Posted By: Charity
Christ's Seventy Times Seven and Daniel 9 - 02/11/20 02:40 AM
Part I
Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven. Mat 18:22
Some bible expositors have suggested that Christ is teaching here that our willingness to forgive others should have no limits, that seventy times seven implies unbounded forgiveness. But it should be remembered that seven is the number of completeness and that seventy times that number is seventy fold completeness. Christ himself through the angel Gabriel set the period of grace for ancient Israel, allotting them seventy times seven years, 70 Sabbaticals, of probationary time. Daniel 9:25.
Although the prophecy of Daniel 9 does set a prophetic limit to God's grace the same prophecy also promised Israel its highest blessing - the full liberation of the nation from sin and the final establishment of the covenant between God and His people. Through His Son, the Father intended to establish His kingdom in their hearts at the end of the 490 year period. This was the wonderful purpose of the Messiah's reign, the true gospel of Christ that was rejected by the Jews - freedom from the chains of sin and an eternal Jubilee of liberty in Christ.
But the word of God stands sure though men and nations prove false. God has promised that His hand will save the meek and deliver the poor and that all of spiritual Israel will be finally saved. Although only a remnant of physical Israel may believe, all of spiritual Israel will in the end be saved. This is where the prophecy of Daniel 9 reaches its complete fulfillment - when Christ makes an ?end of sin? and brings in "everlasting righteousness". Given that this prophecy assures the final success of the gospel and the complete eradication of sin through the mediation of Christ, then we might expect to find that the limits of God's forbearance to physical Israel are given with equal clarity to spiritual Israel. We will come back to this, but first, let's look at the little known prophecy of Ezekiel 4.
For centuries bible students and scholars have attempted to establish the chronology of the Old Testament but the period of the kings has thwarted all attempts to establish dates with a high degree of certainty earlier than the 8th century BC. Establishing firm dates back to the Exodus is useful not only for historical accuracy but for understanding prophecy. Knowing the exact date of the Exodus, for example, would give us the exact date of the entry of Israel into the promised land and that, in turn, would allow us to know the cycle of the Jubilees and Sabbatical years, both of which are linked to the prophecy of Daniel 9.
The prophecy of Ezekiel 4 was given in 591 BC, six years before the destruction of the temple in 587 BC. This date is our anchor date as it has been verified in secular history by Ptolemy's Canon and other ancient sources.
Ezekiel was told to illustrate the future siege and destruction of Jerusalem by making a model of the city on a clay tablet and laying siege to it for 390 days for the sin of Israel and 40 for the sin of Judah, a day for a year for a total of 430 years. Notice here that there are 70 sabbatical years in the 430 year total given in Ezekiel 4, the exact amount that the scriptures say went unobserved which led to the captivity of the Jews.ii II Chor. 36:22, Jer. 25:9-12, 29:10, Daniel 9:2.
But regarding the 430 years, the question is which years do they cover? Given that the prophecy foretold the destruction of the city and temple and the overthrow of the Davidic line, and given that this event was the divine punishment that was allowed to overtake the nation for its sin, this date, 587 BC marks the ending point of that period. If we go back 430 years we come to 1017 BC. What year is that? It turns out that this year is a good candidate for the beginning of the rule of the house of David and if that is the case then 430 years is the full period of that line.
In I Kings 1 and 2 we have evidence that David and Solomon were co-regents for a period of time. (See I Kings 1 and 2, I Kings 6:1 and I Chor 28 and 29, especially 29:22). Since David reigned 40 years and David's death occurred in or very near to the fourth year of Solomon's reign we can place the start of construction of the temple at 977 BC (1017 - 40 =977 BC) and since, according to I Kings 6:1, the exodus occurred 480 years earlier, we can place the exodus at 1457 BC. This year is a good candidate as well because it synchronizes with the Sabbatical years. The Jews have not lost track of the Sabbaticals although they have of the Jubilees, so this increases the credibility of that year as marking the Exodus.
[img]https://drive.google.com/open?id=1VmVTaLh_432UyGCXi5R79EYcZR1spwt1 [/img] (It looks like the forum software may not accept secure image urls to pull in the image. The link itself works.)
Like the throne of Christ, David's throne was established by a prophetic promise. The house of David reigned as a type until Shiloh, the Messiah, would come.
After 430 years of rule, David's house filled the cup of transgression to the limit and, after 70 Sabbaticals went unobserved, the crown was removed from David's house until Shiloh came, the ?one whose right it is?.
After the captivity God did not restore the throne to David's physical line but He did extend the probation of Israel another 490 years. If the Jews had been ready for their Messiah, the son of David, how different their history would have been. As one poet has said:
Of all sad words of tongue or pen,
The saddest are these:
'What might have been'.
But, as we've seen, at the end of the 490 year period, the Messiah did come and the throne of David was given to Him whose right it is.
The Throne of David and the Final Jubilee
In the table below, little rainbows mark the prophetic Sabbaticals. Notice how many of the important dates of prophecy fall on Sabbaticals.
