70 Weeks Are Determined Upon Thy People

Today I'd like to talk about a time prophecy in Daniel chapter 9, which is a shorter prophecy that's part of a larger prophecy. And that larger prophecy is found in the previous chapter in Daniel 8.14. Now, before we get started, I want you to know that we're going to be talking about a lot of facts and figures today that might be a little bit difficult to remember. But we need to do our best because what Daniel wrote is meant for us living down here at the end of time. So, if you have your Bibles, please open to Daniel chapter 8 and verse 14. Daniel 8.14. The angel Gabriel is speaking to Daniel here, and Daniel wrote down exactly what he said. And as I mentioned, he wrote it down especially for us. Daniel didn't realize it at the time, but that's what he was doing, as we will see. Daniel 8.14 says, "...and he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days..." The word days in Hebrew is made up of two words, meaning evening and morning, or 2300 evenings and mornings. This is the same as the days of creation, where it says in the evening and the morning were the first day, and the second day, and so forth, representing 2300 24-hour periods, and not half days from sunset to sunrise, or 1150 days as some are teaching, trying to bring Antiochus Epiphanes as the little horn of Daniel 8 into the picture. If you try to turn 2300 days into half days, then this prophecy doesn't make a bit of sense, and it also hides the meaning of who the little horn truly is. "...and he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days, then shall the sanctuary be cleansed, or begin to be cleansed." Not a finished work, but a beginning work. The word cleansed in Hebrew means to be right, to clear self, do justice, and turn to righteousness. And so all these things point to the fact that there has to be some kind of judgment that takes place before justice can be rendered, or before things can be made right, so that we can end up with a sanctuary that has been cleansed. Now, the cleansing of the sanctuary isn't the subject today, but since it's being mentioned here, I feel like I should give you a brief explanation of what it means. The cleansing of the sanctuary has to do with the Day of Atonement recorded in Leviticus chapter 16, which speaks of how all the sins and all the blood sacrifices that had accumulated in the earthly sanctuary were cleansed and removed each year. And Hebrews chapters 8 and 9 talk about a heavenly sanctuary, of which the one on earth was a copy, or patterned after. The word atonement means to cover. That is, to cover by the shedding of blood, all the sins that have been committed by the children of Israel all through the year. Today, the Jews call it Yom Kippur, which for them is the most important day of the year, because that's the day they believe their sins are blotted out and taken away. The problem is, they no longer sacrifice animals, and they reject the sacrifice of Christ, so it's pretty much of no practical value. However, for the Christian, in a spiritual sense, it's also very important because we are living during the antitypical Day of Atonement, or what the Old Testament Day of Atonement pointed to when Jesus, our great high priest, would cleanse the heavenly sanctuary of all the sins that have accumulated there since the end of the 2300-day prophecy we just read about in Daniel 8 14, when, like the earthly priest, he entered the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary on October 22, 1844. If you'd like more information about this, you can listen to the two sermons titled, What Happened During the Great Awakening in 1844, Parts 1 and 2, because we don't have the time to go over it again. This great awakening isn't just a figment of my imagination, but a well-documented religious event that actually happened and has great significance for us today, so I hope you'll check that out. During Old Testament times, when a sinner brought a substitute sacrifice of an animal to the sanctuary, it was accepted in the sinner's behalf, but the sin was not yet canceled by the blood of that sacrifice, but was only the means of transferring that sin through the blood from the sinner to the sanctuary. By offering the blood of that animal, the one who sinned was confessing his guilt and expressing his desire for forgiveness through faith in a Savior to come. But this act alone did not entirely release him from the condemnation of the broken law. It just transferred that sin through the blood to the sanctuary. Then, on the Day of Atonement, which took place once a year, the high priest would take an offering from the congregation, go into the most holy place of the sanctuary with the blood of this offering, sprinkle it upon the mercy seat, which was on the top of the ark, and directly over the tables of the Ten Commandment Law that was inside, making satisfaction for its claims, then, acting as a mediator for the people, the high priest symbolically took all the sins of the people upon himself and bore them from the sanctuary. Then, he placed his hands upon the head of the goat that was chosen as the scapegoat and confessed over that goat all these sins, thus transferring them again from himself to the goat. The goat then was taken away to a place not inhabited, and they were regarded as forever separated from the people. This is what the Day of Atonement was all about, and by this ceremony, it showed how the sanctuary was cleansed of