HIStory, Our Future: Ezekiel’s 430 Days

Last Updated: 04/29/2021 21:25    | Print This Page | |


This study examines another precision prophecy fulfilled in history showing that God says what He means and means what He says. I recommend going to Chuck Missler’s site for the full study. I’m just going to reorder the information to show the relationship with the 14,000 days. The original information was put together by Chuck with further dating detail by Guy Cramer with dating by John Zachary as well. They are quoted from their studies with links.

This study will show, from scripture and history, prophesied judgments for Israel that spanned 2,520 years tying the servitude of the nation from 606 BC to May 14, 1948 (when Israel again became a nation) and the desolations of Jerusalem from 587 BC to June 7, 1967 (when Israel took back control of all Jerusalem).

Ezekiel 4:1-8
Thou also, son of man, take thee a tile, and lay it before thee, and pourtray upon it the city, even Jerusalem: And lay siege against it, and build a fort against it, and cast a mount against it; set the camp also against it, and set battering rams against it round about. Moreover take thou unto thee an iron pan, and set it for a wall of iron between thee and the city: and set thy face against it, and it shall be besieged, and thou shalt lay siege against it. This shall be a sign to the house of Israel. Lie thou also upon thy left side, and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel upon it: according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon it thou shalt bear their iniquity. For I have laid upon thee the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days: so shalt thou bear the iniquity of the house of Israel. 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. Therefore thou shalt set thy face toward the siege of Jerusalem, and thine arm shall be uncovered, and thou shalt prophesy against it. And, behold, I will lay bands upon thee, and thou shalt not turn thee from one side to another, till thou hast ended the days of thy siege.
Chuck Missler: “The Prophet Ezekiel was called upon to undertake a number of strange performances, one of which was to lie on his side for a total of 430 days. Each day was expressly to represent a year of judgment against the nation.

A number of commentators acknowledge a difficulty which appears when one attempts to apply this specifically to Israel’s history. Seventy of the years would seem to be accounted for in the Babylonian Captivity, but that leaves 360 years (430 minus 70) unaccounted for. [Failure to keep the Sabbath of the land was the basis for the 70 year’s captivity. 2 Chronicles 36:19-21] The 360 years do not seem to fit any period of their history. It has been suggested by some that there might be a clue in Leviticus 26, where God indicates that:
 
Leviticus 26:18
And if ye will not yet for all this hearken unto me, then I will punish you seven times more for your sins.
 
(In fact, this commitment is reiterated four times in that chapter for emphasis. Leviticus 26:18, 21, 24, 28) It has been suggested that multiplying the “problem” 360 years by seven yields 2520 years. After conversion from 360-day years and the calendar adjustments made in 1572, this is the duration of time from the exile through the Diaspora.”

Chuck Missler goes into greater detail on calendar reconciliation and how that plays into the details. I recommend checking his page out for that depth of information. This is meant to summarize the main points with links to deeper information if you so desire to research it further.

Guy Cramer: “Many archaeological discoveries of the last 90 years have uncovered many Babylonian texts that give precise times of astronomical data along with the year of the King and the name of the King in the same document. Other chronicles from Babylon that have been uncovered also give the year and name of the king and events that happened at that time. The astronomical information gives us data which we can translate into modern dating of the astronomical cycles to give us an accurate time scale in which the events occurred. This data when correlated answers a few apparent contradictions in the Bible along with a few other mysteries.”

The following calculations are based on the ancient 360-day calendar which had 12 months consisting of 30 days. Guy Cramer goes into detail on this topic here and shows from the Bible why it changed and possibly how here.

“Servitude of the nation”

 The loss of Israel’s independence (70 years in length = 25,200 days)

First siege of Nebuchadnezzar - Summer of 606 BC

Chuck Missler: “For 490 years Israel had failed to keep the Sabbath of the land; the Lord was saying, in effect, “You owe me 70!”  (See the article Sabbath Crisis in Israel.) There were actually three sieges of Nebuchadnezzar upon Jerusalem. The first siege began the “Servitude of the Nation” and was prophesied to last 70 years.”
 
