The central theme of this prophecy is Jesus Christ, it carefully chronicles events in the life of Christ years beforethey happened. The word “Messiah” means “The Anointed One.” The Messiah,Jesus, was to be cut off or crucified. He was to be killed, but not for Himself—He died for us.
Lesson 9 - Always on Time!
If one prophetic day equals one literal year, seventy weeks equals 70 x 7 days or 490 prophetic days or 490 literal years. Placing these events on a time line, they would look like this:
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2,300 Years
“Then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.” |
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The entire prophecy begins with the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem. This decree was passed by the Persian king, Artaxerxes, in 457 B.C. You can read about it in Ezra 7:13-28. This decree, one of three decrees which allowed the nation of Israel to return from captivity to their homeland, is significant because it not only allowed them to take their possessions with them, it also gave them the right to worship, re-establishing Israel as a worshiping community.
Christ—The Center of Prophecy: Questions 10-17
The central theme of this prophecy is Jesus Christ. The prophecy carefully chronicles events in the life of Christ years before they happened. The word, “Messiah,” means “the anointed one.” Jesus was anointed with the Holy Ghost at His baptism (see Matthew 3:16; Acts 10:37, 38).
Sixty-nine prophetic weeks equal 7 x 69, or 483, prophetic days or 483 literal years.
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CLEANSING OF THE SANCTUARY
2,300 Years |
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NOTE: If we move forward on the time line 483 years from 457 A.D., we proceed to 27 A.D. (since there is no zero year). Precisely in 27 A.D., Jesus Christ was baptized and anointed with the Holy Spirit as the prophecy foretold (see Luke 3:21-22). Jesus is the Messiah. He is not a counterfeit. He came on time. He was baptized on time. And as we shall now see, He was crucified on time.
The Messiah, Jesus, was to be cut off or crucified. He was to be killed, but not for Himself. He died for us.
In the middle of the last prophetic week of our prophecy, Christ would be crucified. The sixty-nine prophetic weeks, or 483 years, came to an end in 27 A.D. One additional prophetic week, or seven additional years, brings us to 34 A.D. Since Artaxerxes’ decree was issued in the fall of 457 B.C., we now come to the fall of 34 A.D.