Introduction

Although much has been written on the seventy-week prophecy found in the ninth chapter of Daniel, there has been little consensus concerning its significance, or the time periods it describes.¹ However, if we lay aside for the moment, questions of chronology, and focus on the key phrases of Dan 9:24, and how they feature in the gospels and epistles of the NT, fresh insights will emerge. To what extent might these phrases found in the NT be seen as fulfillments of Daniel’s prophecy?

Of particular interest to this study is the string of references that refer to “the fullness of time.”² What significance did the people of NT times place upon these statements, and how were they impacted by the vision of Dan 9. Additionally, how widespread, in the early Christian Church, was the understanding of the 70 “weeks” being counted as years rather than days?³ Even in the third century BC, it is “striking and significant,” to note that the LXX, renders the “sevens” of Dan 9 as “weeks of years.”⁴ This paper will address some of these questions, beginning with the broad sweep of the vision, then analyze the elements mentioned in v. 24, and finally draw conclusions.

First, to the prophecy itself. After a prayer of confession and a plea for the forgiveness and restoration of his people in exile, the prophet Daniel is visited by the angel Gabriel with a vision intended to give him “insight and understanding” (Dan 9:21, 22). This is in contrast to the previous two visions (chapter 7 and chapter 8) that left Daniel sick and without strength because of his sense of grief and lack of understanding. Gabriel speaks of seventy “sevens”—units of probationary time⁵—that would climax in six outcomes: finishing transgression, putting an end to sin, atoning for wickedness, bringing in everlasting righteousness, sealing up the vision and prophecy, and anointing the most holy (v. 24). It may be seen that these phrases occur in pairs, and that the first three elements correspond to and prepare the way for the second group of three.⁶

Fig. 1. Relationship Between the Elements of Dan 9:24

It may be observed that the second column is the catalyst for the first: finishing transgression is made possible by the bringing in of everlasting righteousness; the dénouement of the prophetic corpus sees an end to sin; and atoning for wickedness is accomplished by the anointing of the most holy—either a clear reference to the day of atonement, or the consecration of a new high priesthood.¹⁰ The first column describes the complexity of the problem of evil––with three different synonyms for evil (among the people)––and the second column uncovers the comprehensiveness of its remedy (as it affects the city and the sanctuary).

“The six actions of 9:24 provide a panoramic overview of the period described in 9:25–27,”¹¹ all of which are contingent on the coming of “the Anointed One” (v. 25)¹² who would “confirm the covenant for one “seven,” and put an end to sacrifice and offering at the midpoint of that period (v. 27), when he would be put to death (v. 26).¹³ As a step toward pinpointing that time, the vision speaks of starting the clock when the decree goes out to “restore and rebuild Jerusalem” (v. 25).

Among the various suggestions for identifying the decree are: the decree of Cyrus king of Persia¹⁴ in about 538 BC (Ezra 1:2-4),¹⁵ the decree of Artaxerxes authorizing Ezra’s rebuilding in the seventh year of Artaxerxes (Ezra 7:7, 11–27), in 457 BC,¹⁶ Nehemiah’s rebuilding (Neh 2:8-9), in 445 or 444 B.C.,¹⁷ or the word of God to Daniel.¹⁸ As stated earlier, rather than rehashing issues of chronology, it may be more instructive to examine the impact and relevance of Daniel’s prophecy on later generations, focusing especially on the era of the incarnation and ministry of Christ.

The NT provides ample evidence of how the elements of the vision impact the preaching of both Jesus Christ and the authors of the early Christian canonical documents. The common thread among them is the concept of “the fullness of time,” found in ways that parallel the three elemental pairs referred to earlier:

1. Finishing Transgression with Everlasting righteousness

2. Sealing the Prophecy with an End to Sin

3. The coming of the Anointed One to Atone for Iniquity

Finishing Transgression with Everlasting righteousness

The first element of Daniel’s prophecy concerns the ushering in of everlasting righteousness. This is what Dan 9 promises (v. 24), and rather than focusing on the destruction and desolation that accompanies it, the NT focuses on the announcement of the kingdom, observed at the dawn of Jesus’ ministry–– immediately after his wilderness temptations. At that time, he began to proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt 4:17). This matches a prophecy that Isaiah made of light dawning for a people who had previously been in darkness––one day they would see a great light (Isa 9:1, 2; Matt 4:15, 16).

