Appendix E

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How 1798 Marks
The beginning of
The end

 

The Bible identifies the existence of many time periods. And if we carefully examine them, we can find most of them in history. It is also true that God made the meaning of certain prophetic passages obscure, but we find an interesting mechanism occurring throughout recorded history. On or about the time of fulfillment, cryptic passages from the prophecy made sense just as they read.

 

Literal time begins at creation

 

The book of Genesis mentions four time units. They are: day, week, month and year. (Genesis 1:5; 2:2, 29:27; 7:11; 1:14) These units are used to describe time in two ways:

 

Time past / Time to come

 

In Genesis 2:2, the first time period reviewed in the past is the week. On the other hand, the first time period mentioned to come is the probationary 120 years before the flood. (Genesis 6:3) Just like the seven days of creation, the 120 years mentioned in Genesis 6:3 must be literal time, because Noah was 600 years old when the flood came. (Genesis 7:6) It is believed that Noah not only built the ark during the 120 years, he also warned the world of impending destruction. (Hebrews 11:7) Even more, the seven days predicted before the flood are also seven literal days. (Genesis 7:4)

 

Certainly the ages of the patriarchs are given in literal time. For example, we know that Abraham was 100 and Sarah was 90 when Isaac was born. (Genesis 17:17, 21:5) We also find that when God spoke to Abraham of time to come, He spoke of literal time. He said, “Then the LORD said to him, ‘Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years.’”

 

(Genesis 15:13) We also find the seven years of plenty and seven years of famine in Egypt during the days of Joseph to be literal time. (Genesis 41:29,30)

 

The point here is that during the first two and a half millenniums of earth’s existence, both time periods – time past and time to come – were always reckoned in literal time. Why would it have been any other way?

 

Then came the Jubilee Calendar

 

When God took Israel out of Egypt, He created two new units of time – the week of years and the Jubilee cycle. These units of time added to the four existing units mentioned above. (The reader is referred to Appendix D for a larger discussion on the Jubilee Calendar.) The purpose of these new timing schemes is wonderful to behold. In effect, God’s purpose with the week of years was to test the faith of Israel. This was done by requiring Israel to give the land rest every seventh year. By this method, God would test them to see if they would trust enough in Him to provide for their needs. God’s purpose for the Jubilee cycle was to teach each generation of Israel that the land they had been given was not theirs. It, like salvation, was a gift. He wanted Israel to know that they were only stewards of the land, and if they failed to live up to the terms of His covenant, they would be expelled from the land. (Leviticus 26:14-46)

 

It is important to know that God synchronized the deliverance of Israel with the operation of His Jubilee calendar by establishing the first day of the month of the first year. (Exodus 12:2) From that time forward, all religious services were to be reckoned from the first day of the year. For example, the Passover began on the 14^th day of the first month. (Leviticus 23:5-8)

 

Israel’s rebellion

 

God’s first demonstration of Jubilee time occurred about two years after the Exodus from Egypt. After many wonderful and marvelous demonstrations of His love for them, He had to lead Israel to the gates of the Promised Land. There, He told Moses to send spies into the Promised Land so that the people could receive a report of what the land was like. After forty days, the spies returned and ten of them spread a bad report about the land among the Israelites. (Numbers 13:32) Their contempt for God led them to criticize Him before the people and rebellion broke out in the camp. This made God very angry and He almost destroyed the whole camp. (Numbers 14:12) Moses interceded and God relented somewhat. “The Lord replied [to Moses], ‘I have forgiven them as you have asked. {21} Nevertheless, as surely as I live as surely as the glory of the Lord fills the whole earth, {22} not one of these men who saw my glory and the miraculous signs I performed in Egypt and in the desert but who disobeyed me and tested me ten times – {23} not one of them will ever see the land I promised on oath to their forefathers. No one who has treated me with contempt will ever see it.’” (Numbers 14:20-23)

 

Then the Lord sentenced the Israelites to death in the wilderness. He said, “In the desert your bodies will fall-every one of you twenty years old or more who was counted in the census and who has grumbled against me,” (Numbers 14:29) Afterwards, the Lord explained their punishment: “For forty years-one year for each of the forty days you explored the land-you will suffer for your sins and know what it is like to have me against you.” (Numbers 14:34)

