In-Depth: Why A Future Seven Year Tribulation Is A Biblical Necessity

[angels4u]

The Bible tells us there must be a seven-year period when God again turns His attention to the Jewish people and Jerusalem. The length of this still future time comes the prophet Daniel who specified seventy weeks of years during which time the Lord will complete His redemptive purposes for choosing Israel (Daniel 9:24-27).

Why am I so confident that the last week of Daniel’s prophecy awaits a future fulfillment? It’s because the events that mark its beginning and midpoint have never happened in human history.

Daniel 9:27 KJV – “And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.”

This last seven-year period will begin with a “prince” (9:26) establishing a seven-year peace agreement with Israel. Perhaps the most notable aspect of Daniel’s prophecy regarding the seventieth week is the ending of temple sacrifices, which the prophet later refers to as the “abomination that makes desolate” (Daniel 12:11).

Does it make sense that there’s a long gap between the sixty-ninth and seventieth week of Daniel’s prophecy? Yes, the text itself tells us that that last week would not immediately follow the cutting off of the Messiah.

Daniel 9:25-26 KJV – “Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.”

Bible scholars have calculated that the sixty-ninth week ends exactly on the very day Jesus rode into Jerusalem just days before His crucifixion. This fulfilled the prophet’s words that after the next to last “week,” the Messiah would “cut off, but not for himself.” Please note that Daniel placed the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple during the interlude between the final weeks. This necessitates a gap of at least forty years before the start of the seventieth week, which we read about in Daniel 9:27.

That leads me to the next question: how do we know that the seventieth week of Daniel’s prophecy didn’t occur in the first century AD or anytime since then? It’s been two thousand years since the end of the sixty-ninth one, is it possible that the last week still remains unfulfilled? Yes, absolutely!

Jesus Placed Daniel’s Last Week in the Future

Four centuries after the time of Daniel, Antiochus Epiphanes came to power and subsequently desecrated the second Jewish temple by setting up idols in it and offering pigs on its altar.

Although the actions of Antiochus Epiphanes foreshadowed the words of Daniel 9:27, they didn’t fulfill the prophecy. First, Antiochus defiled the temple during the first sixty-nine weeks rather than during the last seven-year period of years in Daniel’s prophecy (9:24-27). That alone disqualifies his actions from contention.

Second, two centuries later, Jesus referred to Daniel prophecy of the temple’s desecration as a still future event:

Matthew 24:15 KJV – “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)”

As He answered His disciples’ questions pertaining to the end of the age, the Lord referred to the key event of Daniel’s seventieth week as a literal and still future event and one that would signal the nearness of His Second Coming.

Today, most Bible teachers and pastors claim that the Roman General Titus fulfilled the seventieth week of Daniel when he destroyed both Jerusalem and the temple. However, this is impossible for several reasons:

The Lord told Daniel that Titus’ siege of Zion would happen in-between the last two weeks, not during the last one.

There’s no record whatsoever of a peace agreement between the Roman general and Israel such as must happen to start the seventieth week of Daniel.

Daniel tells us that the coming “prince” would defile the temple, not destroy it.

The key detail that Paul adds to the fulfillment of Daniel 9:27 and Matthew 24:15.

The Lord Himself Will Destroy the Desolator

In 2 Thessalonians 2, Paul identifies the one who will desecrate the temple as the “man of lawlessness,” the one we refer to today as the “antichrist.”

2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 KJV – “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.”

The apostle reveals that the coming desolator will blaspheme the Lord, sit in the “temple of God,” and “proclaim himself to be God.”

Then Paul adds one critical detail about the one who will commit Daniel’s “abomination of desolation” at the midpoint of Daniel’s seventieth week:

2 Thessalonians 2:8 KJV – “And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:”

At His return to earth, Jesus Himself will destroy the “man of lawlessness” whom the apostle had just identified as the one who would desecrate of the temple and thus fulfill the words of Daniel 9:27. This also disqualifies Titus as the one who would fulfill the words of the prophet and of Jesus in Matthew 24:15 because two things must be true in order to identify Titus as the one to fulfill this prophecy.

First, Jesus would’ve returned to the earth in about AD 73-74, or three and a half years after Titus destroyed the temple. This gap for the last half of the seventieth week perfectly coincides with the time of the “great tribulation” that Jesus said would happen between it and the Second Coming (Matthew 24:15-31).

Second, the Lord Himself would’ve killed Titus at His return in AD 73-74. However, we know from history that Titus died of natural causes in AD 81.

And if the desecration of the Temple didn’t happen before or during the time of this Roman general, and it did not, then it couldn’t possibly have occurred since then because there has never been another Jewish temple.

The Apostle John Placed the Desolator’s Demise At Jesus’ Return

In Revelation 13:6, John tells us that the coming beast, whom we today identify as the antichrist, will open “its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling.” This is the guy of Daniel’s prophecy (9:27 and 11:36) as well as the one Jesus referred to Matthew 24:15. He is the “man of lawlessness” of 2 Thessalonians 2.

