“Know therefore and understand, That from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; The street shall be built again, and the wall, Even in troublesome times.” (Daniel 9:25)
The Scripture above indicates that 69 weeks (weeks of years) after the order to rebuild the temple was commanded by the King of Persia, the Messiah would come to His people, the Jews. In his book The Handwriting on the Wall, Pastor David Jeremiah has these words to say about this prophecy that was given by the prophet Daniel:
“The sixty-nine weeks began with March 14th445 B.C., when Artaxerxes’ decree went forward. We need to remember that the weeks are counted as years and each year had 360 days. Simple calculation of this time element is this: 69 weeks (of years) x 7 (days in a week)=483 x 360 (days in a year) = 173,800. Now if you take March 14, 445 B.C., when the decree to rebuild Jerusalem went forth, and add to it 173,800 days, you come to April 6, A.D. 32. According to Sir Robert Anderson in his chronology, it was on that day that Jesus Christ rode into the city in His triumphal entry.”(“The Handwriting On the Wall” by David Jeremiah, p.195)
All four gospels describe Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem on that exciting Palm Sunday! Doctor Luke describes it this way:
“And as He went, many spread their clothes on the road. Then, as He was now drawing near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen, saying; ‘Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the LORD!’ Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!’”
“And some of the Pharisees called to Him from the crowd, ‘Teacher, rebuke Your disciples.’ But He answered them and said to them: ‘I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out.’” (Luke 19:36-40)
Jesus fulfilled over 300 prophecies that are found in the Old Testament. This is just one more that proves that He was who He claimed to be: The Son of Man, The Son of God, the Messiah, and after next Friday; The Savior of the World!
As He continued riding the donkey toward Jerusalem He was moved with emotion as He contemplated the fact that the majority of the Jewish nation did not recognize Him as the Messiah even though they had numerous Scriptures that He had fulfilled and even more miracles that proved He was God’s Son. Luke continues:
“Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, ‘If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For days will come upon you when your enemies will build and embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation.’” (Luke 19:41-44)
This prophecy by Jesus would be fulfilled less than forty years later when the Roman Army under Titus destroyed Jerusalem, and the Temple. The entire nation was removed from the land that God had given to them centuries earlier, and would not return in significant numbers until the establishment of the modern state of Israel in 1948.
PRAY
1. Lord, put on my heart the people you want me praying for today and throughout this week. Lord give me a heart like yours to angonize over those I know who don’t know you as Lord and Savior.
2. Help me today to remember with excitement what it was like that day when you rode on a lowly donkey into Jerusalem just as the prophet Zechariah had predicted centuries before.
3. Help me to be faithful today to cry out for those who are hurting because of lost loved ones and who are battling disease or spiritual warfare.
No comments:
Post a Comment