2520 Fact Sheet

“If a brother differs with you on some points of truth, do not stoop to ridicule, do not place him in a false light or misconstrue his words, making sport of them; do not misinterpret his words and wrest them of their true meaning. This is not conscientious argument. Do not present him before others as a heretic, when you have not with him investigated his positions, taking the Scriptures text-by-text in the spirit of Christ to show him what is truth. You do not yourself really know the evidence he has for his faith, and you cannot clearly define your own position. Take your Bible, and in a kindly spirit weigh every argument that he presents, and show him by the Scriptures if he is in error. When you do this without unkind feelings, you will do only that which is your duty and the duty of every minister of Jesus Christ.” 12 Manuscript Releases, 376. 1.

Why was the Babylonian captivity 70 years?

“And I will scatter you among the heathen, and will draw out a sword after you: and your land shall be desolate, and your cities waste. Then shall the land enjoy her sabbaths, as long as it lieth desolate, and ye be in your enemies' land; even then shall the land rest, and enjoy her sabbaths. As long as it lieth desolate it shall rest; because it did not rest in your sabbaths, when ye dwelt upon it.” (Leviticus 26:33-35) “To fulfil the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her sabbaths: for as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath, to fulfil threescore and ten years.” (2Chronicles 36:21) The Babylonian captivity is seventy years, because the period of transgression of the Sabbath rest of the land was neglected for 490 years. The 70 years and the 490 years are based upon the sabbatical and Jubilee cycles.

2.

According to Sister White, how was Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28 fulfilled?

“God specified also the sure result of a disregard for His commands. “If ye will not hearken unto me,” He said, “and will not do all these commandments, ... I also will do this unto you: I will even appoint over you terror, consumption, and burning ague, that shall consume the eyes, and cause sorrow of heart: and ye shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it. And I will set my face against you; for ye shall be slain by your enemies. They that hate you shall reign over you, and ye shall flee when none pursueth you. And if ye will not yet for all this hearken unto me, then I will punish you seven times more for your sins, and I will break the pride of your power; and I will make your heaven as iron, and your earth as brass, and your strength shall be spent in vain; for your land shall not yield her increase, neither shall the trees of the land yield their fruits.”” {Ms40-1898 (March 13, 1898) par. 6} “The prophecies regarding Israel were fulfilled to the letter. God permitted His chosen people to

be scattered as captives in strange lands. When they repented, God took them to Himself again, and established them in His own land. But their continual disobedience resulted in their complete overthrow, and in the overthrow of Jerusalem.” {Ms40-1898 (March 13, 1898) par. 9} 3.

What are the four events in Leviticus 26 and how did literal Judah fulfill them? They are: 1) The breaking of the pride of power; which was fulfilled by the captivity of Manasseh in 677 BC. 2) The wild beast robbing them of their children; which was fulfilled by Daniel’s captivity in 607 BC. 3) The siege and captivity; which was fulfilled by the captivity of Jehoiachin in 597 BC. 4) The repetition of these events; which was fulfilled with the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 and the captivity of Zedekiah.

4.

Does the fulfilment of Leviticus 26 show an increase in intensity in a progressive manner?

“Within a few short years the king of Babylon was to be used as the instrument of God’s wrath upon impenitent Judah. Again and again Jerusalem was to be invested [surrounded] and entered by the besieging armies of Nebuchadnezzar. Company after company-at first a few only, but later on thousands and tens of thousands-were to be taken captive to the land of Shinar, there to dwell in enforced exile. Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, Zedekiah-all these Jewish kings were in turn to become vassals of the Babylonian ruler, and all in turn were to rebel. Severer and yet more severe chastisements were to be inflicted upon the rebellious nation, until at last the entire land was to become a desolation, Jerusalem was to be laid waste and burned with fire, the temple that Solomon had built was to be destroyed, and the kingdom of Judah was to fall, never again to occupy its former position among the nations of earth.” Prophets and Kings, pp. 422, 423. We agree that Leviticus 26 is fulfilled progressively and with “Severer and yet more severe chastisements” this does not negate the fact that four periods of “seven times” are the result of those chastisements.

5.

How many decrees are needed to end the captivity and what time prophecies do they also start?

