Centuries before the first coming of Christ, the angel Gabriel gave revelation to the prophet Daniel regarding the future of Daniel’s people, Israel. In his prophecy, Gabriel did not specify years on the calendar, but he marked time by seven-year increments, referring to them as “sevens.” Gabriel revealed seventy “sevens” in total.
Unknown to Satan, God had hidden a gap between the sixty-ninth “seven” and the seventieth “seven.” That gap was a mystery—not fully revealed until Christ gave revelation to his apostles.
In this day and time, we are in that gap, and the followers of Christ represent the mystery, revealed. Had Satan understood this mystery, he never would have crucified Jesus—because now he must witness souls saved eternally by the blood of Christ. These saved souls become members of the eternal Body of Christ.
The Mystery
To Paul, Christ revealed the fundamental nature of this mystery: it pertained to the Gentiles, those who were not considered of “Israel.”
How that by revelation he [Christ] made known unto me [Paul] the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words, Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ) Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit; That the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel. (Eph. 3:3-6)
Through Christ, the Gentiles could become joint heirs with Christ and partakers in the promise of life eternal. At the center of the mystery is this: God’s human creation would have an indwelling, eternal Spirit: Christ!! As revealed to Paul:
To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. (Col. 1:27)
Now, today, for the followers of the Messiah, it’s “Christ in you, the hope of glory”!! His indwelling Spirit is our hope of future glory. The dark powers of this world were blind to this plan—which was God’s hidden wisdom. Regarding this hidden wisdom, Paul said:
But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. (1 Cor. 2:7, 8)
Not only was Satan unaware of the mystery, nor were God’s prophets, or even the angels. The prophets searched to understand how all the pieces of the prophetic puzzle fit together regarding prophecies of Christ, and the grace and salvation he would bring.
The Apostle Peter revealed this:
Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of the Messiah and the glories that would follow. . . . Even angels long to look into these things. (1 Peter 1:10-12)
God hid his wisdom from his creation, and in doing so, outwitted Satan. God hid this mystery, this gap, between the sixty-ninth “seven” and the seventieth “seven.”
Christ prophesied of this gap when he quoted the prophet Isaiah in Luke Chapter 4.
Peter presented the actual gap in time when he quoted the prophet Joel on the day of Pentecost.
John revealed the numbered chronology of end-time events in Revelation, marking the end of the gap, and the beginning of the seventieth “seven.”
The key figures in this article are Christ, Isaiah, Gabriel, Daniel, Peter, Joel, Paul, and John. Their prophecies come together to form a picture of what was—and what shall be.
Revel in God’s hidden wisdom about the Gentiles. Revel in Gabriel’s prophecy about Israel.
Gabriel’s Prophecy: The Seventy “Sevens”
The angel Gabriel prophesied of three significant events: the restoration of Jerusalem, the Crucifixion of the Messiah (Jesus), and the ultimate deliverance of Daniel’s people (Israel). The angel pinned the first twoevents along a timeline. Seven“sevens” would mark the first phase of the prophecy (Jerusalem’s restoration would take forty-nine years to complete), and sixty-two “sevens” would mark the second phase (Jesus’ Crucifixion would occur 434 years later).
With sixty-nine “sevens” of Gabriel’s prophecy already complete, only the final “seven,” the seventieth “seven,” remains. When the seventieth “seven” is fulfilled, Israel will be delivered from its enemies by the second coming of Christ, the Apocalypse.
This epic prophecy of the “sevens,” given by Gabriel and recorded by Daniel, is given here.
While I [Daniel] was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel and making my request to the Lord my God for his holy hill—while I was still in prayer, Gabriel, the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came to me in swift flight about the time of the evening sacrifice. He instructed me and said to me, “Daniel, I have now come to give you insight and understanding. As soon as you began to pray, an answer was given, which I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed. Therefore, consider the message and understand the vision”:
“Seventy ‘sevens’ are decreed for your [Daniel’s] people [Israel] and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy.”
“Know and understand this: From the issuing of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One [Jesus Christ], the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’ It [Jerusalem] will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble. After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be cut off [Christ will be crucified] and will have nothing. The people of the ruler [the Antichrist] who will come [future tense] will destroy the city [Jerusalem] and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. He [the Antichrist] will confirm a covenant with many [Israelites] for one ‘seven’ [the seventieth]. In the middle of the ‘seven’ [after 3.5 years] he [the Antichrist] will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on a wing of the temple [in Jerusalem] he [the Antichrist] will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him [at the Apocalypse].” (Dan. 9:20–27)
The sixty-ninth “seven” was fulfilled in the first century with the Crucifixion of Jesus. The time of the Antichrist, and the seventieth “seven,” have yet to commence. Prophecies of the seventieth “seven” are found in both the Old and New Testaments.
