Prophecies of the Messiah

Old Testament Prophecies Fulfilled in Jesus Christ

Throughout the New Testament the apostles appealed to two areas of the life of Jesus of Nazareth to establish His messiahship. One was the resurrection and the other was a fulfilled messianic prophecy. The Old Testament written over a one-thousand-year period, contains nearly three hundred references to the coming Messiah. All of these were fulfilled by Jesus Christ, and they establish a solid confirmation of His credentials as the Messiah.

3A. CREDENTIALS OF JESUS AS THE MESSIAH THROUGH FULFILLED PROPHECY

IB. Prophecies Concerning His Birth

1. Born of the Seed of Woman

PROPHECY

“And I will put enmity between you and the woman and between your seed and her Seed;

He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.” —Genesis 3:15

FULFILLMENT

“But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law.” —Galatians 4:4 (See also Matt. 1:20.)

Jewish source: Targum Onkelos on Genesis 3:15 says, “And I will put enmity between thee and between the woman, and between thy son and her son. He will remember thee, what thou didst to him (at) from the beginning, and thou shalt be observant unto him at the end.” (Ethridge, TOJ, 41)

Jewish source: Targum Pseudo Jonathanon Genesis 3:15 states, “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between the seed of your offspring and the seed of her offspring; and it shall be that when the offspring of the woman keep the commandments of the Law, they will aim right (at you) and they will smite you on the head; but when they abandon the commandments of the Law, you will aim right (at them), and you will wound them in the heel. However, for them there will be a remedy, but for you there will be none, and in the future they will make peace with the heel in the days of the king, Messiah.” (Bowker, TRL, 122)

David L. Cooper makes an interesting observation:

In Gen. 3:15 we find the first prediction relative to the Saviour of the world, called “the seed of the women” In the original oracle God foretold the age-long conflict which would be waged between “the seed of the woman” and “the seed of the serpent” and which will eventually be won by the former. This primitive promise indicates a struggle between the Messiah of Israel, the Saviour of the world, on one hand, and Satan, the adversary of the human soul, on the other. It foretells complete victory eventually for the Messiah. Some commentators believe that an echo of this promise and Eve's understanding of it is found in Genesis 4:1—the statement of Eve when Cain, her first son, was born. “I have gotten a man, even Jehovah.” She correctly understood this primitive prediction but misapplied it in her interpreting it as being fulfilled in Cain, her son. It is clear that Eve believed that the child of promise would be Jehovah Himself. Some old Jewish commentators used to interpolate the word “angel” in this passage and say that Eve claimed that her son was “the angel of Jehovah.” There is no ground for this assertion. (Cooper, GM, 8, 9)

The New American Standard Bible renders Genesis 4:1: “She said, T have gotten a man

child with the help of the Lord.”

2. Born of a Virgin

PROPHECY

“And I will put enmity between you and the woman and between your seed and her Seed;

He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.” —Genesis 3:15

FULFILLMENT

“But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law.” —Galatians 4:4 (See also Matt. 1:20.)

In Hebrew the word “virgin” is denoted by two words:

1. bethulah: The proper meaning denotes a virgin maiden (Gen. 24:16; Lev. 21:13; Deut. 22:14, 23, 28; Judg. 11:37; 1 Kin. 1:2). Joel 1:8 is, according to Unger, not an exception because here it “refers to the loss of one betrothed, not married.” 

2. almah (veiled): A young woman of marriageable age. This word is used in Isaiah 7:14. “The Holy Spirit through Isaiah did not use bethulahy because both the ideas of virginity and marriageable age had to be combined in one word to meet the immediate historical situation and the prophetic aspect centering on a virgin-born Messiah.” (Unger, UBD, 1159)

“Virgin” is denoted in Greek by the word parthenos: a virgin, marriageable maiden, or young married woman, pure virgin (Matt. 1: 23; 25:1, 7,11; Luke 1:27; Acts 21:9; 1 Cor. 7:25, 28, 33; 2 Cor. 11:2). (Unger, UBD, 1159)

When the translators of the Septuagint translated Isaiah 7:14 into Greek they used the Greek

word parthenos. To them Isaiah 7:14 denoted that the Messiah would be born of a virgin.

3. Son of God

PROPHECY

“I will declare the decree: The Lord has said to Me, ‘You are My Son, today I have begotten You.” —Psalm 2:7 (See also 1 Chr. 17:11-14; 2 Sam. 7:12-16.)

FULFILLMENT

“But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law.” —Galatians 4:4 (See also Matt. 1:20.)

Mark 3:11: The demons realized His Sonship. 

Matthew 26:63: Even the high priest realized His Sonship.

E. W. Hengstenberg writes: “It is an undoubted fact, and unanimously admitted even by

the recent opposers of its reference to Him, that the Psalm (Psalm 2) was universally

regarded by the ancient Jews as foretelling the Messiah.” (Hengstenberg, COT, 43)

“At the incarnation the First-begotten was brought into the world (Heb. 1:6). But it was

only at and by His resurrection that His Divinity, as the Only-begotten of the Father, was

manifested and openly attested by God. ‘Made of the seed of David according to the flesh,'

He was then ‘declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness,

by the resurrection from the dead' (Rom. 1:3, 4 kjv).” (Fausset, CCEP, 107)

4. Seed of Abraham

PROPHECY

“In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.” —Genesis 22:18 (See also Gen. 12:2, 3.)

FULFILLMENT

“The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham.” —Matthew 1:1

“Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, ‘And the seeds/ as of many, but as of one, ‘And to your Seed,' who is Christ.” —Galatians 3:16

The importance of this event in Genesis 22:18 is established when we realize that it is the

only time that God swears by Himself in His relationship with the patriarchs.

Matthew Henry says about Genesis 22:18, “In thy Seed, one particular person that shall

descend from thee (for he speaks not of many, but of one, as the apostle observes [Gal.

3:16]), shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, or shall bless themselves, as the phrase is,

Isa. 65:16.” (Henry, MHCWB, 82)

The above passage determines that the Messiah would come from the Hebrew race.

5. Son of Isaac

PROPHECY

“But God said to Abraham ... in Isaac your seed shall be called.” —Genesis 21:12

FULFILLMENT

Jesus,... the son of Isaac.” 3:23, 34 (See also Matt. 1:2.)

Abraham had two sons: Isaac and Ishmael. Now God eliminates one-half of the lineage

of Abraham.

6. Son of Jacob

PROPHECY

“I see him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near; 

A Star shall come out of Jacob, 

A Scepter shall rise out of Israel, 

And batter the brow of Moab, 

And destroy all the sons of tumult.” —Numbers 24:17 (See also Gen. 35:10-12.)

FULFILLMENT

“Jesus,... the son of Jacob.” —Luke 3:23, 34 (See also Matt. 1:2 and Luke 1:33.)

Jewish source: Targum Jonathan on Genesis 35:11, 12 says, “And the Lord said to him, I am El Shaddai: spread forth and multiply; a holy people, and a congregation of prophets and priests, shall be from thy sons whom thou hast begotten, and two kings shall yet from thee go forth. And the land which I gave to Abraham and to Izhak will I give unto thee, and to thy sons after thee will I give the land.” (Ethridge, TOJ, 279)

Jewish source: Targum Onkelos on Numbers 24:17 states, “I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not nigh. When a king shall arise out of Jakob, and the Meshiha be anointed from Israel.” (Ethridge, TOJ, 309)

In the above Targums we can see that the Jews gave Messianic import to these passages. Likewise, the Midrash Bamidbar Rabbah gives a Messianic meaning to this text. Paul Heinisch relates that “at the time of Hadrian (a.d. 132) the Jews revolted against the Roman yoke, they called their leader Barkochba, ‘The Son of the Star.’ For they believed that Balaam's oracle on the star from Jacob was then being fulfilled and that through him God would utterly destroy the Romans.” (Heinisch, CP, 44, 45)

Hengstenberg, in his Christology of the Old Testament, points out that “by this Ruler, the Jews from the earliest times have understood the Messiah, either exclusively, or else principally, with a secondary reference to David. Either its exclusive relation to the Messiah was maintained, or it was allowed to refer indeed, in the first instance, to David; but then both himself and his temporal victories were regarded as typical of Christ, and His spiritual triumphs, which (according to this exposition) the prophet had especially in view.” (Hengstenberg, COT, 34)

Isaac had two sons: Jacob and Esau. Now God eliminates one-half of the lineage of Isaac.

7. Tribe of Judah

PROPHECY

“The scepter shall not depart from Judah,

Nor a lawgiver from between his feet, 

Until Shiloh comes; 

And to Him shall be the obedience of the People.” —Genesis 49:10 (See also Mic. 5:2.)

FULFILLMENT

“Jesus,... the son of Judah.” — Luke 3:23, 33

(See also Matt. 1:2 and Heb. 7:14.)

Jewish source: Targum Jonathan on Genesis 49:10, 11 says, “Kings shall not cease, nor rulers, from the house of Jehuda, nor sapherim teaching the law from his seed, till the time that the King, the Meshiha, shall come, the youngest of his sons; and on account of him shall the peoples flow together. How beauteous is the King, and Meshiha who will arise from the house of Jehuda!” (Ethridge, TOJ, 331)

Jewish source: Targum Pseudo Jonathanon Genesis 49:11 states, “How noble is the King,

Messiah, who is going to rise from the house of Judah.” (Bowker, TRL, 278)

Jacob had twelve sons out of which developed the twelve tribes of the Hebrew nation.

