Special Report:

Sir Isaac Newton's 300-Year-Old
Interpretation of Daniel for this Decade

Jim Bramlett (USAF ret.) (bramlett@magicnet.net)

If Sir Isaac Newton was correct in his interpretation of Daniel, the prophet to whom God gave specific timing, then 1996 or 1997 will be the year of the return of Jesus Christ! We will soon know. It is surely not unscriptural for God to have revealed the year.

Newton, who lived 300 years ago (1642-1727), was one of the greatest geniuses in all history -- perhaps the greatest. He is called the father of modern science and the industrial revolution. He discovered many scientific laws. God chose Isaac Newton to impart many of His deepest secrets.

Newton was also a devout believer in Christ and a Bible scholar, fluent in ancient languages, and who translated directly from the Hebrew. He was unusually drawn to the prophet Daniel, which he began studying at age 12 and continued until he died at age 85. In fact, The Columbia History of the World, a secular history book, remarks, "At the end of his days he spent more time studying and writing about the prophecies in the Book of Daniel than he did in charting the heavens." Did God Himself put in Newton's heart this burning desire to study Daniel, then give him the key to the timing of Christ's return? Could this be the final profound secret the Lord revealed to this godly genius near the end of his life -- a secret "accidentally" discovered in the Library of Congress and republished just in this very decade -- a secret so simple that most have missed it? Newton's understanding of one key passage in Daniel chapter 9 is fundamentally different from that of most common interpretations. In about 550 B.C., God gave the prophet Daniel a view of history to the end. From Daniel 9:25, scholars usually add the "seven weeks (of years, or 49 years) and 62 weeks (434 years)" to get 483 years and calculate the time of Messiah's First Coming. However, Newton says there is no linguistic basis for adding those two numbers (49 and 434), and to do so is "doing violence to the language of Daniel." Newton says the two numbers separately speak of both the First and Second Coming, both being counted from the "going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem." Some commentators agree.

Newton says the 434-year part was fulfilled at the First Coming (as can be explained), and the 49-year part will apply to the Second Coming. And three centuries ago he saw and wrote about the rebirth of Israel at a time when such a thought was preposterous. By faith, he foresaw a "friendly kingdom" someday again issuing the "commandment to restore and build Jerusalem." Now, centuries later, that "friendly kingdom" may have been the United Nations, which decreed Israel's rebirth in November, 1947, causing Israel to be reborn in May, 1948.

Therefore, if alive today, here is what Newton would tell us: Count 49 years from that 1947 "commandment," which takes us to 1996 as the time when "the Messiah the Prince" shall come. Or, Newton might agree with the argument that Israel's Proclamation of Independence on May 14, 1948 was the decree to rebuild Jerusalem as prophesied by Daniel. If so, the 49-year count would start in 1948 and end in 1997. (I have discovered that a few prophecy students have arrived at this same interpretation of Daniel 9:25 before they discovered it was also Newton's idea.)

It should be noted that there is a slight overlap in modern and Hebrew years. The Jewish new year for the modern-year 1997 (the Hebrew year 5757) begins September 14, 1996. Interestingly, the year 1996 happens to be Jerusalem's 3,000th birthday and, according to some, Christ's 2,000th birthday. Big celebrations or plans are already underway for both. Also, according to some, 1996 will mark the end of 6,000 years of biblical history and 1996 or 1997 as the beginning of the seventh (Sabbath?) millennium. (The world is looking to A.D. 2000 as the end of the millennium, but due to calendar discrepancies, God's timing may be different, and a surprise to most.) If valid, is all this convergence on 1996/1997 merely a coincidence, or the work of the Master Designer?

Possible Confirmations?

"This generation." Jesus said "this generation," the one that sees the fig tree (Israel) begin to sprout, will not pass away "til all be fulfilled" (Luke 21:32). It seems clear that the fig tree began to sprout at Israel's rebirth in 1948. The number of years of a biblical "generation" is controversial, but by all measures, we are close.

"Just as it was in the days of Noah" is how Jesus described His return (Luke 17:26, NIV). If "just as it was," could this possibly also mean that there will be a God-given 120- year warning as many interpret was given in Noah's day (Genesis 6:3)? Ancient Noah was recently brought to my attention with this verified story of another Noah. Noah Troyer was an Amish minister, born in 1831. Troyer became ill, causing him to have repeated periods of unconsciousness, during which time he would stand and prophesy. He spoke almost the same basic message over and over again, someone counted 19 times. His wife called friends and family members to witness what he was saying. There was even secular newspaper coverage of the phenomenon. Basically, the message was that just as with Noah before the flood, God was warning him, also Noah, that He was giving America 120 years to repent before it will be destroyed. These words were spoken by Noah Troyer in 1878. And 1878 + 120 years = 1998. If the Tribulation begins in 1996 or 1997, the 1998 timing would be compatible with the destruction to take place during the Tribulation. But if one converts from modern to biblical (360-day) years as some argue (although I am not sure that such conversion is proper), then 1878 + 120 (biblical years) = 1996.

Oddly, I was given this story about Noah Troyer on the very same day I received in the mail a Christian newsletter totally devoted to Noah and a 120-year warning. Coincidence or confirmation?

More on 1878. After I heard the above story about Noah Troyer, I asked myself, "Could we really now be in such a 120-year countdown? If so, when did the countdown really begin?" Then I remembered that Israel is "God's time clock." Israel is the key to prophecy. I wondered, "Could there have been some significant historical event about Israel in 1878 that might confirm such a countdown beginning in that specific year?" Then I remembered a certain book on my shelf that lists all significant historical/biblical events, by exact year, since recorded history began. I grabbed the book and anxiously flipped to 1878, curious if there would be any entry at all. To my shock, it read: "1878 -- Establishment of Petah Tikvah in Judea and Rosh Pinnah in Galilee. These were the first Jewish villages in Palestine in our times." This was the planting of modern Israel, God's time clock -- in 1878! Coincidence or confirmation?

