Let us turn to the book of Daniel for an understanding of the last 7 years of this era and the return of Jesus to establish His earthly kingdom. This 7 year period is referred to by prophecy teachers as Daniel's 70th week.

Daniel is wrestling with a perplexing problem; he has a copy of Jeremiah's writing in which the 70 year exile of Israel is predicted...and stated to be exactly 70 years (Daniel 9:1-3). However, Daniel has also received prophecies about a series of empires...Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome, and the revived Roman empire. After these empires have "had their day", God will establish His eternal kingdom on earth.

Daniel's lifetime had included the end of the Babylonian empire and the beginning of the Medo-Persian empire. But Jeremiah's 70 years are almost up. How can Greece, Rome and revived Rome ever be completed in the very short time left in Jeremiah's 70 years ?

Daniel goes to prayer over the matter, and an angel is des-patched to help him understand.

The angel says, in effect, "No, Daniel, not 70 years, but 70 sevens (or weeks) of years will pass before YOUR prophecies are fulfilled. Israel's return to the land after 70 years of exile (as prophesied by Jeremiah) is NOT the time of the establishing of the eternal kingdom of God."

Daniel records the angel's message in chapter 9. Let's read

verses 24 to 27:

• 24 Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.
• 25 Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and three-score and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.
• 26 And after three-score and two weeks shall Mess-iah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are deter-mined.
• 27 And he shall confirm the coven-ant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the over-spreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.
• (Daniel 9:24-27)

So...let us proceed in the pursuit of our goal...to understand the times in which we live, and to know what the church and Christian families ought to be doing in these last days.

It is stated in verse 24 that there are seventy weeks (or seventy sevens) decreed. A time frame has been predes-tined by the will of God to accomplish the six objectives of Daniel 9:24 concerning the Israelites and the Holy City (Jerusalem).

The Hebrew word for week (Shabua) means seven. So Daniel is speaking of a time period of seventy sevens or 490 years. We know that one week (or seven) refers to a seven-year period, since other Scriptures that speak of this same time period (the 70th week) divide this time period into two halves -- each declared to be three and a half years long. (Dan. 9:27; Rev. 11:2; Rev. 13:5)

We conclude then that the final seven (or week) is literally a seven year time period and that seventy sevens is a period of 490 years.

As we read in verses 25--27, these seventy weeks or seventy sevens are divided into three main time periods or divisions:

1. The first division -- 7 sevens or 49 years -- for the rebuilding of Jerusalem.
2. The second division -- 62 sevens or 434 years covers the time period from the com-pletion of the city at the end of the 49 years to the time Messiah is cut off or crucified for mankind (v. 25 -26).

Evidence of this gap between the 69th and 70th week is in the events predicted in verse 26 that happen between Messiah's cutting off and the treaty (such as the destruction of the city and the sanctuary -- which happened in 70 A.D.).

3. The third division - one seven or 7 years is the last seven years of this age, ending with the second advent of Christ to complete the fulfilment of the six objectives listed in verse 24 (which have not yet been accomplished) and to establish His kingdom.

The last "week", this final seven years of the 490 prophetic years, will be a most eventful and difficult time for Israel, as a cruel world ruler (called the antichrist in the New Testa-ment) first grants peace and religious freedom to the Jews, then breaks the agreement and launches the greatest persecution against the people of God in this world's history.

Sixty nine weeks of sevens (483 years) of this time period had passed when Jesus was crucified.

That leaves only "one seven" -- or 7 years -- for these things to be accomplished and for this prophecy to be fulfilled.

Because this prophecy involves the nation of Israel, the temple, and the temple sacrifices, the prophecies could not be fulfilled until Israel became a nation and was in control of Jerusalem. The temple will be rebuilt and the Jewish sacrificial worship will be reinstated.

With Israel becoming a nation in 1948, and with the recap-turing of the city of Jerusalem in 1967, the stage has been set for this last 7 year period of Daniel's prophecy to come to pass.

In subsequent chapters we will see the importance of these two events along with the signs of the times of which the New Testament writers spoke, so that we can be watching and know that the time is near. We will also look at other prophetic Scriptures concerning the church during this seventieth week.

In the next chapters we will show the prophetic events that lead up to the seventieth week. We will tell you why we believe that all of this will happen during this generation.

Let us make one item clear that will help the reader to comprehend Biblical prophecy in an "uncluttered" fashion and we will refer to this in a later chapter as well. For Christians in this late 20th century, this simple lesson is essential as we enter into this study.

NEVER...NEVER...in all of Scripture, is this last seven years of Daniel (the 70th week)... EVER called "the tribulation". That is a tag that has been hung on this time period by the church without any Biblical justification.

When the New Testament speaks of a time of persecution, and calls it a "tribulation", modern Christians immediately equate it with the seven year period. That has created so much confusion in the minds of 20th century Christians ! In this book, we have chosen to avoid the word "tribulation" in order to avoid the confusion. We will speak of persecution, and the seventieth week or the final seven years of Dan-iel...and the two are not identical.

And there is a second item that will help the reader to walk through the Scriptures with us. Although there are a number of events (signs of the times) listed elsewhere in Scripture that lead up to the beginning of this seventieth week, no where is there a reference to the treaty with Israel as a "sign of the times" ! This verse in Daniel is the ONLY reference in the entire Bible to this event.

Accordingly, we will not give a greater importance to the signing of the treaty than the Bible does. Why is an event that begins a very important time period in prophecy not mentioned by Jesus, Paul and John ?

It is possible that there will be a series of seven-year treaties (just as the U.S.S.R. had a series of five-year-plans), or perhaps the treaty is signed in secret and is not given "11 o'clock news coverage". Whatever the reason, no New Testament writer calls upon the Church of the last days to watch for the signing of the treaty, nor is it used as a TimePost in any prophetic portions of the New Testament Scriptures.

So...let us proceed in the pursuit of our goal...to understand the times in which we live, and to know what the church and Christian families ought to be doing in these last days.