Patterns of Jesus Christ hidden in the Old Testament

Does history repeat itself? World War 2 was about 30 years after World War 1. The COVID-19 pandemic was about 100 years after the Spanish flu. And workers lost jobs in the industrial revolution, and the invention of cars, computers and probably will do so with the invention of AI (Artificial Intelligence).

There are many prophecies about Jesus in the Old Testament. They can be clear and direct or hidden and indirect. Today we are looking at the latter – patterns of people, objects and events in the Bible that relate to Jesus Christ.

We will see that some parts of Israel’s history are repeated in the life of Jesus. What is concealed in the Old Testament is revealed in the New Testament.

Explicit prophecy

Because we are looking at hidden prophecies, this means that we are not dealing with explicit prophecies of a coming Messiah. Here’s two examples of direct predictive prophecy.

First, God made a covenant with king David, promising him that his dynasty would be established forever and that one of his descendants would reign on his throne forever (2 Sam. 7:11-16). This was fulfilled with the first coming of Christ over 1000 years later. This prophecy for the “Messiah” coming as a king was repeated and expanded 300 years later by Isaiah (Isa. 9:1–7, 11:1–16). It includes the second coming of Christ which hasn’t happened yet.

Second, “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.” (Mic. 5:2NIV). This was fulfilled over 700 years later with the birth of Christ in Bethlehem.

These direct prophecies are better for apologetics than indirect prophecies.

Pattern prophecy

The main example of hidden prophecies of the Messiah are what I will call “pattern prophecies”. These are also called “types” or “typology” or “shadows” or “figures”. These patterns, revealed in the New Testament, are only evident in hindsight. The fulfilment is referred to as the reality (Col. 2:17, Heb. 10:1). Once we know the fulfilment, we can look back and see an example of this in the Old Testament.

They refer to historical people, objects, or events in the Old Testament which foreshadow (or prefigure) Christ and His work. There is a divinely intended similarity and an intensification in the fulfilment. The fulfilment is greater than the example.

Pattern prophecies are like metaphors taken from the Old Testament. For example, Jesus was called the Lamb of God. And you need to know something of the Old Testament to understand what that meant.

They are building a new house behind ours. An excavator was digging the foundations last week. They are following the architectural and engineering plans. There is similarity between the plans and the house. But the final house will be greater than the plans. Likewise, the fulfilment in Jesus is greater than the patterns we see in the Old Testament.

Presuppositions

In the Old Testament we are dealing with divinely intended events that occurred thousands of years ago and divinely intended events that were predicted to occur in the future. So, we are dealing with history.

The Bible says that history is moving towards when Jesus will rule the universe. God’s plan is “to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ” (Eph. 1:10). God is working in history toward this goal.

God rules history – He arranges and directs events and people. God also reveals Himself and His purpose in historical events and actions. We will see that the patterns of history were illustrative and forward-pointing, portraying ahead of time the way God would work in history.

In the Old Testament, God’s people were predominately Jewish. In the New Testament, the Gentiles were included as well. And when Christ comes to reign for 1,000 years in the Millennium, He will put all things in order and fulfill all the purposes of God.

The relation of the Old Testament to the New Testament as essentially that of promises in the former and fulfillments in the latter. As shown in the schematic timeline, the law of Moses applied in the Old Testament and the gospels. After the death of Christ, it was replaced with God’s grace (Rom. 11:6). At the rapture believers are resurrected to heaven. At the second coming Christ returns to rule over the earth.

Does history repeat itself? There were three creations – those in the time of Adam, and Noah, and Jesus.

Pattern prophecy according to Jesus

Jesus said, “These are the very Scriptures [the Old Testament] that testify about me … and you do not accept me … If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me. But since you do not believe what he wrote, how are you going to believe what I say?” (Jn. 5:39, 43, 46-47). The Old Testament testified of Christ as the Messiah (Gen. 3:15; 22:18; 49:10; Num. 24:17; Dt. 18:15).