“In the seventh chapter of Ezra the decree is found. [Ezra 7:12-26.] In its completest form it was issued by Artaxerxes, king of Persia, B. C. 457. But in Ezra 6:14 the house of the Lord at Jerusalem is said to have been built “according to the commandment [margin, decree] of Cyrus, and Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia.” These three kings, in originating, re-affirming, and completing the decree, brought it to the perfection required by the prophecy to mark the beginning of the 2300 years. Taking B. C. 457, the time when the decree was completed, as the date of the commandment, every specification of the prophecy concerning the seventy weeks was seen to have been fulfilled.” The Great Controversy, 326. This language is very similar to that which Ellen White applies to the three angels’ messages. “The first and second messages were given in 1843 and 1844, and we are now under the proclamation of the third; but all three of the messages are still to be proclaimed. It is just as essential now as ever before that they shall be repeated to those who are seeking for the truth. By pen and voice we are to sound the proclamation, showing their order, and the application of the prophecies that bring us to the third angel's message. There cannot be a third without the first and second. These messages we are to give to the world in publications, in discourses, showing in the line of prophetic history the things that have been and the things that will be.” {2SM 104.3} The point is that the three decrees hold a similar relationship to the commencement of the 2300 days as the three angels’ messages do to the termination of that period. We have come to understand that the reform line of the three decrees is parallel to the reform line of the Millerites. We will not take the time to discuss this in detail but will only draw your attention to the diagram below.

This allows us to see clearly that we can connect the 220 year period of the captivity of Judah, as fulfilled in the four “seven times” and the reform line of Cyrus, to the 2300 days.

Of course, the 220 years exists without understanding these periods completely. We can still see the three decrees connecting the four “seven times” to the 2300 days, even if they are not all periods of 70 or 140 years. There could be different ways we understand the commencement and termination of the periods. 6.

What is the basis for the 70 week prophecy in Leviticus 26?

“In the first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem…. Yea, all Israel have transgressed thy law, even by departing, that they might not obey thy voice; therefore the curse is poured upon us, and the oath [seven times] that is written in the law of Moses the servant of God, because we have sinned against him.” (Daniel 9:2, 11) 7.

Are there other periods of 490 years that are based upon the sabbatical cycle?

Yes. As we noted earlier, there were the 490 years of transgression of the sabbatical cycle that resulted in the 70-year Babylonian captivity. There is also a period of 490 years from the dedication of the first temple to the dedication of the second temple. Both 490-year periods are divided into periods of 420 and 70 years.

8.

How was Leviticus 26 fulfilled by northern Israel?

“For the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin; and within threescore and five years shall Ephraim be broken, that it be not a people. And the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is Remaliah's son. If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established.” (Isaiah 7:89) This prophecy, given in 742 BC, is primarily for Judah. That is, God is telling Ahaz, the king of Judah, that Israel will be broken, as a warning to Judah. Isaiah further responds to Ahaz lack of faith. “Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good. For before the child shall know to refuse the evil, and choose the good, the land that thou abhorrest shall be forsaken of both her kings. The LORD shall bring upon thee, and upon thy people, and upon thy father's house, days that have not come, from the day that Ephraim departed from Judah; even the king of Assyria.” (Isaiah 7:14-17) 9.

What then is the connexion between Judah’s captivity and Israel’s?

“Because Manasseh king of Judah hath done these abominations, and hath done wickedly above all that the Amorites did, which were before him, and hath made Judah also to sin with his idols: Therefore thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Behold, I am bringing such evil upon Jerusalem and Judah, that whosoever heareth of it, both his ears shall tingle. And I will stretch over Jerusalem the line of Samaria, and the plummet of the house of Ahab: and I will wipe Jerusalem as a man wipeth a dish, wiping it, and turning it upside down.” (2 Kings 21:11-13) 10. Is there anywhere else we can see how the seven times are fulfilled by northern Israel? “And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever that it shall be for a time, times, and an half; and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished.” (Daniel 12:7) “And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.” (Daniel 7:25)

11. How do we then see both periods of 2520 years (220 plus the 2300 and the 1260 times 2)? Both periods are connected by the prophecy of Isaiah 7:8. The beginning and ending of these periods creates a prophetic mirror.

12.

How was this prophecy hidden on the 1863 chart?

“Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy…. And he shall confirm the covenant [12, the number of the covenant]with many for one week [7 years]: and in the midst of the week [31 AD] he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.” (Daniel 9:24, 27) This was on the 1863 chart. It is the final week of Christ divided into two periods of 3 ½ years, 42 months or 1260 days. It makes one period of 7 years, 84 months or 2520 days.

We see this represented on the 1843 chart - 7 x 12 = 84 x 30 = 2520. This calculation cannot be found anywhere in the pioneers writings. Why was it chosen? We believe it was in the LORD’s providence. Daniel 9:27 says, “And he shall confirm the covenant [12] with many for one week [7]: and in the midst of the week [31 AD] he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease”. This means that we could do this calculation - 7 x 12 = 84 x 31 = 2604 years. We could also multiply the number of months 84 x 31 to get 2604. The point is, there are 2604 years from 742 BC to 1963. That means that the whole period from the time the prophecy was given, to when it was rejected, is represented on the 1863 chart.