Bulletin for Biblical Research 21.3 (2011) 315–330
The Seventy Sevens of Daniel 9:
A Timetable for the Future?
richard s. hess
denver seminary
Questions of the Messiah’s return remain among the most perplexing and divisive
in the interpretation of OT texts. These questions look to the future, at the end of
the age. Because so many of the chapters in Daniel are concerned with the future,
Daniel is a natural scroll in which to look for clues. There is very little in the
Bible to provide any clue as to specific dates prophesied as yet to come. For this
reason, numerical figures such as the seventy sevens of Dan 9:24–27 become keys
to unlocking various schemes for the future.
Key Words: Daniel 9, seventy weeks, biblical epochs
The purpose of this study will be to examine the meaning and interpretation of Dan 9:24–27 and to understand the background and significance
of the unusual expression “seventy sevens.” We will begin by reviewing
the context and the text of Dan 9. We will then consider something of its
early interpretation. We will also look at some of the interpretations that
have been applied to this text by dispensationalists, by modern critical
scholars, and by other scholars. 1 Having taken these various approaches
into account, we will then look at a different possibility for the origin and
significance of this term. Finally, we will reach a conclusion that will seek to
take into account the ancient context of this text as well as its implications
for the first readers and for all later readers of Daniel.
The Context and Text of Daniel 9:24–27
Daniel 9 forms a penitential prayer of the type that is found in other Jewish
scrolls written after the fall of Jerusalem, such as Ezra 9 and Neh 9. All of
these rehearse the history of Israel as one of sin and describe the just judgments of God culminating in the destruction of the city and temple and
1. For a comprehensive review of the interpretations of this passage, see Michael Kalafian, The Prophecy of the Seventy Weeks of the Book of Daniel: A Critical Review of the Prophecy as
Viewed by Three Major Theological Interpretations and the Impact of the Book of Daniel on Christology
(Lanham: University Press of America, 1991).
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in the deportation of the people. In Ezra and Nehemiah, they are followed
by a new commitment of the people and a renewed sense of dedication to
God with a specific act and promise. In the case of Daniel, who seems to be
alone, the prayer has as its response God’s act of sending a messenger or
angel in the form of Gabriel. Gabriel announces the message of vv. 24–27,
which takes the form of a declaration of the future. The following translation is my own:
(22) He gave me insight and said to me, “Daniel, I have now come
out to give you successful understanding. (23) At the beginning of
your prayer, an answer came out and I came to tell it because you are
worthy. Discern the message and understand the vision. (24) Seventy
sevens have been decreed for your people and your holy city:
•to end the transgression
•to seal the sin
•to atone for iniquity
•to bring in everlasting righteousness
•to seal a vision and prophet
•to anoint a Holy of Holies
(25) You should know and understand that from the going out of the
command to return and rebuild Jerusalem until an anointed leader,
there are seven sevens and sixty-two sevens. It will return and be
rebuilt with a plaza and a water conduit, in troubled times.
(26) After the sixty-two sevens, an anointed one (Messiah) will be cut
off and be no more. A people of the leader will destroy the city and
the Holy place. Its end will come with a flood. War and desolations
are decreed until the end.
(27) He will confirm a covenant with the many for one seven. After
half a week he will end sacrifice and offering. At one end there will
be abominations that cause desolations, until the end that is decreed
is poured out on the desolater/desolation.”
Verse 22 indicates the purpose of Gabriel’s visit. He has “come out” (Hebrew root yṣʾ), presumably from God’s presence, in order to give Daniel
“successful understanding.” This “successful understanding” consists of
two Hebrew roots in a hendiadys construction. These are both roots that
appear frequently in OT wisdom literature, such as the book of Proverbs.
With his interpretation of dreams before kings, Daniel has already established his credentials as a sage. However, now he is to receive more than
earthly wisdom. In the context of the penitential prayer that Daniel has
been expressing before God, Gabriel proposes to grant Daniel supernatural
insight that comes directly from God.
In v. 23, the angel suggests that the answer to Daniel’s prayer “came
out,” using the same Hebrew root, yṣʾ, as the description of how the angel
“came out” from God in the preceding verse. Here, however, the verse
suggests that this happened just as soon as Daniel began to pray. God
sent Gabriel with the answer because Daniel is valuable or attractive to
him (ḥămûdôt). Whatever else may have evoked this tribute, certainly the
Hess: The Seventy Sevens of Daniel 9
317
penitential attitude of Daniel played an important role. The verse closes
with the command to Daniel to discern the vision and understand the
interpretation, using the same root, byn, as found in the previous verse
describing what the angel had come to give him.
The seventy sevens of v. 24 describe a period of time. In light of the
70 years of Dan 9:2, the seventy sevens would also naturally refer to the
number of years; no longer 70 but now 70 times as many. At the end of
this time, Daniel’s people and their city of Jerusalem will have ended their
sinning, brought in an eternal state of righteousness, sealed the vision and
prophecy, and anointed the Most Holy. This last purpose need not refer
to the most holy place in the temple where the ark is. It may refer to the
altar (Exod 40:10) or to sacrifices or objects dedicated to God. In fact, it
could even refer to a person. The sense of anointing here may recall the
use of this term for the ceremony of installing priests (Lev 8–9) and kings
(1 Kgs 1). Alternatively, it may describe the ceremony in which the priests
spatter the blood of animal sacrifices on the altar and other sacred objects
(e.g., Lev 1:11). It is not clear who is to be anointed at this point. However,
it can hardly be an accident that this term is used. Its final and climactic
appearance in the list may suggest that the seventy sevens will culminate
with the coming of Messiah. This becomes clear in vv. 25 and 26.