The Jews studied it, but they missed seeing Jesus as the Messiah. Simple knowledge of the Bible is not sufficient; we need to grasp its point and purpose.

After Jesus rose from the dead, He spoke to two disciples on the road to Emmaus: “He said to them, ‘How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter His glory?’ And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures [the Old Testament] concerning Himself” (Lk. 24:25-27). Jesus is saying that all the Old Testament reveals information about Him.

Soon after He said, “’Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms [the Old Testament]. Then He opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures [the Old Testament]. He told them, ‘This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem’” (Lk. 24:44-47). Jesus is saying that each section of the Old Testament has information about His suffering, His resurrection, and the good news that forgiveness of sins will be available through repentance.

Because He included the law of Moses, which does not contain a large quantity of prophetic material, it is likely that Jesus understood the law as pattern prophecy (typologically) and encouraged His followers to treat it in the same way.

The purpose of the law was to reveal our sinfulness. Jesus did not come to abolish Old Testament teachings but to “fulfill them.” (Mt. 5:17). He fulfilled the patterns (or types) like the sacrifices and the priesthood.

Does history repeat itself? The Jewish temple built by Solomon (completed in 959 BC) was rebuilt by Zerubbabel (completed 443 years later in 516 BC). But unlike patterns of Jesus, the second was not a grand as the first.

Pattern prophecy according to the disciples

Philip told Nathanael, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth” (Jn. 1:45). They believed the patterns were prophecies of Jesus in the Old Testament.

Does history repeat itself? Did you know that the first and second Jewish temple were destroyed on about the same day of the year (the 9-10 of Av, the 5^th month) in 586 BC and AD 70. That’s over 650 years apart!

Pattern prophecy according to the New Testament writers

1. The Ethiopian eunuch was reading from Isaiah 53:7-8. In Acts, Luke wrote, “Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus” (Acts 8:35). So, the suffering servant in Isaiah 53 is a pattern prophecy of Jesus.

2. Paul wrote, “Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come” (Rom. 5:14). Adam is a pattern of Jesus. The same word (pattern) also used in 1 Cor. 10:6, 11. That’s why I’m using the term “pattern prophecy”.

3. Paul wrote that the Jewish festivals and the Sabbath day “are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ” (Col. 2:16-17). The same word (shadow) is also used in Hebrews 8:5; 10:1. The “shadows” of the Old Testament, foreshadow aspects of Jesus Christ.

4. “The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves. For this reason, it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship” (Heb 10:1). The law was a “shadow” of the coming sacrifice of Christ for sin. It demonstrated the need for a payment for sin, but it only illustrated the need and did not give the cure. Old Testament sacrifices were a fading shadow of the cross of Christ. A shadow is not the real thing; it only gives a vague picture of the genuine thing. Christ paid completely the penalty for all sin.

Does history repeat itself? Did you see a pattern last Wednesday night? The Maroons won the State of Origin football game in the last 10 minutes although the Blues were leading and had dominated the possession and field position. This has happened so often before; you might think that it is divinely appointed! I don’t think so, but Queenslanders might disagree.

Pattern prophecy according to the prophets

In the context of praising God for His salvation Peter wrote, “Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when He predicted the sufferings of the Messiah and the glories that would follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven” (1 Pt. 1:10-12).

Here we see that God the Holy Spirit told the prophets what to write. But they did not fully understand all that they wrote. God intended a deeper meaning that was not intended by the human author. But they tried to understand God’s plan for the future. What they wrote was for the early believers in the first century and so it is for us as well.

What was predicted here? The sufferings of Christ, which concern His first coming. And the glories that would follow, which concern His second coming. Jesus came for two reasons – to suffer and die in our place and later to reign supreme.

Does history repeat itself? Not in the sense of reincarnation to be reborn into another existence on earth. Life is linear not circular, and our soul lives on for eternity.

