End time prophecy, the events prophesied in the Bible that will occur around the second coming of Jesus, is one of the most important subjects in the Bible. In fact, there are close to 1900 scriptures referring to the second coming of Jesus.
One of the most significant of these prophetic scriptures foretells of the exact moment the final seven years starts leading up to the second coming of Jesus.
This is important for two huge reasons:
Once this prophetic event occurs we can literally start counting down the days when Jesus returns
Once this event takes place, it will be even more irrefutable proof that the Bible is the infallible word of God
So, where is this event found in the Bible? It’s located in Daniel 9:27…
“Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; But in the middle of the week He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate, Even until the consummation, which is determined, Is poured out on the desolate.”
To fully understand everything in this scripture, there are a few things we need to properly understand based on scripture.
How do we know this verse refers to seven years?
This portion of scripture in Daniel 9 is part of what’s referred to as the 70 weeks prophecy. In order to know how long 1 week is, we need to first take a look at Daniel 12:11.
“And from the time that the daily sacrifice is taken away, and the abomination of desolation is set up, there shall be one thousand two hundred and ninety days.”
Notice that this scripture makes reference to the same abomination of desolation that is also mentioned in Daniel 9:27.
In Daniel 9:27, it says that “But in the middle of the week He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate…”
1,290 days is 3 and 1/2 years. So, since we know that half of a week is 3.5 years, we can deduce that the full week is seven years.
This can also be confirmed by reading Revelation 13:5-7 and Revelation 12:6. They both make mention of the last half of this seventieth week being 3.5 years.
How do we know when the last 7 years starts?
Daniel 9:27 says it starts when “he” confirms a covenant with many. To understand what is meant by that, we need to further investigate who the “he” is referring to and what the covenant is.
Who is he?
From Daniel 9 and Daniel 12 we learn that this person initiates the abomination of desolation.
Daniel 11 gives more detail about who this person is:
From verse 21 to the end of chapter 11, Daniel provides a lot of information about this man who confirms the covenant. Here is a quick run down:
- He’s a vile person
- Referred to as the king of the north by Daniel
- He will desecrate the temple and abolish the daily sacrifice
- He will rise to power with only a few people
- Will exalt himself above every god and say vile things against the God of gods
In Revelation 13:5-6, there is a similar description…
“And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months. Then he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven.”
This is referring to the head of the one world government described in the prior verses in Revelation 13. This man is known as the antichrist or the son of perdition.
Revelation 13 describes the antichrist as someone who will speak vile things against God, just like the king of the north in Daniel 11.
So the “he” in Daniel 9 is the antichrist.
What Covenant Does the Antichrist confirm?
To know what covenant is referring to, you need to understand the audience this prophecy is directed to.
Gabriel, an angel of the Lord, spoke this prophecy to Daniel and started off by saying, “Seventy weeks are determined for your people and for your holy city…”
So we can reasonably conclude the audience of this prophecy is Israel since Daniel was an Israelite.
In regards to Israel, the covenant may refer to the covenant God made with Abraham concerning the promised land (Genesis 15:18-21).
We for sure know that this covenant or agreement will allow Israel to build their third temple. It’s strongly implied in the second sentence of Daniel 9:27: “But in the middle of the week he shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering.”
Israel isn’t going to restart their sacrifices and offerings, spelled out in the Torah, without a temple to make the sacrifices in.
What happens halfway through the last week?
At the halfway point of the final seven years, or 3.5 years in, the antichrist will call off the treaty/covenant he made with Israel by stopping the sacrifices and offerings.
Then the antichrist desecrates the temple: “And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate.”
The NLT translates this portion of the verse to say, “And as a climax to all his terrible deeds, he will set up a sacrilegious object that causes desecration.”
Jesus gives this particular event a name, which can be found in Matthew 24:15 - The abomination of desolation.
The Abomination of Desolation
There are three main events that take place at this point:
The antichrist steps onto the public stage. This is the moment the antichrist is revealed, but most will be deceived into thinking he is the savior of the world (2 Thess 2:11, 2 Cor 11:14).
