A Biblical Vision, Part I: Mastering the Old Testament Witness to Christ

Ses s i on 6: The Ol d Tes tament and the Fu l f i l lment of Mes s i an i c Pred i c t i ons 111

Jerusalem to Emmaus to spell out to two of them what it all meant. Like everybody else in Palestine (except, presumably the Romans), they were hoping for the redemption of Israel. In Jesus they thought they had the answer to their dreams. Jesus told them that actually they had indeed got the answer–in him, the Messiah. But just as Israel’s restoration lay on the other side of judgment, so, in his person, it was necessary for the Messiah to suffer and then enter his glory (Luke 24). The Messiah’s resurrection was Israel’s redemption. God had done for Jesus the Messiah what they were expecting him to do for Israel. But in Jesus as the Messiah, he had at a deeper level actually done it for Israel. The new age had dawned.

~ Christopher J. H. Wright. Knowing Jesus through the Old Testament . p. 147-48.

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E. Prophecies concerning the coming glory of Jesus Christ

1. The difficulty of the Old Testament prophets to link Messiah’s sufferings with his coming glory, 1 Pet. 1.10-11 – Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, [11] inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories.

2. Ps. 24: The King of glory shall come into the city.

3. Ps. 72: the glorious reign of the Messianic King, Ps. 72.11-13 – May all kings fall down before him, all

nations serve him! [12] For he delivers the needy when he calls, the poor and him who has no helper. [13] He has pity on the weak and the needy, and saves the lives of the needy.

4. The branch of Yahweh will be beautiful and glorious, Isa. 4.2 – In that day the branch of the Lord shall be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land shall be the pride and honor of the survivors of Israel.