We will look at the pattern prophecies in the Old Testament about Christ in three categories: people, objects and events.

1. Patterns of Christ: People

Adam (Gen. 3:19; Rom. 5:12-21; 1 Cor. 15:21-22; 45-49)
Through Adam’s disobedience, sin, death and judgment came to everyone. But through Christ’s obedience (His death and resurrection), forgiveness, eternal life and resurrection comes to all believers. Adam was the leader of the old creation, but Jesus is the leader of the new creation. And Adam was the leader of sinful humanity, but Jesus is the leader of redeemed humanity.

A woman’s offspring (Gen. 3:15; Rom. 16:20) God promised to use a woman’s offspring to defeat Satan. This happened spiritually at the crucifixion of Christ and will happen physically at His second coming.

Abel (Gen. 4:8-10; Heb. 11:4; 12:24)
The sacrifices of Abel and Christ were both acceptable to God. The murder of Abel cried out for justice and retribution, whereas the death of Jesus provided forgiveness and reconciliation.

Melchizedek (Gen. 14:18-20; Ps. 110:4; Heb. 5:6; 6:20; 7:1-18).
“resembling the Son of God, he remains a priest forever” (Heb. 7:3). He was both a king and priest of Jerusalem – this couldn’t happen in Israel because under their law the kings were meant to be from the tribe of Judah and the priests from the tribe of Levi. Melchizedek’s priesthood was like Christ’s priesthood but not like the Levitical priesthood. He was not a Levite, and his priesthood wasn’t limited to 25 years like their’s was (Num. 8:24-26).

“For when the priesthood is changed, the law must be changed also” (Heb. 7:12). Because the priesthood changed when Christ died, the legal system on which it was based also changed. The law of Moses was replaced by the new covenant where we are all have access to God (like priests) and Jesus is the high priest whose sacrificial death provides that access to God. So, today churches don’t need priests that are separate to the rest of the congregation like the Israelites did.

Moses (Dt. 18:15-19; Jn. 6:14; 7:40; Acts 3:22; Heb. 3:1-5).
Moses delivered Israel from slavery in Egypt and Jesus delivers from the slavery of sin. Moses was the leader and mediator of the old covenant (the Law), but Jesus is the leader and mediator of the new covenant (of grace). They were both prophets – Moses prophesied that there would be a prophet like him who would come that Israel must listen to. And they both obeyed God, “He [Christ] was faithful to the one who appointed Him [God the Father], just as Moses was faithful in all God’s house” (Heb. 3:2).

The high priest (Heb. 2:17; 4:14 – 5:10; 6:20 – 8:2)
The high priest was the mediator between the Israelites and God. Once a year on the Day of Atonement he would go into the inner room of the temple to offer an atoning sacrifice for sins. Jesus is superior to the Hebrew high priests. He is a high priest in the order of Melchizedek. Christ never sinned and He will live forever. So, He only needed to offer one sacrifice for the sins of humanity. When He died, He sacrificed for sins once for all.

David’s suffering (Ps. 22; 69. Mt. 27:34-38; Jn. 19:23-24, 29).
The suffering and rejection that David described in Psalms 22 and 69 is applicable to the crucifixion of Christ. Jesus quoted, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Ps. 22:1). He was offered gall and vinegar (Ps. 69:21) and they cast lots for his clothing (Ps. 22:18). David’s suffering foreshadowed the suffering of Christ. And sometimes in Scripture, Jesus is called “David” (Ezek. 37:24).

Jonah (Jon. 1:17; Mt. 12:38-41)
Jesus told the Pharisees, “For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth” (Mt. 12:40). And He told His disciples “that He must be killed and on the third day be raised to life” (Mt. 16:21). The story about Jonah meant to communicate something about Jesus. That He would be resurrected on the third day after His death. That’s why God included it in the Bible.

