Daniel's Prophecy on the First Half of the 70^th^ Week

Yeshua was proclaimed to be the Son of God by the heavenly Father during his baptism on 24 February 27 AD, which was towards the end of the 483^rd year (the 69^th prophetic weeks) from the time (26 March 457 BC) of the issuance of the command to rebuild Jerusalem. This fulfills the prophecy of Daniel 9:25, "Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and rebuild Jerusalem unto the Messiah, the prince, shall be seven weeks, and threescore [60] and two weeks."

In Chapter 16, we provided detailed evidence that this prophecy was fulfilled in Yeshua on the assumption that the 69 weeks from 26 March 457 BC passed without interruption. However, the 69 weeks in Daniel 9:25 had two separated periods: a 7-week period and a 62-week period.

Why did Daniel separate the 69 weeks into two periods? One possible explanation is that there was a gap between the first continuous period of 7 (1×7) weeks and the last continuous period of 63 (9×7) weeks. There should have been no gap from one week to another within the 7-week or within the 63-week period. This gap idea can help unlock the prophecy of the 70^th week, which should have also been separated into two periods with a gap according to Daniel 9:27, "Then he shall confirm (strengthen) covenant with many for one week; but in the middle of the week, he shall cause sacrifice and offering to fail (cease). And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate, even until the consummation, which is determined, is poured out on the desolate."

Daniel 9:27 tells the prophecy of the 70^th week during which the Messiah shall strengthen covenant with many but in the middle of the week, he shall cause sacrifice and offering to fail (cease). If this prophecy was fulfilled in Yeshua, the 70^th week should have started on 6 April 27 AD when he began his ministry. If this was the case, the 62^nd week of the 63-week period should have ended on 6 April 27 AD and the 63^rd week of the 63-week period should have started on the same day. Then the beginning time of the 63-week period (434 solar years) was on April 9 of 408 BC. Since the first 7-week period started on 26 March 457 BC, the ending time of this period should have been on 26 March 408 BC. Hence, there was a small gap of 14 days between 26 March 408 BC and 9 April 408 BC, which justifies the assumption of 69 continuous weeks in the previous chapter.

The second part of verse 27 says that in the middle of the week (the 70^th week), he should cause sacrifices and offerings to fail. Here, the Hebrew word "שָׁבַת (shabath)" means "cause to cease" or "cause to fail." In the middle of the 70^th week, which was between 30 and 31 AD, the Jews did not cease the sacrifices and offerings after Yeshua was crucified and ascended to heaven in 30 AD. The prophecy would not have been fulfilled in Yeshua if the word "שָׁבַת (shabath)" were translated into "cause to cease." On the other hand, if we translate this word into "cause to fail" or "cause to be ineffective," the prophecy was fulfilled in Yeshua. Indeed, the sacrifices and offerings of the Jews were not accepted by God after 30 AD, as seen from the following statements of the Jews in the Jerusalem or Babylonian Talmud.

In the centuries following the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem (70 AD), the Jewish people began writing two versions of Jewish thought, religious history, and commentary. One was written in Palestine and became known as the Jerusalem Talmud, and the other was written in Babylon and was known as the Babylonian Talmud.

The Jerusalem Talmud reads: "Forty years before the destruction of the temple, the western light went out, the crimson thread remained crimson, and the lot for Yehowah always came up in the left hand. They would close the gates of the temple by night and get up in the morning and find them wide open." (Jacob Neusner, The Yerushalmi, p.156-157).

A similar passage in the Babylonian Talmud states: "Our rabbis taught: During the last forty years before the destruction of the temple the lot ['For Yehowah'] did not come up in the right hand; nor did the crimson-colored strap become white; nor did the western most light shine; and the doors of the Hekel [Temple] would open by themselves" (Soncino version, Yoma 39b).

Both passages tell us that God did not accept their sacrifices and offerings between 30 and 70 AD. Before that time, the crimson thread would have been changed into white whenever God had accepted their offerings and forgiven their sins. It was the Messiah who caused their sacrifices and offerings to be ineffective after he ascended to heaven. Solomon in Proverb 15:8 said, "The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to Yehowah, but the prayer of the upright is His delight." Because the Jews continued to reject the teachings of the Messiah through his disciples and even persecuted them, their sacrifices and offerings were abominable to Yehowah.

