The Bible gives reference to a Messiah that would one day come as a deliver for the oppressed people of God, in particular, the Hebrew nation now known as Israel. Over the centuries, since the notion was introduced, there has been discussions as to who this person would be, why he would come and what he would do when he arrives.
We will first look at the Old Testament as a source of knowledge and revelation. Then we will consider the New Testament to compare its Messianic truths. Our search is to discover the plan of God for the Jew and the Gentile to see both similarities and differences.
The very first mention of a Messiah was by God, Himself. It is found in Genesis 3:15 which says:
“And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.”
The text describes a conversation between God and the Serpent where God tells the Serpent that there will be a seed of humanity in the future that will bruise or defeat him. This Seed is referred to as, “The Seed of The Woman.” We all know that a woman does not have a seed. That is man’s responsibility. The woman is a receptacle for the seed. But God says this seed will be from the woman. This is the first mention of a coming deliver.
Enmity is used by God to separate the seed of Serpent and the seed of the woman. The seed of the serpent is the offspring of evil. It can be further described by “Children of Darkness,” whereas the seed of the woman is depicted as “Children of light.” The Bible asks the question, that what fellowship has light with darkness? Most Bible students see the seed of the woman as the children of God which represent the light of God. In this case, the woman does have a seed. It is in the loins of the Messiah and has the ability to reproduce itself in the earth.
The term, “Messiah” is a Hebrew word that means, “Anointed One” God is telling the serpent, otherwise known as the devil, that there will be an “Anointed One” sent by God to overcome him and deliver his people. It is amazing that God said this when there were no people of God, just Adam and Eve. That’s why it is called a prophecy. It wasn’t until Jacob and his 12-sons that the people of God really began to take root and form.
Even today, the children of God and the children of the devil war against each other for supremacy. This war runs deep into societal living, law making, religious beliefs and all other aspects of daily life.
No Old Testament prophet had more to say about the promised Messiah of Israel than Isaiah. He described the coming Servant-Ruler as One who would bring a mysterious blend of power and suffering (ISA. 53; 61:1-3).
The character of this coming Servant-King is most clearly stated in Isaiah 9:6, where the prophet declared:
“Unto us a Child is born, unto us, a Son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
Here, Isaiah said several things that remained a mystery for centuries. While it was clear that he was predicting a coming world leader and messianic age, what could not have been seen was Isaiah actually predicting the arrival of the Son of God.
All of this we can now see packed profoundly into the series of names Isaiah used for the coming Servant-King.
Let’s review the scope of this amazing prophecy.
The Birth Of Messiah. “Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given …” Such prophecies infused generations of Jewish women with dreams of being the mother who would give birth to the promised and long-awaited Messiah. But it has since become clear that this prophecy anticipated far more than the birth of a world leader. We now see in the phrase “unto us a Son is given” the entrance of God’s own Son into the human race that He created.
The Kingdom Of Messiah. “…and the government will be upon His shoulder …” These are words filled with both prophetic and practical significance. Prophetically, Isaiah saw the day when a son of Israel would bear the weight of world leadership. In chapter 2, Isaiah predicted that in the last days the house of the Lord would be established in Jerusalem.
Those who have bowed their knee to this coming Messiah and Lord can find present encouragement in that future day. Our comfort is found in the reality that the shoulders that will someday carry the government of the world are large enough to bear any personal burden that we bring to Him now.
- The Character Of Messiah. “…and His name will be called …” Hebrew names are often significant for defining character. Isaiah used four compound names to provide a full understanding of this coming Savior. Each name forms a different window through which to view the Son of God who would one day become the Son of man. These four names shape our understanding of who God’s Messiah is—helping us develop a personal relationship with Him and showing us where to find Him in our moments of need. Let’s take these names one at a time.
“And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Isiah 9:6
This Messiah will be a, “Wonderful Counselor,” the type of person that can look deep within the soul and calm fear, dissolve sorrow and foster peace.
This Messiah will also be none other than the “Mighty God” of heaven. He will not be an angel or messenger of sorts. He will not be an ordinary human being. He will be God, Himself. Thus, the God of creation, the only true and living God will enter humanity, as the Messiah to save his people.
This Messiah will further be known as the, “Everlasting Father” which is to say eternal. He is not a created being but an eternal “Anointed One” that rules the universe and governs everything everywhere.
This Messiah, finally, will be a, “Prince of Peace” that will bring order and stability to the world.
These four titles describe the Messiah and reveal His nature and character as well as His purpose.
The Old Testiment contains the Jewish (Hebrew) text that took thousands of years of history and prophesy to write. That’s why it is so reliable as a source of truth. Here are a few other prophesies to consider:
- Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. Micah 5:2
- Messiah would be born of a virgin. Isiah 7:14
- Messiah would come from the line of Abraham. Genesis 12:3 Genesis 22:18
- Messiah would come from the tribe of Judah. Genesis 49:10
- Messiah would be heir to King David’s throne. 2 Samuel 7:12-13 Isaiah 9:7
- Messiah’s throne will be anointed and eternal. Psalm 45:6-7 Daniel 2:44
- Messiah would be called Immanuel.(Meaning, God with us) Isaiah 7:14
- Messiah would be rejected by his own people. Psalm 69:8 Isaiah 53:3
- Messiah would be preceded by Elijah. Malachi 4:5-6
- Messiah would be declared the Son of God. Psalm 2:7
- Messiah would be called a Nazarene. Isiah 11:1
- Messiah would be sent to heal the brokenhearted. Isaiah 61:1-2
- Messiah would be crucified with criminals. Isiah 53:12
- Messiah would be a sacrifice for sin. Isaiah 53:5-12
- Messiah would be called King. Psalm 2:6 Zechariah 9:9
There are more but this list will due for now. We have seen how Messiah will enter humanity, where He will be born, from what tribe He will descend, that a forerunner will precede His coming, that He will be called The Son of God and King, that He will be rejected by His own, that He will be slain as the spotless Lamb of God as an atonement for sin. That He was pre-existent as “Almighty God”, even the” Eternal Father” of all creation.