A king
The Old Testament promises Jerusalem both a humble king and a victorious king. The humble king is “Lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey (Zech. 9:9; Mt. 21:4-5). And that’s what Jesus did on Palm Sunday. Whereas Psalm 110:1 says The Lord says to my lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet”. Jesus said that this verse is about the Messiah. And the writers of the New Testament apply it to Jesus after His ascension to the throne of God (Ps. 110; Mt. 22:43-45; Mk. 12:36 -37; Lk. 20:42-44; Acts 2:34-36; Heb. 1:13). Since His resurrection, Christ has a position of great power and authority. He rules the universe and will subdue all enemies.

The suffering servant.
There are four “servant songs” in Isaiah in which the servant is the Messiah (Isa. 42:1-4; 49:1-6; 50:4-9; 52:13 – 53:12). Matthew said that Jesus fulfilled the first servant song (Mt. 12:15-21). In the fourth servant song, the servant suffers and dies vicariously for the sins of the world but is ultimately vindicated and exalted. And it says that he was “despised and rejected” – Jesus was rejected by the Jews (Isa.53:3; Jn. 1:11). Philip told the Ethiopian that the suffering servant of Isaiah 53 is a pattern of Christ (Acts 8:32-35). Jesus is also said to be God’s servant in Acts 3:13, 26; 4:27, 30.

Preacher of good news (Isa. 61:1-2a; Lk. 4:16-21)
When Jesus taught in Nazareth He read Isaiah 61:1-2a and said, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing”. The passage said that He was anointed to preach good news and to be the answer to people’s problems.

So, Jesus was foreshadowed by people in the Old Testament like Adam, the person who defeats Satan, Abel, Melchizedek, Moses, the high priest, David’s suffering, a king, the suffering servant, and the preacher of good news. He fulfilled all these roles.

2. Patterns of Christ: Objects

Noah’s ark (Gen. 8:15-22; 1 Pt. 3:20-21)
The ark saved Noah’s family from God’s judgment when the earth was flooded. Believers are saved from God’s coming judgment through Christ’s death and resurrection.

Jacob’s ladder (Gen. 28:12; Jn.1:50-51).
Jesus told Nathanael “you will see ‘heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on’ the Son of Man” (Jn.1:50-51). Any Jew would be reminded of Jacob’s dream of a stairway from earth to heaven with angels ascending and descending on it. Jesus is saying that He is the stairway or ladder between heaven and earth. He is the only mediator between God and humanity (1 Tim. 2:5). He is the door, and the way to God.

Objects related to the Exodus
The Passover lamb (Ex. 12:3-14; 1 Cor. 5:7; 1 Pt. 1:19-20)
Paul said that “Christ, our Passover Lamb, has been sacrificed”. God’s judgment passed over the Israelites in Egypt as long as they had the blood of a lamb (without defect) sprinkled on their doorposts. The lamb’s death saved the life of the firstborn children. Not one of its bones were to be broken (Ex.12:46, Num.9:12; Jn.19:36). Likewise, Christ has been slain to deliver us from God’s judgment and His legs were not broken. His death saved believers from being eternally separated from God.

Manna (Ex. 16; Jn. 6:30-35)
Jesus said, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” (Jn. 6:35). This was spoken in a conversation about manna that God gave the Israelites to eat for food in the journey from Egypt to Canaan. It sustained them physically. Jesus was saying that He can satisfy our spiritual needs. He provides spiritual sustenance.

The rock that provided water (Ex. 17:1-7; Num. 20:2-11. 1 Cor. 10:1-4)
When the Israelites needed water during the Exodus, God used Moses to provide it from a rock. Paul wrote “that rock was Christ”, which is a metaphor saying that Christ provided the water. The rock and the water represented Christ. He provides “living water” for our spiritual sustenance (Jn. 4:10-14; 7:38).

