© 2023 Arthur Chrysler
From Adam to Adam - A Biblical Paper Trail
I Corinthians 15:45 - And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul;
the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.
Genesis 1:26-27 – Adam and Eve were created. 3899 B.C. Genesis 5:3 – Adam was 130 years-old when Seth is born. 3769
Gen 5:6 – Seth lived 105 years and begat Enos. 3664
Gen. 5:9 – Enos lived 90 years and begat Cainan. 3574
Gen. 5:12 – Cainan lived 70 years and begat Mahalaleel. 3504 Gen. 5:15 – Mahalaleel lived 65 years and begat Jared. 3439
Gen. 5:18 – Jared lived 162 years and begat Enoch. 3277
Gen. 5:21 – Enoch lived 65 years and he begat Methuselah (who lived 969 yrs.) 3212
Gen. 5:25 – Methuselah lived 187 years and begat Lamech. 3025
Gen. 5:28 – Lamech lived 182 years and begat… Noah. 2843
Gen. 11:12 – Arphaxad lived 35 years and begat Salah. 2206
Gen. 11:14 – Salah lived 30 years and begat Eber. 2176
Gen. 11:16 – Eber lived 34 years and begat Peleg. 2142 Gen. 11:18 – Peleg lived 30 years and begat Reu. 2112
Gen. 11:20 – Reu lived 32 years and begat Serug. 2080 Gen. 11:22 – Serug lived 30 years and begat Nahor. 2050
Gen. 11:24 – Nahor lived 29 years and begat Terah. 2021 Gen. 11:26 – Terah lived 70 years and begat Abram. 1951
Gen. 21:5 – Abraham was 100 years-old when Isaac was born unto him. 1851 Gen. 25:26 – Isaac was 60 years-old when Jacob was born. 1791
Gen. 47:9 – Jacob was 130 years-old when arriving in Egypt. 1661
Exodus 12:40-41 – Now the sojourning of the children of Israel, who dwelt in Egypt, was four hundred and thirty years. And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, even the selfsame day it came to pass, that all the hosts of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt (According to Genesis 12:10 and Galatians 3:17, the sojourning began with Abram in Egypt).
Genesis 12:10 – …Abram went down into Egypt to sojourn there.... 1876 – 430 = 1446
Galatians 3:17 – And this I say, that the covenant (Gen. 12:2-3), that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect. 1876 – 430 = 1446
Gen. 47:9 – Jacob (along with his children) arrived in Egypt in 1661 (exactly 215 years after Abram sojourned there). 1876 – 1661 = 215
Moses led the Children of Israel out of Egypt in 1446 (exactly 215 years after Jacob, along with his children, arrived there. 1661 – 1446 = 215
It was at this time that Moses wrote the first five books of the Bible. Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy were eyewitness accounts. The Book of Genesis may have been copied out by Moses from older eyewitness accounts.
“Moses could have copied his material from such records just as Hezekiah’s men copied from Solomon’s writings to complete the Book of Proverbs (cf. Prov. 25:1)” (Norman L. Geisler, A Popular Survey of the Old Testament, 1978, p. 38).
Proverbs 25:1 – These are also proverbs of Solomon, which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied out.
• Copied out; Strong’s #6275 – athaq; to remove; to grow old; to transcribe – copy out.
According to the Bible, when Adam was created, he had the ability to understand God and speak to God. According to Genesis 5:1, he also had the ability to read and write. In this sense, you could say that Adam hit the ground running! What is the first thing that Adam would have read? The answer is Genesis 1:1-2:4, which ends (in the Septuagint version) with its title, “This is the book of the generation of heaven and earth, when they were made…." This, then, begs the question, who wrote that first chapter of the Book of Genesis? My guess would be that the eyewitness to all of Creation wrote it, the Lord God Himself!
Psalm 12:6-7 – The words of the Lord are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O Lord, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.
Gen 5:6 – Seth lived 105 years and begat Enos. 3664
Gen. 5:9 – Enos lived 90 years and begat Cainan. 3574
Gen. 5:12 – Cainan lived 70 years and begat Mahalaleel. 3504 Gen. 5:15 – Mahalaleel lived 65 years and begat Jared. 3439
Gen. 5:18 – Jared lived 162 years and begat Enoch. 3277
Gen. 5:21 – Enoch lived 65 years and he begat Methuselah (who lived 969 yrs.) 3212
Gen. 5:25 – Methuselah lived 187 years and begat Lamech. 3025
Gen. 5:28 – Lamech lived 182 years and begat… Noah. 2843
- Genesis 5:5 – Adam died after living 930 years. – 2969 B.C.
