed on Jan 01/2007
If this is the 7 year covenant then we are in the midst of it as of late May or June of this year.
There is good reason to believe that this is the covenant. One is that according to Mat and Luke shortly after the covenant is broken there are signs in the sun and the moon. Rev 8 describes a star folling that i am sure is an asteroid that will hi. It destroys 1/3 of the fish and ships. Isaiah 13 13 tells us he will move the Earth out of its place on that day. Vertually all indications concerning an asteroid hit point to late 2012. That would place the midst of the 7 at about 2 years prior to 2012 which is 2010.
The Sanhedrin is now calling all jews to send them money to purchase lambs for the Passover offering this June. If I am right they will build the temple very soon. I have read that they can build the temple within 3 months.
On top of this if you have been listening to the news put out by those who are trying to reveal the Illuminati consperacy, they are set to take control and form the New world order very soon and possibly this summer. Everything is happening so fast now that it would make your head spin.
I believe that the child of Rev 12 is that part of the church who are found obedient to Christ in the midst of the 7 and will be raptured possibly May or June of this year.
Look up for your redemption draweth nigh.
Please check out tkic.piczo.com for a lot of information that you might be able to use in your blog.
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