Verse 25 takes the sixty-nine sevens and divides it into two parts, the
perfect number of seven sevens and the remaining sixty-two sevens. No
more explicit reason is given for this division, nor is anything special identified between the seven sevens and the sixty-two sevens. However, the
decree to rebuild Jerusalem marks the beginning of the whole period. Its
natural and immediate interpretation makes most sense as the decree of
Cyrus to the deported and exiled Jews to return to their homeland. This has
been dated variously between 539 and 537 b.c. The coming of the Messiah
stands at the end of this period. The reference to the rebuilding of the city
includes the construction of both a plaza and a water channel or conduit.
This may indicate that the city would be inhabited by people, rather than
remain only a fortified enclosure for the palace and the temple. The period
of the sixty-nine weeks will end in troubled times.
Verse 26 further examines the period at the end of these sixty-two
sevens. The Messiah will be “cut off” and be no more. In his place a ruler
will arise whose people will destroy Jerusalem and its sanctuary. A flood
of wars and destructions will take place at the end.
Verse 27 concludes the entire picture with a description as to how this
ruler who replaces the Messiah will have popular support for one seven.
The initial observation that this leader will “confirm” an agreement with
many suggests a further connection with those who follow this figure. The
verb “confirm,” hgbyr in the consonantal text, also happens to contain the
first four letters of Gabriel, where the first two letters appear in identical
order: gbry-ʾl. Thus, the choice of this verb is not accidental but forms an
inclusio with the appearance of Gabriel in v. 21. In v. 27, the angel brings his
message to an end with the final events at the end of the seventy sevens.
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In the middle of that time period, he will bring the temple sacrifice
and offering to an end and set up an object, the abomination of desolation.
This will remain in place until his own end comes. This is described in the
passive, as something that is finished and decided so that desolation comes
on the king. Passive forms such as this appear to suggest a divine decision
from heaven.
This, then, is the picture of what Daniel is shown. It is not easy to
interpret, nor is there a historical explanation such as Daniel receives for
many of his visions. In fact, Gabriel’s explanation seems to end abruptly.
This is unlike the visions of chs. 7 and 8, where comment is made on Daniel’s exhausted and confused state. It is also different from chs. 10, 11, and
12, which seem to be more closely connected to each another. Instead, ch. 9
ends with a finality that suggests a completion to the beginning of Daniel’s
prayer. If so, then this also may be intended to reveal the whole of the
remainder of human history until God brings it to an end. We have here
a strong encouragement to remain faithful no matter how evil and dark
the times may be. But is there more that Gabriel’s explanation conveys? It
seems that writers at different times and places thought so. It is to these
interpretations that we now turn.
Early Interpretations
The history of interpretation of this text would be of interest for appreciating the rise of themes and directions in Dan 9. However, this lies
beyond the scope of the present study. Of greater interest are the earliest
references to and interpretations of the text. These materials lie closer to
the original text itself and remain somewhat similar in their cultural and
linguistic context.
For example, there may be an allusion to Daniel in the book of Tobit,
from the third or second century b.c. As the Qumran fragments attest,
the original text was in Aramaic, and so the reference in Tob 14:5 is pertinent, both in the Aramaic fragment and in the Greek translation of Codex
Sinaiticus: 2
And God will pity them again and God will restore them to the land
of Israel and they will again build the Temple, and not as the first,
until the time of the appointed age has been fulfilled. And after these
things, all of them shall return from slavery and will honorably settle
Jerusalem and the House of God will be built in it, just as the prophets
of Israel said about it.
Roger Beckwith suggests that this reference to “the time of the appointed
age” alludes to the specific times of the future listed in Daniel, including
9:24. 3 As here, it corresponds to a period of suffering followed by blessing.
2. For the translation, see Robert J. Littman, Tobit: The Book of Tobit in Codex Sinaiticus
(Septuagint Commentary Series; Leiden: Brill, 2008), 39.
3. Roger Beckwith, “Early Traces of the Book of Daniel,” TynBul 53 (2002): 75–82, especially pp. 76–77; idem, The Old Testament Canon of the New Testament Church and Its Background
Hess: The Seventy Sevens of Daniel 9
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Other sources for references connected to Dan 9:24–27 are those involving the numbers associated with seventy sevens. 4 These appear as references to time, particularly times of judgment before the climactic end
and the restoration. While 7 and even 70 are common in Jewish and Christian literature as ideal numbers of perfection and completion, the use of 70
as a reference to contemporary and future time is more limited. It appears
in 1 En. 10:12 where the judgment for the fallen angels is pronounced: 5
And when they and all their children have battled with each other,
and when they have seen the destruction of their beloved ones, bind
them for seventy generations underneath the rocks of the ground until the day of their judgment and of their consummation, until the
eternal judgment is concluded.
The dating of the first part of 1 Enoch, from which this text is taken, is
pre-Christian and possibly from the second century b.c. The context of
this judgment is an expanded story of the Sons of God and Daughters of
Men incident in Gen 6:1–4. The 70 generations would thus provide the time
from the period before the flood to the final judgment, a periodization of
the history and future of humanity on earth.
The phrase “Israel in the seventieth week” (yśrʾl bšbʿym hšbwʿ) appears
in a fragment from Qumran that seems to discuss world history by dividing it into periods. 6 This may be related to the same traditions behind
the later reference to the division of human history into seven weeks, as
recounted in 1 En. 93. There, the sixth week ends with the burning of the
temple, apparently its destruction by the Babylonians. The seventh week is
one of apostasy that ends with the selection of the elect who are righteous
and who shall be given “sevenfold instruction.” 7 The same appears to happen in 1 En. 89:59 through 90:42. There, 70 weeks or generations become
70 shepherds who each rule the people of God successively. However, they
destroy the flock and are condemned at the end of the age when there
comes a time of blessing for all who survive. 8
Another Dead Sea Scroll Text, 4Q390 frg. 2, describes a “week of years”
and a period of “seventy years” when the people of God will disobey his
covenant and be judged by angels of destruction. 9
Chapter 16 of the Testament of Levi describes how, “for seventy weeks
you shall wander astray and profane the priesthood and defile the sacred
in Early Judaism (London: SPCK, 1985), 355–58.
