King Cyrus’s Command to Restore and Build Jerusalem… 3rd Edition

August 2nd 2024

1 Daniel wrote what things would happen within the 70 weeks that were determined upon the people, and upon the holy city that would end in AD70; one week represented seven years for a total of 490 years.

Daniel 9:24 Seventy weeks have been determined upon thy people, and upon the holy city, for sin to be ended, and to seal up transgressions, and to blot out the iniquities, and to make atonement for iniquities, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal the vision and the prophet, and to anoint the Most Holy.

2 A written decree was not required, to start the 70 Weeks in Daniel 9:25 unless the NASB which is the only Bible that uses the word decree is the right translation and all others are wrong; all other translations of the Bible either say: by word going forth, or by command to rebuild Jerusalem. 3 He begins in Daniel 9:25 with the word or command to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple as the starting point for the sixty-two weeks; and then shall return, and the street shall be built, and the wall, and the times shall be exhausted.

Daniel 9:25 And thou shalt know and understand, that from the going forth of the command for the answer and for the building of Jerusalem until Christ the prince seven weeks, and sixty-two weeks; and then shall return, and the street shall be built, and the wall, and the times shall be exhausted.

4 The Hebrews used a circular way of writing things and not liner like we do today. 5 What I just saw in Daniel 9:27 amazed me how we could have taken it wrong by assuming that it was in the middle of the last week that Christ was destroyed or crucified at that time. 6Daniel 9:26a does not mention that, but only that: And after the sixty-two weeks, the anointed one shall be destroyed, and there is no judgment in him.

Then in: 26b Daniel says: and he shall destroy the city and the sanctuary with the prince that is coming: So now this anointed one Jesus Christ destroy the city and the sanctuary with the prince that is coming.

7 The question I have now is, who was this prince that was coming. 8 Was it Jesus Christ in His second coming or was it Jesus Christ with another prince. 9 If it was another prince did Jesus make a covenant with him to destroy the city and the sanctuary. 10 In other words did Jesus use the commander of Roman Army to execute judgment on Israel to cut Israel off, where Daniel says in 9:26b they shall be cut off with a flood, and to the end of the war which is rapidly completed he shall appoint to desolations.

11 If this was what God meant for Daniel to write, then Daniel 9:27 should easily fall into place with the 70th week beginning in AD63, then in the middle of the week sacrifices were ordered to cease in AD66. 12 Then with on the temple the abomination of desolations following soon after to the Temple being destroyed in AD70 to end the last of the 70 Weeks; which would have fulfilled Romans 8:21 with the Ultimate Grand Jubilee of the restoration of all things and a regeneration for the New Heaven and Earth.

Daniel 9:27 And one week shall establish the covenant with many: and in the midst of the week my sacrifice and drink-offering shall be taken away: and on the temple the abomination of desolations; and at the end of time an end shall be put to the desolation.

Romans 8:21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.

13 Ed Stevens in his article called Dan 9:24-27 – The Seventy Weeks – June 3, 2020 says Quote: I definitely agree that the seventy weeks ended in AD 70. However, I do not think that the seventy weeks were a strict literal 490 years. Otherwise, the Jews and Christians would have known exactly when the Messiah would appear. Yet the Jews and Jesus and everyone else did NOT “know the exact day or hour” of His coming. Instead, Jesus told them to watch for the signs. When they saw all these things take place, THEN they would know that His return was very near.

I believe the same thing holds true in Daniel 9:24-27. Daniel was not given a literal 490 years to calculate the time of the Messiah1s coming. Instead, he was given a length of time divided into three distinct periods, each of which were marked off by signs to look for. When those signs appeared and were fulfilled, THEN they would know when each of the three periods had been, or were about to be, fulfilled. So it was a sign-based reckoning, NOT a year-based calculation.

Daniel 9:24 lists all the things that had to be accomplished by the end of the seventy weeks. Several of those items in the list imply that the end of the seventy weeks was AD 70. And the beginning of the seventy weeks is marked off by the decree of Cyrus to rebuild Jerusalem and the temple in 536 BC (which was the end of the 70 years of Babylonian captivity). Thus the seventy weeks was a period of 606 years (536 BC + 70 AD). The difference between 606 and

490 is 116 years. That is where the gaps come into play. The Jews knew about the three different divisions of Daniel’s prophecy, and were watching the signs to determine when each of the three periods began and ended. It was not a literal consecutive 490 years.

