Is the Jubilee cycle 49 years or 50 years?

The Jubilee cycle is 49 years. Here are some of the reasons why:

1. The seventh-day Sabbath occurs on the seventh day of every week. It is not possible for some weeks to be eight days long. There are no weeks that have extra days added to them. Each week is exactly seven days long.

The seventh year sabbath occurs every seventh year. It is not possible for some sabbatical cycles to be eight years long. There are no sabbatical cycles that have extra years added to them. Each sabbatical cycle is exactly seven years long. So the 50th year Jubilee comes after the 7th year of a sabbatical cycle and is the 1st year of the next seven-year sabbatical cycle.

2. “Seventy 'sevens' are decreed for your people”. Daniel 9:24. Each of the 70 seven-year periods of time was exactly seven years long. If Jubilee cycles were 50 years long, then every seventh sabbatical cycle would be eight years long instead of seven.

If Jubilee cycles were 50 years long Daniel 9:24 would have said: “Sixty ‘sevens’ and ten ‘eights’ are decreed for your people.” This prophecy would have been 500 years long instead of 490 years long. The Messiah would have come 10 years later.

3. If the Jubilee cycles were 50 years long then there would only have been 68 sabbath years during the 430 years of rebellion by God’s people. They would only have been sent into captivity for 68 years instead of 70 years.

Summary

“Seventy 'sevens' are decreed for your people” is a dual prophecy. Daniel 9:24. It has two fulfillments.

First, the 70 "sevens" are 70 sabbatical cycles. They are 490 years, pointing to the first coming of Jesus as our Savior from sin.

Second, the 70 "sevens" are 70 Jubilee cycles. They are 3,431 years, pointing to the second coming of Jesus when His people will be permanently freed from sin.

By the fall of 2016 the 6,000 years of sin on earth will come to an end. Jesus will come to take His people to heaven and the 1,000 years of rest for the earth will begin.

In the next few months the great tribulation will occur and many other Bible prophecies will be fulfilled.

Today is the day to choose to receive Christ fully and to abide in Him forever.

To read a summary of why we are at the Time of the End read 2016 The Time of the End.