Daniel 12—Fulfilled!
Despite all the speculation about Daniel 12, there is much evidence it was fulfilled in the first century. In fact, Jesus specifically quoted from Daniel 12 in the Olivet Discourse and said it would be fulfilled within his generation.
When comparing the two descriptions, we see that both Daniel and Jesus mention the “time of the end” / “end of the age” (Dan. 12:4, 9; Matt. 24:3), the great tribulation (Dan. 12:1; Matt. 24:21), the end of sacrifices / destruction of the temple (Dan. 12:11; Matt. 24:1–2), and the abomination of desolation (Dan. 12:11; Matt. 24:15). In fact, right after mentioning the abomination of desolation, Jesus specifically adds “as spoken of by Daniel” (Matt. 24:15). Clearly, Jesus was alluding to Daniel’s prophecy. Then Jesus said:
“Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place” (Matt. 24:34).
Jesus said ALL THESE THINGS would happen within a generation. Since a biblical generation equates to around forty years (Heb. 3:8–10, Num. 14:30–34, Neh. 9:21)—and Jesus gave the Olivet Discourse in approximately AD 30—therefore, the events must have happened by around AD 70…and they did!
Re: “time of the end” / “end of the age” (Dan. 12:4, 9; Matt. 24:3)
Contrary to pop-church culture, “the end” does not refer to the end of the world. Rather, it refers to the end of the Old Covenant age. The Old Covenant age was about to end when Hebrews was written in around AD 60:
“In that He [God] says, ‘A new covenant,’ He has made the first [covenant] obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away” (Heb. 8:13).
The writer of Hebrews also said the temple standing in that day—Herod’s Temple—symbolized the Old Covenant age (Heb. 9:8-9); so its destruction would indicate the Old Covenant age had officially passed away. And the temple was destroyed in AD 70.
This also fits well with Paul saying in approximately AD 57, “The ends of the ages have come” (1 Cor. 10:11). And this also fits well with Peter saying in AD 63, “The end of all things [related to the Old Covenant age] is at hand” (1 Pet. 4:7).
“The end” refers to the end of the Old Covenant age, which officially passed away when the temple was destroyed in AD 70.
Re: the great tribulation (Dan. 12:1; Matt. 24:21)
Jesus said in approximately AD 30 that the great tribulation would happen within a generation (Matt. 24:20, 34), and by the time Revelation was written thirty-five years later, the tribulation had already begun. John said he was a “brother and companion in the tribulation” (Rev. 1:9).
The first-century historian Josephus, likewise, confirmed the tribulation happened. In his description of the Jewish-Roman War of AD 67-70, Josephus said more than 1.1 million Jews were slaughtered and another 97,000 were taken into slavery. Josephus said no other people had ever suffered so much:
“It appears to me that the misfortunes of all men, from the beginning of the world, if they be compared to these of the Jews are not so considerable as they were…This makes it impossible for me to contain my lamentations.”[1]
“It is therefore impossible to go distinctly over every instance of these men’s iniquity. I shall therefore speak my mind here at once briefly—That neither did any other city ever suffer such miseries, nor did any age ever breed a generation more fruitful in wickedness than this was, from the beginning of the world.”[2]
Re. the end of sacrifices (Dan. 12:11; Matt. 24:1–2)
Sacrifices ended in the first century. In fact, the temple, in which the sacrifices were offered, was destroyed in AD 70.
Re. the abomination of desolation (Dan. 12:11; Matt. 24:15)
We can pinpoint exactly when the abomination of desolation happened by comparing Matthew’s account of the Olivet Discourse to Luke’s. Note: Jesus is talking to his first-century disciples:
Matthew 24:15-16: “When you see the ‘abomination of desolation’ spoken of by Daniel standing in the holy place…let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.”
Luke 21:20-21: “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies…let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.”
Both accounts begin with “When you see…” However, because Luke was written to Gentiles, who would not have been familiar with the term “abomination of desolation,” Luke made it easier for his audience to understand by simply saying, “When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies…” Then Jesus says—in both accounts—to “flee to the mountains,” which confirms it’s the same event. Jesus also says—in both accounts—that this event would happen within a generation (Matt. 24:34, Luke 21:32), again confirming it is the same event.
Furthermore, as Luke’s account says, the abomination of desolation would happen just prior to the armies surrounding Jerusalem; and he know from historians that Jerusalem was surrounded by armies during the three-and-a-half-year Jewish-Roman War, which began in spring of AD 67 and culminated in September AD 70. This fits perfectly with the timing Jesus gave. Note also that this three-and-a-half-year period fits perfectly with Daniel saying it would be “a time, times, and half a time” (Dan. 12:7).
The evidence is overwhelming that the abomination of desolation happened in the first century.
What, then, does the “abomination of desolation” refer to? It likely refers to the first-century Jews, who were the abomination that caused God to desolate their temple. After all, they had crucified the Messiah and were persecuting his disciples. (Technically the Romans killed Jesus, but they did it at the behest of the Jews – see Luke 23:21 and John 1:11).
Others say the “abomination of desolation refers to the Roman armies who “walked about the outer court of the temple with their pagan symbols lifted high” (during the Jewish-Roman War of AD 67-70). With the temple engulfed in flames, the Roman armies offered sacrifices to their pagan gods.[4]
Still others say the “abomination of desolation” refers to the Jewish zealots who obtained possession of the Temple in AD 67–68 and made the Holy Place a garrison and stronghold “of their tyrannous and lawless rule…while the better priests looked on from afar and wept tears of horror.”[5]
Whatever the abomination refers to, we can be 100% sure it happened in the first century for the reasons listed above.
What about the Resurrection?
Commentators often get hung up on Daniel 12 because it also describes the resurrection:
“And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt” (Dan. 12:2).
If Daniel 12 was fulfilled in the first century, then the resurrection must have happened too. And it did! In fact, the resurrection had already begun during Jesus’ ministry in around AD 30:
“Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live” (John 5:25, italics mine).
This is resurrection; it is spiritual; and it had arrived in Jesus’s day. Paul said something similar:
“Even when we were dead in trespasses, [God] made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together [past tense], and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2:5–6, italics mine).
In another passage, Paul said, “If then you were raised with Christ [past tense], seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God” (Col. 3:1–2, italics mine).
This is resurrection; it is spiritual; and it arrived in the first century.
Conclusion: The biblical and historical evidence clearly shows that Daniel 12 was fulfilled in the first century!
For a more detailed discussion of the topics mentioned in this article—and responses to common objections—please see my book The End Is Here: How the New Testament’s Prophecies Were Fulfilled, available NOW on Amazon!
By Alex Polyak, Director of The Bible Fulfilled, 6/17/25.
[1] Flavius Josephus, Wars of the Jews, Preface, Paragraph 4.
[2] Flavius Josephus, Wars of the Jews, Book 5, paragraph 5.
[4] Gary DeMar, End Times Fiction, 84.
[5] Ibid.