[img]https://drive.google.com/open?id=1Ozcl2-2i8AuZoosdJwcHIHV5IFr4aVx0 [/img]
Regarding the length of David's reign it says in 2 Samuel:
David reigned in Hebron 7 - years and in Jerusalem 33 years for a total of 40 - years. After His resurrection, Christ took His seat on David's throne and has reigned as king in heaven for 40.5 Jubilees. There are 29.5 Jubilees from the Exodus to the crucifixion and after this another 40.5, a total grace period of 70 Jubilees.
The pioneers of Adventism taught in history that the first seal was broken at the end of the seventy Sabbaticals which marked the beginning of the gospel harvest of the gentiles. In the same way, at the end of seventy Jubilees the final unrolling of the scroll begins.
In Testimonies Volume 8 Sister White makes this timely prophetic statement:
The above statement is fascinating not only for the fact that Ellen White clearly says there is more to learn about the mark or 666, but also because she tells us exactly when it will be learned - at the unrolling of the scroll. When is that? The phrase "unrolling of the scroll" refers to the time pictured in Daniel 7 quoted below and in the parallel passage of Revelation 5 when the Lamb, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, takes the mysterious seven-sealed book that no one in heaven or earth is worthy to open or read, and, one by one, breaks its seals, unrolling and revealing its hidden contents.
The prophecy of Daniel 9 can be read in terms of Sabbaticals or as Jubilees because the word "week" in Hebrew means a group of seven. In Leviticus 25 a Sabbatical cycle is defined as a week of years or seven years. The year of the Lord's crucifixion 31AD was in the middle of the Sabbatical week. It was also in the middle of a Jubilee which is a week of seven Sabbaticals. Putting Ellen White's prophetic statement together with Revelation 5, 10 and Daniel 7:9 and 10 below it appears that at the end of 70 Jubilees, Christ took the scroll and began to unroll it.
I believe the day of unrolling is here and that this final unrolling began in 2015. (See Table 2 above). In its most perfect application, this is a Most Holy place scene and takes place post-1844 (Daniel 7, 9 and Rev.4 and 5). In Part 2 we'll look at what took place in the fall of 2015 and since that time in the world, in heaven, and in the church.
Quote
Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven. Mat 18:22
Some bible expositors have suggested that Christ is teaching here that our willingness to forgive others should have no limits, that seventy times seven implies unbounded forgiveness. But it should be remembered that seven is the number of completeness and that seventy times that number is seventy fold completeness. Christ himself through the angel Gabriel set the period of grace for ancient Israel, allotting them seventy times seven years, 70 Sabbaticals, of probationary time. Daniel 9:25.
Although the prophecy of Daniel 9 does set a prophetic limit to God's grace the same prophecy also promised Israel its highest blessing - the full liberation of the nation from sin and the final establishment of the covenant between God and His people. Through His Son, the Father intended to establish His kingdom in their hearts at the end of the 490 year period. This was the wonderful purpose of the Messiah's reign, the true gospel of Christ that was rejected by the Jews - freedom from the chains of sin and an eternal Jubilee of liberty in Christ.
But the word of God stands sure though men and nations prove false. God has promised that His hand will save the meek and deliver the poor and that all of spiritual Israel will be finally saved. Although only a remnant of physical Israel may believe, all of spiritual Israel will in the end be saved. This is where the prophecy of Daniel 9 reaches its complete fulfillment - when Christ makes an ?end of sin? and brings in "everlasting righteousness". Given that this prophecy assures the final success of the gospel and the complete eradication of sin through the mediation of Christ, then we might expect to find that the limits of God's forbearance to physical Israel are given with equal clarity to spiritual Israel. We will come back to this, but first, let's look at the little known prophecy of Ezekiel 4.
For centuries bible students and scholars have attempted to establish the chronology of the Old Testament but the period of the kings has thwarted all attempts to establish dates with a high degree of certainty earlier than the 8th century BC. Establishing firm dates back to the Exodus is useful not only for historical accuracy but for understanding prophecy. Knowing the exact date of the Exodus, for example, would give us the exact date of the entry of Israel into the promised land and that, in turn, would allow us to know the cycle of the Jubilees and Sabbatical years, both of which are linked to the prophecy of Daniel 9.
The prophecy of Ezekiel 4 was given in 591 BC, six years before the destruction of the temple in 587 BC. This date is our anchor date as it has been verified in secular history by Ptolemy's Canon and other ancient sources.
Ezekiel was told to illustrate the future siege and destruction of Jerusalem by making a model of the city on a clay tablet and laying siege to it for 390 days for the sin of Israel and 40 for the sin of Judah, a day for a year for a total of 430 years. Notice here that there are 70 sabbatical years in the 430 year total given in Ezekiel 4, the exact amount that the scriptures say went unobserved which led to the captivity of the Jews.ii II Chor. 36:22, Jer. 25:9-12, 29:10, Daniel 9:2.
