Prophetic Evidence for the Bible

1. Prophetic Evidence for the Bible 2 Peter 1:16-21: “For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

2. And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount. We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.”

3. When we look at other religions we see prophecies failing left and right Mormons and JW for example: Charles T. Russell calculated and prophesied when the Lord would return to earth… • He calculated that Christ would visibly return • to the earth in 1874 • Next he changed his calculations and prophesied • the year 1914

4. Rutherford predicted Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, would return to earth visibly between 1925-1929 to assist in promoting God’s kingdom. Knorr prophesied that Armageddon (end of the world) would occur in 1975… It… didn’t. What about Joseph Smith? Prophecy that the temple would be built in Missouri within Smith's Generation

5. All Nations would be involved in the Civil War Prophesy that the earth will tremble and the sun be hidden in "not many days" The Bible is distinct in history with it’s ability to predict the future Remember though, we must show that the Bible (when the prophecies were written) was before the time that they took place!

6. Specific prophecies about the coming Messiah He was to be of David’s family (2 Sam 7:12-16, Psalms 89:3-4, Psalms 132:11, Isaiah 9:6-7) He would be born of a virgin (Genesis 3:15, Isaiah 7:14) He would be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2) He would sojourn in Egypt (Hosea 11:1) He would live in Galilee (Isaiah 9:1,2) He would live in Nazareth (Isaiah 11) To be announced by an Elijah-like herald (Isaiah 40:3-5, Malachi 3:1, 4:5) He would cause the massacre of Bethlehem’s children (Genesis 35:19-20, Jeremiah 31:15) He would proclaim a jubilee to the world (Isaiah 58:6, 61:1) His mission would include the Gentiles (Isaiah 42:1-4) His mission would include the Gentiles (Isaiah 42:1-4) His ministry would be one of healing (Isaiah 53:4) He would teach through parables (Isaiah 6:9-10, Psalms 78:2) He would be disbelieved and rejected by Religious Rulers (Psalms 69:4, 118:22, Isaiah 6:10, 29:13, 53:1) He will make a triumphal entry into Jerusalem (Zechariah 9:9, Psalms 118:26)

7. He would be betrayed by a friend for 30 pieces of silver (Zechariah 11:1-13, Psalms 41:9) Would be like a smitten shepherd (Zechariah 13:7) Would be given vinegar and gall (Psalms 69:21) They would cast lots for His garments (Psalms 22:18) His side would be pierced (Zachariah 12:10, Psalms 22:16) Not a bone would be broken in his body (Exodus 12:46, Numbers 9:12, Psalms 34:20) He would die among criminals (Isaiah 53:9, 12) He would die among criminals (Isaiah 53:9, 12) He would be buried by a rich man (Isaiah 53:9) He would rise from the dead on the third day (Genesis 22:4, Psalms 16: 10-11, Hosea 6:2) His resurrection would be followed by the destruction of Jerusalem (Dan 9:26, chpt 11) These are only some of the 250 prophecies! One site lists 351: http://www.accordingtothescriptures.org/prophecy/353prophecies.html

8. Prophecies about Jesus Christ The Hebrew Scriptures were translated into Greek by 270 BC. (Three Centuries before the gospel) Scriptures contain over 250 fulfilled prophecies of the coming Messiah The odds of someone fulfilling eight of these specific prophecies

9. 1 - Jesus would be born in Bethlehem 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.” Population throughout history has averaged around 7,000 Probability of being born in Bethlehem: 1 in 100,000

10. 2 - Presenting himself as King to Jerusalem – Riding a Donkey Zechariah 9:9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass. Way less than 1 in 100 people do that…

11. 3 – He will be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver Zechariah 11:12 “And I said unto them, If ye think good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver.” How many people have been betrayed for 30 pieces of silver? Less than 1 in 1000 people

12. 4 – The Potter will end up with the money Zechariah 11:13 “And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of the LORD.” Matthew 27:6-8: And the chief priests took the silver pieces, and said, It is not lawful for to put them into the treasury, because it is the price of blood. And they took counsel, and bought with them the potter's field, to bury strangers in. Wherefore that field was called, The field of blood, unto this day. The odds of the Potter ending up with the money? 1 in 100,000

13. To be announced by an Elijah-like herald Isaiah 40:3-5 “The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.”

14. This was fulfilled by John the Baptist in the New Testament Matthew 3:1-3 “In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. or this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Odd of this happening: 1 in 1000

15. 6 - He was accused of a capital crime and made no defense Isaiah 53:7 “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.” How many prisoners accused of a capital crime make no defense even though they are innocent? Less than 1 in 1,000

16. 7 - He will die among the wicked, and be buried with the rich Isaiah 53:9 “And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.” How many people died among the wicked, yet were buried with the rich? Less than 1 in 1,000

17. 8 – He will die having his hands and feet pierced Psalm 22:16 “For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet.” Psalms was written 700 years before crucifixion was invented! At that time stoning was the primary means of capital punishment What are the odds of someone in history dying by crucifixion? 1 in 10,000 What are the odds of one person fulfilling all 8 of these prophecies?