The Seventieth “Seven”
Whereas Gabriel outlined the final “seven” (the seventieth), Christ’s revelation to John elaborated on the nature of it: the seventieth “seven” is the seven-year countdown to Armageddon (when destruction is poured out on the Antichrist). In essence, the seven years of Daniel’s prophecy corresponds to the seven years of John’s prophecy in the Book of Revelation. This connection is understood when viewing Christ’s reference to Daniel in the Gospels, and Christ’s reference to the Antichrist in Revelation.
Christ & Daniel
Christ prophesied:
So when you see standing in the holy place “the abomination that causes desolation,” spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand—then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. . . . For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again. (Matt. 24:15, 16, 21)
Christ is prophesying about those who will be in Judea at the time of the Antichrist. In Revelation, Christ expounded upon the time of the Antichrist, and the seventieth “seven.”
The Book of Revelation: The Seventieth “Seven”
With the sixth trumpet (Rev. 9:13), God’s prophets will smite the planet for 3.5 years (Rev. 11:3-7). With the seventh trumpet (Rev. 11:15), the two prophets of Satan (the Antichrist (the beast) and false prophet (the second beast)) will smite the planet for the next 3.5 years (Rev. 13:5). It is during this 3.5-year time frame that the Antichrist and false prophet will set up the “abomination that causes desolation,” which is “the image to the beast” (Rev. 13:14).
Together, the prophets of heaven and “hell” make up the final seven years of Gabriel’s prophecy. In essence, the seventieth “seven” is a prelude to war, for at the end of the seventieth “seven,” Christ will descend from heaven with his armies and will pour out destruction upon the “ruler,” the Antichrist (Rev. 19:11-21; Matt. 24:27-31). With the fulfillment of this prophecy, Gabriel’s trilogy will be fulfilled.
The Angel Gabriel
In Gabriel’s prophecy of the seventy “sevens,” he provided us with significant moments in time, or, major threshold shifts that would come to pass. Looking back at his prophecy, Gabriel had not only marked the first coming of the Messiah to Israel (fulfilled with the sixty-ninth “seven”), but he also had marked the second coming of the Messiah to Israel—and Israel’s deliverance (fulfilled with the seventieth “seven”). Today, we live in the gap in time, between the sixty-ninth “seven” and seventieth “seven.” That’s the mystery God had hidden.
The Gap in Time: Christ
The Son of God first marked the gap in time—on the first day of his ministry in the synagogue—when he referenced a prophecy given by the prophet Isaiah. It’s what Jesus said—and didn’t say—that must capture our attention.
What he quoted from Isaiah is in black (type), and what he didn’t say is in blue (type). Jesus said:
The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God. (Isa. 61:1, 2)
Jesus never read, “and the day of vengeance of our God.” He stopped after reading “the year of the Lord’s favor.” Jesus split the prophecy according to its divine timeline (right in the midst of Isaiah 61, verse 2). Herein, Christ marked the gap the time: His first coming to Israel would fulfill the first part of Isaiah’s prophecy (what Christ quoted), and his second coming to Israel, the Apocalypse, would fulfill the second part: “the day of vengeance of our God.”
Here is Christ’s actual quote as it appears in Luke:
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. He began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” (Luke 4:18-21)
“Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”Jesus read from Isaiah what would be fulfilled with his earthly presence. This would fulfill the sixty-ninth “seven,” for, he would be “cut off,” or crucified, during his first coming. “The day of vengeance of our God” would be fulfilled at a future time—and that’s why he didn’t read it from Isaiah. Thus, there would be a span of time after the sixty-ninth “seven,” before the seventieth “seven” would be fulfilled.
The Gap in Time: Peter
Just as Christ divided a prophecy according to God’s calendar, the Apostle Peter did likewise when he quoted Joel on Pentecost. Peter marked the actual gap in time. He revealed the signs that mark the beginning of the church (which occurred after the sixty-ninth “seven”), and he revealed the signs that mark the rapture of the church (which will occur prior to the start of the seventieth “seven”). In essence, he heralded the birth, and ultimate salvation of the church, as well as the signs that mark each. On the first day of the church, Peter quoted from Joel.
