April 17, 2011 is Palm Sunday
On this Palm Sunday, many people will go to church and never realize the importance of this single day in the lives of every human being on the earth.
The Lord determined that He would tell us the exact day that the Savior of the world would come to the earth, and He revealed this day through this word of Prophecy.
Jesus condemned the leaders in Israel because they did not recognize the day of His first coming:
Luke 19:41-44 Now as Jesus drew near, He saw the city of Jerusalem and wept over it, saying, “If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation.
This “Day of visitation” was predicted in the Old Testament Book of Daniel, and this prophecy in Daniel is the key to all other Bible Prophecy and an understanding of the Second Coming of Jesus to the Earth.
As chapter 9 begins, Daniel has been in Babylon for almost 70 years,
When Daniel was just a teenager, he was taken from his family in Jerusalem, back to Babylon, along with thousands of other young men, to serve in the courts of the King of Babylon. The Prophet Jeremiah was sent by the Lord to tell Israel that if she did not turn back to the Lord, that Nebuchadnezzar the King of Babylon was going to come against Jerusalem and destroy the city and take the citizens captive.
Israel did not heed the voice of Jeremiah, for 40 years as he warned Israel. Not a single person repented and turned back to the Lord. As Daniel chapter 9 begins, Daniel has been reading the scriptures, as he comes to the prophecy in Jeremiah where the Lord predicted Jerusalem’s capture.
Jeremiah 25:1-11 The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah (which was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon), They said, Repent now everyone of his evil way and his evil doings, and dwell in the land that the LORD has given to you and your fathers forever and ever. “Do not go after other gods to serve them and worship them, and do not provoke Me to anger with the works of your hands; and I will not harm you. Yet you have not listened to Me,” says the LORD, “that you might provoke Me to anger with the works of your hands to your own hurt.” Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts: “Because you have not heard My words, behold, I will send and take all the families of the north,” says the LORD, “and Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, My servant, and will bring them against this land, against its inhabitants, and against these nations all around, and will utterly destroy them, and make them an astonishment, a hissing, and perpetual desolations. Moreover I will take from them the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones and the light of the lamp. And this whole land shall be a desolation and an astonishment, and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years.
Next Daniel learned in the book of Jeremiah that the Lord promised that after the 70 years were complete, He would return the people of Israel back into their own land again:
Jeremiah 29:10-13 For thus says the LORD: After seventy years are completed at Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to return to this place. For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.
Consider this one prophecy for just a moment:
What would be the odds that the nation of Babylon would come up against Israel and take them captive for exactly 70 years? The Mathematical possibility for such an event to actually happen are staggering. It is beyond the realm of possibility that Jeremiah could have known this would happen unless he had help from someone who lived outside of time, and had advanced knowledge of future events.
The ability to look ahead into the future and see future events means that time travel is actually possible. We see much evidence for the possibility of time travel in the Bible.
In Time every event is linear, that is, one event happens after another.
In Eternity, everything happens all at once. All events simply exist at once, and always will exists. In Eternity, everything that will ever happen, has already happened for God.
The Lord has the ability to be able to go back at any point in Linear time on the earth, enter it and effect it. Jesus appears in various places in the Old Testament, over hundreds of years, as “The Angel of the Lord”
To Moses.
To Abraham
To Hagar
To Jacob
Jeremiah received this amazing information about the future of Israel from The Lord Himself. Because Jesus does not live within the constraints of time, He can see what is going to happen in the future. Jeremiah writes the future, Daniel reads it, he realizes that the 70 years that the Lord described in which Judah would be captive in Babylon, are nearly complete.
Daniel 9:1-9 In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the lineage of the Medes, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans—in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of the years specified by the word of the LORD through Jeremiah the prophet, that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem. (Daniel believed this because part of the prophecy had already come true in his lifetime) Then I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.
Daniel 9:17-22 Now therefore, our God, hear the prayer of Your servant, and his supplications, and for the Lord’s sake cause Your face to shine on Your sanctuary, which is desolate. Yes, while I was speaking in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, reached me about the time of the evening offering. And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, “O Daniel, I have now come forth to give you skill to understand.
As Daniel has read the book of Jeremiah, he realizes that Israel’s 70 years of captivity are almost over. Daniel begins to pray one of the most incredible intercessory prayers in the Bible.
Daniel begins to repent for the sins of his whole nation. He asks the Lord to forgive all of Israel and return His favor to them once again. As soon as Daniel begins to pray, the Lord dispatches Gabriel as one of the chief angels of Heaven, to give a message to Daniel.
