Daniel’s 70th Week and the 7-Year Tribulation
Paul Bernard
Daniel 9:24–27 [24] “Seventy weeks are decreed about your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to put an end to sin, and to atone for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal both vision and prophet, and to anoint a most holy place. [25] Know therefore and understand that from the going out of the word to restore and build Jerusalem to the coming of an anointed one, a prince, there shall be seven weeks. And for sixty-two weeks it shall be built again with squares and moat, but in a troubled time. [26] And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut off and shall have nothing. And the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its end shall come with a flood, and to the end there shall be war. Desolations are decreed. [27] And he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week, and for half of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until the decreed end is poured out on the desolator.” (ESV)
What follows is an attempt to simplify a rather complex idea. It is designed to give an overall view of this concept, not to answer all the questions about it.
Daniel’s 70 Weeks Prophecy: Context and Framework
The prophecy of the 70 weeks is found in Daniel 9:24–27 above, a foundational passage for understanding end-times prophecy from a futurist, dispensationalist viewpoint.
For clarity, it is a common occurrence to interpret a day for a year in Biblical prophecy. In Numbers 14:34, Israel’s 40 years in the wilderness were based on the 40 days of spying: “For forty years—one year for each of the forty days you explored the land…” In Ezekiel 4:6, God told Ezekiel: “I have appointed you a day for each year.” These texts establish the prophetic principle that symbolic days can represent years. Please note that in many other places, this isn’t the case and a day is a day and a year is a year.
With that established, Daniel receives a vision from the angel Gabriel, who explains that “seventy weeks” (literally, “seventy sevens” – 70 x 7 years =490 years) are decreed for Israel and Jerusalem to do the following:
to finish the transgression
to put an end to sin
to atone for iniquity
to bring in everlasting righteousness
to seal both vision and prophet
to anoint a most holy place.
So 490 years for all that to be accomplished. From there, the futurist will break down the prophecy as follows (although please note, there are several variations on the timeline below):
7 weeks (49 years): Time from the decree to rebuild Jerusalem to the completion of the city. (441 years left)
62 weeks (434 years): From the rebuilding of Jerusalem to the coming of the Messiah. (7 years left)
1 final week (7 years): A future period still unfulfilled—the 70th week.
This final week is what futurists see as the tribulation described in the book of Revelation. It is important to note that the book of Revelation never refers to the tribulation as a seven-year period (although there are several references to 3 ½ years). 7 years of tribulation only comes from here in Daniel.
Real Historical Moments on the Timeline
Here’s how the 69 completed weeks may have played out historically. Note that due to the complexity of variations in calendars, the numbers don’t always add up perfectly for our 21st century minds. There are all sorts of explanations for this. Is it a lunar calendar or Hebrew calendar? Which decree starts the clock? Cyrus, Ezra, Artaxerxes? Years were only 360 days long as well, so there is some historical inaccuracy on dating things. Did Jesus begin his ministry in 27? 30? 32? 33?)
That being said, the confusion sorts itself out with Jesus being crucified almost exactly 483 years (69 x 7) as prophicied, according to scholars like Sir Robert Anderson. The timeline paused after Christ was “cut off” (Daniel 9:26)—His crucifixion.
But that’s only 483 of the 490 years!
Yes, this leaves 1 remaining week—7 years—yet to be fulfilled. This final week of years is still off in the future. This is often referred to as Daniel’s 70th week, or the tribulation and it begins when the Antichrist “makes a strong covenant with many” (Daniel 9:27).
[26] And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut off and shall have nothing. And the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its end shall come with a flood, and to the end there shall be war. Desolations are decreed. [27] And he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week, and for half of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until the decreed end is poured out on the desolator.”
But why the gap?
If you’re paying attention, you’ll notice that between the first 483 years and the last 7 years (between the 48th & 49th weeks) there has been at least a 2000 year gap. Did Daniel not see this gap in his vision? Futurist & dispensationalist scholars see this time as being the “mystery” of the church age.
In other words, none of the Old Testament really sees the ‘age of the church,’ nor the inclusion of the Gentiles into faith. Daniel’s prophecy “pauses” before the final week, because Israel as a nation rejected her Messiah. Therefore, God turned to the Gentiles (Rom. 11:25), ushering in the “mystery” of the Church Age. This is the “gap” where we are living now.
Max Lucado often emphasizes God’s grace in this waiting period—that the pause allows the message of Jesus to spread to all nations before the final fulfillment.
Amir Tsarfati (Behold Israel) teaches that this gap is intentional: Israel’s prophetic clock stopped at the 69th week, and it won’t restart until the Rapture and the rise of the Antichrist.
Classic dispensationalists (Walvoord, Ryrie, Scofield) explain that God’s prophetic program for Israel is suspended until He finishes His program for the Church (Acts 15:14–16; Rom. 11).
The 70th Week and the Tribulation Period
Finally, we get to Daniel’s 70th week and the hotly debated seven-year tribulation (which is broken down into 3.5 year periods since seven years is never explicitly stated in Revelation.)
First 3.5 years: The Antichrist rises to power, makes a covenant with Israel, and the world sees a deceptive peace (Revelation 6).
Midpoint (3.5 years): The Antichrist breaks the covenant, sets up the abomination of desolation in the temple (Matthew 24:15, Daniel 9:27).
Last 3.5 years: Known as the Great Tribulation (Matthew 24:21), a time of severe judgment poured out upon the earth (Revelation 6–19).
Who will experience the tribulation?
According to most dispensationalist scholars, this 7-year period of tribulation will not include the church. The church will have been raptured before this time and so is no longer on the planet. The 7 Year Tribulation is specifically designed to get the attention of the Jews.
Amir Tsarfati – Revealing Revelation Tsarfati emphasizes the literal, chronological fulfillment of Revelation. He affirms that Daniel’s 70th week has not yet occurred, and the Church will be raptured before its onset: “The tribulation is not for the Church. It is for Israel and the unbelieving world... That final seven years is Daniel’s 70th week.”
Jan Markell – Olive Tree Ministries Markell teaches a pre-tribulation rapture and views Daniel’s 70th week as God’s program for Israel: “The Tribulation is about the time of Jacob’s trouble—not the church’s trouble. It is about Israel, and God's final attempt to get their attention.”
Max Lucado – What Happens Next Lucado approaches Revelation pastorally. He affirms a clear structure of tribulation followed by Christ's return: “God has a timeline. History is not haphazard. The same God who created the world will one day wrap it up.”
Conclusion
Daniel’s 70th week is often seen by dispensational premillennialists as the prophetic backbone of the book of Revelation. It is the lens (hermeneutic) through which they interpret the book. It marks a future 7-year period during which God completes His redemptive plan for Israel and executes judgment on the world. Teachers like Amir Tsarfati, Max Lucado, and Jan Markell above use this idea to help readers grasp the urgency and clarity of this prophetic timeline.
For believers, the hope of Christ’s return remains central—not fear, but faith and preparation. “God is not finished with Israel. The Church Age will end, and the clock will resume ticking for the final seven years.” – Amir Tsarfati