Dear friends:

Following my message the other day, “When is Jesus coming?” a reader wrote: “According to a PBS special last week, Sir Isaac Newton calculated the end to be the year 2012. The show said he made a calendar and it ended with 2012.”

I have searched and searched and cannot find any confirmation of that, although many sites show 2012 as the end of the Mayan calendar.  I have Newton’s book on Daniel and am somewhat aware of his writings on prophecy, but had never seen that date.  In fact, to my recollection, he pointed to a much later date.  Further “googling” on the subject repeatedly pointed to Newton referring to the year AD 2060.

But to my surprise, in the process of research, I discovered a site which claims that Newton pointed to the year 2006!  Below is an excerpt.

The full article is at http://www.triumphpro.com/2006,_bible_codes,_newton.htm.  I cannot endorse the Web site in general because it appears to be a combination of Anglo-Israelism, anti-Trinitarianism, sabbatarianism, and Judaism, but that does not necessarily mean the research about Isaac Newton is in error.  As they say, “Swallow the fish and spit out the bones.”  Or better, “Prove all things and hold fast to that which is good.”

I am especially interested in this because I so admire Sir Isaac Newton, the father of modern science, and the father of the industrial revolution, one of the greatest intellects of all history, and an avid Bible student.
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Excerpt:

Experts have been pouring over Sir Isaac Newton’s secret writings, suppressed for centuries, and have discovered his stunning prophecies for the present century, and the year 2006 in particular.

            Dr. Ephraim Springstein asserts, “Newton’s writings on science and mathematics are well known, but his religious research is less well-known. But his analysis of scripture was every bit as deep and revolutionary as his work creating modern physics and calculus.  He was truly the genius of his time” (“Famed scientist Isaac Newton’s stunning prophecy,” by Graham Beaton, Sun, February 6, 2006).  (Bramlett note: I know nothing about the credibility of the Sun newspaper.  I believe it is a UK tabloid , but sometimes tabloid articles are accurate, except for the Weekly World News which notoriously invents sensational stories.)

            Newton dedicated 50 years of his life to analyzing works of Bible prophecies.  He deemed his religious discoveries too controversial for public release during his own lifetime. His theological studies remained a secret until recently, when scholars discovered them in the collection of the Jewish National Library in Jerusalem.

            Says Springstein, “We have known of these manuscripts for at least three years.  We knew they described events of the End Times, beginning with massive plagues and fires, then a final battle between the armies of good and evil followed by the 1,000-year reign of the Prince of Peace” (ibid.).

            Springstein continues, “But it was only within the past MONTH that we understood Newton’s prophecy was not about a distant future date.  Using the data in the Books of Daniel and Revelation, he had precisely calculated the year of ARMAGEDDON – AND IT IS DUE TO TAKE PLACE IN 2006!”

            Newton was not trying to “set dates.”  He declared in a manuscript which pinpointed the exact date of 2006 A.D., “I mention this period not to assert it, but only to shew [show] that there is little reason to expect it earlier, and thereby put a stop to the rash of Interpreters who are frequently assigning the time of the end.”

            Writes Beaton in the Sun, “Because his religious research conflicted with the official view of the Catholic Church and the Church of England, Newton ran the risk of being declared a heretic – a grave criminal offense that merited execution in those days.  As a result, Springstein explains, he kept his manuscripts hidden and wrote many of his conclusions in SCIENTIFIC OR NUMERICAL CODES.”

            Dr. Springstein declares, “Previous researchers pinpointed Newton’s date of the end as taking place either in 2060 or 2327.  We’ve found new manuscripts containing his equations and a KEY to deciphering his notation.

            “Once we followed Newton’s research every step of the way, we reached the same TERRIFYING CONCLUSION.  The PROCESS by which the world will come to an END BEGINS NOW, IN THE YEAR 2006.”

           Note carefully.  Newton did NOT predict that Armageddon would be FOUGHT in 2006 – but rather that the PROCESS would begin this very year – 2006!  And that from that year, it would not be long till the coming of the Messiah!  (Emphasis supplied.)

The Bible codes point to the year 2006 as being very significant.  Sir Isaac Newton’s research also points to the year 2006 as being the beginning of the countdown to “Armageddon.”  The Jewish Jubilee cycles point to the year 2012 as being a Jubilee Year (counted from the inheritance of Canaan in the days of Joshua), and the Messiah is prophesied to return on a Jubilee Year (compare Acts 3:19-21; Lev.25:8-11; read our article “Will the Messiah Return on a Jubilee Year?”).

            The ninth chapter of Daniel tells us of a final “week of years” which will occur leading up to the coming of the Messiah (Dan.9:24-26) – a seven year period of great troubles (Dan.12:1).  If 2012 is the year of the return, then 2006 would be the first of the final seven years preceding Messiah’s grand entrance!  (Emphasis supplied.) And Mayan chronology points to the year of 2012 as being the end of a “world age” and beginning of a new age!
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End of excerpt.  If any UK reader can confirm or deny the Sun newspaper’s credibility, please let me know.

Jim