Chapter 2: If the Thing Follow Not, Nor Come to Pass
When a prophet speaketh in the name of the LORD, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him. (Deuteronomy 18:22)
In the Old Testament, if a prophet allegedly received a message from God, but it did not come to pass, he was a false prophet. I think we can provide this reasoning to the Bible itself, to see if it is a valid prophet. If it is a valid prophet, we have reason to seek out the message of the Bible. If not, then we can throw it out, and let it be lost in history forever.
It Shall Bruise Thy Head
The Bible made many predictions about the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Messiah, most of which were filled at His first coming. It states how He was to come, from which tribe, family and ethnic group He was to come, where He was to be born, when He was to be born, and many of the circumstances around His coming. Let us explore some of these.
The first item we should look at is how Jesus was born. He was to be born of a virgin. The most notable verse is Genesis 3:15: “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” The context of this verse is God pronouncing judgment on the human race after they had disobeyed Him, committing the first sin.
This portion of scripture is a chiastic structure. For a quick review of this, consider a five-lined poem. If it were a chiastic structure, the first and last lines would be parallel, the second and fourth lines would be parallel, and the middle line would be the crux of the poem, where the author was placing emphasis. In the larger passage, you will notice that God confronted Adam first about their sin, then Eve, and then He pronounced judgment on the Satan in the guise of a serpent, and then on Eve, and then on Adam. What God said to Satan is the central significant line in the chiastic structure, which is Genesis 3:15.
So what does this verse mean? There is enmity between the serpent and the woman, but also his seed and her seed. The children of Satan are mentioned in the New Testament as those opposing Christ (John 8:44). But what is the seed of the woman? Women typically are not to have seed (zera, LXX sperma, an exception being Genesis 16:10, since Ishmael and his children were not considered to be heirs of Abraham). This is a reference to the virgin birth of Jesus coming millennia later. Let us keep reading: “It shall bruise thy head.” The subject here is “it,” referring to the seed of the woman, and the object is the serpent. This seed is going to give a death blow to the head of the serpent. The serpent, however, will “bruise his heel.” In this passage, we not only see the virgin birth, but we see a foreshadowing of Jesus’ crucifixion, and the defeat of Satan. This is truly a beautiful passage of prophecy that we can see in retrospect: we see how this corresponds to the coming of Christ, and how He has delivered humankind from sin and Satan.
Behold, a Virgin Shall Conceive
Another passage of Jesus being born of a virgin is Isaiah 7:14: “Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” This is rather a key verse concerning the virgin birth, but it is not without controversy. Higher critics of the Bible would argue that the word for virgin, almah does not necessarily mean virgin. It can also mean a young woman, who could also be newly married. However, we should not be so quick to discount this verse.
In the New Testament, this verse is quoted in Matthew 1:23: “Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.” One could simply argue that they are reading ‘virgin’ into this word in retrospect, to force the prophecy as being fulfilled. However, the word for virgin in this verse is parthenos, which is the exact same word used in the Septuagint’s Isaiah 7:14, which nobody argues was translated later than 100 years before the birth of Christ.
Whom Thy Brethren Shall Praise
Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies; thy father’s children shall bow down before thee. Judah is a lion’s whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up? The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be. Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass’s colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes: His eyes shall be red with wine, and his teeth white with milk. (Genesis 49:8-12)
Consider the above passage, which is laden with messianic implications. At times throughout the Bible, there is use of typology, where a personage is a “type” or foreshadowing of Christ. In this particular case, we see that what is said of Judah does not apply to the patriarch himself, but of a descendant (according to the flesh) of Judah in the “last days” (Genesis 49:1).
First, we see that the other tribes will praise Judah. In the centuries following this prophecy, Judah became the kingly tribe when David became king. At the beginning of David’s grandson’s reign, there was a division of the kingdom, but Judah was more faithful to the LORD, and had the Temple within its territory. However, since Jacob specifically says that this prophecy refers to the “last days,” we are to look beyond that time to the New Testament and church period (Now! Hebrews 1:1-2). Who is praised? Jesus Christ.
