Lesson 4‐
Jesus Is he the Promised Messiah?
AMBASSADOR CHRISTIAN COLLEGE‐ Dr. Keith Slough
Introduction
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e need to "Prove all things" and hold fast to that which we have proved to be good and true (1 Thessalonians 5:21). The place to start is first of all to prove that God exists (Hebrews 11:6). Secondly we must prove whether or not the Bible is truly the inspired (and therefore inerrant and infallible) Word of God! We have done that. Most of our proof was in proving the Bible to be true from the Old Testament. While the Jews would agree that we can definitely prove the Old Testament is true, they would question our ability to prove that the scriptures that make up the New Testament are equally valid and true - and therefore a part of the inspired Word of God. The New Testament is totally about the Person of Jesus Christ. Therefore the only thing we must do to prove whether or not the New Testament is true is to find proof that Jesus is the prophesied Messiah who was to come. If He was not, then the New Testament is obviously a total fraud. But if we can PROVE that Jesus of Nazareth really lived and that He was indeed the Messiah, then we have His promise that His Words would never pass away (Matthew 24:35). Therefore we can have complete and total confidence that Jesus would have carefully guided and inspired the writers of the New Testament just as He did the writers of the Old Testament. If we can prove that Jesus is the promised Messiah (or "Christ" -the Anointed One) then we have simultaneously proved the New Testament as well and therefore we have now PROVED the entire Bible from Genesis to Revelation! The only thing left for us therefore will be to "live by every Word of God" -the entirety of the Holy Bible (Luke 4:4, KJV)! Are you ready to see the proof?
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JESUS Is he really the promised MESSIAH?
Never has it been more important for people to PROVE what they believe to be true. Can it be proved that Jesus of Nazareth really lived? Do we have proof that Jesus was crucified and resurrected, and that He is the prophesied MESSIAH who was to come?
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s the New Testament record of Jesus Christ a true account of the prophesied Messiah who was to come? We have seen absolute proof that the Bible is indeed the supernatural inspired revelation from the Creator God to man! It is simply impossible for these men who lived thousands of years ago to have made the startling and astoundingly accurate predictions they made regarding future events for specific nations and city-states. Yet these prophecies one by one occurred just as they predicted! Even modern day psychics cannot be so accurate. But the interesting thing about these "prophets" is that these men in every case claimed that God had personally given His Word to them. Not one of them claimed to be personally gifted to see into the future as modern day "psychics" do. Not one took the credit for his prediction. Rather each prophet claimed the Creator God had given him the words to write -the predictions of specific future events that did indeed occur! Only a fool could remain in doubt of the Holy Bible, for it has been shown repeatedly to be accurate. The prophecies did indeed come to pass just as the prophets wrote them! But what of the many prophecies of a coming Messiah? What were the specific prophecies for the timing of the Messiah's appearance? Many Jews still await a promised Messiah. Yet believe it or not, the prophecies show that the Messiah should have already come! Christians believe that the man, Jesus of Nazareth was the fulfillment of the prophecies regarding the promised Messiah -or "Christ." But now let's ask and answer the question once and for all: Is Jesus REALLY the promised Messiah who was prophesied to come?
What the Prophecies Foretold! Let's examine the prophecies found in the Holy Bible regarding the Messiah and see when the Messiah was to appear. Remember that the Hebrew word (transliterated into English as "Messiah") means "the Anointed One." The Greek word "Christ" means exactly the same thing as the word "Messiah." Neither the word "Messiah" or "Christ" is considered a personal name.
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Rather it is only a title. A counterfeit Messiah or Christ could be called an Anti-Messiah or AntiChrist. Therefore it should be understood that the name Messiah of Christ is only a title for the Anointed One who was prophesied to come. Deuteronomy 18:15-19 predicts a special Prophet that was to come. Read it in your own Bible. This is considered to be a "Messianic" prophecy -or a prophecy dealing with a coming Messiah. Psalms 22 and 23 are considered Messianic prophecies because they mention a coming Kingdom that the Messiah will establish. The Jews understood that the Messiah would set up a kingdom akin to the one under King David or Solomon in ancient times. Yet notice the other verses in these Psalms, especially Psalm 22:1. This very verse is mentioned in the New Testament regarding Jesus of Nazareth who actually uttered these words when He was crucified at the Passover. Read especially verses 16-18 and compare them to the New Testament writings in John 19:34-37. Isaiah chapter 2 refers to conditions in the Kingdom Age that will be ushered in by the Messiah, yet Isaiah 9:67 says He will be born as a child! He is to be descended from Jesse, the father of King David (Isaiah 11:1). And then we read what type of Ruler the Messiah will be. He will even supernaturally change the nature of wild animals (verses 6-9). It is at the establishing of the Messiah's kingdom that the outcasts of Israel and Judah (the Jews) will be brought back into their homeland "from the four corners of the earth" (verse 12). While a tiny handful of Jews (from the tribe of Judah) have gone to live in Palestine, the ultimate fulfillment of this prophecy of bringing both the Jewish people and Israel to Palestine will not occur until the Messianic Kingdom is established! Remember that "Israel" was divided between two kingdoms, the non Jewish northern kingdom that took the name Israel, and the southern kingdom (comprised of Jews) known as Judah. In other Messianic prophecies the Messiah is also referred to as the Saviour (Isaiah 19:20). Not only will the Messiah "come and save you" (Isaiah 35:4) but He will do miracles and wonders such as healing the blind, the deaf, and the lame (verses 5-6).
