Appointed Times – The Day of Atonement, Part 2

We left off, on the last posting, with a discussion about the time gap of Daniel 9:26.

It is during this gap of time that the "people of the prince" (this is an ungodly prince, therefore his people are also ungodly) destroy Jerusalem and the Temple (Dan. 9:26) which happened during the siege of Jerusalem by Titus and the Roman army in A.D. 70.

It is also during this gap of time that Hosea's prophecy (Hosea 5:15) is fulfilled: the Messiah returned to heaven to wait for the repentance of Israel. Shortly before Pentecost, during the time of the disciples, Jesus ascended into heaven, not to return again until the time of His enemies being made His footstool. In that last (70^th)week, the Lord will stand up in the great wrath of the Great Tribulation to execute His judgment upon the wicked, He will do battle against His enemies, and, at the end of the 70^th week, He will break the yoke of Gentile oppression from the neck of Israel (Ps. 2:9; Isaiah 9:4). He will establish His throne (Zech 14:9; Ps. 2:8), Israel will look on Him whom they pierced and they will repent (Zech. 12:10), the nation's sin will be dealt with, and the Lord will remember their sin no more (Isaiah 43:25; Jer. 31:34). Isaiah prophesied that spiritually the nation would be born in a day (Isaiah 66:8; Romans 11:26).

It is clear from scripture that the Great Tribulation is going to come about for the purpose of bringing the Jews to repentance once and for all. The 144.000 witnesses of Revelation chapter 7 are from the twelve tribes and will be witnessing to the Jews. There is some debate as to whether or not Gentiles will be saved during this period, or whether it will be Jews only. It may be that if the "time of the Gentiles" is fulfilled, then there might be no other Gentiles saved, for it will be once more be the time of the Jews, as evidenced by the 144,000 witnesses. Perhaps, however, it will be similar to the time of the Gentiles when the "elect" Jews were saved; perhaps only a few "elect" Gentiles will be saved during this final week. But whether or not either of these theories is correct, one thing is clear: Jews will be the ones the Lord sets out to reach during this period, regardless of whether or not non-Jews are also saved.

[Note: A key part of the Day of Atonement is that this was the only day, once a year, that the high priest entered into the Holy of Holies in order to sprinkle the blood of the sacrifice upon the mercy seat of the Ark of the Covenant. Thus, the Ark of the Covenant was seen only on Israel's national day of repentance. And we know that the original Ark of the Covenant was carried away into Babylon (modern-day Iraq) at the time of the destruction of Solomon's temple in 586 B.C (2 Chron. 36:13-21). Even the second temple ordered to be rebuilt through the decree of Cyrus (2 Chron. 36:22-23; Ezra 6:3) and restored by Zerubbabel (Zechariah 4:9; Ezra 3:6-11; 5:2), Ezra (Ezra 7:11-26), and Nehemiah (Neh. 2:5, 17-18) had no Ark of the Covenant in it. But the Word says that all of the furnishings of the earthly Temple were replicas of the true heavenly Temple (Hebrews 9:23); it is significant therefore that at the end of the 70^th week, the heavenly Temple will be opened and the Ark of the Covenant will be seen in it (Rev. 11:19).]

Thus, this final Feast of the Day of Atonement will be fulfilled by the Lord and the Jews will recognize the New Covenant that is through Jesus Christ. Israel's future Yom Kippur will occur when the nation with one heart says "Come, and let us return to the Lord: for He hath torn, and He will heal us; He hath smitten, and He will bind us up." (Hosea 6:1). And that will happen at the end of the 70^th week:

"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." (Daniel 9:24)

One thing we know for sure, when Israel signs a peace agreement (the covenant of Daniel 9:27) believing that this great political and military power will guarantee the peace Israel so desperately longs for, we will know without a doubt that the 70^th week has begun.

The only question that remains for us Gentiles and the elect of the Jews that are saved already is: when will Jesus come back for His bride (the church)? Will we go through any part of the Tribulation period or will we escape it?

"And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man." (Luke 21:34-36)