Prophecies Fulfilled
Biblical prophecy is not vague fortune-telling. Unlike vague spiritual sayings or poetic insights, biblical prophecies are extremely detailed, specific and verifiable. They span centuries, name empires, describe world events and most remarkably, foretell the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Many people ask if all of this is just coincidence? Or the result of retroactive editing? The evidence very significantly suggests otherwise.
The Bible contains over 1,800 predictive prophecies, many of which are demonstrably fulfilled.
No other religious text or historical document makes this kind of claim, much less fulfills it.
Fulfilled prophecy offers powerful confirmation that the Bible is not just a man made religious narrative, but the product of divine authorship!
God Himself appeals to fulfilled prophecy as proof of His identity
To whom will you liken Me and make Me equal And compare Me, that we should be alike? ...
Remember the former things of old, For I am God and there is no other;
I am God and there is none like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning,
And from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, "My counsel shall stand and I will do all My pleasure"
Messianic Prophecies - Jesus in the Old Testament
One of the most compelling arguments for the divine authorship of Scripture is the greater than 350 Old Testament prophecies fulfilled in the life of Jesus - several of them written almost a staggering 40 centuries before His birth!
Isaiah 52 and 53 - The Suffering Servant
Isaiah 52:13 through 53:12 is one of the most detailed messianic prophecies. Written between 740-680 BC, it describes a servant of God who suffers not for his own sins, but for the sins of others. Consider the parallels with Jesus:
| # | Old Testament Prophesy | New Testament Fulfillment |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Published good tidings upon mountains (Isa 52:7) | Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. (Mat 15:29, 28:16) |
| 2 | The Servant exalted (Isa 52:13) | which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places (Acts 1:8-11, Eph 1:19-22, Phil 2:5-9) |
| 3 | The Servant abused (Isa 52:14) | delivered to the Gentiles and will be mocked and insulted and spit upon. They will scourge Him and kill Him (Luke 18:31-34, Mat 26:67-68) |
| 4 | His blood shed sprinkles nations (Isa 52:15) | To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood (Heb 9:13-14, Rev 1:5) |
| 5 | His people would not believe Him (Isa 53:1) | But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him (John 12:37-38) |
| 6 | He grew up in a poor family (Isa 53:2) | And she brought forth her firstborn Son and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths and laid Him in a manger (Luke 2:7) |
| 7 | Appearance of an ordinary man (Isa 53:2) | but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death (Phil 2:6-8) |
| 8 | Despised (Isa 53:3a) | Jesus was mocked, spit on and struck by those who despised him (Mat 26:67-68) |
| 9 | Rejected (Isa 53:3b) | What then shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ? They all said to him, 'Let Him be crucified!' (Mat 27:21-23) |
| 10 | Great sorrow and grief (Isa 53:3c) | For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin (Mat 26:37-38, Heb 4:15) |
| 11 | Men hide from being associated with Him (Isa 53:3d) | Then all the disciples forsook Him and fled (Mat 26:56, Mark 14:50-52) |
| 12 | He would have a healing ministry (Isa 53:4a) | And He cast out the spirit's with a word and healed all who were sick (Mat 8:16-17) |
| 13 | Thought to be cursed by God (Isa 53:4b) | They answered and said, 'He is deserving of death' (Mat 26:66, 27:41-43) |
| 14 | Bears penalty for mankind's iniquities (Isa 53:5a) | Jesus for His suffering of death was crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone (2 Cor 5:21, Heb 2:9) |
| 15 | His sacrifice provides peace between man and God (Isa 53:5b) | and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross (Col 1:20) |
| 16 | His back would be whipped | Pilate had scourged Jesus, he delivered Him to be crucified (Mat 27:26) |
| 17 | His sacrifice would heal man of sin (Isa 53:5c) | who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness-by whose stripes you were healed (1 Pet 2:24) |
