Quote:
Originally Posted by bearbear
According to dispensational premillenialism we are within the huge gap between Daniel's 69th week and 70th week. According to this view God is not done with the Jews yet. Jesus referred to this gap as the "time of the Gentiles".
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When you carefully read Daniel 9 and the prophecy of the 70 weeks you have three time periods that make up the 490 years (70 weeks or heptads): 49 years (7 weeks) to rebuild the temple; 434 years of darkness until the coming of Messiah and seven years ("And one week shall establish the covenant with many" (Daniel 9:27, Complete Apostle's Bible).
There is absolutely no indication here or anywhere that the last week of seven years, must be separated from the 69 weeks or 483 years. To postpone it to some indeterminate time in the future has absolutely no Biblical foundation.
It is the first ever that I have come across anyone suggesting that the words from the Lord Jesus in the Olivet Discourse (Luke 21:24) — "the times of the Gentiles" — refers to the postponed last week of the 70 weeks. I do not understand how you can come to such a conclusion. There is no reference to this in either location.
In fact, when Daniel realized that according to Jeremiah's prophecies (Jeremiah 25:11 and 29:10) the exile would last 70 years he interceded on behalf of his people before the Lord. Then the Lord answered him:
"O Daniel, I have now come out to give you insight and understanding. 23 At the beginning of your pleas for mercy a word went out, and I have come to tell it to you, for you are greatly loved. Therefore consider the word and understand the vision" (Daniel 9:23–27).
Then God proceeded by giving him the vision of the 70 weeks, the vision of what would befall Daniel's people, the exiles, and their city. "Seventy weeks" were given (490 years were given)to
"To finish the transgression, to put an end to sin, and to atone for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal both vision and prophet, and to anoint a most holy place" (Daniel 9:26). All six items refer to what happened when the Lord Jesus came.
I have been unable to find support from Scripture for the "Gap Theory".