This revelation of prophecy by Gabriel to Daniel, is probably the most important prophecy in the Bible. All other prophecies in the Bible center around this one prediction.
Gabriel begins His words to Daniel:
Daniel 9:24-27 At the beginning of your supplications the command went out, and I have come to tell you, for you are greatly beloved; therefore consider the matter, and understand the vision: “Seventy weeks are determined (Literally 70 weeks of years, or 490 years, 70 x 7) For your people and for your holy city, to finish the transgression, To make an end of sins, To make reconciliation for iniquity, To bring in everlasting righteousness, To seal up vision and prophecy, And to anoint the Most Holy. “Know therefore and understand, That from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, (Until the coming of Jesus) There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; (483 years) The street shall be built again, and the wall, Even in troublesome times. “And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; (Jesus will be killed) And the people of the prince who is to come Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, (Titus in 70 ad, destroyed the city of Jerusalem) And till the end of the war desolations are determined. Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; (the 70th week, the Tribulation Period) 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.”
Daniel chapter 9 describes the entire prophetic time clock for the last days, and makes it crystal clear that the seven-year Tribulation is specifically directed at Israel. Notice that Gabriel says that this is concerning “Your people and your city”.
Daniel is told that this prophecy contains 70 weeks of years, or a period of 490 years. (70 X 7 = 490)
I have often been asked how it is that I know that a “Week” as described here, is actually “7 years?”
In Genesis chapter 29, Jacob has come to work for Laban his uncle, and he meets Rachel whom he falls in love with and wants to marry.
When a young man wanted to marry a young woman, he was required to pay a “Dowry” to the father-in-law of His future wife to obtain the right to marry her. A “Dowry” was really “Alimony in advance”. A payment made to the bride’s father in case the groom does not fulfill his obligations as a husband, and should leave his wife with no financial support.
Jacob is a poor boy, so he offers to work for Laban for 7 years in order to pay for the dowry to marry Rachel. In Genesis 29, Laban tells Jacob to “Fulfill Rachel’s Week”, by working for her another 7 years.”
Genesis 29:27 Fulfill her week, and we will give you this one also for the service which you will serve with me still another seven years.
This is how we know that 70 weeks of years in Daniel 9 is 490 years (70X 7=490) Gabriel told Daniel that in these 70 weeks of years, all Biblical prophecy will be finished.
This Prophecy will be in two parts:
First, a period of 483 years, the coming of Jesus, then a final period of 7 years, to happen in the last days, called the “Tribulation Period”
This Prophecy is specifically given to the nation of Israel, not to Jesus’ Church, it has absolutely nothing to do with Jesus’ Church. This is one of the reasons that I believe that the church will not be present during the Tribulation period. The tribulation period is specifically directed at Israel and the Christ Rejecting world, not the church.
Daniel 9:25 “Know therefore and understand, That from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, Comes.
There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks (69 WEEKS OF YEARS-483)
In part one of the prophecy, Gabriel tells Daniel that Jesus will come exactly 483 years or 173,880 days after the command is given for the Jews to leave Babylon where they have been in captivity for 70 years, and go back to their own homeland of Israel.
What is “the Command?”
Encyclopedia Britannica records that on March 14, 445 B.C., Artaxerxes Longimones gave a command for the Jews to return to Jerusalem, to rebuild the city and, most importantly, the temple.
If we take the date March 14th, 445 B. C. and add 69 X 7 years, we get the date April 6, 32 A. D. Sir Robert Anderson of The Royal Observatory in England, computed that the exact date of this fulfillment should have been on April 6, 32 A.D..
Now, the question arises: “Did anything important happen on April 6, 32 A. D.?
Matthew 21:1-9 Now when they drew near Jerusalem, and came to Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Loose them and bring them to Me. And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them,’ and immediately he will send them.” All this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying: “Tell the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your King is coming to you, Lowly, and sitting on a donkey, A colt, the foal of a donkey.’ ” So the disciples went and did as Jesus commanded them. They brought the donkey and the colt, laid their clothes on them, and set Him on them. And a very great multitude spread their clothes on the road; others cut down branches from the trees and spread them on the road. (THIS WAS PALM SUNDAY, APRIL 6, 32 A.D.) Then the multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying: “Hosanna to the Son of David! ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!’ (FULFILLMENT OF PSALM 118:26) Hosanna in the highest!”