In Revelation 19:19-20, John provides an eyewitness of the future destruction of this future beast that will desecrate the Jewish temple:

Revelation 19:19-20 KJV – “And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.”

Just as the Apostle Paul prophesied in 2 Thessalonians 2:8, Jesus Himself will destroy the “desolator” of Daniel 9:27 at His Second Coming. He will cast him into the lake of fire.

No one has ever fulfilled all that we know about Daniel’s “abomination of desolation” from Matthew 24:15 and 2 Thessalonians 2:3-8.

The Witness of Irenaeus (AD 130-202)

Irenaeus, an early church leader and prominent theologian, wrote Against Heresies in AD 180 to combat the spread of Gnosticism. It’s noteworthy that he was born in Smyrna and received his training in the faith by Polycarp, whom the Apostle John himself discipled.

In Against Heresies, book 5, chapter 30, section 4, Irenaeus wrote these words:

But when the antichrist shall have devastated all things in this world, he will reign for three years and six months, and sit in the temple in Jerusalem; and then the Lord will come from heaven in the clouds, in the glory of the Father, sending this man and those who follow him into the lake of fire; but bringing in for the righteous times of the kingdom.

This quote reveals significant details about Irenaeus’ beliefs about the future temple:

Writing 110 years after Titus destroyed the second temple, he wrote that there would be a future temple in Jerusalem.

Irenaeus stated that the antichrist would “sit in the temple in Jerusalem” exactly as Paul said he would do in 2 Thessalonians 2:4.

He predicted that Jesus Himself would destroy the antichrist at His Second Coming, which aligns with what both Paul and John wrote about the one who would desecrate the temple.

Although Irenaeus’ words are not Scripture, it’s more than a little significant that this highly respected second century AD theologian believed there would be a third temple in Jerusalem in which a still future world leader would sit and defile before his destruction at Jesus’ return to the earth.

Why Does This Matter For Us Today?

Does the fact that Daniel’s seventieth week awaits a future fulfillment matter of us today? It does because of the following reasons:

The Lord’s purposes for Israel remain incomplete

Since the seventieth week of Daniel has not yet happened, it signifies that the Lord’s purposes for Israel remain in place. His redemptive purposes for Jewish people and Jerusalem remain incomplete based on the words of Daniel 9:24.

Daniel 9:24 KJV – “Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.”

Those who say that God has rejected Israel must also fit Daniel’s seventieth week into the events of the first century, which according to the words of Jesus, Paul, and John is impossible. According to Daniel 9:24, the Lord’s redemptive purposes for both His “people” and Jerusalem remain incomplete and await a future fulfillment.

2. Modern-day Israel fulfills Bible prophecy

In order for the seventieth week of Daniel to start, Israel must exist as an established nation and because of threats to its future, be willing to agree to the future covenant of peace offered by the antichrist. The nation must also possess the city of Jerusalem and have both the means and passion to build the third temple. These things are all true.

If one were to write a script for what must happen before the last week of Daniel’s prophecy begins, one couldn’t do better than what’s now happening in the Middle East. The only thing missing is Israel’s access to build on the temple mount, which most students of Bible prophecy believe will be a part of the coming peace agreement with the “man of lawlessness.”

3. There must be seven-year Tribulation

Since Daniel’s seventieth week awaits a future fulfillment, there must be a future seven-year period of turmoil on the earth when the Lord will turn His attention to Israel and bring a remnant of His people to repentance. Jeremiah famously referred to it as the time of “Jacob’s trouble” (30:7).

John placed the beast’s defilement of the temple in the midst of the judgments he wrote about in Revelation chapters 6-18 and wrote that the Lord would allow him to “exercise authority for forty-two months” (Revelation 13:5-6). This fits perfectly with the time of “great tribulation” Jesus said would happen between the desecration and His return (Matthew 24:15-31).

4. The Church doesn’t belong in the Tribulation

If the Lord’s purpose of Daniel’s seventieth week is to complete His purposes for Israel, and it is, does that mean the church age must end before its start? Yes, it does!

In other articles, I have written at length citing biblical evidence supporting the pre-Tribulation Rapture. The purpose of Daniel’s seventy weeks further supports the Church’s absence during the Tribulation.

The purpose of the entire seven years along with many Bible passages such as 1 Thessalonians 5:1-10 enable us to confidently place the Rapture before entire seventieth week, which the Old Testament also identifies as the beginning of the Day of the Lord.

Jonathan Brentner is an author, writer, and Bible Teacher with a passion for encouraging believers with a sound biblical worldview and the nearness of Jesus’ appearing.

[missmuffet]

16 hours ago, angels4u said:

The Bible tells us there must be a seven-year period when God again turns His attention to the Jewish people and Jerusalem. The length of this still future time comes the prophet Daniel who specified seventy weeks of years during which time the Lord will complete His redemptive purposes for choosing Israel (Daniel 9:24-27).

Why am I so confident that the last week of Daniel’s prophecy awaits a future fulfillment? It’s because the events that mark its beginning and midpoint have never happened in human history.

Daniel 9:27 KJV – “And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.”

This last seven-year period will begin with a “prince” (9:26) establishing a seven-year peace agreement with Israel. Perhaps the most notable aspect of Daniel’s prophecy regarding the seventieth week is the ending of temple sacrifices, which the prophet later refers to as the “abomination that makes desolate” (Daniel 12:11).

Does it make sense that there’s a long gap between the sixty-ninth and seventieth week of Daniel’s prophecy? Yes, the text itself tells us that that last week would not immediately follow the cutting off of the Messiah.

Daniel 9:25-26 KJV – “Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.”

Bible scholars have calculated that the sixty-ninth week ends exactly on the very day Jesus rode into Jerusalem just days before His crucifixion. This fulfilled the prophet’s words that after the next to last “week,” the Messiah would “cut off, but not for himself.” Please note that Daniel placed the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple during the interlude between the final weeks. This necessitates a gap of at least forty years before the start of the seventieth week, which we read about in Daniel 9:27.

That leads me to the next question: how do we know that the seventieth week of Daniel’s prophecy didn’t occur in the first century AD or anytime since then? It’s been two thousand years since the end of the sixty-ninth one, is it possible that the last week still remains unfulfilled? Yes, absolutely!

Jesus Placed Daniel’s Last Week in the Future

Four centuries after the time of Daniel, Antiochus Epiphanes came to power and subsequently desecrated the second Jewish temple by setting up idols in it and offering pigs on its altar.

Although the actions of Antiochus Epiphanes foreshadowed the words of Daniel 9:27, they didn’t fulfill the prophecy. First, Antiochus defiled the temple during the first sixty-nine weeks rather than during the last seven-year period of years in Daniel’s prophecy (9:24-27). That alone disqualifies his actions from contention.

Second, two centuries later, Jesus referred to Daniel prophecy of the temple’s desecration as a still future event:

Matthew 24:15 KJV – “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)”

As He answered His disciples’ questions pertaining to the end of the age, the Lord referred to the key event of Daniel’s seventieth week as a literal and still future event and one that would signal the nearness of His Second Coming.

Today, most Bible teachers and pastors claim that the Roman General Titus fulfilled the seventieth week of Daniel when he destroyed both Jerusalem and the temple. However, this is impossible for several reasons:

The Lord told Daniel that Titus’ siege of Zion would happen in-between the last two weeks, not during the last one.

There’s no record whatsoever of a peace agreement between the Roman general and Israel such as must happen to start the seventieth week of Daniel.

Daniel tells us that the coming “prince” would defile the temple, not destroy it.

The key detail that Paul adds to the fulfillment of Daniel 9:27 and Matthew 24:15.

The Lord Himself Will Destroy the Desolator

In 2 Thessalonians 2, Paul identifies the one who will desecrate the temple as the “man of lawlessness,” the one we refer to today as the “antichrist.”

2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 KJV – “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.”

The apostle reveals that the coming desolator will blaspheme the Lord, sit in the “temple of God,” and “proclaim himself to be God.”

Then Paul adds one critical detail about the one who will commit Daniel’s “abomination of desolation” at the midpoint of Daniel’s seventieth week:

2 Thessalonians 2:8 KJV – “And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:”

At His return to earth, Jesus Himself will destroy the “man of lawlessness” whom the apostle had just identified as the one who would desecrate of the temple and thus fulfill the words of Daniel 9:27. This also disqualifies Titus as the one who would fulfill the words of the prophet and of Jesus in Matthew 24:15 because two things must be true in order to identify Titus as the one to fulfill this prophecy.

First, Jesus would’ve returned to the earth in about AD 73-74, or three and a half years after Titus destroyed the temple. This gap for the last half of the seventieth week perfectly coincides with the time of the “great tribulation” that Jesus said would happen between it and the Second Coming (Matthew 24:15-31).

Second, the Lord Himself would’ve killed Titus at His return in AD 73-74. However, we know from history that Titus died of natural causes in AD 81.

And if the desecration of the Temple didn’t happen before or during the time of this Roman general, and it did not, then it couldn’t possibly have occurred since then because there has never been another Jewish temple.

The Apostle John Placed the Desolator’s Demise At Jesus’ Return

In Revelation 13:6, John tells us that the coming beast, whom we today identify as the antichrist, will open “its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling.” This is the guy of Daniel’s prophecy (9:27 and 11:36) as well as the one Jesus referred to Matthew 24:15. He is the “man of lawlessness” of 2 Thessalonians 2.

In Revelation 19:19-20, John provides an eyewitness of the future destruction of this future beast that will desecrate the Jewish temple:

Revelation 19:19-20 KJV – “And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.”

Just as the Apostle Paul prophesied in 2 Thessalonians 2:8, Jesus Himself will destroy the “desolator” of Daniel 9:27 at His Second Coming. He will cast him into the lake of fire.

No one has ever fulfilled all that we know about Daniel’s “abomination of desolation” from Matthew 24:15 and 2 Thessalonians 2:3-8.

The Witness of Irenaeus (AD 130-202)

Irenaeus, an early church leader and prominent theologian, wrote Against Heresies in AD 180 to combat the spread of Gnosticism. It’s noteworthy that he was born in Smyrna and received his training in the faith by Polycarp, whom the Apostle John himself discipled.

In Against Heresies, book 5, chapter 30, section 4, Irenaeus wrote these words:

But when the antichrist shall have devastated all things in this world, he will reign for three years and six months, and sit in the temple in Jerusalem; and then the Lord will come from heaven in the clouds, in the glory of the Father, sending this man and those who follow him into the lake of fire; but bringing in for the righteous times of the kingdom.

This quote reveals significant details about Irenaeus’ beliefs about the future temple:

Writing 110 years after Titus destroyed the second temple, he wrote that there would be a future temple in Jerusalem.

Irenaeus stated that the antichrist would “sit in the temple in Jerusalem” exactly as Paul said he would do in 2 Thessalonians 2:4.

He predicted that Jesus Himself would destroy the antichrist at His Second Coming, which aligns with what both Paul and John wrote about the one who would desecrate the temple.

Although Irenaeus’ words are not Scripture, it’s more than a little significant that this highly respected second century AD theologian believed there would be a third temple in Jerusalem in which a still future world leader would sit and defile before his destruction at Jesus’ return to the earth.

Why Does This Matter For Us Today?

Does the fact that Daniel’s seventieth week awaits a future fulfillment matter of us today? It does because of the following reasons:

The Lord’s purposes for Israel remain incomplete

Since the seventieth week of Daniel has not yet happened, it signifies that the Lord’s purposes for Israel remain in place. His redemptive purposes for Jewish people and Jerusalem remain incomplete based on the words of Daniel 9:24.

Daniel 9:24 KJV – “Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.”

Those who say that God has rejected Israel must also fit Daniel’s seventieth week into the events of the first century, which according to the words of Jesus, Paul, and John is impossible. According to Daniel 9:24, the Lord’s redemptive purposes for both His “people” and Jerusalem remain incomplete and await a future fulfillment.

2. Modern-day Israel fulfills Bible prophecy

In order for the seventieth week of Daniel to start, Israel must exist as an established nation and because of threats to its future, be willing to agree to the future covenant of peace offered by the antichrist. The nation must also possess the city of Jerusalem and have both the means and passion to build the third temple. These things are all true.

If one were to write a script for what must happen before the last week of Daniel’s prophecy begins, one couldn’t do better than what’s now happening in the Middle East. The only thing missing is Israel’s access to build on the temple mount, which most students of Bible prophecy believe will be a part of the coming peace agreement with the “man of lawlessness.”

3. There must be seven-year Tribulation

Since Daniel’s seventieth week awaits a future fulfillment, there must be a future seven-year period of turmoil on the earth when the Lord will turn His attention to Israel and bring a remnant of His people to repentance. Jeremiah famously referred to it as the time of “Jacob’s trouble” (30:7).

John placed the beast’s defilement of the temple in the midst of the judgments he wrote about in Revelation chapters 6-18 and wrote that the Lord would allow him to “exercise authority for forty-two months” (Revelation 13:5-6). This fits perfectly with the time of “great tribulation” Jesus said would happen between the desecration and His return (Matthew 24:15-31).

4. The Church doesn’t belong in the Tribulation

If the Lord’s purpose of Daniel’s seventieth week is to complete His purposes for Israel, and it is, does that mean the church age must end before its start? Yes, it does!

In other articles, I have written at length citing biblical evidence supporting the pre-Tribulation Rapture. The purpose of Daniel’s seventy weeks further supports the Church’s absence during the Tribulation.

The purpose of the entire seven years along with many Bible passages such as 1 Thessalonians 5:1-10 enable us to confidently place the Rapture before entire seventieth week, which the Old Testament also identifies as the beginning of the Day of the Lord.

Jonathan Brentner is an author, writer, and Bible Teacher with a passion for encouraging believers with a sound biblical worldview and the nearness of Jesus’ appearing.

Makes sense.

[AdHoc]

22 hours ago, angels4u said:

The Bible tells us there must be a seven-year period when God again turns His attention to the Jewish people and Jerusalem. The length of this still future time comes the prophet Daniel who specified seventy weeks of years during which time the Lord will complete His redemptive purposes for choosing Israel (Daniel 9:24-27).

Why am I so confident that the last week of Daniel’s prophecy awaits a future fulfillment? It’s because the events that mark its beginning and midpoint have never happened in human history.

Daniel 9:27 KJV – “And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.”

This last seven-year period will begin with a “prince” (9:26) establishing a seven-year peace agreement with Israel. Perhaps the most notable aspect of Daniel’s prophecy regarding the seventieth week is the ending of temple sacrifices, which the prophet later refers to as the “abomination that makes desolate” (Daniel 12:11).

Does it make sense that there’s a long gap between the sixty-ninth and seventieth week of Daniel’s prophecy? Yes, the text itself tells us that that last week would not immediately follow the cutting off of the Messiah.

Daniel 9:25-26 KJV – “Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.”

Bible scholars have calculated that the sixty-ninth week ends exactly on the very day Jesus rode into Jerusalem just days before His crucifixion. This fulfilled the prophet’s words that after the next to last “week,” the Messiah would “cut off, but not for himself.” Please note that Daniel placed the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple during the interlude between the final weeks. This necessitates a gap of at least forty years before the start of the seventieth week, which we read about in Daniel 9:27.

That leads me to the next question: how do we know that the seventieth week of Daniel’s prophecy didn’t occur in the first century AD or anytime since then? It’s been two thousand years since the end of the sixty-ninth one, is it possible that the last week still remains unfulfilled? Yes, absolutely!

Jesus Placed Daniel’s Last Week in the Future

Four centuries after the time of Daniel, Antiochus Epiphanes came to power and subsequently desecrated the second Jewish temple by setting up idols in it and offering pigs on its altar.

Although the actions of Antiochus Epiphanes foreshadowed the words of Daniel 9:27, they didn’t fulfill the prophecy. First, Antiochus defiled the temple during the first sixty-nine weeks rather than during the last seven-year period of years in Daniel’s prophecy (9:24-27). That alone disqualifies his actions from contention.

Second, two centuries later, Jesus referred to Daniel prophecy of the temple’s desecration as a still future event:

Matthew 24:15 KJV – “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)”

As He answered His disciples’ questions pertaining to the end of the age, the Lord referred to the key event of Daniel’s seventieth week as a literal and still future event and one that would signal the nearness of His Second Coming.

Today, most Bible teachers and pastors claim that the Roman General Titus fulfilled the seventieth week of Daniel when he destroyed both Jerusalem and the temple. However, this is impossible for several reasons:

The Lord told Daniel that Titus’ siege of Zion would happen in-between the last two weeks, not during the last one.

There’s no record whatsoever of a peace agreement between the Roman general and Israel such as must happen to start the seventieth week of Daniel.

Daniel tells us that the coming “prince” would defile the temple, not destroy it.

The key detail that Paul adds to the fulfillment of Daniel 9:27 and Matthew 24:15.

The Lord Himself Will Destroy the Desolator

In 2 Thessalonians 2, Paul identifies the one who will desecrate the temple as the “man of lawlessness,” the one we refer to today as the “antichrist.”

2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 KJV – “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.”

The apostle reveals that the coming desolator will blaspheme the Lord, sit in the “temple of God,” and “proclaim himself to be God.”

Then Paul adds one critical detail about the one who will commit Daniel’s “abomination of desolation” at the midpoint of Daniel’s seventieth week:

2 Thessalonians 2:8 KJV – “And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:”

At His return to earth, Jesus Himself will destroy the “man of lawlessness” whom the apostle had just identified as the one who would desecrate of the temple and thus fulfill the words of Daniel 9:27. This also disqualifies Titus as the one who would fulfill the words of the prophet and of Jesus in Matthew 24:15 because two things must be true in order to identify Titus as the one to fulfill this prophecy.

First, Jesus would’ve returned to the earth in about AD 73-74, or three and a half years after Titus destroyed the temple. This gap for the last half of the seventieth week perfectly coincides with the time of the “great tribulation” that Jesus said would happen between it and the Second Coming (Matthew 24:15-31).

Second, the Lord Himself would’ve killed Titus at His return in AD 73-74. However, we know from history that Titus died of natural causes in AD 81.

And if the desecration of the Temple didn’t happen before or during the time of this Roman general, and it did not, then it couldn’t possibly have occurred since then because there has never been another Jewish temple.

The Apostle John Placed the Desolator’s Demise At Jesus’ Return

In Revelation 13:6, John tells us that the coming beast, whom we today identify as the antichrist, will open “its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling.” This is the guy of Daniel’s prophecy (9:27 and 11:36) as well as the one Jesus referred to Matthew 24:15. He is the “man of lawlessness” of 2 Thessalonians 2.

In Revelation 19:19-20, John provides an eyewitness of the future destruction of this future beast that will desecrate the Jewish temple:

Revelation 19:19-20 KJV – “And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.”

Just as the Apostle Paul prophesied in 2 Thessalonians 2:8, Jesus Himself will destroy the “desolator” of Daniel 9:27 at His Second Coming. He will cast him into the lake of fire.

No one has ever fulfilled all that we know about Daniel’s “abomination of desolation” from Matthew 24:15 and 2 Thessalonians 2:3-8.

