The 2300 Day Prophecy of Daniel 8

Gabriel tells Daniel that after 2300 days the sanctuary will be cleansed (Daniel 8:14).

A Day of Atonement

In the typical sanctuary service the sanctuary was cleansed on the Day of Atonement. On this day the sins of Israel that had accumulated in the sanctuary all year long were removed. The antitypical heavenly judgment that the Hebrew Day of Atonement typified is God’s final plea to a perishing world to turn from darkness and lies to light and truth.

This judgment is not about God investigating us, but about Him bringing us to an investigation of the truth about Him. It is not God’s judgment upon us, but our judgment of Him. Instead of the investigative judgment being an arbitrary action of God, it is about God imparting discernment—which is another word for judgment—to us so we can be cleansed from the lies we have believed about God. It is these lies that have caused us to sin, to distrust God. When these lies are cleansed with truth, then trust can return. This is the process that reunites men with God.

A Bit of Explanation

A 70 week prophecy (Daniel 9:22-24) is linked together with the 2300 day prophecy. It is an explanation and expansion of the 2300 day prophecy. In it, 70 weeks would pass before the messianic prophecies in Daniel 9:24 would take place. Also, this amount of time was given to the Jews to determine whether they would turn from their rebellious ways and accept their mission to announce the Messiah to the world.

To understand these prophecies we must understand that a day equals a year in Bible prophecy. “I have appointed thee each day for a year” (Ezekiel 4:6). “After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even 40 days, each day for a year…” (Number 14:34).

Reckoning the 2300 Day Prophecy

This entire prophetic period begins from the “going forth of the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem.” Jerusalem was destroyed in 587/586 BC. The Medes and Persians overthrew Babylon in 539 BC, and the Persian king, Artaxerxes, passed a decree in 457 BC that allowed the Jews to return to their homeland to rebuild Jerusalem (Ezra 7:12-13). Adding 2300 years to 457 brings us to 1844 AD.

Man’s Final Chance To Judge God Accurately

This means that we are living in the great antitypical Day of Atonement, the final when the light of the Spirit shines to bring men to the truth of about God before the end of the world. Consequently, there will be an Elijah people to cooperate with the Spirit and the three angels in announcing it. Like Israel of old, we should come close to God that we may see the truth about His love and cooperate with Jesus in this solemn last work of God. Like Elijah of old, we must tell the world that they cannot eternally halt between two opinions. They must make a judgment and either accept Satan’s lies or believe that God is telling the truth.

The Last Light

Men are now living in a world bright with the rays of the truth about God’s character. This light will become brighter as we come closer to the end. Now is the time to respond to the amazing truth about our gentle God, to judge God rightly, and let His love change us.


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