Hi and happy Father's Day weekend to everyone. Today, I am again writing about Jesus, and the Old Testament verses that describe and prophesy about Him. I began a couple of weeks ago by writing about Jesus in the books of the Old Testament Law. And today in part 2 of this series I am writing providing the verses revealing Jesus in the Old Testament books of the Prophets.
This section of 32 different sets of verses is the meat of the verses showing Jesus as described in the Old Testament. The most famous prophecy about Jesus is contained in the book of Isaiah and the prophecy of the Suffering Servant (Isaiah 52:13-53:12). By the way, this prophecy written by Isaiah approximately 700 years before Jesus the Messiah was born (that is 700 B.C.) And this prophecy which is contained in the Masoretic text, the Septuagint, and in the Dead Sea Scrolls, provides the best proof that the Bible was not changed or rewritten, and that "myths" were not added later to it. If you don't believe me, please ask me and I will explain my reasoning for saying this. But otherwise from these books we see the prophecies of Jesus' birth, His Divinity, His Kingship, His Righteousness, and even His Second Coming.
One quick note of explanation. A number of these verses describe the Messiah as coming from David's line (including his father Jesse), or that the Messiah is "a branch", or "a stump". And so, everywhere you see a branch or a stump of Jesse mentioned, it is a reference to the prophecy that the Messiah will be a descendant of King David.
And secondly, remember the timeframe involved here: Abraham lived approximately at 2000 B.C., Moses lived around 1500 B.C., and King David is born close to 1,000 B.C. The Prophets in the Old Testament lived after King David. And the Prophets lived during the years 750 B.C. to approximately 400 B.C. And so, the Prophets are sandwiched between the lives of King David and Jesus, with hundreds of years separating them in each direction. And so, I hope you see how unusual it is for the Prophets to write about the Messiah coming from the line of David, when David had died hundreds of years before they wrote.
Remember from my first post on this topic, we see in Luke 24:27 and 24:44 that Jesus after being resurrected taught the Disciples about Himself using the Old Testament Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms. The wonderful resource of J. H. Smith, the 'New Treasury of Scripture Knowledge' breaks down these verses. And in today's post, I will show what verses in the books of the Old Testament Prophets Jesus may have used for His teaching. And so, without further ado, here is the list of the 32 sets of verses in the Old Testament Prophets that describe Jesus the Messiah:
Luke 24:27 - And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he (i.e., Jesus) interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.
Luke 24:44 - Then he said to them, "These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled."
Jesus in the Books of the Old Testament Prophets:
Isaiah +*7:14 - Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. (Tom's note: Immanuel means 'God with us'.)
Isa. +*9:6, 7 - For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.
Isa. *11:1-10 - There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit. 2 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 and the fear of the Lord.
And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear, 4 but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. 5 Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins. 6 The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them.
The cow and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 8 The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder's den. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. 10 In that day the root of Jesse, who shall stand as a signal for the peoples—of him shall the nations inquire, and his resting place shall be glorious.
Isa. 28:16 - Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: "Look! I am placing a foundation stone in Jerusalem, a firm and tested stone. It is a precious cornerstone that is safe to build on. Whoever believes need never be shaken.
Isa. *40:1-11 - "Comfort, comfort my people," says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem. Tell her that her sad days are gone and her sins are pardoned.
Yes, the Lord has punished her twice over for all her sins." 3 Listen! It's the voice of someone shouting, "Clear the way through the wilderness for the Lord! Make a straight highway through the wasteland for our God!
4 Fill in the valleys, and level the mountains and hills. Straighten the curves, and smooth out the rough places.
Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all people will see it together.
The Lord has spoken!"6 A voice said, "Shout!" I asked, "What should I shout?" "Shout that people are like the grass. Their beauty fades as quickly as the flowers in a field. 7 The grass withers and the flowers fade beneath the breath of the Lord.
And so it is with people. 8 The grass withers and the flowers fade, but the word of our God stands forever." 9 O Zion, messenger of good news, shout from the mountaintops! Shout it louder, O Jerusalem. Shout, and do not be afraid. Tell the towns of Judah, "Your God is coming!" 10 Yes, the Sovereign Lord is coming in power. He will rule with a powerful arm. See, he brings his reward with him as he comes. 11 He will feed his flock like a shepherd. He will carry the lambs in his arms, holding them close to his heart. He will gently lead the mother sheep with their young.
Isa. *42:1-4 - Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations. He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice, or make it heard in the street; a bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice. He will not grow faint or be discouraged till he has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands wait for his law.
Isa. 49:1-8 – (to v. 7?) - Listen to me, O coastlands, and give attention, you peoples from afar. The Lord called me from the womb, from the body of my mother he named my name. 2 He made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me a polished arrow; in his quiver he hid me away. 3 And he said to me, "You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified."
