Eph 5:11:"…have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.”.
Amos 3:7 “…God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.”
Why this post?
To provide the correct interpretation of Daniel’s timelines.
Introduction
The book of Daniel covers four timelines:
The 4 periods of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream (that parallels with Dan 7 and 8);
The 70 weeks or 490 years around the coming of the Messiah;
The 1260 days that the antichrist is visibly active; and
The 2300 days until the sanctuary is to be cleansed.
Before I unpack the interpretations, we need to understand how prior Biblical events point to future events and thus we need to understand Typology.
Typology: Type vs antitype
Prophetic timelines do not make sense if it is interpreted literally and thus typology is worthy of study. It’s about type vs antitype. Several authors have written on this but in essence it is the notion that physical events in the Bible become evidence of future or spiritual events to come.
The most well known is the Tabernacle. The layout, events, ritual and objects all refer to Jesus and the process of repentance and forgiveness during judgement. We all know that the lamb refers to Him and when He finally died the veil to the most holy was torn and all had direct access to Him.
That sacrificial system ended because He is the ultimate sacrifice.
How amazing is it not that the system existed for centuries and it all pointed to Him?
Typology is found in several books of the Bible. Some events refer from the Old Testament to the New Testament, and others refer from Biblical times to end times.
Jesus noted that several scriptures of the old testament were fulfilled at His time:
Law and prophets: Old testament → Matt 5:17
Signs: Jonah 1:17 → Mat 12:39-41
Spirit of Lord on Jesus: Is 61:1-2 → Luke 4:17-21
Jesus on donkey: Is 53 & Ps 22 → Mat 26:54-56
Lifted heal: Ps 61:9 → John 13:18
All things accomplished: Ps 69:21 → John 19:28
No bone broken: Ex 12:46 & Num 9:12 & Zach 12:10 → John 19:36-37
Here is a list of type and antitype where literal refers to future or spiritual:
Abraham and Isaac → God and Jesus
Jonah and the fish → Burial and resurrection of Christ
Fleshly Israel → Spiritual Israel
Deliverance from Egypt → Deliverance from Sin
Wilderness wandering → Life
Conquest of Canaan → Reaching Heaven
Tabernacle → Heaven
Noah ark → Salvation in Christ
Marriage of man and woman → Christ and his church
Another remarkable typology is that of the feasts. In total, they represent the entire Christian era since Christ’s death. NOTE that the last three are still pending:
Herewith a list of authors that have explored typology - for further study:
John Calvin: A major figure in the Protestant Reformation, Calvin's commentaries often explore typological themes, particularly in his "Institutes of the Christian Religion" and various biblical commentaries.
Matthew Henry: His comprehensive commentary on the Bible, known as "Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible," frequently includes typological interpretations.
C.H. Spurgeon: A renowned 19th-century preacher, Spurgeon often addressed typology in his sermons and writings, including his multi-volume "Treasury of David" (a commentary on the Psalms).
Patrick Fairbairn: Known for his specific work on typology, Fairbairn wrote "The Typology of Scripture," which systematically explores this theme.
A.W. Pink: In his various works, including "Gleanings in Genesis" and "The Divine Inspiration of the Bible," Pink often delved into typological interpretations.
G. Campbell Morgan: A British preacher and Bible scholar, Morgan's commentaries and sermons often discuss typological aspects of Scripture.
Franz Delitzsch: A 19th-century German theologian, Delitzsch's commentaries, particularly those co-authored with C.F. Keil, frequently include typological insights.
Leonhard Goppelt: Goppelt was a German theologian and New Testament scholar known for his extensive work on typology. His seminal book, "Typos: The Typological Interpretation of the Old Testament in the New," is a comprehensive study on how typology functions in biblical theology. Goppelt's work is highly regarded for its scholarly depth and influence on the understanding of typological interpretation.
E.W. Bullinger: Bullinger was a British clergyman and Biblical scholar known for his detailed and often unconventional interpretations of Scripture. His book "Figures of Speech Used in the Bible" includes discussions of typology as one of the many rhetorical and figurative devices used in the Bible. Bullinger's works, including his "Companion Bible," often explore typological connections, emphasizing their significance in biblical interpretation.