It’s what he said—and didn’t say—that must capture our attention. What he quoted from Joel is in black (type), and what he didn’t say is in blue (type). Peter said:
And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days. I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved; for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be deliverance, as the Lord has said, among the survivors whom the Lord calls. (Joel 2:28-32)
In his quote, Peter prophesied about those who call on “the name of the Lord,” (those who receive God’s Spirit), who would be “saved,” or rescued, on the “day of the Lord” (Christ’s appearing).
Importantly, in his prophecy, Peter stopped right in the middle of Joel 2:32. He never read, “for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be deliverance, as the Lord has said, among the survivors whom the Lord calls (Joel 2:32b). He did not read this because it didn’t apply to the followers of the Messiah, but to the followers of Moses (Israel).
The Followers of Moses: Joel, Daniel, & Isaiah: The Seventieth “Seven” Prophecies
What follows are prophecies given by three prophets who prophesied of the final “seven.”
Joel: “for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be deliverance, as the Lord has said, among the survivors whom the Lord calls.”
Isaiah: “the day of vengeance of our God.”
Daniel: the seventieth “seven.”
All three prophecies herald the second coming of Christ, and the fulfillment of the seventieth “seven,” when Israel is delivered through heaven’s vengeance on the enemies of God. These prophecies of deliverance (and vengeance) are seen in Chapter 3 of Joel:
In those days and at that time, when I [God] restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, I will gather all nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. There I will enter into judgment against them concerning my inheritance, my people Israel, for they scattered my people among the nations and divided up my land. . . . Proclaim this among the nations: Prepare for war! Rouse the warriors! Let all the fighting men draw near and attack. Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears. Let the weakling say, “I am strong!” Come quickly, all you nations from every side, and assemble there. Bring down your warriors, O Lord! . . . The Lord will roar from Zion and thunder from Jerusalem; the earth and the sky will tremble. But the Lord will be a refuge for his people, a stronghold for the people of Israel. Then you will know that I, the Lord your God, dwell in Zion, my holy hill. Jerusalem will be holy; never again will foreigners invade her. (Joel 3:1, 2, 9-11, 16, 17)
This prophecy speaks of the second coming of the Messiah to Israel to save it. This will come to pass with the fulfillment of the seventieth “seven”—which is clearly identified in the Book of Revelation. Also identified in Revelation is the end of the gap: the appearing of Christ to save those who call on his name (as prophesied by Peter).
The Book of Revelation
The Book of Revelation is the only book in the Bible that provides a numbered chronology of end-time events. With this chronology, the events described in this article can be marked.
Revelation: The End of the Gap
Revelation documents the end of the gap by identifying the same celestial signs as prophesied by Peter: the sun will turn black and the moon will turn blood red. When the sixth seal opens (Rev. 6:12-14) the followers of Christ (the church) will be “saved,” or raptured, gathered into heaven with the appearing of Christ (Rev. 1:7; 7:9-17). John’s prophecy marks the end of the gap in time, for this is the “day of the Lord”:
I watched as he opened the sixth seal. There was a great earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair, the whole moon turned blood red. (Rev. 6:12)
Revelation: Israel & the Body of Christ
Following the rapture, the trumpets of wrath will sound. With the sixth trumpet, the seventieth “seven” will soon follow.
As Gabriel’s prophecy of the seventieth “seven” unfolds on earth for Israel, a prophecy for the Body of Christ (the church) will unfold in heaven: “the marriage supper of the Lamb” (Rev. 19:9).
This multitude at the marriage supper is part of a greater picture revealed by Christ in the Book of Revelation, for the mystery of the church culminates with the following revelation:
The multitude redeemed by the blood of the Lamb (Rev. 5:9, 10), is the same multitude raptured and gathered before the throne of the Lamb (Rev. 7:9-17), and this is the same multitude at the marriage supper (Rev. 19:9), and this is the same multitude that descends with Christ at his second coming to Israel (Rev. 17:14; 19:11-21).
Conclusion
Our Lord, along with Peter, Paul, and John gave us insight into a mystery, which God had hidden in Gabriel’s prophecy. Today, we know what Satan, the prophets, and the angels didn’t know at the time of Gabriel’s prophecy: God’s hidden wisdom. With the revelation of this mystery, we know this truth: the followers of the Messiah await deliverance, which will come to pass before the commencement of the seventieth “seven,” and Israel awaits deliverance, which will come to pass with the fulfillment of the seventieth “seven.”
God bless you,
Dr. William Ayles
