How Jesus Fulfills the Prophets
Notes
Transcript
Outline
Outline
Luke 24:25-27
Does this mean that Christ can be found in every scripture?
If it’s something so obvious, why could nobody see it until after the fact?
Matthew 1-5
Matt 1:22 and Isa 7:14; 8:8, 10
Matt 2:15 and Hosea 11:1
Matt 2:17 and Jer 31:15
Matt 2:23 and what?
Matt 4:14 and Isaiah 9:1-2
Read through these OT passages. Do any of them explicitly mention Jesus? Do any of them have the future in mind beyond the immediate context of the prophecy?
Word study of fulfill
https://scholarworks.harding.edu/lectureship/2010/all-events/150/
The Virgin Birth
The Virgin Birth
18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. 19 And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. 20 But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: 23 “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us).
Isaiah Context
Isaiah Context
1 In the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, king of Judah, Rezin the king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah the king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to wage war against it, but could not yet mount an attack against it.
Isaiah Theme: Who will Judah trust in the face of disaster?
The temptation is to submit to the strongest nation around for protection
God wants them to sit tight and, in some cases, literally do nothing
Isaiah is explaining a sign that will show that Jerusalem’s deliverance is from God alone
10 Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz: 11 “Ask a sign of the Lord your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven.” 12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, and I will not put the Lord to the test.” 13 And he said, “Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary men, that you weary my God also?
Ahaz doesn’t want a sign
Not because he is pious and faithful
Because he doesn’t want to give God any credit for salvation - he has no trust in him
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.
Keep in mind the context: this is a sign about the destruction of Rezin and Remaliah:
15 He shall eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good. 16 For before the boy knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land whose two kings you dread will be deserted.
The child gives a time-frame
Kids can only eat honey at about a year old
Before he’s old enough to know right from wrong
In this short time-span Rezin and Remaliah will be gone!
Wasn’t This Fulfilled In Isaiah 8?
Wasn’t This Fulfilled In Isaiah 8?
After the two kings are deposed a worse enemy comes:
17 The Lord will bring upon you and upon your people and upon your father’s house such days as have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah—the king of Assyria!”
3 And I went to the prophetess, and she conceived and bore a son. Then the Lord said to me, “Call his name Maher-shalal-hash-baz; 4 for before the boy knows how to cry ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria will be carried away before the king of Assyria.”
Maher-shalal-hash-baz seems to be connected to the Immanuel sign.
Before knowing good/evil | Before crying out “Mom/Dad!”
Assyria comes onto the scene immediately after
7 therefore, behold, the Lord is bringing up against them the waters of the River, mighty and many, the king of Assyria and all his glory. And it will rise over all its channels and go over all its banks, 8 and it will sweep on into Judah, it will overflow and pass on, reaching even to the neck, and its outspread wings will fill the breadth of your land, O Immanuel.”
Questions:
How does the birth of Jesus signify the destruction of two kings who had been dead for centuries?
How does this sign refer to Jesus if it refers to Isaiah’s children?
18 Behold, I and the children whom the Lord has given me are signs and portents in Israel from the Lord of hosts, who dwells on Mount Zion.
Typical Patterns of God
Typical Patterns of God
There’s the saying that history repeats itself. In biblical prophecy God doesn’t repeat himself, but he does rhyme.
Instead of looking in the Old Testament for a checklist of things that God would do in the future, Matthew sees God working among his people in familiar and typical ways - called typology today.
Example: Joseph
Example: Joseph
Despised by his own
Goes from the Father’s side to a place of humility
Has a special connection to bread and wine
Is elevated to the right hand of the King
Through his actions he brings life to the dying
There is no prophecy in Joseph’s story about a savior of the world who would die on a cross and be raised three days later.
But it is a pattern
Seeing the Pattern in the Virgin Birth
Seeing the Pattern in the Virgin Birth
The sign in Isaiah was
a woman (probably not a virgin) giving birth to a son
who was a sign of God’s presence with his people (Immanuel)
who was a sign of the enemies imminent defeat
Jesus’ birth ‘fulfills’ this pattern
fulfillment slide
Jesus is a sign:
Not just from a woman - but a virgin, showing God’s direct involvement
That God is with his people - literally in the person of Jesus
Who will save his people from sin, not just human kings
Jesus is not just a repeat, but like an echo that grows louder with each pass.
Out of Bethlehem
Out of Bethlehem
In Matthew 2:6.
