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As believers, we need to understand that Jesus did not appear in a vacuum over 2,000 years ago; but rather He came in fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies. The first Messianic prophecy is in Genesis 3:15, “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise Him on the heel.”
This prophecy foretells of an event that would take place thousands of years later and was fulfilled when Mary gave birth to Yeshua our Messiah, who, after dying for our sins, rose from the dead and crushed Satan under His feet.
Another integral part of Messianic prophesy in the Hebrew Scriptures is the foretelling of the lineage that Messiah would come into the world through. God said to Abraham: “In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice” (Genesis 22:18). Paul (Shaul in Hebrew) foretold in Galatians 3:16 that the “seed” prophesied to Abraham is Christ.
The Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) also tells us that the specific tribe of Israel that Messiah would come from is Judah. Genesis 49:10 says: “The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes, And to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.” “Shiloh” is a code word for the Messiah.
Furthermore, God revealed to us that the Messiah would come through the line of King David. The LORD said to David in Psalm 132:11: “Of the fruit of your body I will set upon your throne.”
Jeremiah spoke clearly of this Messianic reality when he said in Jeremiah 33: 14, 15:“Behold, days are coming,’ declares the LORD, ‘when I will fulfill the good word which I have spoken concerning the house of Israel and the house of Judah. In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch of David to spring forth; and He shall execute justice and righteousness on the earth.’”
Perhaps the best known Messianic prophecy is Isaiah 7:14: “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel, God with us.” We recognize this fulfillment in Matthew 1:20-23.
When we see how Jesus fulfills the Messianic prophecies found in the Old Testament, we become absolutely convinced and secure in our faith – Jesus is the way to God the Father.
“And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).
Rabbi Kirt Schneider hosts the impactful television program “Discovering The Jewish Jesus,”which is available in more than one hundred million homes in the United States and nearly two hundred nations worldwide. In 2021 he began broadcasting on radio and now airs across America. Rabbi Schneider imparts revelation of Jesus’ Jewish heritage and His fulfillment of Messianic prophecy. Questions of how the Old and New Testaments tie together, and how Yeshua completes the unfolding plan of The Almighty Yahweh, are answered with exceptional clarity. Visit his website, Discovering the Jewish Jesus.