Instead, it was three periods of time (7 weeks, 62 weeks, and 1 week), marked off by distinctive signs. This means that the three periods were either relative in length, or they had gaps between them. Again, if it was a literal consecutive 490 years, then the Jews and Christians would have known exactly when it was to occur. They would not have needed any signs to look for. This is why the Jews demanded that Jesus produce the signs to confirm that he was the Messiah that they were looking for. They could not be sure that it was the right TIME for the Messiah to appear, unless that would-be Messiah could produce the right SIGNS that they were looking for.

What I find extremely interesting is the premil suggestion that the “prince” mentioned in Dan 9:26 is the future antichrist. That idea would work just as well (or better) in the preterist past-fulfillment scenario. In my research for my historical book (Final Decade Before the End), I have begun to zero-in on this same idea. The Messiah Prince mentioned in verses 25 and 26 appears to be a different Prince than the one introduced in verse 26. Since the people of this other prince abominate the city and sanctuary, causing it to be completely destroyed and desolated, this seems to fit the Zealot leader Eleazar b. Ananias and his band of Zealots who polluted the city of Jerusalem and especially the temple area. Josephus talks about the abomination of the city and temple that was done by the Zealots in their internecine strife and rivalry. Since Eleazar “sat in the temple” and made numerous lawless changes in the sacrificial system, and lawlessly broke his covenant with the Romans and the Jewish people as well, it appears that he is the prime candidate for the “Prince” designation here in Dan 9:26, as well as the “man of lawlessness” prediction in 2 Thess 2. And he was a “prince” in the sense that he was the priestly (anointed) son of the most powerful High Priest at that time (Ananias b. Nedebaeus).

I am not totally convinced that the “anointed one” in Dan 9:25-26 is Messiah Jesus. I lean somewhat in that direction, but am open for a better explanation based on further analysis of the historical data in Josephus, Yosippon, Hegesippus, and Tacitus.

Obviously, I have not finished my research and landed on a firm position, but this will give you the basic framework that I am working within (past fulfillment at AD 70). I would recommend taking a look at Thomas Howe’s very helpful book. Hope that helps.

The interpretation of Dan 9:24-27 points decisively to the decree of Cyrus as the beginning point for the 70 weeks. This is inconsistent with the dates of fulfillment only if one insists (contrary to the vagueness of the word “weeks”) that weeks of ordinary literal years must be involved.

Jeremiah had also prophesied the fall of Babylon at the end of the 70 years (Jer 25:12). Babylon fell to Cyrus in 539-538. The logical conclusion from this language is that the beginning point of the 70 weeks basically coincides with the end of Jeremiah’s 70 years. That is, it occurs in 538 B.C. or shortly thereafter.

End Quote

14 If Daniel’s 70 weeks began in 458 BC with King Artaxerxes assuringly giving the word or command to buy timbers for the gates, how would you explain why 2 Chronicles 36:22-23 is not the inspired word of God, Ezra and Isaiah were false Prophets for writing these things…?

15 How does King Artaxerxes meaning: Longimanus; large deep-water shark, compete with when compared to what God said about King Cyrus His anointed one…?

Isaiah 45:1 “Thus says the Lord to His anointed, To Cyrus, whose right hand I have held.

16 Answer: King Cyrus somewhere between 539 -536 BC. started the 62 Weeks, when Artaxerxes not yet the king at the time, stopped the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the Temple many years later with a letter to King Darius because he thought that once Israel gained strength they would not pay taxes and cause other problems for them.

17 King Darius wrote a decree to restart the building of Jerusalem and the Temple less than 20 years later. 18 After King Darius died, Artaxerxes his brother becomes the king in 457 BC. 19 King Artaxerxes then writes a letter to give approval for timber to be bought for the beams and walls, as well as gives the okay to put all of the vessels of gold, silver etc back into the Temple that was there. 20 All that Daniel 9:25a required for the 70 Weeks to begin was the word or command to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple. 21 It would not make sense for them to built Jerusalem first, and then get a decree for them to start building after it had started 117 years before; And thou shalt know and understand, that from the going forth of the command for the answer and for the building of Jerusalem.