4. The following is based on John J. Collins, Daniel: A Commentary on the Book of Daniel
(Hermeneia; Minneapolis: Fortress, 1993), 352–53. See also John E. Goldingay, Daniel (WBC 30;
Waco, TX: Word, 1989), 232.
5. E. Isaac, “1 (Ethiopic Apocalypse of) ENOCH (Second Century b.c.–First Century
a.d.): A New Translation and Introduction,” in OTP 2:5–89; see p. 18 for the text cited here.
6. DSSSE 1:370–75, 4Q180 and 4Q181. The text cited is 4Q181 frg. 2 line 3.
7. Isaac, “1 (Ethiopic Apocalypse of) ENOCH,” 74.
8. Ibid., 68–72.
9. DSSSE 2:784–85, 4Q390 Fragment 2 column 1 lines 2–10, also known as 4QPseudoMosese. See 4Q181 frg. 2 line 3.
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Bulletin for Biblical Research 21.3
altars.” 10 Further apostasy is then foretold during this period. This text may
have been written as early as the second century b.c.
A consistent pattern emerges in early Judaism in which the 70 weeks
or generations or shepherds form a time of apostasy and judgment for
the people of God. Often at the end of this period, there is the expectation of the overthrow of evil rulers and the coming of God’s chosen one,
a Messianic figure. Perhaps for this reason, attempts have been made to
identify Dan 9:24–27 with the “ambiguous oracle” to which the Jewish
historian Josephus attributes the spread of the Jewish revolt against Rome
in a.d. 66–70. 11 There is also a unanimous understanding that these 70
weeks should not be calculated as a specific length of time defined by the
term, such as 70 years or 490 years. As far as can be determined, the earliest Jewish texts that make use of the same terms as found in Daniel do not
attempt to identify a specific number of years. Rather, they see the term
as a symbolic reference to the completion of one of the ages into which the
world is divided.
There are many early Christian interpreters of Daniel, and much could
be gained from studying them. 12 The earliest references appear in the NT
itself. Jesus refers to the coming abomination of desolation and the destruction of Jerusalem as yet to be fulfilled (Matt 24:15, Mark 13:14). Both
of these references and those in Revelation (11:2, 13:5) look forward to a
time yet to come for the completion of the final week and the fulfillment
of Dan 9:27.
The early hurch scholar Jerome summarizes the views of the major
early Christian writers concerning the meaning of the seventy sevens or
70 weeks, or in some cases the 62 weeks. 13
We may begin with several scholars writing around a.d. 200. The first
is Julius Africanus. He wrote a multivolume work on chronology, Chronographia, and attempted to argue that the world would last for 6,000 years.
Thus, it is not surprising that this scholar looked for exact dates to determine a period of 70 weeks of years, or 490 years. He calculated this period
as beginning with the appointment of Nehemiah as governor and ending
with the death of Christ.
Also from ca. 200, Clement of Alexandria argued that the 70 weeks
included the time from the period of Cyrus until the reign of Titus. He did
not attempt to fix a precise chronology but seems to have been satisfied
with a lengthy period of time.
10. H. C. Kee, “Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs (Second Century b.c.): A New Translation and Introduction,” in OTP 1:775–828; see p. 794 for the text cited here.
11. Flavius Josephus, J.W. 6.310–15. See Anthony J. Tomasino, “Oracles of Insurrection:
The Prophetic Catalyst of the Great Revolt,” JJS 59 (2008): 86–111.
12. See Louis E. Knowles, “The Interpretation of the Seventy Weeks of Daniel in the Early
Fathers,” WTJ 7 (1944): 136–60.
13. See Gleason L. Archer Jr., Jerome’s Commentary on Daniel (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1958);
Jay Braverman, Jerome’s Commentary on Daniel (CBQMS 7; Washington, DC: Catholic Biblical
Association of America, 1978). These are used for the following summary.
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Tertullian’s early third-century studies reveal an understanding of the
62-and-a-half weeks, or 437 years, as stretching exactly from the first year
of Darius until the day when Christ was born.
The early-third-century Roman teacher Hippolytus wrote the first
Christian commentary on Daniel that has survived. He divided between
the 7 weeks and the 62 weeks. He put the 7 weeks as a period before the
return from the Exile. The 62 weeks stretched from the return from Exile
to the birth of Christ. As Jerome observed, this by no means fits the actual
chronology in terms of a specific number of years.
Eusebius, the famous Church historian of the early fourth century,
argued for 69 weeks of years, or 483 years. This began at the completion
of the temple’s construction in the sixth year of Darius and ended with
the murder of the high priest Hyrcanus and the emergence of Herod the
Great as ruler of Judea.
The fourth-century Apollinarius of Laodicea in Syria argued that the
period of 62 weeks remained to be fulfilled after the time of Christ, and
specifically after the eighth year of emperor Claudius’ reign, when he began to persecute the Jews.
This overview of the writers of early Christianity does not emphasize
the 62 or 70 weeks as a time of apostasy, at least not as much as the earlier
Jewish writings. Even more distinctive is the focus on a precise calculation
from some time in the Persian period until either the birth or death of Jesus
Christ, or some time closely connected with this period. There were exceptions to this, however. Clement of Alexandria seemed less concerned about
establishing a specific number of years and making them fit with what he
knew of history. And Apollinarius of Laodicea seems to have focused on a
still-future fulfillment of this period of time in Daniel 9.
