It is an interesting question to consider how the dates assigned to the Seventy Weeks of Daniel (Dan. 9) agree with the date of the crucifixion. The prophecy is divided into 7 weeks, 62 weeks, and 1 week. It is generally agreed that these are weeks of years, and that the whole 70 weeks signify 490 years. The seven weeks doubtless refer to building the ‘street’ and the ‘wall’ of the city. Then, after 62 weeks more, Messiah should be cut off and have nothing (margin), that is, as Messiah. It will be seen that the date for the 'cutting off' is not stated definitely; it is after the 69 weeks, without saying how long.
To see how far the dates agree we must ascertain when the weeks began, and also what is the true date of the crucifixion.
The first thing to notice is that the going forth of the commandment is not to build the temple (which was in the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia, Ezra 1:1), but to build the city of Jerusalem. This command was given in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes. (Neh. 2:1) The common date given for this is B.C. 446; but Usher gave 455, and Hengstenberg and others contend that this is the true date, entirely irrespective of the Seventy Weeks of Daniel agreeing with the date of the crucifixion. Hengstenberg in his "Christology" shows how the mistake in the date originated. Vitringa rectified the date, and Kruger, by an independent inquiry, also proved the old date was wrong. Some hieroglyphic inscriptions in Egypt have shown that Artaxerxes was associated with his father in the twelfth year of Xerxes' reign, which is the information required to confirm the date given by Usher and others. We start then from B.C. 455.
7 weeks are - - —49 years
62 weeks are - - —434 “ 483 “Deduct B.C. - - —455 “ 28 “
Add 1 to adjust B.C. and A.D. 129 A.D.
We have then to ask, Did the crucifixion, the cutting off of the Messiah, take place in A.D. 29? As the prophecy says after 62 weeks, we might leave the inquiry here, because all agree that the crucifixion was not before this date. But this is the precise date given by many for the crucifixion; which is all the more worthy of notice because they have come to this conclusion apart from the consideration of the Seventy Weeks of Daniel.
Almost every intelligent Christian believes that our Lord lived on the earth 33 or 33 1/2 years, and yet the dates given in the margin of our Bibles are 4 years B.C. for the birth, and A.D. 33 for the crucifixion, making with one year added, 37 or 38 years. Therefore there must be a mistake somewhere. Early christian writers confidently appeal to a document called "The Acts of Pilate," which, though now considered spurious, points to the date A.D. 29 for the crucifixion. With common consent the Latin Fathers relate that the crucifixion was in the year when the two Gemini were consuls. This is also A.D. 29.
Clement and Origen give the destruction of Jerusalem as forty-two years after the crucifixion. The destruction of the city was in A.D. 70, and this also goes to prove that the crucifixion could not have been later than A.D. 29.
From all this evidence it may safely be concluded that the crucifixion took place in the year A.D. 29.
It will be seen that in the above the last week of Daniel's seventy weeks is not concluded. The prophecy says the Roman prince will make a covenant with the many for one week (the last week), and in the midst of the week he will cause the sacrifice and oblation to cease, and that desolation will close the scene. The time of the church on earth is in no way included in the above or any other recorded dates. It exists as a parenthesis between the end of the 69th week and the commencing of the last week, when the Jews will again come into prominence. We may add that the length of the last half week is mentioned in eight places in scripture, as follows:
Dan. 7:25, "time, times, and dividing of times:" that ‘times’ signify ‘years’ cf. margin of Dan. 11:13.
Dan. 12:7; Rev. 12:14, "time, times, and half a time."
Dan. 12:11, 1290 days (that is, with an additional 30 days for further deliverance).
Rev. 11:2; 13:5, 42 months.
Rev. 11:3; 12:6, 1260 days.
Thus the half-week is stated in years, 3½; in months, 42; and in days, 1260, clearly showing that we are to understand the ‘weeks’ as weeks of years. In scripture there are a week of days (Ex. 20:11); a week of weeks of days (the Passover to Pentecost, Lev. 23:15); weeks of years (Lev. 25:2-4); and weeks of weeks of years. (Lev. 25:8.)