Prophecies of Messiah Fulfilled in Jesus

As we move toward the Christmas season, I thought it would be appropriate to look at some of the prophecies in scripture that were fulfilled in Jesus. The fact that these prophecies were fulfilled are very important to establishing the confidence we as believers have in knowing that prophecies as yet unfulfilled will come to pass as foretold. Scripture is clear in declaring prophecy as God’s unique signature of Who He Is.

Isaiah 42:8-9 I am the LORD: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images. Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them.

Isaiah 48:3-7 I have declared the former things from the beginning; and they went forth out of my mouth, and I shewed them; I did them suddenly, and they came to pass. Because I knew that thou art obstinate, and thy neck is an iron sinew, and thy brow brass; I have even from the beginning declared it to thee; before it came to pass I shewed it thee: lest thou shouldest say, Mine idol hath done them, and my graven image, and my molten image, hath commanded them. Thou hast heard, see all this; and will not ye declare it? I have shewed thee new things from this time, even hidden things, and thou didst not know them. They are created now, and not from the beginning; even before the day when thou heardest them not; lest thou shouldest say, Behold, I knew them.

As we look at these prophecies, I have chosen only the ones that are recorded as part of history and would have been physically observed. I am not going to take the time to establish the foundation of each passage as Messianic. The prophecies of the coming Messiah were made to the Jewish people, and these passages have been acknowledged by Jewish scholars to be referencing their Messiah. In light of these prophecies, it is really perplexing that the religious leaders in particular did not recognize Jesus as the One who fulfilled these prophecies. As with the false teachers today, their pride and selfish motives blinded them or caused them to reject the truth.

1. I think the first truth to establish is that the Messiah was prophesied to descend from Abraham through Isaac, Jacob, Judah, Jesse and David.

Isaiah 11:1 And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots:

Isaiah 9:6-7 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David....

Jeremiah 23:5 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.

The New Testament writers go to great pains to record the genealogy of Jesus through both His mother and His earthly adoptive father. Both genealogies establish Jesus as a descendant of David and rightful heir to the throne.

Matthew 1:2 Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren… Matt. 1:6 And Jesse begat David the king… Matt. 1:16 And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.

Luke 3:23 And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph… Luke 3:31-34 …which was the son of David, Which was the son of Jesse…which was the son of Juda, Which was the son of Jacob, which was the son of Isaac, which was the son of Abraham….

There is plenty of evidence to validate the writings of the New Testament gospels. Instead of re-inventing the wheel, I would like to quote from the research done by the people at www.christiananswers.net.

“Archaeologists studying ancient civilizations by uncovering ruins and examining artifacts, are with increasing success confirming the accuracy of the Biblical texts….Additionally, outside the Bible, Jesus is also mentioned by his near-contemporaries. Extra-Biblical and secular writers (many hostile) point to Jesus' existence, including the Roman writings of Tacitus, Seutonius, Thallus and Pliny, and the Jewish writings of Josephus and the Talmud. Gary Habermas has cited a total of 39 ancient extra-Biblical sources, including 17 non-Christian, that witness from outside the New Testament to over 100 details of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection….The New Testament has far better textual support than do the works of Plato, Aristotle, Herodotus, or Tacitus, whose contents no one seriously questions.”