22 King Cyrus gave the word or command to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple soon after he destroyed Babylon where the nation of Israel were held captive for 70 years. 23 King Cyrus also allowed everyone in Israel to go back to the places where they came from. This all happened around somewhere between 539 -536 BC.

According to the New American Standard Bible 1995
Isaiah 44:28 “It is I who says of Cyrus, ‘He is My shepherd!
And he will perform all My desire.’
And he declares of Jerusalem, ‘She will be built,’
And of the temple, ‘Your foundation will be laid.’”

Isaiah 45:13 “I have aroused him in righteousness
And I will make all his ways smooth;
He will build My city and will let My exiles go free,
Without any payment or reward,” says the Lord of hosts.

The Proclamation of Cyrus

2 Chronicles 36:22 Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia—in order to fulfill the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah—the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he sent a proclamation throughout his kingdom, and also put it in writing, saying, 23 “Thus says Cyrus king of Persia, ‘The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and He has appointed me to build Him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever there is among you of all His people, may the Lord his God be with him, and let him go up!’”

24 From Ed Stevens article called “Sir Isaac Newton, Daniel 9, & the Rabbinic Forgeries Hypothesis” are true that most Christian scholars today follow in the erroneous footsteps of their Jewish predecessors (by claiming that the “Artaxerxes” of Ezra 6 & 7 is Longimanus):

An Artaxerxes Assumption

More importantly though, I call out my Christian peers who in self-righteous indignation point to

the chronological errors of the Jewish rabbis, claiming they were intentionally used to discredit

Yeshua (Jesus) as the promised Messiah, but themselves borrow the very same chronological

errors to prove their own Messianic expectations about Yeshua.

Think about the irony of the situation. Most of today’s respected eschatological teachers,

historians, and scholars claim that “commandment to restore and build Jerusalem” of Daniel 9:25 was given by Artaxerxes Longimanus in his 7th or 21st year. Yet, the very basis for this claim comes from the evolution of the Jewish chronology, (which said chronology erroneously

manipulated the Biblical statement of Ezra 6:14 that Darius “even” Artaxerxes was the Persian

ruler during whose reign when the divine decree was given) so that they (the Jewish people)

could claim their own Messianic heroes were the promised Messiah.

Not only do most Christian scholars today follow in the erroneous footsteps of their Jewish

predecessors (by claiming that the “Artaxerxes” of Ezra 6 & 7 is Longimanus) but they

compound this error by jettisoning the original kernel of truth that provided the basis for the

entire complicated mess in the first place. That original kernel of truth being the certain

knowledge that Daniel 9 and 70 “weeks” prophecy began with a divine command to restore and build Jerusalem by Yahweh the living God of the Bible.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Longimanus; large deep-water shark with white-tipped dorsal fin; worldwide distribution; most dangerous shark.

Artaxerxes of Persia who was surnamed in Greek as μακρόχειρ Macrocheir or Longimanus in Latin.

25 The History of the 62 Weeks to Start Rebuilding Jerusalem and the Temple:

Daniel was approximately 17 or 18 when he was carried away into captivity and roughly 70 when he was thrown into the lion’s den, and he died around 85 years old. Daniel was a righteous man of princely lineage and lived about 620-538 BC. He was carried off to Babylon in 605 B.C. by Nebuchadnezzar, the Assyrian, but was still living when Assyria was overthrown by the Medes and Persians.

Darius the son of Ahasuerus of the Chaldeans mentioned in Daniel 9:1 was not any of the Darius’s mentioned below of the Medes and Persians. Darius the Mede is mentioned in the Book of Daniel as King of Babylon between Belshazzar and Cyrus the Great, but he is not known to secular history.

6th Century BC Kings of Persia: Start of the Achaemenid Empire

1 King Cyrus The Great (r. 550-530 BC)

2 Cambyses II (r. 530-522 BC)

3 Darius I The Great (r. 522-486 BC)

4 Xerxes I (r. 485-465 BC)

5 Artaxerxes I (r. 465-424 BC)

6 Darius II (r. 424-404 BC)

7 Artaxerxes II (r. 404-358 BC)

8 Darius III (r. 336-330)

Daniel 9: 25b: and sixty-two weeks; and then shall return, and the street shall be built, and the wall, and the times shall be exhausted.