- Genesis 6:5-9a – …every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
- Genesis 8:13 – The Flood – 2243-2242 B.C. …in the six hundredth and first year…
Gen. 11:12 – Arphaxad lived 35 years and begat Salah. 2206
Gen. 11:14 – Salah lived 30 years and begat Eber. 2176
Gen. 11:16 – Eber lived 34 years and begat Peleg. 2142 Gen. 11:18 – Peleg lived 30 years and begat Reu. 2112
Gen. 11:20 – Reu lived 32 years and begat Serug. 2080 Gen. 11:22 – Serug lived 30 years and begat Nahor. 2050
Gen. 11:24 – Nahor lived 29 years and begat Terah. 2021 Gen. 11:26 – Terah lived 70 years and begat Abram. 1951
- Gen. 9:28-29 – 1893 B.C. – And Noah lived after the flood three hundred and fifty years. And all the days of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years: and he died.
Gen. 21:5 – Abraham was 100 years-old when Isaac was born unto him. 1851 Gen. 25:26 – Isaac was 60 years-old when Jacob was born. 1791
Gen. 47:9 – Jacob was 130 years-old when arriving in Egypt. 1661
Exodus 12:40-41 – Now the sojourning of the children of Israel, who dwelt in Egypt, was four hundred and thirty years. And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, even the selfsame day it came to pass, that all the hosts of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt (According to Genesis 12:10 and Galatians 3:17, the sojourning began with Abram in Egypt).
Genesis 12:10 – …Abram went down into Egypt to sojourn there.... 1876 – 430 = 1446
Galatians 3:17 – And this I say, that the covenant (Gen. 12:2-3), that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect. 1876 – 430 = 1446
Gen. 47:9 – Jacob (along with his children) arrived in Egypt in 1661 (exactly 215 years after Abram sojourned there). 1876 – 1661 = 215
Moses led the Children of Israel out of Egypt in 1446 (exactly 215 years after Jacob, along with his children, arrived there. 1661 – 1446 = 215
It was at this time that Moses wrote the first five books of the Bible. Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy were eyewitness accounts. The Book of Genesis may have been copied out by Moses from older eyewitness accounts.
“Moses could have copied his material from such records just as Hezekiah’s men copied from Solomon’s writings to complete the Book of Proverbs (cf. Prov. 25:1)” (Norman L. Geisler, A Popular Survey of the Old Testament, 1978, p. 38).
Proverbs 25:1 – These are also proverbs of Solomon, which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied out.
• Copied out; Strong’s #6275 – athaq; to remove; to grow old; to transcribe – copy out.
According to the Bible, when Adam was created, he had the ability to understand God and speak to God. According to Genesis 5:1, he also had the ability to read and write. In this sense, you could say that Adam hit the ground running! What is the first thing that Adam would have read? The answer is Genesis 1:1-2:4, which ends (in the Septuagint version) with its title, “This is the book of the generation of heaven and earth, when they were made…." This, then, begs the question, who wrote that first chapter of the Book of Genesis? My guess would be that the eyewitness to all of Creation wrote it, the Lord God Himself!
Psalm 12:6-7 – The words of the Lord are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O Lord, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.
I Kings 6:1 – And it came to pass in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon's reign over Israel, in the month Zif, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of the Lord. 1446 – 480 = 966
Solomon reigned 40 years (I Kings 11:42). 970-930
Rehoboam reigned 17 years (II Chronicles 12:13). 930-913
I Kings 14:25-26 – 925 B.C. – And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehoboham, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem: And he took away the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king’s house; he even took away all: and he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made.
Archaeological evidence from Egypt
- According to I Kings 6:1, the fourth year of Solomon’s reign was 966 B.C.; therefore, Solomon became king in 970 B.C. (966 + 4) and his father, David, became king 40 years earlier in 1010 (970 + 40).
- David’s son Solomon became coregent for a short time (when the days of David drew nigh that he should die – I Kings 1:30-35, 46-48; 2:1).
Solomon reigned 40 years (I Kings 11:42). 970-930
Rehoboam reigned 17 years (II Chronicles 12:13). 930-913
I Kings 14:25-26 – 925 B.C. – And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehoboham, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem: And he took away the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king’s house; he even took away all: and he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made.