Now God eliminates eleven-twelfths of the tribes of Israel. Joseph had no tribe named after

him, but his two sons Ephraim and Manasseh did become heads of tribes.

8. Family Line of Jesse

PROPHECY

“There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse. And a Branch shall grow out

of his roots.” —Isaiah 11:1 (See also Is. 1:10.)

FULFILLMENT

“Jesus,... the son of Jesse.” —Luke 3:23 , 32 (See also Matt. 1:6.)

Delitzsch comments, “Out of the stumps of Jesse, i.e., out of the remnant of the chosen royal family which has sunk down to the insignificance of the house from which it sprang, there comes forth a twig (choter), which promises to supply the place of the trunk and crown; and down below, in the roots covered with earth, and only rising a little above it, there shows itself a netzer, i.e., a fresh green shoot (from natzer, to shine or blossom). In the historical account of the fulfillment, even the ring of the words of the prophecy is noticed: the netzer, at first so humble and insignificant, was a poor despised Nazarene” (Matt. 2:23).

(Delitzsch, BCPI, 281, 282)

9. House of David

PROPHECY

“ ‘Behold, the days are coming,’ says the Lord, ‘That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness; 

A king shall reign and prosper, and execute judgment and righteousness in the land.’” —Jeremiah 23:5

FULFILLMENT

“Jesus,... the son of David ” —Luke 3:23, 31

(See also Matt. 1:1; 9:27; 15:22; 20:30, 31; 21:9, 15; 22:41-46; Mark 9:10; 10:47, 48; Luke 18:38, 39; Acts 13:22, 23; Rev. 22:16.)

Jewish source: The Messiah as being referred to as the “Son of David” is scattered throughout the Talmuds. 

Driver says about 2 Samuel 17:11, “Here Nathan comes to the main subject of his prophecy—the promise relating not to David himself, but to his posterity, and the declaration that it is not David who will build a house for Yahweh, but Yahweh who will build a house (i.e., a family) for David.” (Driver, NHT, 275)

Jacob Minkin, in his book titled The World of Moses Maimonides, gives the view of this learned Jewish scholar: “Dismissing the mystical speculations concerning the Messiah, his origin, activity, and the marvelous superhuman powers ascribed to him, Maimonides insisted that he must be regarded as a mortal human being, differing from his fellow-men only in the fact that he will be greater, wiser, and more resplendent than they. He must be a descendant of the House of David and like him, occupy himself with the Study of the Torah and observance of its commandments.” (Minkin, WMM, 63)

“Behold, the days are coming” is a common expression used in reference to the entrance of the Messianic era (see Jer. 31:27-34). (Laetsch, BCJ, 189)

Jesse had at least eight sons (see 1 Sam. 16:10,11). Now God eliminates all of Jesse’s sons

except one: David.

10. Born at Bethlehem

PROPHECY

“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, 

Though you are little among the Thousands of Judah, 

Yet out of you shall come forth to Me 

The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, 

From everlasting.” —Micah 5:2

FULFILLMENT

“Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea.” —Matthew 2:1

See also Matt. 2:4; Luke 2:4-7; John 7:42.)

In Matthew 2:6 the scribes told Herod with great assurance that Christ would be born in Bethlehem. It was well known among the Jews that Christ would come from Bethlehem (see John 7:42). It is only fitting that Bethlehem, meaning the house of bread, should be the birthplace of the one who is the Bread of Life. (Henry, MHC, 1414)

God now eliminates all the cities in the world, save one, for the entrance of His incarnate Son.

11. Presented with Gifts

PROPHECY

“The kings of Tarshish and of the isles will bring presents;

the kings of Sheba and Seba will offer gifts.”

—Psalm 72:10 (See also Is. 60:6.)

FULFILLMENT

“Wise men from the East came to Jerusalem ... and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him.” —Matthew 2:1,11

The historic application of this passage is to Solomon. The messianic application is amplified in verses 12 through 15 (Ps. 72). 

The inhabitants of Seba and Sheba, the Sabeans, lived in Arabia. (Nezikin, BT, 941,1006) Matthew Henry says about Matthew 2, verses 1 and 11, that the wise men were “men of the east, who were noted for their soothsaying (Isa. 2:6). Arabia is called the land of the east (Gen. 25:6) and the Arabians are called Men of the east (Judg. 6:3). The presents they brought were the products of that country.” (Henry, MHC, 16)

12. Herod Kills Children

PROPHECY

“Thus says the Lord:

‘A voice was heard in Ramah,

Lamentation and bitter weeping,

Rachel weeping for her children,

Refusing to be comforted for her

Children, Because they are no more’” 

—Jeremiah 31:15

FULFILLMENT

“Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.” —Matthew 2:16

The dispersion and extermination of Israel is spoken of in Jeremiah 31:17,18. What does Herod murdering the infants of Bethlehem have to do with the deportation? Was Matthew mistaken when he viewed Jeremiah’s prophecy as fulfilled in Herod’s atrocities (Matt. 2:17, 18) or the murder of the innocents as a type of the destruction of Israel or Judah? Laetsch says:

No. Certainly not. The entire context of ch. 31, beginning ch. 30:20 and continuing to ch. 33:26, is Messianic. The four chapters speak of the approach of the Lord’s salvation, of the coming of Messiah to re-establish the Kingdom of David in the form of a new covenant, of which forgiveness of sins is to be the foundation (ch. 31:31-34); a kingdom in which every weary and sorrowful soul shall be fully comforted (w. 12-14, 25). As an example of this comfort the Lord introduces the consolation to be extended to mothers who had suffered great loss for the sake of Christ, the cruel murder of their infant sons. (Laetsch, BCJ, 250)

2B. Prophecies Concerning His Nature

13. His Pre-Existence

PROPHECY

“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,

Though you are little among the

Thousands of Judah,

Yet out of you shall come to Me

The One to be Ruler in Israel,

Whose goings forth are from of old,

From everlasting.”

—Micah 5:2

FULFILLMENT

“And He is before [or, has existed prior to]

all things, and in Him all things consist.”

—Colossians 1:17 (See also John 17:5, 24;

Rev.l:l, 2; 1:17; 2:8; 8:58; 22:13.)

Jewish source: Targum Isaiah says, “The prophet saith to the house of David, A child has been born to us, a son has been given to us; and He has taken the law upon Himself to keep it, and His name has been called from of old, Wonderful counselor, Mighty God, He who lives forever, the Anointed one (or Messiah), in whose days peace shall increase upon us” (Is. 9:6). (Stenning, TI, 32)

Jewish source: Targum Isaiah states, “Thus saith the Lord, the King of Israel, and his saviour the Lord of hosts; I am He, I am He that is from of old; yea, the everlasting ages are mine, and beside me there is no God” (Is. 44:6). (Stenning, TI, 148) Hengstenberg says about Micah 5:2, “The existence of the Messiah in general, before His temporal birth at Bethlehem, is asserted; and then His eternity in contrast with all time is mentioned here.” (Hengstenberg, COT, 573)

14. He Shall Be Called Lord

PROPHECY

“The Lord said to my Lord,

‘Sit at My right hand,

Till I make Your enemies Your

footstool.’”

—Psalm 110:1 (See also Jer. 23:6.

FULFILLMENT

“For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” —Luke 2:11

“He said to them, ‘How then does David in the Spirit call Him “Lord,” saying: 

“The Lord said to my Lord,

‘Sit at My right hand,

Till I make Your enemies Your

footstool’”?

If David then calls Him “Lord,” how is He

his Son?’”

—Matthew 22:43-45

Jewish source: The Midrash Tehillim, commentary on the Psalms, a.d. 200-500, on Psalm 21:1 says: “God calls King Messiah by His own name. But what is His name? Answer: Jehovah is a man of war” (Ex. 15:3). (Laetsch, BCJ, 193)

Jewish source: Echa Rabbathi, a.d. 200-500 (Lamentations in Large Commentary on the Pentateuch and Five Scrolls), on Lamentations 1:16: “‘What is the name of Messiah?’ R. Abba ben Cahana (a.d. 200-300) has said: Jehovah is His name, and this is proved by ‘This is His name’” (Jer. 23:6). (Laetsch, BCJ, 193)

“The Lord said unto my Lord. ‘Jehovah said unto Adonai,’ or ‘my Lord,’—i.e., the Lord of David, not in his merely personal capacity, but as representative of Israel, literal and spiritual. It is because he addresses Him as Israel’s and the Church’s Lord, that Christ in the three Gospels quotes it. ‘David calls Him Lord,’ not ‘His Lord.’” (Fausset, CCE, 346)

15. Shall Be Immanuel (God with Us)

PROPHECY

“Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.”

—Isaiah 7:14

FULFILLMENT

“ ‘Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,’ which is translated, ‘God with us.’ ”

—Matthew 1:23 (See also Luke 7:16.)

Jewish source: Targum Isaiah on Isaiah 7:14 says, “Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold a damsel is with child, and shall bear a son, and shall call His name Immanuel.” (Stenning, TI, 24)

Delitzsch says about Isaiah 9:6, “There is no reason why we should take El in this name of the Messiah in any other sense than in Immanu-El; not to mention the fact that El in Isaiah is always a name of God, and that the prophet was ever strongly conscious of the antithesis between El and Adam, as ch. 31:3 (cf. Hosea 11:9) clearly shows.” (Delitzsch, BCPI, 252)

16. Shall Be a Prophet

PROPHECY

“I will raise up for them a Prophet like

you from among their brethren, and

will put My words in His mouth, and

He shall speak to them all that I

command Him.”

