Daniel's Seventy Weeks Prophecies

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Daniel's Seventy Weeks Prophecies

Posted On : Nov-04-2011 | seen (823) times | Article Word Count : 5966 |

What prophecies are included in Daniel's "70 Weeks" prophecies?

It is a virtual calendar of events for the last days.
1. The Rebuilding of Jerusalem - fulfilled in Nehemiah's day
2. Messiah being cut off - Jesus' Crucifixion, DATED and fulfilled!
3. The Rise of the Antichrist - "The Prince that shall come..."
4. The Confirmation of the Covenant
5. The Abomination of Desolation
6. The Second Coming of Jesus and the Battle of Armageddon

Whether or not you believe that Jesus is coming back to earth, or that the Antichrist will appear on earth before Jesus returns, you need to consider the completely amazing prophecies of the ninth chapter of Daniel. Several of these prophecies have already been fulfilled with breath-taking accuracy, and the as-yet-unfulfilled prophecies in this chapter are visibly coming into fulfillment in our days.

For your own spiritual benefit, you really should try to understand these earth-shaking prophecies about the LAST SEVEN YEARS, which are right now leading (with lightning accuracy) to the much-talked-about battle of Armageddon.

Daniel 9 includes one of the single most important prophecies in the Bible - the prophecy concerning the "Seventy Weeks ...to finish the transgression" of Israel.

Finishing...

Israel's days of sinning against God are about over. This prophecy describes the EPIC EVENTS that will occur within the last seven years before the battle of Armageddon - when Jesus Christ will defeat all His enemies, and inaugurate His 1000-year kingdom on earth.

WHY and HOW did this SEVEN-YEAR PROPHETIC EVENT become such an important, dramatically significant topic, among all other Bible teachings?

In a nutshell, "Daniel's Seventieth Week" is the final package of major events in God's calendar before Jesus Christ, Messiah, comes to earth to set all things in order according to His dominion. This unique period of time will record the CULMINATION and ULTIMATE COMPLETION of God's judgment on Israel - AND all mankind- for many centuries of unrepentant sins.

So for believers, UNDERSTANDING DANIEL'S SEVENTY WEEKS helps us know exactly HOW SOON we can expect to SEE JESUS!

"I Will Punish You Seven Times"

The whole matter springs from God's declaration and promises made in Moses' day, and recorded in Leviticus 26:21-28.

"If ye walk contrary unto me, and will not hearken unto me; I will bring seven times more plagues upon you according to your sins. ...then will I also walk contrary unto you, and will punish you yet seven times for your sins. ...I will chastise you seven times for your sins."

From the earliest days of the founding of Israel, God warned the people that if they did not respond to Him when they were chastened, He would multiply their punishment seven times. God was profoundly long suffering with Israel for many centuries, but when He finally declared His judgment, He punished the Jews at Jerusalem with 70 years of captivity in Babylon.

But Israel did not turn their hearts back to God as they should, and as a result, God did exactly as He had often warned. He MULTIPLIED THEIR PUNISHMENT SEVEN TIMES!

In other words, IF 70 YEARS OF PUNISHMENT in Babylon would not make Israel REPENT, then their punishment would be MULTIPLIED 7 TIMES. 70 years X 7 = 490 years. The NEW SENTENCE of punishment became 490 ADDITIONAL years!

70 Years x 7 = 490 Years

It took HUNDREDS OF YEARS OF DISOBEDIENCE before God finally sent them into Babylonian captivity for 70 years. But when their captivity failed to restore them, God spoke through the prophet Daniel, and he prophesied SEVEN TIMES SEVENTY - 490 years (70 weeks of years) of punishment TO FINISH THEIR TRANSGRESSIONS.

God punished Israel seven times their original sentence, because they failed to repent.

Daniel 9:24 - "Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy."

The PURPOSE was to "Finish The Transgression." This would be Israel's LAST SINS! God has ordained that Israel will be provoked to commit their very worst and last sins just before Jesus returns to earth as their Messiah to salvage the nation and usher in a thousand-year reign of peace.

But Daniel was very specific to tell them that their 490-year punishment would be broken into two very separate periods of time. The first period would be 69x7 - 483years. The second period will be only seven years - "Daniel's Seventieth Week," as many refer to it.

69 Weeks = 483 Years
From Nehemiah To Calvary

Daniel 9:25 - "From the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troubled times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off."

The SEVENTY weeks are divided into THREE divisions: 7 + 62 + 1 = 70

The FIRST division was 7x7=49 years.
The SECOND division was 62x7=434 years.
The LAST division is 7 years (Daniel's SEVENTIETH Week).

All three divisions add up to 70 WEEKS OF YEARS, or 490 years.

Daniel did not explain why he divided the first 7 from the second 62, and I know of no other verses that relate to it, so it seems apparent that the full 69 weeks is the significant point. I do not like guesswork on these matters, so I will leave the subject of the first seven weeks without further comment. It does not prevent us from understanding the prophecy. Obviously, 7 plus 62 is 69, and that is the number of years that are important in this case.

Sixty-nine weeks equals 483 years.

The MOST ACCURATE WAY to identify the correct dates on these prophecies is to look first at the prophetic phrase "after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cutoff."

Messiah Will Be Cut Off

Before I explain this point, I want to pay lip-service to the many controversies that abound pertaining to Daniel's prophecies.

In the broadest fields of Biblical theology, virtually every subject in the Bible is (unfortunately) contested to the point of insanity. Among the countless religious and anti-religious sects, the Bible is ripped and shredded to pieces, and every jot and tittle is held up to contentious scrutiny. This is especially the case in matters of Bible prophecy.

When it comes to DEFINING what exactly is meant by the phrase "Messiah will be cut off," there are many exasperating arguments from dozens of theological perspectives.God is not the author of confusion. Demonic confusion is intended to dissuade believers from ever reaching a conclusion or from understanding the will of God. That's why I resist the pernicious errors that are in circulation today.

Daniel Foresaw And Accurately Pre-Dated Jesus' Crucifixion

Knowing that I may be accused of error, I nevertheless take the simplest argument, that in seeing Messiah "cut off," the prophet Daniel foresaw the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

By holding to that definition, I know that I am in conflict with the teachings of "Jehovah's Witnesses," "Seventh-Day Adventists," historicists, preterists,amillenialists, Jewish Orthodoxy and other interpretations.

That Messiah being "cut off" infers the crucifixion of Jesus is obviated by the simple fact that there is a reliably calculated span of 483 years between the story of Nehemiah in Artexerxes' court (found in Nehemiah 2) and the actual death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. That perfectly fulfills Daniel's prophecy of the first 69 weeks.

I am also aware that there are countless other arguments pertaining to the reliability of ancient calendars: irregularities in profane history, discrepancies between Roman and Jewish calendars, solar-cycle versus lunar-cycle calculations, ad infinitum. All too often, the seeker of truth is left paralyzed by the flood of arguments from contentious "scholars."