2 Chronicles 36:20,21
And them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon; where they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia: To fulfill the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her Sabbaths: for as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath, to fulfill threescore and ten years.

Jeremiah 25:11
And this whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years.

Jeremiah 29:10
For thus saith the LORD, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place. [This is tied to the 70 weeks of Daniel Bible Study]
 
Daniel is captured and taken into Babylonian captivity at the first siege of Jerusalem.
 
Daniel 1:1
In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah came Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon unto Jerusalem, and besieged it.
 
Guy Cramer: “Daniel 1:1 happened between March/April 606 and February/March 605. This is within the range that has been calculated for this prophecy to begin (Summer of 606). However, with the data obtained to date we cannot give a dogmatic answer on the month or even the season in Daniel 1:1.”

Second Siege of Nebuchadnezzar

Jeremiah 52:1-6
Zedekiah was one and twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. And he did that which was evil in the eyes of the LORD, according to all that Jehoiakim had done. For through the anger of the LORD it came to pass in Jerusalem and Judah, till he had cast them out from his presence, that Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon. And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem, and pitched against it, and built forts against it round about. So the city was besieged unto the eleventh year of king Zedekiah. And in the fourth month, in the ninth day of the month, the famine was sore in the city, so that there was no bread for the people of the land.
Chuck Missler: “The vassal king that Nebuchadnezzar left later rebelled; a second siege resulted in his uncle, Zedekiah, being appointed to the throne. The prophets Jeremiah and Ezekiel both went on to warn that if they persisted in rebelling against Nebuchadnezzar the city of Jerusalem would be destroyed. Yet Zedekiah ultimately yielded to the false prophets and rebelled.”
Wikipedia: March 16, 597 BC - Babylonians capture Jerusalem, replace Jehoiachin with Zedekiah as king.

Decree of Cyrus - July 23, 537 BC (exact day in order to be 2,520 years to May 14, 1948)

Guy Cramer: “The period from the summer of 606 BC, (the first siege) to the summer of 537 BC (the decree of Cyrus) is exactly 25,200 days. This corresponds to 70 years of 360 days duration!

If it was the spring (Grant Jeffrey) or summer (Chuck Missler) of 606 BC at this time we do not know, so the exact day for the prophecy to begin also cannot be known.”
 
Jeremiah 25:12
And it shall come to pass, when seventy years are accomplished, that I will punish the king of Babylon, and that nation, saith the LORD, for their iniquity, and the land of the Chaldeans, and will make it perpetual desolations.
Chuck Missler: “When Cyrus conquered Babylon, Daniel 5, he encountered the amazing letter written to him by Isaiah [see below] a century and a half earlier, which addressed him by name, highlighted his meteoric career, and predicted that he would free the captives. His astonishment resulted in his releasing the Hebrew captives to return to Judea to rebuild their temple.”
 
Isaiah 44:28-45:3
That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure: even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid. Thus saith the LORD to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before him; and I will loose the loins of kings, to open before him the two leaved gates; and the gates shall not be shut; I will go before thee, and make the crooked places straight: I will break in pieces the gates of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron: And I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places, that thou mayest know that I, the LORD, which call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel.

2 Chronicles 36:22,23
Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD spoken by the mouth of Jeremiah might be accomplished, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying, Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, All the kingdoms of the earth hath the LORD God of heaven given me; and he hath charged me to build him an house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Who is there among you of all his people? The LORD his God be with him, and let him go up.
 
The British Museum in London contains the cylinder of Cyrus where it is documented of Cyrus’s conquering of Babylon without battle and the return of Israel to their homeland. His decree
Without any battle he entered the town sparing any calamity... I returned to the sacred cities on the other side of the Tigris, the sanctuaries of which had been ruins for a long time, and established for them permanent sanctuaries. I gathered all their former inhabitants and returned to them their habitations.

