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Let’s pray:
Father,
Now that we understand the prophecy of the 70 weeks, which You gave Your servant Daniel, we ask You to enlighten us once again, as we study another prophetic period closely linked to the 70 weeks, that is, the 2300 days.
In Jesus Christ we pray.
Amen.
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Daniel 9:22,23
And [Gabriel] said,
«O Daniel, I am now come forth to give you skill and understanding.
At the beginning of your supplications the commandment came forth, and I am come to show you; for you are greatly beloved.
Therefore understand the matter, and consider the vision.»
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In our last lesson, we have seen the angel Gabriel giving Daniel the prophecy of the 70 weeks.
This prophecy would help him «understand the matter, and consider the vision», that is, the previous vision he had received and which was still unexplained: the 2300 days, subject of this lesson.
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Daniel 8:1,10,11
In the third year of the reign of king Belshazzar a vision appeared to me, even to me Daniel. (...)
[The little horn] waxed great, even to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped on them.
Yes, he magnified himself even to the Prince of the host, and by him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of the sanctuary was cast down.
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The vision of the 2300 days is found in Daniel chapter 8, which we studied in the lesson «The Ram and the Goat».
We then saw the misdeeds of a power, «the little horn», attacking God.
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Daniel 8:12
A host was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression, and it cast down the truth to the ground.
And it practiced, and prospered.
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This prophecy announces that the little horn would attack the work of sacrifice Jesus performed for the salvation of men.
It would succeed in darkening this perfect work, thus «casting down the truth to the ground», and prospering in everything it would do.
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Daniel 8:13,14
Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said to that certain saint which spoke,
«How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?»
And he said to me,
«To two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.»
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In the heart of the prophecy of Daniel 8, as the disastrous work of the little horn is presented, a question is asked, «How long?»
And the answer is, «To 2300 days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.»
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Daniel 8:14
And he said to me,
«To two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.»
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Ezekiel 4:6
I have appointed you each day for a year.
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By applying the equivalence principle used in Bible prophecy, that is, «1 day = 1 year» («each day for a year»), we understand that the 2300 days represent a period of 2300 years.
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Daniel 9:23-25
Understand the matter, and consider the vision. Seventy weeks are determined on your people and on your holy city. (...)
Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem (...).
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The next prophecy, that is, the 70 weeks, was necessary in order to discover the starting point of this 2300-year period.
In fact, our last lesson showed us that the Hebrew word «chathak», which is translated here as «determined», literally means «cut off».
So Gabriel told Daniel that a period of 70 weeks had been cut off, but from what?
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Daniel 9:24,25
Seventy weeks are determined on your people and on your holy city. (...)
From the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem (...).
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These 70 weeks, symbolizing a period of 490 years, can only be cut off from a longer period, that is, the 2300 years.
As we have already seen in our preceding lesson, the 70 weeks began in 457 B.C., that is, at «the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem», and ended in A.D. 34, when Stephen was stoned by the Jews.
Now, to complete the period of 2300 years, we must add 1810 years (2300 - 490 = 1810) to A.D. 34, and we get to the year A.D. 1844.
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Daniel 8:14,26 [NKJV]
For two thousand three hundred days; then the sanctuary shall be cleansed. (...)
The vision of the evenings and mornings which was told is true.
Therefore seal up the vision, for it refers to many days in the future.
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Since the 2300 days ended in the year 1844, we can understand why the angel said to the prophet Daniel that his vision referred «to many days in the future»!
Now, let’s try to discover what this cleansing of the sanctuary, which began in 1844, consists of.
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Revelation 10:10
And I took the little book out of the Angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey.
And as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.
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To understand the meaning of the cleansing of the sanctuary, we must remember the lesson «The Little Open Book», in which we discovered that this little open book is the book of Daniel.
As we saw during that lesson, the book of Daniel was first a source of joy and hope for those who studied it («in my mouth sweet as honey»), but then brought about disappointment and discouragement («my belly was bitter»).
When did it happen?
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Daniel 8:13,14
«How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?»
And he said to me,
«To two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.»
