FULFILLED PROPHECY PROVES THE TRUTH OF SCRIPTURE

I believe that the Bible is a book of truth breathed from the heart of God into its writers.  That belief is rooted in testimony evidenced not only by the creation surrounding me, but also by the fulfillment of so many of the prophecies recorded there.  God has declared in His word that the ability to foretell future events is unique to Him alone…

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 46:9–10 “Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done….”

... and there is no valid evidence to refute that statement.  Every fulfilled prophecy has come to pass exactly as foretold.  This provides powerful evidence for the truth of scripture and the confident expectation that prophecies yet awaiting fulfillment will also be fulfilled exactly as foretold. 

In light of that truth I thought it would be helpful to look at many prophecies from scripture that have been fulfilled and affirmed in history with the hope of encouraging you to take a look at prophecy yet to be fulfilled, I believe, in the near future.

Let’s start in the very first book of the Bible, Genesis.  God told Abraham that Sarah would give him a son through whom He would establish a nation through whom the whole world would be blessed.

Genesis 12:1–3 “Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.”

Genesis 15:3–4 “And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir. And, behold, the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir.”

Genesis 17:21 “But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year.”

History verifies that son to be Isaac and that his son Jacob was the father of the twelve tribes of people that made up the nation of Israel.  The LORD eventually confirmed His covenant with Jacob.

Genesis 28:10–14 “And Jacob went out from Beersheba, and went toward Haran. And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it. And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.”

The primary way in which God has blessed the world through Abraham and Jacob is by giving us Jesus as one of their descendants.  It is through Jesus that we can obtain salvation and a hope for the future beyond this life. 

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

Romans 10:9 “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”

The scriptures also contain many specific prophecies about Jesus that are part of the historical record.  I will only mention a few of them.  The prophets declared that he would be a descendant of King David of Israel.  Matthew and Luke clearly list the genealogies of both Joseph and Mary respectively, showing that Jesus descended from King David.

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, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.”

Jeremiah 33:14–16 “Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will perform that good thing which I have promised unto the house of Israel and to the house of Judah. In those days, and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land. In those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely: and this is the name wherewith she shall be called, The LORD our righteousness.”

Matthew 1:6 & 16 “And Jesse begat David the king; and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias…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, which was the son of Heli…which was the son of Nathan, which was the son of David….”

Micah foretold that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem; and He was.

Micah 5:2 “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.”

Luke 2:4–11 “And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem…To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son….And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them….And the angel said unto them….unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.”

Many verses in the Old Testament prophesy the death of Jesus, a fact that is also confirmed by secular historians, but these are a couple of the most specific. 

Daniel 9:25–26 “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….”  [cut off = destroy, perish}

Zechariah 12:4 & 10 “In that day, saith the LORD…. 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.”

A  quote from the Roman historian Tacitus as cited by Lee Strobel in The Case for Christ:  “Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of ... Pontius Pilatus, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome....”

A quote from Josephus, a Jewish historian (from www.Josephus.org):  “Now there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man; for he was a doer of wonderful works, a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him both many of the Jews and many of the Gentiles. He was [the] Christ. And when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him; for he appeared to them alive again the third day; as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him. And the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day.”

In the Psalms, David foretold the very words Jesus would speak from the cross.

Psalms 22:1 “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?”

Matthew 27:46 “And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”

David also recorded the words of those that mocked the LORD Jesus while He was on the cross.

Psalms 22:8 “He trusted on the LORD that he would deliver him: let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him.”

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.”

(to be continued…)

GOG'S ATTACK PT. 4 - JUMPING TO ARMAGEDDON

I think at verse 17 Ezekiel’s prophecy jumps forward in time, much like the prophecy of Isaiah did in chapter 61.  This is the passage the LORD Jesus read in the synagogue in Nazareth.

Isaiah 61:1–3 “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.”

Luke 4:18–21 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.”

Note that Jesus stopped reading in the middle of Isaiah’s prophecy.  Why?  Because He was not yet going to exact God’s vengeance or bring about the eternal comfort to His people that He will bring when He returns as King.