The Witness of Irenaeus (AD 130-202)

Irenaeus, an early church leader and prominent theologian, wrote Against Heresies in AD 180 to combat the spread of Gnosticism. It’s noteworthy that he was born in Smyrna and received his training in the faith by Polycarp, whom the Apostle John himself discipled.

In Against Heresies, book 5, chapter 30, section 4, Irenaeus wrote these words:

But when the antichrist shall have devastated all things in this world, he will reign for three years and six months, and sit in the temple in Jerusalem; and then the Lord will come from heaven in the clouds, in the glory of the Father, sending this man and those who follow him into the lake of fire; but bringing in for the righteous times of the kingdom.

This quote reveals significant details about Irenaeus’ beliefs about the future temple:

Writing 110 years after Titus destroyed the second temple, he wrote that there would be a future temple in Jerusalem.

Irenaeus stated that the antichrist would “sit in the temple in Jerusalem” exactly as Paul said he would do in 2 Thessalonians 2:4.

He predicted that Jesus Himself would destroy the antichrist at His Second Coming, which aligns with what both Paul and John wrote about the one who would desecrate the temple.

Although Irenaeus’ words are not Scripture, it’s more than a little significant that this highly respected second century AD theologian believed there would be a third temple in Jerusalem in which a still future world leader would sit and defile before his destruction at Jesus’ return to the earth.

Why Does This Matter For Us Today?

Does the fact that Daniel’s seventieth week awaits a future fulfillment matter of us today? It does because of the following reasons:

The Lord’s purposes for Israel remain incomplete

Since the seventieth week of Daniel has not yet happened, it signifies that the Lord’s purposes for Israel remain in place. His redemptive purposes for Jewish people and Jerusalem remain incomplete based on the words of Daniel 9:24.

Daniel 9:24 KJV – “Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.”

Those who say that God has rejected Israel must also fit Daniel’s seventieth week into the events of the first century, which according to the words of Jesus, Paul, and John is impossible. According to Daniel 9:24, the Lord’s redemptive purposes for both His “people” and Jerusalem remain incomplete and await a future fulfillment.

2. Modern-day Israel fulfills Bible prophecy

In order for the seventieth week of Daniel to start, Israel must exist as an established nation and because of threats to its future, be willing to agree to the future covenant of peace offered by the antichrist. The nation must also possess the city of Jerusalem and have both the means and passion to build the third temple. These things are all true.

If one were to write a script for what must happen before the last week of Daniel’s prophecy begins, one couldn’t do better than what’s now happening in the Middle East. The only thing missing is Israel’s access to build on the temple mount, which most students of Bible prophecy believe will be a part of the coming peace agreement with the “man of lawlessness.”

3. There must be seven-year Tribulation

Since Daniel’s seventieth week awaits a future fulfillment, there must be a future seven-year period of turmoil on the earth when the Lord will turn His attention to Israel and bring a remnant of His people to repentance. Jeremiah famously referred to it as the time of “Jacob’s trouble” (30:7).

John placed the beast’s defilement of the temple in the midst of the judgments he wrote about in Revelation chapters 6-18 and wrote that the Lord would allow him to “exercise authority for forty-two months” (Revelation 13:5-6). This fits perfectly with the time of “great tribulation” Jesus said would happen between the desecration and His return (Matthew 24:15-31).

4. The Church doesn’t belong in the Tribulation

If the Lord’s purpose of Daniel’s seventieth week is to complete His purposes for Israel, and it is, does that mean the church age must end before its start? Yes, it does!

In other articles, I have written at length citing biblical evidence supporting the pre-Tribulation Rapture. The purpose of Daniel’s seventy weeks further supports the Church’s absence during the Tribulation.

The purpose of the entire seven years along with many Bible passages such as 1 Thessalonians 5:1-10 enable us to confidently place the Rapture before entire seventieth week, which the Old Testament also identifies as the beginning of the Day of the Lord.

Jonathan Brentner is an author, writer, and Bible Teacher with a passion for encouraging believers with a sound biblical worldview and the nearness of Jesus’ appearing.

Nice posting. It's so good in fact that it hurts to add something. But would you consider revising the length of the Great Tribulation to 3½ years. Daniel gives the Abomination of Desolation in the middle of Daniel's seventieth "seven" leaving 42 months, 1260 days and/or a time, times and half a time for God's wrath.

[angels4u]

10 minutes ago, AdHoc said:

Nice posting. It's so good in fact that it hurts to add something. But would you consider revising the length of the Great Tribulation to 3½ years. Daniel gives the Abomination of Desolation in the middle of Daniel's seventieth "seven" leaving 42 months, 1260 days and/or a time, times and half a time for God's wrath.

Adhoc, I  do agree with you and believe the Tribulation is for 7 years and the Great Tribulation  will be 3 1/2 years.

