Seventy Years In Zechariah

Q

I’ve been reading your answers and it really helped me. Thank you. My question is what you think abut 70 years in Zechraiah? Does it by any chance have somehing to do with the 70 years of lifespan? And does that possibly mean 70 years since 1948?

A

The phrase 70 years appears twice in Zechariah, once in Zech 1:12 and once in Zech 7:5. In both cases, they refer to the 70-year Babylonian captivity from which the Jews had recently returned. There’s no connection to either the 70-year life span of Psalm 90:10 or the length of time between the re-birth of Israel and the 2nd Coming of Christ.

The 70-year duration of the captivity was due to the fact that for 490 years Israel had failed to keep the Sabbath for the land. Every seven years they were supposed to let the land rest for one year (Lev. 25:1-7). Dividing 490 by 7 means they owed the land 70 years of sabbath rests (2 Chron. 36:21 & Jere. 25:11). Since they hadn’t taken them one at a time, the Lord decreed they would be taken all at once.