Judah is also a “lion’s whelp.” This is referenced again in Revelation 5:5. We see in that passage that Jesus is the one who has “prevailed” and is setting the events of the seventieth week of Daniel into motion. He will destroy His enemies, like a lion.
We see again that “the sceptre shall not depart from Judah.” As we saw previously, Judah’s descendents were kings, but Jesus was the ultimate fulfillment as the true King: “until Shiloh come.” The word Shiloh means “tranquility,” and surely Jesus is our peace (Romans 5:1). The Septuagint has a different phrase: “until he comes to whom it belongs.” One can see how that either text could be appropriate in this case. The Lord very well could intend both meanings, though the Masoretic text seems more likely in the context. Let us keep reading to see why.
“Unto him shall the gathering of the people be.” Jesus is seen as one who desires to gather His people, and He will do so in the future. In Matthew 23:37, Jesus said, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!” In the next chapter during the Olivet discourse, we read, “And he [Jesus] shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other” (Matthew 24:31).
“Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass’s colt unto the choice vine.” This is a reference to the famous story often referred to as Palm Sunday (Matthew 21:1-11). We often think of Zechariah 9:9 as the scripture that Palm Sunday fulfills, but how much does Christ fulfill this one also! Coming on a donkey rather than a horse, He came in peace, not as an act of war.
“He washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes.” Jesus, in the Upper Room before His death, inaugurated the Lord’s Supper, and He likened His blood to wine. This was not a coincidence; His blood was like wine, in the fact that it covers our sins, and we “drink,” giving us eternal life.
“His eyes shall be red with wine, and his teeth white with milk.” While His blood covered all of our sins, He no longer sees our sins, for we are justified by His sacrifice on the Cross. Regarding the reference to His teeth being white with milk, we know from elsewhere that having “cleanness of teeth” meant being hungry due to famine (Amos 4:6). Jesus left the riches of heaven and lived a very poor life, and associated with the sinner, the outcast and the poor and loved them as they were.
I am fairly confident that I have only scratched the surface of what is written here, but it is a good start. Judah here is foreshadowing the Messiah Jesus, and this passage clearly goes through many of the events of Jesus’ last week leading up to and including his Passion.
But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah...
But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting. Therefore will he give them up, until the time that she which travaileth hath brought forth: then the remnant of his brethren shall return unto the children of Israel. And he shall stand and feed in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God; and they shall abide: for now shall he be great unto the ends of the earth. (Micah 5:2-4)
This passage indicates where the Messiah was to be born: Bethlehem. This is fulfilled in Matthew 2:1-6. Though He was born there according to the flesh, His “goings forth have been... from everlasting.” To be from everlasting is to be eternal, and to be from eternity past is to be God. God the Son, Jesus Christ, is the Messiah.
Moreover, we read: “Therefore will he give them up.” The antecedent of “he” is the one born in Bethlehem, Jesus, while the antecedent of “them” is “the thousands of Judah.” “Giving them up” does not have good connotations; since Jesus was rejected as king, the Jewish nation was judged in A.D. 70, and was scattered the world over until this day, despite even the revival of the Jewish nation in 1948. But there is a time yet future when the “the remnant of his brethren shall return unto the children of Israel.” Jesus also clearly stands in the strength of the LORD, and He truly is great unto the ends of the earth. There are believers in Jesus throughout the world.
Unto the Messiah the Prince
Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy. Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate. (Daniel 9:24-27)
This passage indicates approximately when the Messiah will be crucified. Many scholars I have come across in the past place His crucifixion around A.D. 33, and sometimes can even name the date of April 6. I will not be so bold here, but I will say that this passage will place us in the ballpark of this date.
The prophet Daniel had just prayed to God about the return from exile for him and his people, since Jeremiah had predicted a seventy-year period from the fall of Jerusalem and exile to the return to the Jewish homeland. Now while this was true, God’s messenger Gabriel came to him to give him the bigger picture of how God was going to redeem His people through the Messiah and bring in the millennial kingdom.
The “seventy weeks” mentioned are 70 weeks of years, meaning 70 seven-year periods. This time period was to “make an end of sins... and to anoint the most Holy.” All of that was completed in Christ’s vicarious sacrifice on the Cross and His resurrection. The former took care of sins, while the latter was His anointing.