Isaiah 53 But what has been confusing to Jewish students of the Bible are the references to a "suffering Messiah." Isaiah 52:13-15 refers to the suffering and death of the Messiah. This seems an incongruity with the prophecies of establishing a Messianic Kingdom. Isaiah 53:4-5 says He was smitten of God and afflicted but He was wounded for our transgressions (our sins), and He was bruised for our iniquities "and with His stripes we are healed" (verse 5). We are told that "the LORD hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all"! (verse 6). In other words, the Messiah was to suffer and die for us. Now notice verse 8: "He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare His generation? For He was CUT OFF out of the land of the living; for the transgression of my people was He stricken"! Notice the Messiah was to be cut off out of the land of the living -or DIE, not for His own
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sins, but for the transgressions of God's people. Verse 10 says that God made His soul (or life) "an offering for sin." So just as the Lamb was provided as an offering for sin, so the Messiah was to be the sacrificial offering for sin that would enable God's people to receive forgiveness and justification. Notice: "...By His knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for He shall bear their iniquities" (verse 11)! Notice: The Messiah was to suffer and die bearing the iniquities of God's people thus justifying them from their sins. Notice verse 12: "...Because He hath poured out His soul unto DEATH: and He was numbered with the transgressors; and He bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.” How can we reconcile this Messianic prophecy with all the prophecies about the Messiah establishing the Messianic Kingdom? The only way we can possibly reconcile these two events is to understand that the Messiah must have two comings and not just one! Typology and duality are found throughout the prophecies of the Bible. If a Bible Student does not understand this principle of duality in Bible prophecy, he can never understand the true meaning of Bible prophecy! Just as the Eternal God promised to establish a Covenant with His people, He established a first and a second covenant (known as the Old Covenant and the New Covenant). Likewise when reading the prophecies of the corning of the Messiah we can only deduce there is a first and a second coming. The first coming would be to fulfill the prophecies of the Messiah being an "offering for sin" -a sacrifice for the sins of God's people. The second coming would therefore be to fulfill the prophecies regarding the establishment of a Messianic Kingdom of God on the Earth. Some Jews dismiss the prophecy of Isaiah 53 as referring to something (or someone) else and not the Messiah. After all, verse 8 of this chapter states the Messiah was to be "cut off" Surely, they reason, this cannot be referring to the Messiah. Yet the Bible proves that it is!
Daniel 9:2427 the Messiah to be "Cut Off" Notice the famous "Seventy Weeks Prophecy" found in the book of Daniel chapter 9. The angel Gabriel, the same angel who appeared to Mary five centuries later and told her she would give birth to the Messiah, revealed to the prophet Daniel when the Messiah would appear! Scholars have agreed that these "seventy weeks" are prophetic weeks of years rather than days. Notice verse 24: "Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city [Jerusalem], 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." Notice what the Messiah would accomplish. He would fulfill the prophecies found in Isaiah 53 as well as all the prophecies concerning the setting up of the Kingdom of God on the Earth.
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We therefore see both advents of the Messiah in this one verse! The Messiah will make reconciliation for iniquity AND bring in everlasting righteousness. Now when was the Messiah to appear the first time to accomplish the first of these prophecies? Read very carefully verses 25-26 in your own Bible. Notice that a certain "commandment" (Bible scholars refer to this as a specific political "decree") was to go forth "to restore and to build Jerusalem." At this time Jerusalem lay in ruins. Daniel himself was a Jewish captive in Babylon after the Babylonian armies had come down to Jerusalem and taken the Jews into captivity as slaves in 586 B.C. The entire city of Jerusalem lay burned in rubble. Jeremiah the prophet had predicted under inspiration from God, that the Jews would remain in captivity for just 70 years (Jeremiah 25:11). Daniel studied the prophecy of Jeremiah and understood that Jerusalem would lay desolate only for that 70 year period (Daniel 9:2). Now 50 years after the destruction of Jerusalem, we have a revelation given to Daniel that the Messiah would appear within a period of 70 prophetic weeks from the time the decree (or commandment) would be given to restore and rebuild Jerusalem. Now notice verse 26 carefully. The Messiah does not come after the 70s weeks. But rather He appears on Earth sometime during this prophetic seventy week period and was to be, just as Isaiah prophesied in his 53rd chapter, be "cut off." Notice: "And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be CUT OFF"! There can now be no doubt. Isaiah 53 does indeed refer to the Messiah just as Daniel's prophecy does. Now to understand the specific time when the Messiah was to appear on Earth, we have to determine the exact time of this decree and the exact time for the "cutting off' of the Messiah for our sins. But as there were several "commandments" or decrees given by various kings at this time, we must examine them to determine the correct one from which to begin our count.