4 But I said, "I have labored in vain; I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity; yet surely my right is with the Lord, and my recompense with my God." 5 And now the Lord says, he who formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him; and that Israel might be gathered to him— for I am honored in the eyes of the Lord, and my God has become my strength— 6 he says:
"It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth." 7 Thus says the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One, to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nation, the servant of rulers:
"Kings shall see and arise; princes, and they shall prostrate themselves; because of the Lord, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you." (Jesus reaching all nations – but also God's Way of reaching Israel –see vv. 5-7)
Isa. 50:2-6 - Why, when I came, was there no man; why, when I called, was there no one to answer? Is my hand shortened, that it cannot redeem? Or have I no power to deliver?
Behold, by my rebuke I dry up the sea, I make the rivers a desert; their fish stink for lack of water and die of thirst.
3 I clothe the heavens with blackness and make sackcloth their covering." 4 The Lord God has given me the tongue of those who are taught, that I may know how to sustain with a word him who is weary. Morning by morning he awakens; he awakens my ear to hear as those who are taught.
5 The Lord God has opened my ear, and I was not rebellious; I turned not backward.
6 I gave my back to those who strike, and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard; I hid not my face from disgrace and spitting.
Isa. *52:13-15 through Isa. ch. +*53 - He Was Wounded for Our Transgressions
13Behold, my servant shall act wisely; he shall be high and lifted up, and shall be exalted.
14As many were astonished at you— his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance, and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—
15so
shall he sprinkle[b] many nations; kings shall shut their mouths because of him; for that which has not been told them they see, and that which they have not heard they understand.
Isaiah 53
1 Who has believed what he has heard from us?[ And to whom has
the arm of the LORD been revealed?
2For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him.
3 He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with
grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and
we esteemed him not.
4 Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.
5 But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
7He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.
8By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people?
9And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth.
10Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.
11Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see
and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,
( make many to be accounted righteous, (and he shall bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.
Isa. *61:1-3 - The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
2 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn;
3 to grant to those who mourn in Zion— to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.
Jeremiah +*23:5, 6 - "Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. 6 In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name by which he will be called: 'The Lord is our righteousness.'
Jerem.33:14, 15 - "Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. 15 In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David, and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. 16 In those days Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will dwell securely. And this is the name by which it will be called: 'The Lord is our righteousness.'
Ezk 17:22-24 - Thus says the Lord God: "I myself will take a sprig from the lofty top of the cedar and will set it out. I will break off from the topmost of its young twigs a tender one, and I myself will plant it on a high and lofty mountain. 23 On the mountain height of Israel will I plant it, that it may bear branches and produce fruit and become a noble cedar. And under it will dwell every kind of bird; in the shade of its branches birds of every sort will nest. 24 And all the trees of the field shall know that I am the Lord; I bring low the high tree, and make high the low tree, dry up the green tree, and make the dry tree flourish. I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will do it." (This is a Messianic prophecy showing that the Christ will come from the line of David.)
Ezk*34:23, 24 - And I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd. 24 And I, the Lord, will be their God, and my servant David shall be prince among them. I am the Lord; I have spoken.
Dan *2:44 - And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, nor shall the kingdom be left to another people. It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall stand forever
Dan *7:13, 14 - "I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him.
14 And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.
Dan +*9:24-27 - "Seventy weeks are decreed about your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to put an end to sin, and to atone for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal both vision and prophet, and to anoint a most holy place. 25 Know therefore and understand that from the going out of the word to restore and build Jerusalem to the coming of an anointed one, a prince, there shall be seven weeks. Then for sixty-two weeks it shall be built again with squares and moat, but in a troubled time. 26 And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut off and shall have nothing. And the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its end shall come with a flood, and to the end there shall be war. Desolations are decreed. 27 And he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week, and for half of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until the decreed end is poured out on the desolator."
Hosea 1:7-11 - But I will have mercy on the house of Judah, and I will save them by the Lord their God. I will not save them by bow or by sword or by war or by horses or by horsemen."
8 When she had weaned No Mercy, she conceived and bore a son. 9 And the Lord said, "Call his name Not My People, for you are not my people, and I am not your God."
10 Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or numbered. And in the place where it was said to them, "You are not my people," it shall be said to them, "Children of the living God." 11 And the children of Judah and the children of Israel shall be gathered together, and they shall appoint for themselves one head. And they shall go up from the land, for great shall be the day of Jezreel.
Hosea *3:5 - Afterward the children of Israel shall return and seek the Lord their God, and David their king, and they shall come in fear to the Lord and to his goodness in the latter days.
Joel +*2:28-32 - "And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.
29 Even on the male and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit.
30 "And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. 31 The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. 32 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the Lord has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the Lord calls.
Amos 9:11, 12 - "In that day I will raise up the booth of David that is fallen and repair its breaches, and raise up its ruins and rebuild it as in the days of old,
12 that they may possess the remnant of Edom and all the nations who are called by my name," declares the Lord who does this.
Micah +*5:1-4 - Now muster your troops, O daughter of troops; siege is laid against us; with a rod they strike the judge of Israel on the cheek.
2 But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.
3 Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in labor has given birth; then the rest of his brothers shall return to the people of Israel.
