DANIEL 9:27 | THE TRIBULATION PART 1

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.

The English word “weeks” is translated from the Hebrews word “Shabua”, which simply means “sevens”

It might be understood translated, “Seventy sevens are determined upon they people”

The “sevens” are groups of seven years.

In the way we might say 1 Dozen eggs is the equivalent of 12 eggs, we could say 1 week is equal to 7 years.

So 70 weeks would be equal to 70 x 7 years = 490 years

These years were according to the Jewish calendar that has 360 days a year.

God says here in Daniel that over a period of 490 years, God is going to deal with someone.

This is vital to recognize otherwise you will miss the whole point of why God is going to do what He will do.

Here is the next key to understand: Who is it that God is dealing with? V.24

“Thy people” = Israel

God says that for the 490 years of time, he is specifically going to be dealing with Israel.

In His mercy He is trying to get their attention and turn them to Him.

During those 490 years:

Jerusalem will be established

Sin will be paid for and ended

Everlasting righteousness will be put in place

And God will ultimately be on the throne.

That’s we He says in v.24.

So when does this 490 year countdown begin?

The answer is in the next verse v.25

Daniel 9:25 KJV 1900

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 threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.

Daniel gives us the beginning point of this prophetic countdown.

It began with the command to “restore and to build Jerusalem” in 445 BC

There are some that believe it was 444 BC, but based on the books and commentaries I studied, many agreed on 445 BC.

This command was given over in Nehemiah 2:8

You’ll remember that Nehemiah was troubled when he heard that Jerusalem had been torn apart and left a wasteland.

The wall had been destroyed!

Nehemiah 2:8 KJV 1900

And a letter unto Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the palace which appertained to the house, and for the wall of the city, and for the house that I shall enter into. And the king granted me, according to the good hand of my God upon me.

The people joined in with Nehemiah’s vision and in 52 days the wall of Jerusalem was finished.

But the rebuilding of Jerusalem was not yet complete.

In fact, history tells us that it took 49 years to complete the restoration of Jerusalem in 396 BC.

Guess what, Daniel begins by specifying 7 week (or 7 groups of 7 years = 49 years) first.

God didn’t have to break down the time further, he could have just specified 69 week instead of 7 weeks and 62 weeks, but God was so on the nose that He broke it down for us.

Following that 7 week period, the Bible tells us there would be 62 weeks until “Messiah would be cut off” in v.25.

62 weeks or 434 years Jewish calendar years, or 156,240 days

According to one commentator, this would have put the date that Jesus entered Jerusalem on palm Sunday as April 6th, AD 32.

Now whether that is the exact date or not, there is much debate, but what we can soundly know because the Scripture tells us, 69 weeks, or 483 years, or 173,880 days following the decree to rebuild Jerusalem in Nehemiah 2, Jesus Christ went to the cross and was crucified.

So that leaves us with 1 week remaining of Daniel’s 70 weeks.

This 7 year period of time has come to be known by many names, and one of those is Daniel’s 70th Week… or the Tribulation period.

Now if you are a Christian here today, and you have put your faith in Christ, this is a hypothetical situation for you.

But if you haven’t accepted Christ as your Savior, these events are very real.

And I would encourage you to make sure you get things settled right now so you can spare yourself from the horrors that will follow.

Pray with me now, and then when I say amen, I want you to enter with me into the moments following the rapture of Jesus Christ’s church.

PRAY

ILLUSTRATION: You are seated at the restaurant with an old friend.

You are laughing about those things your kids did.

They are growing up way too fast and you wish you could slow down time.

You glance down at your plate for just a moment with the last of that smile spread across your face, and then you look up and your friend is gone.

You look around the booth to see if they got up for a moment but they are nowhere to be seen.

You can’t imagine but just to be safe you take a look under the table, and they aren’t there either.

You can feel the chill work up your spine… something isn’t right.

STORY 2: You are trying to get the last of the cows into the pin.

The summer sun is hot and the sweat beads are running down your face.

You are looking forward to finishing the job so you can finally make your way inside for that ice cold glass of sweet tea.

You’ve been chasing them around and they never seem to go the way that you are hoping.

Thankful your grandson is there helping you otherwise you’d never get it done.

There are just a few left to push through the gate you are leaning on and then you will finally be finished.

Suddenly the cows stop moving forward and one turns to run the other way.

You yell out to your grandson to watch it because they are trying to make one last ditch effort to avoid being pushed in.

But there is no reply

As more of the cows turn and start the other way, your worst fears begin to run through your mind.