| 18 | He would be the sin-bearer for all mankind (Isa 53:6a) | And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins and not for ours only but also for the whole world (1 John 2:2, 4:10) |
| 19 | God's will that He bear sin for all mankind (Isa 53:6b) | who gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from this present evil age (Gal 1:4) |
| 20 | Oppressed and afflicted (Isa 53:7a) | The humiliation and suffering Jesus endured before His death (Mat 27:27-31) |
| 21 | Silent before his accusers (Isa 53:7b) | 'Do You not hear how many things they testify against You?' But Jesus answered him not one word, so that the governor marveled greatly (Mat 27:12-14) |
| 22 | Sacrificial lamb (Isa 53:7c) | Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29, 1 Pet 1:18-19) |
| 23 | Confined and persecuted (Isa 53:8a) | The humiliation and suffering Jesus endured before His death (Mat 26:47-27:31) |
| 24 | He would be judged (Isa 53:8b) | Jesus was judged by the high priest and then by Pilate (John 18:13-22) |
| 25 | Stricken and crucified (Isa 53:8c) | Then they crucified Him (Mat 27:35) |
| 26 | Dies for the sins of the world (Isa 53:8d) | And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins and not for ours only but also for the whole world (1 John 2:2) |
| 27 | Buried in a rich man's grave (Isa 53:9a) | Jesus was buried in a tomb of Joseph (a rich man from Arimathea) (Mat 27:57) |
| 28 | Innocent and had done no violence (Isa 53:9b) | And we indeed justly crucified, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong. (Luke 23:41, John 18:38) |
| 29 | No deceit in his mouth (Isa 53:9c) | Who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in His mouth (1 Pet 2:22) |
| 30 | God's will that He die for mankind (Isa 53:10a) | Shall I not drink the cup which My Father has given Me? (John 18:11) |
| 31 | An offering for sin (Isa 53:10b) | Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (Mat 20:28, Gal 3:13) |
| 32 | Resurrected and live forever (Isa 53:10c) | knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead. Death no longer has dominion over Him.(Rom 6:9) |
| 33 | God would cause Him to prosper (Isa 53:10d) | glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was (John 17:1-5) |
| 34 | God fully satisfied with His suffering (Isa 53:11a) | But for this purpose I came to this hour (John 12:27) |
| 35 | God's servant would justify man (Isa 53:11b) | Having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. (Rom 5:8-9, 18-19) |
| 36 | The sin-bearer for all mankind (Isa 53:11c) | Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many (Heb 9:28) |
| 37 | Exalted by God because of his sacrifice (Isa 53:12a) | Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, 'All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth' (Mat 28:18) |
| 38 | He would give up his life to save mankind (Isa 53:12b) | Father, 'into Your hands I commit My spirit.' Having said this, He breathed His last (Luke 23:46) |
| 39 | Numbered with the transgressors (Isa 53:12c) | With Him they also crucified two robbers, one on His right and the other on His left (Mark 15:27-28) |
| 40 | Sin-bearer for all mankind (Isa 53:12d) | Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many (Heb 9:28, 1 Pet 2:24) |
| 41 | Intercede to God in behalf of mankind (Isa 53:12e) | Who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us (Rom 8:34) |
Even secular scholars acknowledge that this passage reads eerily like a post - crucifixion Christian text; however the Dead Sea Scrolls, (circa 250 BC) contain copies of the prophet Isaiah showing these prophecy predated Jesus by 7 centuries!
Psalm 22 - A Detailed Description of Crucifixion
Written about 1000 years before Jesus, Psalm 22 opens with the line "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?". This is the very Psalm that Jesus quotes from the cross (Mat 27:46). King David wrote this 10 centuries before Jesus was on the earth and it includes incredible details that perfectly match the crucifixion - bear in mind this form of execution was not even invented at the time of King David. The Babylonians and Assyrians started it in the 6th century and the Romans practiced in the 5th century onwards!