all the sins that had accumulated there all through the year. Now, there's a lot more that could be said about the Day of Atonement, but that's it in a nutshell. If you'd like a deeper study about how the sins of the people were taken away, you can listen to the sermon titled, Who is the Fit Man? on the platform you're listening to right now. And by the way, the Day of Atonement teaches us that the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross, just like the animal sacrifices that were offered anciently, did not complete the Atonement. That wasn't accomplished until the sins of the congregation were placed upon the head of the scapegoat and then taken away. So, as important as the sacrifice of Jesus is, the rest of the work he is currently doing is every bit as important. And so, it's important for us to understand that this yearly ritual was symbolic of what Jesus is doing for us in reality in the heavenly sanctuary today. Because again, Hebrews 8 and 9 tell us that the service on earth was patterned after the heavenly sanctuary where Jesus, our Great High Priest, is making Atonement for us right now. And so, because the Atonement had to do with a final judgment that took place anciently, so there is a judgment taking place today in the heavenly sanctuary. And soon, Jesus is going to leave the sanctuary, just like the ancient priests did, and place those sins upon the head of Satan, because ultimately, he's the one that is responsible for all the chaos sin has caused. And then, Jesus is coming back to this earth to deliver his people from the beast and his image that we've been studying about over the past several months. They're numbered 1, 2, 3 on this platform, if you have not yet listened. But here's the spiritual significance of the Day of Atonement for us today. Only those who, through faith, confess their sins can be forgiven and cleansed. And all those who don't will have to suffer for their own sins and be eternally lost, because only the sins of those who confessed and repented will be placed upon the head of the scapegoat. And Romans 6.23 confirms this by stating, the wages of sin is death. That's eternal death. And all who reject the sacrifice of Jesus on their behalf will receive those wages. So, it behooves each one of us to make sure that we confess our sins now, while Jesus still ministers in the sanctuary, so our sins can go beforehand to judgment and be blotted out before he finishes his work in the heavenly sanctuary. You know, most Christians have no idea what Jesus is doing up in heaven today, if you were to ask them. He's not up there, sitting on a cloud, strumming a harp and waiting for us to get there. He has a work to perform as our high priest. And if we understand what happened in the earthly sanctuary, anciently, we will also understand what Jesus is doing for us in the heavenly sanctuary. And that's why it's so important for us to study these things. 2 Peter 3.9 says, the Lord is not slack, or derelict, or neglectful concerning his promise, as some men count slackness, but is longsuffering to usward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. That's the God of love we serve. So, why should we not run to him when we know we have done something wrong, and get it removed from our record in heaven, so we can meet him in peace when he comes? That's what the gospel is all about, and the sanctuary is an illustration of that gospel. All right, back to our beginning thoughts. In Daniel chapter 8, verse 26, Gabriel tells Daniel that the vision of the evening and the morning, referring back to Daniel 8.14, which was told, is true. Wherefore, do what, Daniel? Shut thou up the vision, for it shall be for many days. Actually, it would be for many years, because according to Numbers 14.34 and Ezekiel 4.6, it says a day in Bible prophecy represents a year. So, keep that in mind as we continue on with this prophecy. A day represents a year. Then, in verse 27, it says, and I, Daniel, fainted, and was sick certain days. Why? Because Daniel now understands that this prophecy he so much wants to understand won't be fulfilled in his lifetime. He understood the day-four-year principle because he had access to the writings of Moses before him, and Ezekiel, his older contemporary, where this principle is recorded. Afterward, Daniel says, I rose up and did the king's business, and I was astonished at the vision, but none understood it. The word astonished in Hebrew means stunned or to be devastated. You see, Daniel knew there was something very important about this vision regarding his people and Jerusalem, and he wanted to know what it all meant. And because he didn't understand it, and no one else understood it, and because it spoke of many years in the future, he was so devastated that he became sick for a period of time. Now, here's something most people don't think about. In Daniel chapter 8, in verse 1, Daniel says, it was in the third year of the reign of King Belshazzar, the king of Babylon, that Gabriel appeared to him and told him the vision of the 2300 evenings and mornings. And when we get to Daniel chapter 9 and verse 1, it says it was in the first year of King Darius of Persia that more information was given to him from Gabriel. And so, there was about a 15-year gap between the first time Gabriel appeared to Daniel and when he came the second time. And so, Daniel had to wonder about what this 2300-year prophecy was all about for 15 long years. And even then, he