Did they trample your grandson, will you find him there unconscious?

As the last of the cows run back the way they just came, your grandson is no where to be found.

Is this some joke he is playing, because it isn’t a funny one.

You yell his name with a bit of frustration in your voice, but there is still no reply.

You begin to look around but he is nowhere to be found.

Your frustration begins to give way to worry, as your heart begins to pound faster… Something isn’t right.

STORY 3: You are exhausted.

You’ve been working overtime trying to make enough money to just get by.

It’s late and the sun has already gone down as you drive to your home

You love your family, but honestly you just want to go inside and have five minutes to breath.

But you know when you enter that door, you will be met with the yells of your kids and most likely a tired wife from spending extra hours taking care of the kids while you have been working over.

So as you pull into the drive, you try to prepare yourself.

Before you get out of the car, you take a few last seconds to prepare your mind as you look up and see the lights in the kitchen on ready for your entry.

You make your way to the door and as you turn the knob and open it, it isn’t what you expect.

There are no loud creams from the kids.

You hear the water running in the kitchen and the TV playing in the living room, and you think they must not have heard you pull in.

You turn the corner into the living room but there isn’t anyone on the couch.

You walk into the kitchen and the faucet is running but no one is there.

“Honey” you call out… “Kids”… No answer

They must be hiding you think.

You don’t really feel like playing a game but you bite your lip and begin to search throughout the house but no one is there.

You pick up your phone and press your wife’s name on your contact list and wait for an answer.

But suddenly you hear the phone ringing in the other room, and sure enough you walk back into the kitchen and it’s sitting there on the counter next to the sink.

You’re breathing quickens as you know your wife would never leave her phone behind.

Something has happened… something isn’t right.

It’s happened! The disappearance of millions upon millions of people in an instant.

Babies are suddenly missing out of the hospital.

Planes crash out of the sky because their pilots vanished

The death toll skyrockets with the accidents that take place all over the earth.

People waking up to an empty bed next to them where their spouse had slept the night before

Church services that were being held around the world, now only have a few people still seated in the chairs.

Never in all of history has such a widespread catastrophic event taken place.

You turn on the TV and the reports are on every channel.

The speculations as to what has happed range from alien abduction to some kind of weapon of mass destruction developed by one of their national enemies.

And while everyone has their opinion, you think back to messages that you heard preached from this pulpit.

Messages about the rapture of the church.

1 Corinthians 15:51-57 details the event that has just taken place

1 Corinthians 15:51–57 KJV 1900

Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Thessalonians 4:13-17 adds additional insight into what just took place!

1 Thessalonians 4:13–17 KJV 1900

But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

This is the moment you have heard about many times, but you never really thought it could happen.

And yet, now here you are… left behind to endure the most grueling 7 years in all of the history of the earth.

Friend, I want to help prepare you for what is to come.

Over the next little more than 7 years things are going to be turned on their head, and I want to help you to be prepared for what is to come.

In this service and the one to come I want to walk with you through this period that is called the Tribulation.

The Bible has divided the 7 year period into 2 halves of 3 1/2 years each according to Daniel 7:25 and Daniel 12:7

Each one, following the Jewish calendar, will be composed of 1,260 days.

With a 30 day extension following the second half that we will discuss in our next service.

But it’s important to note that this 7 year countdown doesn’t begin with the rapture that just took place.

No, there will be a period of time, possibly days, weeks, or even months or years before that countdown begins.

The starting point of that 7 year tribulations is when a covenant of peace is signed with Israel.

That covenant is negotiated by a man who goes by many different names.

In Daniel 9 he is called “the prince that shall come” in v.26

And in v.27 we find the beginning of this 7 year tribulation

Daniel 9:27 KJV 1900

And he shall confirm the covenant 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 overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.

This “prince that shall come” goes by another more familiar name: The Antichrist.

His name describes exactly who he is and what he does… He is anti-Christ!

There is much mystery and questions surrounded this man known as the antichrist.

Through the centuries people have tried to pinpoint exactly who he is.

One of the things we do know about him is he couldn’t be revealed until after the rapture.

2 Thessalonians 2:1–3 KJV 1900

Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;

That day of falling away is the time you are living in now.

It is the time leading up to and into the that 7 year tribulation period.

It is during this period that this “man of sin” will be revealed.

But how do we know he wont come on the scene until after the rapture?

2 Thessalonians 2:7–9 KJV 1900

For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,

The words “letteth will let” means “restrainer will restrain”

Since the garden of Eden, God has retrained Satan from pouring out his destruction upon mankind.