End of the Babylonian Captivity

Ezra 1:1 Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and also put it in writing, saying,

2Thus says Cyrus king of Persia:

All the kingdoms of the earth the Lord God of heaven has given me. And He has commanded me to build Him a house at Jerusalem which is in Judah. 3 Who is among you of all His people? May his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem which is in Judah, and build the house of the Lord God of Israel (He is God), which is in Jerusalem.

The Captives Who Returned to Jerusalem

2 Now these are the people of the province who came back from the captivity, of those who had been carried away, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away to Babylon, and who returned to Jerusalem and Judah, everyone to his own city.

Rebuilding of Jerusalem Ceased by Decree of Artaxerxes:

Ezra 4

6 In the reign of Ahasuerus, in the beginning of his reign, they wrote an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem.

7 In the days of Artaxerxes also, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabel, and the rest of their companions wrote to Artaxerxes king of Persia; and the letter was written in Aramaic script, and translated into the Aramaic language. 8 Rehum the commander and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to King Artaxerxes in this fashion:

9 From Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their companions—representatives of the Dinaites, the Apharsathchites, the Tarpelites, the people of Persia and Erech and Babylon and Shushan, the Dehavites, the Elamites, 10 and the rest of the nations whom the great and noble Osnapper took captive and settled in the cities of Samaria and the remainder beyond the River—and so forth.

11 (This is a copy of the letter that they sent him.)

To King Artaxerxes from your servants, the men of the region beyond the River, and so forth:

Ezra 4:12 Let it be known to the king that the Jews who came up from you have come to us at Jerusalem, and are building the rebellious and evil city, and are finishing its walls and repairing the foundations. 13 Let it now be known to the king that, if this city is built and the walls completed, they will not pay tax, tribute, or custom, and the king’s treasury will be diminished. 24 Thus the work of the house of God which is at Jerusalem ceased, and it was discontinued until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.

Darius’s Decree 524 BC to Finish Building in Jerusalem:

Ezra 5:8 `To Darius the king, all peace! be it known to the king that we have gone to the province of Judah, to the great house of God, and it is built with rolled stones, and wood is placed in the walls, and this work is done speedily, and prospering in their hand.

9 Then we have asked of these elders, thus we have said to them, Who hath made for you a decree this house to build, and this wall to finish?

The construction of the Temple was halted for about 18 years, and it was not until the ascension of Darius I to the Persian throne that the rebuilding was resumed. In the second year of King Darius, the prophet Haggai urged the Jews to erect the Second Temple.

Haggai 1:1 In the second year of King Darius, in the sixth month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came by Haggai the prophet to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, saying, 2 “Thus speaks the Lord of hosts, saying: ‘This people says, “The time has not come, the time that the Lord’s house should be built.” ’ ”

Darius I, commonly known as Darius the Great, was a Persian ruler who served as the third King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire, reigning from 522 BCE until his death in 486 BCE.

Cyrus’s Decree to build Acknowledged:

Ezra 5:13 but in the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, Cyrus the king made a decree to build this house of God,

Ezra 6:3`In the first year of Cyrus the king, Cyrus the king hath made a decree concerning the house of God in Jerusalem: the house let be builded in the place where they are sacrificing sacrifices, and its foundations strongly laid; its height sixty cubits, its breadth sixty cubits;

Cyrus’s Decree to Defend:

11 Also I issue a decree that whoever alters this edict, let a timber be pulled from his house and erected, and let him be hanged on it; and let his house be made a refuse heap because of this. 12 And may the God who causes His name to dwell there destroy any king or people who put their hand to alter it, or to destroy this house of God which is in Jerusalem. I Darius issue a decree; let it be done diligently.

Cyrus, and Darius, and Artaxerxes kings of Persia all made Decrees:

Ezra 6:14 So the elders of the Jews built, and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they built and finished it, according to the commandment of the God of Israel, and according to the command of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia.

king Artaxerxes’s Decree in 458 BC to Provide Supples for the Temple Already Built:

Nehemiah 2:1 And it came to pass in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was before him, that I took the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had never been sad in his presence before.