Still, we must refuse to be bamboozled by the multitude of opinions. I believe that Daniel foresaw the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, and I believe the calculations pertaining to that fulfillment are just as reliable and believable as any other argument that has been set forth.

We cannot afford to overlook the glorious reality of fulfilled prophecies because of some who are "ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith," 2 Timothy 3:7-8.

According to Daniel's statement, the entire 69 weeks ENDS with the CRUCIFIXION of Jesus Christ. Therefore, we can BACK-DATE the prophecy from CALVARY.

We can calculate backwards from the generally accepted date of Jesus' death - in approximately 30-32 AD. (Most scholars believe the Roman calendar has a four-year error, placing the birth of Jesus Christ in 4BC.) We must not be put off by endless disputes over so-called inaccuracies in calendars.

SIXTY NINE WEEKS (483 Years) had to be fulfilled before Jesus' crucifixion to fulfill this prophecy.

If we BACK-DATE the calendar 483 years from 30 AD, we arrive at 453 BC.

However, THAT DATE (453 BC) would be calculated on Solar-based Julian calendar years, consisting of 365.3 days, as given to us by the Roman Catholic Church.

If, on another hand, we calculated BACKWARD from Jesus' death, using a Lunar-based Hebrew Calendar (360 days per year), such as was used throughout the Bible, we would arrive in about 445 BC.

The Commandment To Build

445 BC - "The Going Forth Of the Commandment ...To Build Jerusalem."

Nehemiah the Jew was serving as the king's cup bearer, in the household of Artaxerxes (465 BC to 424 BC), king of Persia, in the palace at Shushan.

"And it came to pass in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king, that wine was before him: and I took up the wine, and gave it unto the king. Now I had not been before time sad in his presence," Nehemiah 2:1.

Take special note of the fact that this event occurred in the TWENTIETH YEAR of ARTEXERXES the King. That nails it down to 445 BC (his reign began in 465 BC).

When Artaxerxes noticed that Nehemiah seemed troubled and depressed, he learned that Nehemiah was sorrowful because Jerusalem lay in ruins.

Although Nehemiah was in an honorable, prestigious position, he was alienated from the life he truly craved back home in Jerusalem. He was depressed, and the king noticed it. "Why is thy countenance sad?" he asked.

"Why should not my countenance be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers' sepulchres lie in waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with fire?" Nehemiah answered.

God opened a dramatic door for Nehemiah. His prayer was ready.

"...the king said unto me, For what dost thou make request? So I prayed to the God of heaven," Nehemiah 2:4.

Artaxerxes offered his assistance. Nehemiah asked Artaxerxes to "send me unto Judah, unto the city of my fathers' sepulchres, that I may build it. ...And the king granted me."

Within days, he was in Jerusalem, rebuilding the walls.

So, it appears that Artexerxes started the clock that counted 483 years until the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, which fulfilled Daniel's 69-week prophecy.

Again, we must not be deterred by theologians with endless arguments about the exact day and date that Jesus died. I am satisfied, even without exact days and dates,that 483 years is an entirely plausible period to believe in, between the Nehemiah/Artaxerxes event and Calvary.

Therefore, I believe the FIRST 69 WEEKS of Daniel's prophecy was entirely, completely fulfilled when Jesus died on the cross. To deny that is to abdicate EVER knowing or understanding the divinely-intended meaning and purpose of this prophecy. Satan would be delighted to leave us in the limbo of indecision, as he is the master of lies and confusion. I will not oblige him in that subterfuge.

This prophecy is FAR TOO IMPORTANT to leave it UNDEFINED AND UNFULFILLED. It HAS been fulfilled, and we need to move on to the next point, so we can understand the day and hour in which WE live!

"Cut Off, But Not For Himself"

Another point that Daniel made, in conjunction with Messiah being cut off was "cut off, but not for Himself."

This prophecy is especially offensive to atheist scholars, because it truly and accurately foretold, over five hundred years in advance, the appearance of Jesus Christ and the time of His death at Calvary. It is SO ACCURATE, that "scholars" DEMAND that it must have been written "ex eventu" (Latin for "after the event"). Such a charge is preposterous, foolish and unintelligent, because the Jews had already canonized the book of Daniel long before Jesus Christ was born or crucified.

(The Bible will NEVER be understood by unbelievers, even if they are scholars. God's plan for man is hidden to those who are lost. But believers have "renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them," 2 Corinthians 4:2-4.)

Jesus' death did, in fact, cut Him off from Israel at that time - they rejected Him - but it did NOT cut Him off from His prophetic purpose. Other prophets had foreseen and foretold His being despised and rejected and bruised and wounded, and many other accurate details pertaining to His death.

So Jesus WAS CUT OFF from ISRAEL, but NOT FROM HIMSELF, OR HIS DIVINE PURPOSE.

This is an AWESOME prophecy, and it HAS BEEN FULFILLED! We simply MUST acknowledge its wonderful accuracy!

In view of all that has now been said, we can shamelessly declare that...

Daniel's first sixty-nine weeks were fulfilled at Calvary.

Now, we have ANOTHER EXTREMELY SIGNIFICANT PROPHECY attached to "Messiah being cut off..."

The VERY NEXT prophecy, following the prophecy of Jesus' crucifixion, called for the DESTRUCTION OF JERUSALEM.

Daniel 9:26b - "...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."

Two Major Prophecies are intertwined here -
A. The Destruction of Jerusalem
B. The Identity of the Prince That Shall Come

"The Prince That Shall Come"

Daniel is giving us the most priceless clue anywhere that will reveal to us WHO THE ANTICHRIST is going to be.

"The Prince that shall come" is going to be the demon prince (in the heavens) that empowers the Antichrist. He is the one who is going to bring about the signing of the Confirmation of the Covenant.

We will see that in a moment. But first, let's identify this Prince.

First of all, we must understand or define the terminology that Daniel used. Why did he call this person a Prince? What principality does he rule?

To get the correct answer to these questions, we have to READ AHEAD into the 10th Chapter of Daniel.

The Prince of Persia, The Prince of Grecia, The Prince of Rome

In Daniel 10, Daniel described an experience he had while on a 21-day fast and prayer vigil. On the last day of his fast, a heavenly messenger came to visit Daniel.

He said to Daniel, "Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words.

But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia. Now I am come to make thee understand what shall befall thy people in the latter days: for yet the vision is for many days."

In short, this angel explained to Daniel that he would have come earlier, except that he was embroiled in a heavenly battle with a demon that he called "The Prince of Persia."

This story exposes the spiritual warfare that goes on in the heavens between the angels of God and the demons of hell. It also exposes the fact that evil empires, such as the Persian Empire, are RULED FROM THE HEAVENS by powerful demon spirits - fallen angels!

The angel of God continued, in verses 20-21, to inform Daniel. "Now will I return to fight with the prince of Persia: and when I am gone forth, lo, the prince of Grecia shall come. ...and there is none that holdeth with me in these things, but Michael your prince."