From the edict to rebuild Jerusalem to the Messiah, Jesus, was seven and 62 weeks. The breaking up of these two periods of weeks suggests that perhaps there was a break in between; we know there is a gap between these two groups and the final seventieth week, as we shall see. The fall of Jerusalem was in 586 B.C. Seventy years after, according to Jeremiah’s prophecy (Jeremiah 25:11-12), would place us at 516 B.C. The seven plus 62 weeks of years, or 483 years would place us at 33 B.C. (note: not A.D.) If you allow for time for when the edict to rebuild Jerusalem (Ezra 1:2-3), which was not exactly at seventy years, and you allow for any gap between the seven and the 62 week periods, then you get into the first century A.D. There are resources out there of folks who have done all of the history and math to get more exact numbers; I believe you will find the results satisfying.
After the periods of seven weeks and 62 weeks, we see that Messiah is “cut off, but for himself.” This is Jesus’ crucifixion. To be “cut off” is to suffer the death penalty, which is exactly what Jesus suffered. We also see the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple mentioned, which followed in A.D. 70.
But what about this seventieth week? There is a noticeable gap between week 69 and 70, since we have not seen the events talked about in week 70 happen in human history yet. The word “desolations” in 9:26 indicate that the land will not have Jewish inhabitants for some periods. This is the same gap as we discussed in Micah 5:3, where the people were given over for a time. We also know that there is a gap because we know the Temple is destroyed in 9:26, but by 9:27, the Antichrist is outlawing sacrifice, which is only allowed in the Temple. The Temple was destroyed in A.D. 70, and it is still not rebuilt at the time of this writing in 2015 (though we know there are folks out there that already have plans and materials to build it).
The fact that the prophet Daniel had recorded these specifics is of divine origin; God wanted people to know what He was going to do. Since we knew God has kept His promise of the coming Messiah in the past, we also trust Him with the future and the events He has laid out as inevitable.
They Shall Look Upon Me Whom They Have Pierced
And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn. (Zechariah 12:10)
Here is another prediction of Jesus’ crucifixion, and also confirmation that Jesus is God Himself. In this context, the LORD is speaking, and He states that “they shall look upon me whom they have pierced.” In John 19:37, this verse is quoted referring to Jesus.
Though the crucifixion is in the past, Jewish mourning for not recognizing Jesus as Messiah is yet future. A time will come when there will be national repentance in Israel.
Summary of Aforementioned Claims
Now critics first read about prophecies and usually conclude one of two things. First, you could say that since the New Testament succeeds the Old Testament, the New Testament authors could have written retrospectively. However, the number of prophecies fulfilled are quite numerous, and this would be more than a little difficult.
Second, one can make the dates for the Old Testament writings much later than traditionally accepted. This is an issue to discuss at another time. Let it suffice to say that both the Septuagint and the Dead Sea Scrolls, which are Old Testament translations and manuscripts, predated the New Testament by a few hundred years.
One more thing to consider: Within 30 years of Jesus’ ascension into heaven, the world was permeated with the Gospel, and Christians did it without wealth, without violence, and with severe persecution. The propagation of the Gospel in such a short period of time under these circumstances was nothing short of divine.
Typology
We briefly mentioned typology before. Let us look at some types of Christ. A type is personage that prefigures the Lord Jesus. You see certain patterns or symbolism in Old Testament stories that portray Christ.
Here is an example, and a controversial one at that. Consider a king over the entire world that is approached by an adversary of God’s people to condemn them. The king then seals a proclamation to destroy God’s people, and all hope is lost. Risking death, a savior steps forward on behalf of the people to save them. The king accepts the savior’s petition, and declares a new proclamation delivering the people and destroys the adversary.
You may be thinking I just described what Jesus did on the cross to save His people. However, I just described the book of Esther. Esther was the savior, and she is a type of Christ. She could have died if Ahasuerus did not extend the scepter to her, but she laid down her life to save God’s people.
Joseph and Moses
The Bible explicitly says certain stories or personages foreshadow Christ. In Stephen’s sermon in Acts 7, we see two significant examples.