wasn't able to fully grasp it because it wasn't meant for him. It was meant for us living down here at the end of time. And so, thank you, Daniel, for being a faithful servant of God so we today can understand what these prophecies are all about. So, when we get to chapter 9, Daniel begins to pray. And toward the end of his prayer, in verses 20 to 23, he says, And whilst I was speaking and praying and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel and presenting my supplication before the Lord my God for the holy mountain of my God, which was Jerusalem, yea, while I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning 15 years ago, 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 show thee, for thou art greatly beloved. Therefore, understand the matter and consider the vision. So, Gabriel came to give Daniel skill and understanding about what? The vision. What vision? The vision he was given in Daniel chapter 8 in verse 14, 15 years earlier, that he didn't understand because it was sealed up. The one important point in chapter 8 that was left unexplained was the part about the 2300 days and the cleansing of the sanctuary. So, when we get to Daniel 9, after 15 long years had gone by, Gabriel comes back and picks up where he left off and begins to explain the time element of the vision in chapter 8. And the very first words out of Gabriel's mouth are recorded in Daniel 9, 24. Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city. The word determined literally means to cut off. This is the only time in all the scriptures where this particular word is used. In other words, 70 weeks or 490 years, because 70 weeks times seven days to the week equals 490. 490 years are to be determined or cut off, especially pertaining to the Jewish nation and to Daniel's people. So, 70 weeks representing 490 years, says Gabriel, are to be cut off. But the question is, from what are they cut off? Well, because the 490 years is part of a time prophecy and the 2300 years of Daniel 8.14 are the only other period of time mentioned, then that has to be the period from which the 70 weeks are cut off. Does that make sense? And that also means that the two periods begin together or at the same time. Why? Because the 70 weeks are declared by Gabriel in verse 25 to date from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem. The going forth means at the beginning. So, if the starting date of this commandment of 490 years can be found, then the starting point for the period of the 2300 years can also be found. Fortunately for us, the Holy Spirit inspired the prophet Ezra to write it down for us in Ezra chapter 7 verses 12 to 26. We won't take the time to read it. You can do that yourself. But in its last and most complete form, this command or this decree to restore and to build Jerusalem was issued by Artaxerxes, king of Persia in 457 BC. There were actually two other kings that came before Artaxerxes, which were Cyrus and Darius, and they also issued decrees regarding the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem, but it was Artaxerxes' decree that brought it to the perfection required by the prophecy to mark the beginning of both the 490 and the 2300 year prophecy. Now, let's read just one verse to help nail this down. Ezra chapter 9 and verse 9. Ezra says, For we were bondmen, yet our God hath not forsaken us in our bondage, but hath extended mercy to us in the sight of the kings, plural, of Persia, Artaxerxes being the last of the three that made decrees, to give us a reviving, to set up the house of our God, to repair the desolations or the ruins of Jerusalem, therefore, and to give us a wall in Judah and in Jerusalem, just like it says in Daniel chapter 9. Now, I don't know if you have this in your Bible, but in mine it gives the dates when things were written, and it says that Ezra chapter 7 is dated as the time of the reign of Artaxerxes, king of Persia, in 457 BC. So, taking 457 BC as the time when the decree was completed by Artaxerxes as the starting date of the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem, every single point of the prophecy concerning the 70 weeks is fulfilled to the very letter, as we will see. So, let's go back to Daniel chapter 9 and verse 25 again, where Gabriel tells Daniel, know therefore and understand that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince, that's Jesus, shall be seven weeks and three score and two weeks, or 69 weeks, the street shall be built again and the wall even in troubleless times. And that restoration to build the street and the wall took that first seven weeks Daniel mentions, or 49 years to accomplish, which are added to the 62 weeks that came afterward, making 69 weeks. And I'll touch on that a little bit more in a few minutes. So, 69 weeks would be 483 years when you times 69 weeks by seven days to the week. So, when the decree of Artaxerxes went into effect in the autumn of 457 BC, 483 years later brings us to the autumn of 27 AD. Now, what happened in 27 AD? According to Daniel 9 25, the Messiah the Prince, or the Anointed One, would come, because that's what Messiah means, not as a babe in Bethlehem, but under the title of Messiah the Prince. In 27 AD, Jesus was baptized by John in the River Jordan, and was anointed, or set apart for a special work when the Holy Spirit came down in the form of a dove and rested upon him. And that's when he officially began his public ministry as Messiah the Prince. Let's look at two