7c: Forgive 70x7- A Dispensational and Prophetic Timeline?? Part 3 of 3

Nov 17, 2023
5 min read

Updated: Jun 26

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The Prophetic Secret of Seventy Times Seven

We’ve covered a lot of ground in Parts 1 and 2. We’ve seen how Jesus’ command to forgive “seventy times seven” was rooted in Genesis, confirmed by Daniel, and connected to the parable of the two lost sons.

Now let’s put it all together.

The Master Key

The number seven marks the firstborn line from beginning to end.

Cain received a sevenfold protection. (Genesis 4:15).
Lamech appealed for seventy-sevenfold. (Genesis 4:24).
Daniel prophesied seventy weeks of years. (Daniel 9:24-27).
Jesus validated the seventy-times-seven standard. (Matthew 18:21-22).

This isn’t coincidence. It’s divine design.

But what does it all mean?

The Firstborn Replacement

Both Cain and Israel failed in their role as firstborn. Both proved incapable of maintaining the family inheritance because of sin.

So God provided a firstborn replacement.

Jesus is that replacement. He is called the “Last Adam” (1 Corinthians 15:45) and the “firstborn of all creation” (Colossians 1:15) and the "firstborn of the dead" (Colossians 1:18; Revelation 1:5) and most importantly God's only son (John 1:18; 3:16-18; 1John 4:9). Jesus came to restore what was lost—the inheritance of the family, the blessing of the Father, the promise of eternal life.

Through Christ, the eternal inheritance is secured.

Through Christ, divine mercy is extended to all sinners—not just the firstborn.

Peter's Flood Divisional Overview

Now here's where the typology gets really interesting. The flood did more than separate the old world from the new. It also separated two ways of standing before God.

Before the flood, Enoch walked with God by faith, without the Law. He was taken. He represents the pre-law position—the hidden escape, the unmarked timeline.

After the flood, Israel was given the Law. They stood on law ground—works, birthright, a marked timeline. They represent the public, visible, marked timeline.

The flood is the line between them.

Now consider two prophets who escaped death: Enoch and Elijah.

Enoch was taken before judgment, hidden, a mystery to the world. No one saw him go.
Elijah was taken publicly, in a chariot of fire, witnessed by Elisha and the prophets.

Two escapes. Two patterns. Two timelines.

If you rightly divide as Peter did, the flood represents a simplified “dispensational” overview of human history—dividing the world into the pre-flood and post-flood ages, each with its own way of standing before God.

Clearly, Peter’s flood divisional overview is a crucial framework of the world’s stage. The apostle Peter, in his second letter, tells us that “a thousand years is like one day to the Lord” (2 Peter 3:8). This statement is a direct link to “The Day of the Lord”—the time of judgment—which is followed by the Millennial Reign.

The flood in Noah’s day was a preview of final judgment. The ten generations of the pre-flood world formed a complete judgment cycle. God’s judgment (as represented by the flood) comes at the end of the cycle.

Which means history will repeat itself. The next judgment will not be by water, but by fire (2 Peter 3:5-7, 10-12). And the pattern hidden in the ten names of the Christ-line—the summary statement we explored at the beginning of this series—prophesied it all.

The ark was a picture of salvation for the marked line. Noah—the tenth generation, the one who found grace—went through the judgment waters and was preserved. That is Israel’s pattern: through the fire, delivered publicly, saved but not spared the trial. (Zechariah 13:8-9; Jeremiah 30:7; Ezekiel 20:25-38; Isaiah 43:2).

But there is another salvation. Enoch was caught up before the flood, without dying, without judgment. That is the pattern of the Christian Church: hidden, sudden, before the wrath (1 Thessalonians 5:9).

Two salvations. Two escapes. Both through Christ. One through the fire. One before the fire.

The ark is the line between them. And Christ is the door for both.

This is why the “seventy times seven” extension matters so much. Lamech’s cry for mercy extended the timeline for the firstborn line. It created a gap—the prophetic gap between Daniel’s sixty-ninth and seventieth week—that allowed the unmarked timeline of the Church to be inserted. This is what theologians call the “Church Age” or the “Age of Grace.”

The mercy came to the elder first. The younger was welcomed into the space it created.

The Harvest Order Principle

Now we come to one of the most important principles for understanding the order of these two salvations.

Jesus said, “So the last will be first, and the first will be last” (Matthew 20:16). He also said, “But many who are first will be last, and the last first” (Matthew 19:30).

This isn’t just a general statement about humility. It’s a prophetic principle that governs the order of the harvesting of the earth.

Israel was the firstborn—the elder son, the marked line, the one who received the promise first. By the “first will be last” principle, Israel is gathered last.

The Church—the spiritual line, the younger son, the unmarked line—came later in God’s plan. By the same principle, the Church is gathered first.

The Apostle Paul confirms this harvest order when he writes, “But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:23).

The harvest has an order. It happens in stages.

Christ was the firstfruits—the first to rise from the dead, the sample of the coming harvest (1 Corinthians 15:20).
The Christian Church is gathered next—caught up like Enoch before judgment, the summer harvest, the Feast of Pentecost.
Israel is gathered last—going through the fire, delivered publicly, the fall harvest, the Feast of Tabernacles.

The Fixed Timeline

And this is where it gets even more incredible.

The “seventy times seven” forgiveness formula isn’t just a law for personal relationships. It’s a fixed timeline for the redemption of the firstborn.

70 x 7 = 490 years (Israel’s marked timeline)
69 weeks ran their course until the Messiah was cut off
The final week is still to come
The gap in between is the age of grace—the unmarked timeline where the Christian Church or the "body of Christ" is gathered

When Jesus said “forgive seventy times seven,” He was unlocking a prophetic timeline.

The Family Comes Home

In the end, both lost lines—the elder and the younger, Israel and the Christian Church—will be gathered into one family.

The elder son, still wandering in the outer field, will eventually come home. The younger son, hidden in Christ, will be revealed at the wedding feast.

The Father has been working from the beginning to bring both lost sons back to His table.

The mercy came to the elder first.

The younger was welcomed into the space that mercy created.

And when the family is finally whole, the Father will celebrate.

The Conclusion

Jesus’ command to forgive “seventy times seven” wasn’t just about forgiveness. It was about prophecy. It was about the ages. It was about a fixed timeline for the redemption of the firstborn and the restoration of all things.

This is the golden thread of His-Story through His-Bloodline.

The garden became a city. The seed became a harvest. The lost sons became a family.

And the Father is still waiting at the door.

Which lost son are you?

The one who trusts in the works of the law, working in the outer field? Or are you the one who trusts in the atoning blood, hidden in Christ?

The door is still open. The sin offering still lies at the door.

Come home.

For the full, in-depth study of this prophetic timeline, including the technical details and Scriptural evidence, please see my book, “HIS-Story Through HIS-Bloodline: The Genesis Pre-Flood Prophecy of the Ages.” This blog series is a simplified introduction to the concepts explored in depth therein.

Questions or pushback? I would love to hear from you. Feel free to leave a comment or contact me through the website.

Today’s article was inspired by a book I wrote, entitled: “His-Story Through His-Bloodline: The Genesis Pre-Flood Prophecy of the Ages.” The book is available in paperback or e-book formats. I recommend paperback because of all the charts. Follow the link here: https://rosedogbookstore.com/his-story-through-his-bloodline-the-genesis-pre-flood-prophecy-of-the-ages/