For more on the details of the book of Daniel, listen to Chuck Missler’s walk-through here.

Ezra Sent to Rebuild the Temple - by Charles J. Voss

Ezra 1:1-4
Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying, Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, The LORD God of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth; and he hath charged me to build him an house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Who is there among you of all his people? his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the house of the LORD God of Israel, (he is the God,) which is in Jerusalem. And whosoever remaineth in any place where he sojourneth, let the men of his place help him with silver, and with gold, and with goods, and with beasts, beside the freewill offering for the house of God that is in Jerusalem.

Ezra 5:13-16
But in the first year of Cyrus the king of Babylon the same king Cyrus made a decree to build this house of God. And the vessels also of gold and silver of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took out of the temple that was in Jerusalem, and brought them into the temple of Babylon, those did Cyrus the king take out of the temple of Babylon, and they were delivered unto one, whose name was Sheshbazzar, whom he had made governor; And said unto him, Take these vessels, go, carry them into the temple that is in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be builded in his place. Then came the same Sheshbazzar, and laid the foundation of the house of God which is in Jerusalem: and since that time even until now hath it been in building, and yet it is not finished.
Chuck Missler: “It is instructive to note the remarkable precision of the Scriptures:

Scripture clearly indicates that this era closed on “the four and twentieth day of the ninth month, [Kislev] even from the day that the foundation of the LORD’S temple was laid,” (Haggai 2:10; 15-19) which was in 520 BC This is an interval of precisely 25,200 days, or seventy 360-day years. (The precise calendar difference is 25,202 days: the reckoning began the day after the Babylonian army invaded, and ended the day before the foundation of the 2nd temple was laid.  For a detailed exposition, see The Coming Prince, by Sir Robert Anderson, Appendix I.)”

From the first (1st) siege of Nebuchadnezzar [Daniel taken to Babylon]
to
the Decree of Cyrus when the Persians conquered Babylon & Israel was released (70 years - servitude of the nation) + 2,484 years, 9 months, 2 days = May 14, 1948

See also: 10 Prophecies fulfilled in 1948


“Desolations of Jerusalem”

Destruction of Jerusalem and loss of Jewish rule in Jerusalem (70 years ~ 25,200 days )

Chuck Missler: “A third siege resulted in the destruction and desolation of the city of Jerusalem. The “Desolations of Jerusalem” also lasted 70 years, until Nehemiah ultimately succeeded in getting the authority to rebuild the city of Jerusalem. This, too, was precisely 70 years. The city of Jerusalem was invaded on the tenth day of the tenth month, Tebeth, in the ninth year of Zedekiah in 587 BC (Jeremiah 52:4; Ezekiel 24:1,2; 2 Kings 25:1) (And for 25 centuries this day has been observed as a fast by Jews in every land.)”

Third siege of Nebuchadnezzar - August 10, 587 BC (Loss of Jewish rule in Jerusalem)

Guy Cramer: “According to Jeremiah the desolations of Jerusalem was punishment for not yielding to the “Servitude of the Nation” which began in 606 BC, with the first siege of Nebuchadnezzar.”
 
Jeremiah 27:6-11
And now have I given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant; and the beasts of the field have I given him also to serve him. And all nations shall serve him, and his son, and his son’s son, until the very time of his land come: and then many nations and great kings shall serve themselves of him. And it shall come to pass, that the nation and kingdom which will not serve the same Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, and that will not put their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, that nation will I punish, saith the LORD, with the sword, and with the famine, and with the pestilence, until I have consumed them by his hand. Therefore hearken not ye to your prophets, nor to your diviners, nor to your dreamers, nor to your enchanters, nor to your sorcerers, which speak unto you, saying, Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon: For they prophesy a lie unto you, to remove you far from your land; and that I should drive you out, and ye should perish. But the nations that bring their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him, those will I let remain still in their own land, saith the LORD; and they shall till it, and dwell therein.