E.P. Burrows: Though not as widely known as Goppelt or Bullinger, E.P. Burrows has contributed to the understanding of biblical typology. His works explore the symbolic and typological connections between the Old and New Testaments.
Literal interpretations
Given the above, it does not make sense that prophecies are interpreted literally. Nebuchadnezzar’s dream is a remarkable example. Daniel did not only receive the vision of the statue but also laid it out and we know the sections of the statue referred to time periods. Any literal interpretation is thus not consistent with prophetic intent.
PLEASE NOTE
As an example, with literal I mean literal days, or literally a beast and more. I DO NOT suggest that prophecies are esoteric and that interpretations are open ended because the Bible does explain itself as 2 Peter 1 noted:
20 Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.
Time setting
Jesus was clear that neither man nor the Angels of heaven know of the date and time that Jesus will return (Matt 24:36). I am not intent on setting time.
But, Jesus gave us several signs and we know that prophecy provides clues as to the nature of such times. More importantly, Amos and Isaiah indicated that prophecy is sent to warn us in advance of what is to come:
Amos 3:7 - “Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.”
Isaiah 46:10 - “Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done…“
Spiritual Israel
It is crucial that I hammer this one home.
Jesus’ message started with a literal Israel but when they rejected Him it was spread to the gentiles. To spiritual Israel. The following verses all testify to that fact:
Matthew 8:11-12 - "I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
Matthew 21:43 - "Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit."
Matthew 23:37-39 - "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing. Look, your house is left to you desolate. For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.'"
Luke 13:34-35 - Similar to Matthew 23, Jesus laments over Jerusalem's rejection.
Luke 19:41-44 - "As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, 'If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes. The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you.'"
John 8:42-47 - Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love me, for I have come here from God. I have not come on my own; God sent me. Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. Yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe me! Can any of you prove me guilty of sin? If I am telling the truth, why don’t you believe me? Whoever belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God."
Acts 13:46-47 - "Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: 'We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles. For this is what the Lord has commanded us...'"
Acts 18:6 - "But when they opposed Paul and became abusive, he shook out his clothes in protest and said to them, 'Your blood be on your own heads! I am innocent of it. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.'"
Acts 28:25-28 - Paul quotes Isaiah, saying, "Go to this people and say, 'You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.' For this people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes...Therefore I want you to know that God's salvation has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will listen!"
Acts 10 - The vision of Peter and the conversion of Cornelius, the first Gentile convert.
Galatians 3:28-29 - "There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise."
Romans 9:6-8 - "For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel. Nor because they are his descendants are they all Abraham's children... In other words, it is not the children by physical descent who are God's children, but it is the children of the promise who are regarded as Abraham's offspring."
Galatians 6:16 - "Peace and mercy to all who follow this principle, and upon the Israel of God."
Ephesians 2:11-22 - This passage speaks of Gentile believers being "brought near" and incorporated into the commonwealth of Israel, with Christ as the cornerstone.
Romans 11:17-24 - This analogy describes the Gentiles as wild olive branches grafted into the olive tree (Israel), while some natural branches (unbelieving Jews) were broken off.
1 Peter 2:10 - “Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.”
It is perfectly clear that Jesus moved on when literal Israel gave him up to the cross. They rejected Him and for that, the nation of that time was utterly destroyed. That was the break from physical Israel to spiritual Israel. If that did not occur, then we would all be lost.
This is a remarkable typology, else only literal Israel could be saved.
Paul describes in Acts 10 & 11 how Peter struggled to accept this change.
The notion that we have a chosen nation today that are special is non-Biblical. They rejected Jesus and ensured He be hanged and they are still awaiting their Messiah.
Any prophetic interpretation that refers to a literal Israel of today is spurious. The nation of that time does not exist anymore.