Archaeological evidence from Egypt
- The majority of scholars agree that Shoshenq I was Pharaoh in Egypt from 945-924 B.C. and that the Egyptian ruler referred to in the Bible as Shishak (I Kings & II Chronicles) is, in fact, Pharaoh Shoshenq I. He was the first Egyptian king to be mentioned by name in the Bible (I Kings 11:40; 14:25; II Chronicles 12:2-9).
- Pharaoh Shishshak (Shoshenq I) left an account of his campaign on a wall in the temple of Amun at Karnak, in Upper Egypt. The Bubastite portal includes a large, weathered relief in which the pharaoh lists more than 150 towns (including Megiddo) he conquered during his military campaign into Israel and Judah.
The Bubastite Portal records an Egyptian campaign by Pharaoh Shoshenq (Shishak).
- “Today the vast majority of scholars believe that the Bubastite Portal records a real Egyptian campaign by Pharaoh Shoshenq in the mid-to-late tenth century B.C.E. As concluded by Israel’s leading Biblical geographer Anson Rainey: “This inscription can only be based on intelligence information gathered during a real campaign by Pharaoh Shoshenq.” Kenneth Kitchen has called the reality of Shoshenq’s campaign during the reign of Rehoboam “beyond reasonable doubt.” If this campaign occurred in 925 B.C.E. and, as the Bible says, this was the fifth year of Rehoboam’s rule in Judah, Rehoboam would have become king, and Solomon’s reign would have ended in 930 B.C.E. (925 + 5)” (Yigal Levin, Did Pharaoh Sheshonq Attack Jerusalem?, Biblical Archaeology Review, July/August 2012, pp. 48-49).
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At the site of Megiddo a portion of a commemorative stela of Shishak (Shoshenq I) was found by the University of Chicago Oriental Institute excavations in 1926. His name can be clearly read, and the stela is undoubtedly related to the 925 B.C. campaign. Photo: D. Ellis/P. Van der Veen
Abijah reigned 3 years (II Chronicles 13:2). 913-910 Asa reigned 41 years (II Chronicles 16:13). 910-869
Jehoshaphat reigned 25 years (II Chronicles 20:31). 869-844 Jehoram reigned 8 years (II Chronicles 21:5, 20). 844-836 Ahaziah reigned 1 year (II Chronicles 22:2). 836-835 Athaliah reigned 6 years (II Chronicles 22:12). 835-829 Joash reigned 40 years (II Chronicles 24:1). 829-789
Jehoshaphat reigned 25 years (II Chronicles 20:31). 869-844 Jehoram reigned 8 years (II Chronicles 21:5, 20). 844-836 Ahaziah reigned 1 year (II Chronicles 22:2). 836-835 Athaliah reigned 6 years (II Chronicles 22:12). 835-829 Joash reigned 40 years (II Chronicles 24:1). 829-789
Archaeological evidence from Jerusalem
The Jehoash Tablet. Among Israeli scholars, it is referred to as the "bedeq bayit" (Temple Repair) inscription. Jehoash (also referred to as “Joash”) initiated repairs on Solomon’s temple (II Kings 12:5-16; II Chronicles 24:4-14). The gist of the inscription is simple. When Judeans donated silver for the purchase of building materials, the king used the money to make several repairs on the Temple.
Amaziah reigned 29 years (II Chronicles 25:1). 789-760
Co-reign - Amaziah and Azariah/Uzziah. 783-760
Azariah/Uzziah reigned 52 years (II Chronicles 26:3). 783-731
Jotham reigned 16 years (II Chronicles 27:1, 8). 743-727
Ahaz reigned 16 years (II Chronicles 28:1). 727-711
Hezekiah reigned 29 years (II Chronicles 29:1). 711-682
Manasseh reigned 55 years (II Chronicles 33:1). 697-642 Amon reigned 2 years (II Chronicles 33:21). 642-640 Josiah reigned 31 years (II Chronicles 34:1). 640-609
Jehoahaz reigned 3 months (II Chronicles 36:2) 609
- Amaziah’s son Azariah (or Uzziah, as he is variously known,) became coregent (possibly when Amaziah was taken captive to Samaria by Jehoash ben Jehoahaz, king of Israel – II Kings 14:13-14, 21).
Co-reign - Amaziah and Azariah/Uzziah. 783-760
Azariah/Uzziah reigned 52 years (II Chronicles 26:3). 783-731
- Azariah/Uzziah’s son Jotham became coregent (possibly when his father was stricken with leprosy – II Kings 15:5; II Chronicles 26:21).
