Category Archives: Prophecy

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January 24, 2023

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Current Events, Prophecy

Is the drying up of the Euphrates a fulfillment of Biblical prophecy?

Apparently the Euphrates River is drying up. Images online show how severe drought in the region has significantly reduced the water levels in the river and the canals fed by it. The Euphrates river flows through Syria and Iraq into the Persian Gulf. This river is one of the two major rivers surrounding the Fertile Crescent where human civilization is first recorded to have flourished. The Euphrates River was important to the great Empires of the ancient world, including the Sumerian, Assyrian, Babylonian and Persian Empires. Abraham the father of Israel was born and grew to manhood in a city along the banks of the Euphrates.

The Euphrates continues to be important today and it will play a major role in the events at the end of the world. Revelation 16:12 foretells of a catastrophic drying up of the Euphrates which will allow a massive army to march from the east into Israel. Right now the areas feeding the Euphrates have suffered a drought and the river’s water volume has dropped considerably. Is this a fulfillment of the prophecy of Revelation?

This question can be answered in one word. No. Most of the book of Revelation (chapters 4-19) describes events in Heaven and on Earth that will occur during a period of time known as the Tribulation. The Tribulation will last for seven years and will begin with the rise of the Antichrist to worldwide power. The Tribulation is marked by catastrophes unlike anything the world has experienced since the day’s of Noah’s flood. The drying up of the Euphrates mentioned in Revelation 16 takes place well after the beginning of the tribulation.

Revelation describes three series of seven judgments that will strike the earth during the Tribulation. The drying up of the Euphrates is the sixth judgment of the second series. Before the Euphrates dries up there will be massive earthquakes, devastating war, worldwide famine, the death of billions of people and other equally horrific catastrophes. Since none of those natural disasters have happened yet and since the world is not currently under the dominion of a single tyrant the present drying up of the Euphrates can be declared with certainty to not be the event prophesied in the Bible.

Asking if certain events fulfill Biblical prophecies is not a bad thing. However, we must be careful to avoid hysteria over these events. All must beware of people who sensationalize dramatic world events. If you read or listen to someone who says the equivalent of, “The Euphrates dried up and you won’t believe what happened next” or, “you won’t believe what they found,” then be on guard. Phrases like that are usually the words of a charlatan more concerned with selling something or gaining subscribers than declaring God’s truth.

The Bible does not tell about future events so readers can pinpoint when Jesus is going to come back. The Bible tells us about coming events so all will know the character of God and so people will prepare themselves for the return of Jesus. To be ready for the return of Jesus two things must be done. First, you must trust Jesus as your Savior from your sin. Second, after salvation you must live in holiness so your life will be pleasing to Him when He returns.

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December 13, 2022

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Holidays, Jesus, Prophecy

In what way is Jesus begotten of God?

John 3:16 says, “For God so loved that He gave His only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” At Christmas we remember the birth of Jesus. Jesus’ birth is of universal importance because Jesus is God who set aside His Divine prerogatives, clothed Himself in humanity and suffered the punishment of man’s sin so men can be saved. John 3:16 famously describes Jesus as the “only begotten Son” of God. Jesus as the begotten of God seems to be at odds with the Biblical doctrine that Jesus is the eternal God. If Jesus is the eternally existent God, in what way is He begotten of God?

Psalm 2:7 presents a powerful promise of the coming Messiah. God comforts His servant David with the promise He will establish as King of Jerusalem His own Son who will reign forever over all the earth. God’s promise to send a King is certified by the Divine decree, “Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten Thee.” The New Testament declares that Jesus is the Son decreed by God in Psalm 2 (Hebrews 1:1-6). The begottenness of Jesus is the decree of God to establish God the Son as the Messiah of Israel and King in Jerusalem who would rule over the entire earth.

