Will there be seven
horrible years of tribulation
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before the end of
the world, yes or no?
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That's our topic
on His Voice Today.
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Welcome to
another His Voice Today
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with Steve Wohlberg.
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The seven years of
tribulation controversy...
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that is our topic today.
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Millions of Christians including
me... believe that we are
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nearing the end of the world
and the coming of Jesus Christ.
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We look at the horrible
things that are happening
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around this planet, look
at the natural disasters,
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the senseless
violence, the school shootings,
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and it just
makes your heart break,
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and long for the coming
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of Jesus, and
there are a lot of people
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that believe that
the Lord is coming
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but there is a controversy...
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a big controversy
raging in the Christian world
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concerning the
sequence of events,
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what is going to
happen before Jesus returns
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especially concerning the
topic of the seven years...
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essentially there
are three different views
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there's the "Pre-Trib view,"
there's the "Mid-Trib view,"
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and there's the
"Post-Trib view. "
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The Pre-Trib view
basically says that
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Jesus is going to come
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at the beginning of the
seven years of tribulation
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and get the church out of here
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so the church
doesn't have to suffer
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during that nightmare period.
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And then there's
the Mid-Trib view
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that says, basically,
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that the church is
going to go through
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the first half
of the tribulation
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and then Jesus is going to
come and get us out of here
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so we don't have to go
through the really bad part...
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the second half...
the great tribulation...
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and then there's the
Post-Tribulation view
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which basically says that
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God's not going to get the
church out of here early at all,
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we're going to go
through the whole period
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if we stand up for
Jesus, be strong for Christ,
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and we will go all the way
into the very end of the world
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to the time of
the second coming.
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So, those are some of the issues
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and that's the controversy.
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Which view is right?
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Now, one of the questions
that I think needs to be asked,
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that isn't being asked enough
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and that is...
where does the Bible say
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specifically that
there is going to be a
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seven-year period
of tribulation at all?
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Is that text really there?
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Now it may shock you but
you could take your Bible
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and you can go
through Genesis...
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all the way to the
book of Revelation,
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you can look in any concordance
and you will never find
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one single solitary Bible verse
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that clearly and
specifically says
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that there's going to be
a seven-year period at all.
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You probably
heard of Ponce de León
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the famous ancient explorer
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who looked for the
famous "Fountain of Youth"
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but he never found it.
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And it's the same
thing with that text.
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You can look and look
and look in your Bible
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and you'll never find a
verse that specifically says
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that there's seven
years of tribulation.
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So, where does
the idea come from?
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It certainly is a big idea,
it's one that's being discussed,
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there are movies
that have been produced
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about the seven
years, there are radio shows
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that talk about the
seven years of tribulation
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there are all kinds of
novels, books, websites,
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the discussion is on,
the controversy is on.
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So, where does the
idea come from anyway?
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Well, let me shed
some light on this.
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There is really
one major Bible verse
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that is interpreted to
mean seven years of tribulation
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at the end of the world and
that's really the "mother text"
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and it is found in the book
of Daniel chapter 9 verse 27.
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That is the "mother
text" Daniel 9:27...
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let me just read
this verse to you,
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and then I'll tell you
how it's being interpreted.
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Daniel 9:27... the Bible says,
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"Then he shall
confirm the covenant
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with many for one week:"
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and there are
seven days in a week,
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and this is
applied to a day for a year
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which we'll talk
about in a little while
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and so one week
would be seven years
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and it says that
someone would confirm a covenant
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with many during
that seven-year period,
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"and in the midst of the week;
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He would cause the sacrifices
and the oblation to cease... "
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Now, let me explain to
you how best-selling author,
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Hal Lindsey interprets this text
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and he is representative of many
Christians around the world,
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his book, "The
Late Great Planet Earth"
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in the 1970s... it came out,
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it was just a huge
blockbuster bestseller,
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and in this book he talks
about... on page 45 and 46
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about God's last seven years
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of dealing with
the Jewish people
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and then he quotes Daniel
9:27 and he interprets the key
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in this text where it says,
"He will confirm the covenant
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he interprets the
"he" to be the antichrist
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who will break his
covenant with the Jewish people
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during the seven
years of tribulation
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and in the middle of
that period he will cause
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the Jewish Temple's sacrifices,
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which had been re-started,
to cease, Daniel 9:27,
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page 46 of The
Late Great Planet Earth
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and so Hal
Lindsey's view is typical,
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he interprets
this one-week period
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as seven years of
great tribulation.
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Now, is
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Hal Lindsey
right or is he wrong?
