Fulfilled prophecy

[DarkProphet]

So I constantly hear about supposed fulfilled prophecies but the ones I hear about are all fulfilled within the Bible itself. Let me explain, from what I remember one was that the messiah was from David's linage and there is a whole section of the Bible that is supposed to be tracing David's linage up to Joshua. That whole point gets thrown out the window because Mary was a virgin but supposedly that is good enough to fulfill the prophecy. It feels like someone wrote that while looking at a copy of the prophecy with the intent of "fulfilling" it.

With all that in mind are there any GOOD examples of fulfilled prophecy in the Bible?

 

[drich0150]

With all that in mind are there any GOOD examples of fulfilled prophecy in the Bible?

Isaiah 53


1 Who has believed our message
and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
2 He grew up before him like a tender shoot,
and like a root out of dry ground.
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,
nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
3 He was despised and rejected by men,
a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering.
Like one from whom men hide their faces
he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
4 Surely he took up our infirmities
and carried our sorrows,
yet we considered him stricken by God,
smitten by him, and afflicted.
5 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.
6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to his own way;
and the LORD has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed and afflicted,
yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,
and as a sheep before her shearers is silent,
so he did not open his mouth.
8 By oppression [a] and judgment he was taken away.
And who can speak of his descendants?
For he was cut off from the land of the living;
for the transgression of my people he was stricken. [b]
9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked,
and with the rich in his death,
though he had done no violence,
nor was any deceit in his mouth.
10 Yet it was the LORD's will to crush him and cause him to suffer,
and though the LORD makes [c] his life a guilt offering,
he will see his offspring and prolong his days,
and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand.
11 After the suffering of his soul,
he will see the light of life [d] and be satisfied [e] ;
by his knowledge [f] my righteous servant will justify many,
and he will bear their iniquities. 12 Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, [g]
and he will divide the spoils with the strong, [h]
because he poured out his life unto death,
and was numbered with the transgressors.
For he bore the sin of many,
and made intercession for the transgressors.

 

[drich0150]

It feels like someone wrote that while looking at a copy of the prophecy with the intent of "fulfilling" it.

The two genealogies are going to vary obviously because they trace two very different lineages of two very different people. Matthew charts Joseph’s line, while Luke charts Mary’s. The genealogy found in the opening chapter of Matthew is intended to legitimize Christ’s claim as Messiah and the rightful ruler over Israel, by charting the kingly line of succession to which Joseph belongs. Jesus (as the legal firstborn of Joseph) becomes the lawful Heir to David’s throne.

On the other hand, Luke’s genealogy gives us the physical ancestry of Jesus, which also traces back to David. Of course the question can be asked: if Jesus’ line of physical descent is linked with Mary, why isn’t she included in the list? Why do we find Joseph once again — this time as the son of Heli? To explain the absence of Mary’s name, all we need to do is realize that it was not customary for the Jewish people to list women in direct lines of descent.

In addition, had Heli actually died leaving no male offspring, the inheritance would, of course, have passed over to his daughter, Mary. Under such circumstances, provisions were made to preserve the name of the husband’s father-in-law, who in this case happened to be Heli. Bottom line: according to Jewish law, Joseph became the son of Heli upon his marriage to Mary.

Obviously the infallibility of the Bible does not rest solely on this one particular explanation. But it does amply demonstrate that the alleged discrepancy can be reconciled.

On the genealogical difficulties in Matthew and Luke, that’s the CRI Perspective.

Hank Hanegraaff.

 

[ebia]

So I constantly hear about supposed fulfilled prophecies but the ones I hear about are all fulfilled within the Bible itself. Let me explain, from what I remember one was that the messiah was from David's linage and there is a whole section of the Bible that is supposed to be tracing David's linage up to Joshua. That whole point gets thrown out the window because Mary was a virgin but supposedly that is good enough to fulfill the prophecy. It feels like someone wrote that while looking at a copy of the prophecy with the intent of "fulfilling" it.

Well of course they did. Or rather, one of their points in writing the genealogy is to say "Jesus is the heir and fulfillment of God's promise to David".

