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St. Tertullian of Carthage
c. 155 - 220 AD
taken from An Answer to the Jews
Chapter 8. Of the Times of Christ's Birth and Passion, and of Jerusalem's Destruction.
Accordingly the times must be inquired into of the predicted and future nativity of the Christ, and of His passion, and of the extermination of the city of Jerusalem, that is, its devastation. For Daniel says, that both the holy city and the holy place are exterminated together with the coming Leader, and that the pinnacle is destroyed unto ruin. And so the times of the coming Christ, the Leader, Isaiah 55:4 must be inquired into, which we shall trace in Daniel; and, after computing them, shall prove Him to be come, even on the ground of the times prescribed, and of competent signs and operations of His. Which matters we prove, again, on the ground of the consequences which were ever announced as to follow His advent; in order that we may believe all to have been as well fulfilled as foreseen.
In such wise, therefore, did Daniel predict concerning Him, as to show both when and in what time He was to set the nations free; and how, after the passion of the Christ, that city had to be exterminated. For he says thus: In the first year under Darius, son of Ahasuerus, of the seed of the Medes, who reigned over the kingdom of the Chaldees, I Daniel understood in the books the number of the years ... And while I was yet speaking in my prayer, behold, the man Gabriel, whom I saw in the vision in the beginning, flying; and he touched me, as it were, at the hour of the evening sacrifice, and made me understand, and spoke with me, and said, Daniel I am now come out to imbue you with understanding; in the beginning of your supplication went out a word. And I have come to announce to you, because you are a man of desires; and ponder on the word, and understand in the vision. Seventy [a]hebdomads (weeks) have been abridged upon your commonalty, and upon the holy city, until delinquency be made inveterate, and sins sealed, and righteousness obtained by entreaty, and righteousness eternal introduced; and in order that vision and prophet may be sealed, and an holy one of holy ones anointed. And you shall know, and thoroughly see, and understand, from the going forth of a word for restoring and rebuilding Jerusalem unto the Christ, the Leader, weeks (seven and an half, and) sixty-two and an half : and it shall convert, and shall be built into height and entrenchment, and the times shall be renewed: and after these sixty-two weeks shall the anointing be exterminated, and shall not be; and the city and the holy place shall he exterminate together with the Leader, who is making His advent; and they shall be cut short as in a deluge, until (the) end of a war, which shall be cut short unto ruin. And he shall confirm a testament in many. In one week and the half of the week shall be taken away my sacrifice and libation, and in the holy place the execration of devastation, (and ) until the end of (the) time, consummation shall be given with regard to this devastation."
Observe we, therefore, the limit — how, in truth, he predicts that there are to be seventy weeks, within which if they receive Him, it shall be built into height and entrenchment, and the times shall be renewed. But God, foreseeing what was to be — that they will not merely not receive Him, but will both persecute and deliver Him to death — both recapitulated, and said, that in sixty and two (62 weeks) and an half (3 1/2 years) of a week He is born, and an holy one of holy ones is anointed; but that when seven weeks and an half were fulfilling, He had to suffer, and the holy city had to be exterminated after one and an half weeks — whereby namely, the seven and an half weeks have been completed. For he says thus: And the city and the holy place to be exterminated together with the leader who is to come; and they shall be cut short as in a deluge; and he shall destroy the pinnacle unto ruin. Whence, therefore, do we show that the Christ came within the sixty-two and an half weeks? We shall count, moreover, from the first year of Darius, as at this particular time is shown to Daniel this particular vision; for he says, And understand and conjecture that at the completion of your word I make you these answers. Whence we are bound to compute from the first year of Darius, when Daniel saw this vision.
Let us see, therefore, how the years are filled up until the advent of the Christ: —
"For Darius reigned... 19 years.Artaxerxes reigned... 41 years.Then King Ochus (who is also called Cyrus) reigned... 24 years.Argus...one year.Another Darius, who is also named Melas... 21 years.Alexander the Macedonian... 12 years." [b]
Then, after Alexander, who had reigned over both Medes and Persians, whom he had reconquered, and had established his kingdom firmly in Alexandria, when withal he called that (city) by his own name; after him reigned, (there, in Alexandria,)
"Soter... 35 years.To whom succeeds Philadelphus, reigning... 38 years.To him succeeds Euergetes... 25 years.Then Philopator... 17 years.After him Epiphanes... 24 years.Then another Euergetes... 29 years.Then another Soter,.. 38 years.Ptolemy... 37 years.Cleopatra,... 20 years and 5 months.Yet again Cleopatra reigned jointly with Augustus... 13 years. After Cleopatra, Augustus reigned another... 43 years.For all the years of the empire of Augustus were... 56 years."
Let us see, moreover, how in the forty-first year of the empire of Augustus, when he has been reigning for [c]28 years after the death of Cleopatra, the Christ is [d]born. (And the same Augustus survived, after Christ is born, [e]15 years; and the remaining times of years to the day of the birth of Christ will bring us to the forty-first year, which is the 28th of Augustus after the death of Cleopatra.) There are, (then,) made up 437 years, 5 months: (whence are filled up [f]62 weeks and an half: which make up [g]437 years, 6 months:) on the day of the birth of Christ. And (then) righteousness eternal was manifested, and an Holy One of holy ones was anointed — that is, Christ — and sealed was vision and prophet, and sins were remitted, which, through faith in the name of Christ, are washed away for all who believe in Him. But what does he mean by saying that vision and prophecy are sealed? That all prophets ever announced of Him that He was to come and had to suffer. Therefore, since the prophecy was fulfilled through His advent, for that reason he said that vision and prophecy were sealed; inasmuch as He is the signet of all prophets, fulfilling all things which in days bygone they had announced of Him. For after the advent of Christ and His passion there is no longer vision or prophet to announce Him as to come. In short, if this is not so, let the Jews exhibit, subsequently to Christ, any volumes of prophets, visible miracles wrought by any angels, (such as those) which in bygone days the patriarchs saw until the advent of Christ, who is now come; since which event sealed is vision and prophecy, that is, confirmed. And justly does the evangelist write, The law and the prophets (were) until John the Baptist. For, on Christ's being baptized, that is, on His sanctifying the waters in His own baptism, all the plenitude of bygone spiritual grace-gifts ceased in Christ, sealing as He did all vision and prophecies, which by His advent He fulfilled. Whence most firmly does he assert that His advent seals visions and prophecy."