Dispensationalist Interpretations
The dispensationalist understanding of prophetic texts such as Dan
9:24–27 has enjoyed great popularity in America and elsewhere. This was
due in no small measure to the appearance of the Scofield Reference Bible in
1909, with a revised and further-annotated edition appearing in 1917. This
study Bible became the premier work that informed countless Bible studies
and churches in the teachings of dispensationalism. A full set of footnotes
appears in the text of Dan 9:24–27. The first and longest note deals with the
70 weeks. Here is the relevant portion identifying the 70 weeks: 14
Within these “weeks” the national chastisement must be ended and
the nation re-established in everlasting righteousness (v. 24). The seventy weeks are divided into seven = 49 years; sixty-two = 434 years;
one = 7 years (vs. 25–27). In the seven weeks = 49 years, Jerusalem
14. Cyrus I. Scofield ed., The Scofield Reference Bible (rev. ed.; New York: Oxford University
Press, 1917), 914.
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was to be rebuilt in “troublous times.” This was fulfilled, as Ezra and
Nehemiah record. Sixty-two weeks = 434 years, thereafter Messiah
was to come (v. 25). This was fulfilled in the birth and manifestation
of Christ. Verse 26 is obviously an indeterminate period. The date of
the crucifixion is not fixed. It is only said to be “after” the threescore
and two weeks. It is the first event in verse 26. The second event is
the destruction of the city, fulfilled a.d. 70. Then, “unto the end,” a
period not fixed, but which has already lasted nearly 2000 years. To
Daniel was revealed only that wars and desolations should continue
(cf. Mt. 24. 6–14.)
The notes further assert that the present “Church age” would be followed
by the final week of years. This is identified with the 7 years of the great
tribulation of Matt 24:15–28.
As far as the beginning of the 70 weeks, Scofield agrees with Julius
Africanus that it must begin with the return of Nehemiah. Harold Hoehner
has supported and argued a similar chronological scheme in even greater
detail. 15 However, this is an unnatural way to understand v. 25’s decree to
return and rebuild Jerusalem. In the context of when Scofield and others
would date Daniel, it most naturally describes Cyrus’s edict of 539–537 b.c.,
not that of Arta­xerxes I nearly a century later.
In agreement with the schemes of Hippolytus and Tertullian, Scofield
located the end of the time period, for him the end of the 69 weeks, at the
birth of Christ. What is distinctive about Scofield’s outline is his removal
of the 70th week from any connection with the preceding weeks. The 70th
week therefore becomes separated from the 69th week by more than 2,000
years. This is unprecedented in the earlier studies we considered. Scofield
understands each of the phrases in v. 26 as describing sequential events.
Thus, the cutting off of the Messiah occurs “after” the 62 weeks. They (7
weeks plus 62 weeks) end with the coming of Jesus, and the cutting off of
the Messiah refers to Jesus’ death. The destruction of the sanctuary follows
this after another interval of time. It refers to the events around a.d. 70.
The final section refers to ongoing wars. This prepares for v. 27 and the 7
years of the rule of the antichrist.
A precision in the dating scheme characterizes the dispensationalist
interpretation. So John Walvoord, in his 1971 commentary on Daniel, asserts that the literal interpretation of the text must be followed. 16 He notes
that those commentators who see the entire second half of Daniel as pointing to the Maccabean revolt fail in these final verses of ch. 9 because all
of the events described here do not come to pass at that time. Attempts
to connect the 70th week with the fall of Jerusalem also fail because there
remains a period of nearly four decades between the death of Christ and
15. Harold W. Hoehner, “Daniel’s Seventy Weeks and New Testament Chronology,” BSac
132 (1975): 47–65. See also Sir Robert Anderson, The Coming Prince: The Marvelous Prophecy of
Daniel’s Seventy Weeks concerning the Antichrist (Reprint; New York: Cosimo, 2007).
16. John F. Walvoord, Daniel the Key to Prophetic Revelation (Chicago: Moody Press, 1971),
201–37.
Hess: The Seventy Sevens of Daniel 9
323
a.d. 70. The resultant gap is far longer than 7 years. Thus, Walvoord asserts
that the final 7 years is best postponed to a time still to come. More-recent
studies that follow this perspective continue to assert that the crucifixion
of Christ and the destruction of Jerusalem in a.d. 70 occur in the gap between the end of the 69 weeks and the beginning of the 70th week, which
is yet to come. 17
An important model for Walvoord’s literal analysis of the prophecy is
Daniel’s own treatment of the 70 years of exile that the prophet notes in
v. 2. There, he observed that Jeremiah (25:11–12) prophesied the destruction
of Jerusalem for 70 years followed by judgment on the king of Babylon.
Try as he may, however, Walvoord is unable to make these 70 years correspond exactly with 70 years of history. He comes close to doing so with
the deportation of Daniel in 605 b.c. and the edict of Cyrus to return and
rebuild the temple in 538 b.c. However, this is 68 years. If one seeks precision, then the difference must be explained or the prophecy fails the literal
test. Of course, most would have no trouble allowing a margin of a few
years in order to accommodate this prophecy. This is clearly the spirit of
apocalyptic and other related genres that make use of similar expressions,
as we noted in the early Jewish writings. However, any deviation from
precision compromises Walvoord’s claim to a literal interpretation. And if
that is the case in v. 2, it may also prove to be true for vv. 24–27.
These two understandings continue to characterize more-recent dispensational analyses of Daniel, that is, an attempt to match historical chronology precisely with the 7 and 62 weeks of years and a clear view that
years, centuries, and millennia must separate the 69th week from the 70th
week. 18
Here should also be noted the detailed work of Leslie McFall in his
analysis of this text. McFall provides many useful and important insights
into the structure of Daniel and the temporal schemes as stated in the
work. 19 However, for McFall’s system to work one must agree with him
on a number of points that are not so clear in the biblical or extrabiblical
records. These include but are not limited to the views that Nehemiah is
designated as a messiah in Daniel, that the decree of Cyrus to return and
rebuild should be dated to 536 when Cyrus actually captured the city of
17. R. H. Gundry, The Church and the Tribulation (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1973), 190;
Harold H. Hoehner, “Chronological Aspects of the Life of Christ, Part VI: Daniel’s Seventy
Weeks and New Testament Christology,” BSac 132 (1974): 59; Stephen R. Miller, Daniel (NAC
18; Nashville: Broadman & Homan, 1994), 269.
