What is your view on all the fullfilled prophecies of the bible?

Question

In approximately 700 B.C. the prophet Micah named the tiny village of Bethlehem as the birthplace of Israel's Messiah (Micah 5:2). The fulfillment of this prophecy in the birth of Christ is one of the most widely known and widely celebrated facts in history.

(Probability of chance fulfillment = 1 in 105.)

In the fifth century B.C. a prophet named Zechariah declared that the Messiah would be betrayed for the price of a slave—thirty pieces of silver, according to Jewish law-and also that this money would be used to buy a burial ground for Jerusalem's poor foreigners (Zechariah 11:12-13). Bible writers and secular historians both record thirty pieces of silver as the sum paid to Judas Iscariot for betraying Jesus, and they indicate that the money went to purchase a "potter's field," used—just as predicted—for the burial of poor aliens (Matthew 27:3-10).

(Probability of chance fulfillment = 1 in 1011.)

Some 400 years before crucifixion was invented, both Israel's King David and the prophet Zechariah described the Messiah's death in words that perfectly depict that mode of execution. Further, they said that the body would be pierced and that none of the bones would be broken, contrary to customary procedure in cases of crucifixion (Psalm 22 and 34:20; Zechariah 12:10). Again, historians and New Testament writers confirm the fulfillment: Jesus of Nazareth died on a Roman cross, and his extraordinarily quick death eliminated the need for the usual breaking of bones. A spear was thrust into his side to verify that he was, indeed, dead.

(Probability of chance fulfillment = 1 in 1013.)

The prophet Isaiah foretold that a conqueror named Cyrus would destroy seemingly impregnable Babylon and subdue Egypt along with most of the rest of the known world. This same man, said Isaiah, would decide to let the Jewish exiles in his territory go free without any payment of ransom (Isaiah 44:28; 45:1; and 45:13). Isaiah made this prophecy 150 years before Cyrus was born, 180 years before Cyrus performed any of these feats (and he did, eventually, perform them all), and 80 years before the Jews were taken into exile.

(Probability of chance fulfillment = 1 in 1015.)

Mighty Babylon, 196 miles square, was enclosed not only by a moat, but also by a double wall 330 feet high, each part 90 feet thick. It was said by unanimous popular opinion to be indestructible, yet two Bible prophets declared its doom. These prophets further claimed that the ruins would be avoided by travelers, that the city would never again be inhabited, and that its stones would not even be moved for use as building material (Isaiah 13:17-22 and Jeremiah 51:26, 43). Their description is, in fact, the well-documented history of the famous citadel.

(Probability of chance fulfillment = 1 in 109.)

Joshua prophesied that Jericho would be rebuilt by one man. He also said that the man's eldest son would die when the reconstruction began and that his youngest son would die when the work reached completion (Joshua 6:26). About five centuries later this prophecy found its fulfillment in the life and family of a man named Hiel (I Kings 16:33-34).

(Probability of chance fulfillment = 1 in 10^7).

just a note...with the probabilities they are supposes to be 10^ whatever....so like 109 means 10^9)

The argument is being made that the prophesies are being fullfilled int the bible so they are "un impressive." Look through some history books, just because these events are recorded in the bible doesnt mean that they arent recorded happening in other types of literature. Do some research.

Now, concerning prophesies regarding Jesus, there are numerous extra biblical sources that affirm prophesies and details of the bible.
1) Cornelius Tacitus
2) Flavius Josephus
3)Suetonius
4) Babylonian Talmud
5)Pliny the Younger

and so on...

Answer 1

Eureka! I've found it! That is to say, the book where I read about the probability of Jesus having fulfilled all the prophecies made about him prior to his birth. Sit down, make yourself comfortable and enjoy.....

"The 19-century Oxford scholar Henry Liddon drew attention to the fact that Jesus fulfilled to the letter no fewer than 332 Old Testament prophecies (cited in William Hendriksen, A Commentary on the Gospel of John, Banner of Truth Trust, p.430). These covered his family's social status, his lifestyle, his general demeanour, his teaching and his amazing powers. Even more remarkably, they included minute details of the events surrounding his death. It has been calculated that 29 Messianic prophecies were fulfilled in the final 24-hours of his life alone. The prophets said that he would be forsaken by his followers, betrayed for 30 pieces of silver (which would then be used to buy a potter's field), wrongly accused, tortured and humiliated (in response to which he would not retaliate), executed along with common criminals and put to death by crucifixion (a form of execution never carried out by the Jews). Prophets also foretold that at the time of his death, he would pray for his executioners, none of his bones would be brokn, his body would be pierced and people would cast lots to see who would get his clothing.