or three other verses to see how the Bible validates this. In Acts chapter 10 and verse 38, the Apostle Peter says, God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power. And in Luke 4 18, after his baptism and wilderness temptations, Jesus himself said, the Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor. And again, after his baptism, Mark chapter 1 verses 14 and 15 says, Jesus went into Galilee preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God and saying, the time, referring to Daniel's time prophecy that foretold the coming of the Messiah, the time is fulfilled. And that portion of the prophecy was fulfilled at that point. Then in Daniel 9 26, it says, and after three score and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself. And Jesus was cut off when he was crucified in 31 AD, as we'll see in the next verse. But it wasn't for himself, was it? No, he was cut off for you and for me and not for himself because he had no guilt of his own because he never sinned. And that's why he can be our savior. You see, it takes one who is innocent to atone for one who is guilty, just as an innocent animal was sacrificed during the time when the earthly sanctuary was in use. In John 1 29, John saw Jesus coming to him and remember what he said? Behold the lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. Aren't you thankful for that? We see in John's words here, Old Testament language about Jesus representing the sacrifice that he was soon to make so that we could be forgiven. Then in Daniel 9 27, it says, and he, the Messiah, shall confirm the covenant with many for one week, seven days, equaling seven years. The week spoken of here is the last of the 70, or the week that follows the seven weeks and the 62 weeks making 69 weeks, which are the last seven years of the period allotted especially to the Jews. Because remember, in total, 70 weeks are determined or cut off from the 2300 year prophecy, upon thy people, the Jews, and upon thy holy city. And so this last seven years begins at 27 AD when Jesus was anointed with the Holy Spirit at his baptism to 34 AD when something significant happened, which was the stoning of Stephen. You can read all about that in Acts chapter 7. Again, this last week or this last seven years was the time when the gospel invitation was to go, especially to the Jews. Because notice what Jesus said in Matthew chapter 10 verses 5 and 6. Jesus told his disciples, go not into the way of the Gentiles and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not, but go rather to who? The lost sheep of the house of Israel. Now here's an important point that most people miss. Was the gospel invitation, which was extended to the Jews during that last seven years because there was still hope that the nation would repent and that they would still be God's chosen people until 34 AD? Or was the invitation extended to individual Jews because probation was closed for the Jewish nation when Jesus was crucified in 31 AD, which was three and a half years before Stephen was stoned? This is an important point for more than one reason. Because number one, many Christians today believe that the Jews are still God's chosen people and interpret prophecy with that in mind. And number two, it's important to understand this 70-week prophecy because most Christians today will try to convince you that this last seven years is the time of the great tribulation when the church will be raptured away to heaven and 144,000 Jewish evangelists will accept Christ and preach the gospel to those who are left behind so that they will have a second chance to be saved. But I have to tell you that this is all a big fairy tale because, for one thing, humanity is being given its second chance right now. The first chance was given to Adam and Eve, and they blew it. And now humanity is given its second and last chance to come to Christ and accept his sacrifice in our behalf. And that's it. It's totally inconsistent to separate the 70th week from the 69 weeks by trying to stretch it out like a rubber band and bring it down to the end of time. The 70 weeks are all one block of time. It began in 457 B.C. and ended in 34 A.D. And by the way, that doesn't add up to 491 years, but exactly 490 years because there's no year zero between B.C. and A.D. It went directly from 1 B.C. to 1 A.D. For instance, if someone was born in 10 B.C. and died in 10 A.D., they lived for 19 years, not 20, because there's no year zero to count. And that's the way it is with this prophecy when going from B.C. to A.D. And that's also why the 2300 year prophecy ends in 1844. Again, the popular teaching that the 70th week of Daniel's prophecy applies to the last days is a hoax and is referred to as the gap theory and leads to erroneous conclusions. I did a more detailed sermon several years ago titled The 70 Weeks Prophecy of Daniel Explained, which goes into much more detail comparing the true and false interpretations of this prophecy. And you can find it on this platform if you search around for it. Notice again what Daniel 9.27 says. After Jesus confirms the covenant with many for one week or seven years, it says, in the midst of the week, right between 27 A.D. and 34 A.D., he, the Messiah, shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation, or the sacrificial offerings, to cease. In 31 A.D., exactly three and a half years after his baptism, Jesus was crucified, and that ended the system of sacrifices and