Jeremiah 38:17-21
Then said Jeremiah unto Zedekiah, Thus saith the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel; If thou wilt assuredly go forth unto the king of Babylon’s princes, then thy soul shall live, and this city shall not be burned with fire; and thou shalt live, and thine house: But if thou wilt not go forth to the king of Babylon’s princes, then shall this city be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and thou shalt not escape out of their hand. And Zedekiah the king said unto Jeremiah, I am afraid of the Jews that are fallen to the Chaldeans, lest they deliver me into their hand, and they mock me. But Jeremiah said, They shall not deliver thee. Obey, I beseech thee, the voice of the LORD, which I speak unto thee: so it shall be well unto thee, and thy soul shall live. But if thou refuse to go forth, this is the word that the LORD hath shewed me:

Jeremiah 29:10
For thus saith the LORD, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place.

Daniel 9:2
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.

Guy Cramer: “The Babylonian chronicles from the time of 593-556 have not been recovered or have been lost. However, if we take the information from the earlier chronicle events which coincides with the Biblical account we can determine the time of the Desolation of Jerusalem from the other Biblical accounts. Two passages in the Bible (2 Chronicles 36:11 and 2 Kings 24:18) tells us that Zedekiah reigned 11 years. His 11 regnal year can be dated between March/April 587 to February/March 586. Two other passages (Jeremiah 52:12 and 2 Kings 25:8) tell us the days (7th-10th) and month (Av) in which this took place and also that it was in Nebuchadnezzar’s 19 year according to the Jewish non-Accession method of dating Babylonian kings. This would also coincide with March/April 587 to February/March 586. A fifth passage completed by a Jew living in Babylon (Jeremiah 52:29) using the Babylonian Accession system tells us that this is Nebuchadnezzar’s 18th year which also places the event between March/April 587 to February/March 586. From all this information the time for the Desolation of Jerusalem can be dated as the month of Av (July/August) 587. No other year or month fits the chronology. This confirms the calculation for the beginning of the prophecy for the Desolation of Jerusalem, which was fulfilled on June 7,1967.”

As a side note, Tisha B’Av means “the ninth (day) of Av.” Both the first and third temples were destroyed on this date on the Jewish calendar coinciding with July/August of the modern calendar. Solomon’s temple was destroyed on 9-10 Av 3174 (23-24 July 0587 BC) see: Jeremiah 52:12-13. The rest of the city may have fallen a few weeks later. More information on the Temple Mount.

Darius I confirms Jews are to rebuild the temple - August 16, 518 BC (exact day in order to be 2,520 years to June 7, 1967)

The Lord spoke to Zechariah in the 2nd year of the reign of Darius. God tells Zechariah the seventy years of desolation in Jerusalem are up.

Zechariah 1:7-16
Upon the four and twentieth day of the eleventh month, which is the month Sebat, in the second year of Darius, came the word of the LORD unto Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet, saying, I saw by night, and behold a man riding upon a red horse, and he stood among the myrtle trees that were in the bottom; and behind him were there red horses, speckled, and white. Then said I, O my lord, what are these? And the angel that talked with me said unto me, I will shew thee what these be. And the man that stood among the myrtle trees answered and said, These are they whom the LORD hath sent to walk to and fro through the earth. And they answered the angel of the LORD that stood among the myrtle trees, and said, We have walked to and fro through the earth, and, behold, all the earth sitteth still, and is at rest. Then the angel of the LORD answered and said, O LORD of hosts, how long wilt thou not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which thou hast had indignation these threescore and ten years? And the LORD answered the angel that talked with me with good words and comfortable words. So the angel that communed with me said unto me, Cry thou, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great jealousy. And I am very sore displeased with the heathen that are at ease: for I was but a little displeased, and they helped forward the affliction. Therefore thus saith the LORD; I am returned to Jerusalem with mercies: my house shall be built in it, saith the LORD of hosts, and a line shall be stretched forth upon Jerusalem.
Wikipedia: A decree restarting the construction of the 2nd Temple after a lull and confirming Cyrus’ earlier decree (Ezra 6:3-12) granted by Darius in his second year (520-518 BC for Darius Hystaspes) Darius I of Persia became king. In the second year of this monarch the work of rebuilding the temple was resumed and carried forward to its completion (Ezra 5:6-6:15), under the stimulus of the earnest counsels and admonitions of the prophets Haggai and Zechariah. It was ready for consecration in the spring of 515 BCE, more than twenty years after the return from captivity.
Zechariah 7:1-5
And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Darius, that the word of the LORD came unto Zechariah in the fourth day of the ninth month, even in Chisleu; When they had sent unto the house of God Sherezer and Regemmelech, and their men, to pray before the LORD, And to speak unto the priests which were in the house of the LORD of hosts, and to the prophets, saying, Should I weep in the fifth month, separating myself, as I have done these so many years? Then came the word of the LORD of hosts unto me, saying, Speak unto all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying, When ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh month, even those seventy years, did ye at all fast unto me, even to me?

This passage mentions that at the 4th year of the reign of Darius, 70 years had gone by after at the 18th year of his reign Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the Jerusalem Temple Jeremiah 52:29. The 18th year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar was in 605 - 17 = 588 BC. The 4th year of the reign of Darius I in 521 - 3 = 518 BC.

Decree of Darius: The Jews, having been released by Cyrus, began to rebuild the temple. However, the antagonists around them didn’t want this.

Ezra 5:1-5
Then the prophets, Haggai the prophet, and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied unto the Jews that were in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel, even unto them. Then rose up Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and began to build the house of God which is at Jerusalem: and with them were the prophets of God helping them. At the same time came to them Tatnai, governor on this side the river, and Shetharboznai and their companions, and said thus unto them, Who hath commanded you to build this house, and to make up this wall? Then said we unto them after this manner, What are the names of the men that make this building? But the eye of their God was upon the elders of the Jews, that they could not cause them to cease, till the matter came to Darius: and then they returned answer by letter concerning this matter.

Ezra 5:6-17 is that letter sent to Darius I making sure he was aware the Jews were rebuilding the temple. They wanted Darius to double-check the king’s treasure house and make sure the decree of Cyrus was really there. They were trying to cut the support for rebuilding the temple and justify stopping this work. Darius responded quite differently than they hoped.

Ezra 6
Then Darius the king made a decree, and search was made in the house of the rolls, where the treasures were laid up in Babylon. And there was found at Achmetha, in the palace that is in the province of the Medes, a roll, and therein was a record thus written:
 

In the first year of Cyrus the king the same Cyrus the king made a decree concerning the house of God at Jerusalem, Let the house be builded, the place where they offered sacrifices, and let the foundations thereof be strongly laid; the height thereof threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof threescore cubits; With three rows of great stones, and a row of new timber: and let the expenses be given out of the king’s house: And also let the golden and silver vessels of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took forth out of the temple which is at Jerusalem, and brought unto Babylon, be restored, and brought again unto the temple which is at Jerusalem, every one to his place, and place them in the house of God.

 
Now therefore, Tatnai, governor beyond the river, Shetharboznai, and your companions the Apharsachites, which are beyond the river, be ye far from thence: Let the work of this house of God alone; let the governor of the Jews and the elders of the Jews build this house of God in his place. Moreover I make a decree what ye shall do to the elders of these Jews for the building of this house of God: that of the king’s goods, even of the tribute beyond the river, forthwith expenses be given unto these men, that they be not hindered. And that which they have need of, both young bullocks, and rams, and lambs, for the burnt offerings of the God of heaven, wheat, salt, wine, and oil, according to the appointment of the priests which are at Jerusalem, let it be given them day by day without fail: That they may offer sacrifices of sweet savours unto the God of heaven, and pray for the life of the king, and of his sons. Also I have made a decree, that whosoever shall alter this word, let timber be pulled down from his house, and being set up, let him be hanged thereon; and let his house be made a dunghill for this. And the God that hath caused his name to dwell there destroy all kings and people, that shall put to their hand to alter and to destroy this house of God which is at Jerusalem. I Darius have made a decree; let it be done with speed.

Then Tatnai, governor on this side the river, Shetharboznai, and their companions, according to that which Darius the king had sent, so they did speedily. And the elders of the Jews builded, and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they builded, and finished it, according to the commandment of the God of Israel, and according to the commandment of Cyrus, and Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia.

And this house was finished on the third day of the month Adar, which was in the sixth year of the reign of Darius the king. And the children of Israel, the priests, and the Levites, and the rest of the children of the captivity, kept the dedication of this house of God with joy. And offered at the dedication of this house of God an hundred bullocks, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs; and for a sin offering for all Israel, twelve he goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel. And they set the priests in their divisions, and the Levites in their courses, for the service of God, which is at Jerusalem; as it is written in the book of Moses. And the children of the captivity kept the passover upon the fourteenth day of the first month. For the priests and the Levites were purified together, all of them were pure, and killed the passover for all the children of the captivity, and for their brethren the priests, and for themselves. And the children of Israel, which were come again out of captivity, and all such as had separated themselves unto them from the filthiness of the heathen of the land, to seek the LORD God of Israel, did eat, And kept the feast of unleavened bread seven days with joy: for the LORD had made them joyful, and turned the heart of the king of Assyria unto them, to strengthen their hands in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel.

From the third (3rd) siege of Nebuchadnezzar (levels Jerusalem in Av, 587 BC
to
Darius I (70 years - desolations of Jerusalem) + 2,484 years, 9 months, 2 days = June 6, 1967


Connecting Ezekiel’s 430 Days to Daniel’s 70 Weeks

While the temple rebuilding commissioned by Cyrus began in the first year of his reign, 537 BC, it still wasn’t completed by the time Darius became the new king of Babylon. He made a decree to extend the work on the temple.

Ezra 6:1-5
Then Darius the king made a decree, and search was made in the house of the rolls, where the treasures were laid up in Babylon. And there was found at Achmetha, in the palace that is in the province of the Medes, a roll, and therein was a record thus written: In the first year of Cyrus the king the same Cyrus the king made a decree concerning the house of God at Jerusalem, Let the house be builded, the place where they offered sacrifices, and let the foundations thereof be strongly laid; the height thereof threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof threescore cubits; With three rows of great stones, and a row of new timber: and let the expenses be given out of the king’s house: And also let the golden and silver vessels of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took forth out of the temple which is at Jerusalem, and brought unto Babylon, be restored, and brought again unto the temple which is at Jerusalem, every one to his place, and place them in the house of God.

Decree of Artaxerxes Longimanus - March 16, 445 BC

This is where the 70 weeks of Daniel study comes into play. It wasn’t until Nehemiah that a decree was made to rebuild the walls. The Jews were having difficulty rebuilding without the protection of walls. Ezra arrived in Jerusalem in the seventh year (Ezra 7:8) of Artaxerxes I (458 BC), followed by Nehemiah, who arrived in the king’s 20th year (445 BC) Nehemiah 2:1-11

