The 70 weeks of Daniel’s prophecy (one week of 7 years x 70 weeks = 490 years) gives us a designated amount of time with which to see God’s prophetic program come to fruition. Nehemiah 2:1-6 is critical to establishing when the 70 weeks began. Nehemiah received permission from Artaxerxes to go home to Jerusalem and rebuild the gate and the walls, fulfilling Daniel’s prophetic statement concerning the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem. Ezra received permission from Cyrus to go to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple, which was a twenty year building program.
Ezra 6:1-5: Then Darius the king made a decree, and search was made in the house of the rolls, where the treasures were laid up in Babylon.And there was found at Achmetha, in the palace that is in the province of the Medes, a roll, and therein was a record thus written:In the first year of Cyrus the king the same Cyrus the king made a decree concerning the house of God at Jerusalem, Let the house be builded, the place where they offered sacrifices, and let the foundations thereof be strongly laid; the height thereof threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof threescore cubits;With three rows of great stones, and a row of new timber: and let the expenses be given out of the king’s house:And also let the golden and silver vessels of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took forth out of the temple which is at Jerusalem, and brought unto Babylon, be restored, and brought again unto the temple which is at Jerusalem, every one to his place, and place them in the house of God.
Daniel’s prophecy is in direct relation to Nehemiah and Ezra being allowed to go to Jerusalem and restore the city and the temple. 483 years later was the 69th week, when Messiah was “cut off” or crucified. Today, we saw the correlation of Daniel 12, Matthew 24, and 2 Thessalonians 2 concerning the timeline in the 70th week. The great tribulation begins at the midpoint of the tribulation, when the Jews see the abomination and flee into the wilderness, which Daniel states will last 3 ½ years – a time, times, and half a time. Revelation 12:6 & 14 confirm the prophecy of 1,260 days = a time, times, and half a time = 3 ½ years.
Jesus knew and understood all of Daniel’s prophecy, which meant he would die at the end of the 69th week. Although the dispensation of grace was hidden from him, he knew Daniel’s 70th week would have to be fulfilled before he would return to establish his everlasting kingdom, beginning with his millennial reign. So, as soon as the this dispensation of grace, the Church Age ends with the rapture / resurrection of the saved of this dispensation, the prophetic program clock starts ticking down to Armageddon – the return Messiah King Jesus, as described in Revelation 19:11-16 and Isaiah 63:1-4. Jesus knows exactly how long til he returns – seven years.
We must be able to identify the difference between Prophecy and Mystery. Prophecy is what God will do in the future. Mystery is what God is doing right now in the world. Please keep in mind that prophetic scriptures can have multiple applications as well as double fulfillment. We will look at some scriptures that reveal this understanding this coming Sunday.
Remember, the prophetic program concerning Israel is in “timeout” during this dispensation of the grace of God, aka the mystery program. The prophetic program will resume when the mystery period closes at the rapture of the Church Age saints.