Page 84 - Satan in the Sanctuary

86 Satan in the Sanctuary

seven years comes out to 483 years (360-day years). Since
the decree to rebuild Jerusalem came in 445 B.C., the
projection certainly puts us right in Jesus' generation.
But Daniel was more precise than that, at least accord-
ing to the classic The Coming Prince, written by Sir Robert
Anderson a century ago.
Anderson showed in his remarkable work that Daniel
was accurate to the exact day! While Anderson's proof does
rest on a number of reasonable assumptions, it is difficult
to refute. It has mostly been attacked on the grounds that
it is "too perfect." In any case, it is a fascinating exercise
to review and serves to demonstrate that we might do well
to take Daniel seriously.
Here are the results derived from Anderson's calcula-
2
tions:
1. Daniel prophesied that the Messiah would come 173,-
880 days after Artaxerxes' decree:
69 "weeks" = 483 years (69 x 7)
483 years x 360 days (Jewish year in prophecy) =
173,880 days.
2. The actual day of the decree was March 14, 445 B.C.
We know from Neh. 2:1-6 that the decree was issued
"in the month of Nisan, in the 20th year" of Artaxerxes'
reign (465-425 B.C.) We can assume that the decree
was dated on the first of Nisan because "The first of
Nisan is a new year for the computation of the reign of
kings and for festivals." (MISHNA, treatise "Rosh Ha-
shanah.") The first of Nisan, 445 B.C. fell on March 14
(Royal Observatory, Greenwich, Eng.)
3. The actual day of the coming of the Messiah was April
6, A.D. 32.
The "coming of the Messiah" was the day on which