A Second Fulfillment of Daniel 9?

Howard Rand once wrote, “No subject is more fascinating than prophecy..and it is often couched in such terms that it is impossible to understand many of its details until the time arrives for fulfillment.” Even then, I suppose, the fulfillment may be fuzzy until the benefit of hindsight comes into play. Perhaps this is the reason that the number of prophecies that appeared to zero in on 2003 did not appear to materialize. Last year and the year before, I tried to show how 2003 was such an important year on God’s calendar and how it signaled a period of judgment upon True Israel. I still do! You might remember how I calculated 6 days or 6,000 years from the fall of Adam to 2003, how 911 was a two year warning as per Amos 1:1, how 2003 was seven years from the removal of the Stone of Destiny from London, paralleling the 7 days warning given to Noah to get on the Ark as judgment was to begin. How it was 70 years from the first year of the beginning of the Esau Dominion with the Roosevelt policies of 1933/34. How it was 40 years, or one testing period, from 1963, a year when plans were made to decimate the structure of the Israel nations, particularly the British Commonwealth. How 2003 was 15 years from 1988, the year when the derivative risk, now 2/400 trillion dollars was approximately a mere 1 trillion, no risk at all. There were others, but, all in all, I tried to show how 2003 was a year of great destiny on God’s calendar.

Well, we had the Iraq war and for a long while it appeared to be a great conquest. It was a war fought by the tribe of Joseph ( America , Britain & Australia ) yet now, it is turning very nasty. In increasing numbers, many fine young men are being returned in what one reader calls “Bush bags.” Certainly, from a political standpoint, the aftermath of the war is threatening to turn the American and British electorate against President Bush and Prime Minister Blair and this in itself will have ramifications, which will be briefly touched upon later in this article. Nonetheless, the action taken by these two True Israel leaders, based upon what is now seen as faulty information (at best) has turned much of the world against the Anglo-Saxon nations and as prophesied in Genesis 49: 23 the hatred against us is very real.

So, we have to ask ourselves, was 2003 the beginning of judgment upon Israel ? And is the judgment becoming highly visible at this moment in time in 2004? In trying to understand God’s message of judgment against Israel , we must keep in mind that the name of Israel was bequeathed to the sons of Joseph (Genesis: 48:16), so judgment is going to be felt mostly in America and the former British Commonwealth . It will come in many forms, not just war, but pestilence, economic bondage and other forms of servitude.

When a well known pastor indicated he thought 2007 might be the year of the return of Christ, based on a double fulfillment of the prophecy of Daniel 9: 24-27, it got me thinking. Do you suppose there is a replay? Of course, this would seem impossible the way modern theologians interpret the 70th week of Daniel, yet, if it is interpreted in light of Bible facts and secular history, it makes for an intriguing thought.

My friend the pastor believes you can measure the 70 weeks (or 490 days converted a year for a day as per Ezekiel 4: 6 to get 490 years) from 1517 (the year Martin Luther’s actions brought on the Protestant Reformation) and arrive at 2007 as the possible return of Christ. This is an interesting theory but it becomes more so as various Bible passages are examined.

Let’s begin with what we know.

• 517 is the starting point of the second fulfillment of the 70 weeks, as mentioned above.
• In the first fulfillment, Ezra 7: 6-7 records that Ezra received the command to go forth, as per Daniel 9: 25, in the seventh year of Artaxeres. Secular history gives the beginning of this king’s reign as 465 BC and pretty well all scholars agree that the seventh year is 458 BC and is therefore the starting point of the first fulfillment.
• Simple arithmetic demonstrates that 490 years from 458 BC (the House of Judah’s release from Babylonian control) brings us to 33AD. (Please take into consideration the cross over year going directly from 1BC to 1AD rather than from 1 to 0 and 0 to 1). Adding 490 years to 1517 (the beginning of the House of Israel ‘s release from Papal Rome’s control) brings us to 2007.
• Simple arithmetic also lets us add the 7 weeks and 62 weeks of Daniel 9: 25, a total of 483 years, to 458 BC and arrive at 26 AD as the end of the 69th week. Adding 69 weeks or 483 years to 1517 brings us to the year 2000.
• Nothing significant reportedly took place in 26AD and our own memories tell us the same about the year 2000 (unless one considers the Y2K farce).
• So, the beginning of the 70th week of both fulfillment periods began without fanfare.
• Luke 3: 23 records that Jesus was 30 years of age when he was baptized.
• Luke 1: 36 records that Jesus was 6 months younger than John the Baptist.
• Luke 3: 1-3 tells us that John the Baptist began his ministry in the 15th year of Tiberius.
• Secular history demonstrates that Tiberius began his reign on August 19th, 14 AD. See the Encyclopedia Britannica. There is much other evidence of this critical date, including coins minted in his honour. Adding 15 years brings us to 29AD.
• So, Jesus was baptized in the fall of 29BC and then began His Ministry. We know this from Luke 3: 1-3 because John the Baptist had began baptizing in the spring of that year, which was the 15th year of Tiberius’ reign.
• The Gospel of John demonstrates that Jesus’ Ministry covered a period of 3½ years, in which He attended three Passover celebrations and at the 4th, was crucified.
• Therefore, at Passover 33AD, when He was crucified, Jesus was 33 years of age and the end of the 70th week expired.
• We aren’t told about Jesus’ activities in the 3½ years prior to 29AD but He must have been active in some way because Daniel 9: 27 informs us that He confirmed the Covenant for the entire 70th week and this ended in 33AD.
• Daniel 9: 26 does say that the Messiah shall be cut off but it clearly shows that this is sometime after the 62 weeks, not necessarily immediately after.
• Daniel 9: 27 records that in the midst of the week the Messiah would cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease. If, as most of Christendom believes, Christ was crucified in the midst of the week, then, in my view, there is a conflict with the preceding statement that “he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week.”
• I think it is his Baptism that is referred to in this passage. It was the first step in doing away with the Law of Ordinances, a Law that was nailed to the Cross.