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And there are
many, many, many others,
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I can mention names,
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I'm sure you're
probably aware of many of them,
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and they interpret
this text in a similar way.
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Well, first of all, we
have to look at the context
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of Daniel 9:27.
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The context
starts, really, in verse 24
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and it could go
down to verse 27.
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Verse 24 says, "Seventy weeks
are determined upon your people
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and upon your holy city,"
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now let me give you
some background of this text.
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This verse, this whole
chapter was written by Daniel
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when he was in Babylon,
he was a Jewish captive,
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the Israelite people
had strayed from God,
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they had set up idols,
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they had been
disobedient to the Lord,
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and after hundreds of years,
after they came out of Egypt,
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hundreds of years of
patience on the part of God,
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finally, He allowed
the Babylonians to come
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and to just decimate Jerusalem,
they destroyed the Temple
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in the year 586 B.C.,
they took many Jewish people
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captive... there were actually
a number of waves of captivity,
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and Jerusalem was just
in a devastated position,
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condition... and
Daniel was a Jew in Babylon.
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Jeremiah had predicted that
there would be a 70-year period
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when the Jews
will be in Babylon,
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and at the end of that period
they were going to come back
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and rebuild their
temple and their city
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and have another
chance to be faithful to God.
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And as they neared
the end of that period,
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this is where Daniel 9 comes in,
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and Daniel knew that the 70
years were coming to an end,
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and it was getting
ready for them to go back
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and rebuild their
city and their temple,
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and then Gabriel shows
up in Daniel chapter 9,
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and gives Daniel this
prophecy, there would be
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"Seventy weeks
determined upon your people
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and upon your holy
city... " Daniel 9 verse 24,
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now, the next verse describes
when the period would begin.
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In verse 25, Gabriel said,
"Know therefore and understand,
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that from the going forth
of a commandment to restore
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and build Jerusalem... "
certain things would happen
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and so we have to
pinpoint exactly when this
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commandment would start.
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Persia conquered Babylon
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and there were a
number of Persian kings
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that issued various decrees,
allowing the Jews to go back.
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There were two
kings, Cyrus and Darius...
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they issued decrees
for the Jews to go back
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and to rebuild their
Temple and then Nehemiah
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who was in Persia,
with the new king...
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he was also given permission
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to go back and help
to rebuild the wall,
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around the city of Jerusalem
which had been broken down.
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But there was one
particular king named Artaxerxes
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and this is
recorded in Ezra chapter 7
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where he issued a lengthy decree
allowing the Jewish people
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to go back and also
to re-establish Jerusalem
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as the center of the
restored Jewish State.
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And of those four
decrees, Cyrus' and Darius'
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those two decrees were
just only concerning the temple
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Nehemiah's letter was to
simply give him permission
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to rebuild the
wall around the city
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but it was Artaxerxes'
decree that was the longest
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and that was the one
that specifically gave
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the authority to
Jerusalem to be re-established
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as the center
of the Jewish State
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and that is the
decree that fits the prophecy
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in Daniel 9:25
where Gabriel said,
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"Know therefore and understand,
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that from the going
forth of the commandment
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to restore and to
build Jerusalem... "
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Artaxerxes' decree restored
the authority of Jerusalem
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and the Jewish State
and if you study history,
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the dominant date that rises
up for that decree of Artaxerxes
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is the year 457 B.C.
and in a different Bible,
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not particularly this Bible,
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but I have another Bible that...
in the margin of the Bible,
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it lists 457 B.C.
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it's just a
standard King James Bible
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and that is the standard
date that has been accepted
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by Scholars around the world.
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So, if we take that date
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as the date of the
beginning of the timeline
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of the restoration of Jerusalem,
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based on Daniel 9:25,
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"Know therefore and understand,
that from the going forth
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of the commandment to
restore and build Jerusalem,"
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it says, "until
the Messiah the Prince"
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which would be Jesus,
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there is going to
be a 7- week period
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and then a 62-week period
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and then we go down to verse 27
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and then there is
one more week left.
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Now, I never really was
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I'll confess, good at math,
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math was not my favorite subject
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when I was a
little boy in school,
00:10:29.59\00:10:31.16
my mother... my Jewish mother...
sometimes would say to me,
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"Steve, put your 'math hat' on
and start tackling these topics"
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and so, I don't
know if you like math...
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maybe you do... maybe you don't,
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but we do have to
do some mathematics
00:10:41.97\00:10:44.01
to figure out this prophecy.
