A Second Enquiry Into the Grounds on Which the Prophetic Period of Daniel and St John Has Been Supposed to Consist of 1260 Years

This historic book may have numerous typos, missing text or index. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. 1829. Not illustrated. Excerpt: ... REMARKS PASSAGE IN " DIALOGUES ON PROPHECY," PART IV. P. 312. "Philalethes.--Do you feel quite confident the 1260 "days means always 1260 years? "Anastasius.--The question in this place is rather, what "period is meant to be measured by the words ' time, "times, and half a time.' The argument drawn from "the word 'day, ' never meaning a ' year' in other "parts of Scripture, is wholly inapplicable here, for "the word is ' time, ' and not ' day;' and certainly "there is as much right to assume that the word 'time' "signifies a 'year' as any other period; and it will "hardly be contended that, in the fourth chapter, ver. "16, of this same prophet, the word signifies only a "day, when during ' seven times' Nebuchadnezzar "was to have his nails grow as long as birds' claws, "his hair like eagles' feathers, and he was to be driven "from men. In chap. xi. 13, we find the expression, "'shall certainly come at the end of times, even years, ' "marg., which alone might settle the question." This may be very conclusive against those persons who have contended that a "time" F means a literal day; and really such freedom has been used in accommodating the terms of time to the events which particular periods were required to contain, that I can readily believe such writers to exist, though I have not met with any of their works. The Jews are charged by Justin Martyr with making a "time" a century; and I could easily bring a Protestant commentator to back that interpretation, or to maintain that days are literal days, or weeks, or months, or years (of different sorts, ) or even periods of 360 years. I can therefore suppose that some writers may maintain that the " times" of Daniel mean days, or even hours." As, however, I have not maintained such an opinion, or any one compatible w...