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Prophecy – God’s Signature on His Word
Today we are presented with a plethora of different religious belief structures along with their related gods. Each belief purports to be the one true religion, and to define the one true god(s). Whether it be Muslim, Buddhism, Mormonism, New Age, Christianity, or any of the other religions of the world, each one professes to be uniquely the one true possessor of divine knowledge.
Within each of these world religions, there exists those people who are considered prophets of God, that is, people whom with God has spoken to directly in some form or fashion. The supposed divine messages received from God by these prophets are written down and recorded by the prophets, and then the followers of each religion look to these writings as the foundation of their belief.
Before we go on, it is imperative to understand that each of the world religions is exclusive of the others in that each has teachings that contradict and are opposed to the others. In particular, each one defines a significantly different god. I say this so as to discard the notion that all religions are basically the same, and that they are really talking about the same god. This is far from the truth. By researching any several of the world’s religious systems, one will quickly come to the conclusion the each one is unique unto itself and exclusive of the others. One, and only one, of the world’s religious systems can be correct, which then means that all the rest are false religions.
Now, for someone who sincerely desires to know God and His teachings, how do they determine which of the world religious systems is the true and correct one? There are probably various ways to accomplish this task, but I believe there is one way to absolutely and beyond any doubt determine which belief and which god is true, and that way is through prophecy, that is, the foretelling of future events to come. Let me explain. When one person writes a letter to someone else, how do they identify to the recipient that the letter is from them? They identify the letter as coming from themselves by adding their signature to the letter. Or, when legal documents are drawn up, how do the parties involved signify to others that may read the documents that they agree with the terms and conditions within the document, that is, that the words within the document convey the true intentions of the parties involved? Again, this is accomplished by having all the parties sign the document. In both cases, the unique signatures of the creators of the documents are the source of validation for the documents. Let us now look to the religious belief structures of the world with their related foundational divine inspired writings. Each set of these religious writings professes to be words inspired by God. But since each set of religious writings contradicts all the others in their beliefs and description of God, then only one can be true, and the rest, by default, must be false. So which one is true? There is an easy answer to this question due to the fact that there is only one religious book that God actually signed as His. That book is the Bible, and God’s signature is the prophecy contained in the Bible.
The Bible is the only religious writing that contains prophecy, and not just several prophecies, but literally hundreds of prophecies. Furthermore, as would be expected with writings inspired by God, the prophecies contained within the Bible have proven to be 100% accurate—not even one miss. No other religious book has such a signature from God.
To understand and appreciate validity and certainty of God’s signature upon the Bible, let us take a look at a small selection of the hundreds of prophecies in the Bible that have come to pass. For discussion purposes, I have broken up the prophecies into two sections:
- Prophecies relating to historical events
- Prophecies relating to the coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ
As will be seen, the prophecies are very specific, and their fulfillments are indisputable.
The following is a selection of prophecies contained in the Bible that prophesy, or foretell, of future events to come. It should be noted that each of the prophecies listed have very precise fulfillments in recorded secular history.
The Lord prophecies through the prophet Ezekiel (Chapters 26-28) that the city of Tyre will be destroyed, “…Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: ‘Behold, I am against you, O Tyre, and will cause many nations to come up against you, as the sea causes its waves to come up. And they shall destroy the walls of Tyre and break down her towers; I will also scrape her dust from her, and make her like the top of a rock. It shall be a place for spreading nets in the midst of the sea, for I have spoken,’ says the Lord GOD; ‘it shall become plunder for the nations….They will plunder your riches and pillage your merchandise; they will break down your walls and destroy your pleasant houses; they will lay your stones, your timber, and your soil in the midst of the water. I will put an end to the sound of your songs, and the sound of your harps shall be heard no more. I will make you like the top of a rock; you shall be a place for spreading nets, and you shall never be rebuilt, for I the LORD have spoken,’ says the Lord GOD.” (NKJ: Ezekiel 26:3-5,12-14) The book of Ezekiel was written approximately 590 to 570 B.C.