The antichrist will stop the sacrifices and offerings in the 3rd temple and will proclaim to Israel and the world that he is God (2 Thess 2:4). This will be how the temple is defiled fulfilling the second portion of Daniel 9:27.
The last half of the final seven years will begin, which is known as the great tribulation (Matt 24:15-21).
Judgment For the Antichrist
The final portion of Daniel 9:27 lets us know the ultimate fate of the antichrist. When Jesus returns, He throws the antichrist and the false prophet into the lake of fire alive (Revelation 19:20).
How close are we to the confirmation of the covenant?
The following three events that took place recently shed some light on this question:
Red Heifers From Texas Arrive in Israel
“Five perfectly red heifers, required for the ritual purification of those who have touched a dead body, arrived in Israel from a ranch in Texas, as the Temple Institute continues preparations to lay the ground for the construction of the Third Temple in Jerusalem.
The heifers of this quality would be needed in order to allow the kohanim (priests) to carry out their work in a future Temple.”
This shows you just how serious Israel is in building the third temple. They are making all the preparations including acquiring the needed red heifers for purification rituals in the temple.
The Israelites, especially the Temple Institute, are ready to start building the third temple. The only thing holding them back is gaining access to the temple mount.
The Abraham Accords
“For the first time, an atmosphere of Arab-Israeli rapprochement pervades the region. More specifically, the Abraham Accords have paved the way for comprehensive partnerships on a variety of issues related to security, business, the environment, innovation, tourism, and other key sectors.
The Abraham Accords remain a glimmer of hope for coming generations and pose an alternate trajectory for the future of a region that has historically suffered conflict, instability, and economic hardship.”
The Abraham Accords were orchestrated by president Trump, who wanted to push for peace in the middle east. He was well on his way to making that a reality with these agreements until the 2020 elections took place.
Even though these agreements have economically benefited Israel, UAE, and the other surrounding nations that signed on, it didn’t improve relations between Israel and Palestine.
The Return of the Two-State Solution
Last year, Joe Biden began pushing the two state solution between Israel and Palestine. He even took a trip to Bethlehem In July to further push for the two state solution that is supposed to bring peace between Palestine and Israel.
But that isn’t what’s happening over there right now. In fact, it’s the exact opposite…
And if Israel were to attempt to build the third temple right now, it would blow the door wide open on World War 3.
Can the last seven years start at any time?
Earlier we established that Israel was the main focus of this prophecy. And to them, a period of seven years holds special meaning. Daniel would have understood the seven year period as a shemittah cycle.
Exodus 23 explains that the shemittah year is a year of rest for the land. Israel was supposed to work the land for six years and let it rest on the seventh. God also instructed them to forgive all debt in the seventh year as well.
Why is this important to the seventy weeks prophecy?
Since Daniel was an Israelite, he would've understood these weeks had to start at the beginning of a shemittah cycle.
In other words, these prophetic weeks, especially the 70th week, couldn’t just start randomly in any given year.
And we just so happen to be starting a new shemittah cycle right now. So, the last seven years would have to start right now if this cycle of seven years (Sept/Oct 2022-Sept/Oct 2029) was the final prophetic week of Daniel 9:27.
But it doesn’t look like the covenant confirmation is taking place right now.
When will the final 7 years start?
In my opinion, the last seven years will start in the next shemittah cycle, at the end of 2029 going into 2030.
I have three reasons for believing this:
The global elite have a plan in place called Agenda 2030, which is their big goal to have a one world government in place by then.
6G will be up and running by 2030, which is also being labeled the internet of people. This is the system needed to track everyone and run a one world economy.
Like I previously stated, I don’t think the last seven years can start at any moment. It will start at the beginning of a new shemittah cycle and this is how Daniel would have understood the prophecy.
Final Thoughts
Out of all the end time prophecies, this is the one we can assign a date to. Even though we don’t know the exact date, we do know the last seven years will start once an agreement is signed allowing Israel to build their third temple.
A lot can happen between now and then. With all the tension currently in the middle east, the war prophesied by Ezekiel in chapter 38-39 will most likely happen next.