[AdHoc]

1 minute ago, angels4u said:

Adhoc, I  do agree with you and believe the Tribulation is for 7 years and the Great Tribulation  will be 3 1/2 years.

This has some speculation, I think, but I have, over the years, tried to explain this verse in 1st Thessalonians 5;

3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.

At some time the Gentiles will admit that things are looking good and cry "peace and safety". According to the verse it is even before the birth pangs. The Beast has three stages of fame. He is "revealed" in 2nd Thessalonians 2. He is given all political power at the beginning of the final "seven" and he is given religious sovereignty in the middle of the last "seven". As he comes out of the Abyss he will need an event on the world political arena to get known and to establish himself worthy of universal power. The one thing no politician has achieved is to get Islam to allow a Temple of the Jews to sit alongside the Al Aqsa. If some entity were to demolish Al Aqsa there would be the opposite of "peace and safety".

So I "speculate" (let me be clear) that the sequence of events surrounding Daniel's 70th seven will be a political coup by the relatively unknown Beast which brings a temporary peace between Israel and Islam. This will be short lived as Christ opens the first four Seals and causes the "birth pangs" with wars and rumors of war. This gives enough time for the Temple (which I believe is ready to be erected right now) to be built and for the Beast to "strengthen" (lit. Heb.) THE Covenant which contains the Daily Oblation - the Law of Moses. I say this because there is only one Covenant on earth that has the daily oblation - that of Sinai.

The next difficulty is why does Matthew 13 say that the Darnell is harvested first BEFORE the Wheat. Is not Armageddon after the Wheat is harvested in rapture? The answer is easy. For the Beast to claim himself God and to demand all worship, he MUST DESTROY RELIGION ON EARTH. And is this not what happens? It is not God Who destroys all worship but the 10 kings in Revelation 17. Thus, Matthew 13 is correct because the Parable of the Wheat and the Tares depicts counterfeit religion and not politics. The poiitico-military conflict is left to the end, but world religion has to go before the Two Beasts can command all worship.

But if you find this impossible, please discard it

[angels4u]

46 minutes ago, AdHoc said:

This has some speculation, I think, but I have, over the years, tried to explain this verse in 1st Thessalonians 5;

3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.

At some time the Gentiles will admit that things are looking good and cry "peace and safety". According to the verse it is even before the birth pangs. The Beast has three stages of fame. He is "revealed" in 2nd Thessalonians 2. He is given all political power at the beginning of the final "seven" and he is given religious sovereignty in the middle of the last "seven". As he comes out of the Abyss he will need an event on the world political arena to get known and to establish himself worthy of universal power. The one thing no politician has achieved is to get Islam to allow a Temple of the Jews to sit alongside the Al Aqsa. If some entity were to demolish Al Aqsa there would be the opposite of "peace and safety".

So I "speculate" (let me be clear) that the sequence of events surrounding Daniel's 70th seven will be a political coup by the relatively unknown Beast which brings a temporary peace between Israel and Islam. This will be short lived as Christ opens the first four Seals and causes the "birth pangs" with wars and rumors of war. This gives enough time for the Temple (which I believe is ready to be erected right now) to be built and for the Beast to "strengthen" (lit. Heb.) THE Covenant which contains the Daily Oblation - the Law of Moses. I say this because there is only one Covenant on earth that has the daily oblation - that of Sinai.

The next difficulty is why does Matthew 13 say that the Darnell is harvested first BEFORE the Wheat. Is not Armageddon after the Wheat is harvested in rapture? The answer is easy. For the Beast to claim himself God and to demand all worship, he MUST DESTROY RELIGION ON EARTH. And is this not what happens? It is not God Who destroys all worship but the 10 kings in Revelation 17. Thus, Matthew 13 is correct because the Parable of the Wheat and the Tares depicts counterfeit religion and not politics. The poiitico-military conflict is left to the end, but world religion has to go before the Two Beasts can command all worship.

But if you find this impossible, please discard it

Quote

but world religion has to go before the Two Beasts can command all worship.

How I see it is that the Beast will demand to be worshipped after the first 3 1/2 years  and will try to kill everybody who is religious,I think that includes all religions including Atheists,he will kill everybody who is not bowing down to him  and who does not have the MOTB.The Jews will escape at that time to Petra where God will take are of them until the end of the Great Tribulation and they will bow down to Jesus and accept Him as their Savior and Messiah and will then they will enter the Millenial.

Is this how you see this also?

[Ray12614]

10 hours ago, angels4u said:

How I see it is that the Beast will demand to be worshipped after the first 3 1/2 years  and will try to kill everybody who is religious,I think that includes all religions including Atheists,he will kill everybody who is not bowing down to him  and who does not have the MOTB.The Jews will escape at that time to Petra where God will take are of them until the end of the Great Tribulation and they will bow down to Jesus and accept Him as their Savior and Messiah and will then they will enter the Millenial.

Is this how you see this also?