Four Possible Decrees Scholars agree that in prophecy a "day" represents a year. Thus a prophetic "week" is not seven days but rather seven years. The seventy weeks prophecy of Daniel thus 70 times 7 days (or years) equals a total of 490 "days" or years. It is during this 70 week period that the Messiah would appear. From The Second Coming Bible by William E. Biederwolf we read about the four commandments or decrees that have been given serious consideration as the starting point of the 70 weeks prophecy. Biederwolf writes: "Ver.25. 'from the going forth of the commandment' -Four commandments or decrees were issued from one of which it seems the 'seventy weeks' ought to be dated, and each is supported by a number of commentators" (page 218, emphasis in the original). The first listed is the decree of Cyrus in 536 B.C. The second decree listed is that of Darius Hystapis in the second year of his reign in 519 B.C. The third decree that commentators have examined is that of Artaxerxes Longimanus in the seventh year of his reign in 457 B.C. The fourth decree under consideration is the decree given by Artaxerxes Longimanus in his
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twentieth year beginning 446 B.C. (Some commentators simply give this 20th year as 445 B.C. as the 20th year of his reign ended in 445 B.C.). Notice that if we count 70 weeks of years (70 time 7 totaling 490 years) from any ONE of these dates we arrive roughly at the time of the first century (as we count time today) between approximately 53 B.C. and A.D. 38. No matter which of these commandments (or decrees) may be the correct one to restore and rebuild Jerusalem, the Messiah could have arrived on Earth no later than the first century!! Those Jews today who still believe the Messiah has not come do not believe this prophecy from their own Old Testament scriptures! Now we need to determine which of these decrees could possibly be the correct one from which to begin our count. But first we need to go back to the prophecy of Daniel to determine what was actually prophesied concerning the “cutting off” of the Messiah. Notice that the seventy weeks are divided into three periods: There are "seven weeks," (verse 25), "threescore and two" or 62 weeks (verse 26), and one week (verse 27), totaling seventy weeks. But continue Biederwolf's comments: 'Seven weeks, and three score and two weeks' - With very few exceptions expositors take these two periods together, making sixty-nine weeks or 483 years" (page 219, emphasis in the original). In other words we have a period of seven weeks (49 "days" of years or 49 years) and then a period of 62 weeks (or 434 years) that precede the “cutting off” of the Messiah for a total of 69 weeks that precede His "cutting off," which refers to His death according to Isaiah 53:12. So from the correct starting point - that is the proper decree given in one of these years above, we will count 69 weeks of years and arrive at the year the Messiah was to be "cut off." The first decree listed was given in 536 B.C. If we add 69 weeks of years to this date, we come to 53 B.C. We know of no one claiming to be the Messiah that appeared at that time. The second decree given here is in the year 519 B.C. This brings us to 36 B.C. Again, we have no historical information that anyone came at that time who could have been the Messiah who was recognized either by the Jews or anyone else. The third decree mentioned by this scholar is the one made by Artaxerxes in his seventh year in 457 B.C. If we add 69 weeks of years to this date we come to the year AD. 27 (remember when doing this on your calculator, you must always add one year when going from B.C. to AD. since there are two years bearing the number" 1" -that is, 1 B.C. and A.D. 1). This decree must be considered as there was indeed someone who arrived among the Jews and claimed to be the Messiah. His Name was Jesus of Nazareth! Next we examine this fourth decree given by Artaxerxes in his 20th year of his reign, in the year 446 B.C. This also brings us to the first century. Since Daniel only mentions ONE decree then only one of these decrees can be the correct one. But one thing we know. There is only one Messiah prophesied to come. And during the first century only one man of any historical note appeared who claimed to be the Messiah and that was Jesus of Nazareth. There were some who appeared but their work came to nothing. We have record of them -of
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all places -in the New Testament. The Jews had high regard for a certain scholar among the Pharisees named Gamaliel who was a doctor or teacher of the law. He mentioned two well known candidates for the Messiah prior to the time of Jesus of Nazareth. They were: 1) Theudas, who accrued about four hundred followers but he was slain and his followers were all scattered and his work came to nothing. We only know about it today due to this New Testament record. (See Acts 5:36). Then there was 2) Judas of Galilee who also accrued a number of followers but "he also perished; and all, even as many as obeyed him, were dispersed" (Acts 5:37). Today these men are unknown to us except for this short mention in the pages of the New Testament. They left no written records themselves. Nor did their followers claim their "Messiah" was raised from the dead. These were mere men who attempted to gain a following for themselves but were slain. Gamaliel was advising the Jewish leaders to realize that if Jesus of Nazareth was also not from God that this whole Christian movement would soon die away. He made that statement in the early 30s of the first century. Now 2000 years later the followers of Jesus abound throughout the world! But no one has heard of those other two fellows except from this record in the Christian Bible! Thus Jesus of Nazareth remains the only candidate for the prophesied Messiah who was to come!
Jesus was "Cut off" According to Bible scholars Jesus of Nazareth was not born in the year A.D. 1 but (as we incorrectly count time) in the year 4 B.C. Briefly, when men attempted to pinpoint the exact year of Jesus' birth they missed it by four years, so rather than change the years, they kept the current date for the year and just placed the birth of Jesus in the year 4 B.C. (as we count years today). The New Testament abundantly shows that Jesus had four Passovers during His Ministry and that He was about 30 when He was ordained (Luke 3:23). Biblical Scholars therefore tell us Jesus was 33 and one-half years of age when He died. We know Jesus was not born on or anywhere near December 25th but rather was born in very early autumn (if you are not familiar with this well- documented fact of history write for our free article, The Real Truth About Christmas). In Bullinger's well-documented Companion Bible, the date given for the birth of Jesus of Nazareth is 4 B.C. Most scholars are now agreeing with this date. Recent research has also placed the correct year of the death of King Herod at 1 B.C. when an eclipse of the sun occurred. There was also one in 4 B.C. but Jesus was likely two years old when Herod learned of His birth by the wise men. The date 1 B.C. would therefore allow for the time needed for the events of Matthew and Luke to occur just after Jesus' birth and for Herod to have died at least two years later. Now the question is which of the last two years would be the proper time for the starting point (or terminus a' quo) of the Seventy Weeks Prophecy that lead us to the 69th week when the Messiah would be "cut off' for our sins?