Nehemiah 2:7 Furthermore I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, let letters be given to me for the governors of the region beyond the River, that they must permit me to pass through till I come to Judah, 8 and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he must give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel which pertains to the temple, for the city wall, and for the house that I will occupy.” And the king granted them to me according to the good hand of my God upon me.

Conclusion:

26 Daniel’s 70 Weeks began when King Cyrus gave the word or command to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple in 536 BC and that was when the 62 Weeks began to start the 70 Weeks. 27 When the 62 Weeks were exhausted after 434 years there was a gap of 117 years until Christ’s Seven Weeks started in AD14 to AD63; then the last week AD63 to AD70.

28 I believe that all of these things in Daniel 9:24 were fulfilled within Christ’s Seven Weeks allotted to Him. 29 It was during the Seven Weeks that Jesus Christ built the New Jerusalem and the Heavenly Temple as the antitype to King Cyrus rebuilding Jerusalem to start the 62 weeks as the type. 30 That Heavenly Temple was built out of Lively Stones which Christ was the Cornerstone of, that came with a Royal Priesthood of those who had the First Fruits of the Spirit. 31 Later on the 144,000 who were sealed with the seal of God according to Revelation 7, were the ones raised from the dead in Matthew 27:51-53 just before the Great Tribulation began in AD66 which was in the middle of the 70th Week when the sacrifices and offerings ceased; and the rapture of the saints occurred on the Feast of Pentecost.

Daniel 9:24

“Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, ….. AD70

Daniel 12:7

to finish the transgression, …….AD30

Rom. 4:15, Gal. 3:18-20, Heb. 9:15

to make an end of sin, …..AD70

Rom.8:21, Heb. 9:28

to make atonement for iniquity, …… AD30 – AD70

Atonement was only complete when the High Priest came out of the Most Holy Place….

Matt. 27:50-51, Heb.9:28

to bring in everlasting righteousness, ……? AD26 – AD70

Matt. 3:15, Gal. 5:5, 2 Pet. 3:13

to seal up vision and prophecy ……AD70

1 Cor. 13:9-10, Luke 21:20-22

and to anoint the most holy …..AD26

Matt. 3:16-17

32 OT scholars Keil Delitzsch correctly give the meaning of “seal up vision and prophet” to be:

“ Prophecies and prophets are sealed, when by the full realization of all prophecies prophecy ceases, no more prophets appear.” (Keil and Delitzsch, Commentary on the Old Testament, Vol. 9, (Grand Rapids; Eerdmans, 1975), 344)

33 Charles John Ellicott,

“The impression of translators being that all visions and prophecies were to receive completed fulfillment in the coarse of these seventy weeks. It appears…, to be more agreeable to the context to suppose that the prophet is speaking of the absolute cessation of all prophecy” (1 Cor. 13:8. (Charles John Ellicott, Commentary on the Whole Bible, (Cassell and Co; London, 1884), 387).

AD14 to AD63 for Days of the Messiah’s Seven Weeks:

34 AD63 to AD70 for the 70th Week to confirm the Covenant for the Grand Ultimate Jubilee

Hebrews 10:9 then He said, “Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God.” He takes away the first that He may establish the second.

Hebrews 12:22 But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels,

1 Peter 2:4 Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, 5 you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 15:46 However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterward the spiritual.

Daniel 9:25 “Know therefore and understand,
That from the going forth of the command
To restore and build Jerusalem
Until Messiah the Prince,
There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks;
The street shall be built again, and the wall,
Even in troublesome times.

35 62 Week for the natural by Cyrus the anointed one, 7 Weeks for the Spiritual by Jesus Christ the anointed one; This fits the Spiritual law of natural fist and Spiritual second in:

1 Corinthians 15:46 However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterward the spiritual

37 The 7th weeks only fits after the 62 weeks and it fits perfectly at the timeframe starting with the command to build until the Messiah the Prince’s 7 weeks.