| # | Old Testament Prophesy | New Testament Fulfillment |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Forsaken because of sins of others (Psa 22:1) | For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us (2 Cor 5:21) |
| 2 | My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? (Psa 22:1) | Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? (Mat 27:46) |
| 3 | Day and night at the same time (Psa 22:2) | Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land (Mat 27:45) |
| 4 | All who see me mock me, shake their head and insult me (Psa 22:7) | And those who passed by blasphemed Him ... (Mat 27:39-44) |
| 5 | He trusted in God, let Him deliver Him (Psa 22:8) | Mocking with the scribes and elders, said, He saved others; Himself He cannot save. If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross and we will believe... (Mat 27:43) |
| 6 | Born the Savior (Psa 22:9-10) | Jesus is the Saviour of the world (Luke 2:7) |
| 7 | They seek His death (Psa 22:12-13) | The chief priests and officers saw Him, they cried out, saying, 'Crucify Him, crucify Him!' (John 19:6) |
| 8 | His blood poured out when they pierced His side (Psa 22:14) | But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear and immediately blood and water came out (John 19:34) |
| 9 | Suffered extreme agony (Psa 22:14-15) | Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? ..... (Mark 15:34-37) |
| 10 | He thirsted (Psa 22:15) | Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, 'I thirst!' (John 19:28) |
| 11 | They pierced His hands and His feet (Psa 22:16) | And again another Scripture says, 'They shall look on Him whom they pierced' (John 19:34-37, 20:27) |
| 12 | Stripped Him before the stares of men (Psa 22:17-18) | And they divided His garments ... And the people stood looking on. (Luke 23:34-35) |
| 13 | They parted His garments (Psa 22:18) | And they divided His garments ... (John 19:23-24) |
| 14 | They cast lots for His garments (Psa 22:18) | And they divided His garments and cast lots for them. (John 19:23-24) |
| 15 | He committed Himself to God (Psa 22:20-21) | Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit. Having said this, He breathed His last. (Luke 23:46) |
| 16 | Satanic power bruising the Redeemer's heel (Psa 22:20-21) | Through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, (Heb 2:14) |
| 17 | His Resurrection declared (Psa 22:22) | I am ascending to My Father and your Father and to My God and your God. (John 20:17) |
| 18 | He shall be the governor of the nations (Psa 22:27-28) | Every knee shall bow (Phil 2:10) |
| 19 | It is finished (Psa 22:31) | He said, 'It is finished!' And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit. (John 19:30, Heb 10:10-12, 14, 18) |
Even the tiny details like dividing his clothes and casting lots for them; that there is darkness for 3 hours during the middle of the day, right to Jesus saying "It is Finished!" - recorded about 1400 years before He was on the earth.
Without a shadow of a doubt this is the hand of a divine God, not purely coincidence.
Events in Jesus' Life That Fulfill Old Testament Prophecies
The New Testament gospels repeatedly state that Jesus fulfilled what was written "in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms (Luke 24:44). These are just some highlights from the full list of over 350 fulfilled prophecies
Again, you are encouraged to do your own research and study the Bible for yourself.
The probability of one person fulfilling hundreds of ancient prophecies might seem incredibly low (especially given many are over 15 centuries before Jesus was on the earth). However, the fact that Jesus fulfilled more than 350 of them is something truly remarkable and mind blowing. This is evidence of divine purpose and confirmation that Jesus is the Messiah.
It's a powerful reminder that we are finite beings and extraordinary things happen with a God that is infinite, that go beyond what we might expect or calculate!
| Old Testament Prophesy | Approximate Date | New Testament Fulfillment |
|---|---|---|
| Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem Mic 5:2 | circa 1804 BC | King Herod asks where Christ was born... and they answered Bethlehem Mat 2:4-6 |
| A forerunner of Christ Mal 3:1 | 450-430 BC | John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ Mar 1:1-8 |
| Christ riding on a donkey to enter Jerusalem Zech 9:9 | 6th-c BC | Christ enters Jerusalem on an unridden donkey Mat 21:4-11 |
| Christ betrayed by a friend Psa 41:9 | 10th-c BC | Judas betrayed Christ Luk 22:21 |
| Christ betrayed for 30 pieces of silver Zech 11:2 | 8th-c BC | Judas betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver Mat 26:15 |
| 30 pieces of silver cast down to buy a potter's field Zech 11:13 | 8th-c BC | 30 pieces of silver used to buy a potter's field Mat 27:3-10 |
| Although innocent, Christ was silent when on trial Isa 53:7 | 740-700 BC | Jesus Christ kept silent when questioned Mark 14:60-61 |
| Jesus Christ crucified Psa 22:16 | 10th-c BC | Jesus Christ was crucified for the sins of the world John 19:17-18 |
Daniel's Prophecies and the Rise and Fall of Empires
The book of Daniel, written around 600–530 BC, contains prophetic visions of world empires that align precisely with post-Daniel history.
Daniel 2 - Four Empires
In Daniel 2, King Nebuchadnezzar dreams of a statue made of different metals, representing successive kingdoms. Even the secular atheistic scholars widely agree that these represent:
- Babylon (gold head) - circa 609-539 BC
- Medo-Persia (silver chest) - circa 539-331 BC
- Greece (bronze thighs) - circa 331-63 BC
- Rome (iron legs) - circa 63 BC-476 AD
These empires rose and fell in the exact order prophesied. 6 centuries of history laid out in the exact order of the empires that rule the earth! Thats not coincidence.