There are several conspiracies and evidences that surround Israel and its nation of today. Please consider the Balfour Declaration of 1917 by taking Palestinian land. I have no evidence for it, but the most recent attacks seem very suspicious to elevate visibility of this and take focus away from what really matters.
In no way have God disregarded any individual, just like Paul said:
Jesus’ message IS FOR ALL. That nation rejected it, just like people will today.
It’s again a typology.
Jesus preached to gentiles
Herewith a list of verses where Jesus preached to the gentiles:
Matthew 4:24-25 - Jesus heals people from Syria.
Matthew 8:5-13 - Jesus heals the centurion's servant in Capernaum.
Matthew 10:5-6 - Jesus instructs his disciples not to go to Gentiles or Samaritans, implying a later mission to them.
Matthew 11:20-24 - Jesus compares Jewish cities unfavorably to Gentile cities like Tyre and Sidon.
Matthew 12:18-21 - Jesus quotes Isaiah, prophesying that the Messiah will proclaim justice to the Gentiles.
Matthew 15:21-28 - Jesus interacts with and heals the daughter of a Canaanite woman.
Matthew 20:25-26 - Jesus refers to Gentile rulers as a contrast to how his followers should behave.
Matthew 21:43 - Jesus implies that the kingdom of God will be given to a people other than the Jews.
Matthew 24:14 - Jesus prophesies that the gospel will be preached to all nations.
Matthew 25:31-32 - In the parable of the sheep and goats, Jesus speaks of judging all nations.
Matthew 28:19 - The Great Commission, where Jesus instructs his disciples to make disciples of all nations.
Mark 3:8 - People from Idumea, beyond the Jordan, and the region of Tyre and Sidon come to see Jesus.
Mark 5:1-20 - Jesus heals the Gerasene demoniac in the region of the Decapolis (Gentile territory).
Mark 7:24-30 - Jesus' interaction with the Syrophoenician woman (similar to the Canaanite woman in Matthew, but with some differences).
Mark 7:31-37 - Jesus heals a deaf man in the Decapolis region.
Mark 11:17 - Jesus quotes Isaiah, saying that the temple should be a house of prayer for all nations.
Mark 13:10 - Jesus states that the gospel must be preached to all nations before the end comes.
Mark 16:15 (in the longer ending) - Jesus commands his disciples to preach the gospel to all creation.
Luke 2:32 - Simeon prophesies that Jesus will be a light for revelation to the Gentiles.
Luke 4:25-27 - Jesus references God's work among Gentiles through Elijah and Elisha.
Luke 7:1-10 - While similar to Matthew's account, Luke's version of the centurion story has more detail.
Luke 9:51-56 - Jesus rebukes his disciples for wanting to call down fire on a Samaritan village.
Luke 10:29-37 - The parable of the Good Samaritan, where a Samaritan is portrayed as the hero.
Luke 17:11-19 - Jesus heals ten lepers, but only one (a Samaritan) returns to thank him.
Luke 24:47 - In his post-resurrection appearance, Jesus states that repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached to all nations.
John 4:4-42 - Jesus' extensive interaction with the Samaritan woman at the well and his subsequent ministry in her village.
John 7:35 - The Jews speculate whether Jesus will go to teach the Greeks (Gentiles).
John 10:16 - Jesus speaks of "other sheep that are not of this sheep pen" which many interpret as referring to Gentiles.
John 12:20-23 - Some Greeks seek to meet Jesus, which he interprets as a sign that his hour has come.
John 12:32 - Jesus states that when he is lifted up, he will draw all people to himself.
John 17:20-23 - In his high priestly prayer, Jesus prays for all who will believe in him through the disciples' message, which implicitly includes Gentiles.
John 18:28-19:16 - While not a direct interaction with Gentiles, Jesus' trial before Pilate (a Roman) is more extensively detailed in John than in the other Gospels.
Literal Israel
Please note that I have no issue with literal Israel or any Jews. Similar to the Roman Catholicism, it’s about the system and not the people. It’s about the sin and not the sinner. The issue is that the system is awaiting a Messiah in the hope that He will come and that the nation will rule the world. That is not Biblical.
