Summary of Daniel 9:24-27
“Seventy ‘sevens’ are decreed” for Daniel’s people and Jerusalem to “finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy place.”
The timeline begins “from the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the ruler, comes,” which will be “seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’”
After that period, the “Anointed One will be put to death.” Then, the “people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary.”
This ruler “will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven’” but in the middle of it, he will “put an end to sacrifice and offering” and set up an “abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.”
SUMMARY IN LAY TERMS:
The prophecy of the Seventy “Sevens” in Daniel 9:24-27 is a divine timeline given to Daniel by the angel Gabriel. It summarizes God’s redemptive plan for Israel.
The prophecy decrees a 490-year period to accomplish six goals, including atoning for sin and bringing in everlasting righteousness.
This timeline is broken down as follows:
- It begins with a decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem.
- After a period of 69 “sevens” (483 years), the “Anointed One,” the Messiah, will appear.
- Following this, the Messiah will be “cut off” (killed), and Jerusalem and its Temple will be destroyed again.
- The final 70th “seven” (a future seven-year period) will feature a ruler who makes a covenant but breaks it halfway through, stopping sacrifices and setting up an “abomination that causes desolation” before facing his own judgment.
BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 7, Day 5: Daniel 9:24-27
11a) To restore and rebuild Jerusalem refers to God’s people returning from exile back to the Promised Land. The people will prosper, be fruitful, and be blessed.
b) The Anointed One will be put to death refers to Jesus’s crucifixion on the cross.
c) An abomination that causes desolation refers to the End Times. A future world leader, often identified as the Antichrist, will enter a rebuilt Temple in Jerusalem, stop all worship of God, and set himself up to be worshipped. This act of ultimate blasphemy would be the final “abomination that causes desolation.”
12) That there will be a restoration of God’s people, Jesus will die for his people and overcome sin, there will be a period of desolation, and then Jesus will return one day to set his kingdom up on earth forever.
13) That one day Jesus will rule here on earth and end all suffering. God’s sovereignty is absolute. Suffering is limited. Believers can live with integrity, courage, and purpose now, knowing that their faithfulness in this life is a meaningful witness that has eternal significance.
Conclusions BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 7, Day 5: Daniel 9:24-27
There is a lot here, and there are numerous interpretations of what the times mean. I’m put the interpretation that most Bible scholars agree on.
End Notes BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 7, Day 5: Daniel 9:24-27
Most Bible scholars agree that this refers to seventy sets of seven years, or weeks of years. In Hebrew, the weeks refers to units of sevens. This prophecy is for the Jews and Jerusalem.
7 is the number of completion in the Bible.
According to the prophecy in Daniel 9:24, six specific things will be accomplished by the end of the decreed seventy “sevens”:
- To finish transgression – end man’s rebellion against God
- To put an end to sin – end sin altogether
- To atone for wickedness – Jesus’s death on the cross
- To bring in everlasting righteousness – usher in a new order brought by the Messiah
- To seal up vision and prophecy – to usher in the reign of Jesus
- To anoint the most holy place – the holy temple will be anointed and blessed
The starting point for the 70 weeks was to restore and rebuild Jerusalem.
There are 4 possible scenarios in the Bible when this could have begun:
- Cyrus made a decree giving Ezra and the Babylonian captives the right to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple in 538 B.C. (Ezra 1:1-4 and 5:13-17).
- Darius made a decree giving Ezra the right to rebuild the temple in 517 B.C. (Ezra 6:6-12).
- Artaxerxes made a decree giving Ezra permission, safe passage, and supplies to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple in 458 B.C. (Ezra 7:11-26).
- Artaxerxes made a decree giving Nehemiah permission, safe passage, and supplies to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the city and the walls in 445 B.C. (Nehemiah 2:1-8).
Note the 1st three were to rebuild the temple. Only the last was to rebuild the city of Jerusalem.
THEN, 483 years (which would be 69 units of seven years) would pass from the time of the command recorded in Nehemiah 2:1-8 until the appearance of the Messiah.
Hence, the 70 weeks break down as:
- Seven weeks – 49 years, until the city and its walls are rebuilt.
- 69 weeks (7 plus 62), 483 years from the decree, until the Messiah appears.
- The last 70th week to complete the prophecy.
After this period, the Messiah will be cut off, which can mean execution in the Bible (Genesis 9:11 and Exodus 31:14). Then Jerusalem and the temple will be destroyed again (A.D. 70). Jesus will make a covenant with his people to rule forever.
We will study Ezra where we see the return of God’s people to Jerusalem. In Nehemiah, we’ll see the troubles God’s people faced when trying to rebuild the temple and their city.
END NOTES SUMMARIZED
Daniel 9:24-27 is a divine timeline, known as the Prophecy of the Seventy “Sevens” (or Weeks), which outlines God’s redemptive plan for Israel, centered on the coming of the Messiah.
The interpretation of its key elements is as follows:
- The Overall Plan: The prophecy decrees a 490-year period (“seventy ‘sevens'”) to accomplish six ultimate goals, including atoning for wickedness and bringing in everlasting righteousness.
- The First 69 “Sevens” (483 years): This period begins with a command to rebuild Jerusalem and culminates in the arrival of the “Anointed One” (the Messiah). The prophecy then states that after this, the Anointed One will be “put to death,” and the city and Temple will be destroyed again.
- The Final 70th “Seven” (a future 7-year period): This final week is described as a time when a future ruler will make a covenant, only to break it midway through. He will stop Temple sacrifices and set up an “abomination that causes desolation,” an act of supreme sacrilege, before facing his own decreed judgment.
In conclusion, this dense prophecy is incredibly significant because it provides a framework for God’s redemptive history. It not only predicts the timing of the Messiah’s arrival but also foretells His sacrificial death. It looks ahead to a future time of great tribulation while offering the ultimate certainty that God’s plan will culminate in the final defeat of evil and the establishment of everlasting righteousness.
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