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During the nineteenth century, Christians throughout the world studied the book of Daniel, and especially the prophecy of the 2300 days.
Having calculated that the 2300 days were going to end in 1844, and believing that the foretold cleansing of the sanctuary corresponded with the return of Jesus who would cleanse the earth, they all zealously preached the gospel, eagerly waiting for 1844.
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Revelation 10:10
[The little book] was in my mouth sweet as honey.
And as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.
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But, as we have seen in the lesson «The Little Open Book», the sanctuary that had to be cleansed at the end of the 2300 days was not the earth, but rather the heavenly sanctuary.
So, as foretold by Revelation chapter 10, the sweet waiting of the years preceding 1844 was followed by a deep bitterness, when all those sincere Christians understood that they had not properly interpreted the content of the book of Daniel.
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Revelation 10:10; 11:1,2
As soon as I had eaten [the little book], my belly was bitter. (...)
And there was given me a reed like to a rod.
And the angel stood, saying, «Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein. But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not.»
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Here is the message God gave to the Christians, after this great disappointment of 1844: we must «measure the temple of God», that is, study more deeply the sanctuary, in order to understand the prophecy of Daniel about the cleansing of the sanctuary.
That’s what we will do right now.
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Numbers 28:3
This is the offering made by fire which you shall offer to the Lord; two lambs of the first year without spot day by day, for a continual burnt offering.
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In our lesson «The Sanctuary», we have seen that God asked the people of Israel to build a sanctuary.
Two services took place there:
- First the daily service, in which lambs were sacrificed for each person’s sins. Day after day, sins were thus moved to the sanctuary.
- At the end of the religious year, a second service had to be performed to purify the sanctuary.
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Leviticus 23:27-29
On the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a Day of Atonement.
It shall be a holy convocation to you; and you shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire to the Lord.
And you shall do no work in that same day: for it is a Day of Atonement, to make an atonement for you before the Lord your God.
For whatever soul it be that shall not be afflicted in that same day, he shall be cut off from among his people.
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The cleansing of the sanctuary took place once a year, on the Day of Atonement.
The sins of the truly repentant individuals were then totally erased.
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Hebrews 9:24
Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself.
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We have also seen that the earthly sanctuary was a model of the heavenly sanctuary, where Jesus is now working.
As the Lamb of God, He takes upon Himself the sins of repentant men, and transfers them to the heavenly sanctuary.
So, will the heavenly sanctuary also have to be purified one day, just as the earthly sanctuary had to?
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Hebrews 9:23
It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.
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Yes, the heavenly sanctuary must also be purified.
According to the prophecy of Daniel, this purification began in 1844: this is the first phase of the judgment.
Just as the cleansing of the earthly sanctuary concerned only the people of Israel, the purification of the heavenly sanctuary concerns only those professing to follow God.
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1 Peter 4:17
For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God.
And if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?
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The judgment began in the heavenly sanctuary in 1844 with the examination of each believer’s case.
On the day of the cleansing of the earthly sanctuary, each Jew who had persisted in his sins was cut off from his people, even if he had offered lambs all the year long.
Likewise, many people claim to follow Christ, but the judgment will identify those who are truly converted.
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2 Corinthians 5:10
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he has done, whether it be good or bad.
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Romans 14:10
We shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.
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Hebrews 10:30
The Lord shall judge His people.
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Therefore, each person’s case will be brought to trial.
Whether or not we profess to follow God, the Bible is clear: one day, we will be judged.
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John 5:24
[Jesus said,]
«Truly, truly, I say to you, he that hears My word, and believes on Him that sent Me, has everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death to life.»
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Now, how can Jesus declare that he who believes in God will not come into judgment, while the Word of God declares that we must all appear before the judgment seat of God?
Simply because those who accept God’s salvation will be represented by Jesus Christ Himself, as their Advocate before the Father.
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If we really desire it, Jesus will plead and win our case before God!
«For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us.» (Hebrews 9:24)
«We have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the Righteous.» (1 John 2:1)
«Much more then, being now justified by [Christ’s] blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.» (Romans 5:9)
«Whoever therefore shall confess Me before men, him will I confess also before My Father which is in heaven.» (Matthew 10:32)
«There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus.» (Romans 8:1)
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Matthew 7:21-23
Not every one that said to Me, «Lord, Lord,» shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that does the will of My Father which is in heaven.