—Deuteronomy 18:18

FULFILLMENT

“So the multitudes said, ‘This is Jesus, the

prophet from Nazareth of Galilee.’ “

—Matthew 21:11

(See also Luke 7:16; John 4:19; 6:14; 7:40.)

Jewish source: The Jewish scholar Maimonides, in a letter to the community of Yemen, denounces a purporter of the Messiahship by writing: “The Messiah will be a very great Prophet, greater than all the Prophets with the exception of Moses our teacher His status will be higher than that of the Prophets and more honourable, Moses alone excepted.

The Creator, blessed be He, will single him out with features wherewith He had not singled out Moses; for it is said with reference to him, ‘And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord; and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither decide after the hearing of his ears’” (Is. 11:3). (Cohen, TM, 221) 

Christ compared to Moses:

1. He was delivered from a violent death in His infancy.

2. He was willing to become Redeemer of His people (Ex.3:10).

3. He worked as mediator between Yahweh and Israel (Ex. 19:16; 20:18).

4. He made intercession on behalf of sinful people (Ex. 32:7-14, 33; Num. 14:11-20).

“Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet” (John 4:19).

Kligerman says, “The use of the term ‘prophet’ by the Jews of Jesus’ day shows not only that they expected the Messiah to be a prophet in accordance with the promise in Deuteronomy eighteen, but also that He who performed these miracles was indeed the Promised Prophet.” (Kligerman, MPOT, 22, 23)

“For the law was given through Moses; but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ” (John 1:17).

17. Priest

PROPHECY

“The Lord has sworn and will not relent, ‘You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.’”

—Psalm 110:4

FULFILLMENT

“Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus.”

—Hebrews 3:1

“So also Christ did not glorify Himself to become a High Priest, but it was He who said to Him, ‘You are My Son, today I have begotten You.’ As He also says in another place, ‘You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.’”

—Hebrews 5:5, 6

The final victory of Messiah’s people over the world and Satan is ... certain. The oath of God did not accompany the Aaronic priesthood, as it does our Melchizedek-like Priest, who “is made not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life.” 

“After the order of Melchizedek” is explained, Heb. 7:15, “after the similitude of Melchizedek.” The oath of covenant on the part of the Father to the Son is for the comfort of Messiah’s people. Uzziah’s punishment for his usurpation of the functions of priest shows that David cannot be the King-Priest here described (II Chron. 26:16-21). The extraordinary oath of God shows that the King-Priesthood here is something unparalleled. David died, but this Melchizedek-like Priest lives forever. Zech. 6:9-15, especially 13, similarly describes Messiah “He shall sit and rule upon His throne, and He shall be a Priest upon His throne.” (Fausset, CCE, 347)

18. Judge

PROPHECY

“For the Lord is our Judge, the Lord is

our Lawgiver, the Lord is our King; He

will Save us.”

—Isaiah 33:22

FULFILLMENT

“I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I

judge; and My judgment is righteous,

because I do not seek My own will but

the will of the Father who sent Me.”

—John 5:30 (See also 2 Tim. 4:1.)

Jewish source: Targum Isaiah on Isaiah 33:22 says, “For the Lord is our judge, who brought us out of Egypt by his might; the Lord is our teacher, who gave us the instruction of his law from Sinai; the Lord is our King, he shall deliver us, and execute a righteous vengeance for us on the armies of Gog.” (Stenning, TI, 110) 

“Judge ... Lawgiver ... King—perfect ideal of the theocracy, to be realized under Messiah alone: the judicial, legislative, and administrative functions as King, to be exercised by Him in person Isaiah 11:4; 32: 1; James. 4:12).” (Fausset, CCE, 666)

19. King

PROPHECY

“Yet I have set My King on My holy hill of Zion.”

—Psalm 2:6 (See also Jer.23:5; Zech. 9:9.)

FULFILLMENT

“And they put up over His head the accusation written against Him:

THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.”

—Matthew 27:37

(See also Matt. 21:5; John 18:33-38.)

20. Special Anointing of Holy Spirit

PROPHECY

“The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.”

—Isaiah 11:2

(See also Ps. 45:7; Is. 42:1; 61:1, 2.)

FULFILLMENT

“When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.’”

—Matthew 3:16,17 (See also Matt. 12:17-21; Mark 1:10, 11; Luke 4:15-21, 43; John 1:32.)

Jewish source: Targum Isaiah on Isaiah 11:1-4 says, “And a king shall come forth from the sons of Jesse, and an Anointed One (or Messiah) from his sons’ sons shall grow up. And there shall rest upon him a spirit from before the Lord, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge, and of the fear of the Lord: and the Lord shall bring him to his fear: and not according to the sight of his eyes shall he judge, nor exercise judgement according to the hearing of his ears. But he shall judge with truth the poor, and adjudge with faithfulness the needy among the people.” (Stenning, TI, 40)

Jewish source: In the Babylonian Talmud, the Sanhedrin II says, “The Messiah—as it is written, And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge of the fear of the Lord. And shall make him of quick understanding [wa-hariho] in the fear of the Lord. R. Alexandri said: This teaches that he loaded him with good deeds and suffering as a mill [is laden].”(Nezikin, BT, 626, 627)

21. His Zeal for God

PROPHECY

“Because zeal for Your house has eaten me up, and the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me.”

—Psalm 69:9

FULFILLMENT

“When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple....

And He said,... ‘Take these things away! Do not make My Father’s house a house of merchandise!”’

—John 2:15, 16

A. R. Fausset writes: “For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up—consumes me like a flame with its very intensity (Ps. 119:139). The expansion of ‘for thy sake (Ps. 69:7): cf.

John 2:17 as a specimen of Messiah’s zeal for the honour of the house of God. And the

reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me—in consequence of my glow¬

ing ‘zeal’ for thine honour, the reproaches aimed at thee fall upon me.” (Fausset, CCE, 245)

3B. Prophecies Concerning His Ministry

22. Preceded by Messenger

PROPHECY

“A voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; Make straight in the desert a highway for our God.’”

—Isaiah 40:3 (See also Mai. 3:1.)

FULFILLMENT

“John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!”’ 

—Matthew 3:1, 2 (See also Matt. 3:3;

11:10; John 1:23; Luke 1:17.)

Jewish source: Targum Isaiah on Isaiah 40:3 says, “The voice of one that crieth, Prepare

ye a way in the wilderness before the people of the Lord, tread down paths in the desert

before the congregation of our God.” (Stenning, TI, 130)

23. Ministry to Begin in Galilee

PROPHECY

“Nevertheless the gloom will not be upon her who is distressed, as when at first He lightly esteemed the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, and afterward more heavily oppressed her, by the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, in Galilee of the Gentiles.”

—Isaiah 9:1

FULFILLMENT

“Now when Jesus heard that John had been put into prison, He departed to Galilee. And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali. From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’”

—Matthew 4:12, 13, 17

24. Ministry of Miracles

PROPHECY

“Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, And the ears of the deaf will be unstopped. Then the lame will leap like a deer, And the tongue of the dumb will sing For joy.”

—Isaiah 35:5, 6 (See also Is. 32:3,4.)

FULFILLMENT

“And Jesus was going about all the cities and the villages, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness.”

—Matthew 9:35 (See also Matt.9:32, 33;

11:4-6; Mark 7:33-35; John 5:5-9; 9:6-11;

11:43, 44,47.)

25. Teacher of Parables

PROPHECY

“I will open my mouth in a parable;

I will utter dark sayings of old.”

—Psalm 78:2

FULFILLMENT

“All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable He did not speak to them.”

—Matthew 13:34

26. He Was to Enter the Temple

PROPHECY

“And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple.”

—Malachi 3:1

FULFILLMENT

“Then Jesus went into the temple of God and drove out all those who bought and old in the temple.”

—Matthew 21:12

(See also John 1:14; 2:19-21.)

27. He Was to Enter Jerusalem on a Donkey

PROPHECY

“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!

Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem!

Behold, your King is coming to you;

He is just and having salvation, humble,

lowly and riding on a donkey, a colt,

the foal of a donkey.”

—Zechariah 9:9

FULFILLMENT

“And they brought him to Jesus. And they threw their own clothes on the colt, and they set Jesus on him. And as He went, many spread their clothes on the road. Then, as He was now drawing near the descent of the Mount of Olives.”

—Luke 19:35-37 (See also Matt. 21:6-11.)

28. “Stone of Stumbling” to Jews

PROPHECY

“The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.”

—Psalm 118:22 (See also Is. 8:14, 28:1.)

FULFILLMENT

“Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, ‘The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.’”

—1 Peter 2:7 (See also Rom. 9:32, 33.)

Jewish source: Targum Isaiah on Isaiah 8:13-15 says, “The Lord of hosts, him shall ye call

holy; and let him be your fear and let him be your strength. And if ye will not hearken, his

Memra shall be amongst you for vengeance and for a stone of smiting, and for a rock of

offence to the two houses of the princes of Israel, for a breaking, and for a stumbling,

because the house of Israel hath been separated from them of the house of Judah who dwell

in Jerusalem. And many shall stumble against them, and shall fall, and be broken and be

snared, and be taken.” (Stenning, TI, 28)

29. “Light” to Gentiles

PROPHECY

“The Gentiles shall come to your light,

And kings to the brightness of your rising.”

—Isaiah 60:3 (See also Is. 49:6.)

FULFILLMENT

“For so the Lord has commanded us, ‘I have set you as a light to the Gentiles, that you should be for salvation to the ends of the earth/ Now when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord.”

—Acts 13:47, 48

(See also Acts 26:23; 28:28.)

