Eschatology 101 Part Eight
When we last talked about Daniel, we discussed much of what he had accomplished in his life. Nevertheless, his greatest accomplishment was writing down what he was told. Daniel was a Perfect Prophet. Let’s quickly review what the label means.
The term is defined as “A person identified, called, and used by Yahweh to reveal errorless information otherwise not known by the messenger and the targeted audience.” The world has many prophets, however only God has Perfect Prophets. Daniel being a Perfect Prophet brought to light many things, however it could be argued that his greatest documentation from the Lord God is chapter nine of the book of Daniel. In this book, we see the outline of God’s intended interaction with the people of Israel and the rescuing of mankind from their sins and from Satan himself.
Daniel 9:24-27 “Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy place. 25 “So you are to know and discern that from the issuing of a decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince there will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; it will be built again, with plaza and moat, even in times of distress. 26 “Then after the sixty-two weeks the Messiah will be cut off and have nothing, and the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. And its end will come with a flood; even to the end there will be war; desolations are determined. 27 “And he will make a firm covenant with the many for one week, but in the middle of the week he will put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering; and on the wing of abominations will come one who makes desolate, even until a complete destruction, one that is decreed, is poured out on the one who makes desolate.”
This is the outline of human history up until Revelation 19:20-21 “And the beast was seized, and with him the false prophet who performed the signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image; these two were thrown alive into the lake of fire which burns with brimstone. 21 And the rest were killed with the sword which came from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse, and all the birds were filled with their flesh.”
However, today we are only going to talk about the beginning aspect. “Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city.”
You will find that there are many cults and false religious groups that have distorted and taken this out of context. Many groups claim to be the targeted audience, attempting to steal what God has given the Jewish people. Some claim this has been accomplished, not recognizing the details described here and the harmony brought fourth by other scripture declaring a proper interpretation of the verse.
The event takes place with Daniel in prayer and study. Daniel 9:20-22 “Now while I was speaking and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God in behalf of the holy mountain of my God, 21 while I was still speaking in prayer, then the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision previously, came to me in my extreme weariness about the time of the evening offering. 22 He gave me instruction and talked with me and said, “O Daniel, I have now come forth to give you insight with understanding.”
Daniel is supposed to know what Israel is going to go through. Daniel is supposed to have understanding of what God intends to do with the chosen people. They have been given seventy weeks, which is 490 years. This means that there is 490 years that God has intended for something special. When God declares “for your people and your holy city” He means it. Thus all eschatology must be somehow intrinsically interwoven through the eyes of Israel. This is paramount for us to understand and is why we have our next law in eschatology.
The Law of Accomplishment which states, “God has given 490 special years for the nation of Israel and Jerusalem to finish transgression, to make an end of sins, to make reconciliation for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the Most Holy.”
How is this law to be utilized when studying any topic known to man? The Law of Accomplishment is designed by God Himself to create a measure for comparison of all human events and their interpretation of those events leading to the millennium reign of Christ Jesus in Jerusalem.
This means that we now have a solid foundation for studying God’s Word when trying to decipher what He has declared openly and rather unapologetically to the world. Those who claim to be Biblical scholars and/or teachers who do not recognize this law are rather elementary in their understanding and should be avoided. You wouldn’t want a pilot who did not believe in the law of gravity flying your airplane would you? Of course not, so why do we want Bible teachers teaching us who do not understand the basic laws of eschatology? We don’t.
Next week we will continue to work through and progress forward in our understanding of what Gabriel revealed by the Lord God to Daniel. But for now, remember that eschatology is a reward for all men, written through the clarity that Israel is the correct prescription to see what God intends to do.
Hold until relieved, our Blessed Hope is coming,
JL