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So, we have a period of
70 weeks and just imagine,
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I'll just hold out my arm here,
imagine this is the 70-week arm,
00:10:50.98\00:10:54.12
and verse 25 and verse 27 says,
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that this period is divided
into three smaller periods.
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there's a 7-week period,
there's a 62-week period,
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that would reach to the Messiah,
00:11:02.52\00:11:03.86
and then that
leaves a 1- week period
00:11:03.93\00:11:05.99
and 7 + 62 + 1 = 7070 weeks...
00:11:06.06\00:11:10.80
so that's the
period and it's sub-divided
00:11:10.87\00:11:12.90
into those
three smaller periods.
00:11:12.93\00:11:15.90
Now, when you study
this out and search this out
00:11:15.94\00:11:20.28
it's very clear that the
70 weeks which comes out to...
00:11:20.31\00:11:23.55
if you add up how
many days in the 70 weeks
00:11:23.58\00:11:26.25
it's 490 days,
00:11:26.28\00:11:28.08
this cannot be
just 70 literal weeks
00:11:28.15\00:11:31.92
it can't be 490 literal
days, and the reason is because
00:11:31.95\00:11:35.36
from the decree
to restore Jerusalem
00:11:35.39\00:11:38.09
from the time of
Persia after Babylon,
00:11:38.13\00:11:40.80
which was in 457 B.C.,
00:11:40.83\00:11:43.30
70 literal weeks
or 490 literal days,
00:11:43.37\00:11:48.00
just from that decree...
00:11:48.04\00:11:49.40
does not take you
down hundreds of years,
00:11:49.44\00:11:52.01
to the time of the
coming of the Messiah,
00:11:52.04\00:11:54.58
and so, therefore, we know
00:11:54.61\00:11:56.41
that this must
be a day for a year
00:11:56.44\00:11:59.05
and most
scholars recognize this,
00:11:59.08\00:12:01.78
now there's a
verse in Numbers 14:34,
00:12:01.82\00:12:04.49
and in Ezekiel 4 verse 6
00:12:04.52\00:12:06.62
that talks about
how God had given them
00:12:06.65\00:12:08.86
a day to represent a
year, and so when you apply
00:12:08.89\00:12:13.03
a day for a year
to this prophecy,
00:12:13.06\00:12:15.43
there's a breakdown and
let me get these exact figures
00:12:15.46\00:12:20.67
right here in front
of me, 7 + 62 + 1 = 70
00:12:20.74\00:12:25.01
a day for a year, Ezekiel 4:6,
00:12:25.04\00:12:27.81
7 weeks comes out
to 49 days or years,
00:12:27.88\00:12:32.51
62 weeks comes out
to 434 days or years,
00:12:32.55\00:12:37.09
and 1 week... the last week
comes out to 7 days or years,
00:12:37.12\00:12:42.82
so, 49 years, 434
years, 7 years you add them up
00:12:42.86\00:12:47.00
and it comes up
to 490 literal years
00:12:47.03\00:12:51.93
and we start with 457
B.C. and we go down 49 years
00:12:51.97\00:12:57.64
and then we go down 434 years,
00:12:57.67\00:13:02.18
which ultimately is 483 years,
00:13:02.21\00:13:06.61
and from that
time of that decree,
00:13:06.72\00:13:10.02
in 457 B.C., if
you go down 483 years,
00:13:10.09\00:13:13.02
the Bible says
that it should take us
00:13:13.05\00:13:15.99
to the time of the Messiah.
00:13:16.02\00:13:18.56
That's what
Gabriel said... verse 25,
00:13:18.59\00:13:20.73
"Know therefore and understand,
from the going forth of the
00:13:20.80\00:13:24.00
commandment to restore and
build Jerusalem" in 457 B.C.,
00:13:24.07\00:13:27.27
"... until the
Messiah the Prince,
00:13:27.34\00:13:29.37
there would be seven
weeks and sixty-two weeks... "
00:13:29.44\00:13:33.17
Now, here's something amazing,
when you put your "math hat" on,
00:13:33.21\00:13:37.45
and you do the
calculation from 457...
00:13:37.48\00:13:41.25
you go down 483 years,
00:13:41.32\00:13:44.02
and there's no "zero" year...
so you take that into account,
00:13:44.09\00:13:46.39
from B.C. to A.D.
you go down 483 years
00:13:46.42\00:13:50.63
and it takes you exactly
00:13:50.66\00:13:52.13
to the year 27 A.D.
00:13:52.16\00:13:55.70
and Gabriel said that
this would be the time when
00:13:55.73\00:13:58.57
the Messiah would come.