This is not in the workbook because it is a straightforward predictive prophecy. It’s easy to understand.
Out of Egypt
Out of Egypt
Herod is searching for baby Jesus to kill him:
13 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” 14 And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt 15 and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt I called my son.”
Hosea Context
Hosea Context
1 When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son.
This doesn’t have any reference to the future at all. This is a reference to the past!
Hosea goes on to talk about how, despite God’s love for Israel, they kept straying further and further from him.
2 The more they were called, the more they went away; they kept sacrificing to the Baals and burning offerings to idols.
Yet God still has compassion on his people:
7 My people are bent on turning away from me, and though they call out to the Most High, he shall not raise them up at all. 8 How can I give you up, O Ephraim? How can I hand you over, O Israel? How can I make you like Admah? How can I treat you like Zeboiim? My heart recoils within me; my compassion grows warm and tender. 9 I will not execute my burning anger; I will not again destroy Ephraim; for I am God and not a man, the Holy One in your midst, and I will not come in wrath.
Jesus Fulfills Hosea
Jesus Fulfills Hosea
15 and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt I called my son.”
Jesus escaping from Israel is the fulfillment of this prophecy - not his return
Israel is Egypt in this context - just like Pharaoh tried killing the Hebrew boys now it is Israel itself doing this
Despite Israel’s continuing rebellion, Jesus will return and save them
Rachel’s Weeping
Rachel’s Weeping
16 Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men. 17 Then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah: 18 “A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be comforted, because they are no more.”
Jeremiah’s Context
Jeremiah’s Context
After Israel was conquered, it’s people were taken captive and held at Ramah for a time.
15 Thus says the Lord: “A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children; she refuses to be comforted for her children, because they are no more.” 16 Thus says the Lord: “Keep your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears, for there is a reward for your work, declares the Lord, and they shall come back from the land of the enemy. 17 There is hope for your future, declares the Lord, and your children shall come back to their own country. 18 I have heard Ephraim grieving, ‘You have disciplined me, and I was disciplined, like an untrained calf; bring me back that I may be restored, for you are the Lord my God. 19 For after I had turned away, I relented, and after I was instructed, I struck my thigh; I was ashamed, and I was confounded, because I bore the disgrace of my youth.’ 20 Is Ephraim my dear son? Is he my darling child? For as often as I speak against him, I do remember him still. Therefore my heart yearns for him; I will surely have mercy on him, declares the Lord.
God promises that his people will return to the land of Israel
Israel, called Ephraim here, sees this all as discipline - not a rejection from God.
Israel is still God’s dear son, despite all the sin that has led him to this point. He will still have mercy on him.
Jesus Fulfills Jeremiah
Jesus Fulfills Jeremiah
This isn’t exile - this is the murder of babies
How can God bring them back?
I can only assume it’s a reference to the resurrection
I only just realized that this could be a good proof-text for the salvation of dying infant
God is going to have compassion on his people - despite their infanticide
It wasn’t just Herod who killed these babies
The men who were sent out and anyone else involved or complicit with this are held guilty
Yet God is still going to have mercy
A Nazarene
A Nazarene
23 And he went and lived in a city called Nazareth, so that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, that he would be called a Nazarene.
Is he a Nazarite? (Num 6:1-21)
No.
3 he shall separate himself from wine and strong drink. He shall drink no vinegar made from wine or strong drink and shall not drink any juice of grapes or eat grapes, fresh or dried.
Lord’s supper was fruit of the vine
He took sour wine on the cross
He was called a glutton and a drunkard (Matt 11:19)
1 There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.
This clearly a prophecy that could apply to Jesus
We’re just not 100% sure it’s the one Matthew has in mind
Speaks of the ‘prophets’ declaring this, not a specific one
Maybe it has to do with how Nazareth was looked down on by most Jews
46 Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.”
Throughout the prophets it is told that the Messiah would largely be rejected by his people
He will be humble and riding on a donkey (Zech 9:9-10)
The sheep will reject their shepherd (Zech 11:4-14)
The Suffering Servant would be thought cursed by God (Isa 52-53)
Jesus being from Nazareth reflects that the Messiah would appear from nowhere and without significance.
A Great Light
A Great Light
13 And leaving Nazareth he went and lived in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 so that what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: 15 “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles— 16 the people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned.”
In reference to the return from exile.
This light is none other than God himself.
6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7 Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.