Nehemiah 2:1-8
And it came to pass in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king, that wine was before him: and I took up the wine, and gave it unto the king. Now I had not been beforetime sad in his presence. Wherefore the king said unto me, Why is thy countenance sad, seeing thou art not sick? this is nothing else but sorrow of heart. Then I was very sore afraid, And said unto the king, Let the king live for ever: why should not my countenance be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers’ sepulchres, lieth waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with fire? Then the king said unto me, For what dost thou make request? So I prayed to the God of heaven. And I said unto the king, If it please the king, and if thy servant have found favour in thy sight, that thou wouldest send me unto Judah, unto the city of my fathers’ sepulchres, that I may build it. And the king said unto me, (the queen also sitting by him,) For how long shall thy journey be? and when wilt thou return? So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him a time. Moreover I said unto the king, If it please the king, let letters be given me to the governors beyond the river, that they may convey me over till I come into Judah; And a letter unto Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the palace which appertained to the house, and for the wall of the city, and for the house that I shall enter into. And the king granted me, according to the good hand of my God upon me.

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 seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.

Further research links:


723 BC - 1967 AD: Siege of Jerusalem

1whowaits from FulfilledProphecy (January 9, 2007) - Perhaps the passage that might apply is Ezekiel 4, which gives a specific period of time for the ‘siege of Jerusalem’. God stated in Ezekiel 4 that the period of the siege due to the sins of Israel, the northern kingdom, would be 390 days representing 390 years. The period of punishment for the northern kingdom began with the siege of Samaria, roughly in 723-724 BC. (2 Kings 17:9)

After the period of 390 years, the northern kingdom did not return to the Lord, so it would appear that the passage in Leviticus 26 would apply.
 
Leviticus 26:18
if after all these things you do not listen to me, I will chastise you seven times more for your sin.
 
The math could be as follows:

390 x 7 = 2,730 yrs. x 360 days (Hebrew calendar) = 982,800 days -:- 365.25 days (current calendar) = 2,690.7 years of punishment

2,690.7 years - 723 BC = 1967.7

And in fact the siege of Jerusalem for the northern kingdom and the nation Israel did end in June of 1967.

1967 - 2007

But God also stated that there was a further siege of Jerusalem for the southern kingdom, Judah , for 40 years, which was described after the siege of Jerusalem for the northern kingdom.

While the northern kingdom consisted of the 10 tribes, the southern kingdom consisted of the tribe of Judah, the tribe of David the king, the tribe of Benjamin, and the Levites, the priests. The implication could be that the siege of Jerusalem would continue for the ruling tribe and the priests, which has in fact been the case for the last 40 years.

Because of the Islamic control of the temple mount Israel, although she may have the legal right and military might to do so, Judah has not ruled over that area for the past 40 years. And because of the Islamic control of the temple mount the tribe of the priests, the Levites, have not had access to the area most precious to them.

The siege of Jerusalem for the southern kingdom has continued beyond the recapture of Jerusalem in 1967 until the present day. If Ezekiel 4 is describing the current ‘siege of Jerusalem’ that siege should end this year, in June 2007, when the 40 years will be completed.

If this is the case, will Israel return to the Lord this year or will the time of siege be multiplied times seven as it was for the northern kingdom?

And what event might bring such a return of Israel to the Lord? What event would allow the Israeli people to reassert their authority over the temple mount, and perhaps even rebuild the temple?

My belief is that the Gog/Magog attack will be what brings Israel back to an Old Testament sacrificial system and spurs them to rebuild the temple. When God destroys the armies of Iran, Turkey, and Russia from the North, Israel will recognize their God’s hand in that protection. This will spur them to begin to worship Him the only way they know how, the ways of their fathers. They have been blinded by Christ until the fullness of the Gentiles. Romans 11:25

I also think this spanking by God will quiet the most radical elements of Islam allowing the rebuilding to take place. For more on this, read the Temple Mount page.

The bottom line is that as you continue to read through this collection of studies, you will come to see that we are currently living in the times of Bible prophecy and life as you have always known it, as your parents parents parents have known it, is about to change completely. There is nothing you can do to stop it and there is only one place of safety and peace in the coming storms, Yeshua the Christ. I pray as you continue to see what I have seen, that your personal relationship with Christ will blossom like never before and the reality of the spiritual realm will invade your daily life.