Mark’s gospel is more specific when identifying the ushering in of everlasting righteousness: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15). Jesus expands the timeframe of the kingdom even further when he proclaims, “Assuredly, I say to you that there are some standing here who will not taste death till they see the kingdom of God present with power” (Mark 9:1). As J. Marcus comments, “Mark also, like Jesus before him, saw the eschatological epoch as already dawning, a point driven home by the transfiguration narrative that immediately follows.”¹⁹ If this is so, then those of Jesus’ inner circle of Peter, James, and John, experienced that dawn in the next few verses on the mount of transfiguration.²⁰ In other words, the first glimpses of everlasting righteousness were seen on that mountain, pointing towards a future restoration, when everlasting righteousness would be the new reality.

Peter later referred to his experience on the mount of transfiguration, “we were eyewitnesses of his majesty” (2 Pet 1:16). Peter also couched his comments in the context of a time element:

Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of the Messiah and the glories that would follow. (1 Peter 1:10, 11).

Peter is here referring to the earnest efforts of the prophets of old struggling to discern the time and circumstances of the suffering Messiah. When they caught glimpses of this end game, they knew that it would not happen in their day, but much later. Peter was convinced that his time was the day (v. 12). He concludes his statements on chronology by affirming; “[Christ] indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world but was manifest in these last times for you” (1 Pet 1:20).

Paul says something similar. He speaks of God’s purpose––“that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth—in him” (Eph 1:10). It is significant that Paul connects this inauguration of adoption as God’s children with the birth of Christ—which he also describes as taking place “in the fullness of time” (Gal 4:4, 5).

In his other epistles, Paul observes: “the mystery which has been hidden…has been revealed to his saints” (Rom 16:25, 26; Col 1:26). “And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation” (Rom 5:11). Paul recognizes that the day in which he speaks is a significant transition point in history. He comments elsewhere: “Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one’s praise will come from God” (1 Cor 4:5). He identifies his own time as the time in which “the mystery of Christ” has “been revealed by the Spirit to his holy apostles and prophets,” and he universalizes the effect of this phenomenon, so that “…the mystery of Christ, which in other ages was not made known to the sons of men…has now been revealed by the Spirit…that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ” (Eph 3:4–6). And to Titus he shares the “hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began, but has in due time manifested his word through preaching, which was committed to me according to the commandment of God our Savior” (Titus 1:2, 3).

Further evidence of the significance of the time is found in Paul’s assertion to the philosophers of Athens that in the past God overlooked the ignorance of the Gentiles, but now commands all men everywhere to repent (Acts 17:30). “that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world” (Eph 2:12). This is a different story to the original expectation of the disciples, even right up to the time of Jesus’ departure to Heaven from the Mount of Olives. Their concern was, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6). To this Jesus replied, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in his own authority” (v. 7). The restoration of the kingdom that the disciples hoped for was a poor substitute for the “times of refreshing,” that the prophets spoke of, during which heaven would receive Jesus, “until the time comes for God to restore everything” (Acts 3:19–21). Although this probably refers to the distant return of Jesus when he would restore everything,²¹ there was the hint that “Even now, those who turn to him for forgiveness may enjoy in advance some of the blessings associated with the coming era.”²²

However, after Pentecost, the apostles were sure that the time for action (for them), was now, not in the future. They proclaimed, “now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed” (Rom 13:11). Paul said something similar to the Corinthian believers: “We then, as workers together with him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For he says: ‘In an acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped you.’ Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation” (2 Cor 6:1, 2). These words to Gentile believers are consistent with the sense of Rom 11 that speaks of a time when some “branches” are broken off (making some question the continuance of the Israelites as God’s chosen; Rom 11:1–5, 15), and new “branches” are “grafted in” (vv. 17– 21). This is consistent with the probationary warning of Dan 9:24.

To sum up this section on everlasting righteousness beginning at the time of Christ’s ministry, we have noted that the proclamation of the good news focused on its unique time in history. Jesus preached that the kingdom of heaven was at hand, and Peter described his experience on the mount of transfiguration, which Jesus identified as being a first glimpse of the kingdom. Luke describes those times as times of refreshing (Acts 3:19, 20), while Paul spoke of them as the day of salvation, affirming that now (for his generation), they were in a transition between branches being broken from the root, and new ones being grafted in, consistent with Daniel’s prophecy of time being set for God’s people before further judgment against them would take place.