4B. Prophecies Concerning Events after His Burial

30. Resurrection

PROPHECY

“For You will not leave my soul in Sheol; nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.” —Psalm 16:10

FULFILLMENT

His soul was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption.” —Acts 2:31

(See also Matt. 28:6; Mark 16:6; Luke 24:46; Acts 13:33.)

Jewish source: Friedlaender says, “Ibn Ezra frequently takes occasion to assert his firm belief in the resurrection of the dead.” (Friedlaender, EWA, 100) 

Jewish source: The Sanhedrin II, Babylonian Talmud states the following: “Mishnah. All Israel have a portion in the world to come, for it is written, ‘Thy people are all righteous; they shall inherit the land forever, the branch of My planting, the work of My hands, that I may be glorified/ But the following have no portion there-in: He who maintains that resurrection is not a biblical doctrine, the Torah was not divinely revealed.” (Nezikin, BT, 601)

31. Ascension

PROPHECY

“You have ascended on high .”

—Psalm 68:18

FULFILLMENT

“He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.”

—Acts 1:9

32. Seated at the Right Hand of God

PROPHECY

“The Lord said to my Lord, ‘Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool.’”

—Psalm 110:1

FULFILLMENT

“When He had by Himself purged our sins, [He] sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.” 

—Hebrews 1:3

(See also Mark 16:19; Acts 2:34, 35.)

5B. Prophecies Fulfilled in One Day

The following twenty-nine prophecies from the Old Testament, which speak of the betrayal,

trial, defeat, and burial of our Lord Jesus Christ, were spoken at various times by many dif¬

ferent voices during the five centuries from 1000-500 b.c. Yet all of them were literally ful¬

filled in Jesus in one twenty-four-hour period of time.

33. Betrayed by a Friend

PROPHECY

“Even my familiar friend in whom I trusted,who ate my bread, has lifted up his heel against me.”

—Psalm 41:9

(See also Psalm 55:12-14.)

FULFILLMENT

“Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him.”

—Matthew 10:4

(See also Matt. 26:49, 50; John 13:21.)

Psalm 41:9: “Lit., ‘the man of my peace’; he who saluted me with the kiss of peace, as

Judas did” (Matthew 26:49: cf. the type, Jeremiah 20:10). (Fausset, CCE, 191)

34. Sold for Thirty Pieces of Silver

PROPHECY

“Then I said to them, ‘If it is agreeable to you, give me my wages; and if not, refrain.’ So they weighed out for my wages thirty pieces of silver.” —Zechariah 11:12

FULFILLMENT

“‘What are you willing to give me if I deliver Him to you?’ And they counted out to him thirty pieces of silver.” —Matthew 26:15 (See also Matt. 27:3.)

36. Price Given for Potter’s Field

PROPHECY

“So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them into the house of the Lord for the potter.” —Zechariah 11:13 

FULFILLMENT

“And they consulted together and bought with them the potter’s field, to bury strangers in.” —Matthew 27:7

In the previous four prophecies we find both prophesied and fulfilled: 

1. Betrayal

2. By a friend

3. For thirty pieces (not twenty-nine)

4. Of silver (not gold)

5. Thrown down (not placed)

6. In the house of the Lord

7. Money used to buy potter’s field

37. Forsaken by His Disciples

PROPHECY

“Strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.” —Zechariah 13:7 

FULFILLMENT

“Strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.” —Zechariah 13:7 

Laetsch writes that Zechariah 13:7 is “a clear prophecy of the offense taken by the disci¬ ples when Christ was smitten. So Christ Himself interprets these words (Matthew 26:31; Mark 14:27). They were fulfilled (see Matthew 26:56; Mark 14:50 ff.). Yet the Lord would not forsake the sheep. The Lord Himself, acting in and through the person of His ‘Fellow’ (John 5:19f., 30), will turn His hand upon (Gr. N.), come to the aid of the little ones (Gr. N.), His despondent, terrified disciples (Luke 24:4f., 11, 17ff., 37; John 20:2, llff., 19, 26). These weaklings and deserters became the courageous, invincible heralds of the Messiah’s kingdom.” (Laetsch, BCMP, 491, 492)

38. Accused by False Witnesses

PROPHECY

“Fierce witnesses rise up; they ask me things that I do not know.”

—Psalm 35:11

FULFILLMENT

“Now the chief priests, the elders, and all the council sought false testimony against Jesus to put Him to death, but found none. Even though many false witnesses came forward, they found none.”

—Matthew 26:59, 60

39. Silent before Accusers

PROPHECY

“He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth.”

—Isaiah 53:7

FULFILLMENT

“And while He was being accused by the chief priests and elders, He answered nothing.”

—Matthew 27:12

40. Wounded and Bruised

PROPHECY

“But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.”

—Isaiah 53:5 (See also Zech. 13:6.)

FULFILLMENT

“Then he released Barabbas to them; and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered Him to be crucified.”

—Matthew 27:26

“A bodily wound: not mere mental sorrow; mecholal from chalal—literally pierced; minutely appropriate to Messiah, whose hands, feet, and side were pierced (Psalm 22:16).” (Fausset, CCE, 730)

“But from the crown of the head, which was crowned with thorns, to the soles of his feet, which were nailed to the cross, nothing appeared but wounds and bruises.” (Henry, MHC, 826)

41. Smitten and Spit

PROPHECY

“I gave My back to those who struck Me, and My cheeks to those who plucked out the beard; I did not hide My face from shame and spitting.”

—Isaiah 50:6 (See also Mic. 5:1.)

FULFILLMENT

“Then they spat in His face and beat Him; and others struck Him with the palms of their hands.

—Matthew 26:67

(See also Luke 22:63.)

Jewish source: Targum Isaiah on Isaiah 50:6 says, “I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that pluck out the hair; I hid not my face from humiliation and spitting.” (Stenning, TI, 170)

Henry states, “In this submission, He resigned Himself, (1.) To be scourged;... (2.) To be buffeted;... (3.) To be spit upon;... All this Christ underwent for us, and voluntarily, to convince us of His willingness to save us.” (Henry, MHC, 816)

42. Mocked

PROPHECY

“All who see Me ridicule Me; They shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, ‘He trusted in the Lord; let Him rescue Him; let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!’”

—Psalm 22:7, 8

FULFILLMENT

“When they had twisted a crown of horns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand; and they bowed the knee before Him and mocked Him, saying, ‘Hail, King of the Jews!’”

—Matthew 27:29

(See also Matt. 27:41-43.)

43. Fell under the Cross

PROPHECY

“My knees are weak through fasting; and my flesh is feeble from lack of fatness. I also have become a reproach to them; when they look at me, they shake their heads.”

—Psalm 109:24, 25

FULFILLMENT

“And He, bearing His cross, went out to a place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha.”

—John 19:17

“Now as they led Him away, they laid hold of a certain man, Simon a Cyrenian, who was coming from the country, and on him they laid the cross that he might bear it after Jesus.”

—Luke 23:26 (See also Matt.27:31, 32.)

Evidently Jesus was so weak that, under the weight of the heavy cross, His knees were giv¬

ing way, so they had to place it on another.

44. Hands and Feet Pierced

PROPHECY

“They pierced My hands and My feet.”

—Psalm 22:16

(See also Zech. 12:10.)

FULFILLMENT

“And when they had come to the place called Calvary, there they crucified Him.”

—Luke 23:33 (See also John 20:25.)

Jesus was crucified in the usual Roman manner: The hands and feet were pierced by large, dull spikes that attached the body to the wooden cross or stake.

45. Crucified with Thieves

PROPHECY

“Because He poured out His soul unto death, and He was numbered with the transgressors.”

—Isaiah 53:12

FULFILLMENT

“Then the two robbers were crucified with Him, one on the right and another on the left.”

—Matthew 27:38 (See also Mark 15:27,28.)

Blinzler states, “Crucifixion was unknown in Jewish criminal law. The hanging on a gibbet, which was prescribed by Jewish law for idolaters and blasphemers who had been stoned, was not a death penalty, but an additional punishment after death designed to brand the executed person as one accursed of God, in accordance with Deut. 21:23 (LXX): ‘For he is accursed of God that hangeth on a tree.’ The Jews applied these words also to one who had been crucified. If crucifixion was the most shameful and degrading death penalty even in the eyes of the pagan world, the Jews in the time of Jesus regarded a person so executed as being, over and above, accursed of God.” (Blinzler, TJ, 247, 248)

The Encyclopedia Americana records: “The history of crucifixion as a mode of punishment for crime must be studied as a part of the Roman system of jurisprudence.... The Hebrews, for example, adopted or accepted it only under Roman compulsion: under their own system, before Palestine became Roman territory, they inflicted the death penalty by stoning.” (EA, 8:253)

“In 63 b.c., Pompey’s legions cut their way into the Judean capital. Palestine became a Roman province, though nominally a puppet Jewish dynasty survived” (Wilson, DDWD, 262).

Thus, the type of death pictured in Isaiah 53 and Psalm 22 did not come into practice under the Jewish system until hundreds of years after the account was written.

46. Made Intercession for His Persecutors

PROPHECY

“And He bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.”

—Isaiah 53:12

FULFILLMENT

“Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.”

—Luke 23:34

“This office He began on the cross (Luke 23:34), and now continues in heaven (Heb. 9:24; 1 John 2:1).” (Fausset, CCE, 733)

47. Rejected by His Own People

PROPHECY

“He is despised and rejected by men, a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, faces from Him; He was despised, we did not esteem Him.”

—Isaiah 53:3

(See also Pss. 69:8; 118:22.)

