Jeremiah prophesied that Babylon was waiting to militarily and politically
swallow the small nation of Judah unless it returned to God. Jeremiah
25:1-11 When they ignored God's repeated appeals, God eventually
withdrew, and sure enough, the Babylonians swept over them like a flood.
The Babylonian captivity began in 605 B.C. when Nebuchadnezzar captured
some of the nobility of Jerusalem, including the young man Daniel.
In 586 B.C. the Babylonians leveled Jerusalem and left it practically uninhabited.
Jeremiah had prophesied that the Babylonian captivity would last 70
years. Jeremiah 25:1-11 As
the 70 years neared its end, Persia defeated Babylon. Then Daniel,
who was by then an old man serving in the Persian government, prayed a
powerful prayer asking God to allow His people Judah to return to their
homeland and rebuild their city. In answer to Daniel's
prayer, God moved upon the Persians to allow the Jews to return and
rebuild Jerusalem in time to fulfill Jeremiah's prophesied release after
70 years of captivity. But even before that happened, God first answered
Daniel's prayer by sending an angel to give Daniel the prophecy recorded
in Daniel 9:24-27.
In this prophecy God allotted the Jews 70 prophetic weeks, or 490
literal years, to reconnect with Him and with the missionary purpose
for which He had raised them up. Daniel
9:24 During that prophetic time period, important events were
to take place related to the two great hopes and dreams of the Jews–the
Holy City and the Holy One, that is, Jerusalem
and the promised Messiah. Among other things, this prophecy foretold
the exact years when the Messiah would be anointed and then die, and it
revealed the meaning of His death. All this was foretold over 500
years before the Messiah Jesus was even born!
Anyone honestly wondering whether Jesus was unique among men will find
a satisfying answer in this prophecy. It meets us at the level of
our honest doubts and allays our healthy suspicions.