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A few have accepted the 7th year of the reign of Artaxerxes in 457 B.C., notably the Seventh Day Adventists. By counting 69 weeks of years (or 483 years) they arrive at the date of Jesus' baptism in AD. 27. But read the prophecy carefully. We are told that after the initial seven weeks of years and the added threescore (62) weeks (making a total of 69 weeks) "shall Messiah be cut off" (Daniel 9:26). The Bible is very exact. It does not say the Messiah will commence His Ministry after 69 weeks (as Jesus of Nazareth did in A.D. 27), rather it says the Messiah will be “cut off” after 69 weeks which we understand from Isaiah 53:12 to refer to His death! Either Jesus is not the promised Messiah or we must find another candidate who lived in the first century (but where else do we look?) or this cannot be the correct year. Next let us consider the 20th year of the reign of Artaxerxes in 446 B.C. If we add 69 weeks of years (483 years) to this date, it leads us to the year A.D. 38 which was several years after all Bible scholars agree Jesus was "cut off" or died on the cross. We have a problem that must be resolved if Jesus is the Messiah. And we have no other candidate! What is the solution?
The Seventy Weeks are Prophetic Years We know the Seventy Weeks are not actual weeks of days but prophetic weeks representing years. In Revelation it speaks of a prophetic period of time consisting of three and one-half years or 1260 days or 42 months (Revelation 11:2-3). If we divide 1260 by 42 we arrive at 30 days in each month. However no calendar on earth has exactly 30 days and neither did the original sacred Biblical calendar have such a month? Rather the Biblical calendar consists of approximately six months of 30 days and six months of 29 days because it is based on a lunar solar cycle. This makes the length of the Biblical calendar year 354 days long. But the solar year is 11 days longer at 365 days. What we have in prophecy is a rounded off average month of 30 days times 12 months for a prophetic year of 360 days (as all scholars agree). Now notice! These seventy weeks were prophetic years -not actual 365-day solar years such as we have on our Roman calendars used in the United States and Europe today. The problem encountered above coming up with the year A.D. 27 to end the 69 weeks or the year A.D. 38 stems from counting solar years rather than prophetic years! Next we need to reexamine the exact dates we would arrive at if we correctly use prophetic years. If we start with the seventh year of Artaxerxes in 457 B.C. we arrive before - not at A.D. 27 but at the year A.D. 20! No one was "cut off" (or baptized for that matter) who claimed to be the Messiah in the year A.D. 20 of which we have any record. And certainly not Jesus of Nazareth who had not as yet begun His Ministry at that time! How do we arrive at this year? It's actually very simple. 69 weeks of years equals 483 years. But since these are 483 prophetic years we must convert them to solar years to determine the actual year on our Roman solar calendar. Thus we simply multiply 483 times 360 days (for a prophetic year) which comes to 173,880 days. So we now know that the Messiah was to be “cut off” 173,880 days after the commandment or decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem went forth.
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Now we want to know how many actual solar years that would be so we divide the number of days in a solar year into this figure and we have the correct number of years. A solar year is actually 5 hours and 48 minutes longer than a full 365 days so every fourth year we add one day to February to keep us on schedule. The exact length of a year therefore is actually 365.2421990 days long. We divide this exact number of days for a solar year into the exact number of days from the decree to the year the Messiah was cut off, which is 173,880 days (i.e. 173,880 divided by 365.2421990). We now arrive at the exact number of solar years which is 476 actual years. If we use the above date of 457 B.C. and add 476 solar years (which is the equivalent of 483 prophetic years) we arrive at the year A.D. 20. No historical record exists of anyone claiming to be the Messiah who died at that time. There is also another problem with using the 457 B.C. date. This date is given in the Book of Ezra when he went to Jerusalem (which still lay in ruins) to teach the few Jews that were there. But as yet no decree had been made to restore and rebuild the City of Jerusalem. In ancient times when cities were built (or restored) the first thing that they built was of course the wall which protected the city. The city still lay in ruins in 457 B.C. Next read the first chapter of Nehemiah and look at the date given at the top of the page. In my Bible which has dates, it reads "446 B.C." Notice in chapter 1 it says some of the Jews had escaped the captivity and were now in Jerusalem. Ezra was one of those people. And Nehemiah was told that Jerusalem was still desolation (verse 3). Later (notice this was in the 20th year of the king Artaxerxes Longimanus - Nehemiah 2:1) when the king saw Nehemiah he asked him why he was sad and he told the king it was because "the city, the place of my fathers' sepulchers, lieth waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with fire..." (verse 3). Notice that no decree had as yet been given to restore and build Jerusalem!! "Then the king said unto me, for what dost thou make request?" (verse 4). Verse 5 gives Nehemiah's answer: He asked the king to SEND HIM back to Jerusalem to rebuild the city!! This required a decree of the king. Thus we now have established the proper year from which the commandment or decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem was given!! It was not 457 B.C. but rather 446 B.C. Now let's examine this date to see what year it takes us to. Remember the Messiah was to be “cut off” after 69 weeks of years (or 483 prophetic years). Thus knowing that 483 prophetic years equate to 476 solar years we now add this number to 446 B.C. (remembering always to add the "1" to our final count). 446 B.C. plus 476 years brings us to the exact year of A.D. 31 which is THE EXACT YEAR THEREFORE THAT THE MESSIAH WAS CUT OFF - whoever He may have been!
What Year was Jesus Crucified? Biblical scholars have given the dates variously for the crucifixion as between the years A.D. 29 and 33. Roman Catholics have traditionally chosen the year A.D. 33 when the Passover date fell
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on a Friday. Many Protestants have chosen A.D. 30. As we have now seen from the Seventy Weeks Prophecy, neither of these dates can be correct, but rather the Messiah - whoever He was - was “cut off” for our transgressions and iniquities (Isaiah 53:8) in the year A.D. 31. The year A.D. 33 was the only year from A.D. 29 to 33 that the Passover fell on a Friday. The Bible tells us plainly that Jesus died on the very Passover day, as the Passover Lamb of God! No scholar disputes the exact time of His death. It was indeed the very day when the Passover Lamb was killed -the 14th day of the first sacred Biblical month called Abib. Remember that John the Baptist referred to Jesus as "the Lamb of God" (John 1:29 + 35-36) the Passover Lamb. Even secular history records that Jesus died on that exact Passover day. If you are not familiar with the truth of Matthew 12:40 concerning the three days and three nights that Jesus prophesied He would be in the tomb (the "heart of the earth") please write for our free reprint article, Did Jesus Die on Good Friday? It is simply impossible to arrive at three days and three nights from so-called "Good Friday" to Easter sunrise Sunday morning! At most we have only one full day and two full nights. This contradicts Jesus' promise of a full three days and three nights from His burial to His resurrection. Therefore the day of His death had to occur on a Wednesday. Please write for that short article if you are not familiar with this truth. Jesus died on Wednesday. It is the latest time of the week on which He could have died. In the year A.D. 31, what day of the week did the Passover fall? It is not impossible to determine the days of the week that certain dates fell on. This is why the Catholic Church knows that Passover did indeed fall on a Friday in the year A.D. 33. But in the year A.D. 31 the Passover fell on a WEDNESDAY -the only day that Jesus could have died on according to the Biblical records for His burial and resurrection! The Bible tells us that Jesus was born in early autumn. Bullinger's highly documented and pedantic Companion Bible places the birth of Christ in the last week of September in 4 B.C. (based on many proofs too numerous for this article). Since Jesus was born in 4 B.C. and lived 33 and 1/2th years, He would have died in the spring therefore of the year A.D. 31. Figure it for yourself! This can be the only year for Jesus' crucifixion. (Don't forget to always add one year when going from B.C. to A.D. which is a mathematical rule). Thus the Seventy Weeks Prophecy absolutely PROVES that the Messiah was "cut off' in the year A.D. 31 (as we count years). In that year the only one claiming to be the Messiah of whom we have any historical record was JESUS OF NAZARETH! And in that very year Jesus was "cut off out of the land of the living" and died on the very Passover day -the day that pictured the sacrificial Lamb dying in our place. This is the very prophecy that Isaiah gave in chapter 53 that the Messiah would die as a sacrificial offering for our transgressions and iniquities!! Can we doubt it? Can we deny it? JESUS OF NAZARETH is indeed the Messiah -the Christ -that the Old Testament prophecies said would come! Thus we now have categorically proven both the Old and the New Testaments to be the very Word of the Creator God!
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The Year 446445 B.C. The Persian year began in the springtime and for that reason King Artaxerxes' twentieth calendar year is listed as 446-445 because it would encompass parts of two years as we reckon the beginning and ending of years. For example, he may have started his twentieth year in April and concluded it the following April (which covers the last half of our Roman year of 446 and the first half of 445). Some Bibles and reference books simply give it as the year 445 since the year ended in 445 (as we count time today). But also the twentieth year of Artaxerxes Longimanus has been given variably as either 446445 B.C. or 445-44 B.C. Thus scholars admit a "gray area" of just 12 months. Did Artaxerxes twentieth year begin or end in the year 445? If we begin our count of the seventy weeks prophecy in 446 B.C. this puts the year when the Messiah was "cut off" in the year A.D. 31 when the Passover fell on a Wednesday. If our terminus a' quo (or starting point) is rather 445 B.C. then that would put the crucifixion in the year A.D. 32 when Passover fell on a Monday. There is no possibility that the Passover fell on a Monday the year Jesus was crucified. The Biblical records tell us that the guards were still guarding the tomb on Sunday and yet Pilate only ordered the tomb to be guarded for three full days! Had He died on Monday, the guards would have long since been gone. The Pharisees came to Pilate the day following the crucifixion and asked the tomb be guarded three days hence (Matthew 27:62-66). If Jesus died on Wednesday then the Pharisees made their request on Thursday and Sunday would have been the third day since the tomb was sealed and guards were placed at the entrance. Thus Jesus did not die on Monday and thus could not have died in the year A.D. 32 (as some have assumed) when Passover fell on Monday. Protestants who believe Jesus died in A.D. 30 are also ignoring the Seventy Weeks Prophecy since that would require the starting point to be the year 447 B.C. No scholar has ever placed the twentieth year of Artaxerxes Longimanus in 447 B.C.! The only year Jesus could have died is the year A.D. 31. And don't forget the Biblical records show He was 33 and 1/2th years old when He died. He was born in the autumn and scholars now know He was born in 4 B.C. Again we come to the exact year of A.D. 31 -the year when the 69th week of the seventy weeks would have concluded! What about the seventieth week? There yet remains one more ''week'' - seven more years. We learn about it in the book of Revelation. All seventy of these prophetic weeks of years occur before the events in Daniel 9:24. These events include both the Messiah's first advent and His second advent. The 69 weeks occur just prior to His being "cut off" for our sins and the 70th week (just 7 years) occurs just prior to His second coming!