The bronze snake (Num 21:4-9; Jn. 3:14-15)
Jesus said, “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in Him” (Jn. 3:13-14). He refers back to the exodus when the Israelites were bitten by venomous snakes because they complained against God and Moses. The bronze snake saved them from death. In the world, people are dying from the deadly poison of sin; however, when they put their faith in Christ who died on the cross for their sins, they will be saved from God’s judgment.

Objects related to the Tabernacle/temple
Temple (Ex. 29:43-46; Jn. 2:18-22)
Jesus said, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.” ^“They replied, ‘It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?’ But the temple He had spoken of was His body. After He was raised from the dead, His disciples recalled what He had said. Then they believed the scripture [the Old Testament] and the words that Jesus had spoken.” The tabernacle and temple were where God lived amongst the Israelites. Jesus used it as a metaphor for His body. He is “God with us”.

The sacrifices
The Old Testament sacrificial system involved the continual killing of animals as a means of atoning for sins. There were sin offerings, guilt offerings, grain offerings and fellowship offerings (Lev. 1:1 – 7:21). But Christ’s one sacrifice fulfilled all the Old Testament sacrifices (Heb. 10:1-18). Jesus was the perfect once and for all sacrifice (Heb. 9; 1 Pt. 1:19). He was called the “Lamb of God” (Jn. 1:29). Only Christ, not any other sacrifice, could pay for sins (Ps. 40:6-8; Heb. 10:5-10). The Old Testament sacrifices were never God’s ultimate plan to forgive sin. They were an illustration of Christ’s sacrificial death. Animal sacrifices could never do what Christ did on the cross. The sin offering on the day of atonement pictured Jesus. The sacrificial bodies were taken outside the camp like the cross was outside the wall of Jerusalem (Heb. 13:11-12). And Paul often used Old Testament sacrificial language to describe the death of Christ (Eph. 5:2).

The inner curtain of the temple (Heb. 10:19-20).
Hebrews says that the inner curtain of the temple was like Christ’s body. The inner room of the temple is the place where God dwelt. So, Christ’s body (or death) is our doorway into the presence of God.

The cornerstone of the temple (Ps. 118:22; Isa. 8:14-15; Mt. 21:42; Acts 4:11; 1 Pt. 2:7-8)
Jesus quoted Psalm 118:22 to show that people would reject the Messiah when He came – “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone”. It probably relates to a story about the building of the temple – the builders didn’t recognise it. Likewise, Jesus was rejected by the religious leaders. And Paul says that Jesus is the “chief cornerstone” of the church (Eph. 2:19-20).

The cities of refuge (Num 35:6-34; Heb. 6:18)
Hebrews 6:18 describes believers as having “fled to Him [God] for refuge” (NLT). This may allude to the cities of refuge in the Old Testament which were places where the guilty could flee. A person who accidently killed someone could go there for refuge. If he made it to one of these cities, he would be saved from death by a pursuing relative of the dead person. Jesus saved us from eternal death. We can take refuge in Him by accepting His work on the cross to pay for our sins. He is our refuge. He took our death.

So, Jesus was foreshadowed by objects in the Old Testament like Noah’s ark, Jacob’s ladder, the Passover lamb, manna, the rock that provided water, the bronze snake, the temple, the sacrifices, the inner curtain of the temple, the cornerstone of the temple, and the cities of refuge. He fulfilled all these objects.

3. Patterns of Christ: Events

The Sabbath Day (Ex. 31:12-17; 35:1-3; Col. 2:16-17)
Paul said that the Sabbath Day was “a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ”. The Sabbath rest in the Old Testament was an illustration or picture of the rest experienced by believers in Christ. In Christ, we find our spiritual rest (Mt. 11:28-30; Heb. 4:1-10). Now that Christ has come, believers no longer need to practice the Sabbath.

The Jewish festivals (Lev. 23; Col. 2:16-17).
Paul said that the Jewish festivals were “a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ”. Israel had three special festivals a year: Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles. After Christ had come, they were obsolete.