So, here we see the angel Michael and this unnamed angel (perhaps Gabriel?) described as having a heavenly war with the Prince of Persia. After his battle with the Prince of Persia, he said that the Prince of Grecia would come. In this, the angel revealed, as it were, the overthrow of the Persian Empire, and the ascent of the Grecian Empire.

In other words, EMPIRES RISE AND FALL according to the demon powers in heaven, and they are regulated by the angels of God.

We can know what DEMON PRINCE is in power by observing the earthly empire that is in dominion at the time.

NOW, we can take another look at Daniel's prophecy in Chapter 9.

"The people of the Prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary."

We know from history that Roman armies, led by the Roman Emperor-General Titus, came and destroyed the city of Jerusalem and the Jews' holy Temple in 70 AD. Because of that, we can also know that the NEXT PRINCE in Daniel's prophecy is the PRINCE OF ROME!

The Prince Of Rome

How and why does it help us to know that Daniel was prophesying the rise of the Roman Empire? Because it will be the DEMON PRINCE of the ROMAN EMPIRE that will be orchestrating behind the scenes when the ANTICHRIST SIGNS THE CONFIRMATION OF THE COVENANT, triggering the final seven years of human government, and leading up to the Battle of Armageddon.

This is a very, very, very important prophecy. This practically names the Antichrist!

He will be the earthly human empowered by the Prince of Rome! Just like Cyrus and Darius practiced and prospered under their demon prince of Persia, and just like Alexander the Great practiced and prospered under his demon prince of Grecia, the ANTICHRIST will practice and prosper under his DEMON PRINCE OF ROME!

THIS PROPHECY - pertaining to the Prince of Rome - is in perfect agreement with the dream Nebuchadnezzar had about his great statue.

In Nebuchadnezzar's Image, the empires progressed from the SILVER Persians to the BRASS Grecians to the IRON Romans. Now we see the identical sequence being revealed by the heavenly messenger to Daniel. The PERSIAN Empire fell to the GRECIAN Empire, which fell to the ROMAN Empire.

And ALL that happened as DEMON PRINCES and HEAVENLY PRINCIPALITIES were overthrown or enabled. (All of it, of course, is being closely controlled by Almighty God!) His angels do His bidding, and HE WHO LETS WILL LET, UNTIL HE BE TAKEN OUT OF THE WAY.

Very important! Take special note of the fact that the IRON LEGS a.k.a. PRINCE OF ROME has NEVER been overthrown since ancient times! PLEASE put this into memory. You will NEED to remember this if you hope to understand these prophecies for the last days.

THE PRINCE OF ROME IS STILL IN POWER TODAY! You will see why that is important in a few moments.

The Seventieth Week

We have accounted for the FIRST 69 WEEKS of Daniel's prophecy.

Now, we must identify the meaning and fulfillment of the last and remaining 70TH WEEK - known as "Daniel's Seventieth Week."

A HUGE GAP follows the first 69 weeks. Scholars call it the "gap theory," but in reality, that is a useless term. We know that the Romans came to Jerusalem in 70 AD and destroyed the city, the Temple, and overthrew the Jewish nation at that time. For the nearly 2000 years since then, the nation of Israel has been dispersed. The"Diaspora" is the scattered nation of Israel into the four corners of the earth.

That is not a gap theory. That is a divinely-appointed exile. Big difference. The prophecies had not fallen to the ground. There was no accident, no mistake, no oversight about them. God INTENTIONALLY relegated Israel to their emptiness while in exile. Many of the Old Testament prophets prophesied that the people of Israel would lose everything. One of the most stunning prophecies was declared by the prophet HOSEA.

"For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim: Afterward shall the children of Israel return," Hosea 3:4-5.

In modern times, the last portion of that prophecy began to be fulfilled when, in 1917, Great Britain moved to allocate the land of Palestine as the "national homeland for the Jews." The Balfour Declaration was followed by the British Mandate over Palestine and immediately followed by a modern Jewish exodus from nations all around the world back to their ancient homeland.

Finally, in 1945, the State of Israel was born. In all these years of its modern existence, the State of Israel has filled with millions of Jews from all over the earth.

At last, it is possible for Daniel's Seventieth Week to be fulfilled!

What is Daniel's Seventieth Week?

A "week of years" in prophecy is seven years. In this case, we are looking at the MOST IMPORTANT SEVEN YEARS in all the history of the world heretofore!

In this soon-to-come SEVEN-YEAR-"WEEK," the BIGGEST EVENTS that have ever occurred will happen. Israel's sins will come to a climax. Their sins will rise to a historic magnitude before it is finished. They will literally make a deal with the devil. The Antichrist will come into their midst and defile and blaspheme everything that is sacred about their existence. They will be punished in a time of the greatest tribulation in their entire history.

The world will undergo its most calamitous period in the history of mankind. Death and destruction will occur on a global scale like no man has ever dreamed or imagined.

Then, unless those days were shortened, NO MAN WOULD BE SAVED (Matthew 24:22). In God's PERFECT TIMING, Jesus Christ will come with His saints to Jerusalem and conquer man and earth for a thousand-year reign.

How can we know when Daniel's 70th Week will begin?

Three KEY Identifying Events Frame The Last Seven Years

1. The Confirmation of the Covenant THE BEGINNING of the Seven Years.2. The Abomination of Desolation OCCURS MID-WEEK (42 months, or 3.5 years)3. The Battle Of Armageddon and Second Coming of Jesus Christ OCCURS AT THE END of the Seven Years. The Bible is full of Armageddon prophecies. Many of those prophecies mention events that will occur in the seven-year period immediately before Armageddon.

The Confirmation of the Covenant

Let us ask the most basic questions first.

What is the Confirmation of the Covenant?
A. What is the Covenant?
B. Who are the parties to the Covenant?
C. How will the Covenant be Confirmed?Daniel 9:27a - "And he [the Prince of Rome - v. 26] shall confirm the covenant with many for one week..."

It is useless to discuss this subject if we cannot define the Covenant, or know the parties to the Covenant. We must not waste our time on ill-informed commentary.

We MUST know WHAT the Covenant is, and WHO is going to confirm it.

What is the Covenant?

A seven-year Mideast Peace Covenant, involving Israel, must be put forward by a Rome-influenced European power-broker who will soon be exposed as the Antichrist. How do I know this is so?

"He shall confirm the covenant..." Who is "HE"? The previous verse answers, "the Prince that shall come." The Prince of Rome.

Here is the critical thing we must understand.

Since the Prince of Rome is an invisible demon spirit warring in the heavens, he must have an earthly agent to enter into the COVENANT of Daniel 9:27.

Who will be the earthly representatives of the Prince of Rome?

Actually, there will be TWO PARTIES representing the Prince of Rome. You can see the symbolic lesson in Nebuchadnezzar's Image. The last empire in Nebuchadnezzar's Image - the empire Jesus Christ will crush at Armageddon - is the EMPIRE represented by the IRON AND CLAY FEET.

