MESSIANIC PROPHECY

In the Hebrew Scriptures there are prophecies about the coming Messiah.  Alfred Edersheim in his book The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah says:

They [Messianic prophecies] amount in all to 456, thus distributed: 75 from the Pentateuch [The First Five Books of Moses], 243 from the Prophets, and 138 from the Hagiographa [the writings like Psalms, Proverbs], and supported by more than 558 separate quotations from Rabbinic writings (980). 

The word Messiah is English for the Hebrew word mashiach, which means "anointed."  The Messiah is an ideal figure who will usher in a peaceful utopian reign over the earth.  The Jews in Jesus' day expected the Messiah to be victorious over the Romans but they neglected to see that the Hebrew Scriptures painted two portraits of the Messiah.  Isaiah 53:5 says, "But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed."  On the other hand Daniel says of the Messiah, "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, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed" (Daniel 7:14).

It is clear that there are two portraits painted of the Messiah - the Suffering Messiah and the Kingly Messiah.  Many Jews counter this and say that there are two Messiahs - Messiah ben Joseph (not Jesus' legal guardian but Joseph from Genesis) and Messiah ben David.  Some Jews go as far to claim that Jesus maybe was the Suffering Messiah but not the Kingly Messiah.  Many others say that the Suffering Servant in Isaiah is not the Messiah but Israel.  But this isn't correct because the Messiah says, "They [Israel] will look on me, the one they have pierced" (Zechariah 12:10).  Zechariah 12 discusses how the Messiah will defeat Jerusalem's enemies and then we see that the Jews will mourn at the one (the Messiah) whom they pierced.  This means that the Messiah must have been rejected by Israel before.  This also negates the two Messiah theory for the Messiah in Zechariah 12 is triumphant but was in the past was pierced by Israel.  

I will discuss a number of the Messianic prophecies and explain them and look into who could be the Messiah.  There are a few prophecies that explain about the Messiah's background like where will he be born or what family he comes from.  

THE PLACE OF BIRTH

Micah 5:2 says, "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 of old, from ancient times."  We learn three things about the Messiah from this verse.  The first is that he will be born in Bethlehem where King David was also born.  The second is that the Messiah will be ruler over Israel.  Finally we see that the Messiah's origins are from old, from ancient times.  It can be translated "from days of eternity," so we can see that the Messiah is eternal, something only God is.  This Messiah is not going to be an average human being for he existed even before he would be born. 

HIS SUPERNATURAL BIRTH

Isaiah 7:14 says, "Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel."  We see that the Messiah will be born of a virgin, which is impossible (but not for God) to humans for a woman can't get pregnant unless a sperm is joined with her egg.  There are other questions that are brought up when looking at this prophecy.  A male is the one who determines the sex of the baby for each of the female's eggs have X chromosomes while the male's sperm has both X and Y chromosomes.  If the chromosome of the sperm that fertilizes the egg is X then the baby is XX and its a girl.  If the chromosome of the sperm that fertilizes the egg is Y then the baby is XY and its a boy.  The Messiah is going to be a son born from a virgin.  How can this be when the only chromosomes in the female egg is X?  Without the Y from the sperm then how can the Messiah be a son.  This is obviously a supernatural birth.  What is impossible for man is not impossible for God.  There is also a reason why the Messiah cannot be born from the union of the sperm and an egg.  We'll look into that later.  We also see that the Messiah will be called Immanuel, which means "God with us."  This is not a reference to the name of the Messiah but rather his nature.  The meaning (GOD WITH US) of the name Immanuel further supports that the Messiah is God and that he will dwell with man and that he will take on humanity.

HE WILL BE FROM SHEM

Noah had three sons, Shem, Japheth, and Ham.  God chose Shem's line of which the Messiah will come from.  This eliminated one-third of the world's population.  Genesis 9:26 says, "Blessed be the Lord, the God of Shem!"  We don't see an explicit statement that the Messiah will come from Shem we see the exalted spiritual position of Shem.  Finally since God chose Abraham, a descendant of Shem, to have the Messiah come from his line then it is safe to say that the Messiah will come from Shem.

