Due to the continual inquiries that Christians (including myself) face, I felt it necessary to share some thoughts on why I acknowledge God’s word to be the ultimate standard over my life. This will be the first of four posts centered on why the Bible can and should be trusted. The goal is to give a concise overview of 4 credible reasons why God’s word is final and authoritative. The first reason I would like to address is the fulfillment of predictive prophecy. Further evidence from archaeological discoveries, eyewitness testimony, and the consistency of ancient manuscripts will follow in the next three posts.
It’s remarkable how trustworthy the word of God is. When I look at the Bible I see a canvas of many colors masterfully composed by an all knowing artist. One of the most credible elements of God’s revelation to man is predictive prophecy. Prophecy is the future told in advance by God through a prophet. In the book of Psalms we see psalmists use language that depicts their present experience in a way that points beyond their own lives, becoming historically true in the person and work of Jesus Christ. These foresights are commonly known as “messianic prophecies.” One of the messianic prophecies that has perpetually rocked my face off is Psalm 22.
In Psalm 22, David details the events that would later unfold during the crucifixion of Jesus… 1000 years before his birth. The span of time between when a prophecy was penned to when it was fulfilled yields maximal credibility to the claims we find in scripture. Below are the reference points for the prediction and fulfillment of 6 messianic prophecies housed in Psalm 22. Each of which build a case that God’s word can and should be trusted.
Psalm 22:1 – My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Matthew 27:46 – About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachtani?” – which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Psalm 22:7 – All who see me mock me; they hurl insults, shaking their heads.
Matthew 27:39 – “Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads…”
Psalm 22:14 – I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint.
Matthew 27:26 – “Then he released Barabbas to them. But he had Jesus flogged and handed him over to be crucified.”
John 19:34 – “Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water.”
Psalm 22:16 – Dogs have surrounded me; a band of evil men has encircled me, they have pierced my hands and my feet.
Isaiah 53:5 – “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities…”
John 20:27 – “Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side…”
Psalm 22:17 – “I can count all my bones; people stare and gloat over me.”
Isaiah 52:14 – “Just as there were many who were appalled at him – his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any man and his form marred beyond human likeness…”
Psalm 22:18 – “They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing.”
Matthew 27:35 – “When they had crucified him, they divided up his clothes by casting lots.”
Skeptics will often pose the question, “why should I believe the Bible?” Well, modern scholarship offers multiple explanations to this question. Some of which include, but are not limited to, early dating and consistency of manuscripts, eyewitness testimony, the corroboration of archaeological discoveries (all of which will be addressed in upcoming posts), or in the case of Psalm 22, the fulfillment of predictive prophecy. The bottom line is this; the Bible can be trusted. The fact that David spoke of death by means of crucifixion 700 years before it was invented by the Romans is evidence of divine revelation. Take time to consider that this form of execution is found nowhere in historical archives or manuscripts dated around the time of Psalm 22’s composition.
To place in proper perspective the statistical probability of King David’s presage, well known author and speaker Josh McDowell drew the following calculation; the odds of Jesus fulfilling 8 of the over 300 messianic prophecies we find in scripture is 1 out of 100,000,000,000,000,000 (That’s one out of 10^17) a.k.a. 1 in 100 trillion! This is comparable to covering the state of Texas two feet deep in silver dollars, marking one with an x, mixing them all up and having a blindfolded person select the marked silver dollar at random. Yeah, about that.
But that’s not all! If you stop to consider what the probability of one man, Jesus, fulfilling all 300+ messianic prophecies would be, you will likely begin to feel your gray matter digress into the form of chili ramen noodles all while noticing steam slowly begin to escape from your left and right auditory canals. The odds are so unlikely and the number so big that the human mind is incapable of conceptualizing it. The evidence that the fulfillment of predictive prophecy presents is so compelling that it points us to this conclusion; it is statistically unfathomable that the Bible could be wrong. The bottom line is this; the Bible can and should be trusted. Now, go read the Jesus Psalm.