John 1:14 connects the incarnation- God the Son’s taking to Himself humanity- with His being begotten. Jesus is begotten of God in His birth into the world. Jesus was not conceived by natural means but by the power of God uniquely working to generate a child. Jesus’ begottenness is the working of God to miraculously create a body for the Son within Mary’s womb. His begottenness is in the working of God to send the Son of God, the seed of woman, into humanity to become the Savior of man. God the Son eternally existed, but He was given a body in the womb of Mary and begotten of God in the person of Jesus

God the Son is the eternally existent God who created all things. He is fully God and equal with the Father in existence, eternality, infinity, majesty, power and glory. The begottenness of Jesus does not imply the least inferiority. The begottenness of Jesus does not imply a point in eternity in which the Father existed alone without the Son or the Spirit. Jesus is described as begotten because of the Divine decree that the Son would take upon Himself humanity. Through His humanity Jesus became the Savior of those who trust Him and He will be the conquering King who will rule eternally over all the earth. Jesus is begotten in His human personage and in His Messianic work.

God the Son did not spring into existence on Christmas day (or nine months before His birth). God the Son has no source nor origination. The Son of God is fully God, the second person of the Trinity, who shares entirely in the identical, eternal essence and existence of the Triune Godhead.

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March 8, 2022

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Current Events, Prophecy

What does the Bible say about Russia?

Russia has blasted it’s way back into the front of everyone’s mind. The world is intent on the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. The sudden invasion of Ukraine has caused some to wonder what the Bible says about Russia and if this war is anything to do with Biblical prophecy.

One thing the Bible does not say about Russia is its name. The word Russia does not appear any where in Scripture. Instead, the Bible mentions a political power named Magog that attacks Israel from the north. Magog is believed to be the region north of the Caspian Sea. Russia is the largest, most powerful nation in that section of the world. As a result, most Bible students connect Magog with modern day Russia. The connection with Magog leads students of Biblical prophecy to believe Russia is going to be a major player during the end times.

The Bible says in Ezekiel 38 and 39 that Magog will lead a coalition of nations against Israel. God will direct Magog to attack Israel so, “that the heathen may know me.” (Ezekiel 38:16) When Magog attacks Israel, God will rise up in great anger against them. He will destroy the majority of Magog’s army with only one-sixth surviving God’s wrath. Israel will be saved from it’s enemies. Magog’s attack of Israel will probably take place during the Tribulation, before the return of Jesus, but the Biblical information does not allow a precise identification of when the events described in Ezekiel 38 and 39 will happen.

In Genesis 10:2 and 1 Chronicles 1:5 the Bible also briefly mentions that Magog is the name of one of Noah’s grandson’s. The only other significant mention of Magog in Scripture is in Revelation 20. The events of Revelation 20 take place after the one thousand year reign of Jesus. Satan is released from prison and immediately begins to con the nations of the world to rise up against God. Revelation 20:8 mentions only one nation by name, Magog. This could be because of the importance of Magog in Biblical prophecy or as an indication of how Satan brings even distant nations to battle against God. People will travel from Magog to assault the city of Jerusalem where they will be destroyed by God.

The Bible says little about Magog except that it will suffer the wrath of God when it attempts to destroy God’s chosen nation, Israel. Magog will play a significant role in end times events, but Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is not the fulfillment of any Biblical prophecy. The future Magog may not even be Russia as we know it today.

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December 14, 2021

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Holidays, Jesus, Prophecy

Repost: In what way is Jesus begotten of God?

“For God so loved that He gave His only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

At Christmas we remember the birth of Jesus. His birth is of paramount importance because He is God who set aside His Divine prerogatives, clothed Himself in humanity and suffered the punishment of man’s sin so men could be saved. John 3:16 famously describes Jesus as the “only begotten Son.” That Jesus is begotten of God may seem to be at odds with the Biblical doctrine that Jesus is the eternal God. If Jesus is the eternally existent God in what way is He begotten of God?

Psalm 2:7 presents a powerful promise of the coming Messiah. God comforted His servant David with the promises He would establish His own Son as King of Jerusalem. The Son of God would reign from Jerusalem over all the earth. God’s promise to send a King was certified by the Divine decree, “Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten Thee.” In the New Testament Paul declares that Jesus is the Son who was promised by God in Psalm 2. The begottenness of Jesus is the eternal decree of God to establish God the Son as the Messiah of Israel who would reign as King over the entire earth.

