We have been considering the prophecy of Daniel 9 24-27 and how it predicted the year of Jesus baptism. However, the prophecy doesn’t end there. It goes on to say in Daniel 9:26 that after this the Messiah would be ‘cut off but not for Himself.’ Jesus was indeed ‘cut off’ from the land of the living, for sinners like you and I. Finally, verse 27 tells us that He, Jesus, would confirm a covenant with many for one week, and that in the midst of that week he would bring an end to sacrifices. Did this happen? Jesus Himself told His disciples that he was making a covenant with them during the Last Supper, when he said, “For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins,” (Matthew 26:28).

Furthermore, three and a half years after His baptism, (or in the midst of the week), Jesus was crucified as the Lamb of God, bringing an end to the sacrificial system that had for centuries pointed to Him as the ultimate sacrifice for sin. The tearing of the curtain in the temple at the time of His crucifixion symbolised the end of that system of sacrifices, Mark 15:38.

After His resurrection and ascension to heaven His disciples continued taking the gospel to the Jews for another 3 ½ years, after which Stephen was stoned and ultimately Saul or Paul as he would later be known, would take the gospel to the gentiles. (See Hebrews 2:3).
This prophecy in Daniel chapter 9 is truly one of the most remarkable in scripture. It so accurately identifies Jesus as the Messiah that many sceptics have become believers after studying it. It pinpointed the year of Jesus crucifixion with uncanny accuracy. In the middle of that last prophetic week – 7 years, Jesus was crucified. This was AD 31 as if the whole thing were running to a prophetic script. We can have absolute confidence in the fact that Jesus Christ is who He claimed to be, and that He is able to do what He promised to do, which is to forgive us our sins and to give us everlasting life.

It Gets even more amazing.