FULFILLMENT

“For even His brothers did not believe in Him. ‘Have any of the rulers or the Pharisees believed in Him?’”

—John 7:5,48

Matt. 21:42,43; John 1:11.)

“This was fulfilled in Christ, whose brethren did not believe on Him (John 7:5), who came to His own, and His own received Him not (John 1:11), and who was forsaken by His disciples, whom He had been free with as His brethren.” (Henry, MHC, 292)

NOTE: Further confirmation of the predictive nature of Isaiah 53 is that it was common for Jewish interpreters before the time of Christ to teach that here Isaiah spoke of the Jewish Messiah (see S. R. Driver, et al., trans., The Fifty-Third Chapter of Isaiah According to Jewish Interpreters). Only after early Christians began using the text apologetically with great force did it become in rabbinical teaching an expression of the suffering Jewish nation. This view is implausible in the context of Isaiah’s standard references to the Jewish people in the first-person plural (“our” or “we,”) whereas he always refers to the Messiah in the third-person singular, as in Isaiah 53 (“he” and “his” and “him”). (Geisler, BECA, 612)

48. Hated Without a Cause

PROPHECY

“Those who hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of my head.”

—Psalm 69:4

(See also Is. 49:7.)

FULFILLMENT

“But this happened that the word might be fulfilled which is written in their law, ‘They hated Me without a cause.’”

—John 15:25

49. Friends Stood Afar Off

PROPHECY

“My loved ones and my friends stand aloof from my plague, and my relatives stand afar off.”

—Psalm 38:11

FULFILLMENT

“But all His acquaintances, and the women who followed Him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things.”

—Luke 23:49

(See also Matt. 27:55, 56; Mark 15:40.)

“At the very time when my affliction would have required them to stand nearer and more steadily by me than ever, they are afraid of the danger that they would incur by seeming to take part with me. While the enemies are near, the friends are far. So in the case of Messiah”

(Matt. 26:56; 27:55; Luke 23:49; John 16:32). (Fausset, CCE, 184)

50. People Shook Their Heads

PROPHECY

“I also have become a reproach to them; When they look at me, they shake their heads.”

—Psalm 109:25 (See also Ps. 22:7.)

FULFILLMENT

“And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads.”

—Matthew 27:39

“A gesture implying that there is no hope for the sufferer, at whom they contemptuously sneer” (Job 16:4; Ps. 44:14). (Ethridge, TOJ, 148) 

“As though it was all over with me: and I and my cause were irretrievably ruined” (Ps. 22:7; Matt. 27:39). (Ethridge, TOJ, 345)

51. Stared Upon

PROPHECY

“I can count all My bones.

They look and stare at Me.”

—Psalm 22:17

FULFILLMENT

“And the people stood looking on.”

—Luke 23:35

52. Garments Parted and Lots Cast

PROPHECY

“They divide My garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots.”

—Psalm 22:18

FULFILLMENT

“The soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His garments and made four parts, to each soldier a part, and also the tunic. Now the tunic was without seam, woven from the top in one piece. They said ... ‘Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be/”

—John 19:23, 24

The Old Testament statement in Psalm 22 almost seems to be contradictory until we look at the account at the scene of the cross. The garments were parted among the soldiers, but the vesture was awarded to one by the casting of lots. 

53. To Suffer Thirst

PROPHECY

“And for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.”

—Psalm 69:21

FULFILLMENT

“After this, Jesus ... said, ‘I thirst!’”

—John 19:28

54. Gall and Vinegar Offered to Him

PROPHECY

“They also gave me gall for my food,

and for my thirst they gave me vinegar

to drink.”

—Psalm 69:21

FULFILLMENT

“They gave Him sour wine mingled with gall to drink. But when He had tasted it, He would not drink.”

—Matthew 27:34

(See also John 19:28, 29.)

A. R. Fausset writes: “His bitter sufferings might have been expected to soften even His enemies, who had caused those sufferings; but instead of cordials, they gave Him gall and vinegar. Twice vinegar was offered to the Saviour on the cross—first vinegar mixed with gall (Matthew 27:34), and myrrh (Mark 15:23); but when He had tasted it, He would not drink it; for He would not meet His sufferings in a state of stupefaction, which is the effect of myrrh. As given to criminals, it was a kindness; as given to the righteous Sin-bearer, it was an insult. Next, in order to fulfill this Scripture, He cried T thirst,’ and vinegar was given Him to drink” (John 19:28; Matt. 27:48). (Fausset, CCE, 246)

55. His Forsaken Cry

PROPHECY

“My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”

—Psalm 22:1

FULFILLMENT

“And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?’ that is, ‘My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?’”

—Matthew 27:46

Psalm 22: “The expressive repetition twice (v. 1) of the cry, ‘my God,’ implies that the Sufferer clung firmly to this truth, that God was still His God, in spite of all appearances to the contrary. This was His antidote to despair, and the pledge that God would yet interpose as His Deliverer.” (Fausset, CCE, 148)

This cry turned the attention of the people back to Psalm 22. Christ was quoting the first verse of the psalm, and that psalm is a clear prophecy of the crucifixion.

56. Committed Himself to God

PROPHECY

“Into Your hand I commit my spirit.”

—Psalm 31:5

FULFILLMENT

And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, He said, ‘Father, “into Your hands I commit My spirit.’””

—Luke 23:46

57. Bones Not Broken

PROPHECY

“He guards all his bones; not one of them is broken.”

—Psalm 34:20

FULFILLMENT

“But when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs.”

—John 19:33

Although not stated in Scripture, there are two other prophecies that concern His bones

that undoubtedly had an exact fulfillment.

1. “And all My bones are out of joint” (Ps. 22:14). The disjointing of bones while hanging on the cross by the hands and feet could easily come about, especially when we note that His body was attached to the cross while it was lying on the ground.

2. “I can count all My bones. They look and stare at me” (Ps. 22:17). All His bones could easily be seen while He was left hanging on the cross. The extension of His body during crucifixion would tend to make the bones more prominent than usual.

58. Heartbroken

PROPHECY

“My heart is like wax; it has melted within Me.”

—Psalm 22:14

FULFILLMENT

But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out.”

—John 19:34

The blood and water that came forth from His pierced side are evidence that the heart

had literally burst.

59. His Side Pierced

PROPHECY

“They will look on Me whom they pierced.”

—Zechariah 12:10

FULFILLMENT

“But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear.”

—John 19:34

Theodore Laetsch writes: “Now a remarkable statement is added. The Lord Jehovah speaks of Himself as having been pierced by men who shall look upon Him and shall mourn for Him.

“The word pierce—thrust through—occurs nine times as a thrust by a sword or spear (Num. 25:8; Judg. 9:54; 1 Sam. 31:4; 1 Chron. 10:4; Is. 13:15; Jer. 37:10, wounded’; 51:4; Zech. 12:10; 13:3); it occurs once as pierced by pangs of hunger described as more painful than a sword thrust” (Lam. 4:9). (Laetsch, BCMP, 483) 

60. Darkness over the Land

PROPHECY

‘“And it shall come to pass in that day,’ says the Lord God, ‘That I will make the sun go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in broad daylight.”’

—Amos 8:9

FULFILLMENT

“Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land.” —Matthew 27:45

Because the Jews reckoned twelve hours from sunrise to sunset, it would make the sixth hour near noon and the ninth hour about three o’clock.

61. Buried in a Rich Man’s Tomb

PROPHECY

“And they made His grave with the

wicked—but with the rich at His death.”

—Isaiah 53:9

FULFILLMENT

“There came a rich man from Arimathea,

named Joseph... and [he] asked for the

body of Jesus When Joseph had

taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean

linen cloth, and laid it in his new tomb.”

—Matthew 27:57-60

4A. CONFIRMATION OF JESUS AS THE MESSIAH, THROUGH FULFILLED PROPHECIES

IB. Objection: Fulfilled Prophecy in Jesus Was Deliberately Engineered by Him

In The Passover Plot, radical New Testament scholar H. J. Schonfield proposes that Jesus was an innocent messianic pretender who connived to “fulfill” prophecy in order to substantiate His claims. (Schonfield, H.J., 35-38) 

First of all, this was contrary to Jesus’ honest character as noted above. It assumes He was one of the greatest deceivers of all time. It presupposes that He was not even a good person, to say nothing of the perfect man the Gospels affirm Him to be. There are several lines of evidence that combine to demonstrate that this is a completely implausible thesis. 

Second, there is no way Jesus could have controlled many events necessary for the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah. For example, He had no control over where He would be born (Mic. 5:2), how He would be born of a virgin (Is. 7:14), when He would die (Dan. 9:25), what tribe (Gen. 49:10) and lineage He would be from (2 Sam. 7:12), or other facts about His life that have corresponded to prophecy.

Third, there is no way short of being supernatural that Jesus could have manipulated the events and people in His life to respond in exactly the way necessary for it to appear that He was fulfilling all these prophecies, including John’s heralding Him (Matt. 3), His accuser’s reactions (Matt. 27:12), how the soldiers cast lots for His garments (John 19:23, 24), and how they would

pierce His side with a spear (John 19:34). 

