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The
Bible and Fulfilled Prophecy |
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(Site of ancient city of Samaria as it appears today. Note the
vineyard.) |
(This continues excerpts from an article by Allan Turner in which
he examines the proofs that the Bible must be from God because of
its pre-knowledge of scientific facts only recently discovered by
the field of science. In this installment, he turns to fulfilled
prophecy as another powerful proof of the divine origin of the
Bible.)
Fulfilled prophecy is another powerful proof that the Bible is what
it claims to be. Many years before historical events occurred, the
Bible was giving rather detailed accounts of these distant events.
In the space that follows, we will examine some of these.
Prophecies About Christ
Henry Liddon is credited with the statement that there are 332
prophecies fulfilled in Christ. The mathematical probability that
all of these could be fulfilled in one person by sheer chance alone
has been calculated to be the number 84 followed by 123 zeros. Some
have suggested that Jesus knew of the prophecies and simply went
about the task of fulfilling them. The nonsense of such thinking is
absolutely overwhelming when one considers the fact that a “mere-man
Jesus” would have no ability to manipulate where he would be born
(Micah 5:2; Matthew 2:1-6). This prophecy was made at least 700
years before the birth of Jesus. In addition, there are many
prophecies about Jesus that were fulfilled by His enemies, who would
not knowingly fulfill a single verse of Scripture about Him:
Sold for 30 pieces of silver (Zech. 11:12; Mt. 26:14-15).
The money to be cast to the potter (Zech. 11:13; Mt. 27:3-10).
He was wounded and bruised (Isa. 53:5; Mt. 27:12-14).
His hands and feet were pierced (Ps. 22:16; Lk 23:33; Jn. 20:25,27).
He was crucified with thieves (Isa. 53:12; Mk. 15:27,28).
The people were to shake their heads at the crucified one (Ps. 22:7;
Mt. 27:39).
The people were to ridicule Him (Ps. 22:7; Mt. 27:41,43).
His garments to be parted and lots cast (Ps. 22:18; Jn. 19:24).
His bones would not be broken (Ps. 34:20; Jn. 19:33,36).
His side would be pierced (Zech. 12:10; Jn. 19:34,37).
Only a Divine mind could have conceived such a character through the
centuries, recorded these things about Him; and only a Divine person
could have fulfilled the predictions. This must lead one to the
conclusion that Jesus is the Christ of God and that the Bible is a
special Divine revelation.
The City Of Samaria
Bible Writers:
750 B.C.
Micah 1:6: “‘Therefore I will make Samaria a heap of ruins in the
field, places for planting a vineyard; I will pour down her stones
into the valley, and I will uncover her foundations’” (NKJV).
FACT: Prophetic events concerning the city of Samaria summarized:
Its ruins would become as a “heap of ruins in the field.” Places
within the city would be cleared of ruins and debris would be
gathered into piles, similar to the “heaps” created in the clearing
of farm land.
In clearing the site, the building stones would be pushed off the
terraces into the valley below. Even the foundations of buildings
and road beds would be dug up in an effort to clear land for
planting.
Eventually, Samaria would be planted in vineyards.
History:
880 B.C.
The city was built as the capital of the northern kingdom of Israel.
King Omri built it on isolated Mt. Sameron, which is completely
surrounded by an almost circular valley. Mt. Sameron was terraced
around from the valley floor to about the 400 ft. elevation for
building sites.
27 B.C.
Herod the Great beautified the city, including the construction of
palaces and temples.
1265 A.D.
Muslims defeated the Crusaders defending the city and totally
destroyed it so that it has never been rebuilt. Arabs living in the
vicinity cleared much of the ruins to covert the ancient city’s site
to agricultural purposes. In clearing the land, they dug up building
foundations and roadways, either piling the rubble in heaps, or
dumping it down to the lower terraces and eventually to the valley
floor.
Today
Now grape vines and olive trees can be seen growing in many
clearings. Usually, ancient cities were built upon the ruins of
their predecessor. After being rebuilt 8 times, God did what He said
He would do—He stopped the rebuilding and converted the land back to
agriculture.