Jotham reigned 16 years (II Chronicles 27:1, 8). 743-727
Ahaz reigned 16 years (II Chronicles 28:1). 727-711
Hezekiah reigned 29 years (II Chronicles 29:1). 711-682
- Hezekiah’s son Manasseh became coregent (possibly when his father was sick unto death. – II Kings 20:1).
Manasseh reigned 55 years (II Chronicles 33:1). 697-642 Amon reigned 2 years (II Chronicles 33:21). 642-640 Josiah reigned 31 years (II Chronicles 34:1). 640-609
Jehoahaz reigned 3 months (II Chronicles 36:2) 609
- II Chronicles 36:4 – And the king of Egypt made Eliakim his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem, and turned his name to Jehoiakim. And Necho took Jehoahaz his brother, and carried him to Egypt.
- Jeremiah 25:1-3 – The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, that was the first year of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon. 609 – 4 = 605
- Daniel 1:1-3, 6-7 – In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah came Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon unto Jerusalem, and besieged it. And the LORD gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, with part of the vessels of the house of God: which he carried into the land of Shinar to the house of his god; and he brought the vessels into the treasure house of his god. And the king spake unto Ashpenaz the master of his eunuchs, that he should bring certain of the children of Israel, and of the king’s seed, and of the princes… Now among these were the children of Judah, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah: Unto whom the prince of the eunuchs gave names: for he gave unto Daniel the name of Belteshazzar; and to Hananiah, of Shadrach; and to Mishael, of Meshach; and to Azariah, of Abed-nego.
- II Chronicles 36:9-11 – Jehoiachin was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned three months and ten days in Jerusalem: and he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. And when the year was expired, king Nebuchadnezzar sent, and brought him to Babylon, with the goodly vessels of the house of the Lord, and made Zedekiah his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem. Zedekiah was one and twenty years old when he began to reign, and reigned eleven years in Jerusalem.
Archaeological evidence from Babylon
The Babylonian Chronicle on display in the British Museum, London.
(588 B.C.) II Kings 25:1 - And it came to pass in the ninth year of his (Zedekiah's) reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he, and all his host, against Jerusalem, and pitched against it; and they built forts against it round about. [Jer. 39:1; Ezekiel 24:1] *Here begins the seventy-year era of "Desolations" (Ezekiel 24:2).
(586 B.C.) II Kings 25:2 - And the city was besieged unto the eleventh year of king Zedekiah. (Jer. 39:2).
(586 B.C.) Jeremiah 39:11-12 - Now Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon gave charge concerning Jeremiah to Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard, saying, Take him, and look well to him, and do him no harm; but do unto him even as he shall say unto thee.
(586 B.C.) II Kings 25:8-11 – And in the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month, which is the nineteenth year of king Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, came Nebuzaradan, captain of the guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, unto Jerusalem: And he burnt the house of the Lord, and the king’s house, and all the houses of Jerusalem, and every great man’s house burnt he with fire. And all the army of the Chaldees, that were with the captain of the guard, brake down the walls of Jerusalem round about. Now the rest of the people that were left in the city, and the fugitives that fell away to the king of Babylon, with the remnant of the multitude, did Nebuzar-adan the captain of the guard carry away.
II Chronicles 36:20-21 – And them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon; where they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia: To fulfil the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her sabbaths: for as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath, to fulfil threescore and ten years.
"Now from the tenth day of Tebeth B.C. 589 (Ezekiel 24:1-2), to the twenty-fourth day of Chisleu B.C. 520 (the second year of Darius Hystaspes – Haggai 2:10, 15-19) was a period of 25,202 days; and seventy years of 360 days contain exactly 25,200 days. We may conclude, therefore, that the era of the ‘desolations’ was a period of seventy years of 360 days, beginning with the day after the Babylonian army invested Jerusalem, and ending the day before the foundation of the second temple was laid” (Sir Robert Anderson, The Coming Prince, Kregel, 1954 version, pp. 70-71).
Jeremiah 29: 10-14 – For thus saith the LORD, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place. For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. And I will be found of you, saith the LORD: and I will turn away your captivity, and I will gather you from all nations, and from all the places whither I have driven you, saith the LORD; and I will bring you again into the place whence I caused you to be carried away captive.