Accordingly, showing, (as we have done,) both the number of the years, and the time of the sixty-two and an half fulfilled weeks, on completion of which, (we have shown) that Christ has come, that is, has been born, let us see what (mean) other seven and an [c]half weeks, which have been subdivided in the abscision of the former weeks; (let us see, namely,) in what event they have been fulfilled:—
[h]"For, after Augustus who survived after the birth of Christ, are made up...15 years.To whom succeeded Tiberius Cæsar, and held the empire... 20 years, 7 months, 28 days.(In the fiftieth year of his empire Christ suffered, being about 30 years of age when he suffered.)Again Caius Cæsar, also called Caligula,... 3 years, 8 months, 13 days.Nero Cæsar,... 11 years, 9 months, 13 days.Galba... 7 months, 6 days.Otho... 3 days.Vitellius,... 8 mos., 27 days."
Vespasian, in the first year of his empire, subdues the Jews in war; and there are made 52 years, 6 months. For he reigned 21 years. And thus, in the day of their storming, the Jews fulfilled the 70 weeks predicted in Daniel.
Therefore, when these times also were completed, and the Jews subdued, there afterwards ceased in that place libations and sacrifices, which thenceforward have not been able to be in that place celebrated; for the unction, too, was exterminated in that place after the passion of Christ. For it had been predicted that the unction should be exterminated in that place; as in the Psalms it is prophesied, They exterminated my hands and feet. And the suffering of this extermination was perfected within the times of the 70 weeks, under Tiberius Cæsar, in the consulate of Rubellius Geminus and Fufius Geminus, in the month of March, at the times of the passover, on the eighth day before the calends of April, on the first day of unleavened bread, on which they slew the lamb at even, just as had been enjoined by Moses. Accordingly, all the synagogue of Israel did slay Him, saying to Pilate, when he was desirous to dismiss Him, His blood be upon us, and upon our children; and, If you dismiss him, you are not a friend of Cæsar; John 19:12 in order that all things might be fulfilled which had been written of Him.
"He shall have dominion, says the Psalmist, from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth. To Christ alone was this given".
Footnotes:
[a]. Hebdomads, ( a hebdomad, meaning "group of seven") and hebdomads is a multiple group of seven. In Hebrew "sabu'im" and in Greek, "heptad"... means a group of seven. Translated in English as "week" or if plural then "weeks" or sometimes as "sevens"... refers to weeks of years and not weeks of days. Such as, one week equals seven years. Daniel's prophecy involves "the number of the years" and in no way refers to days. The Hebrew word for "week" means "a group of seven years" but in the western modern world, "week" is only used commonly for days of a week which is seven in number. The Jews however, used both a "week of days" where the seventh day was a sabbatical day... and also, a "week of years", where the seventh year was a sabbatical year. This "group of seven" years was repeated seven times to accumulate 49 years and then adding one year for the 50th year called the "year of jubilee". The 50 year cycle would then repeat over again.
[b]. From the 1st year reign of Darius to Alexander the Macedonian equals 118 years.
[c]. From Soter to the 28th year reign of Augustus equals 304 years and 5 months.
[d]. Christ is born after this many years from the first year of Darius to Alexander the Macedonian which is 118 years, plus, from Soter to the 28th year reign of Augustus which is 304 and 5 months ... which totals to 422 and 5 months.
[e]. Adding 15 years that Augustus reigned after the birth of Christ equals 437 years and 5 months.
[f]. Tertullian explains that the 437 years and 5 months equivocates to the 62 weeks (434 years) and an half (3.5 years) which actually equals 437 years and 6 months. Remember, the "an half" is a half week, which equals 3.5 years, since one week is 7 years, the half week is 3.5 years.
[g]. It should be noticed that Tertullian adds a half week to the 62 weeks, taking it from the one week of Daniel 9:27. Also, since Christ is born 15 years before the remaining years reign of Augustus, these appear to be allowable extra years according to Augustus' reign. So Tertullian sees the 62 weeks and an half as being filled up or fulfilled within that time frame. Following this interpretation, the number of years are a bit relative or approximating, and not exact to the day of Christ's birth.
[h]. Tertullian now sums up the seven weeks and an half which correspond to 49 years and an half, or 52 years and 6 months.
[i]. From Augustus (the final 15 years of his reign after Christ's birth) to the first year of Vespasian are 49 years, 39 months, and 90 days which equals 52 years and 6 months. This would be 7 weeks (49 years) and an half week (3.5 years) which equals 52 years and 6 months.
For a more accurate and correct understanding of the seventy weeks of Daniel, read St. Irenæus, "Against Heresies" (book 5), and St. Hippolytus of Rome: "On Daniel", "Treatise On Christ and Antichrist" and "On the End of the World."
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