This prophecy was fulfilled historically in two phases by Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and Alexander the Great of Greece. The city of Tyre was both a coastal city and an island city. Nebuchadnezzar attacked the coastal city of Tyre, and, after thirteen years, was successful in conquering this city. But many people escaped to the island city of Tyre located about one-half mile off the coast. They well fortified the island city, and Nebuchadnezzar, after conquering the coastal city, did not extend his attack to the island city. The island city of Tyre survived for another approximately 240 years while its coastal city lie in ruin. Then Alexander the Great, with his armies moving across that region, decided to attack the rebel island of Tyre, not wanting to leave them intact and at his back as he moved down the coast towards Egypt. He came upon the idea of building a causeway from the shore out to the island to allow his troops to attack the fortified city. His soldiers pushed the ruins of what had been the coastal city of Tyre into the sea creating a sea bridge out to the island city of Tyre. In addition, Alexander organized a fleet of ships from several conquered nations to assist in the attack. Three years later, Alexander had conquered and laid ruin the coastal city of Tyre. To this day, the city has not been rebuilt, and local fisherman spread their nets on the flat rocky area previously built by Alexander’s soldiers. Thus, all the ruins, including even the soil, was cast into the sea to build the causeway. Babylon and Greece (along with a fleet of ships made up of other conquered nations) laid siege to the island city of Tyre and pillaged all her treasures, and finally fishermen today spread their nets on the rocks of the causeway. Thus, the prophecy was completely fulfilled in every respect. Also note that the time period between the writing of Ezekiel’s prophecy (~590 to 570 B.C.) and Alexander’s attack of the coastal city of Tyre (~330 B.C.) was approximately 240 to 260 years.
God, speaking through the prophet Zechariah, says, “And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it.” (NKJ: Zechariah 12:3) The book of Zechariah was written approximately 480 – 470 B.C.
One need only open a newspaper to realize the preciseness of this prophecy. At the time of this writing, Israel was a city with no natural harbor or resources, a city of no major worldly importance, and a city that possessed no attributes that would ever enable it to grow into any type of prominence. But today, Israel, and more specifically Jerusalem, is perceived as the major stumbling block to world peace. It would appear that every nation’s government has their eye focused on Israel, and is attempting to determine how to handle the tension between Israel and the Muslim Middle-Eastern nations. This little piece of dirt called Israel, which can actually fit in the California county of San Bernardino, has the entire world wondering how to resolve the issue of peace in the Middle East. Who, back in the days of the writing of Zechariah, would have imagined that Israel would create such a stir for the entire world. Only one who truly knew the future would have made such a prophetic statement. Israel became a nation again in 1948, over 2,400 years after this prophecy was made.
“Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said to them, ‘Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.’” (NKJ: Matthew 24:1) This prophecy was made approximately 32 A.D.
In the year 70 AD, around 40 years after Jesus’ prophetic statement above, the Roman General Titus Flavius Vespasianus, due to rebellious activity in the region, laid siege to the city. During the siege, some buildings, including the Temple, caught on fire. After the fires subsided, the soldiers noted that because of the fire, a significant amount of gold located in the Temple had melted and leaked between the crevices of the foundational stones of the temple. To retrieve all the gold, the soldiers were ordered to take apart the Temple, stone by stone. Not a stone of the Temple was left in place. The unbelievable prophecy that, “not one stone shall be left here upon another” was precisely fulfilled. Who would have thought that such a magnificent structure would be so completely and utterly destroyed.
An angel of God interprets for the prophet Daniel a divine vision that was received by Daniel in a dream regarding future kingdoms to come, “The ram which you saw, having the two horns—they are the kings of Media and Persia. And the male goat is the kingdom of Greece. The large horn that is between its eyes is the first king. As for the broken horn and the four that stood up in its place, four kingdoms shall arise out of that nation, but not with its power.” (NKJ: Daniel 8:20-22) The book of Daniel was written approximately 535 to 530 B.C.
The prophet Daniel had been given a vision, and the above passage is an excerpt of the interpretation of the vision that was given to him by an angel. At the time of the vision, Babylon was the ruling empire. This vision was prophesying the next two nations that would rule in Europe, that being the Media/Persia empire followed by the Greek empire. At the time of the prophecy, Media/Persia was battling for dominance, but Greece was just a little known state that would not come to prominence for several hundred years. Furthermore, the prophecy foretells that there will be a first ruling king in Greece, once it has become the ruling empire, and that after this king’s death, the kingdom of Greece would be divided into four kingdoms. This is historically exactly what happened. Alexander the Great brought Greece to its pinnacle of power by the end of his short reign by conquering more territory in a relatively short period of time than any other ruler. When he died, his kingdom was divided between four of his generals, as indicated by the four horns: Cassander was given Macedonia and Greece; Lysimachus was given Thrace, Bithynia, and most of Asia Minor; Seleucus was given Syria and the area east of Syria, including Babylon; Ptolemy was given Egypt and probably Palestine and Arabia Petrea. Thus, four kings did rise out of the nation, but not with its previous power for now instead of one ruling king over the entire empire, there were four weaker kings with only partial control.
In the book of Daniel, we are given one of the most detailed prophetical histories found in the Bible. Chapter 11 in the book of Daniel is so precise in chronicling what was at the time of its writing future history that modern liberal scholars, who deny the divine inspiration of Scriptures, insist that the book must have been written several hundred years later than it was purported to have been written, even though the dating of the writing has been authenticated many times. The book of Daniel, written by the prophet Daniel, would have been completed sometime around 535 to 530 B.C. In the following passage from the book of Daniel, for which we are about to review, we will find that the prophet Daniel covers approximately 400 years of what was future history from the time of the completion of his book.
The following prophecy comes from the book of Daniel, chapter 11, verses 2 thru 35. After each verse, there is a discussion of the actual historical events that occurred which fulfilled the prophecy:
11:2 - And now I will tell you the truth: Behold, three more kings will arise in Persia, and the fourth shall be far richer than them all; by his strength, through his riches, he shall stir up all against the realm of Greece.
At the point of time of this prophecy, Cyrus is the current king of Persia. The four future kings that would follow Cyrus were: Cambyses (529-522 B.C.), Pseudo-Smerdis (522-521 B.C.), Darius I Hystaspes (521-486 B.C.), and Xerxes I (486-465 B.C.). The focus on this verse is on Xerxes I, thus, the three future kings to precede him are also mentioned, but are not focused on in any detail. True to this verse, Xerxes I did have great wealth, which was amassed by his predecessors. But, more importantly, he amassed a large army, and launched a campaign against Greece in 480, which obviously greatly infuriated Greece, and would later be the impetus that would push Greece, under the leadership of Alexander the Great, to overthrow the Persian Empire.
11:3 - Then a mighty king shall arise, who shall rule with great dominion, and do according to his will.
There were subsequent kings of Persia after Xerxes I, but they are not mentioned so as to draw the direct correlation between Xerxes I invasion of Greece, and the later conquering of Persia by Greece. The people of Greece never forgot the unprovoked attack on their country by Persia, and their revenge was finally delivered by a great king and military leader, Alexander the Great (336-323 B.C.). It is even said that when asked of Alexander by the then king of Persia why he was launching an unprovoked assault on Persia, Alexander replied that Persia had previously done the same thing to Greece. Alexander was, from all historical accounts, a mighty king, and he truly did according to his own will by successfully conquering the Persian empire.
11:4 - And when he has arisen, his kingdom shall be broken up and divided toward the four winds of heaven, but not among his posterity nor according to his dominion with which he ruled; for his kingdom shall be uprooted, even for others besides these.