Daniel 9 - The 70 Weeks Prophecy and the Timing of the Messiah
Perhaps the most astonishing is Daniel 9:24–27, which gives a time prophecy: "From the issuing of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One (Messiah) comes, there will be seven 'sevens' and sixty-two 'sevens'... " (v.25)
Using Jewish prophetic reckoning (a 'week' is 7 years), this gives:
7 + 62 = 69 weeks = 483 years
Starting point: decree to rebuild Jerusalem (~457 BC, Ezra 7:11–26)
483 years later = AD 27, the approximate start of Jesus' public ministry
Many scholars (e.g., Gleason Archer, Josh McDowell) affirm that this prophecy predicts the arrival of the Messiah to the year.
Coincidence? With this much of accuracy - is that even possible?
Objections - Was This Retroactive Editing?
Some skeptics suggest that Jesus' followers retroactively edited the Old Testament or altered the New Testament to create the appearance of fulfilled prophecy.
The Dead Sea Scrolls Prove the Old Testament Was Unchanged
The Dead Sea Scrolls, discovered between 1947-1956 near the Dead Sea in Israel, represent one of the most significant archaeological finds of the 20th century. These ancient manuscripts, dating from approximately 250 BC. to 68 AD, contain fragments from every book of the Hebrew Bible except Esther, offering a glimpse into how Scripture appeared centuries before Christ and have affirmed the accuracy of many biblical passages.
The Isaiah Scrolls proved to be word-for-word identical with the standard Hebrew Bible in more than 95% of the text, confirming the accuracy and reliability of the Masoretic Text.
Isaiah 53 and other messianic passages appear exactly as they do in modern Bibles. This proves that these prophecies existed centuries before Jesus and were not inserted afterward.
Not All Fulfilled Prophecies Could Be Faked
One might argue that some prophecies (like riding a donkey) could be staged, but many were completely outside Jesus' human control, such as:
- His birth in Bethlehem
- Being born of a virgin
- The timing of His ministry (Daniel 9)
- Betrayal price (30 pieces of silver)
- Method of execution (crucifixion)
- Gambling over His clothing
- His burial location
- The resurrection itself
Even if Jesus tried to deliberately fulfill certain prophecies, He could not control this many!
Objections - Could It All Be Coincidence?
Another objection claims these fulfilled prophecies are just statistical chance. But the math tells a different story - it is impossible.
In Science Speaks, Peter Stoner, outlines the mathematical probability of one person in the 1st century fulfilling just eight of the most clear and straight forward prophecies:
Now these prophecies were either given by inspiration of God or the prophets just wrote them as they thought they should be. In such a case the prophets had just one chance in 1017 of having them come true in any man, but they all came true in Christ! This means that the fulfillment of these eight prophecies alone proves that God inspired the writing of these prophecies to such absolute definiteness.
To visualize it, Stoner says: "Imagine covering the state of Texas two feet deep in silver dollars. Mark one of them and mix it thoroughly. Then blindfold someone and have them pick one coin. The chance they'd pick the marked coin is the same as 1 in 1017."
Dr. Stoner went on to calculate the probability of one person fulfilling 48 prophecies to be 1 in 10157. Yet the Bible has more than 350 prophesies that have been fulfilled by Jesus Christ and some to be fulfilled when He returns. One cannot even begin to fathom the numerical value of that probability...
Just so you can grasp the magnanimous scale of the prophecies of the coming Messiah, consider these facts - the size of that number - there are not even that many electrons in the known universe! And that number is just for 48 of the 350+ known Messianic prophecies that Jesus of Nazareth fulfilled.
Merely fulfilling 48 of these isn't something that can be explained by random chance. Rather, this points to a divine origin
No man could write that book, we call the Bible. The Bible was written by kings, generals, shepherds, priests, over 1600 years, in 3 languages, on 3 continents, totally 66 books. It was written mostly by authors who had never met each other, who wrote about controversial subjects and yet all 66 books agree.
You can absolutely stake your life on it's authenticity, authority and trustworthiness. And you can and should stake your eternal destiny on it also!
While critics have debated Stoner's assumptions, even conservative estimates show that the probability of chance fulfillment is effectively zero.
