The 70th Week, The Final 7 Years

AUGUST 21, 2022 STUDY NOTES DANIEL 9:27 BIBLE TEACHER: CLIFTON JONES THE 70TH WEEK, THE FINAL 7 YEARS INTRODUCTION Daniel 9:24-27 is the prophecy known as the “Seventy Weeks of Daniel” The time-period covered by the prophecy is 490 years 483 years of the 490 years have literally been fulfilled which leaves a final 7-year period Daniel 9:26 presents a time gap within the 490-year prophecy, between the 69th & 70th week The gap between the 69th and 70th week is an undetermined period-of time The gap has already lasted for 2,000 years, the church age is between the 69 th and the 70th week The final 7 years of the prophecy is yet to be fulfilled, it will literally be fulfilled The final 7 years is known as the “Seventieth Week of Daniel” The final period will be for seven years, which is still yet to come The final 7-year period will begin with a covenant Dan 9:27And 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. “AND HE,” who is “He?” He is “the prince who will come,” verse 26 The “prince who shall come,” is not the Messiah, he is the future Antichrist Both Christ and Antichrist are referred to as “prince” which is synonymous with “king” “Anti” presents the one who is opposed to or against the True Christ, he is an imposter “Instead of” the True Christ, there comes one who will present himself as Christ The description of the coming prince in verse 27 does not identify with the “True Christ” It is the future Antichrist that will fulfill the prophecy of Daniel 9:27 AND HE SHALL CONFIRM THE COVENANT WITH MANY FOR ONE WEEK The covenant will be between the prince that is to come, the Antichrist, and the nation of Israel The beginning of the final 7 years will be when Antichrist will make a covenant with Israel Antichrist will be known as one who can “confirm the covenant” “Confirm” identifies with superior strength, success, power to prevail, and extreme authority “The covenant,” covenants of today do not define a true Biblical covenant, a firm guarantee Covenants today are taken lightly and often broken by those who have agreed to keep it Covenants were the most solemn and binding agreement known in the ancient world The integrity of the covenant depended upon the integrity of the parties involved in the agreement The Antichrist will appear to be the one who can and will confirm the covenant with Israel The context reveals “with many” as referring to Israel, who will long for a peace agreement “With many” may indicate a majority but not all Jews will be in-agreement with the covenant Before such a covenant can take place, Israel must be back in her land Which occurred in May 1948 and then Israel regained control of her city in 1967 The final preparations for the beginning of the 70th week are in place Israel is back in her land but under constant conflict from many sources Israel now faces terrorism and the Palestinian pressure, even world pressure Israel is looking for a solution to peace which the United Nations cannot provide Page 1 of 5 Israel could now be ready at any time to sign a covenant of peace with someone Someone who has the political power and military resources to guarantee her peace Peace that Israel desperately needs and desires, the Antichrist covenant could be very soon The future covenant will be for the protection, safety, and security of Israel When that time comes, Israel will greatly need protection and will be seeking a political messiah Before the covenant can be established, the Antichrist must come and establish his power base Which begins with his conquering 3 nations and then ruling the final beast empire (Dan 7:23-24) All of which could now take place in a brief period of-time, some of which could be overnight The covenant will be for “one week,” literally for “one seven,” one 7-year period-of time The best way to refer to this future time-period is to call it “The Seventieth Week of Daniel” It is misleading to identify the future 7-year period of-time as the “Tribulation” (Often done) Scripture does not present a period of seven years known as “The Tribulation Period” Many call that time-period the “Tribulation” because they believe it to be God’s wrath Their conclusion is that there will be seven years of God’s wrath The future 7-year period, known as, “the 70th week of Daniel,” is not the wrath of God Throughout scripture, the time of God’s wrath is clearly identified as the, “Day of the Lord” The tribulation of the 70th week is Satan’s day and not the “Day of the Lord” AND IN THE MIDST OF THE WEEK In the middle of the 70th week the Antichrist will break his covenant with Israel The 70th week is divided into two equal periods, each numbered as 3 ½ years Sometimes the 3 ½ years is identified in scripture as 42 months (Revelation 11:2; 13:5) Also identified as 1260 days (Revelation 11:3; 12:6) The time-period is also numbered as a time, and times, and half a time (Rev 12:14; Dan. 12:7) After 3 ½ years, (literal time) Antichrist will put an end to the sacrificial offerings of Israel HE SHALL CAUSE THE SACRIFICE AND THE OBLATION TO CEASE The covenant will allow Israel to reinstitute their sacrificial system which Antichrist will stop After 3 ½ years, in the middle of the final week, Antichrist will put a stop to the temple sacrifices “Oblation” refers to the grain offerings, all offerings will be brought-to an end by Antichrist The offering of temple sacrifices implies a rebuilding of the Jerusalem Temple The sacrifices in the Temple in Jerusalem ceased in 70AD when the Temple was destroyed The Jews were left with no acceptable place to perform sacrifices A sacrificial place must be rebuilt in-order for Levitical sacrifices to be reinstituted in the future Which may occur before or within the beginning of the 70 th week Sometimes before the middle of the 70th week the temple in Jerusalem must be rebuilt Scripture does not indicate that the entire temple structure must be rebuilt It may be an altar upon which sacrifices can be offered by the nation of Israel In the middle of the 70th week the Antichrist will desecrate this sacred place of sacrifice It is the unbelieving Jews who desire the sacrificial system to be reinstituted Believing Jews know that Jesus provided the perfect sacrifice which does not need to be repeated Heb 10:12 But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; Heb 10:14 For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified. Antichrist will defile the temple at the mid-point of the 70th week FOR THE OVERSPREADING OF ABOMINATIONS HE SHALL MAKE IT DESOLATE Jesus confirmed that a well-known event will divide the