With all that in mind are there any GOOD examples of fulfilled prophecy in the Bible?

Good for what? Prophesies aren't about proving something, if that's what you have in mind.

 

[Van]

Hi Dark Prophet, lets back up a bit. How does God fulfill a prophecy? The Bible says He makes it happen. So lets say God says His messiah will suffer, as in Isaiah 53. So when Jesus suffers just as written down, Peter proclaims Christ died by God's predetermined plan, Acts 2.

God's prophecies are not about "looking through the veil of time and foretelling something "seen" in the future. That is the pagan idea, and leads to lots of confusion over the subject.

Jesus did certain things during His lifetime in order to fulfill prophecy. But the evidence that I believe supports Jesus as the Son of God and as the Christ, the anointed One sent from God, is His death and resurrection. You may say it did not happen, but you cannot say people from that time did not believe it happen without advocating against the evidence.

 

[AvgJoe]

With all that in mind are there any GOOD examples of fulfilled prophecy in the Bible?

God put alot of prophecy in the Bible so that we would know it is His word. Who else but God can accurately tell us what is going to happen ahead of time?!

Condsider the prophecy about the destruction of Tyre.

In the year 595 B.C. a man named Ezekiel was given a prophecy regarding the city of Tyre, a city in the modern day country of Lebanon . At that time this city was a large thriving city and a great enemy of Israel. He was told:

"Thus says the Lord God: 'behold I am against you o Tyre, and will cause many nations to come up against you, as the sea causes its waves to come up. And they shall destroy the walls of Tyre and break down her towers; I will also scrape her dust from her and make her like the top of a rock. It shall be a place for the spreading of nets...it shall become plunder for the nations...behold I will bring against Tare from the north King Nebuchadnezzer, King of Babylon.. he will slay your people by the sword and your strong pillars will fall to the ground. They will plunder your riches and pillage your merchandise; they will break down your walls and destroy your pleasant houses; they will lay your stones, your timbers, and your soil in the midst of the water...l will make you like the top of a rock; you shall be a place for the spreading of nets, and you shall never be rebuilt, for I the Lord have spoken. Will the coast lands not shake at the sound of your fall.. then all the princes of the sea will come down from their thrones, lay aside their robes, and take off their embroidered garments...and be astonished at you". (Ezekiel 26:3)


These are the very specific prophecies for the city of Tyre made by a Hebrew prophet 2600 years ago.

1. Nebuchadnezzer will destroy the mainland city of Tyre (Ezekiel 26:8)
2. Many nations against Tyre (Ezekiel 26:3).
3. Make her bare rock; flat like the top of a rock (Ezekiel 26:4)
4. Fishermen will spread their nets over the site (Ezekiel 26:5)
5. Throw the stones and timbers into the water (Ezekiel 26:12)
6. Never be rebuilt(Ezekiel 26: 14)
7. Princes of nearby coast lands will be astonished by Tyre's fall and give up their thrones.

Now lets look at what secular history says happened to Tyre.

In the year 586 B.C. Nebuchadnezzer, the King of the Babylonian Empire began to attack the city of Tyre. The Babylonian army was the greatest fighting force up to that time and besieged the city of Tyre for 13 years. When they finally broke down the gates and walls of Tyre he found that the people had moved out to an island 1/2 mile off the coast of Tyre. #l fulfilled. City besieged.

In the year 332 B.C. Alexander the Great laid siege against the island city of Tare because they would not submit to his authority. The Encyclopedia Britannica states that because Alexander the Great had no fleet of ships he demolished old Tyre on the mainland and he threw the debris (stones and timbers and dirt) into the ocean and made a causeway (jetty or wood/stone bridge) connecting the mainland to the newer island city of Tyre.