There is no possible way mathematically this is coincidence.
What Scholars Say
Dr. Francis Collins, led the Human Genome Project and was the Director of the National Institute of Health from 2009 to 2021, serving under three presidents. He affirmed the rationality of Christianity and moved from atheism to belief in part due to its intellectual coherence and the evidence of prophecy that was fulfilled.
"I found the evidence for belief in the God of the Bible to be intellectually compelling... including the fulfillment of prophecies about Christ."
— Francis Collins, The Language of God
Sir Lionel Alfred Luckhoo, KCMG CBE QC (1914 – 1997) was a Guyanese politician, diplomat and lawyer, famed for his 245 consecutive successful defences in murder cases. Luckhoo was deeply skeptical and relied on evidence, more so given his law background. Prophecy was a key part of his conversion.
"I have spent more than 42 years as a defense trial lawyer appearing in many parts of the world... I say unequivocally the evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ is so overwhelming that it compels acceptance by proof which leaves absolutely no room for doubt."
— Sir Lionel Luckhoo
Josh McDowell began his research as a hostile skeptic and set out to disprove Christianity. He was overwhelmed by the predictive power of messianic prophecies like Isaiah 53 and Psalm 22.
"I had to admit that the Old Testament, written hundreds of years before Christ, was being fulfilled down to the smallest detail in Jesus' life."
— Josh McDowell, from More Than a Carpenter
"No other religion or book dares to rest its claims on predictive prophecy. The Bible stands alone, verified by history and reason."
— Josh McDowell, from Evidence that Demands a Verdict
Lee Strobel, was an outspoken atheist who converted after investigating the historical and prophetic evidence for Jesus.
"It would have been impossible for Jesus to arrange the fulfillment of all the hundreds of Old Testament prophecies - many of which He had no control over... unless, of course, He really was the Messiah."
— Lee Strobel, The Case for Christ
Craig Evans, New Testament historian says "There is no serious scholarly doubt that Jesus was crucified under Pontius Pilate. What is extraordinary is how closely the details of His death align with prophecies written centuries earlier."
Gleason Archer, a biblical scholar says "The Holy Scriptures are demonstrated to be a divine revelation by the fulfillment of specific predictions made hundreds of years in advance, which no mere human wisdom could have anticipated."
Many former atheists - including legal experts, scientists and journalists have investigated the prophecies of the Bible not to believe, but to disprove the Bible and Jesus Christ. Yet instead of finding fiction, they discovered a pattern of fulfillment so specific, so improbable and so historically grounded that it led them to faith in Christ. As Lee Strobel put it "Only God could pull this off."
Why Fulfilled Prophecy Matters
Biblical prophecy is not simply about prediction - it's about proving the divine origin of Scripture. As one scholar put it:
Fulfilled prophecy is the fingerprint of God on the pages of history
Fulfilled prophecy shows that God is sovereign over history (Isa 46:5,9–10). It proves without a shadow of a doubt that the Bible is not a random compilation of thoughts, it's accurate down to the details!
Jesus is the promised Messiah, not a myth or exaggeration.
The Christian faith is grounded in real events, not wishful thinking.
Conclusion - Only God Could Do This
The sheer volume, specificity and fulfillment of biblical prophecy are unlike anything in ancient literature. It's not just that the Bible claims to predict the future - it goes ahead and demonstrably does so, in ways that no human author or conspiracy could accomplish.
The prophecies of Daniel chart the course of history 6 centuries before it happened and gave details to the empires that would follow and in the exact order that they would come. Numerous former atheists - including professionals in law, science and journalism - approached biblical prophecy with the goal of discrediting it, not embracing it. However, rather than uncovering myth or fabrication, they encountered a sequence of fulfilled predictions so precise, improbable and historically verifiable that it ultimately convinced them of the truth of Christianity. As Lee Strobel famously said, "Only God could pull this off."
The messianic predictions of Isaiah, Psalms, Micah and Zechariah align precisely with events in the life of Jesus.
Ancient texts like the Dead Sea Scrolls confirm these prophecies existed long before Jesus.
Mathematical probability shows that these fulfillments could not have happened by chance.
If these things are true - and the evidence says they are - then the Bible is more than a human book - it is a divine revelation!
And Jesus is more than a good teacher. He is the Messiah foretold by the prophets - the One who came, not by chance or manipulation, but by the will and design of God.