38 Notice in verse 26 in Daniel 9 that what happens after the 62 weeks.

1 The Messiah is cut off from His people in AD30 at the cross.

2 The city and the sanctuary are destroyed in AD70.

3 The end of the war with desolations determined in AD70.

39 Those three thing happened after the 62 week so the only timeframe of the three segments of 7 week, 62 weeks, 1 week according to verse 26, the 7 weeks fit perfectly with the Messiah’s timeframe from around 14AD when Jesus said He was doing His Father’s business to AD63 plus the 1 weeks to confirm the Covenant to complete the 70 weeks in AD70; and the daily sacrifices ceasing in the middle of the last week in AD66 was a big part of confirming the New Covenant.

40 There is only one way to make sense out of all of this that has stumped most theologians is that The word by command to re-build Jerusalem which started Daniels’ 70 weeks timeline off was with the 62 weeks The street shall be built again, and the wall, Even in troublesome times.

The Gap:

41 That means a gap has to exist into those three segments of weeks somewhere and the only place that a gap can go is between the 62 weeks and the 7 weeks or 49 Jubilee years allotted to the ministry of Jesus Christ. 42 However it is one thing to have a gap outside of the 3 segments of weeks but when the gap is within a segment of weeks you really are extending that segment to a longer term it was intended for. 43 The last week if it bridged from the cross to AD66 then it turns the last week into 6.2 weeks. 44 Wouldn’t it make more sense for a gap to be in between two other segments of weeks so you don’t affect the amount of weeks it claims to have. 45 Otherwise Daniel should have written 7 weeks , 62 weeks, 6.2 weeks for the King Artaxerxes 458 BC to AD70 View of the 70 weeks. 46 Or have the last week extend 2000 years and still counting which would make the last week into being 285.7 weeks and still counting for the Futuristic view that starts with King Artaxerxes 458 BC unto to end of time, not age as it should be, but time or the end of the world.

47 I believe Daniel’s 70 weeks did not end with the stoning of Stephen and the preaching of the Gospel to the Gentiles in order to confirm the New Covenant; Were Daniel’s 70 weeks determined for the preaching of the Gospel, or until the power of the holy people had been completely shattered…? 48 Only the taking away of the Old Covenant system could confirm the New Covenant according to Daniel 9:27. 49 It should be clear that Daniel’s 70 weeks began from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem; Until Messiah the Prince, There shall be seven weeks. 50 To break this into a different interpretation is what has caused the whole world to be at odds and in a state of confusion that has caused deadly consequences. 51 Darbyism’s Dispensationalism with Christian Zionism playing a role in todays affairs with their futuristic views that could cause the nuclear annihilation of mankind for the sake of their version of a New Heaven and Earth that actually began in AD70 in the unseen Spiritual realm. 52 They believe the world will be destroyed in the wrath of God anyway, so there is no incentive to preserve it.

53 Proof that King Cyrus wrote a decree not just for the building of the Temple but for the city of Jerusalem as well. This means that Daniel’s 70 weeks began with King Cyrus in 538 BC and not King Artaxerxes in 458 BC. 54 This also means there was a 116-117 year gap within the three segments of 62 weeks, 7 weeks and last week.

Josephus Provides a Witness to King Cyrus Giving the Command to Build Jerusalem:

55 The Works of Flavius Josephus, Translated by William Whiston HOW CYRUS, KING OF THE PERSIANS, DELIVERED THE JEWS OUT OF BABYLON AND SUFFERED THEM TO RETURN TO THEIR OWN COUNTRY AND TO BUILD THEIR TEMPLE, FOR WHICH WORK HE GAVE THEM MONEY. 1. In the first year of the reign of Cyrus (1) which was the seventieth from the day that our people were removed out of their own land into Babylon, God commiserated the captivity and calamity of these poor people, according as he had foretold to them by Jeremiah the prophet, before the destruction of the city, that after they had served Nebuchadnezzar and his posterity, and after they had undergone that servitude seventy years, he would restore them again to the land of their fathers, and they should build their temple, and enjoy their ancient prosperity. And these things God did afford them; for he stirred up the mind of Cyrus, and made him write this throughout all Asia: “Thus saith Cyrus the king: Since God Almighty hath appointed me to be king of the habitable earth, I believe that he is that God which the nation of the Israelites worship; for indeed he foretold my name by the prophets, and that I should build him a house at Jerusalem, in the country of Judea.” 2. This was known to Cyrus by his reading the book which Isaiah left behind him of his prophecies; for this prophet said that God had spoken thus to him in a secret vision: “My will is, that Cyrus, whom I have appointed to be king over many and great nations, send back my people to their own land, and build my temple.” This was foretold by Isaiah one hundred and forty years before the temple was demolished. Accordingly, when Cyrus read this, and admired the Divine power, an earnest desire and ambition seized upon him to fulfill what was so written; so he called for the most eminent Jews that were in Babylon, and said to them, that he gave them leave to go back to their own country, and to rebuild their city Jerusalem, (2) and the temple of God, for that he would be their assistant, and that he would write to the rulers and governors that were in the neighborhood of their country of Judea, that they should contribute to them gold and silver for the building of the temple, and besides that, beasts for their sacrifices. 3. When Cyrus had said this to the Israelites, the rulers of the two tribes of Judah and Benjamin, with the Levites and priests, went in haste to Jerusalem; yet did many of them stay at Babylon, as not willing to leave their possessions; and when they were come thither, all the king’s friends assisted them, and brought in, for the building of the temple, some gold, and some silver, and some a great many cattle and horses. So they performed their vows to God, and offered the sacrifices that had been accustomed of old time; I mean this upon the rebuilding of their city, and the revival of the ancient practices relating to their worship. Cyrus also sent back to them the vessels of God which king Nebuchadnezzar had pillaged out of the temple, and had carried to Babylon. So he committed these things to Mithridates, the treasurer, to be sent away, with an order to give them to Sanabassar, that he might keep them till the temple was built; and when it was finished, he might deliver them to the priests and rulers of the multitude, in order to their being restored to the temple. Cyrus also sent an epistle to the governors that were in Syria, the contents whereof here follow: “KING CYRUS TO SISINNES AND SATHRABUZANES SENDETH GREETING. “I have given leave to as many of the Jews that dwell in my country as please to return to their own country, and to REBUILD THEIR CITY, and to build the temple of God at Jerusalem on the same place where it was before. I have also sent my treasurer Mithridates, and Zorobabel, the governor of the Jews, that they may lay the foundations of the temple, and may build it sixty cubits high, and of the same latitude, making three edifices of polished stones, and one of the wood of the country, and the same order extends to the altar whereon they offer sacrifices to God. I require also that the expenses for these things may be given out of my revenues. Moreover, I have also sent the vessels which king Nebuchadnezzar pillaged out of the temple, and have given them to Mithridates the treasurer, and to Zorobabel the governor of the Jews, that they may have them carried to Jerusalem, and may restore them to the temple of God. Now their number is as follows: Fifty chargers of gold, and five hundred of silver; forty Thericlean cups of gold, and five hundred of silver; fifty basons of gold, and five hundred of silver; thirty vessels for pouring [the drink-offerings], and three hundred of silver; thirty vials of gold, and two thousand four hundred of silver; with a thousand other large vessels. (3) I permit them to have the same honor which they were used to have from their forefathers, as also for their small cattle, and for wine and oil, two hundred and five thousand and five hundred drachme; and for wheat flour, twenty thousand and five hundred artabae; and I give order that these expenses shall be given them out of the tributes due from Samaria. The priests shall also offer these sacrifices according to the laws of Moses in Jerusalem; and when they offer them, they shall pray to God for the preservation of the king and of his family, that the kingdom of Persia may continue. But my will is, that those who disobey these injunctions, and make them void, shall be hung upon a cross, and their substance brought into the king’s treasury.” And such was the import of this epistle. Now the number of those that came out of captivity to Jerusalem, were forty-two thousand four hundred and sixty-two.”.

56 Cyrus the Great was the founder of the Achaemenid Empire and king of Persia from 559 to 530 BC. He is venerated in the Hebrew Bible as Cyrus the Messiah for conquering Babylon and liberating the Jews from captivity.

57 Jesus Christ was the founder of the New Heaven and Earth and He is the King of kings and Lord of lords since AD70. He is venerated in the scriptures as God’s anointed One the Messiah for conquering death and delivering the whole creation out from the bondage of sin and death that mankind inherited from Adam.

58 Atheists use the Cyrus decrees to discredit this prophecy. Who would want to take sides with the AntiChrist Rabi Tovia Singer..?