00:13:58.60\00:14:00.54
The word "Messiah"
means the anointed one.
00:14:00.57\00:14:03.91
Jesus Christ was
anointed when He was baptized
00:14:03.94\00:14:07.28
by the Holy Spirit.
00:14:07.31\00:14:08.64
He came up out of the
water and the year was 27 A.D.
00:14:08.68\00:14:11.88
He was baptized
by John the Baptist,
00:14:11.91\00:14:13.75
the heavens opened,
the Holy Spirit came down
00:14:13.82\00:14:16.82
and Jesus Christ was anointed
00:14:16.89\00:14:18.85
by the Spirit... at His baptism,
00:14:18.89\00:14:20.86
and that's what the
word "Messiah" means...
00:14:20.89\00:14:22.82
The Anointed One...
00:14:22.86\00:14:24.23
and in Mark
chapter 1 verses 12 to 15,
00:14:24.26\00:14:27.83
right after Jesus was baptized,
Jesus made an amazing statement.
00:14:27.86\00:14:32.50
In Mark chapter 1 verse
15, after He was baptized,
00:14:32.53\00:14:36.47
he said:
00:14:36.50\00:14:39.74
So when Jesus said,
"The time is fulfilled... "
00:14:42.91\00:14:45.85
what time was He talking about?
00:14:45.88\00:14:47.72
There's really only one
Old Testament "Time" Prophecy
00:14:47.75\00:14:53.86
that He could
have been referring to,
00:14:53.89\00:14:55.59
and that was the prophecy
in Daniel chapter 9 verse 25
00:14:55.62\00:14:58.66
that said, "... from the
going forth of the commandment
00:14:58.69\00:15:01.66
to the Messiah the Prince,
there would be... " so much time
00:15:01.73\00:15:04.93
and that time ended in 27 A.D.
00:15:04.97\00:15:06.84
and when Jesus
Christ was baptized
00:15:06.87\00:15:08.20
He said, in Mark 1:15,
"the time is fulfilled,
00:15:08.24\00:15:11.54
repent and believe the gospel. "
00:15:11.57\00:15:13.41
It's amazing and that prophecy
and that statement of Christ...
00:15:13.48\00:15:16.85
it gives us
confidence in the Bible,
00:15:16.88\00:15:18.98
it gives us
confidence in prophecy,
00:15:19.05\00:15:21.12
it gives us confidence
00:15:21.15\00:15:22.48
that Jesus Christ is
Himself truly the Messiah,
00:15:22.52\00:15:25.19
and that He was
fulfilling Scripture...
00:15:25.22\00:15:27.66
just like the
prophecy said that He would.
00:15:27.69\00:15:31.56
It's a wonderful prophecy
to confirm our confidence
00:15:31.59\00:15:35.40
in God's
book... in God's Word...
00:15:35.43\00:15:39.20
so, if we go the 7 weeks,
00:15:39.23\00:15:41.67
and then the 62 weeks,
00:15:41.70\00:15:44.04
which... a day for a
year comes out to 483 years
00:15:44.11\00:15:46.88
from 457 to the
coming of the Messiah,
00:15:46.91\00:15:49.31
that leaves... one
week left which we find
00:15:49.34\00:15:53.45
in Daniel 9 verse
27, "... he shall confirm
00:15:53.52\00:15:57.59
the covenant with many
00:15:57.62\00:15:58.95
for one week;" which...
a day for a year would be
00:15:58.99\00:16:02.06
one week... 7 days in a week,
00:16:02.09\00:16:03.76
which would come
to a 7- year period.
00:16:03.83\00:16:06.36
So there's a 7-year
period in Daniel 9:27,
00:16:06.39\00:16:09.63
but we have to find out
what does this 7-year period
00:16:09.66\00:16:14.27
or who does the 7-
year period apply to.
00:16:14.30\00:16:16.91
As I mentioned in
Hal Lindsey's book,
00:16:16.94\00:16:20.01
The Late Great
Planet Earth, on page 45,
00:16:20.08\00:16:23.04
he refers to Daniel 9:27
as God's last seven years
00:16:23.08\00:16:28.52
of dealing with
the Jewish people,
00:16:28.55\00:16:30.69
and he interprets
again verse 27 which says,
00:16:30.72\00:16:36.56
Hal Lindsey interprets
the "he" as the antichrist
00:16:44.40\00:16:47.80
who will make a
covenant with the Jewish people
00:16:47.84\00:16:51.17
but he will break that covenant,
00:16:51.24\00:16:53.68
in the middle of
that 7- year period
00:16:53.71\00:16:55.91
and he will cause the
00:16:55.94\00:16:57.55
Jewish Temple worship
and sacrifices to cease...
