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

Session 7 Gentile Inclusion in Old Testament Messianic Prophecy

Redemption of Humankind: The Heart of the Old Testament Theological Vision

Contrary to popular opinion as held in some quarters, the Bible is not an encyclopedia that gives its readers exhaustive information on every conceivable subject. The Word of God may properly be described as an inexhaustible Book only in a certain sense and in certain limited areas. Its primary concern is to outline God’s relation ship to us as well as what ought to be our relationships to him and to each other. In the light of this basic understanding of the restricted and specialized nature of the Scriptures it has become quite common in recent years to refer to the main subject matter of the Bible as what the Germans call Heilsgeschichte , a term that may be translated literally as “Salvation History” or more idiomatically as “The Story of Redemption.” The one true God, the sovereign Creator and Lord of the universe, graciously confirmed his elective purposes for his people by initiating a series of legally defined covenants with them. The theocratic form of government that resulted in Israel was to be made workable by means of a corpus of moral laws that demanded wholehearted obedience and ceremonial ordinances that required sacrificial observance. Israel’s basic response to God’s boundless pro vision for them was to be in the form of an unquestioning faith in him, and the Lord on his part would grant to his people an unmerited salvation. As a concept that helpfully sums up the ultimate goal of the biblical narrative from Genesis to Malachi, redemption deserves a prominent place among those subjects that lie closest to the heart of the Old Testament.

~ Ronald Youngblood. The Messiah in the Old Testament . Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1971. pp. 97-98.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

I. Promise and Fulfillment: the Three Movements in New Testament Use of Old Testament Messianic Prophecy

A. First Movement: Jesus’ explanation of the Old Testament Messianic predictions about himself

117