The phrase, “And when he has arisen,” speaks to when Alexander had reached the zenith of his power. History tells us that he had a very brief period of reign after he completed his conquest of the Persian empire. When he died, he did not leave his kingdom to any of his family, but gave it to his four generals who divided up the kingdom between themselves into four separate smaller kingdoms thus fulfilling, “his kingdom shall be broken up and divided toward the four winds of heaven.” Thus, Alexander’s kingdom was not given to his posterity, “but not among his posterity,” for it was given to his generals, and it was not “according to his dominion with which he ruled,” since the kingdom was now divided into four parts with four separate weaker rulers in contrast to Alexander’s sole rule over the entire empire.
11:5 - Also the king of the South shall become strong, as well as one of his princes; and he shall gain power over him and have dominion. His dominion shall be a great dominion.
Alexander’s kingdom, as previously mentioned, was divided between four of his generals: Lysimachus, Cassander, Ptolemy, and Seleucus Nicator. However, the prophecy will now focus on the lineage of two of these generals: Ptolemy (king of the South) and Seleucus Nicator (king of the North). The Southern kingdom is Egypt (cf. Daniel 11:8), and the Northern Kingdom is modern day Syria. These two kingdoms would continually be at war, and since Israel lay between these two kingdoms, their battles would be fought in the land of Israel or on her borders. One will find that when study prophetical history in the Bible, the land and nation of Israel, with few exceptions, is the focal point. When references are made to kingdom’s and rulers using directional terms, i.e. North, South, East, and West, its reference point is always from the land of Israel.
11:6 -And at the end of some years they shall join forces, for the daughter of the king of the South shall go to the king of the North to make an agreement; but she shall not retain the power of her authority, and neither he nor his authority shall stand; but she shall be given up, with those who brought her, and with him who begot her, and with him who strengthened her in those times.
The phrase, “And at the end of some years,” means, “and after a period of years.” So this verse picks up after a period of years has passed. The kings that join forces are Ptolemy II Philadelphus (the king of the south who reigned from 283-246 B.C.), and Antiochus II Theos (the king of the north who reigned from 262-246 B.C.). To bring peace between the two kingdoms, Ptolemy gave his daughter, Berenice, to Antiochus to wed. Antiochus agreed, divorced his current wife, Laodice, and married Berenice.
However, this peace did not last for long. When Ptolemy died several years later, Antiochus rescinded his marriage with Berenice, and took back his previous wife, Laodice. As revenge, Laodice had Berenice, Berenice’s son she had with Antiochus, and Berenice’s attendants killed. She then poisoned her husband, Antiochus. Thus, this verse of the prophecy was fulfilled:
11:7 - But from a branch of her roots one shall arise in his place, who shall come with an army, enter the fortress of the king of the North, and deal with them and prevail.
The phrase, “a branch of her roots,” refers to Berenice’s family lineage. Berenice’s brother, Ptolemy III Eueretes (reigned 246 – 221 B.C.), became king of the southern kingdom. He came against the king of the northern kingdom, Seleucus Callinicus (reigned 246 – 227 B.C.), and conquered the northern kingdom.
11:8 - And he shall also carry their gods captive to Egypt, with their princes and their precious articles of silver and gold; and he shall continue more years than the king of the North.
In his defeating of the northern kingdom, the king of the southern kingdom brought back to his empire many riches from the defeated northern kingdom. In addition, the king of the South’s reign continued five years past that of the king of the North, “and he [king of the south] shall continue more years than the king of the North.”
11:9 -Also the king of the North shall come to the kingdom of the king of the South, but shall return to his own land.
The king of the North, Seleucius, attempts to retaliate and attack the southern kingdom, but was quickly defeated forcing him to return back to his kingdom in humiliation.
11:10 - However his sons shall stir up strife, and assemble a multitude of great forces; and one shall certainly come and overwhelm and pass through; then he shall return to his fortress and stir up strife.
Seleucius had two sons, both of which desired to avenged their father’s defeat, and bring the northern kingdom back to its glory days. When Seleucius died, his first son, Seleucus Ceraunuus (reigned 226-223 B.C.), took the throne and began to build a great army. He died several years after taking the throne, and was succeeded by his brother, Antiochus II the Great (reigned 223-187 B.C.). Antiochus will commence an attack on the southern kingdom with his great army, and will gain a significant amount of territory. Note how the prophecy speaks of his sons, plural, in the beginning, but then switches to singular when talking about the actual invasion of the northern kingdom against the southern kingdom—precisely as happened.
