In previous lessons, we have been learning some important Bible truths regarding our salvation. We learned that salvation comes only when our sins are blotted out of the record books of heaven. This work is to take place just before Jesus comes the second time to claim His people.

We learned the similarity between this cleansing and that typical ceremony called the Day of Atonement among the Israelites. This ceremony showed that the blotting out of sins was the same as the cleansing of the sanctuary. This led us to the study of the prophesy of Daniel 8 where is mentioned a cleansing of a sanctuary: "And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days, then shall the sanctuary be cleansed." In order to have some understanding of this cleansing of the sanctuary, we needed to examine the verses previous to it.

Therefore, in the last study, we learned of the powerful empires that controlled this world from the days of the Medo-Persian kings down through the Caesars of the Roman Empire. But this wasn’t the main thrust of this vision. In its closing part, we saw the terrible work done in this earth by the Roman Catholic church in tearing the people’s attention away from Christ’s ministry in the heavenly sanctuary to a false system of worshipping—the papacy.

In this chapter, we will continue our study to see when was the sanctuary in heaven to be brought back to its proper place in the eyes of God’s faithful people here on earth.

After Daniel observed all this uprooting of Christ’s work in the sanctuary, he "heard one saint speaking, and another saint said unto that certain saint which spake, How long shall be the vision concerning the daily, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot? And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days, then shall the sanctuary be cleansed." Daniel 8:13, 14.

This was the end of the vision itself. Now Daniel, being a true seeker for heavenly wisdom, was not satisfied with just seeing a vision. He wanted to understand its full meaning. Therefore "it came to pass, when I, even I Daniel, had seen the vision, and sought for the meaning, then, behold, there stood before me as the appearance of a man. And I heard a man’s voice between the banks of Ulai which called, and said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision." Daniel 8:15-16. His desire was granted.

The angel further explained all the details of the vision from Daniel 8:17-25. These verses we already considered. We saw that Gabriel did make known to Daniel all about the empires that were to take control of this world. He even beheld the deceptive works of the papacy clothed in garments of Christianity.

Then Gabriel continues: "And the vision of the evening and the morning which was told is true: wherefore shut thou up the vision; for it shall be for many days. And I Daniel fainted, and was sick certain days; afterward I rose up, and did the king’s business; and I was astonished at the vision, but none understood it." Daniel 8:26, 27.

What was it that Daniel did not understand? Was it something about the ram or the goat? That cannot be because the angel explained the meaning of all the symbols in the previous verses. So what didn’t he understand? The only thing that wasn’t explained was the cleansing of the sanctuary after 2,300 days. All Gabriel said about that was that it was true. That doesn’t give much of an explanation.

Daniel was so concerned about it that he even fainted and was sick for a while. That portion of the vision must have been very important to him to cause such a reaction.

After studying the different prophecies in the Bible, I am convinced that the Bible prophets did not always understand the full prophetic meaning of the words they wrote. Their prophecies "came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." 2 Peter 1:21.

This was the case with John the Baptist. He told all his followers that Jesus was the long awaited Messiah, but there were times when it seems he looked for something else in Jesus. He heard the voice of God proclaiming Him the Son of God; but he was, to some decree, influenced by the Jewish Rabbis. He looked for an earthly kingdom rather than a spiritual one. Nevertheless, John spoke what God inspired him to say and left it with God.

And so it was with Daniel. He did not always understand with clarity the messages he penned for us. The record is: "And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things? And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end." Daniel 12:8, 9.

And so it was with this cleansing of the sanctuary. He looked to the fulfillment of this prophecy with the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem. He waited patiently for its fulfillment—it takes a little over six years to go through 2,300 days. Six years go by—nothing. Twelve years go by—Medo-Persia comes to power. In the year 538 B.C., Darius becomes king; and Daniel begins to restudy the prophecies. "In the first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem." Daniel 9:2.

Daniel saw that by this time he had spent already 68 years in captivity. Another two years and this prophecy was to be fulfilled. Although a bolt of joy flashed through his heart, he also realized that the Jews were not ready to be liberated. Therefore, he "set" his "face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes: And" he "prayed unto the Lord" his "God, and made" his "confession. . ." Read verses 3-19 of chapter 9 and see how earnestly he prayed for himself and for his people to be ready for deliverance. It is very interesting how Daniel included himself as one of the sinners that caused all this trouble. He did not think himself any holier than the rest of the Jews.

It was only while Daniel was "praying and confessing" his "sin and the sin of" his "people Israel, and presenting" his "supplication before the Lord" his "God for the holy mountain of" his "God" that the angel came back to give him more instruction about the cleansing of the sanctuary. Daniel 9:20.

"Yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, 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 shew thee; for thou art greatly beloved; therefore understand the matter, and consider the vision." Daniel 9:21-23.

The language of Gabriel shows clearly that he came to finish the commission given him in Daniel 8:16: "And I heard a man’s voice between the banks of Ulai, which called, and said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision."

As we learned already, the only part of that vision that was not understood clearly by Daniel was the part dealing with the 2,300 days in relation to the cleansing of the sanctuary. All the previous verses of Daniel 9 were a prayer for forgiveness and not any new vision. Therefore, when the angel says to "consider the vision," in Daniel 9:23, we must conclude that Daniel 9:24-27 is a direct answer as to what the 2,300 days are all about.

Let us consider one more important thing in that verse. The angel said that Daniel is "greatly beloved." Isn’t this a wonderful thought. One of our human race, one who was born a sinner just like you and I is told that he is greatly beloved by God. Truly the "gospel of Christ" "is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth." Romans 1:16. If you and I have faith in the power of Jesus Christ, we also can be changed to reflect more fully the character of our Redeemer. May that be our only aim in this life. May that be the only purpose for studying the prophecies.

"Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy. Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate." Daniel 9:24-27.

The Hebrew word translated "determined" in Daniel 9:24 is "chathak" and means "to cut off." Therefore, 70 weeks are cut off. From what? There is nothing in this chapter to cut it off from. This is another evidence that this chapter is connected with the vision of Daniel 8. In that case, 70 weeks (which compose 490 days) are cut off from the original 2,300. That leaves us with 1810 days left.

These 70 weeks were cut off for "thy people" and for "thy holy city." There has been only one city in this earth that was ever considered holy, and that was Jerusalem. The fact that the angel states that it is "thy" city shows that Daniel regarded it holy. In Daniel 6:10 is revealed what city he considered holy: "Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime." This fact also reveals that "thy people" refers to the Jewish people.

But it says that only 70 weeks, or 490 days, are cut off for the Jewish people. Although that may seem rather short, when we understand the symbolism, it makes it a bit more realistic. In Bible prophecy, a prophetic day is equal to a literal year. We learn this from two examples.

Ezekiel, a contemporary with Daniel, was given this directly by inspiration. The sixth verse of the fourth chapter states: "And when thou hast accomplished them, lie again on thy right side, and thou shalt bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days: I have appointed thee each day for a year."

An earlier example of this is found in Numbers 14:33, 34: "And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcasses be wasted in the wilderness. After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise."

These verses show that the prophecy of 2,300 days is really a prophecy of 2,300 years. Of those 2,300 years, 490 are cut off for the nation of Israel.

During this time, several things were to happen:

In the wilderness when Moses finished the tabernacle, God commanded that they begin the ministration by anointing the tabernacle: "And thou shalt take the anointing oil, and anoint the taber-nacle, and all that is therein, and shalt hallow it, and all the vessels thereof: and it shall be holy." Exodus 40:9.

When Jesus left this earth, he went to become our High Priest in the heavenly sanctuary: "Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus." Hebrews 3:1. This is further confirmed in Hebrews 8:1-3: "Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens; A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man. For every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices: wherefore it is of necessity that this man have somewhat also to offer."

In order for us to understand His work, we need to study the work in the earthly sanctuary because the laws and ceremonies of that service "serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee on the mount." Hebrews 8:5.

As we compare these verses, we clearly see that when Jesus began His work in the heavenly sanctuary, it had to be anointed. All this was to take place during the Seventy week period.

The beginning of this time period is found in Daniel 9:25: "Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be. . ."

"There are but four events which can be taken as answering to the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem. These are,

In order for the prophecy to be fulfilled, that decree must command, not only the rebuilding of Jerusalem but also the restoration of their judicial system. They must have tax exemption for their priests and must be able to obtain revenue from the people.

When we examine the decree given by Cyrus in 536 B.C., we see that that was only for the rebuilding of the temple and said nothing of the city nor for restoring the Jewish government. The decree by Darius in 519 B.C. was simply re-emphasizing the one Cyrus made.

In 444 B.C., "Nehemiah sought and obtained permission to go up to Jerusalem. (Nehemiah 2) Permission was granted him, but we have no evidence that it was anything more than verbal. It pertained to him individually, nothing being said about others going up with him. The king asked him how long a journey he wished to make, and when he would return. He received letters to the governors beyond the river, to help him on his way to Judea, and an order to the keeper of the king’s forest for timber for beams, etc. When he arrived at Jerusalem, he found rulers and priests, nobles and people, already engaged in the work of building Jerusalem." Daniel and the Revelation, p. 199.

"In the seventh year (Autumn of 457 B.C.) of Artaxerxes the king" (Ezra 7:7), he did make a decree concerning the Jews as recorded in Ezra 7. Upon reading this chapter, which records that decree, we find that it does fulfill Daniel’s prophesy. A portion of that decree states: "Also we certify you, that touching any of the priests and Levites, singers, porters, Nethinims, or ministers of this house of God, it shall not be lawful to impose toll, tribute, or custom, upon them. And thou, Ezra, after the wisdom of thy God, that is in thine hand, set magistrates and judges, which may judge all the people that are beyond the river, all such as know the laws of thy God; and teach ye them that know them not. And whosoever will not do the law of thy God, and the law of the king, let judgment be executed speedily upon him, whether it be unto death, or to banishment, or to confiscation of goods, or to imprisonment." Ezra 7:24-26.

"The years of Artaxerxes’ reign are among the most easily established dates of history. The Canon of Ptolemy, with its list of kings and astronomical observations, the Greek Olympiads, and allusions in Greek history to Persian affairs all combine to place the seventh year of Artaxerxes at 457 B.C. beyond successful controversy. See Sir Isaac Newton, Observations Upon the Prophecies of Daniel, pp. 154-157." Daniel and the Revelation, p. 208.

The rest is simple addition. "Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself."

From the Autumn of 457 B.C. when the decree was made, we add 7 weeks, plus 62 (threescore and two) weeks; and we should be to the Messiah. We take 69 times 7 (days per week) which equals 483 and we come to the Autumn of 27 A.D. when Jesus was baptized.

"The word ‘Messiah’ means ‘the anointed one.’ It comes from the Hebrew word ‘mashiach,’ which means ‘to anoint.’ The Greek word for ‘the anointed one’ is ‘Christos,’ and comes from the verb ‘chrio,’ ‘to anoint.’ For the Jews the Messiah was the Deliverer to whose coming they were anxiously looking forward. (John 1:41; 4:25, 42; Luke 2:11).

"Jesus was the Messiah, the Christ (John 1:41), and He was anointed with the Holy Spirit at His baptism (Acts 10:38; Luke 3:21, 22). Jesus was anointed to preach the gospel (Luke 4:18, 19). This was in the 15th year of Tiberius Caesar when Jesus was about thirty years of age (Luke 3:1, 23)." Thiele on Daniel p. 115. For this reason, when Jesus began to teach, He began by preaching: "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel." Mark 1:15.

Not only was the beginning of the Messiah’s ministry prophesied, but also His death: "And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease." The midst of the prophetic week is three-and-a-half years. If we add tree-and-a-half years to the autumn of 27 A.D., we come to the Spring of 31 A.D. It was at this very time that Jesus was crucified and then rose again the third day.

By that very act, He caused "the sacrifice and the oblation to cease." Inspiration records: "For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people’s: for this he did once, when he offered up himself." Hebrews 7:26, 27.

Another three-and-a-half years were to pass after the crucifixion before the 70 weeks (490 years) were completed; and the time allotted for the Jewish people, as a nation, was completed. After the resurrection, the disciples worked diligently to lead the Jewish people to accept Jesus as the Messiah. Unfortunately they refused and began to persecute the Christians. Thus in the Autumn of 34 A.D. they sealed their destiny as a chosen nation by the stoning of Stephen (Acts 7). At that very stoning, God was preparing His servant Saul, who later became Paul, as a chosen vessel to bring the message of salvation to the Gentiles. [Although the Jewish nation was rejected as the people of God, any individual Jew could be saved through faith in Jesus Christ as the Messiah.]

This being fulfilled, the vision is proven true. Thus we can trust that the rest of the vision will come to pass exactly as prophesied.

The seventy weeks being cut off, there remains 1,810 days (or years) to the time for the cleansing of the sanctuary. This brings us to the Autumn of 1844. Now was the time for the cleansing of the sanctuary in heaven. Not only was the sanctuary in heaven to be cleansed, but also the people of God on earth were to turn their attention to the work going on within its precincts. For many years the papacy had succeeded in turning the minds of many of God’s faithful children to a false sanctuary system in the Catholic church, but now they were to look up in faith to Christ’s ministry.

We learned in one of the previous chapters that, at that time, the sins of God’s people were to be blotted out of existence. Their sins are to be wiped clean. They are to stand before God with a clean slate as if they had never sinned. For this reason they can enter the gates of the city of God with a clear conscience because the promise is: "Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city." Revelation 22:14. Their life was perfect in the record books of heaven. Therefore, God can be just; and at the same time, justify the sinner.

"Solemn are the scenes connected with the closing work of the atonement. Momentous are the interests involved therein. The judgment is now passing in the sanctuary above. For many years this work has been in progress. Soon—none know how soon—it will pass to the cases of the living. In the awful presence of God our lives are to come up in review. At this time above all others it behooves every soul to heed the Saviour’s admonition: ‘Watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is.’ Mark 13:33. ‘If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.’ Revelation 3:3.

"When the work of the investigative judgment closes, the destiny of all will have been decided for life or death. Probation is ended a short time before the appearing of the Lord in the clouds of heaven. Christ in the Revelation, looking forward to that time, declares: ‘He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. And, behold, I come quickly; and My reward is with Me, to give every man according as his works shall be." Revelation 22:11, 12. Great Controversy pp. 490-491.