00:16:57.58\00:17:01.22
and then he quotes, Daniel 9:27,
I've got it underlined here
00:17:01.25\00:17:05.72
in my copy of
Pastor Lindsey's book.
00:17:05.75\00:17:09.69
Now, the question is,
and here's the controversy,
00:17:09.72\00:17:14.53
is Pastor Lindsey's
interpretation of Daniel 9:27...
00:17:14.56\00:17:19.33
is it actually a
correct interpretation?
00:17:19.37\00:17:23.64
Should that last
one-week period...
00:17:23.71\00:17:27.11
that 7-year period, at
the end of the timeline...
00:17:27.18\00:17:30.98
should that period be
moved all the way down
00:17:31.01\00:17:34.12
to the end of time
00:17:34.15\00:17:35.48
and called a "7-year
period of tribulation?"
00:17:35.52\00:17:38.55
That's the question and
then we get the controversy
00:17:38.59\00:17:41.46
if so... we got the Pre-Trib,
00:17:41.49\00:17:43.53
the Mid-Trib and
the Post-Trib battle.
00:17:43.56\00:17:45.99
Well, let me give you eight
different reasons right now
00:17:46.03\00:17:50.37
why the 70th week of the
Daniel, that last 7-year period
00:17:50.40\00:17:54.64
actually was
fulfilled 2,000 years ago.
00:17:54.67\00:17:58.94
I'll give you eight reasons.
00:17:58.97\00:18:00.51
Reason number one is
that the 70-week timeline,
00:18:00.58\00:18:05.15
is a consecutive timeline,
Gabriel said in verse 24,
00:18:05.18\00:18:08.38
"Seventy weeks are
determined upon your people"
00:18:08.42\00:18:11.89
upon the Jewish
people and there's no example
00:18:11.92\00:18:15.32
anywhere in the Bible or
anywhere in history actually
00:18:15.36\00:18:18.36
where a
timeline... a period of time...
00:18:18.39\00:18:22.30
is broken up where
you take one part of it
00:18:22.33\00:18:25.40
and you move it
down to a different part.
00:18:25.47\00:18:28.50
Seventy weeks is seventy weeks.
00:18:28.54\00:18:31.14
In the Bible the Bible
says that the rain came down
00:18:31.17\00:18:34.31
in the days of Noah
for 40 days and 40 nights.
00:18:34.34\00:18:36.51
Those were 40 days
and 40 consecutive nights.
00:18:36.54\00:18:38.68
Israel was in
Egypt for 400 years.
00:18:38.71\00:18:41.42
That was 400 consecutive years.
00:18:41.45\00:18:44.12
Jesus was in the wilderness
being tempted by the devil...
00:18:44.19\00:18:47.16
the Bible says for 40 days,
00:18:47.19\00:18:48.89
those were 40
straight consecutive days
00:18:48.92\00:18:51.13
and it just makes sense,
all the sense in the world
00:18:51.16\00:18:55.33
that the 70-week period
would be 70 consecutive weeks
00:18:55.36\00:18:59.53
without a break.
00:18:59.57\00:19:00.94
The reason Number two
and this makes perfect sense,
00:19:00.97\00:19:03.51
that the 70th week of Daniel
would follow the 69th week.
00:19:03.54\00:19:07.18
It just doesn't make
sense to take that 70th week
00:19:07.21\00:19:09.44
and move it down
to the end of time
00:19:09.48\00:19:11.88
and call it a 7-year
period of tribulation.
00:19:11.91\00:19:14.82
If I was living about an
hour away from a certain city
00:19:14.85\00:19:18.99
and I said to somebody,
"How long will it take me to...
00:19:19.02\00:19:21.32
it's 70 miles to get to the
city how long will it take?"
00:19:21.36\00:19:24.03
and they said, "Oh
about... I would think... "
00:19:24.06\00:19:26.63
well if they said
that it was 70 miles,
00:19:26.70\00:19:28.43
I would assume it
would be about an hour
00:19:28.46\00:19:30.00
for me to drive there,
00:19:30.07\00:19:31.40
but then if they said,
00:19:31.43\00:19:32.77
"No, actually it's
going to take you two days
00:19:32.80\00:19:34.14
to get to that city because
00:19:34.17\00:19:35.50
in between the 69th
and the 70th mile...
00:19:35.54\00:19:37.21
there are actually 2,000 miles.