HE WILL BE FROM ABRAHAM, ISAAC, AND JACOB

God made a covenant with Abraham that in his seed all the nations will be blessed.  Genesis 22:18 says, "And through your offspring [or seed] all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me."  We see that the Messiah will come from Abraham.  God here in the verse is speaking of one particular person not many when he mentions offspring or seed.  This is referring to the Messiah.  We also learn that through the Messiah all nations on the earth will be blessed.  God confirms the same covenant with Abraham's son, Isaac.  Genesis 26:4 says, "And through your offspring [or seed] all nations on earth shall be blessed."  Abraham had two sons - Ishmael and Isaac.  When he chose Isaac in Genesis 21:12 God eliminated one-half of Abraham's lineage from which the Messiah would come.  Again seed in Genesis 26:4 is speaking of one specific person - the Messiah not many.  The most important offspring of Isaac's line would be the Messiah through which the nations will be blessed.  Isaac had two sons - Esau and Jacob.  God chose Jacob eliminating one-half of Isaac's lineage.  Genesis 28:14 says, "All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring."  We see that the Messiah will come from Jacob since God confirmed the covenant that he made with Abraham and Isaac and now to Jacob.  Numbers 24:17 further supports that the Messiah will come from Jacob.  It says, "I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near.  A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel.  He will crush the foreheads of Moab, the skulls of all the sons of Sheth."  Numbers 24:19 reiterates verse 17 by saying, "A ruler will come out of Jacob."  We see that the Messiah will come from Jacob and that he will be a ruler.  

HE WILL COME FROM JUDAH

Jacob had twelve sons but God eliminated eleven-twelfths of Jacob's line and chose Judah through which the Messiah will descend from.  Genesis 49:10 says, "The scepter 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."  The statement "until he comes to whom it belongs and the obedience of the nations is his" can also read "until Shiloh comes; And to him shall be the obedience of the people."  Shiloh is a name for the Messiah.  Here Jacob chose Judah to be the head of his family (birthright).  

HE WILL COME FROM JESSE

Isaiah 11:1 says, "A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit."  Jesse was the father of King David.  Isaiah 11:1 states that the Messiah will come from the family line of Jesse, eliminating countless family lines from Judah.  

HE WILL COME FROM THE HOUSE OF DAVID

Jeremiah 23:5 says, "'The days are coming,' declare the Lord, 'when I will raise up to David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land.'"  This Branch is the same Branch in Isaiah 11:1 and that is the Messiah.  We learn that the Messiah will come from the House of David.  We also learn that the Messiah will be a King who will rule and judge fairly.  This is fitting for if the Messiah is God, which is clear from the context of Isaiah 7:14 and Micah 5:2, then he will rule and judge fairly for "God is not a respecter of persons."

These are a few of the Messianic prophecies about the Messiah's origins and what family he will come from.  Lets go into the offices of the Messiah. 

The Messiah will be called Lord (Psalm 110:1; Jeremiah 23:6)
The Messiah will be a Prophet (Deuteronomy 18:18)
The Messiah will be a Priest (Psalm 110:4)
The Messiah will be a Judge (Isaiah 33:22)
The Messiah will be King (Psalm 2:6; Jeremiah 23:5; Zechariah 9:9)
The Messiah will be Anointed (Psalm 45:7; Isaiah 11:2; 42:1; 61:1-2)
The Messiah will be Zealous for God (Psalm 69:9)

Let us go more into the fact that the scriptures teach that the Messiah is the Son of God.  Proverbs 30:4 says: 

Who has ascended into heaven and descended?  Who has gathered the wind in His fists?  Who has wrapped the waters in His garment?  Who has established all the ends of the earth?  What is His name or His son's name?  Surely you know!

When I first saw this verse, I was shocked!  The only one who can do all those things in Proverbs 30:4 is God.  Only God can do that! 