Many will say to Me in that day, «Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, and in Your name have cast out devils, and in Your name done many wonderful works?»
And then will I profess to them, «I never knew you: depart from Me, you that work iniquity.»
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Since 1844, God’s judgment has been separating true Christians from false ones.
Let’s note that performing miracles is not absolute proof of a genuine conversion.
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The names of all false Christians will be erased from the Book of Life:
«He that overcomes, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the Book of Life.» (Revelation 3:5)
«The Lord said to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against Me, him will I blot out of My book.”» (Exodus 32:33)
«Let them be blotted out of the book of the living, and not be written with the righteous.» (Psalm 69:28)
«But when the righteous turns away from his righteousness, and commits iniquity, and does according to all the abominations that the wicked man does, shall he live? All his righteousness that he has done shall not be mentioned: in his trespass that he has trespassed, and in his sin that he has sinned, in them shall he die.» (Ezekiel 18:24)
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Daniel 7:9-11
I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of Days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of His head like the pure wool.
His throne was like the fiery flame, and His wheels as burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before Him: thousand thousands ministered to Him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him.
The judgment was set, and the books were opened.
I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spoke.
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The prophecy of Daniel chapter 7 already indicated that the judgment would begin before the return of Jesus.
In fact, this vision of the judgment takes place as the little horn is still committing its misdeeds on earth.
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Revelation 22:11,12
He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.
And, behold, I come quickly; and My reward is with Me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
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The cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary will soon be completed.
This will put an end to the first part of the judgment, having separated the true Christians from the false ones.
The fate of each person will then be fixed, and Jesus Christ will finally return to gather His people.
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Revelation 20:4
And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them.
And I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark on their foreheads, or in their hands.
And they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
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A period of 1000 years (also called «Millennium», subject of a future lesson) will follow the return of Jesus.
This will be the second part of the judgment, during which the people of God will judge the wicked.
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1 Corinthians 6:2
Do you not know that the saints shall judge the world?
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Luke 22:29,30
[Jesus said,]
«I appoint to you a kingdom, as My Father has appointed to Me; that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.»
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During these 1000 years, God’s people will study the individual cases of the wicked, their responsibilities, their degree of guilt according to their thoughts, words, and deeds.
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Revelation 20:12,15 and 21:8
The books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life.
And the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. (...)
And whoever was not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire. (...)
They shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
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At the end of the 1000 years, the wicked will come back to life to receive their verdict of guilt.
Having rejected God’s call to salvation, their sentence will be a total and final destruction.
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Revelation 14:6,7
And I saw another angel fly in the middle of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice,
«Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come.»
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Yes, the hour of God’s judgment has come.
Do we all rely on the only Advocate who can really help us, Jesus Christ, that He may appear for us before the throne of God, and obtain forgiveness for our sins?
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Acts 24:25
And as [Paul] reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, Felix trembled, and answered,
«Go your way for this time; when I have a convenient season, I will call for you.»
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Or are we perhaps like Felix, afraid of the judgment because we have not yet put our lives into the hands of Jesus Christ, the one and only Savior and Lord?
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Ecclesiastes 12:13,14
Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.
For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.
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Let’s remember that we must all appear before the divine court.
The only way to be acquitted is to accept Jesus as our personal Savior and Lord.
His presence within us will enable us to keep God’s commandments, which express His will for each one of us.
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Let’s thank God for inviting us to receive salvation:
Heavenly Father,
We now know that Your judgment has already begun. Without a good Advocate, our case would be lost.
But You loved us so much that You gave us Your only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, so that He may be our atoning sacrifice for the forgiveness of our sins, and also our Advocate before Your throne.
Now, as we pray, we want to accept Him as our personal Savior and Lord of our life. Through His presence within us, we want to do Your will from now on, so that our names may not be blotted out of Your Book of Life.
In the precious name of Jesus Christ we pray.
Amen.
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