18. Robert Anderson, The Coming Prince (Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1972); Harold H. Hoehner,
Chronological Aspects of the Life of Christ (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1977), 115–39; J. Randall
Price, “Prophetic Postponement in Daniel 9 and Other Texts,” in Issues in Dispensationalism (ed.
Wesley R. Willis and John R. Master; Chicago: Moody Press, 1994), 152–53; and Thomas Ice,
“The Great Tribulation Is Future: The Old Testament,” in The Great Tribulation: Past or Future?
Two Evangelicals Debate the Question (ed. Thomas Ice and Kenneth L. Gentry Jr.; Grand Rapids:
Kregel, 1999), 69–92, especially pp. 84–87. See also Miller, Daniel, 265–66.
19. Leslie McFall, “Do the Sixty-Nine Weeks of Daniel Date the Messianic Mission of
Nehemiah or Jesus?” JETS 52 (2009): 673–718.
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Babylon (and not 539/538, as most historians assume), and that Cyrus and
Darius the Mede are identical and that the text of Daniel attributes two
beginnings at two different times to the reign of this single figure. This
approach remains an alternative to others.
Other Modern Interpretations
If the dispensational tendency is to see the 69 weeks as the number of
years between Nehemiah’s mission and the coming of Jesus Christ, with the
final week of years set in the future, there are other approaches that modern
interpreters take. They can be divided into two major groups. There are
those who understand the end of the 69 weeks of years as occurring in the
time of Jesus Christ, and there are those who understand it as taking place
about a century and a half earlier in the time of the attack on Jerusalem and
Judea by the Seleucid king Antiochus IV “Epiphanes,” who styled himself
as a god and came to eliminate Judaism in favor of the worship of himself
or his gods. 20 There is the view that we should not be concerned about
the time and interpretation of the 70 weeks of years because the point is
that the timing is in God’s hands. 21 However, it seems that this question is
worthy of discussion as the biblical text does present it in some detail, and
it is appropriate to consider the reasons behind this detail.
An example of a view where the 69 weeks end in the time of Jesus of
Nazareth is the 1978 commentary of Joyce Baldwin. 22 Like others before
and after her, Baldwin locates the origins of the concept of “70 years” and
here 70 weeks of years in the 7 weeks of years, or 49 years, that define
the time between Years of Jubilee in Lev 25:8. 23 Leviticus 26:18, 21, and 34
develop this concept to apply it to God’s judgment for failure to observe
his law and to celebrate the Sabbaths. God will exile Israel from the land
so that it can enjoy its Sabbaths. 2 Chronicles 36:21 explicitly applies the
seventy years of exile found in Jer 25:11–12 to this principle of Sabbath rest:
In order to fulfill the word of the Lord through Jeremiah, the land rested
for fully seventy years all the days of the destruction, until it enjoyed its
Sabbaths. The connection with Jeremiah’s 70 years is made explicit at the
beginning of Dan 9.
For Baldwin, v. 24 provides an answer to Daniel’s prayer for national
forgiveness in vv. 3–19. Thus, the first three purposes of the 70 sevens all
describe bringing forgiveness for the sins of Israel: “to complete the trans20. Ernest Lucas, Daniel (AOTC 20; Leicester: Apollos / Downers Grove: InterVarsity,
2002), 243–47, relates both interpretations as possibilities.
21. Tremper Longman III (Daniel [niv Application Commentary; Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1999], 229) describes the debate as “futile efforts.”
22. Joyce G. Baldwin, Daniel: An Introduction and Commentary (TOTC; Leicester: InterVarsity, 1978), 168–78.
23. See e.g., James A. Montgomery, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Book of
Daniel (ICC 22; New York: Scribners, 1927), 373; Norman W. Porteous, Daniel: A Commentary
(OTL; Philadelphia: Westminster, 1965), 140, where he also refers to m. Sanh. 5.1 and b. B. Meṣ.
9.10. A complete discussion may be found in Miller, Daniel, 257–58.
Hess: The Seventy Sevens of Daniel 9
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gression” and thus bring it to an end, “to seal the sins” in the Kethib or “to
put an end to sin” in the Qere, and “to atone for the wrong that was done.”
The result will be the remaining three clauses of v. 24: “to bring righteousness forever” in place of the sin, “to seal vision and prophet” and thus
bring them to fulfillment, and “to anoint the most holy place or person.”
This last phrase does not specify whether a place or person is intended. The
argument, at least as old as Keil, suggests that it must be the holy place
of the temple in light of its usage elsewhere in the Old Testament. 24 Baldwin suggests that both are intended, the Most Holy Place in the Temple
and the work of Christ which was begun in his first coming and will be
consummated in his second coming. Thus, v. 24 summarizes the goals of
which vv. 25–27 describe the means to achieve them. 25 Verse 24 explains
what God will do in answer to Daniel’s prayer, while the following three
verses detail how it will be done. An initial summary statement such as
this is characteristic of Hebrew narrative when it is followed by a longer
explanation that provides more details.
Verse 25 identifies the beginning of the 69 weeks with the decree to
restore and rebuild Jerusalem. For Baldwin, this must be the edict of Cyrus
to rebuild, which was given in 539 b.c. The reference to “an anointed one,
a leader,” may be either a king or a priest, as the term is applied to both in
the Old Testament. The division of the 7 weeks and the 62 weeks reminds
Baldwin of the 7 weeks of jubilee in Lev 25. At the end of this time land
that had been lost was restored and one could rebuild. Therefore, she connects this reference with Nehemiah and the rebuilding of the city with a
plaza and a water conduit.