  1. Only God can ascend to heaven and descend from it.

  2. Only God can gather the wind in His fists.

  3. Only God can wrap the waters in His garment.

  4. Only God can establish all the ends of the earth.

The fact that God can do this is indisputable.  But the fact that God himself has a Son is a revelation in itself.  It is clear that God has a Son and that Son is the Messiah himself.  Psalms 2:7 says, "I will surely tell of the decree of the Lord: He said to Me, 'You are My Son, Today I have begotten You."  Psalm 2:12 tells us to pay homage to the Son lest He be angry and we perish in His way.  We can only pay homage to God.  The only conclusion is that the Messiah is the Son of God and he is God.  Isaiah 9:6 proves that this Son is God for the Messiah is called "Mighty God" and "Eternal Father." 

Here are some prophecies detailing the Messiah's Ministry:

The Messiah will be preceded by Messenger (Isaiah 40:3)
The Messiah will be a teacher of Parables (Psalm 78:2)
The Messiah will be performing miracles (Isaiah 35:5-6; 32:3-4)
The Messiah will enter the Temple (Malachi 3:1)
The Messiah will be a Light to the Gentiles (Isaiah 60:3; 49:6)

HE WILL ENTER JERUSALEM ON A DONKEY

Zechariah 9:9 says, "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!  Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem!  Behold your king is coming to you; He is just and endowed with salvation, Humble, and mounted on a key, even on a colt, the foal of a donkey."  Zechariah is saying that the Messiah will ride into Jerusalem on a donkey.  This is not what we would expect from a king - riding of a donkey.  We would expect the Messiah or a king to ride a beautiful horse not a young donkey.  God's ways are not our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts (Isaiah 55:8-9).  We do know that from this verse that the Messiah is just, humble, and having salvation.  There is a difference between Zechariah 9:9 and Psalm 2:6.  The Messiah in Psalm 2:6 is a King with a capital K while He is a king with a lower case k in Zechariah.  This suggests the Messiah will come twice.  The Messiah will come humbly but he will be pierced (Zechariah 12:10) and in another coming will be set up as King (Psalm 2:6) in front of those who pierced him (Zechariah 12:10). 

THE SUFFERING SERVANT

Isaiah 52:13 - 53:12 is the prophecy of the Suffering Servant.  This is a very fascinating prophecy, which shows that the Messiah must suffer.  Many people say that the Suffering Servant is Israel.  I believe this to be false and there is scriptural support from the Prophet Isaiah.  Isaiah 52:13-14 says, "Behold, My servant will prosper, He will be high and lifted up and greatly exalted.  Just as many were astonished at you, My people, so His appearance was marred more than any man and His form more than the sons of men."  The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob was distinguishing from the Suffering Servant in verse 13 and "My people," which is Israel.  Finally how can the Suffering Servant be Israel when the Suffering Servant will be "cut of out of the land of the living for the transgression of MY PEOPLE" (Isaiah 53:8).  We see that the Suffering Servant cannot be Israel but a man - the Messiah.  Let's look at the full prophecy of the Suffering Servant.  Isaiah 52:13 - 53:12 says:

Behold, My Servant shall deal prudently; He shall be exalted and extolled and be very high.  Just as many were astonished at you, So His visage was marred more than any man, And His form more than the sons of men; So shall He sprinkle many nations.  Kings shall shut their mouths at Him; For what had not been told them they shall see, And what they had not heard they shall consider.  Who has believed our report?  And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?  For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, And as a root out of dry ground. He has no form or comeliness; And when we see Him, There is no beauty that we should desire Him.  He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.  And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.  Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted.  But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities;
The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.  All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.  He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth.  He was taken from prison and from judgment, And who will declare His generation?  For He was cut off from the land of the living; For the transgressions of My people He was stricken.  And they made His grave with the wicked-- But with the rich at His death, Because He had done no violence, Nor was any deceit in His mouth.  Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief.  When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, And the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His hand.  He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied.  By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, For He shall bear their iniquities.  Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, And He shall divide the spoil with the strong, Because He poured out His soul unto death, And He was numbered with the transgressors, And He bore the sin of many, And made intercession for the transgressors.

This is a very interesting prophecy!  It shows that the Messiah will suffer. 

