Sixty-Nine Weeks of Daniel, Chapter 9
An Examination of the Proposed Dates
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The seventy weeks prophecy of the 9thchapter of Daniel is one of the most remarkable prophecies in Scripture. It provides an outline for future Biblical events, and is also an invitation to those who are encouraged by evidence of fulfilled prophecy and confirmation of the inspiration of Scripture, to closely examine the prophecy to see if the date predicted for the coming of the Messiah is true and accurate. Much has been written about this subject, and there is new information available since Sir Robert Anderson’s well known book on the subject, The Coming Prince. The following quotes are taken from the ninth chapter of Daniel.
“Seventy weeks are determined for your people and for your holy city---”. (Daniel 9:24).
We know therefore that this prophecy does not deal with Gentiles. The sixty-nine weeks ends at the time of Christ’s triumphal entry, and the final seventieth week is still future and deals with the seven year Tribulation period.
Daniel 9:25-27 states the following:
“Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the command to restore and build Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince, there shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks:
The street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublesome times. And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself, and the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, and till the end of the war desolations are determined.
Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; but in the middle of the week he shall bring an end to the sacrifice and offering.”
The last sentence refers to the seven-year Tribulation, and the “he” refers to the Antichrist who, after three and a half years, breaks his covenant with Israel and brings on the “Great Tribulation”. There is good documentation that there is an interval of time between the sixty-ninth and seventieth week and I will not be discussing that, but will concentrate on what I consider the main problem area for those Christians who do believe that Christ will return for His saints before the Tribulation and the Millennium. That is the date of the command by Artaxerxes to Nehemiah to restore and build Jerusalem (Neh 2:1-8), and the date of the fulfillment: the triumphal entry of the Messiah described in John 12:12. Since the dates of the command and the fulfillment vary from scholar to scholar, they cannot all be correct. One of the purposes of writing this book is to attempt to determine if any unwarranted assumptions have been made by any of those scholars and authors.
The topics that follow require some diligence to follow, and it is recommended that Hoehner’s book, Chronological Aspects of the Life of Christ, Anderson’s book, The Coming Prince, and Larson’s DVD, titled The Star of Bethlehem, be accessed. Larson’s DVD, demonstrating the courses of Jupiter, Regulus, and Venus, at various dates, as well as the position of the sun and moon and various constellations at the time of Christ’s birth and crucifixion, is of great value in understanding these events.
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About the Book
The Sixty-Nine Weeks of Daniel, Chapter 9 examines the positions of Sir Robert Anderson and Harold Hoehner, as well as dates suggested by Frederick Larson in his DVD titled The Star of Bethlehem, regarding the date of the command to rebuild Jerusalem and the date of Christ’s birth and crucifixion. In this edition, the very significant contributions of Drs. Colin Humphreys and W.G. Waddington regarding the pre-exilic calendar and the date of Christ’s crucifixion are referenced.
The sixty-nine week prophecy is one of the most amazing prophecies in Scripture, and the dates presented by Christian authors differ considerably. There are, however, dates that can be substantiated biblically, historically, and astronomically. These are presented, with the case for and against each.
The author received Christ as Savior and Lord while in medical school after hearing, during a Bible study, that Jesus was and is God, as presented in the first chapter of the book of John. Soon thereafter he read the seventy-week prophecy and has had an enduring interest in it since that time. After seeing Larson’s DVD, which confirmed Hoehner’s date for Christ’s crucifixion and thus Christ’s triumphal entry, he started a more intensive examination of the proposed dates, resulting in the writing of The Sixty-Nine Weeks of Daniel, Chapter 9. It is hoped that the reader will gain an increased respect for and confidence in the accuracy and inspiration of Scripture, and that the Lord will receive the glory as a result. It is also hoped that seekers of truth will be encouraged to pursue their search in the pages of Scripture.
About the Author
Robert Armstrong received Christ as his Lord and Savior while in medical school. He received a B.A. from Dartmouth College and an M.D. from Temple University School of Medicine and practiced orthopedic surgery in Florida and California for thirty-four years. He and his wife, Jean, raised four daughters and are now retired and living in southwest Montana.