4 And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth. 5 And he shall be their peace.
Haggai *2:7-9 - And I will shake all nations, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with glory, says the Lord of hosts. 8 The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the Lord of hosts. 9 The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, says the Lord of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the Lord of hosts.' "
Zech 6:12, 13 - And say to him, 'Thus says the Lord of hosts, "Behold, the man whose name is the Branch: for he shall branch out from his place, and he shall build the temple of the Lord. 13 It is he who shall build the temple of the Lord and shall bear royal honor, and shall sit and rule on his throne. And there shall be a priest on his throne, and the counsel of peace shall be between them both." '
Zech 9:9 - Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
Zech 11:8-13 - In one month I destroyed the three shepherds. But I became impatient with them, and they also detested me. 9 So I said, "I will not be your shepherd. What is to die, let it die. What is to be destroyed, let it be destroyed. And let those who are left devour the flesh of one another." 10 And I took my staff Favor, and I broke it, annulling the covenant that I had made with all the peoples. 11 So it was annulled on that day, and the sheep traders, who were watching me, knew that it was the word of the Lord. 12 Then I said to them, "If it seems good to you, give me my wages; but if not, keep them." And they weighed out as my wages thirty pieces of silver. 13 Then the Lord said to me, "Throw it to the potter"—the lordly price at which I was priced by them. So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them into the house of the Lord, to the potter.
Zech *12:10 - "And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn.
Zech 13:7 - "Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, against the man who stands next to me," declares the Lord of hosts.
"Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered; I will turn my hand against the little ones. (This Verse describes several things: first, Jesus' Divinity, the Crucifixion and the Disciples desertion of Jesus as He was crucified.)
Zech *14:4 - Then the Lord will go out and fight against those nations as when he fights on a day of battle. 4
On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west by a very wide valley, so that one half of the Mount shall move northward, and the other half southward. I added v. 3 – a powerful picture of Jesus' return as standing on both sides of a split mountain to rescue Jerusalem on the Day of the Lord.)
Malachi *3:1-3 - "Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts. 2 But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner's fire and like fullers' soap. 3 He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the Lord. (A verse describing John the Baptist's work before Jesus. It also looks like a description of Jesus' Return, and so does this mean that there will be another person in the future who comes along the same type as John the Baptist?)
Malachi 4:2-6 - "For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch. 2 But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall. 3 And you shall tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet, on the day when I act, says the Lord of hosts.
4 "Remember the law of my servant Moses, the statutes and rules that I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel.
5 "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. 6 And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction." (I added verse 1 to place the verses in proper context. This is a description of Jesus' Second Coming. A couple of things to note – those who fear God will be there at Jesus' Return to "tread down" the wicked. Also, here is another description of God sending Elijah (or John the Baptist) to turn the hearts of fathers to their children and children's hearts to their fathers. Otherwise, God would utterly destroy the world..)
Acts 28:23 - When they had appointed a day for him, they came to him (i.e., Paul in Rome) at his lodging in greater numbers. From morning till evening he expounded to them, testifying to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus both from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets.
I hope this list put together helps give you a new appreciation for our Lord and Savior Jesus the Messiah. For me, it has helped me in seeing how many of these prophecies there are. And how perfect and powerful God's Word is. I hope you will join me to Praise God whose Word is true and trustworthy, Amen.
2 comments:
It seems that anyone who made a good study of the Torah could manufacture a story that would seem to fit OT prophecy fairly well. Most of the OT stuff is either vague enough that multiple persons/events can be seen as fulfilling it. Or it is just specific enough (such as riding a donkey into Jerusalem) that any good charlatan can plan his actions accordingly. The OT seems no better than Nostradamus.
The ONLY prophecy worth looking at is one that is SO specific that there can be only one set of circumstances that fulfills it. This involves timelines, bloodlines and plotlines that all converge at the right point. Any vagaries, especially in the timeline, make the whole thing suspect.
So... first up: What is your incontrovertable evidence that Jesus was of the line of King David? More to the point, what is the evidence of Mary being of David's line? Without this, none of the rest even needs to be discussed...
Check... your move...
:-)
~E~
Edward Oleander asks: So... first up: What is your incontrovertable evidence that Jesus was of the line of King David? More to the point, what is the evidence of Mary being of David's line?
Good question. Let me start by asking you to read Matthew 1:1-:16. This the partial genealogy of Joseph, father of Jesus of Nazareth.
Then let me ask you to read Luke 2:4. And then finally read Luke 3:23-38.
A quick summary for you. The birth story of Jesus starts by having Joseph and Mary (who is now pregnant) traveling to Bethlehem. The reason they are traveling to Bethlehem is that the Roman Emperor ordered a census. And back then the way they took a census was that everyone went back to their family's hometown. Bethlehem is known as the 'City of David'. And so all those who were of the lineage of David had to travel to Bethlehem. This then is where the great story of Jesus being born in a manger takes place. But the point is that Jesus' being a descendent of David is shown by his family being in Bethlehem during the census.
Mary's lineage? Some believe the genealogy provided by Luke at the end of chapter 3 is actually Mary's lineage. In verse 31, we see that this lineage list also includes David as an ancestor.
Therefore, the Apostles believed showing Jesus as a descendant of King David as being very important. This is why the Gospels make very clear that Jesus fulfills the requirement that the Messiah/Christ will be a descendent of David. Thanks for the good question.
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