Both the IRON and the CLAY in Nebuchadnezzar's Image are Roman.

The man who represents the IRON will be the head of the European four-headed leopard beast - the final version of the European Union - perhaps the Western European Union, or perhaps a newly-named entity. There is even a possibility that Turkey might be accepted into the European community, bringing with it a Muslim political force. It is not unthinkable that Europe may be dominated ultimately by a Muslim political figure in the final scenario.

The man who represents the CLAY will be the head of the Roman Catholic Church - the Pope - the self professed "Vicar of Christ." As absurd as it may sound, I do not think it is completely implausible for the Pope to collaborate with a Muslim in enforcing a "Covenant of Peace" upon Israel. If I understand these verses correctly, it may not even be necessary for Israel to be a signatory to this covenant. It may be that Europe effectively crams this agreement down Israel's throat.

So these two entities - the IRON of Europe and the CLAY of the Roman Catholic Church comprise the Beast and the False Prophet of Revelation 13.

These are the two parties who will put forward the Covenant of Peace pertaining to the future of Israel.

Again, the IRON is the European entity (perhaps the EU, perhaps the Western European Union, or perhaps a future configuration. Any future configuration will have to include Germany [the 4-headed leopard] and France [wings of the fowl] to fulfill the prophecies), and the CLAY is the Roman Catholic Church. In Revelations 13, these same parties are "the Beast" and "the False Prophet." Here you see the Antichrist and the Pope.

Daniel 9:27 - "He shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease."

The time-line is firm. Everything comes to a conclusion in exactly seven years after the confirmation of this covenant.

As soon as this Mideast Covenant of Peace is signed by its principal parties, a seven-year clock begins ticking for Israel.

How will we know when the Confirmation of the Covenant is signed?

I expect this to be the biggest news event of modern times. The news blurbs that appear almost daily suggest that it is on its way. When you hear Javier Solana, who was the Foreign Ministry Chief of the European Union, make statements that it is time for the United Nations to force a Palestinian State into existence, with or without Israeli approval, then you realize that Europe ALREADY has the mindset to enforce the kind of Covenant I have just described. [Addendum: Since this article was written, the EU has ratified the Lisbon Treaty, and now has a full-time "High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of the European Union (EU)" since1 December 2009 when the post was created. Her name is Catherine Ashton. She is also the First-Vice-President of the European Commission, and MOST SIGNIFICANTLY, she represents the EU in the UN Quartet for Middle East Peace. That puts Mrs. Ashton in the conspicuous position of possibly becoming the very person who will collaborate with the Pope to bring about the Confirmation of the Covenant, and the appointment of the Palestinian leader who will eventually be known as the Antichrist.]

There are plenty of people at the United Nations RIGHT NOW who are ready to FORCE the State of Palestine into existence WITHOUT Israeli approval.

I think that is a very real possibility. And NOBODY could give a more valuable endorsement to such a European initiative than the POPE!

Such a scenario, I believe, is a very likely scenario in the final fulfillment of this prophecy.

The Europeans are likely to put forth the ultimate endorsement for the United Nations to take full control of Jerusalem, and for the Vatican to control all the holy sites, and parse all the remaining territories to Israel and the Palestinians WITH OR WITHOUT their official consent. That will effectively put the entire Middle East under the control of the World Government. Israel will become a hostage to the World Government in her own land - effectively under house arrest.

Nevertheless, the world will consider this to be GREAT PROGRESS!

One HUGE benefit that may come to Israel is the THIRD TEMPLE.

In the summer of 2009, Jewish Rabbis met with Muslim Muftis and began to exchange ideas about how a Third Jewish Temple could be built on the Temple Mount. Ordinarily,the Temple Mount has been completely off-limits to Jewish religious activities of any kind. The Islamic WAFT exercises daily control over the Temple Mount. Muslims are allowed to attend the Al Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock. They freely exercise their Islamic religion in these areas.

Meanwhile, Christians and Jews only get the crumbs from the table. A few hours each day, tour groups are allowed on the Temple Mount, including Christians and a few Jews. But they are NEVER allowed to carry Bibles with them, or to conduct open prayers. The Muslims have completely banned Jewish and Christian worship from the Temple Mount.

But public opinion polls taken in late 2009 indicated that fully 64% of the Israeli public is in favor of the building of the Third Temple. The Muslim Mufti actually went ON THE RECORD in favor of a Third Temple!

I have monitored this situation for years, and have followed the news intensely since the mid-1990s, and have NEVER seen a consensus building IN FAVOR of a Third Temple like I now see.

The Third Temple must be built.

The prophecies require the Third Temple to be built. Exactly 1260 days after the Confirmation of the Covenant, (42 months, or 3.5 years) the Antichrist will commit the Abomination of Desolation in the Third Temple.

The Abomination of Desolation

Daniel 9:27b - "...and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate."

The Conclusion

No matter what belief system that we may hold, the fact is that the end of the age and this world will happen one day soon. The only power that will rule in the end will be God's power. Presently He if offering pardons from our sins (no matter we have committed or of what type). If we call upon the name of the Lord Jesus Christ in all things, then we can be saved if we follow His commands. (Romans 10:13; Colossians 3:17) His first command is to hear or know the Gospel of Jesus Christ (by reading Matthew, Mark Luke or John). And then for all believers in His name to place it upon themselves starting with baptism. This is evidenced throughout the book of Acts where the church began under the apostles. The following letters are for the edification of the saints. The last book of Revelations is given (along with Matthew 24, Mark 13 and the book of Daniel) to show forth end time events.

Often people will say that they do not understand why the world is in such chaos and confusion. The short answer is that this present world is now in change. The old powers of darkness are losing the control (but not without a fight in both the spiritual and physical planes). The original owner is coming to reclaim His inheritance, along with all those who side with His just cause unto everlasting redemption.

The world will become very dark shortly. Then when all hope seems lost, God Himself will intervene and stop mankind from total destruction (of himself and the world that was given to him by God). At that time God will reign over all things, and that which offends Him will be set apart from his Holy presence. In the end, all flesh will abolished and mankind will become spirit beings, even as God is one. Nothing can effectively change His plans. Yet if we believe in Him they will come to pass for our good, but if not the loser in any conflict can hope for nothing. Still there's no reason that any single person has to lose out with God. He came Himself and died for all sin, so that all could be part takers of His goodness. Why not try (or taste it) for yourself? He's charges nothing for what He gives except personal commitment. His love knows no bounds. The choice of life and death will be set before all of mankind soon. To reject the spiritual is accept the carnal, and to live for the flesh is to die spiritually. All will be given a choice to either accept the mark of the beast (a huge world-wide socialistic system) or to be persecuted, but in doing so obtaining eternal life. God bless your choices in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Re-Publish this Article

<h1>Daniel's Seventy Weeks Prophecies</h1> Author: <a href='http://www.articleseen.com/profile_Steve-0.aspx'>Steve-0</a> What prophecies are included in Daniel's "70 Weeks" prophecies?

