Daniel’s Seventy Weeks: Where the Timeline Paused

In our last few studies, we have looked at an overview of the four world empires Daniel prophesied would come before Jesus finally sets up His literal kingdom on earth. The general overview is that Babylon would give way to Medo-Persia, then Medo-Persia would give way to Greece, and Greece would give way to Rome, which would be dissolved and mixed into all the world. Then Jesus would return to set up His own kingdom.

Knowing these things helps us mark anchor points on the timeline of prophecy. But there is a lot of detail that the Bible gives along the journey. Before we begin looking at those details, let’s back up a bit to understand why these nations are important in the first place.

There is one thing every world empire listed throughout the prophecies of Daniel has in common: they all exist for the purpose of making Israel—and specifically Jerusalem—desolate. Each empire displaced and scattered the people of Israel.

While we see mentions of Israel throughout the course of these empires, it refers to the land, not an actual self-governing nation. Even during the time of Jesus, Israel may have had limited control over itself, but it was still ultimately under the authority of Rome.

What that means is that Israel may have existed as a land, but it was desolate as a unified people.

Daniel knew Babylon would rule over Israel for seventy years through the prophecy given by Jeremiah. So he knew the time for Babylon to rule over them was nearing its end. But Jeremiah did not say anything about three more world empires to follow it.

Daniel’s 70 Weeks

Once Daniel recognized this, he began to pray over their return to Jerusalem. Daniel was perplexed.

God had been giving Daniel visions of world empires. But according to Jeremiah, they would be returning to Jerusalem after Babylon. So Daniel did not understand what these visions were about. From his point of view, they would return to Israel and be completely restored, never to suffer like this again.

But God did not leave Daniel without answers.

Daniel is receiving new information not previously revealed to Jeremiah. God is letting Daniel know that what he expects—Israel becoming its own sovereign nation when their stay in Babylon is over—is not going to happen. Jeremiah said a command to rebuild and restore Jerusalem would be made, but he never said it would no longer be under someone else’s authority.

Now God is telling Daniel the true extent of the planned desolations of Jerusalem. He is told that seventy weeks are determined for the people of Israel to be scattered and for Jerusalem to be under the rule of others. It was not going to end with Babylon.

Seventy Weeks Equals 490 Years

At this point, you might be wondering how everything is supposed to be finished in seventy weeks. That would equal 490 days—less than two years—for everything in the prophecy to happen. That would be a huge problem if the prophecy were talking about seventy times seven literal days.

But the word translated as weeks in Hebrew is shavu‘im, which simply means sevens. It can mean seven days (as in a normal week) or seven of something else, such as seven years, depending on the context. It was translated as weeks because that is the common, everyday usage. But context always determines the real meaning of words, even in English.

The meaning of words in any language is not limited to a dictionary definition isolated from context. So what does the context tell us the word week means here?

The text tells us the vision itself “is for many days” and concerns the latter days. This shows that Daniel’s prophecies are intended to cover far more than 490 days. On top of that, Daniel goes on to describe events that take place over many years within the same context. From this, we know the word week does not mean seven days.

There are many other places in the Bible that give us contextual clues to this meaning as well.

God has often used a day to represent a year. So seven days can represent seven years.

If you are unaware, the Sabbath is the last day of the week. Yet here God says the Sabbath is the last of seven years. So again, Scripture shows us that a “week” is not always measured in days—it is measured in sevens.

But what really clinches this as a period of seven years is the fulfillment of part of the prophecy.

This prophecy tells us that sixty-nine weeks would pass between the commandment to restore and rebuild Jerusalem and the arrival of the Messiah. That would be 483 days if a week were counted as seven days—or 483 years if a week were counted as seven years.

From history, we know that the command to restore and rebuild Jerusalem went out in 457 BC through Artaxerxes’ decree to Ezra. Exactly 483 years later, Jesus was anointed as the Messiah. Three and a half years later He was killed. So we can be certain—by context and by history—that the word week here means seven years.

It is not a mistranslation to say week. Translators used week because that is the normal meaning of shavu‘im in Hebrew. But the word itself does not specify whether it means seven days, seven years, or another unit of time. They could not translate it as seven years because the Hebrew is not that specific. There was no proper word to communicate the meaning. Instead, they translated it as week and allowed the context to guide the reader to the correct meaning.