Beginning at verse 17, Ezekiel mirrors the prophecy of John’s Revelation that does apply to the battle of Armageddon; and I think that is what influences many people to equate Gog’s attack to that final battle.  Compare:

Revelation 19:17–18 “And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God; That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great.”

Ezekiel 39:17–20 “And, thou son of man, thus saith the Lord GOD; Speak unto every feathered fowl, and to every beast of the field, Assemble yourselves, and come; gather yourselves on every side to my sacrifice that I do sacrifice for you, even a great sacrifice upon the mountains of Israel, that ye may eat flesh, and drink blood. Ye shall eat the flesh of the mighty, and drink the blood of the princes of the earth, of rams, of lambs, and of goats, of bullocks, all of them fatlings of Bashan. And ye shall eat fat till ye be full, and drink blood till ye be drunken, of my sacrifice which I have sacrificed for you. Thus ye shall be filled at my table with horses and chariots, with mighty men, and with all men of war, saith the Lord GOD.”

Ezekiel goes on to say that the LORD will then “set My glory among the heathen, and all the heathen shall see My judgment that I have executed.”  I believe this is describing when He takes the throne of David to rule the world after destroying the armies of Antichrist and makes judgment between the sheep and goats described in Matthew 25 to determine who gets to enter His kingdom.  It is after this that the prophet declares that the people of Israel will be gathered from out of all the lands and brought home to live and peace, security and prosperity for eternity.  The people of Israel who live to enter the kingdom will then “know that the LORD Jesus is the very same God that sent them into captivity and gathered them back to Israel again.  Though they will still have a sin nature, they will never again rebel from His authority because He will pour out His spirit upon them to empower them.  In other words, they will be living with the same empowerment that we have as Christians today.  

This is very convicting to me.  We/I have no excuse to succumb to sin.  True, the devil will be bound and Messiah will be on the throne ruling with a rod of iron.  But we basically say that the power of God is not sufficient if we try to justify our sin for any reason since we possess the power of God within us through the Holy Spirit.  I am certainly looking forward to a new body that is no longer influenced by the sin nature, but until that time I truly want to learn to yield to the power of the Holy Spirit in my life to live a life that honors the Savior.  I have to call it like it is----Success is dependent on taking self off the throne of my life and yielding to God as LORD in my life in every aspect.

GOG'S ATTACK PT. 3 - GOD INTERVENES

Ezekiel goes on to declare that when Gog chooses to attack, the people of Israel will be experiencing a time of rest and a feeling of security.   The purpose of his attack is to plunder the nation’s wealth, and the tiny nation possesses many things that we know Russia covets—gas, oil, and the minerals of the Dead Sea to name a few.

The prophet then points out that several nations question Gog’s actions, but do not interfere in any way.

As the prophecy continues to unfold, Ezekiel surprisingly notes that Gog’s attack is an act of God. 

Ezekiel 38:14–16 “Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say unto Gog, Thus saith the Lord GOD….thou shalt come up against my people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against my land, that the heathen may know me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes.”

What is His purpose for bringing about such events?  “That the heathen may know Me.”  The word know in the Hebrew is a reference to comprehending with understanding.  It has always been God’s plan for all peoples to acknowledge Him as Lord.  Because Israel has failed so miserably at fulfilling their chosen purpose before the Lord, it has directly affected how the nations have viewed God.  In human reasoning, it has made Him seem weak and unable to carry out His purposes.  When He intervenes for Israel according to this prophecy and in light of His word, the nations will have to recognize that He has been in control all along and that His purposes will be accomplished in spite of the failings of His people.  I think it is significant to note that this will happen at a time when all nations will be able to watch events unfold “before their eyes.”  That is not a surprising statement in light of the technology available today.

Though the LORD is directing events, Gog’s attack on Israel will make God furious.  It is always cause for me to stop and meditate as I see God’s hand at work bringing about a situation and then responding in fierce judgment in response to that situation.  I don’t think I’ll ever be able to express the thoughts correctly, but I know that these are the actions of a righteous God.  He is using man’s choices in response to the desires of his flesh and the influence and deception of Satan and his spiritual forces of evil to bring about His sovereign plan.  God does not approve Gog’s actions; he has, however, chosen to use those actions for accomplishing His will.