Indeed even Schonfield admits that the plot failed when the Romans actually pierced Christ. The fact is that anyone with all this power would have to be divine—the very thing the Passover hypothesis attempts to avoid. In short, it takes a bigger miracle to believe the Passover Plot than to accept these prophecies as supernatural. (Geisler, BECA, 585)

Answer: The above objection might seem plausible until we realize that many of the prophecies concerning the Messiah were totally beyond the human control of Jesus:

1. Place of birth (Mic. 5:2)

2. Time of birth (Dan. 9:25; Gen. 49:10)

3. Manner of birth (Is. 7:14)

4. Betrayal

5. Manner of death (Ps. 22:16)

6. People’s reactions (mocking, spitting, staring, etc.)

7. Piercing

8. Burial

2B. Objection: Fulfilled Prophecy in Jesus Was Coincidental—an Accident

“Why, you could find some of these prophecies fulfilled in the deaths of Kennedy, King, Nasser, and other great figures,” replies the critic. 

Answer: Yes, one could possibly find one or two prophecies fulfilled in the lives of other men, but not all sixty-one major prophecies! In fact, for years, if you could have found someone other than Jesus, living or dead, who fulfilled half of the predictions concerning Messiah, as listed in Messiah in Both Testaments by Fred John Meldau, the Christian Victory Publishing Company of Denver offered to give you a one-thousand-dollar reward. There are a lot of men in the universities who could have used this extra cash!

H. Harold Hartzler, of the American Scientific Affiliation, Goshen College, in the foreword of Peter Stoner’s book writes: “The manuscript for Science Speaks has been carefully reviewed by a committee of the American Scientific Affiliation members and by the Executive Council of the same group and has been found, in general, to be dependable and accurate in regard to the scientific material presented. The mathematical analysis included is based upon principles of probability which are thoroughly sound and Professor Stoner has applied these principles in a proper and convincing way.” (Hartzler, “F,” as cited in Stoner, SS) 

The following probabilities are taken from Stoner in Science Speaks to show that coincidence is ruled out by the science of probability. Stoner says that by using the modern science of probability in reference to eight prophecies (i.—No. 10; 2.—No. 22; 3.—No. 27; 4.—Nos. 33 & 44; 5.—No. 34; 6.—Nos. 35 & 36; 7.—No. 39; 8.— Nos. 44 8c 45 [crucified]),

We find that the chance that any man might have lived down to the present time and fulfilled all eight prophecies is 1 in 10¹⁷ [(10 to the 17th power). That would be 1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000 (17 zeros after the one). In order to help us comprehend this staggering probability, Stoner illustrates it by supposing that] we take 10¹⁷ silver dollars and

lay them on the face of Texas. They will cover all of the state two feet deep. Now mark one of

these silver dollars and stir the whole mass thoroughly, all over the state. Blindfold a man and tell him that he can travel as far as he wishes, but he must pick up one silver dollar

and say that this is the right one. What chance would he have of getting the right one? Just the same chance that the prophets would have had of writing these eight prophecies and having them all come true in any one man, from their day to the present time, providing they wrote them according to their own wisdom. 

Now these prophecies were either given by inspiration of God or the prophets just wrote them as they thought they should be. In such a case the prophets had just one chance in 10¹⁷ 

of having them come true in any man, but they all came true in Christ. This means that the fulfillment of these eight prophecies alone proves that God inspired the writing of those prophecies to a definiteness which lacks only one chance in 10¹⁷ of being absolute. (Stoner,

SS, 100-107)

Stoner considers forty-eight prophecies and reports, 

We find the chance that any one man fulfilled all 48 prophecies to be 1 in 10157. This is really a large number and it represents an extremely small chance. Let us try to visualize it. The silver dollar, which we have been using, is entirely too large. We must select a smaller object. The electron is about as small an object as we know of. It is so small that it will take 2.5 times 1015 of them laid side by side to make a line, single file, one inch long. If we were going to count the electrons in this line one inch long, and counted 250 each minute, and if we counted day and night, it would take us 19.000. 000 years to count just the one-inch line of electrons. If we had a cubic inch of these electrons and we tried to count them it would take us, counting steadily 250 each minute, 19,000,000 times 19,000,000 times 19,000,000 years or 6.9 times 10²¹ years. 

With this introduction, let us go back to our chance of 1 in 10¹⁵⁷. Let us suppose that we are taking this number of electrons, marking one, and thoroughly stirring it into

The highly reputed “predictions” of Nostradamus were not that amazing at all. Contrary to popular belief, he never predicted either the place or the year of a great California earthquake. Most of his “famous” predictions, such as the rise of Hitler, were vague. As other psychics, he was frequently wrong, a false prophet by biblical standards. 

—GEiSLER, BECA, 615

the whole mass, then blindfolding a man and letting him try to find the right one. What chance has he of finding the right one? What make? They make an inconceivably large volume. (Stoner, SS, 109, 110)

Such is the chance of any individual fulfilling forty-eight prophecies. 

3B. Objection: Psychics Have Made Predictions Like the Bible's

Contemporary critics of biblical prophecy nominate psychic predictions for equality with Scripture. There is another quantum leap between every psychic and the unerring prophets of Scripture (see Miracle and Magic). Indeed, one test of a prophet was whether they ever uttered predictions that did not come to pass (Deut. 18:22). Those whose prophecies failed were stoned

(18:20)—a practice that no doubt gave pause to any who were not absolutely sure their messages were from God. Amid hundreds of prophecies, biblical prophets are not known to have made a single error. A study of prophecies made by psychics in 1975 and observed until 1981 showed that of the seventy-two predictions, only six were fulfilled in any way. Two of these were vague and two others were hardly surprising—the United States and Russia would remain leading powers and there would be no world wars. The People's Almanac (1976) did a study of the predictions of twenty-five top psychics. The results: Of the total seventy-two predictions, sixty-six (92 percent) were totally wrong. (Kole, MM, 69) An accuracy rate around 8 percent could easily be explained by chance and general knowledge of circumstances. In 1993 the psychics missed every major unexpected news story, including Michael Jordan's retirement, the

Midwest flooding, and the Israel-PLO peace treaty. Among their false prophecies were the prediction that the Queen of England would become a nun, and that Kathy Lee Gifford would replace Jay Leno as host of The Tonight Show. (Charlotte Observer 12/30/93) 

Likewise, the highly reputed “predictions” of Nostradamus were not that amazing at all. Contrary to popular belief, he never predicted either the place or the year of a great California earthquake. Most of his “famous” predictions, such as the rise of Hitler, were vague. As other psychics, he was frequently wrong, a false prophet by biblical standards. (Geisler, BECA, 615)

4B. The Time of Messiah’s Coming

1C. The Removal of the Scepter:

“The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor a lawgiver from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes, And to Him shall be the obedience of the people” (Gen. 49:10).

The word that is best translated “scepter” in this passage means a “tribal staff.” Each of the twelve tribes of Israel had its own particular “staff” with its name inscribed on it. Therefore, the “tribal staff” or “tribal identity” of Judah was not to pass away before Shiloh came. For centuries Jewish and Christian commentators alike have taken the word “Shiloh” to be a name of the Messiah. 

We remember that Judah was deprived of its national sovereignty during the seventy-year period of the Babylonian captivity; however, it never lost its “tribal staff’ or “national identity” during that time. They still possessed their own lawgivers or judges even while in captivity (see Ezra 1:5, 8).

Thus, according to this Scripture and the Jews of their time, two signs were to take place soon after the advent of the Messiah: 

1. Removal of the scepter or identity of Judah.

2. Suppression of the judicial power.

The first visible sign of the beginning of the removal of the scepter from Judah came about when Herod the Great, who had no Jewish blood, succeeded the Maccabean princes, who belonged to the tribe of Levi and who were the last Jewish kings to have their reign in Jerusalem. (Sanhedrin, folio 97, verso.) (Maccabees, Book 2)

Le Mann, in his book Jesus before the Sanhedrin, titles his second chapter: “The legal power of the Sanhedrin is restricted twenty three years before the trial of Christ.” This restriction involved the loss of the power to pass the death sentence.

This occurred after the deposition of Archelaus, the son and successor of Herod, a.d. 11, or 7 v.e. (Josephus, AJ, Book 17, Chap. 13,1-5) The procurators, who administered in the Augustus name, took the supreme power of the Sanhedrin away so they could exercise the jus gladii themselves; that is, the sovereign right over life and death sentences. All the nations that were subdued by the Roman Empire were deprived of their ability to pronounce capital sentences. Tacitus writes, “The Romans reserved to themselves the right of the sword, and neglected

all else.”

The Sanhedrin, however, retained certain rights:

1. Excommunication (John 9:22)

2. Imprisonment (Acts 5:17, 18)

3. Corporal punishment (Acts 16:22)

The Talmud itself admits that “a little more than forty years before the destruction of the Temple, the power of pronouncing capital sentences was taken away from the Jews.” (Talmud, Jerusalem, Sanhedrin, fol. 24, recto.) However, it hardly seems possible that the jus gladii remained in the Jewish hands until that time. It probably had ceased at the time of Coponius, 7 a.d. (Essai sur Vhistoire et la geographie de la Palestine, d'apres les Talmuds et la geographie de la Palestiney d'apres les Talmuds et les autres sources Rabbinique, p. 90: Paris, 1867.) Rabbi

Once the judicial power was suppressed, the Sanhedrin ceased to be. Yes, the scepter was removed and Judah lost its royal or legal power. And the Jews knew it themselves! “Woe unto us, for the scepter has been taken from Judah, and the Messiah has not appeared!”

—THE TALMUD

Rachmon says, “When the members of the Sanhedrin found themselves deprived of  their right over life and death, a general consternation took possession of them; they covered their heads with ashes, and their bodies with sackcloth, exclaiming: ‘Woe unto us, for the scepter has departed from Judah, and the Messiah has not come!’” (LeMann, JBS, 28-30)

Josephus, who was an eyewitness of this decadent process, wrote, “After the death of the procurator Festus, when Albinus was about to succeed him, the high-priest Ananus considered it a favorable opportunity to assemble the Sanhedrin. He therefore caused James the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, and several others, to appear before this hastily assembled council, and pronounced upon them the sentence of death by stoning. All the wise men and strict observers of the law who were at Jerusalem expressed their disapprobation of this act.