00:19:37.31\00:19:39.64
That wouldn't
make any sense at all
00:19:39.67\00:19:41.68
and it doesn't make
sense that the 70th week
00:19:41.71\00:19:45.05
shouldn't follow the 69th week.
00:19:45.08\00:19:49.45
It makes sense
that it does follow it.
00:19:49.48\00:19:51.42
So that's reason Number two.
00:19:51.49\00:19:53.36
Reason Number three
is the entire prophecy,
00:19:53.39\00:19:55.46
is focused on the Messiah,
00:19:55.49\00:19:57.53
it's the Messiah that
is mentioned in Daniel 9:25
00:19:57.56\00:20:01.03
from the going
forth of the commandment
00:20:01.06\00:20:02.60
until the Messiah...
00:20:02.63\00:20:03.97
there will be 7
weeks and 62 weeks.
00:20:04.00\00:20:05.97
In verse 26, it talks about,
00:20:06.00\00:20:08.67
"... after the
threescore and two weeks"
00:20:08.70\00:20:10.94
or the 62 weeks... "the
Messiah would be cut off,"
00:20:11.01\00:20:14.18
So the context of the
prophecy is the Messiah,
00:20:14.21\00:20:17.25
the word "antichrist" is
not mentioned in the prophecy
00:20:17.28\00:20:19.88
anywhere...
00:20:19.91\00:20:21.25
it's not in
Daniel 9 verses 24 to 27.
00:20:21.28\00:20:24.09
Reason Number four
is... the text says,
00:20:24.12\00:20:26.96
in verse 27, that "he
shall confirm the covenant"
00:20:26.99\00:20:32.93
who is "he"? Who would confirm?
00:20:32.96\00:20:36.43
In Romans chapter 15
verse 8, Paul said that
00:20:36.46\00:20:40.54
Jesus Christ came to confirm
00:20:40.57\00:20:42.67
the promises
made to the fathers:"
00:20:42.70\00:20:44.97
You won't find
anywhere in the Bible,
00:20:45.04\00:20:47.28
where antichrist
confirms a covenant with anyone.
00:20:47.38\00:20:52.25
The word "covenant"
is a Messianic term.
00:20:52.28\00:20:55.28
It applies to the Messiah
and to what Jesus Christ does.
00:20:55.32\00:20:59.05
So, He shall confirm...
that's reason Number four...
00:20:59.09\00:21:02.79
Number five: it says,
00:21:02.82\00:21:05.23
"He shall confirm the
covenant with many... "
00:21:05.26\00:21:08.53
and these are almost the
exact words of Jesus Christ
00:21:08.56\00:21:11.50
in Matthew 26 verse 28,
the night before He died.
00:21:11.53\00:21:14.44
He took the
bread... passed it out...
00:21:14.47\00:21:16.24
passed out the cup, and
He told His disciples that
00:21:16.27\00:21:19.27
this is my blood
of the New Covenant
00:21:19.31\00:21:22.08
shed for many for
the forgiveness of sins.
00:21:22.11\00:21:25.28
The text says, "He shall confirm
the covenant with many... "
00:21:25.31\00:21:29.65
Jesus said, "this is my blood of
the New Covenant shed for many"
00:21:29.72\00:21:34.06
He was quoting Daniel 9:27.
00:21:34.09\00:21:37.66
Reason Number 6 is... it says,
00:21:37.69\00:21:40.30
not only that He would confirm
00:21:40.33\00:21:42.83
the covenant with
many for one week,
00:21:42.86\00:21:45.00
which will be seven years,
but in the midst of the week...
00:21:45.03\00:21:48.20
he would cause the
sacrifice to cease.
00:21:48.24\00:21:51.24
The midst of the week would
be after 3 and a 1/2 years.
00:21:51.31\00:21:55.81
It's a seven-year
period, 3 and a 1/2 in...
00:21:55.88\00:21:58.28
would be the midst of the week,
00:21:58.31\00:21:59.65
and then there would
be 3 and 1/2 more years
00:21:59.68\00:22:01.02
and the amazing thing is
00:22:01.05\00:22:02.38
is that Jesus
Christ's ministry lasted...
00:22:02.42\00:22:04.45
His public ministry
lasted exactly 3 and 1/2 years.
00:22:04.49\00:22:07.69
Right on time...
00:22:07.72\00:22:10.06
Before He died... he
would say many times,
00:22:10.13\00:22:13.40
"My hour is not yet
come, my hour is not yet come,"
00:22:13.43\00:22:15.76
and then finally
when the time came,
00:22:15.80\00:22:17.17
He knew... the hour had come
00:22:17.20\00:22:18.70
because he was
going to die on time.
