Limapela Education Project
Faith in Action
This project aims to provide quality education to children in Zambia's Copperbelt Province.
Biblical prophecy not only encompasses the history of nations and of God's people Israel. It centres on the person and character of God's appointed world leader, the Messiah. In this message, preached at Greyfriars' Classical Service on 5 April 2009, Rob Yule shows how the Bible's Messianic prophecies were fulfilled with extraordinary exactness in the life and death of Jesus. Remarkably, though they were predicted, the Messiah's sufferings wrong-footed those who expected an all-conquering Messiah. Instead, he came as a servant leader who suffered and died for his subjects, and invites us to follow his example.
Biblical prophecy deals with a wide range of subjects. These can be classified in diminishing concentric circles, funnelling from the circumference to the centre of prophetic concern:
The first or outer circle comprises the nations - especially nations that interact with or seek to interfere with the destiny of God's chosen people. Prophecies of the nations concern Israel's neighbours, such as Edom, and the rise and fall of super-powers and civilisations, such as Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia and Rome.
The second circle concerns Israel. Many prophecies concern the destiny of one nation among the nations, the chosen nation Israel. These are prophecies about her divine destiny, and of God's judgement if she turns from that - prophecies of scattering and exile, restoration and return, prophecies of a glorious future.
The third or inmost circle concerns the Messiah, the chosen leader of God's people, the flower and glory of Israel, who will also be a light to enlighten the nations - as the aged Simeon prophesied at the time of Jesus' birth (Luke 2:32).
The early narratives of the Torah contain some remarkable early Messianic prophecies - intimations of the hopes of the great prophets of the 8th century and later.
The ancient curse on the serpent contains the earliest Messianic prophecy in the Bible. 'I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed [offspring] and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.' The seed of the woman would crush the serpent's head, dealing it a fatal blow, but its heel would be injured in the process. Jesus, the descendant of the woman, crushed Satan in his death, but he was hurt and wounded in doing so.
These are remarkable prophecies, in that these ancient oracles were delivered by a pagan diviner, Balaam, who came from Pethor on the Euphrates River (Numbers 22:5) - probably Pitru, near Carchemish, at least 700 kilometres from Israel. This pagan seer, hired by Balak king of Moab to curse Israel, foresees a time when Israel will have a king who will conquer all the enemy nations round about.
The seer discerns that 'The Lord their God is with them; the shout of the king is among them' (Numbers 23:21). Yet at this time the Israelite tribes had not even moved into the land (Numbers 22:1), let alone formed a kingdom. He foresees a king before Israel even had a kingship. He foretells a royal person in the distant future: 'I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob; a sceptre will rise out of Israel.' (Numbers 24:17).
Moses' prophesies that the Lord 'will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people', whom all Israel must listen to and whom they must be careful to obey on pain of being called to account for any rejection of him. He will not be like the pagan prophets, who practice sorcery and divination. He will bring a direct personal revelation from God, accommodated to our human weakness - just as the Israelites had requested at Mt. Horeb, that they 'not hear the voice of God' directly any more, lest they die.
From early times Israel expected a Messiah, a divinely chosen leader, who would exercise a universal rule and put down all oppression and injustice.
Before he died Jacob prophesied over his son Judah, 'The sceptre will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs, and the obedience of the nations is his.' This indicates that the Messiah would be born of the tribe of Judah before Judah was dispersed, and that the nations would obey him.
Isaiah prophesied, 'To us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders', and goes on to say that 'of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end.' Here it is stated that the Messiah would carry the responsibility of government, and that his government or kingdom would progressively grow and increase.
Daniel had a vision of 'one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven,' who is brought before God, the 'Ancient of Days', and given 'authority, glory and sovereign power.' Here Jesus' ascension and exaltation to God's right hand is foretold, and that his resultant kingdom will endure for ever. 'His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.'
On the basis of these prophecies we can understand how Jesus' contemporaries in Israel expected the Messiah to come in power and conquest to establish his kingdom. Perhaps they hoped, on his triumphal entry into Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, that he would turn right and take the Antonia Fortress, headquarters of the Roman garrison. Instead, he turned left, into the Temple, and threw out the merchants and financiers who were profaning the holy place with their commerce. From that moment, the chief priests and teachers of the law began to plot to kill him (Mark 11:18).
