Daniel's Seventy Weeks (Conclusion)

This is the final installment of a series written by Wayne Jackson. This article appeared in the Christian Courier from November, 1979. It was published by the East Main Street Church of Christ in Stockton, California. Wayne Jackson is the editor.

A main item of emphasis in the great prophecy of Daniel's 70 weeks is the death of the Anointed Prince. The English translation of the LXX speaks of the coming of, "Christ the Prince" (25a). The term "prince" is used in the sense of "royal dignity" (Gesenius, Hebrew Lexicon, 531) and is frequently applied to a king in the Old Testament (I Samuel 9:16; 10:1; 13:14). Christ was that king (Matthew 2:2; 21:5).

It was foretold that the Messiah would be "cut off" (26a). The Hebrew term suggests the punishment of death in general, without any definition of manner (Gesenius, 417 - cf. Genesis 9:11, Exodus 31:14 with Numbers 15:32). The Syriac version renders the phrase, "the Messiah shall be slain." Though a different Hebrew term is used, notice the similar expression in Isaiah 53:8: "He was cut off out of the land of the living."

The KJV rendition that the Messiah shall be cut off, "but not for Himself" is not justified by the original. Better is the ASV (text and margin) that the Anointed One would, "have nothing" or, "there shall be none belonging to Him." The meaning may be that with the death of Christ, from the viewpoint of His generation, it appeared that He had nothing; His movement was finished! See Luke 24:21 where the expectation is expressed that the Lord might have politically redeemed Israel. Or the meaning may be, as expressed by the ASV footnote, that as Israel rejected Him by killing Him, so He would renounce physical Israel and they would belong to Him no longer; a hint of their impending doom.

The prophecy also states, "And He shall make a firm covenant with many for one week; and in the midst of the week He shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease" (27a). As was noted in a previous article, the midst of the week (i.e., 3 1/2 years) denotes the Lord's personal ministry which was climaxed by His death. As a result, the law of Moses with its sacrifices and oblations was terminated. The law was nailed to the cross (Colossians 2:14). As a "middle wall of partition," the law was abolished by the death of Christ (Ephesians 2:13:17). Christ fulfilled the first covenant (Matthew 5:17) and hence, took it away that He might establish the second (Hebrews 10:9-10). Accordingly, the old covenant having been removed, Christ made a new covenant (foretold by Jeremiah 31:31-34; cf. Hebrews 8:6ff) which was inaugurated by the shedding of His own blood (Matthew 26:28).

But this question naturally arises; if Christ was cut off in "the midst" of that final week, why does the text state that the Lord would make a covenant with many for "one week?" In other words, what is the significance of the full seventy weeks? Possibly the termination of that full final week extends down to the time of the conversion of Paul, at which point the gospel accelerated predominately among the Gentiles. Paul's conversion is generally dated 3 to 4 years after the death of Christ (Zondervan's Encyclopedia, I, 822).

Finally, a word about the pre-millennial view of the covenant is needed. Despensationalists hold that the "covenant" is an agreement between the "Anti-Christ" and Israel during the so-called "Tribulation" period to precede the Millennium. These errorists further maintain that the cessation of sacrifices is a reference to the termination of a restored Judaism (with all its bloody offerings) in the early phase of the Tribulation period. In other words, it is alleged that due to a covenant made with the Anti-Christ, the Old Testament system will be restored during the first 3 1/2 years of the Tribulation period. But the Anti-Christ will break that covenant hence, the sacrifices will cease at the midway point of that final week.

Two things need to be said about that. (1) It contradicts all those Biblical passages which affirm the permanency of the abrogation of the law of Moses. In Colossians 2:14 Paul says the law, "has been taken away." The Greek verb is a perfect tense; it stresses the permanency of the abrogation of the law of Moses (cf. Robertson, Word Pictures, IV, 494). The Old Testament law served its function (Galatians 3:24-25) and it will never be restored. (2) To take a Biblical prophecy that has to do with Christ and His covenant and then to apply it to some Anti-Christ and a covenant he is supposed to make, is the very epitome of Scripture perversion. It smacks of an infidelic spirit.

The book Daniel records the prophecy of the Roman invasion of Jerusalem and the destruction of the temple. It was written that, "the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary" (26b). It was further announced that desolation and war had been determined and such would come like an overwhelming flood. The historical facts of the situation are these. During the procurato ship of Florus (66 A.D.), the Jews revolted against the Roman government (see Dana, The New Testament World, 103-105). This plunged the Jews into several years of bloody, horrible war with the Romans. The "prince" who led the Roman forces was Titus, some and successor of the renowned Vespasian. (Note: The "prince" of vs. 26a is not the same prince as the Anointed One, Christ of vs. 25. The prince of vs. 26 comes after the Anointed One has been cut off.)