Still more on 1878. Later, I was studying about the "times of the Gentiles" as spoken of by Jesus (Luke 21:24). I discovered that some Bible scholars believe the "times of the Gentiles" actually began in 606 B.C. when Babylon captured Jerusalem, and would extend for 2,520 years, based on God's promise to punish Israel seven times (Leviticus 26: 18,21,24,28), with "times" meaning 360 years (7 X 360 = 2,520), and/or based on Nebuchadnezzar's madness for 2,520 days. If true, 606 B.C. + 2,520 biblical years (if such a conversion is valid) = yes, exactly 1878! I later discovered that respected scholar and author Grant R. Jeffrey had written that 1878 did, indeed, signal the beginning of the end of the Gentile Age and the beginning of a 120-year countdown. If the year conversion is not proper, there is another interesting possibility. Adding 2,520 years to 606 B.C. = 1914, the beginning of World War I. Scholars say the "nation against nation" phrase Jesus spoke of as a sign of the end of the age is an idiom for world war, the first of which began in 1914, possibly signaling the beginning of the end. Is all this coincidence or confirmation?

Possible confirmation from others

1. Pastor/author Marvin Byers believes the Lord has shown him in the Scriptures that 1989 initiated a seven-year countdown to 1996 and Christ's return "in" His Body.

2. In 1986 evangelist Richard Madison was in a head-on auto crash, brain dead and in a coma 27 days. In a confirmed out-of-body experience he called on Jesus, who appeared to him and healed him. Madison also reports a vision and believes God showed him that 1989 would begin seven years of harvest, ending in 1996, then seven years of famine. (Note: It may be no accident that 1989 saw the historic Lausanne Congress for Evangelism in Manila with 5,000-6,000 representatives from 183 nations praying for God to supernaturally open doors to help fulfill the Great Commission. In the very same year, that prayer was dramatically answered by the sudden, surprise collapse of the Berlin Wall, Soviet communism and the beginning of an evangelistic explosion in all countries behind the former Iron Curtain!)

3. After the Manila Congress in 1989, Pastor/teacher Jack Hayford reported a vision of Jesus, who was beginning to rise from His throne, saying, "I am beginning to rise now in preparation for My Second Coming. And as I do, those who rise with Messiah share in a new anointing that shall be pouring forth from Me upon them."

4. In August, 1988, evangelist Jessie Duplantis says he was caught up in the spirit in heaven where the Lord spoke to him these powerful words: "I brought you here to tell you: Go tell them I'm coming, I'm coming!"

5. In August 1992, David Gant was lost and trapped in an underwater river cave while scuba diving late at night for catfish. He found an 18" high air pocket and clung to a stalactite for 14 hours, thinking he would be rescued. Without hope, he finally decided he was going to die and prayed that the Lord would save his soul. Instantly, the presence of the Lord came, cleansed and saved him. Ecstatic with joy and peace, David asked the Lord to take him and not leave him in this world. Instead the Lord spoke to him and said, "I want you to go back and get your family ready to meet Me. And go tell the whole world I am coming for my children before the year 2000."

6. Twice during 1993, an angel appeared to chemist Vincent Tan and said the Lord "is coming very, very soon," then suddenly vanished into thin air (for free detailed account of David's and Vincent's experiences, that I personally verified, see below).

7. Respected inner-city pastor David Wilkerson reports recurring visions of New York City burning and believes rioting in all major cities could begin as early as 1996.

8. On November 20, 1994, Larry Taylor reports being awakened at 1 a.m. with a panoramic vision of Revelation unfolding right before his eyes. He says the Lord spoke to him and said, "The tribulation is at the door."

Notes


1. Readers are permitted and encouraged to copy and share this report.

2. (a) Some argue strongly from Scripture that Jesus' words about no one knowing the "day or the hour"of His return was to His disciples only and not to end-time believers who would be alive when Daniel's vision would be unsealed. (b) Visions and other personal revelations are scriptural (e.g., Acts 2:16-18); nevertheless, any mystical experience needs to be prayerfully and cautiously judged. (c) Dating must also be carefully judged. Ancient dating is not always precise and scholars typically disagree. There are several factors in calculations that could cause variations. For these and other biblical reasons for which space does not allow mention here, I believe 1996-1998 to be a window of very strong possibility for Christ's return, with the possibility growing stronger with each year.

3. Information on Sir Isaac Newton came from Newton's Prophecies of Daniel, republished in 1991 by the Oregon Institute of Science and Medicine, 2251 Dick George Road, Cave Junction, Oregon 97523.

4. For a free copy of (1) Christ's Soon Return: the Overwhelming Evidence, or (2) the detailed, verified report on angel announcements (also with David Gant's story), or (3) God's Judgment on America, send name and address to

Jim Bramlett (USAF ret.) (bramlett@magicnet.net)
10637 Crystal Springs Court
Orlando, Florida 32825.


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Editorial Comments from Lambert Dolphin

Sir Isaac Newton was a devout, but no means a middle-of-the road conservative Christian, as we would use the term today. Many of Newton's religious writings are mystical, or to say the least, controversial.

Scientists in secular universities conveniently today overlook the fact that many of the great pioneers of science were Christians. (See for example The Long War Against God, by Henry M. Morris, Baker Books, Grand Rapid, 1989. Dr. Morris is retired President of the Institute of Creation Research).