(539 B.C.) Daniel 9:1-3 – In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the seed of the Medes, which was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans; In the first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem. And I set my face unto the LORD God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes…
Daniel 9:21-25 – Yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation. And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding. At the beginning of thy supplications the commandment came forth, and I am come to shew thee; for thou art greatly beloved: therefore understand the matter, and consider the vision. Seventy weeks (weeks of years – 70 x 7 = 490 prophetic years) 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. 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 (49 prophetic yrs.), and threescore and two weeks (434 prophetic yrs.): the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.
When was the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem given? Nehemiah, writing by divine inspiration, records the exact date of this decree: “in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king” (Nehemiah 2:1).
Dr. Alva McClain, former president of Grace Theological Seminary in Winona Lake, Indiana wrote: “For those who believe in biblical inspiration and the genuineness of predictive prophecy, it will be no surprise to learn that the date fixed by Nehemiah happens to be one of the best-known dates in ancient history. Even the latest edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica, certainly not biased in favor of prophecy, sets the date of Artaxerxes accession as 465 B.C.; and therefore, his twentieth year would be 445 B.C. …Here we have the beginning of the Seventy Weeks” (Alva J. McClain, Daniel’s prophecy of the Seventy Weeks, 1962, pp. 18-19).
Daniel 9:25c “…the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.”
- First published by Donald J. Wiseman in 1956, the Babylonian Chronicle records the last year of the reign of Nabopolassar and the first 11 years of his son Nebuchadnezzar. According to Wiseman, the cuneiform text records the Battle of Carchemish and the accession of Nebuchadnezzar. The fifth paragraph says, “In the seventh year [598], the month of Kislîmu, the king of Akkad mustered his troops, marched to the Hatti-land and besieged the city of Judah. On the second day of the month of Addarunote [597] he seized the city and captured the king. He appointed there a king of his own choice, received its heavy tribute and sent to Babylon.”
- According to Jeremiah 25:1-3, Nebuchadnezzar became king in 605 B.C. - The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah the king of Judah, that was the first year of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon (609 - 4 = 605). Therefore, the "seventh year," mentioned on the tablet, would be 598 B.C.
(588 B.C.) II Kings 25:1 - And it came to pass in the ninth year of his (Zedekiah's) reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he, and all his host, against Jerusalem, and pitched against it; and they built forts against it round about. [Jer. 39:1; Ezekiel 24:1] *Here begins the seventy-year era of "Desolations" (Ezekiel 24:2).
(586 B.C.) II Kings 25:2 - And the city was besieged unto the eleventh year of king Zedekiah. (Jer. 39:2).
(586 B.C.) Jeremiah 39:11-12 - Now Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon gave charge concerning Jeremiah to Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard, saying, Take him, and look well to him, and do him no harm; but do unto him even as he shall say unto thee.
(586 B.C.) II Kings 25:8-11 – And in the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month, which is the nineteenth year of king Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, came Nebuzaradan, captain of the guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, unto Jerusalem: And he burnt the house of the Lord, and the king’s house, and all the houses of Jerusalem, and every great man’s house burnt he with fire. And all the army of the Chaldees, that were with the captain of the guard, brake down the walls of Jerusalem round about. Now the rest of the people that were left in the city, and the fugitives that fell away to the king of Babylon, with the remnant of the multitude, did Nebuzar-adan the captain of the guard carry away.
II Chronicles 36:20-21 – And them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon; where they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia: To fulfil the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her sabbaths: for as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath, to fulfil threescore and ten years.
"Now from the tenth day of Tebeth B.C. 589 (Ezekiel 24:1-2), to the twenty-fourth day of Chisleu B.C. 520 (the second year of Darius Hystaspes – Haggai 2:10, 15-19) was a period of 25,202 days; and seventy years of 360 days contain exactly 25,200 days. We may conclude, therefore, that the era of the ‘desolations’ was a period of seventy years of 360 days, beginning with the day after the Babylonian army invested Jerusalem, and ending the day before the foundation of the second temple was laid” (Sir Robert Anderson, The Coming Prince, Kregel, 1954 version, pp. 70-71).
Jeremiah 29: 10-14 – For thus saith the LORD, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place. For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. And I will be found of you, saith the LORD: and I will turn away your captivity, and I will gather you from all nations, and from all the places whither I have driven you, saith the LORD; and I will bring you again into the place whence I caused you to be carried away captive.
