Christmas = 109 Prophecies

In a blog about the Bible calls the ‘last hour’ of history and prophecies concerning what is yet to come, why are we looking at the past?

It’s pretty simple: if there are prophecies that were made and have already come to pass, then any prophecies that haven’t come to pass will come to pass!

There are 333 prophecies in the Bible about God’s promised Messiah – people who are experts in statistics and Bible prophecy calculate that 109 have been fulfilled, leaving (pause while I attempt some math…) 224 that need to be fulfilled.

Some are about Him being a suffering and lowly man, others are about Him ruling the earth forever as the almighty God.

Now, it’s evident, from the mixed reception Jesus received in Israel back in the 1st century, that these two descriptions were mixed up by many people who had read them over the centuries.

[A similar thing happens today – a confusion usually caused by not having a consistent literal interpretation of the whole Bible.]

Jesus came the first time proclaiming that the kingdom of God was at the door, ready to be set up in all of it’s Old Testament splendor all over the earth, and that He was the One God had sent to rule over it – the Messiah! But many of the Jews, particularly the rulers, were expecting someone who looked and acted totally differently than He did: judging Israel’s enemies like a devouring fire, followed by peace and prosperity all over the earth, with Israel glorious at it’s center – not belonging to the family of a nobody-carpenter, with no place to even lay His head, preaching repentance and then dying.

But there were some who understood the times. Because they knew what God’s word said about the arrival of His chosen Savior. People like Simeon and Anna.

Who had read and understood prophecies like Daniel 9:25-26:

Know therefore and understand,
That from the going forth of the command
To restore and build Jerusalem
Until Messiah the Prince,
There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks

(This one relates to the timing, beginning with the decree to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem in Nehemiah’s day, up to the arrival of the Messiah to become king, which was when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on the donkey. The ‘weeks’ are groups of seven years – so the prophesied time span was 463 years between the two events; Jewish 360-day years.)

And Micah 5:2:

But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
Though you are little among the thousands of Judah,
Yet out of you shall come forth to Me
The One to be Ruler in Israel

And Isaiah 7:14:

Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.

Each of these gave details of the timing, location and circumstance of the Messiah’s arrival. And there are nearly 100 more which predicted things about Jesus Christ’s time on earth as the only God-man – His first time on earth!

Now in our day it’s a similar situation: we’re either confused about the Bible’s remaining prophecies regarding God’s Messiah – the second time He comes to earth – or we understand the prophecies God has given about that second coming.

And there are 224 of those! I’d say those are worth paying more attention to.

Remember the 333 prophecies in the Bible about the Messiah that I mentioned earlier? Well, those 224 are part of that group.

These are all about the return, the rule, the judgment, the kingdom and total redemption of the heavens and the earth that the Messiah will bring to pass.

Importantly, these are prophecies that we can know, just like Anna and Simeon did when Jesus came the first time. (And not only can we know what they are, we can also see the signs once they’re looming on the horizon.)

So, if the prophecies about His first coming came to pass, then we can absolutely sure that the prophecies about His return will come to pass – just as literally, and as in precise of detail.

And now, as it is Christmastime, let’s look at and rejoice in the prophecies that have since become history – such as when:

• The Messiah came to earth as a child
  • Prophesied: “For unto us a Child is born,
    Unto us a Son is given” Isaiah 9:6
  • Fulfilled: “‘And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.'” Luke 1:30
• The Messiah would descend from King David:
  • Prophesied: “‘Behold, the days are coming,’ says the Lord,
    ‘That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness'” Jeremiah 23:5
  • Fulfilled: “So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations, from David until the captivity in Babylon are fourteen generations, and from the captivity in Babylon until the Christ are fourteen generations.” Matthew 1:17
• The Messiah would be the Son of God:
  • Prophesied: “The Lord has said to Me,
    ‘You are My Son,
    Today I have begotten You.'” Psalm 2:7
  • Fulfilled: “And the angel answered and said to her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.'” Luke 1:35

And there are also the prophecies of Daniel 9, Isaiah 7 and Micah 5 that I’ve already mentioned!

So if Jesus Christ was descended from David, born as a human being, born in Bethlehem, and fulfilled so many other prophecies concerning, not only His birth, but His ministry, death and resurrection as well, when the Bible says things like:

Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory,

then we can be sure that it will happen. (That’s from Matthew 24:30, by the way.)

So rejoice! Not only did God keep His promise to send a Savior to bless the all mankind with redemption and reconciliation with Him, but He’s going to keep His promise to redeem the entire creation and bring perfection and peace – and perfect judgment to the earth!

There is so much joy in being able to rely on God’s promises that He gives us in the Bible. There is nothing more sure – nothing.

Now may I wish you the happiest of Christmases!

And may the words of that grand old English carol sink in:

‘God rest ye merry gentlemen, let nothing you dismay / Remember Christ our Savior was born upon this day / To save us all from Satan’s power when we had gone astray. / Oh tidings of comfort and joy!’