John 1:14 connects the incarnation- God the Son’s taking upon Himself humanity- with His being begotten. Jesus was begotten of God in His birth into the world. Jesus was not conceived by natural means but by the power of God uniquely working to generate a child. Jesus’ begottenness is the working of God to miraculously create a body for the Son within Mary’s womb. Jesus is begotten of the Father thorugh the work of God to send make the Son of God the seed of the woman and the Savior of man.

God the Son is the eternally existent God who created all things. He is fully God and equal with the Father in existence, eternality, infinity, majesty, power and glory. The begottenness of Jesus does not imply any inferiority of person or existence. The begottenness of Jesus does not imply a point in eternity in which the Father existed alone without the Son or the Spirit. Jesus is begotten because of the Divine decree that the Son would take upon Himself humanity. Through His humanity Jesus became the Savior of those who trust Him. He is the conquering King who will one day rule all the earth. Jesus is begotten in His human personage and in His Messianic work.

God the Son did not spring into existence on Christmas day (or nine months before His birth). God the Son has no source nor origination. Jesus is the Son of God. He is fully God, the second person of the Trinity, who shares entirely in the identical, eternal essence and existence of the Triune Godhead.

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December 15, 2020

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Old Testament, Prophecy

Did the prophets understand what they wrote about Jesus?

The Old Testament prophets foretold many details about of the coming of Jesus, His birth, death, resurrection, forgiveness and earthly kingdom. The prophecies do not come neatly arranged, organized by topic or even given in chronological order. The prophecies are sometimes difficult to understand, are scattered throughout the prophetic messages to Israel and often rely on dramatic imagery to make the point. Bible students struggle to understand what the prophets said about Jesus, which makes many wonder how much the prophets themselves understood about what they were writing.

We know the prophets did not know all the details of Jesus’ life and death. Few, if any, of the prophets would have had been familiar with crucifixions, so even though they prophesied a painful death for the Messiah, they probably did not understand He would be hung on a cross. The words of 1 Peter 1:10-11 show that the prophets did not understand everything about the coming Messiah. “Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.” They understood some things and they did not understand everything. How much did they understand?

Two dangerous assumptions need to be avoided. The modern reader cannot assume the Old Testament prophets were not as smart or thoughtful as we are today. The men who wrote the Bible gave a lot of thought and attention to the things of God. Consider Psalm 119. That Psalm reveals an incredible amount of thought was put into its crafting and its subject matter. In 176 verses the Psalmist describes in great detail the wonders of the Word of God and the effect of the Word on the lives of the people of God. David is not alone in giving evidence of much meditation on the Word of God. The prophets writing show they were diligent to search Scripture and able to understand in great depth the declarations and implications of the Word.

The second assumption that must be avoided is that the prophets shared the same attitude towards the Messiah as the people of Jesus’ day. The New Testament indicates many people in Jesus’ day were looking for a Savior from Roman occupation. They were not looking for one to save them from their sins, but from their political bondage. However, the prophets did not share the delusion of a purely political Savior. They recognized the work of the Messiah was a work to make His people righteous. “And I will cleanse them from all their iniquity, whereby they have sinned against me; and I will pardon all their iniquities, whereby they have sinned, and whereby they have transgressed against me.” (Jeremiah 33:8)

The prophets understood that the Messiah would live, die and rise again for the forgiveness of sin. Possibly the clearest statement to this effect comes from the mouth of Peter in Acts 2. Peter was speaking of David’s prophecy of the death and resurrection of Jesus in Psalm 16:10. “Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne; He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption.” Peter says that David knew the oath of God. David knew the Messiah would be raised back to life to sit on the throne of God. David understood the death and resurrection of Jesus.

