Jesus Christ – The Messiah
The Old Testament predictions of the Messiah to come were so specific and so clearly fulfilled by Jesus of Nazareth that both Jesus and Apollos used these prophecies to prove to the Jews that Jesus was, indeed, the Messiah. Jesus Christ explained that He fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies of the Messiah, “And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, He [Jesus] expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself” (Luke 24:27). And Paul presented the same truths, “For he [Apollos] vigorously refuted the Jews publicly, showing from the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ” (Acts 18:28).
There are more than 125 of these prophecies. Let’s review just 12 of them:
| Prophecy | Old Testament Scripture | New Testament Fulfillment | |
| 1. | Born in Bethlehem | Micah 5:2 | Matthew 2:1 |
| 2. | Born of a virgin | Isaiah 7:14 | Matthew 1:18-23 |
| 3. | Of David’s lineage | Jeremiah 23:5 | Revelation 22:16 |
| 4. | Attempted murder by Herod | Jeremiah 31:15 | Matthew 2:16-18 |
| 5. | Betrayal by a friend | Psalms 41:9 | John 13:18, 19, 26 |
| 6. | Sold for 30 silver coins | Zechariah 11:12 | Matthew 26:14-16 |
| 7. | Crucified | Zechariah 12:10 | John 19:16-18, 37 |
| 8. | Lots cast for His clothes | Psalms 22:18 | Matthew 27:35 |
| 9. | No bones broken | Psalms 34:20 Exodus 12:46 | John 19:31-36 |
| 10. | Buried in rich man’s tomb | Isaiah 53:9 | Matthew 27:57-60 |
| 11. | Year, day, hour of His death | Daniel 9:26, 27 Exodus 12:6 | Matthew 27:45-50 |
| 12. | Raised the third day | Hosea 6:2 | Acts 10:38-40 |
Dr. Peter Stoner, former chairman of the departments of mathematics, astronomy, and engineering at Pasadena College California, worked with 600 students for several years applying the “principle of probability” to the prophecies of the Messiah’s coming. They chose just eight from the many available and finally decided the chances of all eight being fulfilled in one man in a lifetime is one in 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000. What would the odds be on the more than 125 prophecies of the Messiah?
It couldn’t just happen! Jesus Christ is indeed the Messiah.
For a list of the Messianic prophecies, check: What are the prophecies that Jesus fulfilled?
In His service,
BibleAsk Team