But regarding the 430 years, the question is which years do they cover? Given that the prophecy foretold the destruction of the city and temple and the overthrow of the Davidic line, and given that this event was the divine punishment that was allowed to overtake the nation for its sin, this date, 587 BC marks the ending point of that period. If we go back 430 years we come to 1017 BC. What year is that? It turns out that this year is a good candidate for the beginning of the rule of the house of David and if that is the case then 430 years is the full period of that line.
In I Kings 1 and 2 we have evidence that David and Solomon were co-regents for a period of time. (See I Kings 1 and 2, I Kings 6:1 and I Chor 28 and 29, especially 29:22). Since David reigned 40 years and David's death occurred in or very near to the fourth year of Solomon's reign we can place the start of construction of the temple at 977 BC (1017 - 40 =977 BC) and since, according to I Kings 6:1, the exodus occurred 480 years earlier, we can place the exodus at 1457 BC. This year is a good candidate as well because it synchronizes with the Sabbatical years. The Jews have not lost track of the Sabbaticals although they have of the Jubilees, so this increases the credibility of that year as marking the Exodus.
[img]https:/
Like the throne of Christ, David's throne was established by a prophetic promise. The house of David reigned as a type until Shiloh, the Messiah, would come.
Quote
The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be. Gen 49:10.
After 430 years of rule, David's house filled the cup of transgression to the limit and, after 70 Sabbaticals went unobserved, the crown was removed from David's house until Shiloh came, the ?one whose right it is?.
Quote
Thus saith the Lord GOD; Remove the diadem, and take off the crown: this shall not be the same: exalt him that is low, and abase him that is high. I will overturn, overturn, overturn, it: and it shall be no more, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it him. Eze. 21:26 and 27.
After the captivity God did not restore the throne to David's physical line but He did extend the probation of Israel another 490 years. If the Jews had been ready for their Messiah, the son of David, how different their history would have been. As one poet has said:
Of all sad words of tongue or pen,
The saddest are these:
'What might have been'.
But, as we've seen, at the end of the 490 year period, the Messiah did come and the throne of David was given to Him whose right it is.
Quote
And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end. Luke 1:31-33.
The Throne of David and the Final Jubilee
In the table below, little rainbows mark the prophetic Sabbaticals. Notice how many of the important dates of prophecy fall on Sabbaticals.
[img]https:/
Regarding the length of David's reign it says in 2 Samuel:
Quote
And they anointed David king over Israel. David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years. In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years over all Israel and Judah. 2 Samuel 5:3-5.
David reigned in Hebron 7 - years and in Jerusalem 33 years for a total of 40 - years. After His resurrection, Christ took His seat on David's throne and has reigned as king in heaven for 40.5 Jubilees. There are 29.5 Jubilees from the Exodus to the crucifixion and after this another 40.5, a total grace period of 70 Jubilees.
The pioneers of Adventism taught in history that the first seal was broken at the end of the seventy Sabbaticals which marked the beginning of the gospel harvest of the gentiles. In the same way, at the end of seventy Jubilees the final unrolling of the scroll begins.
In Testimonies Volume 8 Sister White makes this timely prophetic statement:
Quote
The light that we have upon the third angel's message is the true light. The mark of the beast is exactly what it has been proclaimed to be. Not all in regard to this matter is yet understood, and will not be understood until the unrolling of the scroll; but a most solemn work is to be accomplished in our world. {8T 159.3}
The above statement is fascinating not only for the fact that Ellen White clearly says there is more to learn about the mark or 666, but also because she tells us exactly when it will be learned - at the unrolling of the scroll. When is that? The phrase "unrolling of the scroll" refers to the time pictured in Daniel 7 quoted below and in the parallel passage of Revelation 5 when the Lamb, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, takes the mysterious seven-sealed book that no one in heaven or earth is worthy to open or read, and, one by one, breaks its seals, unrolling and revealing its hidden contents.
The prophecy of Daniel 9 can be read in terms of Sabbaticals or as Jubilees because the word "week" in Hebrew means a group of seven. In Leviticus 25 a Sabbatical cycle is defined as a week of years or seven years. The year of the Lord's crucifixion 31AD was in the middle of the Sabbatical week. It was also in the middle of a Jubilee which is a week of seven Sabbaticals. Putting Ellen White's prophetic statement together with Revelation 5, 10 and Daniel 7:9 and 10 below it appears that at the end of 70 Jubilees, Christ took the scroll and began to unroll it.
Quote
I watched until the thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days sat, whose robe was white as snow, and the hair of His head like the pure wool. His throne was like flames of fire, and His wheels like burning fire. A stream of fire went out and came out from before Him. A thousand thousands served Him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him. The judgment was set, and the books were opened. Dan 7:9, 10.
I believe the day of unrolling is here and that this final unrolling began in 2015. (See Table 2 above). In its most perfect application, this is a Most Holy place scene and takes place post-1844 (Daniel 7, 9 and Rev.4 and 5). In Part 2 we'll look at what took place in the fall of 2015 and since that time in the world, in heaven, and in the church.