... Some even went to Albinus himself, who had departed to Alexandria, to bring this breach of the law under his observation, and to inform him that Ananus had acted illegally in assembling the Sanhedrin without the Roman authority.” (Josephus, AJ, Book 20, Chap. 9, Section 1)

The Jews, in order to save face, made up various reasons for eliminating the death penalty. For example, the Talmud (Bab., Aboda Zarahy or Of Idolatry, fol. 8, recto.) states, “The members of the Sanhedrin, having noticed that the number of murderers had increased to such an extent in Israel that it became impossible to condemn them all to death, they concluded among themselves [and said], ‘It will be advantageous for us to change our ordinary place of meeting for another, so that we may avoid the passing of capital sentences.’” To this, Maimonides

adds in the Const. Sanhedriny Chap. 14, that “forty years before the destruction of the second Temple criminal sentences ceased in Israel, although the Temple was still standing. This was due to the fact that the members of the Sanhedrin quitted the Hall Of Hewn Stones and held their sessions there no longer.” (LeMann, JBS, 30-33)

Lightfoot, in Evangelium Matthaei, horoe hebraicoe, pp. 275, 276, Cambridge, 1658, adds that

the members of the Sanhedrin . . . had taken the resolution not to pass capital sentences as long as the land of Israel remained under the government of the Romans, and the lives of the children of Israel were menaced by them. To condemn to death a son of Abraham at a time when Judea is invaded on all sides, and is trembling under the march of the Roman legions, would it not be to insult the ancient blood of the patriarchs? Is not the least of the Israelites, by the very fact that he is a descendant of Abraham, a superior being to the Gentiles? Let us, therefore, quit the hall of hewn stones, outside of which no one can be condemned to death, and in protestation of which let us show by our voluntary exile and by the silence of justice that Rome, although ruling the world, is nevertheless mistress over neither the lives nor the laws of Judea. (Lightfoot, EM,

as cited in LeMann, JBS, 33, 34, 38)

The Talmud (Bab., Sanhedrin, Chap. 4, fol. 51b) states, “Since the Sanhedrin no longer had jurisdiction in capital offenses, there is no practical utility in this ruling, which can become effective only in the days of the Messiah.” (Nezikin, BT, 346)

Once the judicial power was suppressed, the Sanhedrin ceased to be. Yes, the scepter was removed and Judah lost its royal or legal power. And the Jews knew it themselves! “Woe unto us, for the scepter has been taken from Judah, and the Messiah has not appeared!” (Talmud, Bab., Sanhedrin, Chap. 4, fol. 37, recto.). Little did they realize their Messiah was a young Nazarene walking in the midst of them.

2C. The Destruction of the Temple

“And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple” (Mai. 3:1). 

This verse, along with four others (Ps. 118:26; Dan. 9:26; Hag. 2:7-9; Zech. 11:13), demands that the Messiah come while the temple at Jerusalem is still standing. This is of great significance when we realize that the temple was destroyed in a.d. 70 and has never been rebuilt!

“And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; and the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary” (Dan.

9:26).

This is a remarkable statement! Chronologically:

1. Messiah comes (assumed)

2. Messiah cut off (dies)

3. Destruction of city (Jerusalem) and sanctuary (the temple)

The temple and city were destroyed by Titus and his army in a.d. 70; therefore, either Messiah had already come or this prophecy was false. 

3C. Fulfilled to the Day

In Daniel 9:24-27, a prophecy is given in three specific parts concerning the Messiah; it includes seventy sevens (of years), or 490 years. The first part states that at the end of sixty-nine “weeks” (or sevens), the Messiah will come to Jerusalem. (The seven and sixty-two sevens are understood as sixty-nine seven-year periods by contrast with the “seventy years” [Dan. 9:2] in the context.)

The starting point of the sixty-nine weeks multiplied by seven years equals 483 years is

the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem found in verse 25.

The second part states that after the Messiah comes, He will be cut off (idiom for His death). Then the prince to come will destroy Jerusalem and the temple and complete the seventy-times-seven, or 490, years with a final seven-year period.

All of the above, according to Daniel 19:24-26, take place after the sixty-nine weeks of years. But Daniel 19:24 mentions seventy weeks (7+62+1), not just sixty-nine. The final week is described in 9:27. Many scholars believe 9:27 discusses a different person and time than that of 9:26. Even though the author refers to the prince, the reference is probably to another prince who

is to come later in history. (Double references are somewhat common in prophecy. For example, a reference may refer to King David and also later to Christ.) This is supported by their actions: The prince in 9:27 forces Jewish temple practices to stop, but the prince in 9:26 has just destroyed the temple! So this prince probably comes later after the temple is rebuilt, which has yet to occur. No matter which way one interprets the seventieth week (the last seven years of the prophecy), the first two parts of the prophecy still can be examined historically. For further study on this prophecy in Daniel, see Chronological Aspects of the Life of Christ. (Hoehner, CALC, 17)

ID. The Text

Seventy weeks are determined for your people and for your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sins, to make reconciliation for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Most Holy. 

Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the command to restore and build Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince, there shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublesome times.

And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; and the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, and till the end of the war desolations are determined.

Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; but in the middle of the week he shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate, even until the consummation, which is determined, is poured out on the desolate. (Dan. 9:24-27)

2D. Interpretation of the Prophecy

IE. Main Features of this Prophecy

(Taken from Dr. James Rosscup’s class notes, Talbot Theological Seminary, California) Concerns Daniel’s people, Israel, and Daniel’s city, Jerusalem (v. 24) 

Two princes mentioned:

1. Messiah (v. 25)

2. Prince to come (v. 26)

Time period of seventy weeks (v. 24)

1. As a unit (v. 24)

2. As a division of three periods: seven weeks, sixty-two weeks, and one week (vs. 25, 27)

Specified beginning of the seventy weeks (v. 25)

Messiah appears at end of sixty-nine weeks (v. 25)

Destruction of city and sanctuary by people of prince to come (v. 26)

Covenant made between Israel and the coming prince at the beginning of last week (v. 27); this covenant is broken mid-week (v.27).

At end of the seventy weeks, Israel will have everlasting righteousness (v. 24). 

2E. Time Measure Indicated by Seventy Weeks:

Jewish concept of week

1. The Hebrew word for “week” is shabua, which literally means a “seven.” (We should disassociate any English concept of week with the concept intended by Gabriel.) Then, in Hebrew, the idea of seventy weeks is “seventy sevens.”

2. The Jews were familiar with a “seven” of both days and years. “It was, in certain respects, even more important.” (McClain, DPSW, 13)

3. Leviticus 25:2-4 illustrates the above fact. Leviticus 25:8 shows that there was a multiple of a week of years. 

Remembering what has been said previously, there are several reasons to believe that the seventy weeks mentioned in Daniel are seventy sevens of years.

1. Daniel had been thinking in terms of years and multiples of seven earlier in the chapter (Dan. 9:1, 2).

2. Daniel knew that the Babylonian captivity was based on violation of the Sabbatic year, and since they were in captivity for seventy years, evidently the Sabbatic year was violated 490 years (Lev. 26:32-35; 2 Chr.36:21; and Dan. 9:24). 

3. The context is consistent and makes sense when we understand the seventy weeks as years.

4. Shabua is found in Daniel 10:2, 3. Context demands it to mean “weeks” of days. It is literally “three sevens of days.” If Daniel meant days in 9:24-27, why don’t we find the same form of expression as that in chapter 10? Obviously, years are meant in chapter 9.

3E. Length of Prophetic Year

The calendar year used in the Scriptures must be determined from the Scriptures themselves.

1. Historically: Compare Genesis 7:11 with Genesis 8:4, and the two of these with Genesis 7:24 and Genesis 8:3.

2. Prophetically: Many Scriptures refer to the great tribulation under various terms, but all have the common denominator of a 360-day year.

This decree then is the “commandment to restore and rebuild Jerusalem.” There Is no other decree authorizing the restoration of the city. This decree authorizes the restoration and the book of Nehemiah tells how the work was carried on.

—J.D. WILSON

Daniel 19:27: “Midst” of the seventieth week (obviously 3 1/2 years) (kjv)

Daniel 7:24,25: wa time and times and the dividing of time” (kjv) (literally 3 1/2 times)

Revelation 13:4-7: “forty and two months” (3 1/2 years) (kjv)

Revelation 12:13, 14: “a time, and times, and half a time” (kjv)

Revelation 12:6: “a thousand, two hundred and three score days” (kjv) (1,260 days

or 3 1/2 years)

4E. Beginning of Seventy Weeks

There are several commandments or decrees in Israel’s history that have been suggested as the terminus a quo (beginning) of the seventy weeks. These are:

1. The decree of Cyrus, 539 B.c. (Ezra 1:1-4).

2. The decree of Darius, 519 b.c. (Ezra 5:3-7).

3. The decree of Artaxerxes to Ezra, 457 b.c. (Ezra 7:11-16).

4. The decree of Artaxerxes to Nehemiah, 444 b.c. (Neh. 2:1-8). (Hoehner, CALC, 131)

However, the only one that appears to fit the data accurately is item four, the decree of

Artaxerxes to Nehemiah. J. D. Wilson comments on the starting

point of the prophecy:

The ... decree is referred to in Neh. ii. It was in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes. The words of the decree are not given, but its subject matter can easily be determined. Nehemiah hears of the desolate condition of Jerusalem. He is deeply grieved. The King asks the reason. Nehemiah replies, “the city, the place of my fathers’ sepulchres, lieth waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with fire.” The King bids him make request. He does so promptly, asking an order from the King that “I be sent to the city that I may build it.” And, as we read, he was sent, and he rebuilt Jerusalem. 