The Seventy-Week Timeline

Let’s look more closely at what is supposed to happen during the seventy weeks.

The first thing we are told is that there will be a total of 490 years in which God deals specifically with Israel and Jerusalem. This period of time does not include any gap in which God is not specifically dealing with them. This will be important to understand as we continue.

Next, we are told that during this period there will be a finishing of transgression, an end made of sins, reconciliation with God for the iniquity of man, the bringing in of everlasting righteousness, the complete fulfillment of prophecy, and the anointing of the Most Holy.

The ministry of Jesus put an end to transgression and sin by making a way for us to be born again. That which is born of God cannot sin. To understand this better, please see this study. He made reconciliation between God and man for our iniquity. He gave us His righteousness. He fulfilled what He came to do at that time.

The Gap in Daniel’s Seventy Weeks

While Jesus accomplished these things through His life, death, and resurrection, not everything listed in prophecy has been completed in full.

Everlasting righteousness has been secured, but it has not yet been universally established on the earth. Sin has been judged at the cross, but it has not yet been fully removed from the world. Prophecy has been fulfilled in part, but it has not yet been sealed in its entirety.

If the 490 years were supposed to complete all of this, what happened?

Take another look at the prophecy. It tells us that Jesus would begin His ministry as Messiah after the sixty-ninth week. That places the beginning of His ministry at the start of the seventieth week. The prophecy then states that three and a half years later—in the middle of that week—He would be cut off, but not for Himself.

That tells us the first half of the seventieth week was completed at the time of His crucifixion and resurrection. But again, why was everything not completed during the remaining three and a half years?

There have been many theories on this subject. Some believe everything was fulfilled in the first century with the destruction of the temple in AD 70. But that takes us far beyond three and a half years after Jesus’ death. Others say it was all symbolic anyway—but that removes Jesus from history altogether. There are many theories but many problems with them as well.

So what does the Bible say? Remember, the complete seventy weeks were given specifically for God to deal with Israel and Jerusalem.

When Jesus brought in the new covenant of mercy without temple sacrifice, God tore the veil of the temple in half from top to bottom. Scripture tells us this signified that the way to God was now open for all. But it means more than that.

It means the Spirit of God departed from the temple. He left it desolate (meaning empty or abandoned). He set aside the house of Israel in order to bring in the Gentiles. The physical temple remained standing until it was destroyed in AD 70, but God had already left it desolate.

It was at this point that God stopped dealing with Israel under the Old Covenant. Remember what was said earlier: the 490 years were for God to deal specifically with Israel. If He temporarily stops dealing with Israel in that way, the prophetic timeline must pause until He returns to them.

So the final half of the seventieth week is paused at this point. But when does it resume?

Many debate whether it is the Messiah or “the prince that shall come” who confirms a covenant for one week and then, in the middle of it, causes sacrifice and oblation to cease. But the covenant Jesus established was never intended to last for only one week, nor to be confirmed for only such a short period. The new covenant is everlasting and is to be proclaimed to the ends of the earth.

This points to a different covenant being confirmed and a different person causing desolation. For a period of three and a half years, the Jewish people attempt to reestablish their Old Covenant relationship with God. And just as God promised, if His people turned back to Him, He would return to them.

God set the Jewish people aside not because He no longer wanted them, but because He still did. After a period of three and a half years in which they seek to renew the Old Covenant, God has mercy on them and returns His focus to them. He does not reestablish the Old Covenant; instead, He resumes the final half of the seventieth week, since Israel has again become His primary focus.

Take special note that the last week does not begin with the confirmation of the covenant for seven years. It began with Jesus and paused halfway through. Nor does it resume at the confirmation of the covenant for seven years; it resumes in the middle of it.

This explains the gap in the timeline. The text itself shows where and why the timeline pauses and where it resumes. Understanding this will be important as we go verse by verse through Daniel 11 in the next study.

Continue To Unit 7:11 – Daniel 11: The Kings of the North and South (Part 1: Fulfilled Prophecy) OR

Return To Christianity 101 Unit 7 – The Latter Days – A Detailed Look