Sealing the Prophecy with an End to Sin

The second reflection in the NT from Dan 9 is the warning of the coming destruction of the city and the sanctuary (v. 26).²³ The first hint of this is in the preaching of John the Baptist when he asked the crowds, “who warned you of the wrath to come?” and then more specifically, “the ax is already at the root of the trees” (Luke 3:7, 9).²⁴ Later in his discourse, when speaking of the one coming who would be greater than him, John spoke of Messiah clearing the “threshing floor” (v. 17); a clear reference to the end of one era and the beginning of another.

Probably the best-known reference to impending doom is when Jesus responded to the disciples’ admiration of the beautiful temple glinting in the afternoon sun (Mark 13:1, 2; Luke 21:5, 37). His reply must have stunned them; “Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down” (Matt 24:2). They equated that prediction with the end of the world (Matt 24:3), but Jesus had already hinted that these things would occur much sooner. At the same time, he also warned of imposters that would try to impersonate Him: “Take heed that you not be deceived. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am He,’ and, ‘The time has drawn near.’ Therefore, do not go after them” (Luke 21:8).

Previously, after denouncing the teachers of the law and the Pharisees with seven woes for their hypocrisy (Matt 23:13–32), Jesus then warned of coming persecution for the believers (v. 34). Next, he declared that the present generation would be held accountable for the blood, not only from present persecution, but also for all previous martyrs––“Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation” (vv. 35, 36). Or, as Luke records it, “the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world …shall be required of this generation” (Luke 11:50, 51). Later in his Gospel, Luke quotes Jesus, “your enemies will…level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation” (19:44).

In Luke’s account of the judgements on Jerusalem, he quotes Jesus saying; “For these are the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled (Luke 21:22). In other words, the reference to a probationary cut-off that Daniel had warned about, was to be fulfilled in the time of that particular generation. Jesus continued; “and they will fall by the edge of the sword and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled” (v. 24). Peter reflected these concerns, suggesting how the early church would be impacted with the impending destruction of Jerusalem: “For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?” (1 Peter 4:17).

In the same week that Jesus made those provocative statements, just before his crucifixion, he told the parable of the abusive tenants who killed the son of a vineyard owner. He then likened the father’s reaction to the murder of his son, to a stone that crushes––a parallel to the stone smashing into the feet of the stature in Daniel’s vision (Dan 2:34, 35, 44). Jesus then applied that prophecy to the nation, by likening himself to the stone that was rejected by the builders (“the stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone,” Matt 21:42). He then warned that “whoever falls on this stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder” (v. 44). Or as Daniel describes it in chap 9, “The determined end will be poured out on the one who desolates” (Dan 9:27).

In the early days of Jesus’ ministry, he was discreet about his identity and asked others not to reveal it. He spoke in parables and metaphors that seemed a bit obscure. But on this occasion Jesus is speaking more openly, and “when the chief priests and Pharisees heard His parables, they perceived that He was speaking of them” (Matt 24: 45). Jesus’ concluding statement in this discourse was, “Therefore I say to you

the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it” (v. 43), which is a plain fulfillment of the probationary conditions of Dan 9.

Thus, the era of foretold destruction of the city and sanctuary began when Jesus launched his ministry. His cousin John warned about the ax already being laid at the root of the tree. Jesus was more direct with his warning that the present generation would be held accountable for the blood of all previous martyrs, and that the days of vengeance were imminent. Simply, the kingdom of God was taken from them and given to others (Matt 24:43).

The coming of the Anointed One to Atone for Iniquity

Perhaps the most obvious connection between Dan 9 and the gospels comes with the events surrounding Jesus’ birth and the description of his mission.²⁵ The first of these is the occasion of wise men from the East who follow a rising star, and on their arrival at Jerusalem ask, “where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him” (Matt 2:1, 2). Josephus describes the coming of the wise men.²⁶ The Magi could either have been wise men or astrologers.²⁷ It appears they were familiar with the sacred writings of the Jews, and apparently associated the appearance of a strange star with the prophecy of Balaam; “a star shall come out of Jacob” (Num 24:17). Their question to Herod about a newly-born king (Matt 2:2) is the conclusion they came to after reading the ancient Jewish writings. Dan 9 is the only OT reference to put a time to this event, suggesting that the wise men connected the prophecy of a rising star (Num 24:7) and the 7 plus 62 weeks of years until the appearance of “Messiah the Prince” (Dan 9:24), and then set out to find him.²⁸ Whatever the explanation, the timing of the appearance of a rising star was significant enough for them to set out on a journey that would have lasted months.²⁹ Would they have set out on such an arduous journey if they were not convinced about their assumptions, calculations, and conclusions?