It is impossible to know exactly what the Old Testament prophets knew. We can be confident they had a robust understanding of the broad outlines of the work of the Messiah. They knew He was coming to bring forgiveness and to make His people righteous. They knew He would suffer and die. They knew He would rise again. They knew He would reign over a righteous people in a righteous kingdom. The prophets understood the significance of what they wrote. They may not have understood the work of Jesus as fully as we do today, but they understood it enough.

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September 20, 2017

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Christianity, Prophecy

What is unlockrevelation.com?

It has happened again. Millions of homes across Michigan received bright, glossy, full color advertisements for a conference on Bible prophecy. The brochure promises a three day course on the end times followed by more studies in later weeks. The website promises to give the key to understand prophecy and to reveal secrets about coming world events. In less than a week the conferences will begin all across the state. Unfortunately the brochure and website give no information about the church or churches affiliated with the conference. The organization has carefully removed any specific information about the church affiliation of the sponsors. In those places the conference is being held at a church they have gone so far as to remove the full name of the church from the website.

A little digging reveals that Unlock Revelation is a conference sponsored by the Seventh Day Adventist Church. The area sponsors are pastors and members of the Seventh Day Adventist Church. The presenters are Seventh Day Adventists and the teachings will be Seventh Day Adventist doctrine.

The Seventh Day Adventist view of the end times is very similar to this author’s. Many within the Seventh Day Adventist church are genuinely born again Christians. Despite significant areas of correct doctrine the Seventh Day Adventist teaching is dangerous. The official doctrines of the Seventh Day Adventist church put it at odds with most of Protestant Christianity.

The Seventh Day Adventist church reveres Ellen G. White as a prophet of God. They do not believe her words or writings are Scripture. Her writings are from God and are “inspired counsel concerning spiritual personal religion and the conduct of (Seventh Day Adventist) work.” (Questions on Doctrine) Their belief about Ellen White’s prophecies contradicts the Biblical description of prophets. The prophet of God uttered Divine revelation- “thus saith the Lord”- that was always accurate and always authoritative. They never gave “counsel”. They commanded because it was the Word of God.

Seventh Day Adventism denies the eternal suffering of the lost. They teach that at the very end all the unsaved will be completely destroyed. This is a problem because it denies the clear teaching of the Bible. The Bible says the unsaved will be condemned to the Lake of Fire where “the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night.” (Revelation 4:11)

Adventism teaches that the believer can lose his salvation and that Jesus is still active in atoning for the sin of believers. Instead of Jesus’ atonement being finished on the cross and being applied once for all time to those who believe Jesus is now in the temple of heaven active in atoning for the Christian’s sin. Ellen G. White said, “Christ (on the cross) had only completed one part of His work as our intercessor, to enter upon another portion of the work.” The atonement was not completed on the cross and will not be complete until after the day of judgment. Only those who “are abiding in Christ, keeping the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus, and in Him, therefore, are ready for translation into His everlasting kingdom.” (www.adventist.org) “All who who hope to be saved by the merits of the blood of Christ should realize that they themselves have something to do in securing their salvation.” (Ellen White) According to Adventist theology, only the one who believes Jesus and is in obedience to Him is going to be saved. This is in clear contradiction to the plain words of Scripture. At salvation the believer is fully saved and his salvation is “kept by the power of God.” (1 Peter 1:5) Salvation is only by grace through faith and not at all of works. (Ephesians 2:8-9)

The Seventh Day Adventist church is not a reliable source of teaching about Scripture. Their errors make them a dangerous place to go searching for truth. Many in the movement are saved, and quite a few Seventh Day Adventists reject the errors of the denomination, but the official teachings of the church undermine the work of Christ, obscure the truths of salvation by grace through faith alone and hinder the believer’s confidence in the Word of God.

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September 13, 2017

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Current Events, End Times, Prophecy

Is Weird Weather a Sign of the End?