The disciples' disappointment, too, is clearly shown in the words of Cleopas after Jesus' death (Luke 24:21): 'The chief priests and scribes and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel.'
The humiliation and rejection of their Messiah wrong-footed them - they were looking for a triumphal Messiah and weren't prepared for a suffering Messiah. Conversely, many self-sufficient people today who would like Jesus to come back in weakness and not interfere with them will be in for a rude shock, when instead he comes back in power with his air force to gather his elect from the four corners of the earth (Mark 13:26-27)!
Yet the sufferings of the Messiah had been clearly foretold, as Jesus explained: 'Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?' (Luke 24:26). Suffering and rejection had been foretold by Jesus himself (Mark 8:31-32), and by Moses, the prophets and the psalmist (Luke 24:44-46). God's purpose was that the Messiah first suffer and be rejected, and then establish his kingdom. We can see this from the following psalm and selections from the prophets.
Psalm 22 contains astonishingly accurate predictive details, yet not even the most critical scholar can make this a prophecy after the event. Compare the following verses with the sufferings of Jesus described in the crucifixion narratives:
| 1 | The words of Jesus' anguished cry on the cross. |
| 6-7 | He was scorned, despised, mocked, and insulted by people. |
| 8 | He was challenged to see if God would save him. |
| 9-10 | He had a special relationship to God from his birth. |
| 14-17 | The details of his crucifixion - bones out of joint, strength gone, acute thirst, mouth and tongue parched, hands and feet pierced, bones and ribs protruding. |
| 18 | People divided and cast lots for his clothing. |
| 19-21 | His prayer for God's vindication. |
| 27-31 | Posterity will serve him: every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. |
Isaiah 53, too, anticipates remarkable details of Jesus' sufferings, and presents him in a representative role as our sacrifice and substitute:
| 3 | He was despised and rejected. |
| 4-6 | He bore our infirmities (weaknesses) and iniquities (sins). |
| 7 | He was silent before his accusers. |
| 8 | He was executed by a miscarriage of justice. |
| 9 | He was buried in a rich man's grave (the winepress and cistern at the Garden Tomb in Jerusalem are evidence of a wealthy landowner) |
| 10a | His crushing death was an offering for sin. |
| 10b-11 | His reward and resurrection; 'he will see his offspring and prolong his days.' |
| 12 | He became our representative and intercessor. |
In addition to these two extended passages, there are numerous other prophecies about the Messiah's sufferings, death and resurrection that were exactly fulfilled in what happened to Jesus:
| Prophecy | Prediction | Fulfilment |
|---|---|---|
| Isaiah 50:6 | He will be beaten, mocked, and spat on | Luke 22:63-65 |
| Psalm 69:21 | He will be offered vinegar to drink | John 19:28-30 |
| Psalm 34:19-20 | None of his bones will be broken | John 19:31-33 |
| Zechariah 12:10 | His side will be pierced | John 19:34 |
| Lamentations 4:20 | His death will disappoint his disciples | Luke 24:20-21 |
| Psalm 16:10 | He will be raised to life without undergoing corruption (within 3 days) | John 20:1, 1 Corinthians 15:4 |
'Christians' are 'Christ's ones' - followers of the Messiah whose sufferings were foretold beforehand. If we believe in him as God's divinely-approved leader and representative, and accept what he has done for us, then we must be willing to embrace suffering and rejection too.
Immediately after the disciples first recognised that he was the Messiah, Jesus began to teach that he must suffer. He indicated that, if they would follow him, they must deny self, take up the cross, and be willing to suffer also (Mark 8:31-37).
In washing his disciples' feet Jesus gave an example of practical service of one another, even in unpleasant or menial tasks (John 13:12-17). We who would follow him should follow his example in humbly serving others.
Jesus endured the pain and shame of crucifixion, because he set his eyes on the joy and glory which would come afterwards (Hebrews 12:2-3). In our trials and hardships as his followers, we are to do the same. Setting our eyes like him on the glory which is to come, inspires us in turn to endure our present sufferings.
Rob Yule, 5 April 2009
© 2009, Greyfriars Presbyterian Church
