The Messiah Will Be a King

(Jeremiah 23:5,6) Who was the “Anointed One” who was “cut off” 483 years after the command to rebuild Jerusalem? (Daniel 9:24 – 27)

All right today on the johnny Coburg show, did God give specific prophecies? Hundreds of years in advance about a special person he would send to earth called the messiah. What specific prophecies did God give? Where can they be found in the Hebrew scriptures? Did the jewish people to whom the prophecies came recognize that they had been given special promises? That pointed to a coming messiah. In this series, we will examine 16 prophecies given to the Jewish people from Adam to Abraham, from Moses to David, from Isaiah to Daniel and Zechariah. We will ask do these remarkable prophecies prove jesus is God’s messiah. My first guest is dr walter Kaiser. He’s one of the leading theologians and biblical scholars on the Hebrew scriptures in America. Today, dr Kaiser is President emeritus and Distinguished Professor of Old Testament at Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary in Hamilton’s massachusetts and second Doctor Darrell bock. He is one of the leading theologians and biblical scholars on the new testament text. He is senior research professor of New Testament Studies and executive director of Cultural engagement at Dallas Theological Seminary in Dallas texas join us for this special edition of the johnny Coburg show. Welcome to our program. We’re talking about a fascinating topic. Do the Messianic prophecies that are in the Hebrew scriptures do they point to jesus or somebody else? What did they say should we take them seriously? And we have two distinguished scholars with us today, Dr walter Kaiser is president Emeritus and Distinguished Professor of Old testament at Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary in Hamilton’s massachusetts. He is the author of over 40 books, Doctor Darrell bock is senior research professor of New Testament Studies, an executive Director of cultural engagement at Dallas Theological Seminary in Dallas texas. He’s the author of over 30 books and dr bach, I’m going to start with you first, when you come to the bible, you have all these books in the Old testament written by different people, Some profits, some not profits. And the fact is they are written and inside of the things that we find their God has made certain statements over 2000 plus period of time. Why should we take this seriously and give us a quick review for people that have not even been with us on any of the previous programs, Just give us some of the highlights of some of the things we’ve already covered and then we’re gonna get into another new one today. Well, the reason you should take this seriously is the subject very serious. That’s why we’re here. Uh why why am I sitting here? Why are you sitting there? Why are you watching on television? What’s the point of it all? Uh, it’s a pretty basic question. We tend to slip by because of all the distractions that we come into in life. But every now and then it’s worth it to pause and sit back and ask, why am I here? And God tells a story that tells us why we’re here and what he’s about. And having Made us and what we should be about and having been made by him. And so the story starts all the way back in the beginning with Adam and Eve in genesis three were told initially that out of the seed of the woman could be any human being possible out of that seat is gonna come one person who’s going to defeat the presence of evil. Then we’re told that this secret figure is gonna come out of the tribe of Shem. That’s in genesis chapter nine we go to genesis 12, we’re told Abraham is going to form a nation that becomes Israel out of that nation is gonna come Kings and whether we’re talking to Isaac or Jacob, the emphasis on this king appears, We come to Deuteronomy 18, we’re told that this figure is going to be a prophet, like moses, he’s going to be a leader, prophet, he’s gonna do amazing things, he’s gonna interact with God face to face and do mighty signs and mighty wonders. Then we come to the promise of specific dynasty within the nation of Israel, that’s the dividend dynasty. And this king were told by Isaiah is going to be a wonderful counselor and the Prince of peace. This king, we’re told by PSalm 1 10 1 is gonna sit at the right hand of God and be in his very presence and execute his program right from his side, all these things work together to give us an exalted messiah and we’ve narrowed the picture down as we come and talk about this figure. But then there’s the surprise that’s Isaiah 53 Isaiah 53. It’s not a part of the traditional cycle of readings. It’s a text that’s kind of been shunted off to the side and marginalized, almost forgotten. It’s a forgotten text that should very much be remembered because in it we have this core idea of how the deliverer works. You know, one of the questions that we have about this passage is how do we know? It’s about the messiah, This is the title of the servant. We don’t get the title messiah in this passage. Well, one of the ways that we know that is this is the second part of Isaiah and the first part of Isaiah, we discussed who the deliverer was, he was a king, he was powerful, he was going to deliver, you know, he was gonna be this Prince of peace and mighty counselor. Uh and so we have this exalted picture of this figure in the first half of Isaiah. But this is the second half of the story. And if you forget the second half in relationship to the first half, you don’t have the whole story. And so we look at this passage and what we see here is Jesus suffering through injustice. He doesn’t say a word in the midst of these passages when they’re retold in the gospels and Jesus is being examined in these many examinations several times in Luke 23. The statement is made, he was innocent. He’s not worthy of guilt, etc. And the picture is of someone being sent to death, who doesn’t deserve it. That’s exactly what this passage is describing when uh, the Ethiopian eunuch shares with Phillip that he’s reading from Isaiah 