This decree then is the “commandment to restore and rebuild Jerusalem.” There is no other decree authorizing the restoration of the city. This decree authorizes the restoration and the book of Nehemiah tells how the work was carried on. The exigencies of their various theories have led men to take some other decree for the terminus a quo of their calculations, but it is not apparent how any could have done so without misgivings. This decree of Neh. ii is the commandment to restore and rebuild Jerusalem; no other decree gives any permission to restore the city. All other decrees refer to the building of the temple and the temple only. (Wilson, DDWD, 141, 42) 

This decree was given in 444 b.c., based on the following: 

1. “In the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes” (Neh. 2:1).

2. Artaxerxes’ accession was in 465 B.c.

3. There is no date specified, so according to the Jewish custom the date is understood as the first day of the month, which would be Nisan 1,444 b.c.

4. March 5, 444 B.c. is our corresponding calendar date.

5E. End of First Seven Weeks of Years

1. It took forty-nine years to restore the city (v. 25).

2. The close of Hebrew prophecy and of the Old Testament canon in Malachi is noteworthy, marked forty-nine years after 444 b.c.

If Daniel is correct, the time from the edict to restore and rebuild Jerusalem (Nisan 1444 B.c.) to the coming of the Messiah to Jerusalem is 483 years (sixty-nine times seven), each year equaling the Jewish prophetic year of 360 days (173,880 days).

The terminal event of the sixty-nine weeks is the presentation of Christ Himself to Israel as the Messiah, as predicted in Zechariah 9:9. Harold Hoehner, who has thoroughly researched this prophecy in Daniel and the corresponding dates, calculates the date of this event:

Multiplying the sixty-nine weeks by seven years for each week by 360 days gives a total of 173,880 days. The difference between 444 B.c. and a.d. 33 then is 476 solar years. By multiplying 476 by 365.24219879 or by 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, 45.975 seconds [there are 365 1/4 days in a year], one comes to 173,855 days, 6 hours, 52 minutes, 44 seconds, or 173,855 days. This leaves only 25 days to be accounted for between 444 B.c. and a.d. 33. By adding the 25 days to March 5 (of 444 B.c.), one comes to March 30 (or a.d. 33) which was  Nisan 10 in a.d. 33. This is the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. (Hoehner, CALC, 138)

6E. Interval between Weeks Sixty-nine and Seventy

After the termination of the sixty-nine

weeks and before the commencement of the seventieth week, two events had to occur:

1. 1. The “cutting off” of the Messiah (Dan. 9:26).

Christ was crucified April 3, a.d. 33, the Friday following His triumphal entry into Jerusalem.

1. The destruction of Jerusalem and the temple (Dan. 9:26).

Wilson discusses this part of the prophecy:

After that, the Roman prince [Titus] sent an army which utterly destroyed the city and temple of Jerusalem. That destruction was complete. The temple was not simply polluted, as it was by Antiochus Epiphanes—it was destroyed. It has not been reared in Jerusalem since. The Jewish ritual was ended. It has never been restored, and it never can be. It has had no priesthood since Jerusalem fell; for every son of Aaron was slain. There can be no more priestly sacrifices, nor atonement by high priest; for in that dire disaster, the older covenant passed away. Its vitality and validity had ceased when the Lamb of God was offered upon Calvary; but for forty years the outward shell remained. That shell was removed in the destruction of Jerusalem, 70 a.d. (Wilson, DDWD, 148, 149)

3D. Summary

So Daniel prophesied accurately concerning the Messiah in his prophecy of the seventy weeks. Even if the 165 b.c. date of authorship is correct, all these events took place at least two hundred years later.

They include:

1. The coming of the Messiah.

2. The death of the Messiah.

3. The destruction of Jerusalem and the temple.

The third part of the prophecy pertaining to the seventieth week is yet to occur.

5A. SUMMARY OF OLD TESTAMENT PREDICTIONS LITERALLY FULFILLED IN CHRIST

Floyd Hamilton, in The Basis of Christian Faith (a modern defense of the Christian religion), writes: “Canon Liddon is authority for the statement that there are in the Old Testament 332 distinct predictions which were literally fulfilled in Christ” (Hamilton, BCF, 160). Payne lists 191 in his Encyclopedia of Biblical Prophecy. (Payne, EBP, 665-670)

IB. His First Advent

The fact: Genesis 3:15; Deuteronomy 18:15; Psalm 89:20; Isaiah 9:6; 28:16; 32:1; 35:4; 42:6; 49:1; 55:4; Ezekiel 34:24; Daniel 2:44; Micah 4:1; Zechariah 3:8. 

The time: Genesis 49:10; Numbers 24:17; Daniel 9:24; Malachi 3:1. 

His divinity: Psalms 2:7, 11; 45:6, 7, 11; 72:8; 89:26, 27; 102:24-27; 110:1; Isaiah 9:6; 25:9; 40:10; Jeremiah 23:6; Micah 5:2; Malachi 3:1.

Human generation: Genesis 12:3; 18:18; 21:12; 22:18; 26:4; 28:14; 49:10; 2 Samuel 7:14; Psalms 18:4-6,50; 22:22,23; 29:36; 89:4; 132:11; Isaiah 11:1; Jeremiah 23:5; 33:15. 

2B. His Forerunner: Isaiah 40:3; Malachi 3:1; 4:5

3B. His Nativity and Early Years

The fact: Genesis 3:15; Isaiah 7:14; Jeremiah 31:22.

The place: Numbers 24:17,19; Micah 5:2.

Adoration by Magi: Psalm 72:10,15; Isaiah 60:3, 6.

Descent into Egypt: Hosea 11:1.

Massacre of innocents: Jeremiah 31:15.

4B. His Mission and Office Mission: Genesis 12:3; 49:10; Numbers 24:19; Deuteronomy 18:18, 19; Psalm 21:1; Isaiah 59:20; Jeremiah 33:16.

Priest like Melchizedek: Psalm 110:4.

Prophet like Moses: Deuteronomy 18:15.

Conversion of Gentiles: Isaiah 11:10;

Deuteronomy 32:43; Psalms 18:49; 19:4; 117:1; Isaiah 42:1; 45:23; 49:6; Hosea 1:10; 2:23; Joel 2:32.

Ministry in Galilee: Isaiah 9:1, 2.

Miracles: Isaiah 35:5, 6; 42:7; 53:4.

Spiritual graces: Psalm 45:7; Isaiah 11:2; 42:1; 53:9; 61:1, 2.

Preaching: Psalms 2:7; 78:2; Isaiah 2:3; 61:1; Micah 4:2.

Purification of the temple: Psalm 69:9.

5B. His Passion

Rejection by Jews and Gentiles: Psalms 2:1; 22:12, 41:5; 56:5; 69:8; 118:22, 23; Isaiah 6:9, 10; 8:14; 29:13; 53:1; 65:2. 

Persecution: Psalms 22:6; 35:7, 12; 56:5; 71:10; 109:2; Isaiah 49:7; 53:3.

Triumphal entry into Jerusalem: Psalms 8:2; 118:25, 26; Zechariah 9:9.

Betrayal by own friend: Psalms 41:9; 55:13; Zechariah 13:6.

Betrayal for thirty pieces of silver: Zechariah 11:12.

Betrayer’s death: Psalms 55:15, 23; 109:17.

Purchase of Potter’s Field: Zechariah 11:13.

Desertion by disciples: Zechariah 13:7.

False accusation: Psalms 2:1, 2; 27:12; 35:11; 109:2.

Silence under accusation: Psalm 38:13; Isaiah 53:7.

Mocking: Psalms 22:7, 8, 16; 109:25.

Insults, buffeting, spitting, scourging: Psalm 35:15, 21; Isaiah 50:6.

Patience under suffering: Isaiah 53:7-9.

Crucifixion: Psalm 22:14,17.

Offer of gall and vinegar: Psalm 69:21.

Prayer for enemies: Psalm 109:4.

Cries upon the Cross: Psalms 22:1; 31:5.

Death in prime of life: Psalms 89:45; 102:24.

Death with malefactors: Isaiah 53:9, 12.

Death attested by convulsions of nature: Amos 5:20; Zechariah 14:4-6.

Casting lots for garments: Psalm 22:18. 

Bones not to be broken: Psalm 34:20.

Piercing: Psalm 22:16; Zechariah 12:10; 13:6.

Voluntary death: Psalm 40:6-8.

Vicarious suffering: Isaiah 53:4-6, 12; Daniel 9:26.

Burial with the rich: Isaiah 53:9.

6B. His Resurrection: Psalms 2:7; 16:8-10; 30:3; 41:10; 118:17

7B. His Ascension: Psalms 16:11; 24:7; 68:18; 110:1; 118:19

8B. His Second Advent: Psalm 50:3-6; Isaiah 9:6, 7; 66:18; Daniel 7:13, 14; Zechariah 12:10; 14:4-8

Dominion universal and everlasting: 1 Chronicles 17:11-14; Psalms 2:6-8; 8:6;

45:6-7; 72:8; 110:1-3; Isaiah 9:7; Daniel 7:14.