Verse 26 describes the remaining 62 weeks that mark the time until the
anointed one, or Messiah, is cut off, that is, he is killed. Noting that these
numbers are symbolic rather than arithmetic, she refers the act of cutting
back to Abraham’s cutting up of the animals in Gen 15 for the covenant
with God. There, the same verb is used. Abram killed the animals as the
Messiah will be killed at the end of this time. The reference to the destruction of the city by “a people of a leader who comes” refers to the Romans
under Titus who destroyed the city in a.d. 70. It cannot refer to Antiochus
IV in the second century b.c., who never completely destroyed Jerusalem
or its temple. The reference to war and desolations looks forward to an
ongoing time of sufferings.
Verse 27 suggests that the leader will force a covenant, using the unusual verb wĕhigbîr. Halfway through the 70th week, this leader will end
the sacrifices in the temple and establish “the wing of the abomination that
causes desolations.” This obscure phrase refers to some form of idolatry.
Just as destruction was ordered for God’s people (cf. the same term in Isa
10:23), so it will happen to this leader. Then the end will come.
24. Carl Friedrich Keil, The Book of the Prophet Daniel (trans. M. G. Easton; Edinburgh:
T. & T. Clark, 1872), 348.
25. André Lacocque, The Book of Daniel (ed. and trans. D. Pellauer; Atlanta: John Knox,
1979), 191.
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Bulletin for Biblical Research 21.3
One of the most important observations that Baldwin makes is that,
in this arena of a large number of years, the calculations in terms of actual
history remain approximate. As noted, she finds precedence for this in Gen
15:13, where 400 years become four generations three verses later. Writing
some 23 years before Baldwin, Norman Porteous refers to Daniel’s figure
as a “round number” whose purpose is to emphasize that God’s action is
imminent and that it has all been leading up to this point. 26 John Goldingay describes it as “chronography: a stylized scheme of history used to
interpret historical data rather than rising from it.” 27 For him, even the 70
years of Jeremiah is not a precise chronology but is intended to convey “a
period such as a human lifetime.” 28 W. Sibley Towner, who also assumes
that the writer of Daniel lived in the second century b.c., even suggests
that the writer mistakenly assumed that “nearly four hundred and ninety
years had actually elapsed.” 29
Lev 25 identifies 7 weeks of years, or 49 years, as the longest period
of time that a family could be alienated from its ancestral land or that a
person could be kept in debt slavery. 30 This is related to the 70 years of
exile mentioned by Jer 25:11–12 and extended here in Daniel to 70 weeks
of years. The connection is made explicit in Lev 26:33–35, where the divine
judgment for Israel’s disloyalty to God and failure to observe the Sabbatical
years (cf. Lev 25) is detailed as follows: 31
I will scatter you among the nations and I will unsheath my sword
and pursue you so that your land will become a desolation and your
cities will be laid waste. Then the land will enjoy its Sabbaths; all the
days that it is desolate while you are in the land of your enemies. So
the land will rest and enjoy its Sabbaths. It will rest all the days that
it is desolate because you it did not rest during your Sabbatical years
when you lived in the land.
The above-mentioned Porteous represents the tradition of interpretation
that places the completion of the 69 weeks of years in the early second
century b.c., when the Seleucids ruled Judea and sought to impose their
will on the Jews. The first 7 sevens of years, or 49 years, refer to the period
between the destruction of the Jerusalem temple in 587/586 b.c. and the
end of Babylonian rule by Cyrus of Persia in 539, 538, or 537 b.c., depending
on whom one follows and how precise this 49 years needs to be. 32
26. Porteous, Daniel, p. 140. See also Paul L. Redditt, “Daniel 9: Its Structure and Meaning,” CBQ 62 (2000): 236–49.
27. Goldingay, Daniel, 257
28. Ibid., 258 (cf. also p. 239); Ps 91:10; Isa 23:15.
29. W. Sibley Towner, Daniel (Interpretation; Atlanta: John Knox, 1984), 142.
30. Richard S. Hess, “Leviticus,” 563–826 in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary Revised Edition 1: Genesis–Leviticus (ed. T. Longman III and D. E .Garland; Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2008),
especially pp. 799–810; Collins, Daniel, p. 352.
31. Hess, “Leviticus,” 817–18. The translation is my own.
32. Porteous, Daniel, 141; Towner, Daniel, 142; Lacocque, The Book of Daniel, 195. A recent
“Maccabean interpretation” has argued that the 7 weeks and the 62 weeks overlap, and that
Hess: The Seventy Sevens of Daniel 9
327
Another point of dispute is the question of who or what is anointed.
Porteous argues that “there is no justification for the Early Church’s view”
that this could be a person and therefore the Messiah, the anointed one. 33
However, he also admits that at least one other reference in the Old Testament could refer to a person, the high priest Aaron in 1 Chr 23:13. 34
Further, he goes on to note that this will end the wickedness brought
about by a person. In Porteous’s case, it is the Seleucid king Antiochus
IV “Epiphanes.” 35 So the term Holy of Holies can refer to a person and,
especially in the context of identifying the challenge as that of Antiochus,
it would be most appropriate for the challenge to this sort of king to be
another king who is consecrated, rather than only a room in the temple.
