Does Jesus fulfill the messianic prophecies?
3) who
But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God. They all asked, 'Are you then the Son of God?' He [Jesus] replied, "You are right in saying I am."
- Luke 22:69-70 NIV
"We are not stoning you for any of these," replied the Jews, "but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God."
- John 10:33 NIV
The most important revelation of the messianic prophecies is the true nature of the one to come. The scriptures assigned the coming one many different names: the Anointed One, Messiah or Christ (which means anointed one), the Lord, the King, the Savior, the Son of God, the Son of Man, the Holy One, the Redeemer, and God.
Unmistakably, these reveal that the Messiah was going to be God himself (all quotation emphases mine):
This is what the Lord says - Israel's King and Redeemer, the Lord Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God. Isaiah 44:6 NIV
"And there is no God apart from me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none but me." Isaiah 45:21b NIV
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 NIV
"See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple;" Malachi 3:1a NIV
All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel - which means 'God with us'. Isaiah 7:14, Matthew 1:23 NIV
We know that Jesus claimed to be the Messiah (Matthew 16:16, 16:20, John 1:41, 4:25). Therefore, it is clear to see why Jesus caused the uproar he did when he used these titles in reference to himself, or when he allowed others to so address him without correction: Jesus claimed to be God.Again the Jews picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus said to them, "I have shown you many great miracles from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?"
"We do not stone you for any of these," replied the Jews, "but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God."
- John 10:31-33 NIV
Now God, as revealed in the Bible, is one God consisting of a triune nature or three "persons": God the Father, God the Son or Messiah, and God the Holy Spirit (further explained here). God's triune nature is evident from a general reading of the texts which helps to understand passages like the following:
Then God said, 'Let us make man in our own image, in our likeness,...' Genesis 1:26 NIV
Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever...; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy. Psalm 45:6-7 NIV
The Lord says to my Lord: 'Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.' Psalm 110:1 NIV
It is the facet of God we sometimes refer to as the Son of God which Jesus claimed to be.
Is there sufficient testimony to know if Jesus really was the Son of God?
The following section answers that with a portion of the prophetic fulfillments recorded in the New Testament that link Jesus to the messiahship These consequently link Jesus with the position of divinity which the Messiah was to hold:
4.11 Does Jesus fulfill the prophecies for being...1.) JESUS / GOD: OUR ONE AND ONLY SAVIOR
PROPHECY:
"And there is no God apart from me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none but me. Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth; for I am God and there is no other." Isaiah 45:21b, 22
FULFILLMENT:
They said to the woman, "We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man [Jesus] really is the Savior of the world." John 4:42
...while we wait for the blessed hope-- the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good. Titus 2:13-14
...and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 2 Peter 1:11
then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth,... Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved. Acts 4:10a, 12
2.) JESUS / GOD: THE FIRST AND THE LASTPROPHECY:
This is what the Lord says - Israel's King and Redeemer, the Lord Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God. Isaiah 44:6
FULFILLMENT:
"Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches." Revelation 22:12, 13, 16a
3.) JESUS / GOD: A CHILD CALLED GODPROPHECY:
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace... He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. Isaiah 9:6-7
FULFILLMENT:
Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. Luke 2:11
4.) JESUS / GOD: REDEEMER AND HOLY ONEPROPHECY:
Our Redeemer - the Lord Almighty is his name - is the Holy One of Israel. Isaiah 47:4
FULFILLMENT:
Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: 'Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.' Galatians 3:13
Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God." John 6:68-69
5.) JESUS / GOD: TO WHOM EVERY KNEE WILL BOWPROPHECY:
"By myself I have sworn, my mouth has uttered in all integrity a word that will not be revoked: Before me every knee shall bow; by me every tongue will swear." Isaiah 45:23
FULFILLMENT:
Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing... Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:5-11
PROPHECY:
God said to Moses, 'I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I Am has sent me to you.' God also said to Moses, 'Say to the Israelites, 'The Lord , the God of your fathers - the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob - has sent me to you.' This is my name forever, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation." Exodus 3:14-15
"But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from old, from ancient times." Micah 5:2
