What does the chronology of the Bible reveal about the year 1914?
The Bible's answer
According to the chronology of the Bible, God's Kingdom was established in heaven in 1914. This is made clear by a prophecy in the Bible book of Daniel, chapter 4.
The prophecy at a glance. Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, received a dream from God that had prophetic significance. In this dream, a huge tree was cut down. The tree stump was then prevented from growing back for "seven times" (Daniel 4:1, 10-16).
The first fulfillment of prophecy. The great tree represented Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 4:20-22). The king was figuratively knocked down when he became temporarily insane and could not reign for seven years (Daniel 4:25). After that, God saw to it that he was restored to sanity. Nebuchadnezzar returned to his throne and acknowledged that God is the supreme ruler (Daniel 4:34-36).
Why the prophecy has a second, greater fulfillment. What was the deeper meaning behind the prophecy? All were to realize that God "is the ruler in the kingdom of mankind, and that he gives it to whom he will, and sets over it even the lowest of men" (Daniel 4:17). Was the proud Nebuchadnezzar the one to whom God would eventually give this rulership? No. God had made it clear to him earlier in a dream with prophetic significance that neither he nor any other political ruler would take that role. Instead, God himself would "establish a kingdom that will never be ruined" (Daniel 2:31-44).
Already in ancient times, God had set up a kingdom that represented his rule: the nation of Israel. However, the rulers became unfaithful to God. Therefore, God allowed this kingdom to be reduced to "ruins." However, He announced that He would one day give royal rule to "the one who has the legal right" (Ezekiel 21:25-27). As the Bible shows, it is Jesus Christ to whom this kingly power is rightfully due-for God's kingdom that will have no end (Luke 1:30-33). Unlike Nebuchadnezzar, Jesus is thoroughly humble (Matthew 11:29).
What does the tree in Daniel 4 represent? In the Bible, trees sometimes represent rulers or kingdoms (Ezekiel 17:22-24; 31:2-5). Therefore, the tree is a symbol of God's rule.
What does it mean that the tree was cut down? In the first fulfillment, it meant that Nebuchadnezzar temporarily did not rule as king. In the second, greater fulfillment, it meant that God's reign on earth would be temporarily interrupted. When was this? When Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the city of Jerusalem, where, after all, the kings of Israel sat as God's representatives on the "throne of Jehovah" (1 Chronicles 29:23).
What do the "seven times" mean? The "seven times" are the period of time when God allowed governments to rule on earth without any kingdom from God interfering in their affairs. They began in October 607 B.C.E. That was the year in which, according to biblical chronology, Jerusalem was destroyed by the Babylonians (2 Kings 25:1, 8-10 ).
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How long do the "seven times" last? They cannot correspond to a period of only seven years, as in the case of Nebuchadnezzar. Jesus provided the answer to the question, "Jerusalem [a symbol of God's rule] will be trodden down by the nations until the appointed times of the nations are fulfilled" (Luke 21:24). The "appointed times of the nations," that is, the period of time during which God allows His reign to be "trodden down by the nations," are identical to the "seven times" of Daniel 4. Accordingly, the "seven times" had not yet ended when Jesus lived on earth.
The duration of the "seven times" can be found out with the Bible. It says that three and a half "times" are equal to 1,260 days; "seven times" are then twice that: 2,520 days (Revelation 12:6, 14). According to the prophetic rule of "one day for one year," 2 520 days thus correspond to 2 520 years. The "seven times" (2 520 years), which began in October 607 B.C.E., thus ended in October 1914.
*(Exodus 14:34; Ezekiel 4:6).
Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