 

A stand alone principle

 

Some scholars see this last verse as a stand-alone, unique implementation of the day/year principle. From this and Ezekiel 4:5,6, they claim that the day/year principle must be used throughout apocalyptic prophecy. Such a conclusion is misleading for there is nothing in Numbers 14:34 (or Ezekiel 4:5,6) that indicates that a day equals a literal year in the apocalyptic prophecies of Daniel and Revelation. Rather, these texts demonstrate that God, for a valid reason, uses the day/year principle. Se we ask, what is the reason underlying God’s use of the day/year principle? The answer: The Jubilee Calendar.

 

Under the Jubilee Calendar, a week of seven days represents seven years. The number of days the spies spent investigating the Promised Land was forty. So when the spies returned and cast contempt upon God by giving a bad report, they violated God’s covenant to give them the Promised Land. (See Numbers 14:23) Because God’s covenant is directly connected to His plan of salvation, and because God’s covenant is directly connected to the Jubilee calendar (Leviticus 26:15-35), Israel was punished accordingly. The point here is that God did not create the day/year principle just to punish the children of Israel. Rather, He used the existing day/year principle that had been given to Israel through the Jubilee Calendar.

 

But we must ask, how can we tell when the day/year principle is to be used?

 

Seven times for Nebuchadnezzar

 

In Daniel 4, a vision was given to Nebuchadnezzar. This vision, like others recorded in Daniel, was symbolic in nature. Daniel was summoned to explain the mysterious vision and Daniel told the king that he was a great tree in the vision that he was to be cut down. Daniel explained that the vision was going to be implemented because the king had become too haughty and arrogant. Daniel also suggested that the king repent of his ways so the judgment could be stayed.

 

The vision specified that the king was to be punished for seven times.  Sure enough, twelve months later, the predicted judgment fell upon the king and he was removed from the throne. According to verse 34, the time predicted had passed and the king’s sanity and his throne were returned to him.

 

Now three points have to be made. First, this event occurred around 575 B.C., well after the Jubilee Calendar had been implemented. Secondly, most expositors of prophecy, except Jehovah’s Witnesses, are convinced that the period of times called, “seven times,” refers to seven literal years. The first century historian Flavious Josephus also supports this understanding in Antiquity of the Jews, book 10, chapter 10, and section 6. But, the point can be made from Scripture that the time period was fulfilled during the life of the king, for “at the end of the time,” his sanity returned to him. (Daniel 4:34) Lastly, the Chaldean word, ‘iddan from which the word “times” is translated (see Strong’s Hebrew word 5732) means a year, as in “one time around the sun,” So, seven times means seven years. This point can be supported by comparing Revelation 12:6 with 12:14.

 

Now the question: What excludes the seven times of Nebuchadnezzar from the day/year principle? Answer: Time periods mentioned in the 17 apocalyptic prophecies occurring under the operation of the Jubilee Calendar must be interpreted as literal units of time. Therefore, Nebuchadnezzar’s time period is to be interpreted as literal rime for it is not part of an apocalyptic prophecy.

 

Jeremiah’s prophecy

 

Jeremiah predicted that Israel would go into Babylonian captivity for seventy years. “This whole country will be a desolate wasteland, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon seventy years.” (Jeremiah 25:11) This prophecy was given around 700 B.C. Further, we know that the Jubilee calendar is in effect because Isaiah himself predicted the bounty of the coming Jubilee year (702 B.C.) would serve as a sign to Hezekiah. (Isaiah 37:30, Leviticus 25: 21,22) We know from numerous historical sources that the Babylonian captivity of the Jews began with Nebuchadnezzar’s first siege in 605 B.C. We also find that Daniel, toward the end of his life, understood that the seventy years predicted by Jeremiah was about to end and he prayed for deliverance of his people, (Daniel 9:2-20) When we add these items together, we find the following: the seventy years of Jeremiah are literal because they are not within any of the 17 apocalyptic structures in Daniel and Revelation. We also find that Daniel, who was contemporary at the time, understood the prophecy to cover seventy literal years.

 

 

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