FULFILLMENT:
'I tell you the truth,' Jesus answered, 'before Abraham was born, I am!' John 8:58
"And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began." John 17:5
7.) JESUS / GOD: SEATED IN HEAVENPROPHECY:
The Lord says to my Lord: "Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet." Psalm 110:1
FULFILLMENT:
But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God. They all asked, 'Are you then the Son of God?' He [Jesus] replied, "You are right in saying I am." Luke 22:69-70
Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Colossians 3:1
8.) JESUS / GOD: ANOINTED BY GODPROPHECY:
Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever; a scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom. You love righteousness and hate wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy. Psalm 45:6-7
FULFILLMENT:
"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed," Luke 4:18
9.) JESUS / GOD: HAVING BEEN GIVEN AUTHORITY BY GOD FOREVERPROPHECY:
In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshipped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away,... Daniel 7:13-14
FULFILLMENT:
Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Matthew 28:18-20
10.) JESUS / GOD: WILL COME TO HIS TEMPLEPROPHECY:
"See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come," says the Lord Almighty... So I will come near to you for judgment..." Malachi 3:1,5a
FULFILLMENT:
Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. 'It is written,' he said to them, ''My house will be called a house of prayer, ' but you are making it a 'den of robbers.' Matthew 21:12
11.) JESUS / GOD: PIERCED FOR HIS PEOPLEPROPHECY:
And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son. Zechariah 12:10
FULFILLMENT:
Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus' side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. John 19:34
Look, he [Jesus] is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen. Revelation 1:7
12.) JESUS / GOD: SON OF GOD AND LORD OF ALLPROPHECY:
He will call out to me, 'You are my Father, my God, the Rock my Savior.' I will also appoint him my firstborn, the most exalted of the kings of the earth. I will maintain my love to him forever, and my covenant with him will never fail. I will establish his line forever, his throne as long as the heavens endure." Psalm 89:26-29
I will proclaim the decree of the Lord: He said to me, 'You are my Son; today I have become your Father. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession.' Psalm 2:7-8
FULFILLMENT:
While he was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!" Matthew 17:5
"But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?" Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven." Matthew 16:15-17
He [Jesus] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, Colossians 1:15-16, 19
And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshipped him, saying, "Truly you are the Son of God." Matthew 14:32-33
"We are not stoning you for any of these," replied the Jews, "but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God." John 10:33
To what degree have all these passages determined that Jesus fulfilled the messianic prophecies?
Jesus perfectly fulfilled the Old Testament's prophecies as laid out by the New Testament writers. He has fulfilled every messianic prophecy save for those concerning the day of wrath, or last day, in which the earth is burned up, mankind is judged, God's people inherit a new heavens and a new earth, and the wicked are thrown into the lake of fire.
In review of our partial look at the messianic prophecies, this is what may be said of Jesus' fulfillment of prophecy:
- He came to the world in Bethlehem,
- With an ancestry including Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Judah,
- Arriving 69 sevens after the decree to rebuild Jerusalem and the temple,
- Preceded by a messenger preaching "in the spirit and power of Elijah",
- Possessing the qualities of a prophet, priest and king,
- Rejected by many in spite of the miracles he worked,
- His hands and feet pierced by his executioners,
- Executed with wicked men and mocked in his suffering,
- Died though he had committed no violence,
- Lots were cast for his clothing,
- Placed in a rich man's tomb,
- On the third day rose from the dead and appeared before over five hundred people,
- Then ascended into heaven to be seated at the right hand of God the Father to await his return at the end of the age to judge mankind.
And this is what may be said of Jesus' link to the messiahship:
- He is the one and only Savior,
- He is the first and the last,
- He was born a child and called Eternal Father,
- He is the Redeemer and Holy One,
- It is he to whom every knee will bow and every tongue confess,
- He is the great I Am,
- He is seated in heaven,
- He is annointed by God,
- He has been given authority forever,
- He came to his temple,
- He was pierced for his people, and...
- He is the Son of God and Lord of all.
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NEXT: Was Jesus resurrected from the dead?See also:
What do we know about Jesus from non-biblical sources?
How did the Old Testament instruct people to recognize God's promised Messiah?
Expanded!
WHY THIS CHAPTER?
In the simplest terms, Jesus either fulfilled the O.T. prophecies of the Messiah or he didn't.
This third part concerns O.T. prophecies for the Messiah's divine nature; and his position as Savior, Redeemer, and Lord.