Proof for the Bible Part 4: Prophetic

Evidence for the Bible is not limited to only looking at artifacts and Science. Prophecy itself is evidence for the validity of the Bible. Prophecy, in this post, will have two parts. The first is prophecy, speaking to the present, and the second is prophecy speaking to our future. Of course, not being in the future, it will be substantially harder for us to validate this point, but by using logic and reason, we are able to do so.

As we look at prophecy from the past, we have an unbelievable record. We see individual prophecies for those who lived in the past, we have prophetic statements geared for one individual or group, etc. However, we want to bridge the gap between us, the reader, and of the prophecies in the past. We have to look at the prophecies that affect us personally. We will do so through the lens of Israel itself, Jesus, and finally His statements. From there we view the prophecies that have yet to be fulfilled. When we look at Israel, there are many prophecies that can fill our pages. We are going to look at a few. First is the prophecy that Israel would be scattered. This was done by the Assyrians (1 Chronicles 5:26, and 2 Kings 17:5-6). Both of these are also affirmed in world History around the dates of 740 B.C. under the Assyrian king Pul. The second is around 722 B.C. by the king Shalmaneser V. He tried to conquer Judah but God thwarted him. Judah, the Southern Kingdom of Israel, was eventually conquered in stages. The first was around 605 and 597 B.C. by King Nebuchadnezzar. Each of these cases, the Jews were allowed to dwell in the city as long as they paid tribute and obeyed. They failed and finally in 586 B.C. Babylon finally siege the city and destroyed it.

The prophecy for Babylon is found in Isaiah 13 and Jeremiah 25. Both of these texts go into detail the destruction of Judah and Jerusalem. Lamentations, also written by Jeremiah, is his weeping over the destruction of Jerusalem. God warned Judah of the coming destruction because of their sins and they ignored the prophets. They were destroyed. Both of these captivities dispersed the Jews to other nations.

Then there is the prophecy of them being preserved. If anyone wishes to know why the Jews will never be destroyed, here is the answer: Deuteronomy 4:27. It is easy to see, even in some of the most horrid environments, the Jewish people have survived. It is because God will protect His people and He has. God prophesied they will return to the promise land (Deuteronomy 30:3-5). That is being fulfilled, even today with many Jews returning to their homeland. The restoration of Israel is prophesied in Ezekiel 37:1-14. Jerusalem will be reclaimed, which is now true from June 1967.

These are just a few prophecies. What about individual prophecies? The prophecy that Rome would destroy the Temple (Matthew 24, Mark 13, Luke 21) all show Jesus saying that not one stone would be left upon the other. This was said around A.D. 30-33. It was fulfilled by the Romans in A.D. 70. What about Jesus Himself? There are over 100 prophecies about Jesus alone and each one was fulfilled.

That brings us to our day. The second part is based on the accuracy of the first. If there were prophecies that have been made before our time, and there were, and those prophecies came true, exactly as stated, and they have, we can have great assurance the prophecies mentioned for our future will come true. We know Jesus said He will come back. We know He said He will judge the world for their sin. We know He said He will sit on the throne of David, in Jerusalem for 1000 years. We know there is coming a world leader who will demand the world worship him. We know there is going to be seven years of Tribulation. We know there is a hope for those who are saved. We know there is an eternity awaiting everyone, Heaven for believers in Jesus, and hell for those who reject Him.

Peter tells us (2 Peter 3:3-9) that many will come scoffing and doubting the promises of God. They do this in ignorance, whether willing or not is left to the scoffer to decide, but the evidence is there. God has fulfilled EVERY promise He made in the past, and with 100% accuracy, why does anyone doubt that the future prophecies will be less? The answer is that while we may not know ourselves, we can have confidence based on past track record. If we had an investment that had 100% profits, 100% of the time in the past, would we doubt the same thing going for the future? Why do we doubt it when it comes to the prophecies in the Bible?

Once again, the prophecies of the Scripture prove the Bible is God's Holy Word and is absolutely authoritative and perfect in all that it says. The question we must ask is...are we willing to accept that or will we willingly deny it?