Only with restraint has he been allowed to do anything.

But now God has removed that restraint, and that Wicked one, the Antichrist, is now permitted to pour out his will and destruction.

And He will begin by doing something unexpected, something that seemed impossible… he will broker a peace treaty with Israel.

He will be so eloquent and intriguing that many will believe that he is the Messiah come to bring peace on earth because of this.

He will rise out of the revived Roman empire

A league of 10 nations that have banded together.

A united group of nations.

Back in Daniel’s vision he had in Daniel 7, there was a beast with 10 horns, and we find something interesting in v.8 of Daniel 7:8

Daniel 7:8 KJV 1900

I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things.

This antichrist will come up among the 10 nations, but will eventually force 3 of those nation’s leaders out and he will take the majority of the power.

We find that Daniel spoke more about this in Daniel 7:24-25

Daniel 7:24–25 KJV 1900

And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings. And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.

This Antichrist will stand and speak against God!

Daniel 11:36 KJV 1900

And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done.

He will do his very best to imitate all that Christ has done.

At one point he will even appear to die and raise back to life again.

And at the 3 1/2 year point following the signing of the peace covenant, the Antichrist will break that peace treaty and will desecrate the temple and declare himself to be god.

Daniel 9:27 KJV 1900

Matthew’s Gospel speaks of this event that is coming in Matthew 24:15

Matthew 24:15 KJV 1900

When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)

Over in 2 Thessalonians 2:4

2 Thessalonians 2:4 KJV 1900

Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.

It is at that point that the Antichrist will have an image made like unto himself, and it seems he will have it put in the holy of holies in the temple Daniel 12:11

Daniel 12:11 KJV 1900

And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days.

That image will have power to speak and to kill anyone who didn’t fall down and worship the image of the beast.

Revelation 13:14–15 KJV 1900

And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live. And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.

The Antichrist along with the one who gives him the power, Satan, and with their puppet the False Prophet will initiate the most horrifying 3 1/2 year period in all of history.

They will institute a system of buying and selling in which you can only buy goods if you have received the mark of the beast.

Revelation 13:16–18 KJV 1900

And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.

Friend, it is possible this could be a mark similar to a tattoo, but with the recent advancements in technology, it is more likely something similar to a computer chip implanted into your hand.

Friend, don’t take it!

If you take that mark, you will have forever condemned your soul to an eternity in a lake of fire.

I personally believe it is this event that Paul gave warning of in 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12

2 Thessalonians 2:10–12 KJV 1900

And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

If you accept that mark and reject the love of Christ, you will be condemned.

Undoubtedly millions will have already died in the first 3 1/2 years, but those numbers will climb astronomically.

Beginning in Revelation 6 the wrath of God begins to be poured out in a final attempt to get the attention of Israel and the world.

Friend, these are the judgments that lie around the corner as you have missed the rapture of the Church.

The 7 Seal Judgements found in Revelation 6

1st Seal - White Horse (Antichrist) rises to conquer (1-2)

2nd Seal - Wars on earth (3-4)

3rd Seal - Worldwide Economic troubles (5-6)

4th Seal - Death is released. 1/4 of the world population will die by plagues, disease, and beast of the earth (7-8)

5th Seal - Persecution and the killing of God’s people worldwide (9-11)

6th Seal - Massive Earthquake (12-17)

7th Seal - Silence followed by the 7 trumpet judgments (8:1)

The Trumpet judgments are found in Revelation 8:7-21, 11:15-19

1st Trumpet - Hail, Fire, and Blood. 1/3 of all grass and trees are burned up (8:7)

2nd Trumpet - An asteroid hits the sea. 1/3 of all ocean becomes blood, 1/3 of all sea life dies, and 1/3 of all ships destroyed (8:8-9)

3rd Trumpet - Another Asteroid hits the earth. 1/3 all freshwater is poisoned (8:10-11)

4th Trumpet - 1/3 of the Sun and moon are darkened (8:12-13)

5th Trumpet - Locust beasts that sting and torment men are released from the pit to torment the unsaved for 5 months (9:1-11)

They will wish to die but wont be able to.