The second coming of Jesus will be preceded by seven years of catastrophe. The seven year tribulation will begin with the rise of a powerful leader who will consolidate world power into his hands and require everyone to worship him. During the seven years of tribulation the world will be rocked with earthquakes, wars, famines, plagues, darkness, demonic assault and Divine judgment. The earth will reel under the catastrophes of that time. Many people are interested in knowing when these things will begin. Many turn to the Bible looking for clues to know when the Great Tribulation is approaching. Some say changing weather patterns is evidence Jesus is about to return. Is an increase of extraordinary weather events a precursor to the Great Tribulation?

Many passages in the Bible describe events on earth during the tribulation, including Matthew 24-25, Mark 13, Luke 21, Joel 2 and most of the book of Revelation. These passages all describe events after the tribulation has begun. None of them give specifics about the physical conditions of the world just before the tribulation except to say that the world will endure many troubles in the time between Jesus’ earthly life and the tribulation.

The Bible makes no statement about an increase of unusual weather events before the tribulation. The Bible is silent on the world’s weather before the tribulation. Scripture does promise in Genesis 8:22 that normal seasonal cycles will continue until the very end. “While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.”

The book of Revelation reveals that the events of the tribulation are supernatural in origin. A gradual increase in natural disasters is not required to accommodate the horrendous catastrophes of the tribulation. An upswing in weird weather is not an indicator the tribulation is about to begin.

The only warning of the beginning of the tribulation will be the rapture of Christians. When all Christians are taken out of the world then the antichrist will rise to power and the worldwide catastrophes will begin, but then it will be too late for many. The Christian is not to concern himself with trying to figure out when Jesus will return, but is to live in his life in faithfulness and service he will be ready whenever the Lord comes for His people. “For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.” “Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.” ( 1Thessalonians 5:2-3, 6)

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August 30, 2017

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Current Events, Prophecy

Are the Sun, Moon and Stars Prophetic Signs?

“God put the sun, moon, and stars in the heavens as signs for all of creation to understand His will.”
-Rabbi Berger

The recent solar eclipse in America and the four lunar eclipses of 2014-2015 led many to seek for the Biblical importance of these remarkable celestial events. One famous television pastor wrote a best-selling book about the role of the lunar eclipses in God’s prophetic plans. Some Bible prophecy teachers argue that the sun, moon and stars are given by God to warn of major events in the history of the world.

This claim is based on Genesis 1:14, “And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:” Since God put the celestial bodies in the sky as signs we should be paying attention when something unique happens in the heavens. God might be trying to tell us of an important event that is about to happen.

Genesis 1:14 does not say God uses the celestial bodies to warn of future events. Just like in English the Hebrew word for sign has multiple meanings. The correct definition is determined by the rest of the sentence or paragraph. Genesis 1:14 says God put the things in the sky for four reasons: for signs, for seasons, for days and for years. The last three purposes are related to telling the time. The sun, moon and stars mark out the changing of the four seasons. The rising and setting of the sun marks out the days. The revolutions of the sun and the stars in the sky mark out the passing of the years. They are signs related to the passing of time not to omens and portents.

In the Pentateuch, the five books written by Moses, a sign is a mark, token or memorial of something. The miracles accomplished by God when He brought Israel out of Egypt were signs. They were tokens of the great power of God that confirmed His promise to the Israelites that He would deliver them. The law of God was given to Israel as a sign reminding them they were the covenant people of God. The rest of the Old Testament uses signs predominantly as a reminder of something that happened or as confirmation a promised event is going to happen. When God promised to heal King Hezekiah He gave to Hezekiah a sign that confirmed what God had promised would happen.

In the Old Testament a sign is always connected to a specific promise or event. A sign is never a vague portent of impending doom. An eclipse does not promise anything specific, nor can a single eclipse be connected to a definite promise of God. The signs of the Old Testament were attached to specific events or promises. The sun, moon and stars do not forebode the future. They are tokens of God’s faithfulness, continual reminders that He is Creator and unfailing memorials to His glory.

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August 25, 2017

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Current Events, Prophecy

Did God give Palestine to the Jews?