offerings, which for 4,000 years had pointed forward to the Lamb of God. Type had met anti-type, and all the sacrifices and offerings of the ceremonial law ceased at that point. And that's exactly why we are not to keep the Old Testament feast days anymore, because all the feast days required animal sacrifice, which would deny the sacrifice of Christ. And besides, we are now living during the antitypical day of atonement, and no feasts were to be kept concurrently with the day of atonement. And I hope that's clear, if you've been wondering about that. Now, the 70 weeks, or 490 years, especially allotted to the Jews, ended, as we have seen, in 34 A.D. At that time, through the action of the Jewish Sanhedrin, the nation sealed its rejection of the gospel by the martyrdom of Stephen and the persecution of the followers of Christ. Then, the message of salvation was no longer restricted to the Jews, but was given freely to the world. After the stoning of Stephen, the disciples were forced, by persecution, to flee from Jerusalem and went everywhere preaching the word, as it says in Acts 8 and verse 4. And in verse 5, it says Philip went down to the city of Samaria, where Jesus said not to go until that last seven years were completed, and he preached Christ unto them. Peter was also guided by the Holy Spirit to open the gospel to Cornelius, the Roman centurion, and afterward, Paul was commissioned to carry the gospel to the Gentiles. And so, we see how all this fits together. So far, every specification of this prophecy has been fulfilled to the very letter, and the beginning of the 70 weeks is fixed beyond question at 457 B.C. and ending in 34 A.D. From this information, then, there's no problem finding the end of the 2300 days as well, because the 70 weeks, or 490 years, have been cut off from the beginning of the 2300 years, leaving 1810 years remaining. From 34 A.D., which ended the 70 weeks portion of the prophecy, the remaining 1810 years extends to 1844, which means that the 2300-day prophecy of Daniel 8.14 ended in 1844 as well. At the end of this last and longest time prophecy in the Bible, and upon the testimony of the angel Gabriel, then shall the sanctuary be cleansed, which means that the time of the cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary began in 1844, with all those who have died from the creation of this world professing faith in Jesus, the Lamb of God. After this, there is no more time prophecy to be fulfilled, which means we must be ready at all times should we breathe our last, because we will not know when Christ's work of making an atonement for sin in the sanctuary above will be finished. But we do know this, that when his work is finished, he will place our sins upon the head of Satan. Human probation will close, and if we are continuing to sin after that, there will be no forgiveness. That's what the sanctuary service teaches us. So again, we must come to the place in our lives where we must have sustaining victory over sin, because once Jesus' work is finished, our sinning must also be finished if we want to be ready for his second coming. You see, the atonement is all about bringing an end to the sin problem, and as long as there is a sin problem, the atonement will be ongoing. But it's not going to be ongoing forever, because if so, then Jesus would never come. And so we see how important it is to be both justified and sanctified, or to be pardoned and made holy. Check out the two-part series titled, What Must I Do to Be Saved, if you'd like more information about that. Now let's do a little recap before we move on, because I know it's not easy to keep all these facts and figures straight. It would be nice if we had a chart or a whiteboard to look at, but we don't. In Daniel chapter 9, verse 25 to 27, there are a couple parenthetical sentences that make it a little tough to understand, but we need to do our best to make sense of it. The angel Gabriel said to Daniel, know therefore and understand that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem, starting at 457 BC, unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, that's seven times seven, equaling 49 days or years, using the day-for-year principle, and three score and two weeks, totaling 69 weeks, which equals 483 years. The street of Jerusalem shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. That was completed at the end of the first seven-week period in 408 BC, under Nehemiah, or 49 years after the starting date of 457 BC. And it was a very troubling time, because of the opposition from the Samaritans, it delayed the rebuilding and restoration process. Then it says, and after, after is an important word here, and after three score and two weeks, or after the total of seven weeks it took to build the street and the wall, plus 62 weeks that followed, equaling 69 weeks, shall Messiah, or the Anointed One, be cut off. And when was Messiah cut off? He was cut off in the midst of the 70th week in 31 AD, when he was crucified. That's three and a half years either side of the 70th week, or between 27 AD, when Jesus was baptized and began his public ministry, and 34 AD, when Stephen was stoned. And after three score and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself. Jesus wasn't crucified for his own sins, right? Because he never sinned. It was to save us that he laid down his life. And the people of the prince, it says, small p this time, that shall come, who was that? That was Titus, the