During this terrible holocaust, the city of Jerusalem was burned (cf. Matthew 22:7) and the sanctuary (the temple) was demolished. Jesus told the Jews of His day that the temple would be left desolate (Matthew 23:38); that it would be thrown down and not one stone would be left upon another (Matthew 24:2). Significantly, only one stone from that temple and parts of another have been positively identified by archaeologists (Frank, An Archaeological Companion to the Bible, 249).

J. N. Geldenhuys, summing up the horrible scene says that Titus: "...overran the city with his army, destroyed and plundered the temple, and slew the Jews - men, women and children - by tens of thousands. When their lust for blood had been sated, the Romans carried off into captivity all the able bodied remnant of the Jews (for they had done away with all the weaklings and the aged), so that not a single Jew was left alive in the city. For many years after the destruction of Jerusalem, no Jew was allowed in the city or its vicinity. Only on one day in the year, the day of remembrance of the destruction of the temple, were they allowed to mourn over the city from neighboring hilltops" (The Biblical Expositor, Carl Henry, Ed., III, 141).

It is not without great interest to observe that apparently the Jews recognized that the destruction of the city and temple was a fulfillment of Daniel's record. Josephus declares that, "Daniel also wrote concerning the Roman government, and that our country should be made desolate by them" (Antiquities, X, XI, 7).

In connection with the destruction of Jerusalem, Daniel said, "upon the wing of abominations shall come one that makes desolate" (27b). Gesenius identifies the wing as, "the highest summit of the temple" (406). "Abominations" is frequently used of idols in the Old Testament (I Kings 11:5; II Kings 23:13; Daniel 11:31; 12:11). Within this context it doubtless refers to the idolatrous ensigns of the Roman armies. Josephus says that when the Romans burned the temple they, "brought their ensigns to the temple, and set them over against its eastern gate; and there they did offer sacrifices to them..." (Wars, VI, VI, 1). Thus, the Roman armies with their abominable idolatries desolated the holy city and the holy place. And Christ foretold that very thing (Matthew 24:14; Luke 21:20).

One may wonder how the destruction of Jerusalem can be a part of the prophecy of Daniel's 70 weeks since that event occurred 40 years after the death of Christ. It must be noted however, that Daniel does not affirm that the actual desolation of the city would occur within the 70 weeks. Rather, the text suggests that Jerusalem's fate would be determined within that span (26b; 27b). When the Jews reached the epitome of their rebellion and crucified their own Messiah, the decree or determination was made that they be destroyed. By killing Christ, they had filled up the measure of wickedness characteristic of their rebellious ancestors (cf. Matthew 23:32). And Jesus indicated that that accumulative rebellion would be required of, "this generation" (Luke 11:50-51). So, this marked the "full end" of Judaism both religiously and politically from the divine vantage point.

Finally, a brief comment concerning the pre-millennial view of all of this. The dispensational theory alleges that the "abomination of desolation" standing in the holy place (Matthew 24:15) is a prophecy of a powerful dictator yet to arise, the Anti-Christ. It is claimed that he will desecrate the "restored temple" in that so-called Tribulation period, which is supposed to precede the Millennium. There are several things wrong with this. First, the participles rhethen ("which was spoken") and hestos ("standing") in Matthew 24:15 are neuter gender and hence, do not refer to a man (cf. Lenski, Matthew, 938; Mark, 574). Secondly, there is no specific solitary character in the Bible isolated as the Anti-Christ. The apostle John, the only Biblical writer to employ the term, declared of his own day, "...even now have there arisen many anti-Christs..." (I John 2:18). Thirdly, nowhere does the Bible even hint of a seven year Tribulation period. And fourthly, there is not the slightest indication that the holy place (i.e., the temple) will ever be restored. Jesus said to the Jews, "Behold, your house is left unto you desolate" (Matthew 23:38). This prophecy certainly includes the temple. And significantly, the verb "is left" is a prophetic presence tense and the word literally denotes: "to abandon, to leave destitute of God's help" (Thayer, Lexicon, 89).

The study of Daniel's Seventy Weeks is truly fascinating. It is hoped that this investigation has been a blessing to our readers.