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Commentary by Sir Isaac Newton
According to John Maynard Keynes who published a biographical study of Sir Isaac Newton in Essays and Sketches in Biography (Meridian Books, 1956), Newton was absolutely obsessed with the study of the Bible. Keynes, a historically notable economist, upon becoming the Provost at Cambridge University in England, discovered papers packed away in 1696, when Newton retired from his position as Cambridge Provost. To Keynes's amazement, most of the million words recorded by Newton, in his own handwriting, were not about mathematics or astronomy, but they were about esoteric theology and the Bible. Newton believed that the Bible held a hidden code and he wanted to "read the riddle of the Godhead, the riddle of the past and future events divinely fore-ordained." Therefore, Newton spent much of his life trying to find the Bible code, which he believed was a "cryptogram set by the Almighty." However, despite his attempts to apply mathematical models to the Hebrew text, Newton was unsuccessful and was still searching for the Bible code when he died. Other facts about Newton's fascination with prophetic history are contained in The Life of Isaac Newton (Cambridge University Press, 1993), and, Never at Rest: A Biography of Isaac Newton (Cambridge University Press, 1980), both of which were written by Richard S. Westfall. In his writings, Westfall states that Newton believed that the essence of the Bible was the prophecy of human history.Despite his lengthy service as an academician, Newton published only two books. Considered by many to be the greatest scientific work ever published in history, Newton's Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica, published in 1687, described the mathematical methodologies of the calculus. Subsequent to the first edition of the book, Newton's friend Edmund Halley convinced him to finish Parts II and III of the work about the calculus, which were written ten years after Part I, and were published by Halley as a second edition. Regarding his belief in God, in the second edition of Principia, Newton wrote "the true God is a living, intelligent, and powerful being. His duration reaches from eternity to eternity; His presence from infinity to infinity. He governs all things."Fortunately for Christians, we have some insight into Newton's study of prophecy through his second book, Observations Upon the Prophecies of Daniel and the Apocalypse of St. John, published in 1733 by J. Darby and T. Browne, six years after Newton's death. Reprinted by Thomas Jefferson from the original Newton text, Jefferson's personal copy of the commentary is maintained in the rare books catalogue of the United States Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. Current copies of Observations Upon the Prophecies of Daniel and the Apocalypse of St. John are available as a reprint of the Jefferson text, entitled Newton's Prophecies of Daniel (Oregon Institute of Science and Medicine, September 1991). Having begun a personal study of the book of Daniel at the age of twelve, with continued interest throughout his life, Newton wrote what is probably the finest and most scholarly commentary in history regarding the prophecies of Daniel and the Apostle John. Newton was in awe of the prophecies and he concluded that true revelation would be understood by few men until the close of the end of days. He also stated that he believed the books of prophecy were designed in their written form so that, as prophecy was historically fulfilled, there would be a perceptible understanding by man of the continuing testimony to the world of the governing presence of the providence of God. As a Biblical scholar, Newton objected to the use of prophetic writings in an effort to predict the future and he stated that "the folly of Interpreters has been, to foretell times and things by this Prophecy, as if God designed to make them Prophets. By this rashness they have not only exposed themselves, but brought the Prophecy also into contempt."In his book, Newton detailed from Daniel's prophecy the future rebirth of Israel as a nation at the hands of a friendly nation, although he did not know when the event would occur. True to Newton's understanding of the prophecies, at the urging of America, on the evening of November 29, 1947, the United Nations voted to allow the re-establishment of the nation of Israel, and, in May of 1948, Israel became a state. Also, as a part of Newton's translation and interpretation of Chapter 9 of Daniel, he predicted the Jubilee return of the Messiah after the restoration of the nation of Israel in political autonomy, an event for which Christians and the Jewish nation of Israel still await. If Newton's translation and declaration regarding the Jubilee return of the Messiah are accurate, then the Second Coming of Christ appears to be imminent.  Due to the significant complexities of the translation and
interpretation of the Hebrew and Greek texts associated with the prophecies of Daniel, the
author(s) of this Website have relied extensively on the written work of Newton to aid in
the formulation of the information printed herewith. In the words of Sir Isaac Newton,
regarding the prophesied return of the Jews to the land of Israel and the Second Coming of
Christ, "The manner I know not. Let time be
the interpreter."
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Considered by many to have
been the greatest scientist who ever lived, Sir Isaac Newton (1642-1727) was an English
physicist with a keen mind and a vitriolic personality. With interests in multiple aspects
of the physical sciences, including physics, chemistry, mathematics, and astronomy, Newton
is credited with the determination of the force of gravity, creation of the calculus, and
identification of the mechanics of the solar system. Versed in numerous languages,
including Hebrew, Greek and Latin, Newton was a whole-hearted Christian believer who
strongly relied upon the Bible and the providence of God.