Who is this person?  The Jewish Midrash Tanchuma relates the prophecy of the Suffering Servant to the Messiah Son of David.  The Jewish Midrash Rabbah Ruth does the same thing.  If the Messiah who will come from David will be King (Psalms 2) then he will also be destined to suffer.  Who can this Messiah be?  A Messiah that will suffer for our transgressions and iniquities.  Who can this be?  The Suffering Servant prophecy tells us some other things about the Messiah:

The Jewish Scriptures are very descriptive of the Messiah's suffering and his last hours!  Here are some of those prophecies:

SEVENTY WEEKS

This is another interesting prophecy in relation to the Messiah.  It is found in Daniel 9:24-27 but only verses 25 and 26 will be covered.  Daniel saw that the seventy years of captivity of Jeremiah was coming to an end (Daniel 9:2), so Daniel wanted to know where does Israel who is in captivity go from here.  What is God's plan for His people?  God sent Gabriel to give Daniel His answer.  Daniel 9:25-26 says:

So you are to know and discern that from the issuing of a decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince there will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; it will be built again, with plaza and moat, even in times of distress.  Then after the sixty-two weeks the Messiah will be cut off and have nothing, and the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary.  And its end will come with a flood; even to the end there will be war; desolations are determined.

This prophecy is saying that sixty-nine weeks (seven and sixty-two weeks) from the issuing of the decree to rebuild Jerusalem, the Messiah will come.  The verse most associated with the presentation of the Messiah is Zechariah 9:9.  Look at verse 26.  It says that after the Messiah will be cut off the City (Jerusalem) and the Sanctuary (the Temple) will be destroyed.  The Babylonians already did this when Daniel was given the prophecy of the Seventy Weeks so it can't be referring to that.  It must be a future event.  There were only two Temple's in Israel's history - the First Temple and the Second Temple.  The Temple in view here in the Second Temple since the First Temple was already destroyed.  Since the Second Temple was destroyed by the Romans in AD 70 then the Messiah has to come before AD 70.  What Messiah came before AD 70?

The issuing of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem took place in 445 BC in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes (Nehemiah 2:1).  This decree dealt with the rebuilding of the walls, which were a defense against Jerusalem's enemies.  Look at verse 25: "It will be built again, with plaza and moat, even in times of distress."  Once again we see clues that the decree in Nehemiah in 445 BC is the correct one for this verse talks about the city's defenses.  Sixty-nine weeks is dealing with weeks of years or sixty-nine weeks times seven.  483 years from the issuing of this decree the Messiah will come.  Since a prophetic year is 360 days, 173,880 days from the very day the Nehemiah decree was issued by Artaxerxes the Messiah will come.  We have to find the number of solar years  since a prophetic year is short of 365.25 days, which is a solar year.  483 years of 360 days is 476 solar years.  476 years from 445 BC is 31 AD. 

Here is a more comprehensive treatment of the Seventy Weeks Prophecy. 
Click here to see the article!

Who is the Messiah who will come in 31 AD?  Who can be the Messiah who will be cut off and be bruised for our transgressions after he presents himself?  There is only one possible person in history who can be the Messiah - JESUS OF NAZARETH.  He fulfilled every prophecy that is mentioned here!  He is the Son of God, the Messiah!  He suffered for the sins of the world and He will come again to usher in His Kingdom.  He was rejected!  Next time around He will be hailed - "King of kings and Lord of lords."

I want to tell you that Jesus the Messiah is alive right now.  His resurrection was prophesied in scripture.  Psalm 16:10 says, " For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol; Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay."  His ascension to heaven was foretold in Psalm 68:18, which says, "You have ascended on high."  After His ascension He will be seated at the right hand of God (Psalm 110:1).  Finally the Messiah will be a STONE OF STUMBLING to Jews and will be the chief cornerstone (Psalm 118:22; Isaiah 8:14; 28:1).  Jesus fulfilled all these prophecies and there are many prophecies unfulfilled that He will fulfill when He comes back to set up His Kingdom, which will never fade or be destroyed!

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