Many events in the history of Israel were hidden parallel prophecies of Christ. For example:
– Isa. 7:14; Mt 1:22-23 A child named Immanuel is born to a virgin (or young woman)
– Jer. 31:15; Mt. 2:17-18 Mourning for the death of children
– Mt. 2:14-15; Hos. 11:1 Just as God brought Israel out of Egypt, He also brought Jesus out of Egypt. Israel was tested for 40 years in the wilderness. And Jesus was tested for 40 days in the wilderness (Mt. 4:1-11). The three Old Testament passages that Jesus quoted in response to Satan came from the exodus from Egypt (Dt. 8:3; 6:16; 6:13).
– Isa. 40:3; Mt. 3:1-3 John the Baptist prepared the way for Jesus
– Isa. 9:1-2; Mt. 4:13-16 Jesus spent most of His public ministry in the area north-west of the Sea of Galilee.
– Isa. 53:4; Mt. 8:17 Jesus healed diseases.
– Mic. 7:6; Mt. 10: 35-36 Jesus brought division.
– Isa. 35:5; 61:1; Mt. 11:2-6 Jesus performed miracles.
– Isa.6:9-10; Mt. 13:14-15 The parables concealed the truth from the hard-hearted.
– Isa. 29:13;Mt. 15:7-9 Jewish disobedience.
– Isa. 56:7; Jer. 7:11; Mt. 21:13 Buying and selling in the temple courts.
– Ps. 8:2; Mt. 21:16 Children praising.
– Jer. 12:7; 22:5; Mt. 23:38-39 Lamentation over Jerusalem.
– Ps. 110:1; Mt, 22:44 Jesus a Son and Lord of David.
– Dan. 7:13-14; Mt. 26:64 Jewish prophecy about the son of man.

Rejected by Jews and embraced by Gentiles (Lk. 4:24-30)
When Jesus was about to be rejected in His hometown, He said this also happened to the Old Testament prophets Elijah and Elisha. They were received by Gentiles instead – the widow of Zarephath near Sidon and Naaman the Syrian. This is a pattern. Joseph, Moses and David also spent time with Gentiles when they were rejected by Israelites. When Simeon saw Jesus as a baby, he said that He would be “a light for the Gentiles” (Isa. 42:6; 49:6; 60:3; Lk. 2:32). The message about Jesus would extend to the Gentiles. And in the book of Acts, the gospel was largely rejected by the Jews and so went to the Gentiles.

Crucifixion – Jesus will be crucified
We have already said that Psalms 22 and 69 are applicable to the crucifixion of Christ. They mention the following.
– Ps. 22:16; Jn. 20:25 “They pierce my hands and feet”
– Ps. 22:18; Mt. 27:35 They cast lots for His clothing.
– Isa. 53:9; Mt. 27:57-60. He was with the wicked and the rich in His death.

Resurrection – Jesus will rise from the dead (Ps. 16:8-11; Acts 2:22-32)
Peter preaching on the day of Pentecost claimed that Christ fulfilled this passage in Psalm 16 which says that His body didn’t decay.

Salvation of Israel – future (Isa. 59:20-21; Rom. 11:25-27)
In Romans chapters 11-12, Paul says that When God has finished with the Gentiles, the nation of Israel’s hardness will cease. Many Jews will trust in their Messiah during the Great Tribulation and be ushered into the Millennial kingdom. At the second coming, Jesus will deliver faithful Jews from the wrath of the Tribulation. He quotes from Isaiah 59. So, Replacement theology is wrong. The church has not replaced Israel in God’s plans.

Jesus will come again in power and glory (Isa. 13:10; 34:4; Dan. 7:13-14; Mt. 24:29-31; Mk. 13:24-27)
The description of the second coming of Christ in the gospels uses quotes from Isaiah and Daniel. So, it was foreshadowed in the Old Testament.