00:22:18.73\00:22:20.97
He was baptized on
time, He was born on time,
00:22:21.00\00:22:23.30
and He was going to die on time.
00:22:23.34\00:22:24.74
Going on, it says that he would
00:22:24.77\00:22:27.61
confirm the covenant
with many for one week;
00:22:27.64\00:22:29.48
and in the midst of
the week, what would He do?
00:22:29.51\00:22:31.31
He would cause the sacrifice
and the oblation to cease.
00:22:31.35\00:22:36.25
And after 3 and 1/2
years of public ministry,
00:22:36.28\00:22:38.89
Jesus Christ died on the cross
00:22:38.92\00:22:42.19
and what happened
to the sacrifices...
00:22:42.22\00:22:45.43
the Jewish sacrifices...
00:22:45.46\00:22:46.80
as far as their
value when Jesus died?
00:22:46.83\00:22:49.56
The fact is... the
truth is... they ceased
00:22:49.60\00:22:53.23
to be of value
in the sight of God.
00:22:53.27\00:22:54.97
There was a hand that
ripped the veil in the temple
00:22:55.00\00:22:57.84
from top to
bottom... mysterious hand...
00:22:57.91\00:22:59.61
and that was
God's way of showing
00:22:59.64\00:23:01.71
that the sacrificial
system had come to an end.
00:23:01.74\00:23:04.91
That it was no
longer of any value
00:23:04.95\00:23:06.61
because Jesus
Christ, The Great Sacrifice,
00:23:06.65\00:23:09.08
had been offered on the cross
for our sins, for yours and mine
00:23:09.12\00:23:12.15
and He died...
perfectly right on time
00:23:12.19\00:23:14.99
right in the midst of the week.
00:23:15.02\00:23:16.93
That's when He caused
the sacrifice to cease.
00:23:16.96\00:23:19.33
Point Number
eight... the last point is...
00:23:19.36\00:23:21.70
that leaves us 3
and 1/2 years left.
00:23:21.73\00:23:23.97
The 3 and 1/2 years...
Jesus was baptized in 27 A.D.
00:23:24.00\00:23:27.64
he died in 31 A.D. in
the middle of the week,
00:23:27.67\00:23:29.67
and then the period
ended in the year 34 A.D.
00:23:29.74\00:23:33.11
and it was in 34 A.D.
that Stephen was stoned,
00:23:33.14\00:23:35.84
because he gave his
appeal to the Sanhedrin
00:23:35.88\00:23:38.58
in Acts chapter
7, they rejected him.
00:23:38.61\00:23:40.72
It says that they
stopped their ears,
00:23:40.75\00:23:42.22
they didn't
want to hear anymore,
00:23:42.25\00:23:43.62
Stephen was about
to die, he looked up
00:23:43.69\00:23:46.86
and he saw Jesus standing
at the right hand of God,
00:23:46.89\00:23:50.03
his face was like an
angel, and they killed him
00:23:50.06\00:23:53.16
and at that point,
00:23:53.19\00:23:54.53
in 34 A.D.,
00:23:54.56\00:23:56.03
that's when the
church shifted its energies
00:23:56.06\00:24:00.14
and the gospel,
in the book of Acts,
00:24:00.17\00:24:02.27
began to go to the Gentiles.
00:24:02.34\00:24:04.11
So the 70-week period
00:24:04.14\00:24:05.71
that was given
for the Jewish people,
00:24:05.74\00:24:07.31
ended in 34 A.D and the
gospel went to the Gentiles.
00:24:07.38\00:24:11.31
And so, point by point,
the prophecy was fulfilled.
00:24:11.38\00:24:15.32
I have an ancient
book here in my hands.
00:24:15.35\00:24:17.19
It's called,
"Christ and the Antichrist"
00:24:17.22\00:24:18.92
it came out in the 1800s,
00:24:18.95\00:24:20.29
and it was written by an author
00:24:20.36\00:24:23.02
who was part of the Presbyterian
Board of Publication,
00:24:23.06\00:24:25.53
and in this book,
"Christ and the Antichrist"
00:24:25.56\00:24:28.30
published in 1846,
it says on page 47,
00:24:28.33\00:24:31.97
that some time during
the remaining seven years,
00:24:32.00\00:24:35.20
of Daniel 9:27,
He... Jesus... was to die
00:24:35.24\00:24:39.41
as a sacrifice for sin.