It is a virtual calendar of events for the last days.
1. The Rebuilding of Jerusalem - fulfilled in Nehemiah's day
2. Messiah being cut off - Jesus' Crucifixion, DATED and fulfilled!
3. The Rise of the Antichrist - "The Prince that shall come..."
4. The Confirmation of the Covenant
5. The Abomination of Desolation
6. The Second Coming of Jesus and the Battle of Armageddon

Whether or not you believe that Jesus is coming back to earth, or that the Antichrist will appear on earth before Jesus returns, you need to consider the completely amazing prophecies of the ninth chapter of Daniel. Several of these prophecies have already been fulfilled with breath-taking accuracy, and the as-yet-unfulfilled prophecies in this chapter are visibly coming into fulfillment in our days.

For your own spiritual benefit, you really should try to understand these earth-shaking prophecies about the LAST SEVEN YEARS, which are right now leading (with lightning accuracy) to the much-talked-about battle of Armageddon.
 
Daniel 9 includes one of the single most important prophecies in the Bible - the prophecy concerning the "Seventy Weeks ...to finish the transgression" of Israel.

Finishing...

Israel's days of sinning against God are about over. This prophecy describes the EPIC EVENTS that will occur within the last seven years before the battle of Armageddon - when Jesus Christ will defeat all His enemies, and inaugurate His 1000-year kingdom on earth.
 
WHY and HOW did this SEVEN-YEAR PROPHETIC EVENT become such an important, dramatically significant topic, among all other Bible teachings?

In a nutshell, "Daniel's Seventieth Week" is the final package of major events in God's calendar before Jesus Christ, Messiah, comes to earth to set all things in order according to His dominion. This unique period of time will record the CULMINATION and ULTIMATE COMPLETION of God's judgment on Israel - AND all mankind- for many centuries of unrepentant sins.
 
So for believers, UNDERSTANDING DANIEL'S SEVENTY WEEKS helps us know exactly HOW SOON we can expect to SEE JESUS!

"I Will Punish You Seven Times"

The whole matter springs from God's declaration and promises made in Moses' day, and recorded in Leviticus 26:21-28.
 
"If ye walk contrary unto me, and will not hearken unto me; I will bring seven times more plagues upon you according to your sins. ...then will I also walk contrary unto you, and will punish you yet seven times for your sins. ...I will chastise you seven times for your sins."
 
From the earliest days of the founding of Israel, God warned the people that if they did not respond to Him when they were chastened, He would multiply their punishment seven times. God was profoundly long suffering with Israel for many centuries, but when He finally declared His judgment, He punished the Jews at Jerusalem with 70 years of captivity in Babylon.

But Israel did not turn their hearts back to God as they should, and as a result, God did exactly as He had often warned. He MULTIPLIED THEIR PUNISHMENT SEVEN TIMES!

In other words, IF 70 YEARS OF PUNISHMENT in Babylon would not make Israel REPENT, then their punishment would be MULTIPLIED 7 TIMES. 70 years X 7 = 490 years. The NEW SENTENCE of punishment became 490 ADDITIONAL years!

70 Years x 7 = 490 Years

It took HUNDREDS OF YEARS OF DISOBEDIENCE before God finally sent them into Babylonian captivity for 70 years. But when their captivity failed to restore them, God spoke through the prophet Daniel, and he prophesied SEVEN TIMES SEVENTY - 490 years (70 weeks of years) of punishment TO FINISH THEIR TRANSGRESSIONS.
 
God punished Israel seven times their original sentence, because they failed to repent.

Daniel 9:24 - "Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy."
 
The PURPOSE was to "Finish The Transgression." This would be Israel's LAST SINS! God has ordained that Israel will be provoked to commit their very worst and last sins just before Jesus returns to earth as their Messiah to salvage the nation and usher in a thousand-year reign of peace.
 
But Daniel was very specific to tell them that their 490-year punishment would be broken into two very separate periods of time. The first period would be 69x7 - 483years. The second period will be only seven years - "Daniel's Seventieth Week," as many refer to it.

69 Weeks = 483 Years
From Nehemiah To Calvary

Daniel 9:25 - "From the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troubled times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off."
 
The SEVENTY weeks are divided into THREE divisions: 7 + 62 + 1 = 70

The FIRST division was 7x7=49 years. 
The SECOND division was 62x7=434 years. 
The LAST division is 7 years (Daniel's SEVENTIETH Week).
 
All three divisions add up to 70 WEEKS OF YEARS, or 490 years.

Daniel did not explain why he divided the first 7 from the second 62, and I know of no other verses that relate to it, so it seems apparent that the full 69 weeks is the significant point. I do not like guesswork on these matters, so I will leave the subject of the first seven weeks without further comment. It does not prevent us from understanding the prophecy. Obviously, 7 plus 62 is 69, and that is the number of years that are important in this case.

Sixty-nine weeks equals 483 years.

The MOST ACCURATE WAY to identify the correct dates on these prophecies is to look first at the prophetic phrase "after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cutoff."

Messiah Will Be Cut Off

Before I explain this point, I want to pay lip-service to the many controversies that abound pertaining to Daniel's prophecies.

In the broadest fields of Biblical theology, virtually every subject in the Bible is (unfortunately) contested to the point of insanity. Among the countless religious and anti-religious sects, the Bible is ripped and shredded to pieces, and every jot and tittle is held up to contentious scrutiny. This is especially the case in matters of Bible prophecy.

When it comes to DEFINING what exactly is meant by the phrase "Messiah will be cut off," there are many exasperating arguments from dozens of theological perspectives.God is not the author of confusion. Demonic confusion is intended to dissuade believers from ever reaching a conclusion or from understanding the will of God. That's why I resist the pernicious errors that are in circulation today.
 
Daniel Foresaw And Accurately Pre-Dated Jesus' Crucifixion

Knowing that I may be accused of error, I nevertheless take the simplest argument, that in seeing Messiah "cut off," the prophet Daniel foresaw the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

By holding to that definition, I know that I am in conflict with the teachings of "Jehovah's Witnesses," "Seventh-Day Adventists," historicists, preterists,amillenialists, Jewish Orthodoxy and other interpretations.
 
That Messiah being "cut off" infers the crucifixion of Jesus is obviated by the simple fact that there is a reliably calculated span of 483 years between the story of Nehemiah in Artexerxes' court (found in Nehemiah 2) and the actual death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. That perfectly fulfills Daniel's prophecy of the first 69 weeks.
 
I am also aware that there are countless other arguments pertaining to the reliability of ancient calendars: irregularities in profane history, discrepancies between Roman and Jewish calendars, solar-cycle versus lunar-cycle calculations, ad infinitum. All too often, the seeker of truth is left paralyzed by the flood of arguments from contentious "scholars."
 
Still, we must refuse to be bamboozled by the multitude of opinions. I believe that Daniel foresaw the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, and I believe the calculations pertaining to that fulfillment are just as reliable and believable as any other argument that has been set forth.