Few atheists I have observed are committed to their beliefs to the point of death and probably in my opinion would receive the MOTB while justifying it by saying it does not matter at all since there is no God.

Very interesting post . . . . thank you . . . . 

[angels4u]

31 minutes ago, Ray12614 said:

Few atheists I have observed are committed to their beliefs to the point of death and probably in my opinion would receive the MOTB while justifying it by saying it does not matter at all since there is no God.

Very interesting post . . . . thank you . . . . 

 That's why I think its so important how we live ,do they see Jesus in us?

[AdHoc]

19 hours ago, angels4u said:

How I see it is that the Beast will demand to be worshipped after the first 3 1/2 years  and will try to kill everybody who is religious,I think that includes all religions including Atheists,he will kill everybody who is not bowing down to him  and who does not have the MOTB.The Jews will escape at that time to Petra where God will take are of them until the end of the Great Tribulation and they will bow down to Jesus and accept Him as their Savior and Messiah and will then they will enter the Millenial.

Is this how you see this also?

Almost. I find no scripture for the Jews believing. But I do find a National restoration of Israel with Emmanuel dwelling in their midst. Romans reads; 

25 For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. 26 And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: 27 For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins. 28 As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers' sakes. 29 For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance. 30 For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief: 31 Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy. 32 For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.

Verse 25: Israel's blindness remain till the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. Scholars dispute the meaning of this. Some say that it is Armageddon when God removes physical resistance by military might. Others say that it is until the last Gentile to convert does so. I say, it doesn't matter because at conversion you become a member of the New Man and there is no ethnicity in the New Man. If Israel converted there would be no Israel (2nd Cor,5:17, Gal.3:28, Col.2:11).

Verse 26: "Saved" does not mean saved from the Lake of Fire. It means saved from God's displeasure, saved from the curse of the Law saved from their enemies, saved from the dispersion among foreign kings (as the prophets predicted). To strengthen this their "Deliverer" does not come from Bethlehem nor heaven nor Golgotha, but Sion, which is associated with rule and authority. To strengthen it even further this Deliverer does not give eternal life. He turns away ungodliness.

Verse 27: Here we have the basis of this National recovery. Israel need to have their sins forgiven. There are three ways you can be loosed of your sins. 1 Somebody must pay for you and you believe in His work. That is, by faith. 2. You can be in a Covenant with a clause that absolves you of your debt by certain requirements. 3. You can be forgiven if you have someone pay for you and the creditor promises to forgive you. Now, we Christians avail ourselves of #1. This way we are in line for multiple blessings, like eternal life and sonship to God. The Jew, if he embraces Christ joins us in our privileges. But if he refuses Christ - as they have done - they remain in Covenant of Law. Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28 set forth the blessings and curses of the Covenant of Law. Deuteronomy warns of Israel's dispersion. Chapter 30 starts with the assumption that Israel will be dispersed and offers a remedy. Israel will be Nationally restored if they turn back to the Law whole-heartedly. No sonship to God or eternal life is promised. No entry to the Kingdom or transformation into the image of Christ, no hope of glory because of Christ in you are promised - for these are the wages of FAITH. But Romans 9:16-23 and 11:30-32 establish that God, with the debt paid by Christ for the "sins of the WORLD" (1 Jn.2:2), may have mercy on whom He likes.

Israel is forgiven by COVENANT (Deut.30:1-5). But do Israel turn "whole-heartedly to the Law?" NO! THEY EMBRACE THE BEAST. But God is not naive. He does exactly what we have in Christ. Christ represented us on the cross. Noah represented the human race. The Levites represented the first-born and God would spare Sodom for ten righteous men. So, to save Israel at Mt. Carmel He keeps 7,000 men for Himself and for the recovery of a stiff-necked Nation he promises a REMNANT at the end of the age (Rom.9:27, 11:5). And do we find them at the end of the age??? Yes! 144,000 of the Tribes of Israel in Revelation 7:1-8. And how do we know that they are REPRESENTATIVE? Because in verse 4 of Revelation 7 says;

And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of ALL the tribes of the children of Israel

BUT DAN IS MISSING! Unless the great God of this universe can't count the word "ALL" should include Dan. In that it is still called "ALL" the Tribes shows that they can represent ALL Israel. God always did this. When only 2.5% of the captives returned from Babylon to fulfill His heart's desire, He calls them ISRAEL. But the 97% that stayed in Babylon do not even receive mention of God. That God is NEVER mentioned in Esther is a glaring condemnation.

Well, I wrote more than I planned, and you certainly have some chewing to do. This is not taught widely, but I estimate that you'll give it a fair reading. What will help is to interpret scripture with scripture and see that the Olive Tree is not the Church. Judges 9, Daniel 4 and Ezekiel 31 will show that a TREE IN PARABLE is a king and His kingdom. Israel are only grafted in when God has finsished the Church (Act.15:14-16) - for the Millennial age - and then they remain Israel - David's domain.