The prophecy of the 70 weeks in Daniel 9:24-27 must be understood to deal primarily with the nation Israel and its capital city, Jerusalem, "for your people and your holy city" (v. 24). It also should be viewed against the background of the prophecy in Chapter 2, where the dominant world empires of the times of the Gentiles (Luke 21:24) are described. These: Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece and Rome arose in succession as predicted and span the time of the 70 weeks. Vestiges of the last one, Rome, remain and it will be destroyed by Christ when He comes to establish His kingdom on earth (Daniel 2:44-45).
This prophecy is one of the most detailed in the Bible, and is the only one in the Old Testament giving the exact time of the Messiah's presentation of Himself to Israel in His first coming. The weeks are literally sevens of years, the total of 70 sevens being 490 years. These are divided into three segments beginning with the decree of the Persian king to allow the Jews to return from their 70 year exile in Babylon to rebuild Jerusalem. The first segment was seven sevens, or 49 years to restore and rebuild Jerusalem. Then sixty two sevens, 424 years, would elapse until Messiah the Prince, a total of 483 years to the day when Jesus entered Jerusalem (Palm Sunday) and was welcomed by the crowd saying, Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel. The final segment of seven years (one week) is separated from the others by a period of time, during which, first, within a few days of His presentation, Messiah will be cut off. This refers to Christ's fulfillment of the prophecies of His first coming, to die in our place, for our sins upon the cross. Then the city will be destroyed and an indeterminate number of years will intervene before the final seven year period will take place. We are presently in that era with no date indicated for its end, and when the 70th week will begin.
A covenant will be made with Israel by the prince who is to come, the Antichrist (Daniel 9:27), which will mark the final seven years of the times of the Gentiles. This is the time, known as the tribulation, mentioned by Jesus in Matthew 24:21, ending with the destruction of all of the four previous empires and the establishment of the Kingdom of God on earth. It is the fulfillment of the prediction of the stone in Nebuchadnezzar's dream (Daniel 2:34-35 and 44-45) which will strike the statue on its feet and crush them along with the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold, and which the wind will carry away so that not a trace of them was found. God's judgment of Antichrist, and the Christ rejecting world will take place at this time when Jesus the Messiah returns at the end of the 70th week. Then also the the chastening tribulation of Israel will end and the nation will repent as they recognize Jesus as their true Messiah. They will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son (Zechariah 12:10). He is the striking stone, and His kingdom will fill the whole earth, will never be destroyed and will endure forever.
The accuracy of this prophecy has been demonstrated by Sir Robert Anderson in his book, The Coming Prince. Beginning at the historically established date of 445 B.C. he multiplied the 483 years (69 sevens of years) by 360 days to the year, which amounted to 173,880 days. Bible chronology is based on a calandar system of 360 days to the year, which was also used by many of the ancient peoples of that time. King Artaxerxes Longimanus of Persia in the 20th year of his reign (Nehemiah 2:1) issued the decree to Nehemiah to build the walls (fortifications) of Jerusalem. It was in the first of the Jewish month Nisan which corresponded to March 14, 445 B.C. in our calendar. Reconciling all calendar differences over the years, 173,880 days later the date is April 6, 32 A.D. This is the 10th of Nisan, or Palm Sunday on our calendar. The Author of The Coming Prince gives all of the calculations of these dates in his book. Dr. Renald E. Showers gives an excellent commentary on these calculations in his book, the Most High God, A Commentary on the Book of Daniel.
The basic test of a prophet's credibility is whether his predictions come to pass, according to Deuteronomy 18:20-22, see also 13:1-5. Often the true prophecies refer to a present situation and to a similar one in the distant future. The fulfillment of the earlier prediction indicates a true prophet, and assures later readers of the prophecy of its future fulfillment. Jesus cautioned against false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves (Matthew 7:15). And in view of the last days before His return to earth, He said, many false prophets will arise and will mislead many (Matthew 24:11). The discription of them and their evil work is given in 2 Peter 2:1-3. Then we are instructed in 1 John 4:1: Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.
The Watchtower Society (Jehovah's Witnesses) was begun in the 1870's by Pastor Charles Russell and continued after his death by Judge J. F. Rutherford. Many unbiblical teachings have been fostered by these leaders and their followers. Those who have studied briefly in the Watchtower Bible School of Gilead in South Lansing, NY have become ordained ministers, according to The Chaos of Cults by J. K. Van Baalen. In order to support their unscriptural doctrines, they have published The New World Translation (s) of the Christian Greek Scriptures and of The Hebrew Scriptures which have many inaccuracies in translation. Outstanding is their denial of the deity and of the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ (Refer to 2 Peter 2:1-3, and Jude v. 4). A notable false prophecy is that Christ returned to the earth in 1874, and came to His temple in 1918. It claims His return has been secret, invisible, since He is a spirit being without a material body. But the Bible says, This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven (Acts 1:11), Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. Even so. Amen (Revelation 1:7).
We trust this will be of help in view of 2 Timothy 2:15; Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth.