THIS IS A DOCUMENT IN PROGRESS! REVISIONS ARE BEING MADE ON A REGULAR BASIS!! Latest Revision Monday, May 19, 2014 AN EXAMINATION OF THE SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST INTERPRETATION OF TWO TIME PROPHECIES IN THE BOOK OF DANIEL - THE 2300 DAYS OF DANIEL 8 AND THE 70 WEEKS OF DANIEL 9. ASSUMPTION 21 Above all and beyond all other arguments is the “pragmatic” argument, viz., that history confirms the validity of the SDA explanation of the two time BY FRANK BASTEN NOVEMBER, 1990 copyright F.A.Basten, 1990 Assumption 21 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS The Purpose of This Assumption ............................................................................... 2 The Method of This Assumption and its Associated Problems. ................................ 4 a. Smith. ............................................................................................................... 7 b. Spangler. .......................................................................................................... 7 Shea. .................................................................................................................... 8 Ford. .................................................................................................................... 8 Gerhard Pfandl ..................................................................................................... 9 The Chronological Platform of SDA Historicism ................................................. 9 457 BC: The commandment to rebuild and restore Jerusalem .......................... 9 27 AD “Until the Anointed One.” ................................................................... 12 31 AD “Messiah shall be cut off.” .................................................................. 14 34 AD The Stoning of Stephen. ....................................................................... 15 538 AD The little horn has the power ............................................................. 16 1798 AD The little horn shall be broken. ........................................................ 17 August 11, 1840 The End of the Ottoman Empire. .......................................... 22 October 22, 1844 AD “The hour of his judgment is come.” .......................... 40 Establishing the October 22 date. ................................................................... 44 Summary of this Chronological Review. ......................................................... 48 The Social Construction of History..................................................................... 51 The Conclusion ......................................................................................................... 52 Bibliography .............................................................................................................. 53 Appendix ................................................................................................................... 57 Material associated with 457 B.C ....................................................................... 57 Kenneth Richards (son of H.M.S. Richards) ....................................................... 57 Material Associated with 408 B.C. ..................................................................... 59 Material Associated with A.D. 27 ....................................................................... 59 Material Associated with A.D. 31 ....................................................................... 59 Material Associated with A.D. 34. ...................................................................... 59 Material Associated with 1798. .......................................................................... 59 Material Associated with August 11, 1840 The End of the Ottoman Empire. ...... 59 The History behind the Incident in 1840. ........................................................ 92 Official British Government Publications ..................................................... 111 The New Cambridge Modern History – ChXVI –The Mediterranean ............ 133 New Cambridge Modern History –The Crimean War, Vol. X., pp.468-492. .. 146 Material Associated with 1844. ........................................................................ 151 The Day of Atonement in 1844: Was it October 22, or September 23? .......... 151 Establishing the 1843 date. ........................................................................... 151 Day of Atonement of the Karaite Jews in 1844 by Robert K. Sanders ............ 152 When Was the "Day of Atonement in 1844"? by Robert K. Sanders .......... 156 A Counter-Argument by Bob Pickle. ............................................................. 160 How Shea uses the Babylonian Calendar to justify October 22. .................... 164 The Purpose of This Assumption This is the first of two extremely persistent assumptions used to support the SDA interpretation of the two time periods in Daniel and the principle behind their interpretation. This assumption, and its supplement in Assumption 23, is useful for SDA historicists when the weakness of their position is highlighted. It enables them to believe in the validity of their interpretation even in the face of insurmountable evidence showing up the fallacies of the SDA position. It cannot be described as irrational; it is © Frank Basten 1990 Version Date: May 19, 2014 Assumption 21 3 probably better to call it an arational assumption, in the sense that no logic can be used to address the shortcomings in this assumption. It is beyond reason. It is blind and will cling to the traditional teachings of the SDA church Řthough the heavens fall.ř It summons their memories of historical events that they feel endorse the SDA position and they take stock in these. It believes the SDA position is correct even though valid objections are raised that have no answer from SDA historicists. These memories will encourage the hope that God will provide answers to these objections in time and that the old positions will stand. For years many of us have looked at the Book of Revelation from strictly the "historical-prophetic" overlay. This overlay has given us much confidence as we have looked at the great prophetic waymarks down through history. http://www.streamofhealing.org/Devotionals/index.htm The type of thinking associated with this assumption are as follows: ŖIt does not matter that you bring arguments to show the traditional SDA teaching on the 2300 days and the seventy weeks is incorrect. When all is said and done, history, the great arbiter of truth, has confirmed the SDA position, and no matter what you say or try and prove, these great historical facts remain.ŗ ŖYou cannot deny the decrees to rebuild Jerusalem and the temple starting in 457 BC; ŖYou cannot deny the coming of Jesus to be anointed by the Holy Spirit in AD 27; ŖYou cannot deny the death of Christ on Nisan 14, 31 AD; ŖYou cannot deny the historicity of the stoning of Stephen in 34 AD; ŖYou cannot deny the legal supremacy of the papal powers beginning in March, 538 AD; ŖYou cannot deny the persecution of Christians by the Roman pagan and papal power throughout the 1260 years up to 1798; ŖYou cannot deny the 1260 years ended exactly to the month, in February, 1798 with the removal of the papal power from its seat in 1798 AD; ŖYou cannot deny that Litchřs prophecy concerning the Ottoman empire was fulfilled to the day on 11th August, 1840; ŖYou cannot deny that the ending of the 2300 year prophecy in 1844 AD and the beginning of a new phase of ministry in heaven was heralded by religious movements both in the Old World and the New World, in accordance with prophecy.ŗ ŖThese great historical facts cannot be changed or undone. They are anchored in time forever as beacons of light, testifying of the veracity of the predictions they are associated with. To deny these facts is to deny the hand of God in history.ŗ This assumption is extremely important in the SDAřs reconstruction of history in that it provides a basis for sense of divine endorsement of the SDA interpretation of these time prophecies. These events in history have a strength in themselves transcending any reasoning to the contrary. In the words of Clifford Goldstein, ŖItřs as solid as world history, as solid as Christ, as solid as the math itself,ŗ (2003, p.112) 1 1 The following statement by Goldstein on the Adventist interpretation of Rome in prophecy expresses this sentiment best: ŖThe Adventist position regarding Rome as the little horn is as firm as world history itself. No matter how politically incorrect this view, we canřt waffle here. Fortunately, we donřt need to.ŗ (2003, p.43) Note: The Adventist position is as firm as world history itself!!! © Frank Basten 1990 Version Date: May 19, 2014 Assumption 21 4 In this paper, I will look at the claims for the major historical dates in the SDA chronography of world history from a prophetic point of view. I will then examine the empirical validity of each of those major events in history and then finally draw a conclusion together. The Method of This Assumption and its Associated Problems. Seventh-day Adventists have created a history of themselves that portrays them as Godřs remnantŔhis special people ordained with a special missionŔand this remnancy is also illustrated in the perspective of a Řtorchbearerř carrying on the torch from other churches. The flip side of this view is that the other churches, cited by SDA histories as being forebearers of aspects of SDA doctrine and teaching, no longer carry the torch. Dr Geoffrey Paxton, an Australian Anglican ordained minister and