In our teaching on Matthew 21 (March 20.05) we see that the identity of Jesus as the King/Messiah should have been recognized due to the times He lived in.
In Daniel 9:24 we find a prophecy indicating that the Messiah, the “Anointed One,” will come 483 years (sixty two sevens or sixty two seven year periods) after the command to rebuild Jerusalem. Theologian, Dr. Walter Martin indicated that we know from the discovery of the Elephantine Papyri in Egypt and the Jewish calendar that the command to rebuild Jerusalem was given in the spring of 445 B.C.
Note: The Elephantine Papyri is the collective name commonly given to several archives of documents belonging to members of a Jewish garrison community which inhabited the island of Elephantine near Aswan in Egypt, between 495 and 399 B.C.)
Researcher Sir Robert Anderson also concluded that Artaxerxes, issued the pivotal decree to rebuild the Temple in March 445 B.C. according to archiological discoveries.
Dr. Renald E. Showers, resident theologian for The Friends of Israel, reminds us that the ancient peoples (India, Persia, Babylon, Egypt, Greece, Italy, Central America and China) observed a 360 day a year calendar. Therefore, if we add 483 years or 173,880 days (there is only one year between 1 B.C. and 1 A.D.) to 445 B.C. we would arrive in April 32 A.D. – the time Christ is presented to the people of Jerusalem as Messiah and five days later is “cut off” for the sins of the people (Dan. 9:26).
It is also significant that the observation of Passover would begin on the 10th of Nissan (the first month of the Jewish calendar after the exile; the month we designate as “April”) by the selection of a unblemished lamb being chosen to represent a family (up to 10 people) as a reminder of the Lord striking down the first-born male of any home in Egypt that did not have the blood applied to the door post of it’s home (see Exodus 12:1-13). If the blood was present, the Angel of death would pass over, but if it was not the Angel would strike the first-born dead (including animals). On the 14th of Nissan (four days later at twilight – i.e. Passover), the lamb chosen by the family would be slain as a temporal substitute for their sins (Hebrews 10:1-4). This observance would take place for almost 1500 years looking forward to the promised Messiah.
When Jesus arrived in Jersusalem, He was not simply getting “face-time” as a religious leader. Jesus was presenting Himself as the King and Messiah of Israel at the exact time predicted. We can clearly see the significance of Jesus words when Luke (19:41-44) recorded:
As he approached the city of Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace – but now it is hidden from your eyes. The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. they will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you.
Can you see the amazing reality that Jesus is God’s Messiah to take away the sins of the world?! Are you still trying to justify a life lived in rebellion to Him? Are you a follower of Christ or are you the master of your life-choices? Abandon your life to the one who is trustworthy. As we enter the week of Christ’s passion, I pray that we would draw close and marvel at our amazing God.
Jesus was never meant to be an Unknown King, he was meant to be celebrated, to have His fame spread to the nations!
Dan, I’m confused. You said that Artaxerxes issued the decree to rebuild the temple in 445 B.C. However, my understanding is that the temple was decreed to be rebuilt under Cyrus and was finished in 516 B.C. under Darius (Ezra 6:15 “the sixth year of the reign of Darius”) – BEFORE Artaxerxes was King. That was 70 years after the exile. In my studies of Ezra and Nehemiah, the city and the wall were what was rebuilt in 445 B.C., rather than the temple, under the return of Nehemiah. Did I misunderstand something? If not, how do the findings of Anderson mesh with the events as stated in Ezra and Nehemiah? Thanks!
Ding, Ding, Ding, Donna wins the prize for doing her research! Nice job, Donna! You are exactly right… but not completely right. Let me explain. It’s true that that Cyrus issued a command to let Jerusalem be rebuilt in 538 or 537. It is also true that Darius issued the same command in 519 B.C. Artaxerxes also issued a rebuilding command in 458 B.C. as well as 445 B.C. All of these were reiterations of the original. Now the question is why do I indicate that the pivotal degree of 445 B.C. is the one to which we set the countdown of Daniel 9:25?
First, notice that the decree in question would permit certain criteria to be established – the rebuilding of the “streets” and a “trench” (NIV). The word “street” really refers to the idea of a plaza or the open space that was the center of city life. According to 2 Chronicles 32:6 (“square in the city gate”) this space would be inside the gate. If the city did not have a gate, it could not fulfill this description. Therefore, the construction of the “streets” or “plaza” demanded a wall that would host a gate. Without a wall there could be no gate and without a gate there could be no “street” or “plaza.” Also, a “trench” or “moat” was to be built outside the city wall as a defensive mechanism to help prevent the scaling of the established wall from any invading forces. It would make no sense to have a “trench” with no wall. According to Nehemiah 1:1-3, we know the gates had not yet been rebuilt. The only decree that qualifies to rebuilding of the gates that would in turn provide for “streets” on the inside and a “trench” on the outside would be the degree of Artaxerxes of 445 B.C.
Second, sometime after Artaxerxes degree of 458 B.C. the Jews in Palestine began to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem on their own initiative. They did not complete the work, however, because their enemies wrote a letter to Artaxerxes (Ezra 4:8-16). This letter warned the king that, if the Jews rebuilt Jerusalem’s walls, they would rebel against him. In response, Artaxerxes issued a degree that stopped the Jews from their rebuilding activity. No further activity could be done if the King did not reissue a new decree.
Bottom line? The decree of Dan. 9:25 could not have been the decree of Cyrus (538 or 537 B.C.), or Darius (519 B.C.) or Artaxerxes (458 B.C.). Instead it had to be the decree of Artaxerxes to Nehemiah of 445 B.C. (Neh.2:7-8) since only that reconstruction completes the walls setting the potential for the “streets” and “trench” to be established as the criteria of Dan. 9:25.
Make Sense?