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At the very time appointed, in A.D. 27, Jesus appeared with
the message: “The time has come.” The accurate fulfillment of
this Bible prophecy is impressive confirmation that Jesus of Nazareth is
indeed the Messiah, God come down to our world in human flesh.
How long was Jesus to confirm the promise?
When we apply the year-day principle, this “week” would be seven years. So, for seven years Jesus would “confirm a covenant,” or promise, He had made to humanity—from A.D. 27 to A.D. 34. Shortly after Adam and Eve sinned, God made a covenant promise to them, stating that He would save the human race from sin through the death of Someone He would send (Genesis 3:15). Jesus’ death on the cross fulfilled that covenant promise.
Jesus was crucified in A.D. 31, in “the middle of the week.” At the moment of Christ’s death, “the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom” (Matthew 27:51). The sacrificial offering that was about to be slain (a symbol of Jesus “the Lamb of God”) escaped from the priest’s hands. These events became a sign that God no longer wanted humanity to offer animal sacrifices. Fulfilling prophecy down to the letter, Jesus “put an end to” any need for animal sacrifices to be offered (Daniel 9:27). Since the time of Christ’s death, we have direct access to God through Jesus, the Lamb of God and our High Priest.
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What
was to happen in the middle of this seventieth week?