Interpretations
There are several interpretations of Daniel’s 2300 day prophecy. If you Google these or ask any of the GPT apps, you get the following groups with some variations:
Literal days: Some argue that those are all literal days. Why would these timelines not align with any events? Jesus said that he will send his prophets so why would future generations be excluded? This denies the day-year principle. Given the prophetic posts thus far, I shall spend no further effort on this interpretation;
Symbolic: Some view the 2300 days figuratively, representing a period of trial or persecution for God's people but not associated with any dates. Given that there are a few prophetic periods, it does not make sense for all these to be entirely symbolic. Daniel’s interpretation of the Nebuchadnezzar’s dream is not esoteric. Those were literal time periods. The Bible explains itself. I’m not elaborating this interpretation any further;
Preterist: This interpretation views the prophecy as having been fulfilled in the past, often in relation to the events surrounding the desecration of the Temple by Antiochus Epiphanes or the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE;
Futurist: Futurists often see the 2300 days as a literal or symbolic period that will occur in the future, during a final tribulation period before the second coming of Christ. Some futurists link the prophecy to a future desecration of a rebuilt temple in Jerusalem by the Antichrist, followed by its eventual cleansing and restoration. This one is widely echoed.
The Jesuits
These interpretations have their origins from the pen of Jesuits and it’s important to understand their intention.
The Jesuits was established in the 1500s and is an arm of the Roman Catholic Church whose sole purpose is to counter the Reformation. Even wiki has this section and several authors have written on this.
A day for a year
Before we consider the 2300 days, in this post I elaborated how the Bible clearly indicates that a prophetic day is a literal year.
I noted it previously, but whenever a Jesuit is involved, the truth is probably the opposite. Here is an example of a Jesuit who denied the day = year principle but from my prior post we know there is a long list of reformers that supported it:
Preterism
This interpretation casts the timelines into the past. This view does not have a large following and the first problem is the obvious exclusion of all future generations. If it’s all in the past then Daniel’s prophecy does not help us to know what is to come.
The earliest case, I am aware of, dates back to Eusebius of Caesarea (c. 263-339 AD) who argued that the prophecies were fulfilled in the past, particularly those concerning the destruction of Jerusalem. The first issue here is a referral to literal Israel. The second is that he was highly regarded by the Roman Catholic Church, which is revealing in itself.
The formal development of Preterism is often attributed to the Spanish Jesuit Luis de Alcasar (1554-1613). In his work, Vestigatio arcani sensus in Apocalypsi (1614), Alcasar argued that the Book of Revelation was largely fulfilled by the early history of the Church, particularly in the events leading up to and including the fall of Jerusalem.
Other than the fact that he was a Catholic, he was a Jesuit.
More importantly, it takes the spotlight off the Papacy and from my previous post we understand the gravity of that institution. Given all the other prophetic notes in Revelation with regard to an Antichrist, it does not make sense that all those events have happened and God left us not knowing of what is to come. Even Jesus in the book of Matthew described the nature of end times to support those from Daniel and Revelation.
This interpretation is non-sensical.
Futurism
This is the most prolific interpretation. Please go ahead and Google the 2300 day Daniel prophecy and see how many articles and charts are available.
The core of this interpretation has two variances:
The first, and less prevalent, is that the entire period is yet to come and is linked to activities surrounding the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem - so we are back to a literal Israel; and
The second, which also links to literal Israel is that most of the prophecy did occur but a week is dislocated and cast into the future. Some has it as 7 years and others as 3.5 years.
The originator of this is another Jesuit:
Here are examples of charts that al indicates a gap between week 69 and 70:
There are several obvious problems with this interpretation:
Based on what evidence can one possibly dislocate a week into some unknown time when none of the prophecies exhibit this?