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Some Say it was Thursday Yet there are still some who say that Christ died on a Thursday and was raised from the dead on Sunday morning exactly as Protestant and Roman Catholic tradition teach for the timing of the resurrection. First nowhere does the Scripture say that Jesus rose from the dead on Sunday morning. The women merely discovered the tomb was empty in the morning. He certainly did not rise at sunrise as the women arrived at the tomb that morning before sunrise while it was still dark! (John 20:l), and found the tomb already vacated! So Jesus rose before sunrise Sunday morning contrary to religious teaching! The world's churches do not base their Easter "sunrise services" therefore on Biblical truth but on traditions of men, contrary to the truth of Scripture! Now, could Jesus have been crucified on Thursday? No. For the Passover never fell on a Thursday between the years A.D. 29 and 33! Secondly, the Scripture itself precludes a Thursday Passover crucifixion date. Notice, the Holy Spirit inspired Luke to write that the women returned to Bethany which is approximately 2 miles from Jerusalem, prepared spices and ointments, and then rested the Sabbath day "according to the commandment." That would be the Sabbath Day found in the Ten Commandments -our Saturday. But the Holy Spirit inspired Mark to record that "when the Sabbath was past" the women "had bought" (the Greek simply says "bought" or "purchased") "sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him" (Mark 16:1 See Amplified Bible, RSV and NIV). Now we have a problem here if the crucifixion occurred either on a Thursday or a Friday! In Mark's account we learn that the women purchased the spices "when the Sabbath was past" and yet Luke's account reads that they purchased the spices (which could have taken a large portion of the day for purchase and preparation) before the Sabbath which is the one found in the Commandments -the weekly Sabbath. Thus we either have a contradiction in Scripture, or we are forced to admit there was a day in between the TWO Sabbaths that occurred. Jesus died before the annual Sabbath -or Passover Sabbath which always fell on the 15th of the month. An annual Sabbath is called a "high day" Sabbath (John 19:31) as opposed to the weekly Sabbath, or Saturday. If He died on Thursday that would make Friday the annual Passover Sabbath when it would have been impossible to have purchased the spices as the Jews were extremely strict about "buying and selling" on the Sabbaths of God. Therefore they could not have purchased them on Friday if it were the Passover Sabbath nor on Saturday, the "Sabbath according to the commandment." The only explanation then has to be that the crucifixion occurred on Wednesday, the women rested on the Passover Sabbath which fell on Thursday and then purchased the spices when that Sabbath - the annual Passover Sabbath, or "high day" - had passed (Mark 16:1). This means they purchased them on Friday, a regular work day. Then after they purchased the spices on Friday, they rested on the weekly Sabbath "the Sabbath day according to the commandment" (Luke 23:56). It is therefore impossible when reading both Mark 16:1 and Luke 23:56 to allow for a Thursday crucifixion. It just won't work. Jesus Christ then was crucified on a Wednesday. And
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scholars have determined that in the year A.D. 31 the Passover did in fact fall on Wednesday! Therefore He did indeed rise as He said (Matthew 28:6) after a full three days and three nights! But some have said, “How do we know that Jesus was a real-life person? How do we know if such a man truly lived?” Years ago when I lived in Texas I heard a live radio broadcast interviewing Madelyn Murray O' Haire, the famous woman atheist. She boldly stated that no one knew for sure if Jesus even lived. She cast doubts in the minds of the listeners whether or not it could be proved that there really was such a person as Jesus of Nazareth who lived 2000 years ago. What appalling ignorance! There is abundant proof from secular records outside the Bible that the man Jesus was a real living person who literally walked the Earth 2000 years ago. Briefly I'll show you that proof.