The prophet then declares that God is going to directly intervene to destroy Gog’s forces.  First, He is going to cause a great earthquake in Israel that causes mountains to fall.  Could this be the earthquake that is described in Revelation as a consequence of the 6^th seal (and possibly the rapture of the church)?  Both prophecies indicate these earthquakes will have worldwide effect and are responses to God’s great wrath.

Revelation 6:14–17 “…and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?”

Ezekiel goes on to describe what else the armies of Gog will encounter.

Ezekiel 38:22 And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many people that are with him, an overflowing rain, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone.

Not only will Gog’s armies experience the great earthquake, they will experience—

• Pestilence – The Hebrew references plague (fever and disease).
• Blood – This speaks of loss of life.
• Overflowing rain and hailstones – The overflowing rain is reference to what we would describe as a torrential downpour.  It is interesting to note that hail is often associated with God’s judgment and is declared by Job as being stored by God for that purpose. 

Job 38:22–23 “Hast thou entered into the treasures of the snow? or hast thou seen the treasures of the hail, Which I have reserved against the time of trouble, against the day of battle and war?”

• Fire and brimstone (Many believe this to be a reference to the use of nuclear weapons.)

God declares in no uncertain terms that the nations will recognize these actions as coming from the LORD. 

Ezekiel 38:23 “Thus will I magnify myself, and sanctify myself; and I will be known in the eyes of many nations, and they shall know that I am the LORD.”

In other words, whether by destruction through “natural” disaster and/or through the use of today’s technology in weaponry, the people on earth will “know that I am the LORD.”

Ezekiel expands his prophecy in the next chapter.

Ezekiel 39:1-6 “Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog, and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog….I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand.  Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands, and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured….And I will send a fire on Magog, and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD.”

Verse 3 basically indicates that God is going to make the weapons of Gog ineffective.  The Hebrew for fall in verse 4 is a reference to falling down dead.  In other words, most, if not all, of Gog’s armies will die on the mountains of Israel; and the birds of prey and beasts of the field will feast on the carcasses. (yuk!)

Not only will Gog’s armies in Israel be destroyed, the Lord will also send fire on Magog (Russia/Turkey), the land over which Gog rules, and upon those “that dwell carelessly in the isles.”  Fire in the Hebrew means just what it says.  I guess the question becomes—What kind of fire?  Of supernatural origin, the forces of nature, the results of war, etc.?  Whatever the “source,” it will be coming from the hand of God.

I know I thought of the isles as islands or coastal lands, but the Hebrew makes reference to anywhere people live.  Carelessly seems to reference a false sense of security.  I would think that this would be a reference to the homelands of those that had joined Gog’s coalition, but this prophecy doesn’t clarify that.  The purpose of this judgment is to make the nations recognize God as LORD.  He is not going to allow the nations to consider Him weak or powerless any longer.

In the aftermath of Gog’s attack, Ezekiel tells us that the people of Israel will be able to burn the recovered weapons of the enemy to use as fuel/energy for seven years even as they gather much booty in the process.  The LORD promises that they will be in the position to rob those that robbed them.  The prophet also notes that it will take seven months for Israel to bury all the dead; he even details that they will buried in a specific place in Israel—the city of Hamonah (meaning “multitude”) in The Valley of Hamongog.  Jack Kelley (www.gracethrufaithcom) makes an interesting observation regarding the description of the burial procedures:  “It will require the combined efforts of all Israeli citizens for 7 months to bury the enemy dead. After that they'll hire professionals, some to decontaminate the land and some to search for any bodies the people may have missed. They won't touch any bones they find, but will set up markers and call the professionals to come take them away. This approach fits modern Nuclear Biological Chemical Warfare decontamination procedures to a tee.”

The fact that Gog attacks when the nation of Israel is experiencing a time that they feel relatively safe I think negates the possibility that this is the same war as Armageddon.  At that time Israel will be experiencing the despotic rule of the Antichrist and certainly not feeling safe.

(to be continued…)