Secular historian Phillip Myers stated in his textbook of history that:

" Alexander the Great reduced Tare to ruins in 332 B.C. Tyre recovered in a measure from this blow, but never regained the place she had previously held in the world. the larger part of the site of the once great city is now as bare as the top of a rock- a place where the fishermen that still frequent the spot spread their nets to dry" #2,3,4,5 fulfilled.(1)
​

Secular historians have stated that the ruins of Tyre are highly unique. Tare ruins are the only ones in the world that have been completely thrown into the ocean.

After Alexander the Great, the island city persisted in various degrees of strength. during the next 16 centuries. Many kings besieged the city until its final destruction by the Moslems began in 1291 AD.

Currently, there is a flat rock area with not one stone upon another. The stones that were thrown into the sea are still there. Other than a few nearby small fishing villages, there is no evidence of the former great city. On the flat former foundation stones you find to the present day fishermen drying their nets. #6 fulfilled.. Never rebuilt.

Secular historians record that when Alexander the Great besieged the city of Tyre that many of the neighboring kings submitted to his authority without a battle. #7 fulfilled. Princes give up their thrones.

How could Ezekiel know these things? Because he served the creator of the universe. i.e. the God of the Bible who told Isaiah, Ezekiel and the other prophets that he would tell them things before they happened so that when they happened the people would know that he was truly God. This is only one of hundreds of Hebrew prophecies that have come true to the very word. God states that he can see the beginning from the end; that he is outside of time; that he can see all the history of man like we would look at the pages of a book. Sounds impossible doesn't it? Well it is if you happen to live in our four dimensional universe.
However, an interesting outcome of Einstein's theory of relativity was the discovery of dimensions of time and space that exist separately and distinct from the four dimensions we experience. In fact, these dimensions may even be in our midst but not visible to us. More recently mathematicians have shown that up to eleven dimensions may exist in the universe. Many physicists believe that there are places in the universe where time ceases to flow. One of these places is in a black hole. Now it is interesting that the Bible tells us that God dwells in a place where time does not flow. For centuries this concept was mocked by scientists. Such a place is now scientific fact.

If one were to be sucked into a black hole, or any other realm where time ceases to flow, we could see the flow of time, in places where there is time, like we were reading the pages of a book. Since we would experience no flow of time, the beginning and the end of time filled dimensions would be present and observable all at once.

These strange facts of physics may be evidence for the truth of what we call the supernatural "spirit realm". However, if these supernatural dimensions can be shown mathematically possible then they are not really supernatural. Rather, they are natural. People believe in a lot of things we can't see ( wind, atoms, heat, electromagnetic radiation, luck). Just because you can't see it doesn't mean it's not real.

Now the skeptic immediately says that the book of Ezekiel must have been written after these events took place. However, archaeological finds have produced Ezekiel texts that are dated to as far back as 400-600 B.C. In this century an almost complete Ezekiel text on stone tablets was found. The type of Hebrew on these tablets indicates that it was from the time of Ezekiel i.e. 500-600 B.C. There are many scholars who believe that this stone work may be from the hands of Ezekiel himself. Alexander the Great didn't invade the city until 332 B.C., long after Ezekiel's death. The final fulfillment of the prophecy did not happen until 1291 AD i.e., about 1700 years after Ezekiel's death. The story of Tyre is in the oldest text's known.

Another interesting fact is that these 2500 year old stone tablets contain exactly the same text as the Hebrew Bible you can buy today. So much for text being lost or changed because of faulty translation.. Others might argue luck. Well, the mathematical probability that Ezekiel could have guessed so many unlikely events happening is staggering. But this is only one small prophecy. There are hundreds that have come true. For an extensive treatment of this prophecy see Evidence that Demands a Verdict by Josh McDowell.

God told the prophets that he would tell them things that would happen in advance so they would recognize him as a supremely intelligent all knowing creator that exists outside time and space.

The accuracy of the Bible is amazing.

 

[Jpark]

There is a compelling prophecy in Isaiah 45:1-4, anticipating the arrival of Cyrus.

There is a fulfilled prophecy in Daniel 8:9-14 attributed and referring to Antiochus Epiphanes.

There is a ambiguous prophecy in Matthew 24:11-12, expecting the rise of false prophets and "the love of many will grow cold."