future seven-year period-of time Antichrist will set up what Jesus called the abomination of desolation, Mat 24:15 When ye therefore shall Page 2 of 5 see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (maybe only a sacrificial altar) (whoso readeth, let him understand:) Jesus said that you are going to be able to “see” this event predicted by Daniel The person who will be standing in the holy place will be the Antichrist “Abomination” describes that which is reprehensible or detestable to God That which is sacrilegious, a mockery, or blasphemy toward God “Desolation” means to make something waste, to bring it to ruin, or to destroy what is good The event described in scripture is actually “the abomination that causes desolation” Paul explains the same event, 2Th 2:3 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; Christians are not to be deceived by any of Satan’s attempts to turn us away from Christ It is the “Day of the Lord” that will not come before “a falling away,” or the apostasy “The apostasy” will be a specific and identifiable event, it will be “the rebellion” The event of which there has never been anything equal to it before It will be the greatest rebellion toward God that has ever occurred Paul is identifying the most blasphemous act that will ever occur Never-before the time of “The Apostasy” has there been such an act of blasphemy Once “The Apostasy” occurs there will never again be such an act of blasphemy “The Apostasy” will be what Jesus called the “Abomination of Desolation” Which will occur at the mid-point of the 70th Week of Daniel, as prophesied in Daniel 9:27 The “Abomination of Desolation” will be the event that reveals, “that man of sin” 2Th 2:4 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. The antichrist will oppose God, he will exalt himself above everything that is called God He puts himself in place of everything that is worshipped, he sets himself up in God’s temple He proclaims himself to be God and demands that the world worship him The identity of Antichrist will be revealed at that time, all will know who the real Antichrist is The “Abomination of Desolation” will be the beginning of the “Great Tribulation,” Mat 24:21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. “For then” refers to the Abomination of Desolation in Matthew 24:15 Jesus called the time-period that follows the abomination of desolation “The Great Tribulation” The “Great Tribulation” will not be for a 7-year period-of time The Great Tribulation will not be the day of God’s wrath, it is not the time of God’s judgment The Great Tribulation is the day of “Satan’s wrath, Rev 12:12 Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time. God will allow Satan to have his day of wrath before the beginning of God’s wrath Satan’s day will be a day of tribulation, affliction, and persecution upon God’s people There is only one time-period that can be called the “Great Tribulation” The Great Tribulation will be an unparalleled time of distress and affliction In the beginning of Matthew 24 Jesus presented events that will be a time of sorrow (Vss. 4-7) But then He said that those things would only be the beginning of sorrows, Mat 24:8 All these are the beginning of sorrows. Jesus warned of the severity of the time of Great Tribulation (Matthew 24:16-22; Mark 13:14-20) There has never been anything like it in history, it is still future It will be the worst persecution upon Israel and the church ever known to that time It will be greater than Nero’s Rome, Stalin’s slaughter, or Hitler’s Holocaust That is why it is called the “Great Tribulation” Page 3 of 5 It begins with Satan’s man, the Antichrist, setting himself up as God (2 Thess. 2:1-4) The fifth seal is the time of the Great Tribulation (Rev 6:9-11) Christians will face persecution and martyrdom during the Great Tribulation (Rev 7:9-17) The “Great Tribulation” will be “cut short,” Mat 24:22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened. “Those days” in verse 22 refer to the days of “great tribulation” in verse 21 It will not be the days of the 70th week of Daniel that will be shortened (Not the 7-year period) It will be the days of Great Tribulation that are cut short for the sake of God’s elect Jesus will explain the event that will cut short the Great Tribulation But first, we are told of the event that will announce the event that cuts short the tribulation God will announce to the world what is about to happen, through the “Cosmic Disturbance,” Mat 24:29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: Which will reveal the return of Christ and the coming of the Day of the Lord, Mat 24:30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. But before the day of the Lord begins, Jesus will remove the church from the earth, Mat 24:31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. Christ will return and the prophecies of Daniel will be fulfilled EVEN UNTIL THE CONSUMMATION “Even until” reveals the time-period of the Abomination of desolation has an ending The word translated “consummation” means the ultimate end, which has been determined That which has been determined is complete destruction of the Antichrist’s rule AND THAT DETERMINED SHALL BE POURED UPON THE DESOLATE The destruction of Antichrist has been decreed or determined by God beforehand Dan 7:11 I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame. Dan 7:26 But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end. Dan 11:45 And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him. 2Th 2:8 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: Rev 19:20 And the beast (Antichrist) was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone. CONCLUSION Will Christians be able to recognize this future covenant with Antichrist when it is signed? It could be possible for those who have studied and learned the events of the last days Christians will be able to identify the Antichrist at the time of the “Abomination of Desolation” No one can be certain as to the exact time of the prophetic events concerning the last days According to scripture the events will certainly take place, they will literally be fulfilled some day Christ will return and the saved will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air, 1Th 4:17 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 Page 4 of 5 so shall we ever be with the Lord. Christ will then pour out God’s righteous judgment upon the lost world, 2Th 1:8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: So, what are we to do today? Be a part of what God is doing today! Listen to the song Page 5 of 5