Verse 25 refers to an anointed one who may or may not be related to
the anointed one in v. 26. 36 As we have seen, Baldwin identifies two different figures, one in the sixth century and the Christian Messiah of the
first century a.d. Porteous agrees with the first identification but opts for
the Maccabean interpretation of v. 26 and the end of the 69 weeks. 37 He
selects the high priest Onias III as the “messiah” who is cut off or killed in
170 b.c. 38 The destruction of Jerusalem is ascribed to the invasion by Antiochus’s tribute collector, Apollonius, who, according to 1 Macc 1:29–40, set
the city on fire and pulled down houses and walls. This occurred in 168 b.c.
and was followed by the invasion of Antiochus himself, who polluted the
sanctuary. However, as Baldwin observes, the problem with this interpretation is that Dan 9:26 states that “the people of a ruler,” that is, his army,
will “destroy” the city and the temple. 39 Now, this is a strong verb. Yašḥît
is the Hiphil or causative form of the root šḥt meaning “to ruin.” While it
can sometimes mean to fall into ruin, that is not the sense it carries when
this allows for a more precise connection between the events of the sixth and second centuries b.c. See George Athas, “In Search of the Seventy ‘Weeks’ of Daniel 9,” Journal of Hebrew
Scriptures 9 (2009) 1–20. Online: http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/JHS/Articles/article_104.pdf. [Accessed April 27, 2009.]
33. See also Collins, Daniel, 354; Lacocque, The Book of Daniel, 198.
34. For the connection with Dan 9, see Lacocque, The Book of Daniel, 194.
35. Porteous, Daniel, 140–41.
36. The expression for “anointed” and “princes” also describes the king of Tyre in Ezek
28:2, 14. Goldingay, Daniel, 261.
37. For Collins (Daniel, 355), the anointed one of v. 25 is the high priest Joshua, one of the
two “sons of oil,” that is, anointed or messianic figures in Zech 4:14.
38. 2 Macc 4:33–38; Porteous, Daniel, 142–43; Towner, Daniel, 144; Jürgen-Christian Lebram, Das Buch Daniel (ZBK 23; Zürich: Theologischer Verlag, 1984), 109; Goldingay, Daniel,
262; Lacocque, The Book of Daniel, 196; C. L. Seow, Daniel, (WBC; Louisville: Westminster John
Knox, 2003), 149–50. On hermeneutical aspects, see Tim Meadowcroft, “Exploring the Dismal
Swamp: The Identity of the Anointed One in Daniel 9:24–27,” JBL 120 (2001): 429–49; Ernest C.
Lucas, “A Statue, a Fiery Furnace and a Dismal Swamp: A Reflection on Some Issues in Biblical
Hermeneutics,” EvQ. 77 (2005): 291–307.
39. Goldingay, Daniel, 262, interprets the subject of the verb destroy as Jason, Onias’s
successor, who devastated (and corrupted) the “people” (this word becomes the object of the
verb) of Jerusalem.
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Bulletin for Biblical Research 21.3
an army is the subject. 40 Rather, the army destroys or annihilates the city
and the sanctuary. This did not happen in 168 b.c., for the temple remained
standing so that Antiochus could order its defilement (1 Macc 1:46). 41 This
remains a fact despite the rhetoric of Goldingay that Baldwin and others
who object to the 168 b.c. date have “minimized” the crisis of that time. 42
If it is the case that the events of the second century b.c. do not fit the language of Dan 9, then the fulfillment of these 69 weeks of years cannot occur
before the complete destruction of the temple and of Jerusalem in 70 a.d.
Porteous understands Dan 9:27 and the act of ending the sacrifice and
offering as occurring in 167 b.c., when Antiochus did just that. The “abomination of desolation” was an altar dedicated to Zeus Olympias, who was
intended to syncretize the God of Israel and Baal Shamen and to whom
offerings were to be given. 43 This object was placed at a corner of the altar
of burnt offering in the outer court of the temple and thus visible for all
to see. 44 The decreeing of the end reproduces an expression from Isa 10:23
and may indicate that this decree will be fulfilled with the events of Dan 9
and thus will bring about the consummation of the age.
Now this view that sees fulfillment in the period of the Maccabees
often assumes that Daniel was written not in the sixth century b.c. but in
the second century b.c. According to Porteous, much or all of this “is not
genuine prediction but known history cast into the form prophecy.” 45 Collins argues that “it puts the crisis of the present in perspective by locating it
in an overview of history.” 46 Of course, the original context of the prophecy
as described in Dan 9:1–2 also assumes a crisis time, a period of transition
from the Neo-Babylonian Empire to the Persian Empire. However, whether
this is prediction or history is ultimately not our concern here. Rather, the
issue is to which events and especially to what time period do these verses
of Daniel refer?
The Background to the Seventy Sevens
The interest of this text of Daniel has been, since the earliest examples of
its interpretation, to look forward to the future and to try to understand
40. Thus, one must proceed with caution in attempts to relate this description to rituals
involved in the restoration of dilapidated temples, as with Hector Avalos, “Daniel 9:24–25 and
Mesopotamian Temple Rededications,” JBL 117 (1998): 507–11.
41. Note also that in the Septuagint the Greek verb translating the Hebrew text of Dan
9:26, phtheirō, carries a stronger sense of utter destruction (“to kill, lay waste, destroy”) than the
Greek of 1 Macc 1:39, which describes the sanctuary with the verb erēmoō, “to leave, abandon,
make desolate, devastate.” Towner (Daniel, 143) accepts that this verse applies to Antiochus,
but notes that the language of Daniel “seems excessive.” He thus agrees that this language does
not fit well with the events of the second century b.c.
42. Goldingay (Daniel, 261) makes this assertion by an appeal to “covertly” referencing
the Maccabean period in the Sibylene Oracles (3.265–94), an appeal that is hardly explicit and
thus should not be used to discredit the work of those who disagree with his “chronography.”