In the Mosaic sacrifice law, sacrifices and offerings can atone the sins unintentionally committed while intentional sins cannot be atoned by the animal sacrifices. Then, how shall the intentional sins be forgiven? In Psalm 40:6-8, David said, "Sacrifice and offering You did not desire; My ears You have opened. Burnt offering and sin offering You did not require. Then I said, 'Behold, I come; In the scroll of the book it is written of me. I delight to do Your will, O my God, and Your law is within my heart.'" Even before the Messiah came, God did not desire and require burnt offering and sin offering. What He really desires is that we delight to do His will, put His law in our heart, and observe it. Sacrifice and offering cannot change our heart.

Yeshua who was the Passover Lamb of God was killed and his blood can redeem our lives (Isaiah 53:4-6,8,10). It is the grace of God! When the Israelites came out of Egypt, all the lives of the Israelites and foreigners (even the Egyptians) could be saved from the wrath of God if the blood of the Passover lamb was on the lintels and the two doorposts of their home. The Passover Lamb of God shed his blood for our sins (Isaiah 53:4-6,8,10) and can redeem us to serve God.

Most Biblical scholars have misunderstood Daniel 9:27. They mistakenly referred to "he" as the antichrist who would confirm the covenant with Israel in the 70^th week and break it after three and a half years. According to the Hebrew grammar, "he" must refer to a person previously defined. No antichrist was mentioned in any previous sentence. A Hebrew language expert has clearly proved that "he" in verse 27 refers to the Messiah (see a YouTube video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3EX830ATa2A).

From the context of Daniel 9:24, it is apparent that seventy weeks were decreed for the holy people (the Israelites), for Jerusalem, and for the anointing of the most holy (Messiah) to bring everlasting righteousness. Therefore, the seventy weeks were always related to the Messiah and the destinies of the Israelites and Jerusalem. The 70^th week is all about the ministry of the Messiah while at the end of the 69^th week, God prepared the way for the Messiah's ministry via the ministry of John the Baptist. John preached the message of repentance in the wilderness of Judea (Matthew 3:1), baptized the Jews who were willing to repent of their sins, anointed Yeshua, and declared him to be the Lamb of God.

Now we discuss the prophecy of Daniel 9:26, "And after the threescore and two [62] weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not to himself." Here, the 62 weeks refer to the 62 weeks of the second 63-week period. After the 62 weeks (the 69^th week), which was in the 70^th week, the Messiah shall be cut off. Yeshua was cut off on Nisan 14 of 30 AD, which was in the 70^th week. But to him, he was not cut off because he resurrected and would see his seeds and prolong his days (Isaiah 53:10). He was cut off for three days and three nights to bear the iniquities of God's people and justify many (Isaiah 53:11). God shall share a portion with him (Isaiah 53:12) because he was so obedient that he was willing to die for many. Here, it is clear that the prophecy of Daniel 9:26 was also fulfilled in Yeshua.

Daniel 9:26 also tells us that after the Messiah was cut off, the Messiah himself would destroy the holy temple and Jerusalem with a Gentile prince. LXX Septuagint correctly translated the original Hebrew word "עם" into "with" before the Masoretic Hebrew text was used (while the Masoretic Hebrew word "עם" with a short line below ע means "people"). Indeed, 40 years after the Messiah was crucified, the Romans destroyed Jerusalem and the temple.

How about the prophecy about the second period of the 70^th week? Does the last part of Daniel 9:27 refer to the prophecy on the second period of the 70^th week? In Chapter 12, we have shown that the length of Yeshua's ministry in his first advent was 1,143 days. Yeshua shall have to minister for an additional 1,413 days to fulfill the prophecy of the 70^th week. Therefore, he should come back to the earth to finish his ministry assigned in the second period of the 70^th week, as briefly described in the last part of Daniel 9:27. We will show that Yeshua will come back to pour out his wrath on the ungodly people and to establish the Messianic Kingdom of God on the earth (see Chapter 36).