Conflict has long raged in Palestine over the right of Jews to have their own kingdom in the Middle East. Most of the disagreement today is political and ethnic, but many Christians and religious Jews see the possession of Palestine as a Divine right granted to the Israelites thousands of years ago. Did God promise to give the Israelites the land along the east coast of the Mediterranean Sea?

In Genesis 15:8 God promised to give Abraham’s descendants the land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea. “In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates:” In Ezekiel 47 the promise is repeated to the Israelites as part of the kingdom to be established by the Messiah. In Ezekiel is given a more specific description of the borders of the promised land. The geographical markers have changed or been lost over the millennia so it is hard to identify the exact boundaries of the promised land. Despite the difficulties of finding the specific borders it is clear that the land God promised to Abraham is all the territory between Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River stretching north to the Euphrates river (in modern day Syria) and south to beneath the Dead Sea towards a point parallel with the southeastern corner of the Mediterranean. Something like this:

After the exodus from Egypt God led the Israelites to the eastern border of the land of Canaan. He commanded them to go in and conquer the land He had promised them. If they would obey Him God would give them victory over the inhabitants. If they disobeyed God and turned to idolatry then the Canaanites and other nations would take Israel captive. Israel began to conquer the land. After early successes the nation fell into a vicious cycle of disobedience, captivity, repentance, deliverance and then disobedience again. As a result Israel conquered very little of the promised land until the time of David. Under King David and his son Solomon Israel took possession of most, but not all, of the land promised to Abraham. After Solomon’s death the kingdom split and began to dwindle. Israel has never held all of the territory promised to her by God.

The history of the Israelites and the current political situation makes it seem unlikely that the Jews will hold all the promised land. However, God’s promises will always be fulfilled. When Jesus returns to establish His kingdom He will make Jerusalem His capital city. He will rule over the whole earth. He will be King of Israel and give to the Jews the land promised to Abraham’s descendants. God always keeps His promises.

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December 7, 2016

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Prophecy, The Bible

Is the Bible Accurate in its Predictions?

The claims of the Bible provide an ample basis on which to test Scriptures’ reliability. Possibly the greatest avenue for verifying the veracity of Scripture is in prophecy. No other religious book in the world contains the amount of future telling contained in the Bible. The vast number of prophecies in the Bible provide abundant opportunity to determine if the Bible is trustworthy.

The standard for testing Biblical prophecy is set by the Bible itself. Deuteronomy 18:22 sets the bar as it can be set. If a prophet claims to be speaking the Word of God his prophesies must be completely accurate. If the prophecy fails just once then the prophet and his message is not of God. Since the Bible claims to be of God it must be right all the time. Have the prophecies of the Bible failed even one time?

The Bible contains many fulfilled prophecies. These prophecies are often very specific in their nature. For example, the prophecies of Jesus birth tell of his family (He would be a descendant of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah and David). They tell of his birth place (Micah 5:2) They tell of the tragic events surrounding Jesus’ birth (Jeremiah 31:15) The Bible tells when Jesus would be born. The Bible foretells Jesus’ birth and the events surrounding His death. It prophesies the kind of death He would suffer, the abuse He would take, His betrayal, His burial and His resurrection.

The Bible contains specific prophecies about the rise of kings and kingdoms. The Bible prophesies the defeat of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar. The Bible prophesies how long the people of Judah would be captive in Babylon. It tells of the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the year when the rebuilding would take place. The Bible foretells the rise of the Persian empire, the reign of Cyrus and his role in rebuilding Jerusalem. Through the prophet Daniel God revealed that Medo-Persia would overthrow the Babylonian empire and then would itself be overthrown by the Greek Empire. Scripture tells of the destruction of Edom, Tyre, Sidon and Nineveh. All happened just as Scriptures foretold.

The complete list of Biblical prophecies fulfilled cannot be given in a brief article. Over 300 specific prophecies of Jesus were fulfilled in his first coming. Dozens of specific prophecies about Israel and the other ancient nations have all been fulfilled. Many of the prophecies are very specific. The huge number of Biblical prophecy fulfilled is more than coincidence. The Bible is exactly what it claims to be, the Word of God.