The City Of Babylon
Bible Writers:
700 B.C.
Isaiah 13:19-22: “And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of
the Chaldeans’ pride, Will be as when God overthrew Sodom and
Gomorrah. It will never be inhabited, nor will it be settled from
generation to generation; nor will the Arabian pitch tents there,
nor will the shepherds make their sheepfolds there. But wild beasts
of the desert will lie there, and their houses will be full of owls;
ostriches will dwell there, and wild goats will caper there. The
hyenas will howl in their citadels, and jackals in their pleasant
palaces. Her time is near to come, and her days will not be
prolonged” (NKJV).
600 B.C.
Jeremiah 50:12-13: “Your mother shall be deeply ashamed; she who
bore you shall be ashamed. Behold, the least of the nations shall be
a wilderness, a dry land and a desert. Because of the wrath of the
LORD, she shall not be inhabited, but she shall be wholly desolate.
Everyone who goes by Babylon shall be horrified and hiss at all her
plagues” (NKJV).
Jeremiah 51:25-26: “‘Behold, I am against you, O destroying
mountain, who destroys all the earth,’ says the LORD. ‘And I will
stretch out My hand against you, roll you down from the rocks, and
make you a burnt mountain. They shall not take from you a stone for
a corner nor a stone for a foundation, but you shall be desolate
forever,’ says the LORD” (NKJV).
Jeremiah 51:36-37, 42: “Therefore thus says the LORD: ‘Behold, I
will plead your case and take vengeance for you. I will dry up her
sea and make her springs dry. Babylon shall become a heap, a
dwelling place for jackals, an astonishment and a hissing, without
an inhabitant...The sea has come up over Babylon; she is covered
with the multitude of its waves. Her cities are a desolation, a dry
land and a wilderness, a land where no one dwells, through which no
son of man passes’” (NKJV).
FACT: Prophecy concerning Babylon summarized:
The city would become ruins and be perpetually uninhabited. The Arab
would not make his camp there nor graze sheep there, and the
caravans would not pass through it.
Wild beasts would live in the palaces and houses.
Its protective moat, a man-made sea extending the Euphrates River
from the walls up to a distance of 64 miles, would become dry; yet
pools of water would cover portions of the city within the walls.
Her stones would not be taken for other buildings, but she would
become heaps, the walls broken down, and the ziggurat burned, and
the famous “Hanging Gardens” on the man-made mountain of stone,
known as one of the seven wonders of the world, would be destroyed.
Babylon would remain a perpetual desolation and astonishment.
Her exceedingly fertile valley would become a dry, parched
wilderness and desert.
History:
100 A.D.
Due to several previous centuries’ lack of rain, the Euphrates River
became saline. This river-borne salt eventually destroyed the
fertility of the land around the city and the city eventually
dwindled in population.
412 A.D.
The elaborate network of canals built to assure great productivity
and to control flooding of the Euphrates River had become filled-in
due to lack of maintenance, thus causing the whole area to become
swampy.
460 A.D.
Theodoret writes that by this time there were no longer any
Assyrians or Chaldeans living there, only a few Jews.
1000 A.D.
The Euphrates River changed its course from the canal passing
through the center of the city to a new route many miles to the
east, thus causing the man-made sea to dry up.
1250 A.D.
Benjamin of Tudela visited the site and found nothing but utter
desolation. Because of infestation by scorpions and serpents, the
palace proved to be inaccessible.
Today
Babylon is desolate except for wild animals that can be seen living
among the ruins. As the walls of the buildings deteriorated, the
mortar caused the soil to be tainted with nitrous compounds that
poisoned the soil. Due to the soil’s deterioration and local
superstition, the Arabs will not camp nor graze flocks near this
ancient city. For over 4000 years it was on a major trade route, but
no longer.
Babylon was acclaimed to be the oldest and most beautiful city the
world had ever known. It now lies stripped of its life and beauty.