43. See especially the survey and conclusion of Collins, Daniel, 357–58.
44. Porteous, Daniel, 143; Towner, Daniel, 144; 1 Macc 1:54.
45. Porteous, Daniel, p. 144.
46. Collins, Daniel, 360.
Hess: The Seventy Sevens of Daniel 9
329
its meaning. However, just as important is the background to the seventy
sevens. While the importance of the number 70 has already been noted in
terms of the Jeremiah and of the Levitical year of jubilee, the larger question of these major epochs of history has not been addressed. The concept of
major divisions of history lasting between 400 and 500 years can be found
in key references throughout the OT. For example, others have observed
that the note of 1 Kgs 6:1 and its 480 years between the exodus and the start
of the construction on Solomon’s temple forms an example of the Bible’s
tendency to approximate large epochs and to fit them within schemes of
“ideal” numbers such as 7, 12, 40, or multiples thereof. 47
As noted by Baldwin, Gen 15:13–16 provides an example of a large
number of years that is itself a round number and is further summarized
in terms of several generations. Beginning with the covenant with Noah
in Genesis, there is a tendency to divide major epochs of world history in
terms of increments of 400 to 500 years. These are divided according to the
major covenants and according to the construction of the temples in Jerusalem. Genesis 11:10–32 summarizes the period from the covenant with Noah
(Gen 9:1–11) to the advent of Abram in a genealogy, whose years add up
to 427. Again, Gen 15:13 summarizes the period from the covenant with
Abram and his descendants to the exodus from Egypt and the covenant
at Mt. Sinai in terms of 400 years. 1 Kings 6:1 goes on to trace the epoch
from the exodus to the beginning of Solomon’s temple as 480 years. 48 The
number, no more intended as a precise number of years than the 400 of Gen
15:13, implicitly represents 12 generations of 40 years each. It describes an
ideal and complete number of years that suggests that the construction of
the temple began at precisely the correct time in Israel’s history.
The next unit of time, from the building of the first temple to one of
three events in the sixth century b.c., is not explicitly stated in the biblical
text. However, if the building of the first temple is so carefully calculated
from the exodus, there is reason to suppose that, for a sixth-century editor,
this time span would mark the midway point between the exodus and the
Exile. The endpoint has been variously identified as either the destruction
of the temple in 587/586 b.c., the edict of Cyrus to return and rebuild the
temple in 539 b.c., or the actual construction of the temple ca. 517 b.c.
Although Marvin Sweeney rejects this explanation as “not secure,” this
would not be a problem if the number was not intended to be precisely 480
years but rather a theologically significant manner of describing the major
epochs in Israel’s history. 49 This then marks a period of similar length. 50
47. See E. W. Bullinger, Number in Scripture (6th ed.; London: Lamp, 1952), 5–6; Goldingay,
Daniel, 232, 258.
48. For this and additional examples from the Intertestamental literature of epochal divisons of history, see Lucas, Daniel, 247–48.
49. Marvin A. Sweeney, I and II Kings (OTL; Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2007),
108.
50. C. F. Burney, Notes on the Hebrew Text of the Books of Kings (Oxford: Oxford University
Press, 1903), 59–61; G. H. Jones, 1 and 2 Kings (NCB; 2 vols.; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans; London:
Marshall, Morgan, & Scott, 1984), 1:162–63; Martin J. Mulder, 1 Kings, vol. 1: 1 Kings 1–11
330
Bulletin for Biblical Research 21.3
Given these divisions, it is no surprise that the next major epoch, the
one that remains between the rebuilding of the temple and the end of time
as identified in Dan 9, should include a similar period of time, either 69
or 70 weeks of years, either 483 or 490 years. If it is accepted that these
epochs are usually marked by number of years based on multiples of 7, 12,
or 40 years and that they are not intended to be a precise number, then
we find that Dan 9 describes the final epoch in the history of the world as
understood by Daniel.
Conclusion
The question of the significance of the 70 weeks has been examined from a
variety of perspectives. We began by looking at a literary reading of Dan 9
and found that it provided encouragement to remain faithful in the midst
of a dark and discouraging time. We then considered the early interpretation of these weeks, observing that pre-Christian and Jewish studies saw
the 70 weeks as a general period of time. Early Christian studies, on the
other hand, tended to calculate precise dates that ended with Jesus Christ.
Dispensational interpretations of Daniel attempt to match historical
chronology precisely with the 7 and 62 weeks of years and argue that years,
centuries, and millennia must separate the 69th week from the 70th week.
Other recent scholars, such as Baldwin, also understand the final week to
lie in the future. However, they allow for a more general interpretation of
the 70 weeks and do not require a precise calculation of years. Alternatively, there are those who read Dan 9 as completely fulfilled in the events
of the second century b.c. and the persecution of the Jewish people of God
by Antiochus IV. However, we have noted that the events leading to the
Maccabean revolt of this pre-Christian era do not exhaust the strong language of destruction found in Dan 9:24–27.
A final section was devoted to identifying the biblical tendency to
divide the great history of the people of God into major segments, each described as lasting about four or five centuries. We argued that the 70 weeks
of years fit well into this scheme. While these divisions of human and salvation history are multiples of ideal numbers 7, 12, and others, they do not
guarantee a precise chronology for the purpose of calculating specific dates.
Thus, the scheme suggested here affirms with dispensationalism and
early Christianity that the 70 weeks can be tied to Jesus’ first appearance
on earth and his second coming. However, unlike dispensationalism, the
biblical pattern of lengthy human epochs such as this does not provide for
exact calculations. This is true of the final week of years, as well, and it is
in this context that historic premillennialism finds its natural interpretation
of Daniel and his future: a time connected with Jesus’ return but not tied
to one precise scheme of years.
(HCOT; Leuven: Peeters, 1998), 231; Donald J. Wiseman, 1 and 2 Kings: An Introduction and
Commentary (TOTC; Leicester: Inter-Varsity, 1993), 104; Walter Brueggemann, 1 and 2 Kings
(Smith & Helwys Commentary; Macon: Smith & Helwys, 2000), 84.