From History we know that April 6, 32 A. D. is the exact date that Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a young donkey on Palm Sunday and was proclaimed the Messiah.
March 14, 445 B. C. + 483 years at 360 days per year. (483 X 360 = 173,880 Days)
There have been 69 Weeks so far, the Prophecy of Gabriel to Daniel said that “70 Weeks are determined…” the final week that is still remaining is the 7-year Tribulation period…
When Jesus rode into Jerusalem on April 6th 32 A. D., He completed the first 69 weeks.
Daniel 9:25-26 “Know therefore and understand, That from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; The street shall be built again, and the wall, Even in troublesome times. “And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself;
The term “Cut Off”, is an Old Testament Term that means “Killed”, Jesus was crucified.
This “Palm Sunday” is the day that Jesus rode into Jerusalem in fulfillment of Gabriel’s prophecy to Daniel, 2,000 years ago.
In Israel, whenever it was announced that a great King was coming into Jerusalem the people would line the street coming into Jerusalem, laying palm branches along the road, and then wave palm branches at the king as he arrived.
If a king was coming to conquer the city, he would arrive on a great Horse. If the king was coming to the city in peace, he would be riding on a donkey.
John records that the day that everyone was gathering for the feast of Passover in Jerusalem, the people had heard about Jesus’ coming to Jerusalem, and so they gathered branches of palm trees and went out at the entrance to Jerusalem to meet Jesus:
John 12:12-15 The next day a great multitude that had come to the Feast of Passover, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, and cried out: “Hosanna! `blessed is he who comes in the name of the lord!’ the king of Israel!”
This is the day that we know as “Palm Sunday”, which coincidentally, is April 17, 2011. This was the day that Jesus announced himself as the Messiah In Jerusalem.
How did the people know that Jesus was “The King of Israel?” Why did Jesus pick this day to announce He was the promised Messiah?
In every other place in the Bible where Jesus was encouraged by his 12 disciples, to tell the world who He was, Jesus always said: “No, My time has not yet come…”
John 7:3-6 His brothers therefore said to Him, “Depart from here and go into Judea, that Your disciples also may see the works that You are doing. For no one does anything in secret while he himself seeks to be known openly. If You do these things, show Yourself to the world.” Then Jesus said to them, “My time has not yet come.”
It was as if Jesus was following some pre-determined plan that only He knew about, with the goal of announcing Who He really was, at a specific time.
If you were a Jew living in Jerusalem 2,000 years ago, everything in your life centered around the days that the feasts of Israel were to be held.
Every Jewish man was required to go to Jerusalem for 3 Feasts that happened each year. The time of year that Jesus rode into Jerusalem, was during the week long feast of Passover. The streets of Jerusalem were absolutely packed with as many as 1 million people during this time.
Because Jesus is God, He had planned before the Earth was made, that that particular Palm Sunday, would be the DAY that He would come and make Himself known to the world.
This is why Jesus held back over and over during the 3 years He publicly ministered in Israel, from allowing Himself be proclaimed as the Messiah. Jesus was waiting for this one specific day in all of Human History. The day that Jesus would come and be proclaimed as the Messiah, the Savior of the World, during the Feast of Passover.
Psalms 118:24 This is the day the LORD has made; We will rejoice and be glad in it.
Many times as we wake up on a particularly beautiful morning, we might look outside and say: “This is the Day that The Lord Has Made, We will rejoice and be glad in it…”
And that would be perfectly appropriate. But, that was not the reason that David wrote Psalm 118:24.
Psalm 118:24, was written for one single day in all of time and Eternity. It was written for the day that the Messiah would come to Jerusalem. (Today)
Malachi 3:1 “Behold, I send My messenger, And he will prepare the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, Will suddenly come to His temple…
No other day in all of history was to be proclaimed “This is the Day that the Lord has made…”
Only on the day that Messiah came, Psalm 118:24 to be shouted. The People that were reciting: “This is the Day that the Lord has made”. They knew exactly what they were doing, they believed that Jesus was the One who fulfilled the Prophecies about the Messiah, and that He was the One promised.
The question is: “Is Jesus the One for You?”
Have you fully committed your life to Jesus as Your Lord and Savior? If not, this same Bible that claims 100 percent accuracy, also says that unless you commit your life to Jesus Christ, you cannot have eternal life.
What will you do with Jesus?
Will you hail Him today on this Palm Sunday as Your Savior and Lord? If you already know Jesus as Savior, will you today on this Palm Sunday proclaim Him once and for all, Lord of ALL of your life?
Rob Robinson
