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The 2300 Days of Daniel 8:14
Then I heard a holy one speaking: and another holy one said to the one that spoke, "For how long is
the vision concerning the continual burnt offering, the transgression that makes desolate, and the giving over
of the sanctuary and host to be trampled under foot?" And he said to him, "For two thousand and three
hundred evenings and mornings; then the sanctuary shall be restored to its rightful state." Daniel 8:13,14
RSV
In order to understand this prophecy fully, it is important to remember a few basic principles:
- in prophecy, a day is symbolic of a year Ezekiel 4:6
- to the Hebrew mind, an evening and a morning equaled one day Genesis 1:5,8 (thus the Sabbath is kept from sunset on Friday until sunset on Saturday [Leviticus 23:32;
Mark 1:32])
- the evenings and mornings referred to by Daniel cannot refer to literal offerings in the temple,
because these are referred to as "morning and evening" offerings, not "evening and morning"
(literally "evening-morning") see 2 Chronicles 13:11; 31:3; Ezra
3:3
In 457 BC, Artaxerxes I Lonimanus issued a decree to rebuild Jerusalem. (Ezra
7:11-26) This was the beginning of the 2300 days. (Daniel
9:25) Adding 49 years to this for the seven weeks (7 days x 7) of Daniel 9:25, we come to 408 BC. There are
then 62 weeks until the prince is anointed.
The prince, one who is anointed, refers to Jesus, who is called Christ (literally "anointed", from
the Greek christos "to anoint"). Jesus was anointed with the Holy Spirit (Acts
10:38) at His baptism (Luke 3:21,22). Four hundred
and thirty-four years from 408 BC puts us at 27 AD, the date of Jesus’ baptism.
Sometime after the sixty-second week, the Messiah is cut off. (Daniel
9:26) In the middle of the seventieth week, the prince causes sacrifices and oblations to cease. (Daniel
9:27)
The middle of this seventieth week would be 3 ½ years from Christ’s baptism. This would put us in the
year 31 AD, the year Christ was crucified. When Christ was crucified, there was no more need for the sacrifices,
since He had become our sacrifice (John 1:29; 1
Corinthians 5:7)
This leaves 3 ½ years left to complete the seventieth week. In the year 34 AD, Stephen was stoned (3
½ years after the crucifixion). The year 34 AD, therefore, completes the seventieth week.
Twenty-three hundred minus seventy equals one thousand eight hundred and ten. The 2300 days, therefore must
end 1810 years after 34 AD, bringing us to the years 1844 AD.
Graphical Depiction of the 2300 Days Prophecy:
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