So, Jesus was foreshadowed by events in the Old Testament like the Sabbath Day, the Jewish festivals, many events in the history of Israel, being rejected by the Jews and embraced by the Gentiles, being crucified, being resurrected, the future salvation for Israel, and the second coming in power and glory. He fulfilled all these events.

The good news about Jesus

Paul summarised the good news about Jesus as, “For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures [Old Testament], that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures [Old Testament]” (1 Cor. 15: 3-4).

What’s the most important truth in the Bible? That Christ died for our sins and was buried and was raised back to life on the third day. That’s the gospel (good news) about Jesus. This is foreshadowed in the Old Testament and described historically in the New Testament.

The reason Jesus came to this earth in a physical body was to die for our sins with that body. His death for our sins is the only way to enter God’s presence.

Discussion

The Bible is full of patterns that repeat themselves throughout the course of history. In these cases, history repeats itself.

The apostles observed in the Old Testament certain patterns that “predict” or prefigure or foreshadow how God will act in the future. And Jesus brings about what was anticipated by the patterns in the Old Testament. Many stories were included in the Bible because of what they reveal about Jesus.

The purpose of the patterns is to lead people to Christ. They were hidden in the Old Testament but revealed in the New Testament.

These pattern prophecies of Jesus show that:
– Jesus and the Bible’s authors considered the patterns to be prophetic
– God rules history
– The unity of the Bible
– The complexity of the Bible
– The major theme of the Bible is the person and work of Christ
– Jesus fulfills (or completes) the patterns of many people and stories in the Bible.
– The fulfilment is greater than the shadow
– The patterns could have multiple fulfillments (in different time periods)
– God planned the coming of Christ many years beforehand

I have only mentioned examples of pattern prophecy of Jesus that is confirmed in the New Testament. There could be others such as:
– Joseph who was hated, betrayed and exalted like Jesus.
– Isaac who was willing to lay down his life (like Jesus) on the same mountain where Jesus was crucified.

The examples of pattern prophecy of Christ in the New Testament may be in the form a simile, a metaphor, an analogy, or an illusion. For example, “the Bread of Life”, “the Light of the World”, and “the Good shepherd” are metaphors.

The Old Testament prophesies about Christ and pictures Him through shadows. The Gospels tell the story of His birth, life, death, and resurrection. The book of Acts shows the spread of Christ’s gospel through His apostles. The letters declare His teaching through the apostles, and finally, Revelation describes Christ’s wrath and coming to rule on the earth. Christ is the major theme of Scripture, and therefore, we must recognize Him throughout and allow the pictures and messages about Him to draw us to worship and obedience.

Note that the Old Testament  prophecies were addressed to the nation of Israel and didn’t specifically address the church age – from Pentecost to the resurrection of believers at the rapture. But of course, there are aspects of the Old Testament that are applicable to all eras.

By the way, the office of prophet does not continue today. In the New Testament God used apostles and prophets to establish the foundation of the church before the New Testament was written (Eph. 2:20). And a foundation is laid only once. However, God’s people are called to build on that foundation alone (Eph. 2:19–22). Today, preachers and teachers use the Bible to bring God’s word to us.

What interest do you have in prophecy? Does it match the desire and search undertaken by the Old Testament prophets?

Conclusion

We have seen that some parts of Israel’s history are repeated in the life of Jesus. What is concealed in the Old Testament is revealed in the New Testament.

The pattern prophecies of Christ show the unity of God’s plan of salvation and of the continuity from the Old Testament into the New Testament. The same God inspired both, and both proclaim the same message of salvation. This was foreshadowed in the Old Testament through the historical experiences of Israel and revealed in the incarnation of Christ in the New.

Seeing how Jesus fulfilled many pattern prophecies strengthens our faith in the Bible and in God the author of the Bible and the ruler of history.

Acknowledgement

The presuppositions given above behind an understanding of “pattern prophecy” (or “topology”) in the Bible are based on a post by Fred Zaspel.

Written, June 2023