11:11 - And the king of the South shall be moved with rage, and go out and fight with him, with the king of the North, who shall muster a great multitude; but the multitude shall be given into the hand of his enemy.
However, the northern kingdom’s victories enraged the king of the south, Ptolemy Philopator (reigned 221-203 B.C.), who mustered up a large army for himself. Then, in a decisive battle, the king of the south achieved a great victory over the armies of the North, and thus, “the multitude [northern army] shall be given into the hand of his enemy [southern kingdom].”
11:12 - When he has taken away the multitude, his heart will be lifted up; and he will cast down tens of thousands, but he will not prevail.
The king of the South, after his great victory, was very encouraged. However, though he defeated “tens of thousands” in his victory, he would not ultimately prevail due to his lack of following up on his victories and completing his conquest. Thus, he did not capitalize on the opportunity to increase in strength, but returned to his homeland prematurely to a life of luxury.
11:13 - For the king of the North will return and muster a multitude greater than the former, and shall certainly come at the end of some years with a great army and much equipment.
The king of the North, Antiochus the Great, would again return to battle the southern kingdom thirteen years after his first defeat in 201 B.C. with an even greater army than he had in his first battle with the southern kingdom.
11:14 - Now in those times many shall rise up against the king of the South. Also, violent men of your people shall exalt themselves in fulfillment of the vision, but they shall fall.
Supporting Antiochus the Great in his battle with the southern kingdom were Jewish mercenaries, “violent men of your [Daniel’s] people.” As we remember, this vision, or prophecy, is being given to the prophet Daniel by an angel. So when Daniel is told, “your people,” the reference would be referring to the Jews. History tells us that Jewish mercenaries did assist the northern kingdom in their battle with the southern kingdom. These mercenaries were probably looking to gain favor with Antiochus in aiding in his attack of the southern kingdom, but as the prophecy tells us, “they shall fall.” The efforts of the Jewish mercenaries did not ultimately bring them into favor.
11:15 - So the king of the North shall come and build a siege mound, and take a fortified city; and the forces of the South shall not withstand him. Even his choice troops shall have no strength to resist.
Antiochus the Great will ultimately prevail in his battle against the southern king, Ptolemy V Epiphanes (reigned 203-181 B.C.). The final battle and surrender of the southern armies came at a city called Sidon, which was referred to as “the most fenced cities,” literally “a city of fortifications.” The city was taken by literally building siege mounds {ramps made out of built-up dirt that enable attacking forces climb over enemy walls or fortifications), as predicted.
11:16 - But he who comes against him shall do according to his own will, and no one shall stand against him. He shall stand in the Glorious Land with destruction in his power.
Antiochus’ victory over the southern armies gave him complete dominion over that region allowing him to do as he willed, and his power was such that no one could come against him in battle and prevail. Antiochus came into the land of Israel [“the Glorious Land”] and rewarded the mercenaries that fought beside him. However, he did not grant the Israelites their freedom, as was probably hoped by the Jewish mercenaries, in return for their support in battle. Though bestowing some favor on the Israelites, Antiochus had the power to utterly destroy the city of Jerusalem.
11:17 - He shall also set his face to enter with the strength of his whole kingdom, and upright ones with him; thus shall he do. And he shall give him the daughter of women to destroy it; but she shall not stand with him, or be for him.
The phrase, “He shall also set his face,” means he “became determined to accomplish.” Antiochus, having partial control over the southern kingdom, including the land of Israel, now wanted to advance and take control over the entire kingdom. Siding with him were “the upright ones,” which is a reference to Jews. As mentioned before, the Jewish nation looked to Antiochus as someone who could give them back their freedom, thus, they sided with him in his endeavors.
