The Evidence of Bible Prophecy

The prophecies of the Bible substantiate its claim to be inspired by God. We will briefly consider some simple prophecies and test God’s claim that He can predict the future.‌

Some facts to consider;

• The Old Testament of the Bible was definitely completed 250 years before the birth of Jesus Christ. This is established by the historical fact that the Hebrew Old Testament Scriptures were translated into Greek during the Greek Empire about BC250. This translation is called the Septuagint Translation.

• That Jesus Christ existed, preached the gospel and was killed is confirmed outside the Bible record by contemporary historians of that era.

These facts can be easily substantiated. From these historically provable facts we can now test whether God can actually foretell the future, realising that predictions made in the Old Testament were made at least 250 years before they were fulfilled in the New Testament.

A Prophecy of the Crucifixion of Christ

Consider the minute detail set out in this prophecy in Psalm 22 regarding the crucifixion of Christ and the way each detail was fulfilled. This psalm was written by King David 1000 years before it was fulfilled.

It would be impossible for a man to predict these events in such detail. The only other explanation would require us to believe that Jesus himself, the Jewish rulers who denied his claim to be the Messiah, and the pagan Roman soldiers all collaborated to perform the crucifixion of Jesus so that they might fulfil an Old Testament prophecy, and so deceive people into believing that the Bible was the word of God. This is neither logical nor rational.

Psalm 22 not only predicted the crucifixion of Christ but also, in Psalm 22:22, his resurrection.

Some Prophecies Concerning the Nations

The prophet Isaiah lived in Israel between BC 760–700. In his day the two major powers in the world were Assyria in the north and Egypt in the south.

In his 13th chapter God revealed through him the rise and later the fall of Babylon. We need to realise that his prediction that Babylon would become a major power was made at least 100 years before the event. However his prophecy does not only concern the rise of Babylon but also its overthrow by the Medes. The Medes overthrew Babylon in BC 536; so this prediction was made nearly 200 years before it took place.

Not only did Isaiah tell of the destruction of Babylon, but he said that the city would remain uninhabited and desolate. This was a remarkable prediction for a city which in its day was one of the wonders of the ancient world (Isaiah 13:17–22).

Yet this is not all! Isaiah also gave the name of the king who would overthrow Babylon—a man named Cyrus (Isaiah 45:1–2). Added to this, Isaiah told of the decree that Cyrus would make, urging Jews scattered in his empire to return to Jerusalem and build again the Temple which the Babylonians had destroyed (Isaiah 44:27–28; Ezra 1:1–4).

These prophecies go far beyond what man can predict. Only God can foretell the future.

Consider what such a prophecy would mean in today’s world. It would necessitate:

• predicting the nation which would be the ruling world power 100 years from now

• then predicting the nation that would overthrow this first power 200 years from now

• naming the ruler of this second nation

• stating a decree that he would make when he came to power.

Obviously this is impossible for man to predict. However, God through His prophet Isaiah did exactly this. Thus God can not only predict the future, but is also able to bring it to pass with amazing accuracy.

What Has God Predicted for the Future?

We can read the Bible with confidence, knowing that as God has fulfilled His prophecies in the past, He will just as surely fulfil what He has predicted for the future.

Here is a brief preview of events predicted for our age.

• There will be a collapse of morality and decency in society (Luke 17:26–30). This is evident today.

• The Jews will return to the land of Israel, with Jerusalem becoming the centre of international tension (Zechariah 12:2–3; Ezekiel 38:8,12)

• Jesus Christ will return personally and visibly to the earth (Acts 1:9–11)

• God will establish His Kingdom on this earth which will replace man’s rule (Daniel 2:44)

• This Kingdom will fulfil the Lord’s Prayer: “Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:9–10)

• Jerusalem will be the capital of this Kingdom (Jeremiah 3:17)

• Jesus Christ will be King in that day (Revelation 11:15,18). In that day the people of the world will willingly learn of God’s way and there will be no more war (Isaiah 2:2–4).

Adapted from “The Exploring the Bible Course” by David Evans