Roman Emperor's son, which made him a prince. And the people of the prince, or the Roman army headed by Prince Titus, that shall come, shall destroy the city, Jerusalem, and the sanctuary, or the temple. And that's exactly what happened in 70 AD. And the end thereof shall be with a flood, it says, a flood of persecution. And unto the end of the war, desolations are determined. And he, back to Jesus now, here's one of those parenthetical sentences that make us back up into the prophecy, and he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week, or seven years, bringing us again to the end of the 70th week in 34 AD. And in the midst of the week, in 31 AD, he, the Messiah, shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, signified by the curtain of the temple being ripped in twain from top to bottom when Jesus died. And for the overspreading of abominations, or because the whole system was brought to an end because sin had become so rampant, he shall make it, the sanctuary, or Jewish temple, desolate, desolate of God's presence. And indeed, their house was left unto them desolate, just like Jesus said in Matthew 23 and 38, even until the consummation, or until its complete destruction in 70 AD, as already mentioned. Because remember, in Matthew 24 and verse 2, Jesus said not one stone would be left upon another. And that determined, or that accomplished, shall be poured upon the desolate, or the desolator, as the Bible margin reads, the desolator being Titus's pagan Roman empire with Satan at its head, and extending, I believe, to the final day when the devil and his angels are cast into the lake of fire along with the beast and the false prophet. Wow, what a lot of information to digest and remember, right? I think we'll close with that rather than going into detail about the 2300-year prophecy that ended on October 22, 1844, because I already spoke about that in detail in the two-part series I mentioned earlier titled, What Happened During the Great Awakening in 1844? And again, I encourage you to listen if you haven't already done so. There is just one thing I want to touch upon before we have prayer, and that is the close of probation for the Jewish nation. You'll remember at the beginning when I posed the question about when did God reject his chosen people, Israel. Was it at the end of the 70-week prophecy in 34 AD when Stephen was stoned, or was it before that? Well, we're going to see, as I think I already mentioned, that it was before that when Jesus was crucified. And here's the proof. Remember when Jesus was overlooking Jerusalem and wept over the city just five days before his crucifixion? Why was he weeping? In Matthew 23, 38, he said of the Jewish nation, your house is left unto you desolate. That is, it would be left deserted because God's presence was about to be withdrawn. Remember also when Jesus was in the temple the next day and overturned the tables of the money changers. At that time, in Matthew 21, 13, Jesus said, it is written, my house shall be called the house of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves, acknowledging what he had just said was about to happen the day before, because now it was going to be your house and no longer my house. And so we can see from these statements that God was in the process of divorcing himself from the Jewish nation as the day of Christ's crucifixion drew near. And here's another point, which I mentioned earlier when we read about the Messiah would cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease. That was demonstrated when the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom by an unseen hand, indicating that the Old Testament system was over, of which the Jews were the stewards. And probably the most obvious thing was when Jesus was just about to be crucified, and Pilate asked the religious leaders, shall I crucify your king? And they responded by saying, what? We have no king but Caesar. When they said that, the last hope of the Jewish nation was gone. Individual Jews could still be saved, just like everyone else, but the nation as God's chosen people was done. And that's not being anti-Semitic, it's just the fact. By the representatives of the nation, God was denied as their ruler, and they fixed the destiny of their own nation by condemning the Son of God. Now remember, Jesus said to the disciples that they were not to go to the Gentiles with the gospel for a while, right? During that last prophetic week of seven years, they were to concentrate on taking the gospel specifically to the Jews, which we have seen ended in 34 AD. But again, it wasn't in hopes that the whole nation would repent and accept Christ. It was too late for that. The Jewish nation had hundreds of years to fulfill God's mission for them to take the good news of salvation to the ends of the earth, but they failed time and time again, and instead grumbled and complained every step of the way until they finally sealed their own doom when they consented to Christ's death. After that, the Christian church was raised up to do what the Jews had failed to do. And honestly, the Christian church hasn't done a very good job of it either, because we are still here. But there will be a remnant, filled with the Holy Ghost, which keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus, according to Revelation 12, 17, that will get the job done, albeit their numbers will be few. And my prayer is that we will be among that number. May it be so.