The focus shifts from the Papacy to a literal Israel and a lot of effort is poured into resurrecting the visibility of modern day Israel - (I guess even the temple might be rebuilt to push the envelope - and the Papacy will support it);
This model requires a secret rapture which is proliferated in books and TV like the Left Behind series but is not supported by the Bible. The Bible does not describe a secret rapture but merely explains how the Angels will take the chosen children up to Jesus that awaits in the clouds (he will not touch the ground);
This interpretation is modelled around the notion that God made a mistake. That, for some unknown reason, the Jews had the power to reject God’s plan and that He had to delay it to later - what sublime arrogance;
If you consider my previous post then you will know that the antichrist, the fourth beast of Daniel and the first beast of Revelation never left, so the idea that antichrist will suddenly be active at the end is inconsistent. There is no Biblical foundation for an antichrist to reign at the last seven years and be left with the Jews whilst some have been taken already. The only entity left on earth for a thousand years is the dragon;
If the message went out from the Jews to the Gentiles, why would other nations have an interest to rebuild the temple? Why would it all be left up to a literal Israel again?
Why would Jesus leave for a millenium to come back later whilst antichrist reigns? This implies that a second judgement process is needed.
A commentary on Futurism:
Given the insane hierarchy of the Catholicism, how can two Jesuits have opposing views? It’s to create confusion. The truth must be neither.
Dispensationalism
Dispensationalism is a derivative of Futurism. Here is Claude 3’s take on the difference between Futurism and Dispensationalism:
Herewith several comments to dismiss this interpretation:
The timelines
Obviously, a different interpretation was held by the Reformers or Protestant movement, which eventually morphed into those covered above.
I’ve already referred to the 1260 days that the first beast will reign here.
The 70 days period is covered in Daniel 9:24-27:
24 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.
25 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.
26 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.
27 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.
The 2300 day prophecy has the same starting point in Daniel 8:13:
14 And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.
Herewith charts that align with the original Protestant movement:
Here is one that covers all three time periods:
Please pause and consider the elegance:
The 70 weeks spanned the period from Daniel to Jesus and then to the message that goes out to the gentiles;
The second period of 1260 days refers to the antichrist’s reign so that we can know who it is; and
The 2300 days reached all the way until the sanctuary is to be cleansed. This must be important.
Geneva Bible and week 70
The 70th week clearly refers to Jesus. Exactly in the middle the Messiah was cut off and when Steven was stoned, the message went out to the Gentiles. Peter was very confused about all of it, so please see Acts where he had to deal with this change.
A good friend of mine leant me his Geneva Bible from 1560. Please consider comment z for Daniel 9 where they also note that Jesus died at this time and the message moved from Jews to Gentiles.
Given this, there is thus absolutely no evidence to dislocate a week into the future:
This is what I read:
u - In the last week of the seventy shall Christ come and preach and suffer death.
x - He shall seem to have beauty nor to be of any estimation? - Isa 53:2.
y - Meaning, Titus Vespasas son who should come and destroy bith the temple and the people without all hope of recovery.
z - By the preaching of the Gospel he confirmed his promise first to the Jews and after to the Gentiles.
a - Christ accomplished this by his death and resurrection.
b - Meaning Jerusalem and the Sanctuary should be utterly destroyed for their rebellion against God and their idolatry: or some read that the plagues shall be so great that they shall all be ? at them.
Cleansing the sanctuary
At the end of the 2300 prophecy, Daniel refers to the cleansing of the sanctuary.
This is such an important topic that it demands a post of its own. It’s not only reflected by the Tabernacle and the daily and yearly rituals, but specifically pointed to by the longest timeline prophecy in the Bible.
I’ll get to it in my next post.
Older writings
I have to point out that one should never underestimate the intelligence, reasoning and ability to express by dated authors from previous centuries. The fact that they lacked our technology does not render them simple minded. I often revel in the remarkable construction of sentences and their argumentative persuasion and vigour. An art lost to popular writing. :)
It’s in my Amazon cart and I did not read all of it, but this is an excellent discourse.
Here is another excellent one.
whydoneit?
Why would so many put an effort to distort the proper interpretation?
Clearly the dark side is attempting to obscure the obvious and create confusion “for he is a liar, and the father of it.“ (John 8:44).