For every couple who has waited for that first child to arrive, you know the joy when the moment finally comes. Couples who have struggled with infertility and longed for that child may feel that joy just a little deeper. So imagine for a moment how the Jewish nation should have felt after waiting 4000 years for the promised Messiah. All the signs were there. The Old Testament is full of the prophecies of the coming of the Messiah….and every single prophecy was fulfilled with total and complete accuracy.
| Old Testament Prophecy | New Testament Fulfillment |
| Time of His Coming
Daniel 9:24 Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy. Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. |
Jesus identified at the right time
John 1:41 He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messiah, which is, being interpreted, the Christ
John 4:25-26 The woman saith unto him, I know that Messiah cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things. Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he |
| Christ to be born of a virgin
Isaiah 7:14 The Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. |
Mary
Luke 1:26-27 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth. To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary |
| Christ to be born in Bethlehem
Micah 5:2 But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting |
Bethlehem
Matthew 2:4-6: King Herod asked where Christ had been born and they answered, “Bethlehem.”
Luke 2:4 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) |
| Of the Tribe of Judah & House of David
Genesis 49:10 The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be Micah 5:2 But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting God told David the Messiah would be from His line in 2 Samuel 7:12. When your days are complete and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, who will come forth from you, and I will establish his kingdom |
Lineage from Abraham to Christ
The complete lineage from Abraham to Christ can be found in Matthew 1:1-16.
Angel tells Mary her son will have the throne of His father David. Luke 1:31-32 You will conceive in your womb and bring forth a son, and shall call his name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give him the throne of His father David.
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Certainly, the Bible has much more to say about the birth of Christ. These are just a few of the verses where one can read about the prophecies and fulfillment of Christ’s birth. The point is God gave the people of Israel every possible sign so they would be able to recognize who He was…and they missed it. Why? Because they were expecting a king that would deliver them from the rule of the Roman Empire. The could not grasp the idea that God would chose a young, ordinary girl who was only engaged to be married to give birth to the Savior of the world. They were not looking for a baby lying in a lowly cattle trough, but royalty. But God loves to take the ordinary and do something extraordinary because it reveals His power and glory.
Jesus. The baby Mary held in her arms was God in human flesh. The baby Mary held in her arms was the King of Glory who willing left the splendor of Heaven to be born a baby and live a human life. While Mary certainly felt joy as she held her son in her arms, this baby would bring joy to the entire world because through his birth, the entire human race was granted hope of being able to be restored to the God who created us. Indeed, Jesus birth is cause for us to sing:
Joy to the world, the Lord is come! Let earth receive her King; Let every heart prepare him room, And heaven and nature sing.
(Sir Isaac Watts, published 1719)