Other than normal erosion and weathering, the city exists today with
its bridges, buildings, and walls as it did 2000 years ago. Its
walls, which once stood 300 feet high and 80-120 feet thick, were
made out of brick and are weathered down completely in places. The
stones of the famous ziggurat still show signs of having been burned
with intensive heat. The building materials of the city were not
removed and used again as is customary.
Over the centuries, the rising water table in the plain has rendered
much of the remains of earlier centuries inaccessible by causing one
quarter of the city to be under pools of water and swamps.
The Iraqis boast that they are going to rebuild the 14 square miles
of this once great city, but don’t hold your breath. Alexander the
Great attempted to rebuild the city and died there. Having become
completely desolate, it remains as a monument of God’s working in
the affairs of men. If God caused the strongest nation in ancient
times to become desolate, He can do the same to any nation that
grows in sin and forgets God.
The City Of Tyre
Bible Writers:
550 B.C.
Ezekiel 26:3-5: “Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: ‘Behold, I am
against you, O Tyre, and will cause many nations to come up against
you, as the sea causes its waves to come up. And they shall destroy
the walls of Tyre and break down her towers; I will also scrape her
dust from her, and make her like the top of a rock. It shall be a
place for spreading nets in the midst of the sea, for I have
spoken,’ says the Lord GOD; ‘it shall become plunder for the
nations’” (NKJV).
Ezekiel 26:12: “‘They will plunder your riches and pillage your
merchandise; they will break down your walls and destroy your
pleasant houses; they will lay your stones, your timber, and your
soil in the midst of the water...I will make you like the top of a
rock; you shall be a place for spreading nets, and you shall never
be rebuilt, for I the LORD have spoken,’ says the Lord GOD...‘I will
make you a terror, and you shall be no more; though you are sought
for, you will never be found again,’ says the Lord GOD’” (NKJV).
FACT: Prophecy summarized:
Many nations, as waves of the sea, would come against Tyre.
The walls and buildings would be torn down and cast into the water.
All stone, timber, and even the soil down to bedrock, would be
covered by the sea.
The site would be made a bare rock and used as a place for the
spreading and repair of fishing nets.
The city would cease to exist or be found.
History:
586 B.C
The rich and famous city of the seafaring Phoenicians came under
siege by Nebuchadnezzer, king of Babylon. After 13 years of land
siege, the Phoenicians built a second and smaller city on an island
a half mile out in the Mediterranean Sea. Using their ships, they
removed themselves from the threat of the Babylonian Empire. The
ruins of the original city seem to contradict Ezekiel’s prophecy.
322 B.C.
Alexander the Great conquered the coastal cities to acquire their
navies and then sent them against the new city of Tyre in constant
waves. Growing impatient with this, he had his army build a causeway
the width of two chariots from the shore of the old city to the
island of the new city. He ordered that all building material from
the original city be collected and placed in the sea to make this
causeway. When the quantity of stone and timber proved insufficient,
he ordered the ground to be scraped down to the bedrock to provide
fill dirt. When the causeway was completed, he marched his army over
the causeway and over the walls of the new city to defeat the
Phoenicians and destroy their city.
Today
The city the prophets spoke against for God is now a large bare
rock. For centuries, the site has been used by fishermen to spread
and mend their nets. Other than historical records, there is no
evidence that one of the world’s richest cities ever existed. It
cannot be found again. A nation state strong enough to withstand the
siege of mighty Babylon was brought down through a series of
specific events that had been foretold by writers of the Bible,
proof that the Bible is exactly what it claims to be—God’s word.
Conclusion
The Bible is what it claims to be, and this is proven by its unity,
historicity, pre-scientific knowledge, and fulfilled prophecy.
Furthermore, Jesus was who He said He was. His resurrection proves
it (Romans1:4). There are, of course, other things to be said, but
these are enough for the moment. Surely you know what all this
means, don't you? ~
See the entire article at :
http://www.allanturner.com/bibleproofs.html) ~
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