We cannot afford to overlook the glorious reality of fulfilled prophecies because of some who are "ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith," 2 Timothy 3:7-8.
 
According to Daniel's statement, the entire 69 weeks ENDS with the CRUCIFIXION of Jesus Christ. Therefore, we can BACK-DATE the prophecy from CALVARY.

We can calculate backwards from the generally accepted date of Jesus' death - in approximately 30-32 AD. (Most scholars believe the Roman calendar has a four-year error, placing the birth of Jesus Christ in 4BC.) We must not be put off by endless disputes over so-called inaccuracies in calendars.
 
SIXTY NINE WEEKS (483 Years) had to be fulfilled before Jesus' crucifixion to fulfill this prophecy.

If we BACK-DATE the calendar 483 years from 30 AD, we arrive at 453 BC.

However, THAT DATE (453 BC) would be calculated on Solar-based Julian calendar years, consisting of 365.3 days, as given to us by the Roman Catholic Church.
 
If, on another hand, we calculated BACKWARD from Jesus' death, using a Lunar-based Hebrew Calendar (360 days per year), such as was used throughout the Bible, we would arrive in about 445 BC.

The Commandment To Build

445 BC - "The Going Forth Of the Commandment ...To Build Jerusalem."

Nehemiah the Jew was serving as the king's cup bearer, in the household of Artaxerxes (465 BC to 424 BC), king of Persia, in the palace at Shushan.

"And it came to pass in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king, that wine was before him: and I took up the wine, and gave it unto the king. Now I had not been before time sad in his presence," Nehemiah 2:1.
 
Take special note of the fact that this event occurred in the TWENTIETH YEAR of ARTEXERXES the King. That nails it down to 445 BC (his reign began in 465 BC).

When Artaxerxes noticed that Nehemiah seemed troubled and depressed, he learned that Nehemiah was sorrowful because Jerusalem lay in ruins.

Although Nehemiah was in an honorable, prestigious position, he was alienated from the life he truly craved back home in Jerusalem. He was depressed, and the king noticed it. "Why is thy countenance sad?" he asked.

"Why should not my countenance be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers' sepulchres lie in waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with fire?" Nehemiah answered.

God opened a dramatic door for Nehemiah. His prayer was ready.

"...the king said unto me, For what dost thou make request? So I prayed to the God of heaven," Nehemiah 2:4.

Artaxerxes offered his assistance. Nehemiah asked Artaxerxes to "send me unto Judah, unto the city of my fathers' sepulchres, that I may build it. ...And the king granted me."

Within days, he was in Jerusalem, rebuilding the walls.

So, it appears that Artexerxes started the clock that counted 483 years until the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, which fulfilled Daniel's 69-week prophecy.
 
Again, we must not be deterred by theologians with endless arguments about the exact day and date that Jesus died. I am satisfied, even without exact days and dates,that 483 years is an entirely plausible period to believe in, between the Nehemiah/Artaxerxes event and Calvary.
 
Therefore, I believe the FIRST 69 WEEKS of Daniel's prophecy was entirely, completely fulfilled when Jesus died on the cross. To deny that is to abdicate EVER knowing or understanding the divinely-intended meaning and purpose of this prophecy. Satan would be delighted to leave us in the limbo of indecision, as he is the master of lies and confusion. I will not oblige him in that subterfuge.
 
 This prophecy is FAR TOO IMPORTANT to leave it UNDEFINED AND UNFULFILLED. It HAS been fulfilled, and we need to move on to the next point, so we can understand the day and hour in which WE live!

"Cut Off, But Not For Himself"

Another point that Daniel made, in conjunction with Messiah being cut off was "cut off, but not for Himself."

This prophecy is especially offensive to atheist scholars, because it truly and accurately foretold, over five hundred years in advance, the appearance of Jesus Christ and the time of His death at Calvary. It is SO ACCURATE, that "scholars" DEMAND that it must have been written "ex eventu" (Latin for "after the event"). Such a charge is preposterous, foolish and unintelligent, because the Jews had already canonized the book of Daniel long before Jesus Christ was born or crucified.
 
(The Bible will NEVER be understood by unbelievers, even if they are scholars. God's plan for man is hidden to those who are lost. But believers have "renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them," 2 Corinthians 4:2-4.)
 
Jesus' death did, in fact, cut Him off from Israel at that time - they rejected Him - but it did NOT cut Him off from His prophetic purpose. Other prophets had foreseen and foretold His being despised and rejected and bruised and wounded, and many other accurate details pertaining to His death.

So Jesus WAS CUT OFF from ISRAEL, but NOT FROM HIMSELF, OR HIS DIVINE PURPOSE.

This is an AWESOME prophecy, and it HAS BEEN FULFILLED! We simply MUST acknowledge its wonderful accuracy!

In view of all that has now been said, we can shamelessly declare that...
 
Daniel's first sixty-nine weeks were fulfilled at Calvary.

Now, we have ANOTHER EXTREMELY SIGNIFICANT PROPHECY attached to "Messiah being cut off..."

The VERY NEXT prophecy, following the prophecy of Jesus' crucifixion, called for the DESTRUCTION OF JERUSALEM.
 
Daniel 9:26b - "...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."
 
Two Major Prophecies are intertwined here - 
A. The Destruction of Jerusalem
B. The Identity of the Prince That Shall Come

"The Prince That Shall Come"

Daniel is giving us the most priceless clue anywhere that will reveal to us WHO THE ANTICHRIST is going to be.
 
"The Prince that shall come" is going to be the demon prince (in the heavens) that empowers the Antichrist. He is the one who is going to bring about the signing of the Confirmation of the Covenant.

We will see that in a moment. But first, let's identify this Prince.
 
First of all, we must understand or define the terminology that Daniel used. Why did he call this person a Prince? What principality does he rule?

To get the correct answer to these questions, we have to READ AHEAD into the 10th Chapter of Daniel.

The Prince of Persia, The Prince of Grecia, The Prince of Rome

In Daniel 10, Daniel described an experience he had while on a 21-day fast and prayer vigil. On the last day of his fast, a heavenly messenger came to visit Daniel.
 
He said to Daniel, "Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words.

But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia. Now I am come to make thee understand what shall befall thy people in the latter days: for yet the vision is for many days."

In short, this angel explained to Daniel that he would have come earlier, except that he was embroiled in a heavenly battle with a demon that he called "The Prince of Persia."

This story exposes the spiritual warfare that goes on in the heavens between the angels of God and the demons of hell. It also exposes the fact that evil empires, such as the Persian Empire, are RULED FROM THE HEAVENS by powerful demon spirits - fallen angels!

The angel of God continued, in verses 20-21, to inform Daniel. "Now will I return to fight with the prince of Persia: and when I am gone forth, lo, the prince of Grecia shall come. ...and there is none that holdeth with me in these things, but Michael your prince."
 