Secular Histories Record that Jesus of Nazareth Lived! Justin Martyr, who lived in the second century just after the time of Jesus, referred to public records that still existed in his day that Jesus of Nazareth was a historical person. In his treatise called "First Apology" in chapter 34 he writes about the city of Bethlehem "35 stadia from Jerusalem, in which Christ was born, as you can ascertain also from the registries of the taxing under Cyrenius your first procurator in Judea"! Historical records existed showing that Jesus was born in Bethlehem just as the Bible says! It would have been impossible to have fabricated these legal records! There was a Roman senator, a historian and a governor of the province of Asia Minor who also wrote about Jesus as being a real life historical person. His name was Cornelius Tacitus. This man never became a follower of Christ but rather hated Christianity, yet he could not deny that Jesus was indeed a truly historical person! Notice! In the book The Annals of Imperial Rome, Tacitus wrote: "Nero... punished with every refinement the notoriously depraved Christians (as they were popularly called). Their originator, Christ, had been executed in Tiberius' reign by the governor of Judea, Pontius Pilate. But in spite of this temporary setback, the deadly superstition had broken out afresh, not only in Judea (where the mischief had started) but even in Rome" (xv, 44). Here is a non Christian Roman senator, a political leader, and a historian of the day, who admits that Jesus lived, that He was executed by the governor of Judea Pontius Pilate, exactly as the Bible tells us! This Roman senator certainly had access to the PUBLIC RECORDS extant in his day! It would have been impossible to deny Jesus was a real person! Tacitus, though he was not a Christian, nevertheless knew Jesus really lived! And he acknowledged Jesus as a true historical figure! In his famous work, Antiquities of the Jews, Volume XVIII, 5, 2, the very famous and extremely reputable and noted Jewish historian Josephus who himself lived in the first century, acknowledged not only that Jesus had lived, but that His disciples and even John the Baptist were historical persons! All scholars, including Jewish leaders, recognize Josephus' accounts as genuine. In the above
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mentioned record, Josephus speaks of the death of James, the apostle and leader of the Headquarters Church of God in Jerusalem, who was "the brother of Jesus who was called Christ" (xx, 9, 1). Even the Jewish Encyclopedia concedes the historical life of Jesus! They admit that there are secular references in the Talmud that refer to Jesus. There is not a single denial that Jesus of Nazareth really did walk this Earth 2000 years ago! In fact the Talmud even records the fact that Jesus performed miracles, believe it or not! It speaks of His walking on the sea, healing the lepers, the blind, and the lame. Of course they did not interpret these miracles as coming from God, but they nevertheless admitted that Jesus did in fact perform the very miracles recorded in the New Testament!! But remember this information was not taken from the New Testament, but from a non Biblical (or secular) Jewish record of history! Then there was Julian the Apostate who actually hated Christianity! In his work Cyril Contra Julian, this man wrote: "Jesus, whom you celebrate, was one of Caesar's subjects. If you dispute it, I will prove it by and by; but it may be as well done now. For yourselves allow that he was enrolled with his father and mother in the time of Cyrenius. But Jesus having persuaded a few among you, and those of the worst of men, has now been celebrated about 300 years; having done nothing in his lifetime worthy of remembrance; unless anyone thinks it a mighty matter to heal lame and blind people, and exorcise demoniacs in the villages of Bethsaida and Bethany"! (Cyril Contra Julian, vi, pages 213 and 191). One must wonder how many people Julian had healed who were blind and lame!! Though he ridiculed the miracles of Jesus, he could not, nor did he attempt, to dispute these historical events, nor the historical reality that Jesus of Nazareth was a real living person! Had the New Testament been a myth, had these stories of Jesus been fabricated, imagined and created out of thin air, those who opposed Christianity would have known about it! For they lived shortly after these historical events actually occurred! The facts of secular HISTORY cannot be denied. Here we have historical records that Jesus was a real person, who was born in Bethlehem, actually performed the miracles recorded in the New Testament, and later was executed by Pontius Pilate. And remember these are secular, non Christian historical sources that record the real life history of the person called Jesus of Nazareth. They know He really lived. Next we must ask and answer the most important question of all: We know that Jesus lived in history. But was He raised from the dead three days later as He said He would be? For if He is still dead (as all other founders of major religions are) then He was not the promised Messiah and cannot be anybody's Saviour. Why? Notice in Matthew 12 the Pharisees asked Jesus for a sign that He was truly the Messiah. And He answered that no sign would be given to prove His Messiahship except one, and that was the fact that after only three days and three nights, God would raise Him from the dead! God would never honor the words of a false prophet! Therefore if that really happened, if God did indeed raise Jesus of Nazareth from the dead, then He truly was the "Messiah" (or
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"Christ"). Then we have indeed proof that Jesus is the Son of God and the Promised Messiah who was prophesied to come! The question is, can Jesus' alleged resurrection from the dead after three days be proved? The answer may surprise you!
PROOF Jesus was raised from the Dead! The apostles said they had seen Jesus after His resurrection from the dead. But could they have been lying? Surely, people reason, these men could have been involved in a massive collusion to create a hoax in order to start a new religion. That of course is possible -except for one thing. Would a dozen or more men attempt to pull off a hoax and then refuse to admit it was all a bad joke when intimidated by the authorities, beaten, arrested and jailed, and finally threatened with execution for their story? Hardly. If their motive had been to start a new religion in order to somehow get money, it would certainly have been foolish to have given it all up and DIE for what they knew had been a hoax from the very beginning! Common sense tells us that! In history few men have died for the Truth. No one however dies for what he knows to be a lie! Impossible! Yet one by one these men allowed themselves to be executed for their testimony that they had personally seen Jesus after His resurrection! They could not have been lying. Rather, they were sincere! What happened to these men? In all of history, the most excruciating and painful form of execution ever devised by man was crucifixion. The victim was beaten just short of death and then had nails driven through his hands and feet and left to die on a cross. In some instances the victim remained alive for days without food and water and in such agonizing pain that you and I cannot imagine! Yet the apostle Peter allowed himself to go through the torturous death of crucifixion rather than recant his testimony that he had SEEN Jesus after His resurrection from the dead! Perhaps Peter was crazy, someone might think. But not only Peter but all these men faced martyrdom eventually. Andrew, another one of the original 12 apostles, was crucified also. And then Phillip was crucified for the same testimony. Simon was crucified for the same testimony. Bartholomew was also crucified for the same testimony. James the son of Alphaeus was crucified also for the same testimony. Their testimony was that they had seen Jesus after God had raised Him from the dead, thus proving that He is the promised Messiah! Matthew, who wrote the first book of the New Testament, was martyred also but, by a sword. Thaddaeus was killed by being shot to death with arrows. Thomas, who at one time refused to believe the other apostles when they had learned that Jesus had been raised from the dead, later allowed himself also to be martyred, killed by a spear - rather than deny what he knew to be true - that Jesus of Nazareth was indeed the Messiah -the Christ -because he had SEEN Jesus after His resurrection from the dead! These men knew it was true!