The southern kingdom, however, was beginning an alliance with the up and coming Roman empire. Instead of advancing against the southern kingdom militarily, Antiochus chose to give his daughter, Cleopatra (not the same Cleopatra associated with Julius Caesar and Marc Antony), in marriage to the king of the South, Ptolemy Epiphanes. His intent was to have his daughter retain her loyalty to him, and to be a spy, “And he shall give him the daughter of women to destroy it.” However, this was not the case. Cleopatra was loyal to her new husband and sided against her father, thus fulfilling the prophecy, “but she shall not stand with him [her father], or be for him.”
11:18 - After this he shall turn his face to the coastlands, and shall take many. But a ruler shall bring the reproach against them to an end; and with the reproach removed, he shall turn back on him.
Antiochus, now very determined to conquer the southern kingdom, first took possession over the isles of the Aegean sea, and then crossed over with his armies into Greece, “After this he shall turn his face to the coastlands, and shall take many.” However, Greece now had allied with Rome, and when Antiochus began his attack on Greece, the Grecians notified their ally, Rome, who then sent an army of their warriors to Greece to confront Antiochus. The general assigned the commission by Rome to lead the army was Lucius Scipio Asiaticus, who would be the “ruler”, or as some translations have it, “commander.” The Roman general, Asiaticus, met Antiochus in battle, and utterly defeated him, sending him back to the northern kingdom in humiliation, and thus fulfilling the prophecy, “But a ruler [Asiaticus] shall bring the reproach against them [northern kingdom] to an end; and with the reproach removed, he shall turn back on him.”
11:19 - Then he shall turn his face toward the fortress of his own land; but he shall stumble and fall, and not be found.
Antiochus, in humiliated defeat, returns to “the fortress of his own land,” that is, he returns to the northern kingdom. Several months after his return, Antiochus was killed by local inhabitants when he tried to plunder one of their religious temples (the temple of Bel). Thus, as the prophecy states, “he shall stumble and fall, and not be found,” that is, the reference “stumble and fall” refers to his death.
11:20 - There shall arise in his place one who imposes taxes on the glorious kingdom; but within a few days he shall be destroyed, but not in anger or in battle.
Rome imposed a substantial annual tax on Greece as retribution and repayment for the war they had caused in Greece. The king that followed Antiochus was named Seleucus IV Philopator (reigned 187-176 B.C.). He is known by history as a raiser of taxes, which was prompted by the annual tribute that the northern kingdom was now required to pay to Rome. All during his twelve-year reign, Philopator struggled to make the annual tribute each year to Rome. In the twelfth year of his reign, he was mysteriously poisoned (some believe it was by his treasurer, Heliodorus). Thus, his twelve-year reign was short compared to his father’s, Antiochus, of nearly forty years, and his death was neither taken, “in anger or in battle.”
11:21-35 - The next passage, verses 21 thru 35, goes on to chronicle the prophetical history of the next king of the northern kingdom, Antiochus Epiphanes (reigned 175 –164 B.C.). This was a vile ruler who greatly persecuted the Jews. As with the prior passage in Daniel that we reviewed, his reign is prophetically chronicled in perfect detail.
Only a divine hand could have authored such an accurate and precise prophecy as this passage from the book of Daniel, which spans almost 400 years.
The following verses are found in various books of the Bible that were written 2,400 to 2,700 years ago, and speak of the time when God would regather the Jews back into their promised land of Israel.