53. It’s this portion of the passages being read, Jesus’s death was unjust, But what that means on the flip side is if Jesus’s death was unjust, then who he claimed to be, is who he is, and if who he claimed to be is who he is, then that means we need to pay attention to this message that Jesus brings to this mission, that he brings us this offer to reconnect us to the living God is in play and the plug has juice. So we’ve got to plug the plug back into the socket and get reconnected to the living God through what it is that this one provides for us. He bore our sins. On the one hand, he bore it innocently. He went to his death unjustly and we are able to be his people because of what he has done for us. Now, here’s a whole another dimension to this figure that you aren’t anticipating in all this exaltation and peace and everything else that I’ve been talking about. The way we’re gonna go up is we’re gonna go down and we’re going to go down by suffering on the cross by dying for sin by taking your place by taking your punishment by standing in your steps and walking in your shoes and burying your pain and through all that. I’m extending my hand of love to you. That’s what the story of messiah is. It’s a love story, it’s a love story about why we’re here. Yeah. And it’s not just a story like Goldilocks and the Three bears. These are historical events that are recorded that took place in the scriptures. It’s God coming alongside and telling to tell you why this is all happening. I’m gonna tell you why you’re here and what you’re about and how you can relate to me and how life, regardless of how you live it now can be raised to a completely different level in a completely different plane, so that it all makes sense. Yeah, I like the term you used before, it’s connecting the dots because this is historical in the sense that you start up at the beginning of time with Adam and Eve, and then you go a little bit later and you come to certain people that God speaks to and gives the information. And so the first guys have just a few bits of the puzzle and it’s hard for them to discern what’s coming up, but they get more and more talk about this thing of connecting the dots, Well, I think it’s I think if you make the analogy of doing a puzzle, it’s a great way to think about it, because when you’ve got 1000 piece puzzle and you put the first pieces out there you go, what in the world is that? Huh? What does that connect to? How could that possibly, what could that possibly be? And you know, you take the 300 other pieces next to it and try and make it fit and then all of a sudden one drops into place and you go, oh I think I begin to see what’s happening and the mystery begins to unfold, and that’s what you get in the scripture, you get this puzzle that’s being put together and as you drop more pieces in place all of a sudden you see what you had to begin with as well as what you have now and in all that progress, what we call the progress of revelation, in the progress of revelation, we get a beautiful portrait of what God is about both in his plan and what he’s about for us. Excellent summary. You amaze me just by being able to put all that on the table and dr Kaiser, you’re another one that amazes me and I want to come to another prophecy and it’s not that we’re just kind of picking out text here and there, I’m saying here, you got a different profit, namely Jeremiah, we’re talking about Isaiah the last time, here’s another guy and he makes a statement, that’s in the jewish scriptures and it means something and what it means is kind of mind blowing. Alright. And let me put it on the board so everybody can see it. It is in Jeremiah 23 5 and six and he says behold again, there’s that behold again, the day’s come says Jehovah. Yeah, way that I will raise to David. Somebody. We’ve already talked about King David, a righteous branch that we’re gonna talk about, who in the world is this righteous branch and he will reign as king and act wisely at the bottom of the verse it says, and this is his name by which he shall be called Jehovah. Our righteousness. A whole lot of words being used here. And we’re not familiar with these kinds of words like branch and seed and all this kind of stuff. What’s the significance of branch? Why should we associate the word branch with messiah or messiah with the branch? Well, john there are five times in the scripture where the prediction of the messiah is under this rubric of the branch. Uh it’s used as a verb that which sprouts from the ground and shoots up and becomes like a branch on a tree. And the early church fathers loved to present four different pictures of the messiah based on the four passages, You read the one from Jeremiah 23 it’s repeated again in Jeremiah 33 there, he describes this as the, the branch of, of David, the righteous branch of David and God says he’s gonna cause from uh, this righteous branch of David to shoot forth to spring forth. So he uses the same verb as the word for branch is gonna shoot forth and he will execute justice and righteousness. This said the early church fathers, that’s Matthew’s presentation of the messiah, he’s going to come as king and he will be of the line of David. But then we go on to Isaiah two in that day, the branch of the Lord, the word of here can mean source. So it’s the branch whose source is the living god himself. So if the Matthew’s presentation of the whole gospel was look at jesus who is the line of David Second Samuel seven first Chronicles 17 said so here in this passage, in that day, which is the future day in which on the last days in the S Catan, this branch of the Lord Will be beautiful and glorious and the fruit of the land shall be the pride and honor of the survivors of Israel. And that’s exactly what John’s Gospel talked about. John says he wrote this book and these are written that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, John 20 31 and that believing you might have life in his name. So he is not only king, but he is also divine And he is the savior of all two more passages come in