6th Trumpet - Demons are released and an army of 200 million kill 1/3 of the world population (9:13-21)

7th Trumpet - There are cries from heaven and the 7 bowl judgments are released on earth (11:15-19)

The 7 Bowl or Vial judgments are found in Revelation 16:1-21

1st Vial - Terrible and painful sore break out on all who worship the beast (16:1-2)

2nd Vial - Entire ocean becomes blood. All sea life dies (16:3)

3rd Vial - Fresh water becomes blood. No more fresh drinking water (16:4-7)

4th Vial - The Sun increases in heat and scorches and burns the earth and the people (16:8-9)

5th Vial - Supernatural darkness on earth (16:10-11)

6th Vial - Great Eastern army heads toward the Valley of Megiddo in the Middle East for the final battle, and the Euphrates River dries to make way for them (16:12-15)

7th Vial - Babylon is destroyed, massive earthquakes, and 100 pound hailstones devastate the earth (16:17-21)

This all culminates in the final battle that we will talk about in our next service!

Over the next 7 years the entire earth and the population will go through these events and so much more than I’ve shared with you today.

If you did indeed miss the rapture today there were roughly 8.7 billion people on the earth

If 350 million of them truly have trusted Christ, then at the rapture there was around 8.35 billion people left

Based on the actual numbers we know from the Scriptures, that means by the end of the 7th seal judgment there will be at least 2,087,500,000 people killed, leaving at most 6,262,500,000 people.

Of those, we know that 1/3 will be kill in the 6th trumpet judgment, which is roughly 2.085 billion people

With at least 4,179,175,000 who die during the tribulation, this would leave at most, 4,170,825,000 people going into the Bowl/Vial Judgments… Less than half of the worlds population at the start of the tribulation period.

And this doesn’t include the multitudes who will be martyred in the name of Jesus.

Revelation 7 talks about the multitude that will be martyred as it says, Revelation 7:9

Revelation 7:9 KJV 1900

After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;

Revelation 7:13–14 KJV 1900

And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

The Bible says those who will be martyred will be so great, no man could number.

And that is coming from a God who numbered 200 million in Revelation 9:16

Friend, this will be the most horrific time in all of history!

And I can tell you this morning, you don’t want to be a part of it!

CONCLUSION

APPLICATION: You are probably thinking now, what in the world am I supposed to do with this information?

Friend, heed this warning: You don’t want to be there for the tribulation period!

You may be thinking, “I’ll just wait…” and when I see these things happening, then I will get saved.

James 4:14 KJV 1900

Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.

Proverbs 27:1 KJV 1900

Boast not thyself of to morrow; For thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.

Even if you do live long enough to reach the tribulation, there is over a 50% chance you would die in a terrible way in it.

Why would you take that chance with your eternity?

If you don’t know Christ as Savior, trust Him today!

If you are a Christian, the warning is for you and I as well.

Not that you will be left to endure it… but there are people you and I know who will.

Who do you know right now, that has never heard the Gospel?

You are willing to condemn them to this judgment and possibly an eternity in a lake of fire, because you are afraid of what they may think of you.

I know a message like today’s makes us feel uncomfortable.

IT’S TIME TO GET UNCOMFORTABLE!

It’s time to step out of your comfort zone and help save someone from the fire and judgment to come!

ILLUSTRATION: Nearly 24 years ago, I remember walking down the hallway in my school and seeing a tv with picture of two burning buildings.

24 years ago, there were 343 fire fighters and 60 police officers who ran into those burning buildings to try to save someone else’s life from a burning crumbling building.

24 years ago, a group 44 people on flight 93 made a decision not to be like the three planes that crashed into the world trade centers and the pentagon.

They sacrificed their lives to overthrow the terrorists to save the lives of someone else they didn’t know.

These people allowed nothing to hold them back from doing all they could to save someone else’s life!

24 years ago, a nation that was broken and battered, rose up and together we said, “We are proud to be an American”

Men and women would volunteer over the next 24 years to put their lives on the line to ensure that lives back home were safe from the terror attacks of that day!

We were willing to do whatever it took to save the lives of someone else!

APPLICATION: There is a day coming that will cause the horrors of that day 24 years ago to pale in comparison.

And it isn’t just lives that are on the line, it’s eternities!

It’s time for Christians to rise up unashamedly, and enter the spiritual battlefield with the Gospel of Christ.

I praise God for the boldness of all the men and women who were willing to give their lives on that day 24 years ago and every day since then!

I hope you are patriotic and I hope you love our country!

But may we not be great patriots, and weak Christians.

May we be willing to stand like Paul in Romans 1:15-16

Romans 1:15–16 KJV 1900

So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also. For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

Friend, the rapture is real… the tribulation is real!

Who are you going to talk to about Christ this week?

Who are you going to invite to church this week?

Let’s get serious about the things of God… and be bold witnesses for Him today!

Because the reality is, Jesus could come back at any moment… and then it just might be too late!

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