Hebrews in Light of Grace (Part 9): The 70 Weeks of Daniel and the Mystery Program
The Foundation of Daniel’s Prophetic Blueprint
The overarching plan of God concerning the nations of the earth centers upon a King and a physical throne established in the city of Jerusalem. Throughout the ancient Scriptures, God declared that Jerusalem would be purified from its corruption, purged of unrighteous rulers, and established as a faithful city of righteousness to light the world. During the dark days of the Babylonian captivity, when Judah lay desolate and the northern kingdom of Israel had already been scattered by Assyria, God delivered a specific promise through Jeremiah the prophet. He declared that after seventy years were accomplished at Babylon, He would visit the captives and bring them back to Jerusalem to begin working out a plan to bring them to an expected end.
Living as an exile in Babylon, the prophet Daniel spent his entire lifetime serving foreign monarchs, interpreting dreams of world empires, and receiving visions of the future. Yet, despite receiving grand revelations of Gentile dominion, Daniel remained a devoted student of the written Word of God. In the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia, Daniel turned to the scroll of Jeremiah and calculated that the seventy years of Jerusalem's desolation were nearing their completion (Jer.29:10-11). Realizing that the second world empire—the Medo-Persian bear and two-horned ram—had arrived, Daniel recognized that God’s historical clock was moving forward.
Understanding the gravity of his nation's condition, Daniel set his face unto the Lord God to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. His intercession was grounded in a clear grasp of Israel’s covenant history. Daniel acknowledged that the horrific curse and oath written in the law of Moses had been poured out upon Israel because all twelve tribes had transgressed God's law and refused to obey the voice of His prophets (Dan.9:11-13). He did not appeal to God based upon any inherent human righteousness, but appealed entirely to the mercies, forgiveness, and covenant faithfulness of the Lord. He pleaded for God to turn away His anger from Jerusalem, rebuild the desolate sanctuary, and forgive His people for His own name's sake.