Zechariah three and there he says, now listen Joshua, the high priest, you and your friends who are sitting in front of you. Indeed you are men who are men of a sign, your men who are a symbol For behold, I am going to bring my servant the branch and he goes on to uh speak of him as the man. So if he emphasized uh in the previous verse in Isaiah Chapter 4 to about his being divine. Here he says he is the god man, 100% man. He has come with flesh and dwelt amongst us as a baby born in Bethlehem. But one more john and that’s in Zechariah chapter six verses 12 and 13 and say to him, thus says the Lord of hosts behold one more time, Hey look here the man whose name is branch. He shall branch out of his place again. He uses the verb and the noun and he shall build the temple of the Lord and he who shall build the temple Lord shall bear royal honor. He shall sit and rule on his throne and he goes on to speak here exactly If Zechariah three talked about the man And the presentation that the gospel of Luke gives to us in all of his humanity. Then this one is the gospel of mark, they said because our Lord Jesus came not to be served, but to serve Mark 1045 and to give his life a ransom for many four pictures of the messiah who is king. He is a ransom for many, including all of us who will believe he is the man, the God man and he is divine. Uh, the one whom God has sent. Uh, they’d love to preach that over and over in the early church And they picked it from these five passages that give us four pictures of the messiah dr bock. I have a lot of jewish friends that will admit that. Yeah, we’re talking about the messiah and he’s going to be the son of David and he’s going to be a king. This verse here that we’re dealing with says he’s going to be called Jehovah, Our Righteousness, which throws everybody for a loop. What does it actually mean? Well, what we’re talking about is a figure who is so stamped with God that when you look at him, you see God. Uh and there are actually several passages that point in this direction of which this is one the psalm 1 10 1 passage that we looked at, the one who is able to sit and park with God and having to execute the program from his side. That’s one picture. We’ve got this passage, we’re about to transition to another passage that’s going to make the same point daniel 7, 13 and 14. This is a human being who rides the clouds. Uh, Cloud riding is a very exclusive vocation. Only a certain kind of figure rides clouds. We’re talking about a magic carpet ride here. We’re not talking about someone from the Middle East with a lamp in their hands. Were talking about, we’re talking about something that is uniquely a divine activity. It is God that controls the heavens, it is God that rides the clouds, It is God that controls the creation. And so this is one passage of several that suggests that what we’re dealing with is not just a normal human being. We’re dealing with a very unique figure. Yeah, this is great information. And we’re going to hook onto that by going to Daniel Chapter seven. But I want to ask those of you that are watching right now, when you look at jesus, When you have read about jesus, which title did jesus use about himself the most in the four gospels. There is one title that was applied to him 81 times and nobody else. It’s this title. The Son of Man. And what do you know? We find it in Daniel 713. Who is the one like a son of man who was given authority. Glory, sovereign power. All nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. Who in the world is Daniel talking about and how in the world did jesus apply this to himself. We’re going to take a break when we come back. We’re going to have these guys answer this question and you won’t want to miss the stick with us. Mhm. Alright, we’re back. We’re talking with dr walter Kaiser and Dr Darrell bock and Daryl. I want to come to you on this prophecy. In the old testament, we’re switching to Daniel chapter seven. Another prophet, well respected in the jewish community and he makes this statement a prophecy and it goes like this in my vision. At night I looked and there before me was one like a Son of Man coming with the clouds of Heaven. He approached the ancient of days who’s that and was led into his presence. He was given authority. Glory and sovereign power. All nations and peoples of every language is worshiped him. His Dominion is an everlasting Dominion that will not pass away his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed. Those are some awesome words that Daniel is talking about concerning the Son of man explain this passage. How’s it interpreted. Well, this is a very, very important passage. In fact, I’d make the case that between Isaiah 53 psalm 1 10 1 and Daniel seven, You really have three core passages that tell us who the messiah is, the son of man. The phrase is interesting. It simply means son of a human being. Uh Carla’s son john’s son uh Davidson, Son of a human being. So it’s talking about a human person on the one level. But this human person is different than everybody else. He rides the clouds. He comes to the ancient of days, that’s a reference to God and God chooses to give him authority so much authority that he is worshiped. Now, one of the issues that comes in this passage is sometimes people say, oh, the Son of Man is are the saints. It’s Israel in fact later on in the passage, the term is translated in association with the nation, but that’s because of the nation’s connection to this individual figure. We’re talking about a kingdom, we’re talking about a king. The vision itself looks at other nations and other kings who lead these nations. So you can’t talk about the nation without talking about the king. This is the one who is worshiped nowhere in scripture. Is Israel or any other nation said to be worshiped were only, we only worship individuals, so we have an individual figure here. Well, Jesus takes up this title and he uses it in the new testament. What’s really interesting about what Jesus does is, you know, people think, well, Jesus talked about himself as