So why are the Jewish people still waiting for their Messiah? Hear what the Old Testament prophet said…Malachi 3:1 – “Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.”
Did they miss His coming? The 70 weeks (Daniel 9:6 f) in the book of Daniel give us a detailed prophecy concerning the coming of the Messiah. The prophecy begins with the command to restore and rebuild Jerusalem, and 69 weeks later it ends with “the Messiah, the Prince”. Through the prophetic word transmitted by Gabriel, God gave Daniel instruction about the Messiah who was to come to His people after the city and temple were rebuilt. (This was given to Daniel while in the Babylonian captivity)
We are talking about the time when He would appear as the Messiah. There is one person and one only who fulfills this requirement, and that is the one who was anointed as the Messiah in A.D. 27″Jesus of Nazareth. His anointing at the Jordan River, by both John the Baptist and His heavenly Father, took place in the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar according to Luke 3:1, 21, 22. While there are other possible ways of reckoning this regnal year of Tiberius, it certainly is a reasonable and standard procedure accepted by many commentators, chronographers, and historians to reckon it from A.D. 12.
Utilizing that procedure and starting from the beginning point established in 457 B.C. leads us to one specific individual as the Messiah of this prophecy–Jesus Christ. In other words, the establishment of 457 B.C. as the starting point of the 70-week prophecy of Daniel 9 is one of the strongest indicators among the Messianic prophecies of the Old Testament that Jesus truly was all that He claimed to be.
Although the Old Testiment prophecies were written and kept for future reference, they were not readily available to the common folk. They were not revealed to or known by the masses. Thus, there was a mystery as to this promised Messiah. Only the priest could read and study the scrolls.
There were many Messiahs over the centuries that claimed to be the, “Anointed One.” Some even had followers for a time but none of them could fulfil all of the prophecies that were spoken by the prophets. The odds of that happening were astronomical.
However, there was one man that did. As I stated above, His name was and still is Jesus. He has been proclaimed the, “Christ.” (That’s Greek for “Anointed One”) The Jewish leaders rejected His claim to being the Messiah. They persecuted Him and put Him to death. Little did they know that their actions were the fulfillment of God’s will.
Isaih said “Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed? For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.
He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth.
He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.
He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.” Isaiah 53:1-12
Isaiah could see into the distant future (700 years down the road) and saw the Messiah’s life and destiny but knew that few would believe his report because that generation would be looking for a coming king and the Messiah was to be a suffering servant that would give himself as a living sacrifice, an atonement for the sins of his people.
Josephus, a 1st century historian, said of Jesus that He went around doing good and healing folks. All of his disciples were Jewish witnesses to the many miracles that Jesus did during His earthly ministry. Over 500 followers saw Jesus ascend into heaven after He rose from the dead. Countless thousands have testified to the power of His words and anointing through the centuries. Thousands have been persecuted and even died for their faith in Christ.
Jesus fulfilled all of the prophesy related to the Messiah. He willingly became the atonement for sin, paying our debt to God so we could be free to serve Him. He lived the perfect life before God, always being and doing the Father’s will. He validated his claims through miracles that healed the sick, caused the lame to walk, opened the eyes of the blind, drove out demons from the oppressed, and even raised the dead…all in the midst of many witnesses.
The apostle, John, one of Jesus’s followers and disciple wrote this about Jesus:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light, which lights every man that cometh into the world.
He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
Jesus is the Jewish Messiah. The Jews are his chosen people. The Gentles that accept him, accept a Jewish Messiah called Christ. God has made a way for all of mankind to come to Him. Jesus is the only way, the only truth and the only life through which we access the heavenly realm.
The apostle John recorded Jesus saying:
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16 This was preached first to the Jew and then to the Gentle…that all may share in the love and blessings of God.
Our eternal salvation rest on our acceptance of this Jewish Messiah, now called Christ. We must believe on Him for our deliverance from sin and acceptance into His kingdom.
Check out the first 4 books of the New Testament for a record of the life and ministry of Jesus. You do not have to convert from Judaism into another faith to be saved. All that is required is to put your faith in Christ. He is your Messiah. You can know Him and worship Him now.
Any Questions? Contact
John Marinelli. Author & Poet
352-687-1776
P. S. Question…Why does God allow so much evil to exist?
Answer: God did not create or allow evil to exist. What He did do was to create man, who fell from His grace through disobedience. He created man (And Woman) as fee moral agents…meaning innocent with a free will to do good or evil.
When man turned away from God, who is eternal light and holiness, he had nowhere to go except into the realm of darkness. His spirit became evil and his thoughts were continually wicked. His free will led him to manifest evil and his heart was darkened from being absent from the presence of God, his Creator.
This is why God chose to destroy the earth with the flood. It is also why man will be judged by God for his actions while on earth. All that we see in this world is a result of man’s free will to live outside of God’s love and grace. Man has allowed evil to persist.
However, God has a plan and that is why the Messiah was to come to earth…to overcome the “evil one” and bring His children back to Himself. In the olden days, the people were saved by their faith in a “coming one”, the Messiah or “Anointed One”. In these last days, folks are saved by their faith in the one that came, the Jewish Messiah which is known by the name, Jesus, thee Christ of God or “Anointed One”
Until Next Time
Rev. John Marinelli
johnmarinelli@embarqmail.com