So, here we see the angel Michael and this unnamed angel (perhaps Gabriel?) described as having a heavenly war with the Prince of Persia. After his battle with the Prince of Persia, he said that the Prince of Grecia would come. In this, the angel revealed, as it were, the overthrow of the Persian Empire, and the ascent of the Grecian Empire.

In other words, EMPIRES RISE AND FALL according to the demon powers in heaven, and they are regulated by the angels of God.

We can know what DEMON PRINCE is in power by observing the earthly empire that is in dominion at the time.
 
NOW, we can take another look at Daniel's prophecy in Chapter 9.

"The people of the Prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary."

We know from history that Roman armies, led by the Roman Emperor-General Titus, came and destroyed the city of Jerusalem and the Jews' holy Temple in 70 AD. Because of that, we can also know that the NEXT PRINCE in Daniel's prophecy is the PRINCE OF ROME!

The Prince Of Rome

How and why does it help us to know that Daniel was prophesying the rise of the Roman Empire? Because it will be the DEMON PRINCE of the ROMAN EMPIRE that will be orchestrating behind the scenes when the ANTICHRIST SIGNS THE CONFIRMATION OF THE COVENANT, triggering the final seven years of human government, and leading up to the Battle of Armageddon.
 
This is a very, very, very important prophecy. This practically names the Antichrist!

He will be the earthly human empowered by the Prince of Rome! Just like Cyrus and Darius practiced and prospered under their demon prince of Persia, and just like Alexander the Great practiced and prospered under his demon prince of Grecia, the ANTICHRIST will practice and prosper under his DEMON PRINCE OF ROME!
 
THIS PROPHECY - pertaining to the Prince of Rome - is in perfect agreement with the dream Nebuchadnezzar had about his great statue.

In Nebuchadnezzar's Image, the empires progressed from the SILVER Persians to the BRASS Grecians to the IRON Romans. Now we see the identical sequence being revealed by the heavenly messenger to Daniel. The PERSIAN Empire fell to the GRECIAN Empire, which fell to the ROMAN Empire.
 
And ALL that happened as DEMON PRINCES and HEAVENLY PRINCIPALITIES were overthrown or enabled. (All of it, of course, is being closely controlled by Almighty God!) His angels do His bidding, and HE WHO LETS WILL LET, UNTIL HE BE TAKEN OUT OF THE WAY.
 
Very important! Take special note of the fact that the IRON LEGS a.k.a. PRINCE OF ROME has NEVER been overthrown since ancient times! PLEASE put this into memory. You will NEED to remember this if you hope to understand these prophecies for the last days.
 
THE PRINCE OF ROME IS STILL IN POWER TODAY! You will see why that is important in a few moments.

The Seventieth Week

We have accounted for the FIRST 69 WEEKS of Daniel's prophecy.

Now, we must identify the meaning and fulfillment of the last and remaining 70TH WEEK - known as "Daniel's Seventieth Week."
 
A HUGE GAP follows the first 69 weeks. Scholars call it the "gap theory," but in reality, that is a useless term. We know that the Romans came to Jerusalem in 70 AD and destroyed the city, the Temple, and overthrew the Jewish nation at that time. For the nearly 2000 years since then, the nation of Israel has been dispersed. The"Diaspora" is the scattered nation of Israel into the four corners of the earth.

That is not a gap theory. That is a divinely-appointed exile. Big difference. The prophecies had not fallen to the ground. There was no accident, no mistake, no oversight about them. God INTENTIONALLY relegated Israel to their emptiness while in exile. Many of the Old Testament prophets prophesied that the people of Israel would lose everything. One of the most stunning prophecies was declared by the prophet HOSEA.

"For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim: Afterward shall the children of Israel return," Hosea 3:4-5.
 
In modern times, the last portion of that prophecy began to be fulfilled when, in 1917, Great Britain moved to allocate the land of Palestine as the "national homeland for the Jews." The Balfour Declaration was followed by the British Mandate over Palestine and immediately followed by a modern Jewish exodus from nations all around the world back to their ancient homeland.
 
Finally, in 1945, the State of Israel was born. In all these years of its modern existence, the State of Israel has filled with millions of Jews from all over the earth.

At last, it is possible for Daniel's Seventieth Week to be fulfilled!

What is Daniel's Seventieth Week?

A "week of years" in prophecy is seven years. In this case, we are looking at the MOST IMPORTANT SEVEN YEARS in all the history of the world heretofore!

In this soon-to-come SEVEN-YEAR-"WEEK," the BIGGEST EVENTS that have ever occurred will happen. Israel's sins will come to a climax. Their sins will rise to a historic magnitude before it is finished. They will literally make a deal with the devil. The Antichrist will come into their midst and defile and blaspheme everything that is sacred about their existence. They will be punished in a time of the greatest tribulation in their entire history.

The world will undergo its most calamitous period in the history of mankind. Death and destruction will occur on a global scale like no man has ever dreamed or imagined.

Then, unless those days were shortened, NO MAN WOULD BE SAVED (Matthew 24:22). In God's PERFECT TIMING, Jesus Christ will come with His saints to Jerusalem and conquer man and earth for a thousand-year reign.
 
How can we know when Daniel's 70th Week will begin?

Three KEY Identifying Events Frame The Last Seven Years

1. The Confirmation of the Covenant THE BEGINNING of the Seven Years.2. The Abomination of Desolation OCCURS MID-WEEK (42 months, or 3.5 years)3. The Battle Of Armageddon and Second Coming of Jesus Christ OCCURS AT THE END of the Seven Years. The Bible is full of Armageddon prophecies. Many of those prophecies mention events that will occur in the seven-year period immediately before Armageddon.
 
The Confirmation of the Covenant

Let us ask the most basic questions first.

What is the Confirmation of the Covenant?
A. What is the Covenant?
B. Who are the parties to the Covenant?
C. How will the Covenant be Confirmed?Daniel 9:27a - "And he [the Prince of Rome - v. 26] shall confirm the covenant with many for one week..."

It is useless to discuss this subject if we cannot define the Covenant, or know the parties to the Covenant. We must not waste our time on ill-informed commentary.

We MUST know WHAT the Covenant is, and WHO is going to confirm it.

What is the Covenant?

A seven-year Mideast Peace Covenant, involving Israel, must be put forward by a Rome-influenced European power-broker who will soon be exposed as the Antichrist. How do I know this is so?
 
"He shall confirm the covenant..." Who is "HE"? The previous verse answers, "the Prince that shall come." The Prince of Rome.

Here is the critical thing we must understand.

Since the Prince of Rome is an invisible demon spirit warring in the heavens, he must have an earthly agent to enter into the COVENANT of Daniel 9:27.

Who will be the earthly representatives of the Prince of Rome?

Actually, there will be TWO PARTIES representing the Prince of Rome. You can see the symbolic lesson in Nebuchadnezzar's Image. The last empire in Nebuchadnezzar's Image - the empire Jesus Christ will crush at Armageddon - is the EMPIRE represented by the IRON AND CLAY FEET.
 
Both the IRON and the CLAY in Nebuchadnezzar's Image are Roman.

The man who represents the IRON will be the head of the European four-headed leopard beast - the final version of the European Union - perhaps the Western European Union, or perhaps a newly-named entity. There is even a possibility that Turkey might be accepted into the European community, bringing with it a Muslim political force. It is not unthinkable that Europe may be dominated ultimately by a Muslim political figure in the final scenario.
 
The man who represents the CLAY will be the head of the Roman Catholic Church - the Pope - the self professed "Vicar of Christ." As absurd as it may sound, I do not think it is completely implausible for the Pope to collaborate with a Muslim in enforcing a "Covenant of Peace" upon Israel. If I understand these verses correctly, it may not even be necessary for Israel to be a signatory to this covenant. It may be that Europe effectively crams this agreement down Israel's throat.
 
So these two entities - the IRON of Europe and the CLAY of the Roman Catholic Church comprise the Beast and the False Prophet of Revelation 13.

These are the two parties who will put forward the Covenant of Peace pertaining to the future of Israel.
 
Again, the IRON is the European entity (perhaps the EU, perhaps the Western European Union, or perhaps a future configuration. Any future configuration will have to include Germany [the 4-headed leopard] and France [wings of the fowl] to fulfill the prophecies), and the CLAY is the Roman Catholic Church. In Revelations 13, these same parties are "the Beast" and "the False Prophet." Here you see the Antichrist and the Pope.

Daniel 9:27 - "He shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease."

The time-line is firm. Everything comes to a conclusion in exactly seven years after the confirmation of this covenant.
 
As soon as this Mideast Covenant of Peace is signed by its principal parties, a seven-year clock begins ticking for Israel.

How will we know when the Confirmation of the Covenant is signed?

I expect this to be the biggest news event of modern times. The news blurbs that appear almost daily suggest that it is on its way. When you hear Javier Solana, who was the Foreign Ministry Chief of the European Union, make statements that it is time for the United Nations to force a Palestinian State into existence, with or without Israeli approval, then you realize that Europe ALREADY has the mindset to enforce the kind of Covenant I have just described. [Addendum: Since this article was written, the EU has ratified the Lisbon Treaty, and now has a full-time "High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of the European Union (EU)" since1 December 2009 when the post was created. Her name is Catherine Ashton. She is also the First-Vice-President of the European Commission, and MOST SIGNIFICANTLY, she represents the EU in the UN Quartet for Middle East Peace. That puts Mrs. Ashton in the conspicuous position of possibly becoming the very person who will collaborate with the Pope to bring about the Confirmation of the Covenant, and the appointment of the Palestinian leader who will eventually be known as the Antichrist.]

There are plenty of people at the United Nations RIGHT NOW who are ready to FORCE the State of Palestine into existence WITHOUT Israeli approval.

I think that is a very real possibility. And NOBODY could give a more valuable endorsement to such a European initiative than the POPE!
 
Such a scenario, I believe, is a very likely scenario in the final fulfillment of this prophecy.

The Europeans are likely to put forth the ultimate endorsement for the United Nations to take full control of Jerusalem, and for the Vatican to control all the holy sites, and parse all the remaining territories to Israel and the Palestinians WITH OR WITHOUT their official consent. That will effectively put the entire Middle East under the control of the World Government. Israel will become a hostage to the World Government in her own land - effectively under house arrest.
 
Nevertheless, the world will consider this to be GREAT PROGRESS!

One HUGE benefit that may come to Israel is the THIRD TEMPLE.

In the summer of 2009, Jewish Rabbis met with Muslim Muftis and began to exchange ideas about how a Third Jewish Temple could be built on the Temple Mount. Ordinarily,the Temple Mount has been completely off-limits to Jewish religious activities of any kind. The Islamic WAFT exercises daily control over the Temple Mount. Muslims are allowed to attend the Al Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock. They freely exercise their Islamic religion in these areas.
 
Meanwhile, Christians and Jews only get the crumbs from the table. A few hours each day, tour groups are allowed on the Temple Mount, including Christians and a few Jews. But they are NEVER allowed to carry Bibles with them, or to conduct open prayers. The Muslims have completely banned Jewish and Christian worship from the Temple Mount.
 
But public opinion polls taken in late 2009 indicated that fully 64% of the Israeli public is in favor of the building of the Third Temple. The Muslim Mufti actually went ON THE RECORD in favor of a Third Temple!

I have monitored this situation for years, and have followed the news intensely since the mid-1990s, and have NEVER seen a consensus building IN FAVOR of a Third Temple like I now see.

The Third Temple must be built.
 
The prophecies require the Third Temple to be built. Exactly 1260 days after the Confirmation of the Covenant, (42 months, or 3.5 years) the Antichrist will commit the Abomination of Desolation in the Third Temple.
 
The Abomination of Desolation

Daniel 9:27b - "...and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate."

The Conclusion

No matter what belief system that we may hold, the fact is that the end of the age and this world will happen one day soon. The only power that will rule in the end will be God's power. Presently He if offering pardons from our sins (no matter we have committed or of what type). If we call upon the name of the Lord Jesus Christ in all things, then we can be saved if we follow His commands. (Romans 10:13; Colossians 3:17) His first command is to hear or know the Gospel of Jesus Christ (by reading Matthew, Mark Luke or John). And then for all believers in His name to place it upon themselves starting with baptism. This is evidenced throughout the book of Acts where the church began under the apostles. The following letters are for the edification of the saints. The last book of Revelations is given (along with Matthew 24, Mark 13 and the book of Daniel) to show forth end time events.

Often people will say that they do not understand why the world is in such chaos and confusion. The short answer is that this present world is now in change. The old powers of darkness are losing the control (but not without a fight in both the spiritual and physical planes). The original owner is coming to reclaim His inheritance, along with all those who side with His just cause unto everlasting redemption.

The world will become very dark shortly. Then when all hope seems lost, God Himself will intervene and stop mankind from total destruction (of himself and the world that was given to him by God). At that time God will reign over all things, and that which offends Him will be set apart from his Holy presence. In the end, all flesh will abolished and mankind will become spirit beings, even as God is one. Nothing can effectively change His plans. Yet if we believe in Him they will come to pass for our good, but if not the loser in any conflict can hope for nothing. Still there's no reason that any single person has to lose out with God. He came Himself and died for all sin, so that all could be part takers of His goodness. Why not try (or taste it) for yourself? He's charges nothing for what He gives except personal commitment. His love knows no bounds. The choice of life and death will be set before all of mankind soon. To reject the spiritual is accept the carnal, and to live for the flesh is to die spiritually. All will be given a choice to either accept the mark of the beast (a huge world-wide socialistic system) or to be persecuted, but in doing so obtaining eternal life. God bless your choices in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
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Daniel, Wikipedia, History, The King James Bible, Eschatology

Keywords : Daniel, Calvary, Babylon, weeks, prophecy, matthew 24, end times, divide, battle, prince, Rome, crown, believe, fulfill, Christ, Israel, temp,

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