18. The odds of one person fulfilling all eight of these prophecies… 1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000 Putting this to scale for you… using silver dollars

19. The fact that Israel is still fulfilling prophecy today shows they are not replaced and irrelevant. Charles Krauthammer - The Weekly Standard, May 11, 1998 "Israel is the very embodiment of Jewish continuity: It is the only nation on earth that inhabits the same land, bears the same name, speaks the same language, and worships the same God that it did 3,000 years ago. You dig the soil and you find pottery from Davidic times, coins from Bar Kokhba, and 2,000-year-old scrolls written in a script remarkably like the one that today advertises ice cream at the corner candy store." On May 14, 1948, David Ben-Gurion, the head of the Jewish Agency, proclaimed the establishment of the State of Israel. U.S. President Harry S. Truman recognized the new nation on the same day.

20. Biblical Prophecy about Israel becoming a nation again: Amos 9:14-15: “I will bring back the captives of My people Israel; They shall build the waste cities and inhabit them; They shall plant vineyards and drink wine from them; They shall also make gardens and eat fruit from them. I will plant them in their land, And no longer shall they be pulled up From the land I have given them,” Says the Lord your God.” (Also Ezekiel37:10-14)

21. Israel would be born in one day Isaiah 66:7-8: “Before she was in labor, she gave birth; Before her pain came, She delivered a male child. Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things? Shall the earth be made to give birth in one day? Or shall a nation be born at once? For as soon as Zion was in labor, She gave birth to her children. During that same day, the United States issued a statement recognizing Israel’s sovereignty. And, only hours beforehand, a United Nations mandate expired, ending British control of the land.

22. During a 24-hour span of time, foreign control of the land of Israel had formally ceased, and Israel had declared its independence, and its independence was acknowledged by other nations. Modern Israel was literally was born in a single day. Isaiah said the birth would take place before there would be labor pains. And that too is precisely what happened. A movement called Zionism began in the 1800s to encourage Jews worldwide to move to Israel, which at that time was called Palestine. Within hours of the declaration of independence in 1948, Israel was attacked by the surrounding countries of Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

23. Israel would be a united nation when reestablished Ezekiel 37:21-22 “Then say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Surely I will take the children of Israel from among the nations, wherever they have gone, and will gather them from every side and bring them into their own land; and I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king over them all; they shall no longer be two nations, nor shall they ever be divided into two kingdoms again.” This is completed different than what Israel was like in the days of Ezekiel, at that time the kingdom was split into Israel and Judah There are many other prophecies and specifications that were fulfilled, we don’t have time to cover them all though

24. Prophecy about Cyrus the Great The prophet Isaiah foretold that a conqueror named Cyrus would destroy seemingly impregnable Babylon and subdue Egypt along with most of the rest of the known world. This same man, said Isaiah, would decide to let the Jewish exiles in his territory go free without any payment of ransom (Isaiah 44:28; 45:1; and 45:13). Isaiah made this prophecy 150 years before Cyrus was born, 180 years before Cyrus performed any of these feats (and he did, eventually, perform them all)

25. Jewish Captivity x2 The prophet Moses foretold (with some additions by Jeremiah and Jesus) that the ancient Jewish nation would be conquered twice and that the people would be carried off as slaves each time, first by the Babylonians (for a period of 70 years), and then by a fourth world kingdom (which we know as Rome). The second conqueror, Moses said, would take the Jews captive to Egypt in ships, selling them or giving them away as slaves to all parts of the world. Both of these predictions were fulfilled to the letter, the first in 607 B.C. and the second in 70 A.D.

26. Other prophecies fulfilled Predicted ca. 732 BC: Isaiah says Egypt and Ethiopia would be conquered by Assyria (Isaiah 20:3-5).–Fulfilled ca. 673-670 BC when Assyria conquers the northeast African nations. Predicted ca. 430 BC: Malachi prophesies that Yahweh’s name would be honored by the Gentiles (pagans) (Malachi 1:11).–Fulfilled 1st century AD to the present:  Pagans worldwide have forsaken their paganism and have confessed that Jesus is Lord to the glory of God the Father.

27. Predicted ca. 589 BC:  Ezekiel tells about the fall of the great city Tyre, claiming that the Lord “will cause many nations to come up against thee,” (Ezekiel 26, 27).–Fulfilled in 586-573 BC: Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon lays siege against the city. Fulfilled in 370s BC: a king of Cyprus conquers the city.  Fulfilled in 332 BC: Alexander the Great conquers the city.  Fulfilled in 315-316 BC: Antigonus, who served under Alexander, attacks and conquers the city.  Fulfilled in 1124: The city falls to the Crusaders. Fulfilled in 1291: The city falls to the Muslim armies of the Mameluks.

28. Memory Verse Isaiah 53:7 “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.”