(539 B.C.) Daniel 9:1-3 – In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the seed of the Medes, which was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans; In the first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem. And I set my face unto the LORD God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes…
Daniel 9:21-25 – Yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation. And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding. At the beginning of thy supplications the commandment came forth, and I am come to shew thee; for thou art greatly beloved: therefore understand the matter, and consider the vision. Seventy weeks (weeks of years – 70 x 7 = 490 prophetic years) 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. 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 (49 prophetic yrs.), and threescore and two weeks (434 prophetic yrs.): the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.
When was the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem given? Nehemiah, writing by divine inspiration, records the exact date of this decree: “in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king” (Nehemiah 2:1).
Dr. Alva McClain, former president of Grace Theological Seminary in Winona Lake, Indiana wrote: “For those who believe in biblical inspiration and the genuineness of predictive prophecy, it will be no surprise to learn that the date fixed by Nehemiah happens to be one of the best-known dates in ancient history. Even the latest edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica, certainly not biased in favor of prophecy, sets the date of Artaxerxes accession as 465 B.C.; and therefore, his twentieth year would be 445 B.C. …Here we have the beginning of the Seventy Weeks” (Alva J. McClain, Daniel’s prophecy of the Seventy Weeks, 1962, pp. 18-19).
Daniel 9:25c “…the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.”
Overhead view of a Persian-period cobblestone walkway (bottom left) atop Hezekiah’s repaired wall in the City of David (Yigal Shilo’s Area D2), Jerusalem. “The street” and “the wall” mentioned in Daniel 9:25, may be one and the same. Credit: Arthur Chrysler
Matthew 21:1-11 – And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto the mount of Olives, then sent Jesus two disciples, Saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me. And if any man say ought unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them. All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass (Zechariah 9:9). And the disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them, And brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they set him thereon. And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strawed them in the way. And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the son of David (see II Samuel 7:16-17): Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest. And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this? And the multitude said, This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee.
There are a total of 69 weeks of years or 483 years (49 + 434) mentioned in Daniel 9:25 and biblical evidence supports the use of a 360-day year in prophecy. When this is factored into the calculation (starting from 445 B.C.), the terminating point is A.D. 32.
483 prophetic years x 360 = 173,880 days
173,880 days divided by 365 = 476 Gregorian years
445 B.C. – 476 yrs. = A.D. 32
- The “going forth of the commandment,” of Daniel 9:25, has been shown to have occurred in 445 B.C., therefore, the first “seven weeks” of years (7 x 7 = 49 prophetic years) in Daniel’s vision cover the days of Ezra and Nehemiah, the period of rebuilding during the “troublous times” between 445 B.C. and 396 B.C. The remaining “threescore and two weeks” (62 x 7 = 434 prophetic years), lead to the time of "Messiah the Prince.”
Matthew 21:1-11 – And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto the mount of Olives, then sent Jesus two disciples, Saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me. And if any man say ought unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them. All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass (Zechariah 9:9). And the disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them, And brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they set him thereon. And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strawed them in the way. And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the son of David (see II Samuel 7:16-17): Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest. And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this? And the multitude said, This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee.
There are a total of 69 weeks of years or 483 years (49 + 434) mentioned in Daniel 9:25 and biblical evidence supports the use of a 360-day year in prophecy. When this is factored into the calculation (starting from 445 B.C.), the terminating point is A.D. 32.
483 prophetic years x 360 = 173,880 days
173,880 days divided by 365 = 476 Gregorian years
445 B.C. – 476 yrs. = A.D. 32
Conclusion for the Children of Israel
Luke 19:41-42 – And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.
Daniel 9:24 – 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.
Jeremiah 30:7 – Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's trouble, but he shall be saved out of it.
Jeremiah 31:31-34 – Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord: But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.
Conclusion for believers – I Thessalonians 5:9-11 – For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him. Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.
Romans 4:20-25 – He (Abraham) staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness. Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.
I Corinthians 15:51-52 – Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
I Thessalonians 4:13-18 – But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
Luke 19:41-42 – And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.
- The “things which belong unto thy peace but now they are hid from thine eyes” are found in Daniel 9:24 and will see their future fulfillment at the end of the seventieth week of Daniel 9:27.
Daniel 9:24 – 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.
Jeremiah 30:7 – Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's trouble, but he shall be saved out of it.
Jeremiah 31:31-34 – Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord: But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.
Conclusion for believers – I Thessalonians 5:9-11 – For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him. Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.
Romans 4:20-25 – He (Abraham) staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness. Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.
I Corinthians 15:51-52 – Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
I Thessalonians 4:13-18 – But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
© 2023 Arthur Chrysler