Acts 7:9-14 describes Joseph. Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers, but many years later, he saved the whole known world of famine by his planning and the wisdom God had gave him. Again, in Acts 7:22-36, Moses broke up a fight between two Hebrew men, but one of them, having seen him previously slay an Egyptian, rejected his counsel. Moses ran into the wilderness for 40 years, but came back and delivered the Hebrews from the Egyptians’ cruelty.
What do these two stories have in common? The one the Jews rejected came back and became their savior. The Jews, among many others, rejected Jesus Christ. However, this same Christ they had rejected will turn out be the one who will save them.
Isaac and the Ram
There are other examples of typology in the Old Testament. Consider Genesis 22:1-19.
The LORD commanded Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac, born to him in his old age. Abraham had the knife in his hand, about to slay him son when God stopped him. What happened after that?
And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me. And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son. (Genesis 22:12-13)
God provided a ram in place of Isaac; the ram died instead of Isaac. What did Abraham say as a result?
And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the LORD it shall be seen. (Genesis 22:14)
And it was seen in the mount of the LORD, because the Temple was built there nearly a millennium later (2 Chronicles 3:1). Animals were sacrificed there in the place of the people, just like the ram died on behalf of Isaac. Moreover, our Lord was crucified outside of Jerusalem nearly a millennium after that. Jesus died in our stead. On the mount of the LORD it shall be seen.
A Psalm of David
Psalm 22, a famous lament psalm, was written by David, as we see in the title. The very next verse, we read, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” Jesus, as He suffered on the cross said those same words (Matthew 27:46). Though Psalm 22 was originally written by David by the Holy Spirit, and it was written about his experience, Jesus said this verse to show that this was very much His experience. Jesus quoting this portion of 22:1 indicates not only that He fulfilled this clause alone, but rather He was pointing the hearers to Psalm 22, and that He fulfilled the whole psalm.
The people that surrounded Jesus while on trial and on the cross did many of the same things to Him that David’s enemies had said to him. Psalm 22:8 says “He trusted on the LORD that he would deliver him: let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him.” Consider the words of Matthew 27:42-43: “He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him. He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God.” Jesus’ hands and feet were pierced (Psalm 22:16, John 20:25). Jesus’ clothes were divided by the soldiers (Psalm 22:18, Matthew 27:35).
Starting in the second half of the Psalm, at 22:21, we see David beginning his vow of praise which is standard among many lament psalms. But you will see much about how God will receive glory for His great deliverance for the Jews (Psalm 22:23) and for the nations (Psalm 22:27). The Gospel of the risen Christ likewise has gone throughout the world, and many praise His name that otherwise would not have. Even the dead will praise Him (Psalm 22:29). We see all of these things fulfilled in Jesus Christ.
The Future
We see a lot that the Bible has predicted and has come to pass in Jesus Christ. Most of the prophecies of the Bible have been fulfilled. What is left before the return of Christ? Let us take a look at some of those things.
- A World Government and World Religion: We see this in Daniel 7:23 and Revelation 13. In our current time, we see many hints of this forming with NAFTA, the European Union and the United Nations.
- The Nation of Israel: Israel will be back in the land and there is a Temple. We saw this when discussing Daniel 9 above. The Temple was destroyed in A.D. 70, but it will be back during the Tribulation period. As we know, Israel became a nation again in 1948, for the first time since the destruction of Jerusalem A.D. 70. See 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4 and Matthew 24:15.
- A Falling Away: There will be a spiritual falling away. We see this in 2 Thessalonians 2; 1 Timothy 4; 2 Timothy 4; and Matthew 24:12.
- Increase of Knowledge: See Daniel 12:4. In the last century we have done more in the way of technology than in any other time.
- A Cashless Society: See Revelation 13:16-18. You can’t tell me this sort of thing isn’t around the corner.
- The Return of Jesus Christ: Jesus will return and set up His kingdom on earth. He tarries for the sole purpose of the world hearing the good news of His death, burial, and resurrection (2 Peter 3:9f).
The summary of the matter? If we can trust God in how He fulfilled so many prophecies, we can trust Him in these other matters. Praise God for showing us the way of salvation, and what lies ahead for humankind.
Next: Chapter 3: All Scripture is Given by Inspiration of God
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