To recap, after 483 years from 558BC, on 26AD, we arrive at Daniel’s 70th week; after another 3½ years we have Christ’s Baptism on 29AD; then after another 3½ years, we arrive at the end of the 70th week with the Crucifixion in 33 AD. It is important to keep in mind when looking at the first fulfillment of this prophecy that Christ Jesus came to give His Life for the redemption of the House of Israel and to offer Salvation for all.

Yet, His Second Advent will be as King of kings and Lord of lords. As Isaiah 9: 7 tells us, “.and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice.” So, we are to see a different Christ in His Second Advent and it is not unreasonable that we should see quite opposite circumstances in the second fulfillment. Let’s review the steps, following the same pattern as the first application of Daniel’s seventy weeks.

• Martin Luther nailed his theses to the door of the Wittenberg church on October 31st, 1517.
• After 483 years from 1517, we come to Fall 2000 and as with 26AD, nothing spectacular happened during the entire year.
• Adding 3½ years to Fall 2000 we arrive at Spring 2004 and it appears that the judgment upon Israel , which I believe began in 2003, is accelerating quickly as the attacks against the Americans in Iraq by the Muslim terrorists are become organized and more fearsome. I think if I was writing this article at the end of April or early May, I would likely be recording more significant judgment. I say this because the more the Iraqi terrorists act, the bolder they seem to become and very likely there is more enthusiasm to join in by younger Iraqis (and other Islamic extremists) spoiling for a fight. It looks very much like there is a galvanization taking place in the Arab world and this does not auger well for True Israel. Finally, although Israelites are getting used to the Esau dominion, despite the yoke of bondage being tightening ever more around our necks as each year passes, the highest offices of our lands have at least been occupied by brethren. Some suggest this is about to change as non-Israelites are poised to win the highest offices in both America and Britain .
• Adding the other 3½ years to Spring 2004, we come to Fall 2007, the time of Tabernacles, a time when many scholars believe Christ will return. Nevertheless, this 3½ years will be the pinnacle of Jacob’s trouble but we shall be saved out of it as promised by Jeremiah 30: 7. Note: As an aside, if the 483 years from 1517 begins from the act which caused Luther to re-act, the second fulfillment would begin in approximately spring 1517, meaning that the 483 years would end in spring 2000. This would mean that the first 3½ years would expire in the fall of 2003, coinciding with Jacob’s pillar stone being removed from London . Then, the second 3½ years would end at Spring 2007, at approximately Passover, a time which many other Bible scholars pinpoint for Christ’s return. You be the judge.

Nevertheless, we must ask ourselves, “Is judgment already underway?” I think so but I shall leave it up to you to examine. Certainly, from an Israel nation standpoint, it is somewhat chilling to consider the prophet Ezekiel’s prophetic words to Israel as recorded in Chapter 7, “…Now is the end come upon thee, and I will send mine anger upon thee, and will judge thee according to thy ways, and will recompense upon thee all thine abominations…An end is come, the end is come..Now will I shortly pour out my fury upon thee..and I will judge thee according to thy ways..” Our nations are going to feel the brunt of God’s anger and we shall pay for ignoring His Laws, for permitting so much false doctrine to exist and for allowing such denigration of His Blessed Name.

The yoke around our neck is tightening and very likely Esau is delighting as never before at the prospect of recapturing the cherished Birthright their patriarch sold to Jacob Israel almost thirty-eight centuries ago. Yet, Esau’s cup of iniquity is almost full and our loving Lord long ago said of Israel, “For it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord of hosts, that I will break his yoke from off thy neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more serve themselves of him.” (Jeremiah 30: 8). It will be then that both Esau and Israel will finally understand this passage from the Apocrypha, “Esau is the end of the age, Jacob is the beginning.”