00:24:39.44\00:24:41.51
One would think that
the people among whom
00:24:41.54\00:24:43.78
this prophecy
occurred could not possibly
00:24:43.85\00:24:46.05
have misunderstood the prophecy
00:24:46.08\00:24:48.15
and then it continues
on page 49, and it says,
00:24:48.18\00:24:50.79
"the 70 weeks of Daniel
have, therefore, certainly ended
00:24:50.82\00:24:53.46
many centuries ago. "
00:24:53.49\00:24:55.72
Matthew Henry,
one of the most famous
00:24:55.76\00:24:58.89
Bible scholars, who
has written a commentary
00:24:58.93\00:25:01.56
that is read by
Christians around the world,
00:25:01.60\00:25:04.17
his comments on Daniel 9:27,
00:25:04.20\00:25:06.27
refers to the
"he" as Jesus Christ.
00:25:06.30\00:25:08.67
that the covenant...
00:25:08.70\00:25:10.11
"This covenant He,
Jesus, would confirm...
00:25:10.21\00:25:12.81
by His death and resurrection...
a covenant of grace. "
00:25:12.84\00:25:15.61
The Adam, Jamieson and Clarke
Commentary says the same thing.
00:25:15.64\00:25:21.05
Adam Clarke's... I'm sorry...
00:25:21.08\00:25:23.79
it's Jamieson
Fausset and Brown's
00:25:23.82\00:25:26.15
Commentary says the same thing.
00:25:26.19\00:25:27.56
Adam Clarke, in
Ancient Methodist Commentary,
00:25:27.59\00:25:29.32
he said the same thing
00:25:29.36\00:25:30.73
and all
throughout Christian history
00:25:30.76\00:25:33.40
there have been scholars
who have studied Daniel 9
00:25:33.43\00:25:38.10
and they put the pieces together
that it was a consecutive period
00:25:38.13\00:25:41.67
it started with
the time of Persia,
00:25:41.70\00:25:43.54
takes you down to Jesus' baptism
00:25:43.61\00:25:45.34
and then ends with the shift
00:25:45.37\00:25:47.08
to the gospel
going to the Gentiles,
00:25:47.11\00:25:48.84
and right in the
middle of the 70th week,
00:25:48.88\00:25:50.58
Jesus Christ died on the cross,
causing the sacrifices to cease,
00:25:50.65\00:25:54.25
fulfilling Bible
prophecy perfectly.
00:25:54.32\00:25:57.85
Daniel 9:27 confirms
our faith in the Bible.
00:25:57.89\00:26:00.69
It confirms our
faith in prophecy.
00:26:00.76\00:26:02.59
It confirms our
faith in Jesus Christ
00:26:02.62\00:26:04.43
that He is our Messiah,
and it confirms our faith
00:26:04.46\00:26:07.20
in His power and in His ability
to forgive us for our sins.
00:26:07.23\00:26:12.13
Satan hates that prophecy,
00:26:12.17\00:26:13.64
he doesn't want us
interpreting it correctly,
00:26:13.67\00:26:15.54
and he has pulled the wool
over many sincere people's eyes,
00:26:15.57\00:26:19.74
and caused them to
take that last seven years
00:26:19.81\00:26:22.11
and apply it at the end
of time to the antichrist
00:26:22.14\00:26:24.41
when it really
applies to Jesus Christ,
00:26:24.48\00:26:26.25
and the bottom line is that
00:26:26.28\00:26:27.88
there is really no future 7-year
period of tribulation at all
00:26:27.92\00:26:31.35
based on Daniel
9:27, Jesus is the center
00:26:31.39\00:26:34.72
we need to accept Him now,
00:26:34.76\00:26:36.09
and get ready
for His soon return.
00:26:36.12\00:26:38.96
Will Christians soon disappear
00:26:38.99\00:26:40.96
raptured before 7
years of tribulation
00:26:41.00\00:26:43.23
when the antichrist
makes war against the Jews?
00:26:43.26\00:26:45.60
Jesus Christ gave this special
warning about the last days.
00:26:45.63\00:26:48.97
"Take heed that no one
deceives you!" in Matthew 24:4.
00:26:49.04\00:26:52.27
Find out the truth about
these end-time prophecies
00:26:52.34\00:26:55.31
by ordering Steve's popular
book "End Time Delusions"
00:26:55.34\00:26:58.28
for only $13.95.
00:26:58.31\00:26:59.65
To order, call 1-800-78-Bible
00:26:59.68\00:27:02.32
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00:27:02.35\00:27:08.26
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