a messiah. He talked about himself as son of God. He talked about himself as son of David. All these titles that they think jesus uh used and rotated his description around. No, no, no, no, no, no. This is the one son of man 81 times, just by Jesus, So tied to jesus so sacred to jesus and then the rest of the new testament. People aren’t using this title. Um And so it’s his way of saying who he is. And I think the reason why is it’s this unique combination of humanity and divine power and authority and this unique relationship between this figure who rides the clouds and comes to the ancient of days and received authority from him, connecting connecting us with the rule of God and the program and plan of God. Just like we see in psalm 1 10 1 where he sits at the right hand of God. So this is kind of like the last puzzle piece that drops into the puzzle and you go, now I see what I have yeah, walter. What strikes you in this passage? Well this passage has every nation, every uh people on the face of the earth, every language group are worshiping him. Here’s the exaltation of the savior. The exaltation of this uh servant of the Lord. There was a mystery about him. First of all, there was a rejection about him. Then there was the atonement and then the satisfaction and now the exaltation and he said he made his life a guilt offering which is like the guilt and sin offering where the offerings that were given for a person who’s sin needed to be forgiven and taken care of. And not only did they, I have to do it over and over and over again with animals, but what if a whole man, one who is God and man came and gave his own life? And that was the guilt offering? Ah that would settle it forever. And it would conclude it. And also through this whole thing, God allowed this servant of the Lord to see his offspring, his seed, he could see all who are now believing, who are saying, you know, this makes sense to me. I should accept this and accept this. A messiah into my heart, man, what a day this is and what a king and it goes on his kingdom over which he rules now is one that will never, never, never, never always get stuck on. That word will never be destroyed. It just keeps on going. And so we have the final word of this messiah. He did triumph. He promised that he said he was going to here’s the day which is still yet up in the future, but it’s coming because we’ve had all the signs of it along the way for uh, here you have 66 books and it’s one story, Can you imagine john uh 1600 years, Each of the 40 writers not knowing each other, but yet they continued the same story. We’ve never had a book like this. We’ve never had any sort of statement that gave us an integrating theme that put all of life and living together and then told us how to get to heaven by belief in this one who gave his own life for us. And the invitation is we’ve got to come to him, it’s plain ridiculous not to put one’s heart and trust and faith in this living God, you ought to do it too. We’re continuing down the path. God’s adding prophecies as we go along. And now I’m gonna ask you the question, do you think that God would predict his birth and the city where he’d be born, would he be that audacious? We’re going to see that he is that audacious. And we’re going to look also does God tell us in the old testament where the messiah is going to be cut off? Just amazing stuff. We’re gonna talk about that next week. I hope that you’ll join us. Thanks for joining us today. I hope that you’ve enjoyed these programs with these two outstanding scholars, dr walter Kaiser and dr Darrell bock As they walk us through 16 prophecies that prove Jesus is the messiah. You know, I find it astounding how much clarity God has given us on this, how he has filled the old testament with very specific prophecies given through various people over hundreds of years. That all point perfectly to jesus, as we’ve examined a few of these today. I hope that it has strengthened you in your faith that jesus is indeed God’s promised messiah who came into this world to save you from your sins and it’s coming back to reign forever. If you know someone who questions if jesus truly is who he says he is, I encourage you to share this series with them. One way you can do this is through our app. It lets you watch this program and over 100 others anytime, anywhere. Absolutely free to download the app, just go to the app, store on your device and search for the john anchor berg show. Once you install it, you’ll also be able to watch our Q and A videos where we have some of the world’s leading scholars answer life’s toughest questions along with this, it will let you read or listen to the bible in over 1000 languages if you have not yet downloaded our act, I encourage you to check it out. You can also access these resources for free on our website at J A show dot org. There we have put over 8000 articles outlining the evidence for Jesus existence and what it means to follow him. If you’ve ever run into tough questions about your faith, this is a great place to turn, although these are mostly in english. There are a number of web browsers that can instantly translate them for you. Maybe as you’ve been watching today, you’ve come to see for the first time that jesus is indeed God’s promised messiah. If you’d like to learn how to receive his forgiveness for your sins and enter into a personal relationship with him. I encourage you to go to either our app or to our website and click on prey to accept Jesus. Thanks again for watching. I hope that you’ll join us at the same time next week for another episode of the john Achterberg show. Until then, God bless you. We’ll see you next week. You know what the bible and those prophecies have persuaded me that Jesus is the messiah, the one that God sent into the world to be my substitute to atone for my sins. How do I come into a relationship with him? What do you want me to do? What does Jesus want me to do, john? I think what Jesus wants me to do and what this whole story in the whole bible wants us to do is just believing. Yeah.