“It shall come to pass in that day that the Lord shall set His hand again the second time to recover the remnant of His people who are left, from Assyria and Egypt, from Pathros and Cush, from Elam and Shinar, from Hamath and the islands of the sea. He will set up a banner for the nations, and will assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.” (NKJ: Isaiah 11:11-12)
“ ’Therefore, behold, the days are coming,’ says the LORD, ‘that they shall no longer say, ‘As the LORD lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of Egypt,’ but, ‘As the LORD lives who brought up and led the descendants of the house of Israel from the north country and from all the countries where I had driven them.’ And they shall dwell in their own land.’” (NKJ: Jeremiah 23:7-8)
“I will whistle for them and gather them, for I will redeem them; and they shall increase as they once increased. I will sow them among the peoples, and they shall remember Me in far countries; they shall live, together with their children, and they shall return. I will also bring them back from the land of Egypt, and gather them from Assyria. I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon, until no more room is found for them.” (NKJ: Zechariah 10:8-10)
Every conquered people throughout history, after being taken over by another culture and thrown into exile, have been assimilated into the nation of their exile, thus disappearing and losing their nationality. But there has been one exception in all of history, that being the Jewish nation of Israel. Though being conquered by other nations, and sent into exile, they have maintained their nationality and heritage throughout the centuries. However, this should be no surprise to the students of the Bible for God has promised in His Word to keep the nation of Israel, and to gather them back into their promised land of Israel.
Though God would punish Israel for their sin and rebellion against Him, and allow foreign nations to conquer them as a consequence of their actions, He has always promised to keep their nationality, and to ultimately bring them back into their homeland that He gave to them several thousand years ago. The Jews have already returned to their land of Israel, and have reestablished it has their nation against impossible odds.
God spoke the following prophetical words to the prophet Isaiah, “Who says of Cyrus, ‘He is My shepherd, and he shall perform all My pleasure, saying to Jerusalem, ‘You shall be built,’ and to the temple, ‘Your foundation shall be laid.’” (NKJ: Isaiah 44:28) (cf. Isaiah 45:13) The book of Isaiah was written around 700 B.C.
This prophecy refers to Cyrus, king of the Medo-Persian empire, who conquered the nation of Babylon, which had previously subjugated the Jews, in 539 B.C, and then in the following year gave the Jews permission to return to their land and to rebuild their temple. This prophecy, given by the prophet Isaiah, was given approximately 150 years prior to its fulfillment, obviously prior to Cyrus even being born, and specifically called him by name.
In the Old Testament books of the Bible, we find many prophecies relating to what was at that point in time the future Messiah to come. The word “Messiah,” which can be translated “anointed one”, is a reference to the Savior that God would send into the world. The Jews believed the Messiah would come to bless only them, and did not understand that He would come to bless all the nations of the world. The Messiah was also referred to as the coming King. The following is a small selection of the hundreds of Messianic prophecies found in the Old Testament.
The following Messianic prophecy was given by God to the prophet Zechariah, “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey.” (NKJ: Zechariah 9:9) The book of Zechariah was written approximately 480 – 470 B.C.
This Messianic prophecy was fulfilled when Jesus Christ entered Jerusalem on what is known as Palm Sunday, “Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their clothes on it, and He sat on it.” (NKJ: Mark 11:7) This event occurred approximately 32 A.D., around 500 years after the prophecy was made.
The prophet Zechariah received this Messianic prophecy from God, “So they weighed out for my wages thirty pieces of silver. And the LORD said to me, ‘Throw it to the potter”’—that princely price they set on me. So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them into the house of the LORD for the potter.” (NKJ: Zechariah 11:12-13) The book of Zechariah was written approximately 480 – 470 B.C.
This Messianic prophecy foretells of the betrayal of Jesus Christ for thirty pieces of silver, and also of the ultimate use of that silver, “Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, ‘What are you willing to give me if I deliver Him to you?’ And they counted out to him thirty pieces of silver. So from that time he sought opportunity to betray Him….Then Judas, His betrayer, seeing that He had been condemned, was remorseful and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying, ‘I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.’ And they said, ‘What is that to us? You see to it!’ Then he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed, and went and hanged himself. But the chief priests took the silver pieces and said, ‘It is not lawful to put them into the treasury, because they are the price of blood.’ And they consulted together and bought with them the potter’s field, to bury strangers in. Therefore that field has been called the Field of Blood to this day.” (NKJ: Matthew 26: 14-16,27:3-7) This event occurred approximately 32 A.D., around 500 years after the prophecy was made.
This prophecy was received by the prophet Isaiah, “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel [literally translated, “God with us”].” (NKJ: Isaiah 7:14) The book of Isaiah was written approximately 700 B.C.
