Prophecy 4
– The Seventy Weeks
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Love
Versus Foreknowledge
Some people
become confused when hearing about
the concept of Plan A and Plan B for
the first time. The confusion often
stems from this argument: If God
perfectly foreknows the future, there
cannot be two plans! Let us carry
this argument to its logical
conclusion. If God foreknew that
Lucifer would sin and He created Him
anyway, who is responsible for sin?
Why did God create a third of the
angels foreknowing that they would
participate in Lucifer’s
rebellion? God also foreknew that
Adam and Eve would sin. Did He create
them so that Jesus would have to die?
Not at all. These are important
questions and God has answered them.[34] God
declares that He keeps His
foreknowledge separate from His love
for His subjects. We will examine
this topic in depth when we study
Prophecy 6.
For now,
please consider this: God foreknew
the flood in Noah’s day would be
necessary long before it happened.
God foreknew Israel’s rebellion
long before He led Israel out of
Egypt. He foreknew that Israel would
have to wander in the desert for
forty years. God foreknew that Israel
would have to be sent into Babylonian
exile. God foreknew that Israel would
reject and crucify Christ, and God
foreknew that Jerusalem would be
totally destroyed in A.D. 70.
Even though
He foreknew all of these events,
God’s foreknowledge did not
alter His love or behavior. God does
not deal with any created being on
the basis of His foreknowledge
because His love is not
influenced by His foreknowledge. God
is love. His actions are always
consistent with the principles of
love. God already knows whether I
will be saved or lost, but His
foreknowledge does not affect His
efforts to win over my heart.
God’s love will not permit Him
to use His foreknowledge to
manipulate His children for His own
benefit. God created Lucifer
foreknowing the damage that Lucifer
would cause. God chose Israel
foreknowing the damage His choice
would cause. God showered every gift
and grace on Israel. He gave Israel
many wonderful promises, and most of
all, He sent His own Son to Israel
because His love is not
influenced by His foreknowledge.
God loved
Israel with all His heart. He wanted
Plan A to work out. He went so far as
to reveal wonderful things to
Jeremiah, Isaiah, Ezekiel, and other
Old Testament prophets about the
contents of Plan A. The key point
that so many people miss is that Plan
A was a marriage contract. The
fulfillment of Plan A was conditional on
Israel’s participation.[35] God’s
perfect foreknowledge allowed Him to
outline a portion of Plan B to Daniel
even though, at the same time, He was
illuminating Plan A to Jeremiah and
Ezekiel. This explains why God hid
Plan B from human understanding
(sealed up the book of Daniel) until
Plan A was dead.
The concept
of Plan A and Plan B is essential
when understanding Bible prophecy.
Plan A was based on man’s
cooperation with God. Plan B is not.
If Israel had cooperated with God
during the seventy weeks, the New
Testament portion of the Bible would
not have been necessary. Israel would
have been prepared to receive the
Messiah and the sin problem would
have been resolved as the Old
Testament declares. Jesus would have
remained on Earth after His
resurrection and the kingdom of God
would have been established on Earth
long ago. If all this had happened as
first planned, Plan B would have
remained unknown. But Plan A was
terminated and God appointed new
trustees to be the heirs of Abraham.[36]
Rule
Two says a fulfillment
only occurs when all of the
specifications are met, and this
includes the order stated in the
prophecy. This vision has a starting
point in time. Artaxerxes issued the
decree on or about Nisan 1, 457 B.C.
When it comes to pinpointing the
death of Jesus in the middle of the
seventieth week, there is no room for
debate on this date when all the
facts are presented. The only year
that can meet all of the details
provided in Scripture and at the same
time, align with the Sun and Moon, is
A.D. 30. The Sun and Moon are
important because their celestial
positions eliminate speculation on
the timing of Nisan 1 in A.D. 30.
Their positions have been carefully
researched and the results can be
examined at the official website of
the U.S. Naval Observatory.[37]
Rule
Three says that
apocalyptic language can be literal,
analogous, or symbolic. We know there
are no symbolic elements in this
prophecy because symbols are
defined with relevant Scripture. The
language used in this vision is
either literal or analogous. No
symbols are offered or defined.
Rule
Four is heavily used in
this prophecy. It says the presence
or absence of the Jubilee Calendar
determines how God measures time.
