Prophecies Fulfilled in Jesus
“For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” - Revelation 19:10b (ESV)
Without a doubt, the primary purpose of Bible prophecy is to point us to Jesus Christ (Revelation 19:10). As such, the prophecies concerning the coming Messiah are among the most numerous and detailed prophecies found within the pages of Scripture. Written hundreds, even thousands, of years before the birth of Jesus, these prophecies describe precise details surrounding the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of the future Messiah. Here are just a few examples of the prophecies concerning Jesus:
- He would be a descendant of David (Jeremiah 23:5-6; 33:15-16; 2 Samuel 7:12-16; Luke 1:31-33; Romans 1:3)
- He would be from the tribe of Judah (Genesis 49:10; Hebrews 7:14; Revelation 5:5)
- He would be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2; Matthew 2:5-6; Luke 2:4-6)
- He would have a forerunner (Isaiah 40:3-5, Malachi 3:1; Matthew 3:1-3, Luke 1:76-78)
- He would speak in parables (Isaiah 6:9-10; Matthew 13:10-15)
- He would ride into Jerusalem on a donkey (Zechariah 9:9; Matthew 21:4-5)
- He would come at a specified time (Daniel 9:25-26; Luke 19:42-44; See previous post)
- He would be betrayed for thirty pieces of silver, which would then be thrown into the temple and given to the potter (Zechariah 11:12-13, Matthew 27:3-10)
- Even when on trial for His life, He would remain silent (Isaiah 53:7; Matthew 27:12-14)
- His hands and feet would be pierced (Zechariah 12:10, Psalm 22:16, Isaiah 53:5; John 19:34, 37)
- He would die with criminals (Isaiah 53:12; Matthew 27:38)
- His bones would not be broken (Psalm 34:20; John 19:33-36)
- He would be physically raised from the dead (Psalm 16:10; Matthew 28:2-7)
- In addition to these, Isaiah 53 and Psalm 22 provide clear depictions of Jesus’ death centuries before crucifixion was popularized as a form of capital punishment. [1]
It is estimated that Jesus accurately fulfilled over one hundred separate and distinct prophecies just like these. Should we be impressed? Yes! In his book, Science Speaks, Peter Stoner calculated the probability of any one person fulfilling all the Messianic prophecies. Using conservative estimates, he found that the odds of fulfilling just eight of these prophecies were 1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000! [2] To help visualize this massive number, I’ll borrow Stoner’s example: If you had 100,000,000,000,000,000 silver dollars, you could use them to cover the entire state of Texas two feet deep. Suppose you marked one of those silver dollars and stirred it into the pile, then blindfolded a man and asked him to travel throughout the state and choose one coin. The odds of him finding the marked coin are the same odds of any person fulfilling just eight of the prophecies that Jesus did. Stoner goes on to say:
“Can anyone be so unreasonable as to reject Jesus Christ and pin his hope of eternal life on such a slim chance as finding the right silver dollar among this great mass, covering the whole state of Texas two feet deep? It does not seem possible, yet every man who rejects Christ is doing just that.” [3]
Imagine the sheer impossibility of fulfilling each and every prophecy! And yet, that’s exactly what Jesus did. Even if we took away every prophecy involving the supernatural (i.e. Jesus’ resurrection, miracles, etc.), we would still be left with a historically-proven Jesus who fulfills the remaining prophecies against astronomical odds. Even so, the numbers themselves are not the impressive part - each one of us has aspects of our lives that make us completely unique from one another. What impresses me is that the precise, intimate details of Jesus’ life were foretold centuries in advance! Surely, God’s Word stands above all else as the foundation of truth.
Despite all of this, I believe the most exciting part of Bible prophecy is the fact that Jesus’ story is not over. He is not a relic of the past that we should forget about Him; Jesus is alive and well, seated at the right hand of God the Father (Hebrews 10:12-13), and He has promised that He will return once again (Matthew 16:27; 24:30-44; Revelation 19:11-16). Every biblical prophecy that has come true has been fulfilled literally, down to the smallest detail. Because of this, we can trust that the prophecies concerning the future second coming of Jesus will also be fulfilled literally.
Here are some statistics: [4]
For every prophecy concerning the first coming of Jesus, there are 8 more that relate to His second coming.
There are over 1,800 references to the second coming of Jesus in the Old Testament.
23 of the 27 New Testament books refer to the second coming of Jesus.
1 out of every 30 verses in the New Testament refers to the second coming of Jesus.
As a teacher, I have learned that repeating myself is a good way to help my students remember the most important points of the lesson. In the same way, when God repeats Himself in the Bible, we should pay attention to what He is saying! If you ask me, I think He really wants us to know that Jesus is coming again! God has not abandoned humanity to continue living in an endless cycle of brokenness and sin. He has a plan to make everything right, and the peaceful, perfect world we all long for will finally come to fruition when Jesus returns.
“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.” - Isaiah 9:6-7 (ESV)
“Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, ‘The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.’” - Revelation 11:15 (ESV)
Many of the Jews rejected Jesus because He did not fit their expectations of the Messiah. Although they were experts in Old Testament law, even the Pharisees could not see past their predetermined picture of the Messiah, and because of this, they missed Him (Luke 19:44b; Matthew 16:1-3). Could it be possible that we are the same way? Do our predetermined views of God and His Word cause us to miss what He is trying to tell us? I believe that the Bible has proven itself to be a reliable source of truth. Because of this, I believe Jesus is the Messiah and that He is coming again! God takes His Word seriously, and we can trust that He will follow through on everything He has spoken.
“For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.” - Matthew 5:18 (ESV)
“As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” - Isaiah 55:10-11 (NIV)
Notes
[1] Todd Hampson and Jeff Kinley, The Prophecy Pros’ Illustrated Guide to Tough Questions About the End Times (Eugene, OR: Harvest House, 2021), 13.
[2] Peter Stoner, Science Speaks, Online Edition (Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 2005) 50, https://yearofourlord.org/1_bible_divinity_of_christ/ScienceSpeaks.pdf.
[3] Ibid, 50-51.
[4] Todd Hampson and Jeff Kinley, The Prophecy Pros’ Illustrated Guide to Tough Questions About the End Times (Eugene, OR: Harvest House, 2021), 12.