The 2300 Day Prophecy

A Bible prediction that spans into this century.

 

ReviewLast lesson, we saw that it is mathematically improbable for Jesus to NOT be the messiah, more proof for the validity of the Bible. We also learnt who Christ was.

INTRODUCTION:  Next let's talk about prophecy, again.

TTD - 1     Is God interested in keeping us informed?  Amos 3:7
                  1.     Everything God wants us to know and do, He clearly reveals.
                  2.     One way God has chosen to communicate with us is through prophecy.

TTD - 2     Let’s discover the longest time prophecy in God's Word.  Daniel 8:3-14
                  1.   This vision deals with three things.
                            a)    A ram
                            b)    A 'he' goat
                            c)    The length of the prophecy

TTD - 3     Let’s look at several aspects of the interpretation of this prophecy. 
                  Daniel 8:20, 21, 26
                  1.     God clearly explains two parts of the vision.
                            a)    The ram with two horns is Media and Persia.
                            b)    The he goat is Greece, and the great horn is its first King.
                  2.     Verse 26 says the vision was shut up or sealed.  Not all was revealed for it was to apply to a future time.              

TTD - 4     One part that was missing is the interpretation of the time element, the 2300 days. We find the missing ingredient in Daniel 9:2, 20-25
                  1.     Daniel 9 gives us information regarding the time element in chapter 8.  We know this refers to the same period because:
                           a)     Daniel is concerned about the return of the Jews which was to happen at the end of the seventy years and the possible application of this "New" prophecy affecting it v2.
                           b)    The same angel, Gabriel, reveals the interpretation (Dan 8:16; 9:21.
                           c)     The angel gives an interpretation which deals with time - seventy weeks and segments thereof, which is a part of the time element missing from chapter 8.
                  2.     This time element begins with the decree to rebuild Jerusalem.
TTD - 5     Lets find out when this decree was given.  Ezra 6:14; 7:6-8
                  1.     To fulfill the command to rebuild Jerusalem, it took the combined decrees of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes which was 457 B.C.

TTD - 6     Now that we have a beginning date, let's go back to Daniel 9:24-27 and figure out the other parts of the prophecy.
                  1.     The first part of the time element of the 2300 day prophecy of Daniel 8 is 70 weeks or 490 days.
                        a)     Of this period, 69 weeks--60 weeks (threescore) plus 7 weeks and 2 weeks--are broken off.  69 weeks = 483 days.
                        b)    Midweek is found by dividing one week (7 days) into two three-and-a-half-day segments.
                  2.     Ezekiel 4:6 and Numbers 14:34 state that a day stands for a year in prophecy.
                  3.     In converting B.C. to A.D. we must add one year because there is no "0" year.
                  4.     Thus, starting at 457 B.C., in the fall we can calculate the rest of the prophecy.
                  5.     The first segment pointed to the Messiah being cut off, or set aside, for holy use.
                        a)     Luke 3 gives Christ's baptism, when God set Him aside for holy use, as being in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius.
                        b)    History tells us Tiberius' fifteenth year was A.D. 27.

Below are given mathematical helps in calculating the time elements of Daniel 8 and 9.
                                                     70 weeks
                                                     x7
                                                  490 days (or years)

                                                    69 weeks
                                                    x7
                                                  483 days (or years)

                                                      1
                                                    x7
                                                     7 days (or years)

2300 days prophecy chart

The reason for losing one year in computing time from B.C. to A.D. is that there is no "0"
year.
                                    1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, (Six years mentioned)
                            B.C. 3, 2, 1, 1, 2, 3, A.D.
                                    1, 2, 3, 4, 5, (Five years of actual time)

TTD - 7     Let’s see how Jesus saw the timing of His baptism.  Mark 1:14,15   Jesus realized that He was fulfilling prophecy by beginning His ministry at the appointed time.

TTD - 8     Let’s go back to Daniel 9:26,27 and complete the time picture prophesied.
                  1.     The next segment was a three-and-a-half year period which would end when the Messiah would cause sacrifice and oblation to cease.  Three-and-a-half years from the fall of 27 A.D. brings us to the spring of A.D. 31, the date of Christ's crucifixion.
                  2.     The next segment of three-and-a-half years brings us to the fall of A.D. 34 and completes the seventy-week period.
                  3.     The probationary period of the Jewish nation as God's special people was sealed at this time by their stoning of Stephen, and disciples then carried the Gospel to the Gentiles.
                  4.     The remaining portion of the 2300 days, or years, which is 1810 years, brings us to the fall of A.D. 1844

Isn't it comforting to know that we can have confidence that God's Word is true and certain, because all aspects of the prophecy met their fulfillment.

PREVIEW:  What was to happen in 1844.  Next lesson, we shall see the part Christ plays in the cleansing of the sanctuary as our High Priest.