This prophecy foretells of the virgin birth of Jesus Christ. As its fulfillment, in the book of Matthew we read, “Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.’ So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: ‘Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,’ which is translated, ‘God with us.’” (NKJ: Matthew 1:18-23) Jesus Christ was born approximately 2 B.C., which is approximately 700 years after the prophecy was made.
God spoke this prophecy to the prophet Isaiah, “And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse, who shall stand as a banner to the people; for the Gentiles shall seek Him, and His resting place shall be glorious.” (NKJ: Isaiah 11:10) The book of Isaiah was written approximately 700 B.C.
This Messianic prophecy foretells of the lineage of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. Jesse was the father of King David. Various passages in the Old Testament specify that the Messiah will come through the lineage of King David. In the books of Matthew and Luke, we are given the lineages of Jesus. In the book of Matthew, verses 1:6-16, we are given the lineage of Jesus through His father Joseph back to Jesse, and in the book of Luke, verses 3:23-32, we are given the lineage of Jesus through His mother Mary back to Jesse. Thus, the prophesied lineage of Jesus Christ was absolutely correct. Jesus Christ was born approximately 2 B.C., which is approximately 700 years after the prophecy was made.
This prophecy was given by God to the prophet Micah, “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.” (NKJ: Micah 5:2) The book of Micah was written approximately 735 to 710 B.C.
In this prophecy, we are given the birth place of the Messiah. We read in the book of Matthew, “Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king…” (NKJ: Matthew 2:1) Jesus Christ was born approximately 2 B.C., which is a little over 700 years after the writing of the prophecy.
The above Messianic prophecies are but a small sampling of the hundreds of Old Testament prophecies referring to the Messiah to come, Jesus Christ.
CONCLUSION
The previous prophecies that we reviewed are only a sampling of hundreds of events that were accurately and precisely prophesized in the Bible (For a complete reference of prophecies in the Bible I would recommend reading the book, “The Prophecy Knowledge Handbook,” by John F. Walvoord). There is not a single prophesy in the Bible that has been proven incorrect. This, in itself, would be impossible if it were not for one thing, and that one thing is that the Holy Bible was written by God who, from the beginning of time, already foreknew all of future history. The prophecies that were given to us in the Bible are God’s signature on His written work. The God of this universe wanted us to know that the Bible was given to the human race directly from Him, and that there exists no other equal in all of the world. Faced with God’s prophetic signature on the Bible, one who is truly seeking the truth about God can only come to one, and only one, conclusion regarding the Bible, and that conclusion is that this book is truly and uniquely the Word of God. And if the Bible is truly the Word of God, then the words contained therein must all be true. And if all the words contained in the Bible are true, then, based on the words of the Bible, there is only one way to eternal salvation and heaven, and that way is through Jesus Christ, the Son of God:
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son [Jesus Christ], that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (NKJ: John 3:16)
“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father [God] except through Me.’” (NKJ: John 14:6)
“And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son [Jesus Christ]. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.” (NKJ: I John 5:11-12)
“He who believes in the Son [Jesus Christ] has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.” (NKJ: John 3:36)
Based on the words of the Bible, there is no other way to receive eternal life in heaven, but through Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ died for our sins, and it is only through His work on the Cross that we may be saved. Furthermore, it is impossible for a person to earn there way into heaven on their own through their own works, that is, good deeds and right behavior, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” (NKJ: Ephesians 2:8-9)
The Bible is very clear on the condition of mankind, and the only way to salvation:
Therefore, once one comes to the conclusion that the Bible truly is the inspired Word of God, then one can truly know God and the way to salvation that He has provided through His Son, Jesus Christ. Once the way is known, it is just a simple step to receive it. Have you received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior? If not, what are you waiting for? For more information on the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ, and the way of salvation, I would encourage the reader to review the Bible studies “Jesus Christ” and “Salvation.”
I pray that this study has given the reader confidence in the fact that the Bible is the true Word of God.
God Bless