When the wise men arrived in Jerusalem, “Herod was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him” (Matt 2:3). Herod determined from the chief priests and teachers of the law that “Messiah was to be born in Bethlehem of Judea” (vv. 4, 5), and from the wise men “the exact time the star had appeared” (v. 7). The decreed death of all baby boys under the age of 2, based on the timing of the star as reported by the wise men (Matt 2:16), demonstrates Herod’s fear that maybe the eastern sages were correct in identifying the long awaited messianic deliverer, and Herod determined to remove any threat to his own position.

Before the arrival of the magi, and a week after the birth of the infant Jesus, when his parents took him to the temple for his “purification rites” (Luke 2:22), old Simeon rejoiced that he had seen the much anticipated “Consolation of Israel” (Luke 2:25ff). Soon after, the “very’ old³⁰ prophetess Anna (Luke 2:36), who had also been expecting One who was to bring “redemption in Jerusalem,” shared her happiness in seeing the fulfillment of that expectation in the birth of this baby (v. 38). The rejoicing of these two old saints is evidence of a general expectation, at that time, of an imminent and significant birth, and they both saw this baby as the fulfilment of that anticipation.

Writing several decades later, Paul described Jesus’ birth in terms of “when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman…” (Gal 4:4). The use of the aorist indicative active, ἦλθεν, suggests a point in time past, when a chronological waypoint had been reached. Did the magi determine this as they worked with the holy texts of a foreign nation to conclude that a king was going to born at a time predicted by Daniel the prophet? That being the case, then Jesus’ birth was not only calculated by foreign wise men and anticipated at least in some sections of the general populace, but also Daniel’s seventy weeks prophecy was still recognized as significant, well into the first century AD.

And while we are in the East, let me refer to the Kumbh Mela festival, which celebrates the journey of a pot of divine nectar that lasted 12 divine days or 12 years of mortal time.³¹ This is recorded in Hindu scriptures dating to at least the fourth century BC,³² indicating that a year and a day were interchangeable between human and divine measurements of time, and suggests that this concept was widespread enough for the wise men of the East to include it in their calculations.

Therefore, the coming of the Anointed One created no small commotion, demonstrated by the satisfied recognition by two aged prophets that a long-anticipated event had finally come, the arrival of the eastern sages in Jerusalem, Herod’s death decree for all baby boys less than two years old, and Paul’s summation that the birth of the child that ushered in all these events, occurred in the fulness of time. Additionally, the Hindu festival focusing on the passing of time being measured in days by the gods, but in years by humanity, gives further evidence that the wise men from the east had at their disposal a method of determining Daniel’s prophetic timing for the coming of a king––or the rising of a star as Balaam put it (Num 24:17). However, the prophecy not only spoke of the birth of the Anointed One, but also his death, which is what we shall examine next.

The Anointed One cut off

The prophecy of Daniel 9 refers to the “Anointed One” being put to death “but not for himself” ( ִיָּכֵרת לֹו ְוֵאין ָּמִשיַח). Peter elaborated on this when he spoke of the prophets predicting the sufferings of Messiah (1 Peter 1:11). Significantly, Peter applied these prophecies not to the time of the prophets, but to his own day (v.12). The gospel stories explain it this way. In the days before his crucifixion, Jesus predicted his death to a group of Greeks who had come to see him (John 12:20, 21). He spoke of the necessity for a grain of wheat to “die” and to be planted in the ground, or it would remain a solitary seed rather than multiplying into many (vv. 23, 24). He concluded by declaring; “Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!” (v. 27). To underscore the significance of the occasion, “a voice came from heaven, saying, ‘I have glorified it and will glorify it again’” (v. 28). At the murmur of the crowd Jesus confirmed that the voice was to assure them that the time for judgement had come, when “the prince of this world will be driven out” (vv. 29–31). The repeated mention of time in this narrative is significant. A waypoint had been reached.

On another occasion Jesus landed on the far shore of Galilee in the region of the Gadarenes, and was confronted by “two demon-possessed men” (Matt 8:28–34). They greeted him with the shouted question, “Have you come here to torture us before the appointed time?” (v. 29). What appointed time? Even though many Bible commentators see this as the judgement at the end of time,³³ from the concern of the demons it appears they understood the appearance of Jesus as a signal for the end of their free reign in tormenting humanity. Furthermore, the impending death of Jesus would also strike the death-blow to the reign of evil. The demons’ description of the time as “appointed,” indicates that they understood a significant milestone had been reached and is further evidence of a NT link to the Dan 9 prophecy.

Still more evidence is seen in the description of Christ facing his impending crucifixion. “When the time had come” Luke says, Jesus “steadfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem” (Luke 9:51). Reflecting on this, Paul writes, “In due time Christ died for the ungodly” (Rom 5:6). In recognition of the climax of the event, at the moment just before his death, Jesus gasps, “It is finished” (John 19:30). His destiny on Earth, previously prophesied by Daniel, had been fulfilled.

The significance of this “suffering Messiah” theme is further alluded to on the occasion, towards the end of his earthly sojourn, that he delayed his visit to Jerusalem for the feast of Succoth, telling his brothers in Galilee that the time (for his death) had not yet come (John 7:6, 8). However, he did make an appearance at the temple halfway through the festival (v. 14), asking the people why they wanted to kill him (v. 19). While some accused him of being demon possessed for making such a claim (v. 20), others readily admitted that there was in fact a plot brewing for his death (v. 25). They reasoned that if the authorities were not following through with this threat, then Jesus must indeed be the Messiah (vv. 25, 26). However, after more confrontational dialogue with the crowd, the public sentiment rapidly changed, and they tried to arrest him, but were unable to do so, “because his hour had not yet come” (v. 30). Three times within this account the statement is repeated that his time or his hour had not yet come (vv. 6, 8, 30), reinforcing the link between the concepts of impending death and a scheduled time.

In sum, two demon-possessed men questioned Jesus about the end of demonic activity. Jesus delayed his trip to Jerusalem because his time had not yet come, but when the time approached, he steadfastly set his face for Jerusalem, and after the fact, Paul summarized by saying that Jesus died, for the ungodly, at the due time.

Conclusion

First, we noticed three pairs of prophetic features in the introduction to Daniel’s prediction (Dan 9:24): finishing transgression with everlasting righteousness, sealing the prophecy with an end to sin, and the coming of the Anointed One to atone for iniquity. Each of these components were observed as echoes/allusions in the NT. Jesus preached “the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt 4:17), and the Gospel writers concurred that their day was unique, that the time had been fulfilled (Mark 1:15), while Paul affirmed that the mystery of God previously hidden was now revealed (Eph 3:4; Col 1:26).

In more direct terms, Jesus warned the Pharisees, “All these things will come upon this generation…[and] your house is left to you desolate” (Matt 23:35, 36, 38). He was referring to the death of prophets at the hand of national and religious leaders, and that the current population would reap the consequences of that ongoing perfidy—confirming the words of Daniel, that their probationary time had ended.

However, the coming and the mission of Messiah is the most dramatic line of evidence. Wise men from the East came looking for a newborn king on the strength of their calculations, based on their observance of a rising star, and the prophecies of Balaam and Daniel. They would not have made such an arduous journey if they were not convinced. And the fact that other religious traditions were already familiar with a year and a day being interchangeable between mortal and divine reckoning adds a further dimension to their scholarship and conclusions. Therefore, it is not unreasonable to suggest that both Anna and Simeon were also aware of the timing of the birth of the Promised One whose birth they had eagerly anticipated.

Drawing all these lines of evidence together, their cumulative weight demonstrates that the people of faith, both within Judaism, in the early Christian Church, together with others who observed from a distance, were convinced that they were on the brink of something significant. They expected the birth of a Deliverer, largely because of Daniel’s prophecy of the 70 sevens. Anna, Simeon, the wise men from the East, and presumably many others, were convinced that Messiah had been born. And it is that Messianic element that gives Daniel 9 its vitality. As Jesus and his followers preached, their message had dramatic impact, and it spread rapidly, because it meshed with the hopes and expectations of the populace.

The implications of this study are significant. It cannot be glibly assumed that the “year-day principle” is a relic of misplaced Christian numerology, but that it is a legitimate measure used by people of NT times to help them make sense of their times and to sharpen their preaching. Even more significant, if the principle is valid in Dan 9, then it is equally valid for chapter 8, and we now have more reason to be sure of the faith once delivered to the saints.