59 Who cares what the atheist say or use against the truth in what Isaiah said about him building the city and writing the command to do so. 60 Especially to justify an unbiblical consecutive 490 years without a gap when all the signs demand one. 61 All that should matters is the truth and that the truth is we must start Daniel’s 70 weeks from 538BC whether we like it or not. 62 Those who chose not to believe it, stand on conflict with what Isaiah said, and make him out to be a false prophet. 63 Sometimes atheist can start with a good point and may even start out accurately, but fail to see the actual truth behind the hidden mysteries and even Christians do the same thing and fail to come to a truthful conclusion.

64 Look how the Futurist have failed to see Christ’s second coming of the Lord in AD70 because it did not meet up to their expectations of it, just like the Jews failed to see Christ’s first coming. 65 Is it any wonder how Daniel’s 70 weeks has been one of the some things that is hard to understand…? 66 Even Daniel himself said he could not understand the visions God gave him and then we act like he did and was all knowing about them vision because after all, all scripture is inspired by the Holy Spirit.

67 So then Christians and especially Full Preterist who should know better after seeing what the Futurist have done, yet they are guilty of twisting the scriptures with Daniel’s 70 weeks starting point, and some even both starting point and the finishing point, like they say Futurist do Christ’s second coming. 68 I can understand why they do this in good faith but when the truth is revealed them later many still cling to the errors they presented. 69 They say that Daniel’s prophecy was not about a command to rebuild the Temple, but rather the city which Cyrus did not write a decree to build Jerusalem is a straw man at that. 70 Can they explain why King Artaxerrxes did not wrote a decree to build Jerusalem but only for beams to build a wall…?

71 Can they explain why Daniel 9:24-27 has three segments of weeks instead of a consecutive 490 years without a gap…?

72 The preaching of the Gospel was not the confirmation of the New Covenant according to what Daniel 9:27 is looking for. 73 The confirmation was in the whole creation receiving a redemptive body and being adopted into having Christ as the Everlasting Father of the whole creation. 74 The Gospel’s fulfillment was the confirmation of the taking away of the Old Covenant system. The word confirmation also means establish.

Hebrews 10:9 then He said, “Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God.” He takes away the first that He may establish the second

75 If the Temple had never been destroyed and if the sacrifices never ceased in AD66 in the middle of the last week the confirmation of the New Covenant would have never stood 76 All the preaching of the Gospel would have been in vain and there never would have been a resurrection of the dead, or a New Heaven and Earth where the Whole Creation was set free from the bondage of Corruption, and into the liberty of the children of God.

The whole Christian faith is at stake here…?

77 Have they ever wondered why Daniel 9:24-27 has been the most misunderstood text in the whole Bible yet everyone think they are right when there are so many different views on this alone it out numbers all others things combined with so many different views….?

78 As it stand right now I’m sticking with Edward E Stevens framework that Daniel’s 70 weeks has to start with King Cyrus and end in AD70 and was based on the signs with a gap of 116-117 years. 79 The reason why is it has to end in AD70 just after the 3.5 years of the Great Tribulation is because that was when what was determined for your people and for your holy city:

Daniel 9:1 “Seventy weeks are determined For your people and for your holy city.

Daniel 12:7 Then I heard the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand to heaven, and swore by Him who lives forever, that it shall be for a time, times, and half a time; and when the power of the holy people has been completely shattered, all these things shall be finished.

80 To seal up vision and prophecy was when the perfect came and all vision and prophecy were fulfilled in AD70, so the gifts of the Holy Spirit about vision and prophecy what was to come was not needed anymore for the Age that had come to an end. 81 So then that does not mean God will not use vision and prophecy ever again for the New Heaven and Earth after all things were made new. 82 It just means that there was a reset and restoration of all things for the New Heaven and Earth.

83 The Days of the Messiah’s 7 weeks of 49 years begins with the time of Jubilee that Christ brought to the world to those who received Him. 84 Then the whole creation in the last week to confirm the New Covenant with the Grand Ultimate Jubilee with all things restored, was like before sin entered the world for a New Heaven and Earth. 85 With the destruction of Jerusalem and Temple we know that was when the power of the Holy people was shattered and that was what was to be determined for the people, and that happened at the end of the 70 weeks.

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