Both the seventy weeks prophecy and
the 2,300 day prophecy fall within
the operation of the Jubilee
Calendar. Therefore, both of these
time periods must be translated
– a day equals a year. Moreover,
it is important to notice that the
weekly cycle of years did not end
with the death of Jesus in A.D. 30
because Jesus died in the middle of
the week. In fact, the weekly cycle
of years did not end in the Thursday
year of 1844. The weekly cycle of
years ended in 1994, at the end of
seventy Jubilee cycles. See Appendix
A.
References:
- See Chapter
6 in my
book, Daniel:
Unlocked for the Final
Generation. Return
- Ibid.,
pages 176-209 Return
- Leviticus
25:13 Return
- Ezekiel 4:5,6; 2 Chronicles
36:20-22 Return
- Four
decrees were issued to
restore and rebuild
Jerusalem: Cyrus: 536 B.C.;
Darius I Hystaspes: 519 B.C;
Artaxerxes: 457 B.C.;
Artaxerxes: 444 B.C. Only one
decree, 457 B.C., occurs in a
Sunday year which also
happens to be a Jubilee year.
Identifying Jubilee years is
important because Daniel 9:25 specifies
the decree to restore and
rebuild Jerusalem must occur
at the beginning of
“seven sevens”
which is a Jubilee cycle. For
further discussion on the
patterns of Jubilee cycles,
please see Appendix A. Return
- Ezra 8:31 Return
- 2 Corinthians
5:10; Ecclesiastes
12:14 Return
- Jeremiah 25:11; 2 Chronicles
6:36-39; 36:21 Return
- Leviticus
26 Return
- Galatians
3:27-29; Romans 2:28,29; Ephesians
2:1-14 Return
- For
a discussion on the important
differences between
God’s unilateral and
bilateral covenants, please
see Chapter 8 in my
book, Jesus: The
Alpha and The Omega or
freely download at https://www.wake-up.org/Alpha/Chapter8.htm. Return
- Mark 1:15 Return
- John 1:11 Return
- Leviticus
26:40-44 Return
- Leviticus
25:23, 55; Leviticus
26:41-45; 2 Chronicles
7:20 Return
- Exodus 19:4-6; Isaiah 42:6; 49:6 Return
- Ezra 7:9-13 Return
- Leviticus
25:10 Return
- Ezra 8:31 Return
- Cyrus,
536 B.C. – Ezra 5:13
Darius I Hystaspes, 519 B.C.
– Ezra 6:12
Artaxerxes, 457 B.C.
– Ezra 7:11-13
Artaxerxes, 444 B.C.
– Nehemiah 2:1-8 Return
- Luke 3:1-3, 15, 23 Return
- Zechariah
3 and 4 Return
- Zechariah
4:6-9;
Ezra 4 Return
- Leviticus
26:13-39; Deuteronomy
28:15-29:1 Return
- Romans 5:6; Galatians 4:4,5 Return
- Romans 5:10 Return
- Genesis 3:15 The
terms and conditions for
salvation were given to Adam
and Eve by Jesus. Adam and
Eve were covered with the
skin of the first animal
sacrifice. Genesis 3:21 Abel’s
offering indicates that he
also knew the terms and
conditions for
salvation. Genesis 4:4 See Hebrews 11:4. Return
- Hebrews 9:26 through
10:14 Return
- Matthew 24:2 Return
- See
Prophecies 9 and 12. Return
- Daniel 9:20-23,
italics and insertion
mine Return
- Daniel 9:24,
italics mine Return
- Matthew
23; Jeremiah 31:31; Luke 22:20 Return
- Please
see Chapter 10 in my book, A
Study on the Seven Seals and
the 144,000. Return
- Please
see Chapters 5 and 8 in my
book, Jesus: The Alpha and
The Omega. Return
- Ephesians
2; Galatians 3:28,29; Romans 2:28,29 See
also Appendix B. Return
- Go
to http://www.usno.navy.mil and
search for the topic
“Spring
Phenomenon.” For a
comprehensive presentation on
the dating of Christ’s
death, please also see pages
189-209 in my book, Daniel,
Unlocked for the Final
Generation or
download the chapter
here: https://www.wake-up.org/Daniel/DanChap6.htm Return
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