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James, the son of Zebedee was killed by a sword. Matthias, who replaced Judas, but had been a witness to the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, was killed by stoning! Each of these men claimed they had seen Jesus raised from the dead. Each of these men was called upon to give the ultimate testimony -they sealed their testimony with their own blood! WHY would they do this if they knew it was all a hoax - a bad joke? Obviously these men were sincere! Their belief that Jesus had been raised from the dead meant more to them than their very lives!!! Apparently the only one of the original 12 apostles that survived into old age was the Apostle John who continued to maintain that Jesus was raised from the dead and that He actually appeared to him on the isle of Patmos giving him the end-time prophecies that make up the Book of Revelation. John never recanted his testimony that Jesus was alive! God raised Jesus Christ from the dead thus proving that He is the "Christ" - the Messiah of the Old Testament prophecies and thus proving that the New Testament therefore is also inspired as the Word of God!
Would They Have Died for a LIE? In his excellent book, More than a Carpenter, Josh McDowell writes: "It would be hard to find eleven people in history who died for a lie, KNOWING it was a lie" (Page 35, emphasis added). No. No person is that insane!! Michael Green writes: "You could imprison them, flog them, kill them, but you could not make them deny their conviction that 'on the third day He rose again'" (from the "Editor's Preface" in George Eldon Ladd's I believe in the Resurrection of Jesus, 1975). McDowell adds, "Jesus' followers couldn't have faced torture and death unless they were convinced of His resurrection. The unanimity of their message and course of conduct was amazing. The chances against any large group being in agreement are enormous, yet they all agreed on the truth of the resurrection. If they were deceivers, it's hard to explain why one of them didn't break down under pressure"! (McDowell, More than a Carpenter, page 38). Tertullian wrote that "No man would be willing to die unless he KNEW he had the truth"! (ibid, page 39 emphasis added). Finally, McDowell adds, "The apostles went through the test of death to substantiate the veracity of what they were proclaiming. I believe I can trust their testimony more than that of most people I meet today, people who aren't willing to walk across the street for what they believe, let alone die for it" (ibid, page 39). It is easier to believe Jesus was resurrected from the dead than it is to be able to come up with plausible explanations as to why the apostles one by one suffered horrible and painful deaths rather than deny the fact that they had seen Jesus Christ alive after His resurrection! Jesus said the ONE SIGN He would give that He really was the prophesied Messiah or "Christ" was that after three days and three nights God would raise Him from the dead! That is the ONLY sign He gave us! (Matthew 12:38-40).
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We know He is the Christ, the "Messiah" who was prophesied in the inspired Word of God, to appear after 69 weeks of years according to Daniel's prophecy, and be "cut off" for mankind dying in our place to pay the penalty for our sins. We know Jesus therefore is the Son of God, that He is alive, and that since He therefore is the Messiah, will indeed return as He promised He would. We therefore know the Gospel is true, that Christ did indeed die for our sins and was raised from the dead (I Corinthians 15:1-4). Think what we have now proved. We have PROVED from science that the Creator God does exist! We have PROVED from fulfilled prophecy that the Holy Bible is indeed the supernaturally inspired, inerrant, infallible Word of that Creator God! And now we have proved also the New Testament is a part of that inspired Word of God because we have proved that Jesus of Nazareth is indeed the Messiah, or "Christ," and therefore the Saviour of the world! What is our next step? What is your next step in your personal life? Surely you must realize now that to reject Jesus as your personal Lord and Saviour will cost you your eternal life. The Holy Bible (which we have proved is the inspired Word of God) tells us that all have "sinned" which means that all have transgressed the Law (Romans 3:23, I John 3:4). The "wages" or penalty for committing any sin is death (Romans 6:23). This is called in the book of Revelation the "second death" by being cast alive into the lake of fire. God tells us there are two resurrections - the first at the beginning of the 1000 year reign of Christ on Earth which is for the saved only, and the second resurrection at the end of the 1000 years which is for the lost only. Every man will be raised from the dead in one of these two resurrections!!! (Daniel 12:2; John 5:28-30; Revelation 20:4-6, 11, 15). In which of these two resurrections will YOU be resurrected? Only those who are "in Christ" who have repented of their sins (Acts 2:38) and have confessed (or acknowledged) Jesus of Nazareth as "Lord" of their lives (Romans 10:9) will be in the first resurrection! (I Corinthians 15:23, 51-53; I Thessalonians 4:13, 18). Their names are now being written in the "Book of Life" (Luke 10:20). If however you are not saved, have not "made your peace with God," and have not accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Lord so that He may become your Saviour and write your name in the Book of Life, then you are lost. If you died tonight, you would wake up in the next moment of your consciousness in the second resurrection! (Revelation 20:11-15). Are you "prepared"? Are you ready to meet God? Are you sure? Have you been baptized? Do you know for an absolute CERTAINTY that you do indeed have the very Holy Spirit of Christ without which you do not belong to Christ? -and therefore are not saved! (Romans 8:9). To PREPARE for your eternity is more important than anything else in your life. Have you done it? Do you know that you know how? Are you positive? This could be your only chance at being in the first resurrection to live with Jesus Christ for the thousand years in the Kingdom of God. Call today if you would like personal counseling in this most important matter! And whatever you do, don't put this off! Your very eternity is at stake!
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