Is it seriously suggested that a hoaxer could (or would) have arranged for all of these things to happen in order to lodge a false claim to be the Messiah? In Science Speaks, Westmont College's Peter Stoner evaluates the biblical data using scientific principles of probability, and at one point calculates the chance of just 48 of the Messianic prophecies being fulfilled in one person as one in 10 to the power of 157. To illustrate what this means, he uses an electron, something so small that, at the rate of 250 a minute, it would take 190 million years to count a line of them one inch long. At the same rate, a cubic inch of electrons would take 190,000,000 x 190,000,000 x 190,000,000 years to count. Stoner then says that if we took this number of electrons, marked one of them, stirred them all together, then asked a blindfolded friend to find the one we had marked, his chance of selecting the right one would be the same as that of one man fulfilling even 48 of the more than 300 Messianic prophecies. He concludes that to reject the Bible's claims that Jesus is the Messiah is to rject a fact 'proved perhaps more absolutely than any other fact in the world'."

Taken from the book 'Does God Believe In Atheists?' by John Blanchard, chapter 24, pages 561-562 (published by Evangelical Press 2000).

So, my view of ALL the fulfilled prophecies of the Bible (let alone the 300 plus about Jesus) is a categorical, emphatic, absolute W-O-W!!!!!!! It just proves how great God is and that the Bible was not a collection of books dreamed up by a bunch of blokes - it was inspired by God, directed by God and produced by God. Got any more questions like this?

Answer 2

I was just browsing questions with no intention of posting any kind of an answer. But when I saw a couple of the answers here, I had to say something;

To Aztrain23 and thePeter: Your charge of "circular reasoning" is false. The mistake you are making is that the Bible is "One Book". If that were true, there would be validity to the charge.
It isn't.
The Bible is a compilation of 66 books. Written by over 40 Authors, on 3 different Continents, & over a time span of several thousand years.
Many of the people DID NOT even know each other.
They wrote at different times, for different reasons, drawing from different life experiences.

So, if Isaiah quotes Moses, or John quotes Jeremiah, or Matthew quotes Daniel, it IS NOT circular reasoning.

Different People. Different Times.

And yet, all claiming to have had a similar experience with a Being who reveals Himself to them as, "The Creator and Sustainer of the Universe", and the ONE Entity with whom ALL mankind will someday have to deal with.

And yet in spite of all of these individuals upbringings and differences and MANY with NO personal contact with each other, they tell of remarkably similar experiences with this Being.

I would challenge anyone to get 40 Authors today, having the advantage of Living, Experiencing, & Growing up in basically the SAME culture, to be given an assignment on the SAME topic???

You KNOW what would happen. You would have 40 different opinions.

The Unity of the Bible when presenting the Revelation of God, DESPITE the aforementioned differences in the human authors, go more (I think) than ANY possible objection raised against it.

No offense you guys. But I really dont think you have thought this thing through. It sounds like something you "heard" and are just repeating something you heard.


....theBerean

Answer 3

I wasn't aware there ever were any at all. List them (along with the verses) and I'll tell you what I think.



I concur with ThePeter: all those prophecies are predicted in the Bible, yet all the proofs that those prophecies were fulfilled are in said Bible. Philosophers generally refer to this as circular reasoning. It's thoroughly useless to try to emphasize a fulfilled prophecy when the claim and the proof use the same source and no other. By comparison, I could write a paragraph saying that I predict Ryan will have a sandwich for lunch and then say Ryan did indeed have a sandwich for lunch when he actually ordered the soup. Does that make me a prophet, or would you prefer to have someone else confirm what Ryan ate?

Answer 4

People don't give me the old "None of them are true"...I guess you haven't read Daniel. He got all his true. Daniel prophecied about the rise and fall of the Babylonian, Persian, Greek and Roman empires. He also told of the destruction of Jerusalem that occured in AD70. Daniel also speaks of a Great Prince of Grecia that would conquer the Persian empire and take the world by storm.

Answer 5

I want to know how you figured out those probabilities.

Also, the fulfillment of those prophecies are made *within* the Bible. That's hardly impressive.

Answer 6

That it's all bollocks. You could twist ANY event around to make it meet the criteria to fulfill a "prophecy" of the Bible.

Answer 7

About the same as the fulfilled prophecies of Nostradamus and others.

Answer 8

No offense intended, but they are vague and quite open to perception and interpretation. The only confirmation of any prophecies are done by man, whose motives are always questionable.

Answer 9

Prophecies are very vague and on a long enough time line they all come "true" by some interpretation

Answer 10

Garbage. If you prophesy that the sun will rise in the east, you haven't accomplished very much. The subject is discussed at length in: