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56 Prophecies |
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56 "LITERAL" PROPHECIES AND THEIR FULFILLMENT + 10 SPIRITUAL PROPHECIES OF CHRIST Assertion: That all scripture should be fulfilled literally. RESPONSE: Throughout recorded time, humanity has thought that scriptural prophecies should be fulfilled literally despite evidence that they are often fulfilled spiritually. For example, Jews thought that Jesus would be a literal king and would deliver them from their enemies. Jesus did not do that literally and it was the primary reason many Jews choose not to follow Jesus. Note these prophecies, which Jesus fulfilled spiritually: Christ & Spiritual Fulfillment: ...I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, one of your own sons...I will establish his throne forever. I will be his father, and he will be my son... I will set him over my house and my kingdom forever; his throne will be established forever. (I Chronicles 17:11-14 NIV) The Lord swore to David an oath which he will
not break: 'A Prince of your own line will I set upon your throne.' (Psalms
132:11 But you, Matthew 2:2-6 indicates that the prophecy of Micah (that the Promised One would be born in Bethleham) WAS fulfilled by Jesus: " Where is he that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him...And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, ...out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel." This prophecy of place was literal. However, the implied promise of a “ruler” was spiritual. Jesus was not a king in the traditional sense with a scepter, robes, a physical throne and courtiers who waited on him. Art thou a king then?...To this end was I
(Christ) born...John There is no literal fulfillment. Jesus sat on no throne while he was here.
He had no guards, no golden crown, no advisors, no government, no kingdom, no trappings of traditional kingship. He said: 'My kingdom
does not belong to this world.' (John Yet He also said ...I have conquered the world. (Christ in John Another Prophecy is reported by Luke: So he promised: age after age he proclaimed by
the lips of his holy prophets, that he would deliver us (the Jews) from our
enemies... (Luke 1:70-71 He (the Spirit of the Lord) has sent me...to
release the oppressed... Christ (Luke The acknowledgement of the fulfillment of the prophecy can be found in Luke 1:68-69: "Praise to the God of Israel! For he has turned to his people, saved them and set them free, and has raised up a deliverer (Jesus) of victorious power from the house of his servant David." Yet when He was crucified, the Romans still ruled the Jews, they were not physically free. It was a spiritual fulfillment because He freed the souls of those who believed in Him. ...where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. (II Corinthians 3:17) This was a spiritual fulfillment, not literal. Jesus was born physically on earth from the womb of Mary. But note what Jesus says about coming down from heaven: I have come down from heaven... Christ (John He who comes from heaven bears witness to what
he has seen and heard, yet no one accepts his witness. Christ (John No one has ever gone into heaven except the one
who came from heaven--the Son of Man. Christ (John The people interpreted these prophecies literally: "Surely, this is
Jesus son of Joseph; we know his father and mother. How can he now say,
"I have come down from heaven?" (John Baha'u'llah has done nothing different: "God is my witness! The Promised One Himself (Baha'u'llah) hath come down from heaven, seated upon the crimson cloud with the hosts of revelation on His right, and the angels of inspiration on His left, and the Decree hath been fulfilled at the behest of God, the Omnipotent, the Almighty. (Baha'u'llah, I Shall Come Again, p. 118) "He (Baha'u'llah,), verily hath again come down from heaven, even as He came down from it the first time." (Tablet to the Christians) Notice the statements regarding Christ's power: Praise to the God of All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. (Christ, Matthew 28:18) Was Jesus' power literal? I don't think that the Jews thought so. They did
with Him what they wanted to do, ignoring the fact that He was God's gift to
them. In their opinion, He had no power. He had no army. To them He had no
authority that they recognized. Yet there is no question
today of His spiritual power...the power to forgive mankind's sins,
the power to resurrect a dead people who had turned away from God (He revived
those who turned to Him and believed in Him, giving them "everlasting
life."---in this world? No, their physical bodies died, but their
spiritual self, their soul, lives on in the spiritual Here are 10 prophecies which Christ fulfilled spiritually. For me, this is ample proof that God fulfills prophecies spiritually as well as literally. It is up to God to interpret them the way He wants to. It is up to us to use our spiritual eyes and ears in understanding His explanation ("If ye will receive it", "he that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit sayth"). Baha’u’llah did not fulfill every prophecy literally, but there are enough prophecies which He did fulfill literally to satisfy me. I am also satisfied with the spiritual fulfillment of some other prophecies because of His logical explanation of them. That, of course, is only my own opinion. BAHA'U'LLAH AND LITERAL INTERPRETATIONS Baha'u'llah fulfills prophecies literally and spiritually. Perhaps you would like to hear about some of them. Certainly there are too many to include here online, but there are books available which outline them. One of the newest is "I Shall Come Again" by Hushidar Motlagh, Ed.D., who is an Associate Professor at the University at Central Michigan. He documents 59 Christian figures who discovered or proclaimed 1844 as the time of the second advent of Christ. One of the most famous is William Miller who "fully depended on the Scriptures as his guide and inspiration". He prepared his book on the subject in 1836. Here is a summary of Miller’s main beliefs in his own words with the biblical references on which they rest: 1-4. "I believe God has revealed the time. (Isa. 44:7,8, Dan 12:10; Amos 3:7; I Thess. 5:4) 5-8. "I believe many who are professors and preachers will never believe or know the time until it comes upon them (Jer 8:7; Matt 24:50; Jer 25:34-37) 9-15. "I believe the wise, they who are to shine as the brightness of the firmament, Dan. 12:3, will understand the time (Eccl. 8:5; Dan 12:10; Matt 24:43-45; 25:6-10; I Thess 5:4; I Peter 1:9-13) 16-17. "I believe the time can be known by all who desire to understand and to be ready for his coming. And I am fully convinced that sometime between March 21, 1843 and March 21, 1844, according to the JEWISH MODE OF COMPUTATION OF TIME, Christ will come, and bring all his saints with him; and that then he will award every man as his works shall be (Matt. 16:27; Rev 22:12)" (I Shall Come Again, p.204 referencing Robert Gale's "The Urgent Voice" Washington D.C. Review and Herald, 1975, p. 119.) When the time came, Miller and thousands of others felt themselves to be disappointed because they could not find the Beloved One anywhere. However, the revelation of the Bab (the forerunner of Baha'u'llah and the Co-Founder of the Baha'i Faith) declared His mission on May 23, 1844 by the Christian calendar. Based on the JEWISH COMPUTATION OF TIME, that date was May 23, 1843, ten months before the closing of Miller's deadline. If the Bab and Baha'u'llah were to fulfill other prophecies, I would agree that this one was fulfilled also. It IS in the right time period. PROPHECIES OF TIME One way to prove the date is to prove, first, the date of Christ's first advent. It is found in Daniel 9:24-27: "Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and three score and two weeks (7+62=69): The streets shall be built again and the wall, even in troublous times. To decode the vision, we need to know the length of 69 prophetic weeks and the starting point. " Ezekiel says: "I have appointed thee each day for a year. (Ezekiel 4:6) See also Numbers 14:34; Genesis 29:27-28). Thus 69 weeks equals 69 x 7 = 483 prophetic days or 483 years. The temple was rebuilt in 7 prophetic weeks (7x7=49 years), leaving 62 weeks (62x7=434 years) until the Messiah. Jesus began His mission when He was approximately 26 years old. Since the Christian calendar begins with 1 A.D. (not 0 A.D.), that would be 27 A.D. on the Christian calendar. Subtracting 26 from 483 gives 457 years or (457 B.C.) Surprisingly, there was a decree to rebuild the temple at that time, the third decree issued by Artaxerexes (Ezekiel 7). That decree was fulfilled by the fourth in 444 B.C. issued by the same Artaxerexes. Daniel mentions another prophecy: "Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city to finish the transgression and to make an end of sins...and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy." (Daniel 9:24) To anoint refers to Christ's title, The Anointed One (Since Messiah in Hebrew means anointed). Sixty-nine weeks (483 years) have already been calculated. One more week, the week of Christ's mission or 7 years remain (490 years). When He was crucified, He was 33 years old. From 1 A.D., that would have been in 34 A.D. Verifying that by subtracting 33 from 490 leaves us once again with 457 B.C. Would you agree, then that these prophecies are fulfilled with the coming of Christ? 18. The second part of Daniel's vision concerns the second advent. He says that that will be "Unto two thousand and three hundred days, then shall the sanctuary be cleansed." (Daniel 8:14) 2300 days = 2300 years. Starting from the same point as that proved by Christ's advent, and subtracting 490 prophetic days (490 years) from 2300 leaves 1843 years. As already stated, the Christian calendar begins with 1 A.D. so one year needs to be added. That comes to 1844 A.D. which is the time that Miller identified and the time when the Bab declared His mission. There are other prophecies related to time explaining the exact timing of Baha'u'llah's mission, but I want to mention only one here. That is: While the duration of the ministry in Christ's 1st coming was foretold in the difference between 69 weeks and 70 weeks (1 week= 7 days = 7 years), the duration of His 2nd coming is foretold in Micah 7:15: 19. "According to the days of thy coming out of the land of Egypt will I show unto him marvelous things." God showed things to him, spoke to him and asked him to speak to us for 40 years (the time it took to come out of Egypt...see Deuteronomy 1:3 and Deuteronomy 29:5 and Joshua 5:6. The time that God began speaking to Baha'u'llah is well documented and occurred in a prison cell in Tehran, Persia. Baha'u'llah was imprisoned from about August 1852 until January 1853. He passed away in May 1892, 40 lunar years later.
PROPHECIES OF PLACE: 20. "I will wait for the God of my salvation...In that day also he shall come even to thee from Assyria..." (Micah 7:7,12) The Assyrian Empire at one time covered the entire area in which both Daniel and Micah lived out their lives. The Assyrian Empire includes Persia (Iran) from whence Baha'u'llah came. 21. "And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east." (Ezekiel 43:2) 22. "For as the lightning cometh out of the East...so shall also the coming of the Son of man be." (Matthew 24:27) 23. Elam (Persia) would be a place of "vision" in the latter days. (Daniel 8:2) 24. "And I will set my throne in Elam (Persia)...saith the Lord." (Jeremiah 49:38) During the 1st coming, Jesus came from the north and west of Jerusalem. Tehran, Iran (Persia) is, however, east of Jerusalem. 25. And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death...(Isaiah 53:9) Baha'u'llah was buried in a rich man's house which his son had procured for him. His family turned away from Baha'u'llah's covenant with them to turn to his eldest son for guidance. They lived in houses next to his burial site. They were the "wicked" referred to in this verse. 26. ...he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days...(Isaiah 53:10) Jesus certainly had no offspring and he was young when he was killed. This refers to Baha’u’llah who did see his seed (children) and He lived to be 75 (1817-1892). Micah told us where the Messiah would come from during his first advent as well as during his second: But thou, Bethlehem...out of thee shall he come forth...to be ruler in Israel...(Micah 5:2) (JESUS) 27. I will wait for the God of my salvation...In that day he shall come even to thee from Assyria... (Micah 7:7,12) (Baha'u'llah, as mentioned before.) 28. Baha'u'llah was born in Persia and brought forth his message in Babylon after he was exiled there fulfilling Micah 4:10. Micah gives other prophecies about the Messenger expected "in the last days". ...he shall come even to thee from Assyria, (already shown) 29. and from the fortified cities, (He was exiled first to Constantinople and then to Akka in Israel) 30. and from the fortress even to the river, (He went from the prison where He was held for 2 years in Akka to an island in a river called Na'mayn.) 31. and from sea to sea (On the way to Constantinople, he made the last part of his journey by way of the Black Sea. On his way to Akka, he made the last part of that journey by way of the Mediterranean Sea. 32. and from mountain to mountain. (He withdrew prior to beginning his public mission (just as Jesus did) to commune with God in the Kurdistani Mountains near Baghdad. (His first exiled point) When he returned to Baghdad, he announced his mission publicly to the people. The second mountain was Mount Carmel in Israel near Haifa. ) 33. Notwithstanding the land shall be desolate because of them that dwell therein, for the fruit of their doings. (The land around Akka was so desolate that it was said that if a bird flew over Akka, it would die.) 34. Feed thy people with thy rod, the flock of thine heritage, (He fed his flock with his words of love) 35. which dwell solitarily in the wood, in the midst of Carmel. (When Baha'u'llah was released from the Akka prison, he pitched his tent in a small wood on Carmel.) According to the days of thy coming out of the land of Egypt will I shew unto him marvelous things. (Micah 7:12-15) (Already explained.) OTHER LITERAL PROPHECIES: and thou shalt be called by a new name. (Isaiah 62:2) The Lord God shall call his servants by another name (Isaiah 65:15) To him that overcome, I will give to eat of the hidden manna and a white stone and in the stone a new name written. Certainly, Baha'u'llah and Baha'is are new names. Jesus said: "I know thy works and thou has a name that thou livest and art dead." (Rev 3:1; see also Matt8:22--"let the dead bury their dead" [or let the spiritually dead bury the physically dead]) To me this says, don’t cling to the name, because if you do, you will be dead in spirit. (No personal accusations meant.) If the name of the Anointed one (Christ) is given in the Old Testament, why would not the name used during the second coming also be revealed? I believe it is: ...the excellency of Carmel and Sharon; they shall see the Glory of the Lord (Baha'u'llah). (Isaiah 35:2) [This is a two-fold prophecy. It foretells the name and also a place where He will appear. Baha'u'llah means the Glory of God (or Lord) and He did walk on the side of Mt. Carmel and on the plain of Sharon.] And the Glory of the Lord shall be revealed. (Isaiah 40:5) And I, John saw the holy city...new Jerusalem...and the city had no need of the sun...for the Glory of God did lighten it. (Rev 21:2, 23) the appearance of the likeness of the Glory of the Lord. (Ezekiel 1:28) ...the Glory of the God of Israel came from the east...(Ezekiel 43:2) ...thou shalt go forth out of the city, [On January 12, 1853, Baha'u'llah was exiled from Persia and sent to Iraq under armed guard to the valley of the Tigris and Euphrates. He lived in the section called Karkh in old Baghdad on the site of old Babylon. ... and thou shalt dwell in the field He left the city on April 10, 1854 and went into the mountains of Kurdistan where he remained for approximately 2 years "dwelling in the field" and communing with God. and thou shalt go even to Babylon...(Micah 2:10) After that time, he returned to Baghdad. He remained there until 1863 when the authorities became afraid that he was becoming too well liked. Shortly before he was exiled again (to Adrianople), he announced publicly that He was the Redeemer foretold for the last days.] I will give her ...the valley of Achor for a door of hope and she shall sing...(Hosea 2:15) During his last exile, Baha'u'llah was exiled to the prison city, Akka, south of Haifa where he was imprisoned for some time. For out of prison he cometh to reign...(Ecclesiastics 4:14) (Baha'u'llah was allowed to leave Akka late in his life and he settled in a mansion which his son had been able to rent for him at a reasonable price. It was there that the only European met him.) He shall cut off the spirit of princes: he is terrible to the kings of the earth. (Psalms 76:12) Before 1844, there were many kings throughout Europe. Baha'u'llah wrote messages to: Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria, Napoleon III of France, Kaiser William I of Germany Czar Nicolaevitch Alexander II of Russia, The Sultan Abdul-Aziz of Turkey, Nasirid-Din Shah of Persia, and Queen Victoria of Britain. Of them all, Napoleon threw down the first letter and said, "If this man is of God, I am two Gods!" Baha'u'llah sent him a second letter prophesizing his fall from power. Queen Victoria said, "If this is of God, it will endure." Baha'u'llah prophesized that she would have a long and successful reign. The dynasty of Queen Victoria is the only one which still remains today of those monarchies. Doesn't this mean that the princes have been cut off? He shall break in pieces mighty men without number... (Job 34:24) (See above) I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit (upon His throne)...Daniel 7:9 ...a time and times and the dividing of time. (Daniel 7:25) (1 year + 2 years + 1/2 year= 360 days + 720 days + 180 days = 1260 days) ...for it is given unto the Gentiles and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months (Rev 11:2) [42 months x 30 days=1260 days) and after three days and a half, the Spirit of life from God entered into them...(Rev 11:11) [3 days + 1/2 = 3 years + 1/2 year = (360 X 3) + (180) = 1260 days] And I will give power unto my two witnesses and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and three score days (Rev 11:3) [1200 + (3X20)=1260 days) Calculating each day for a year is 1260 years. It happens that the advent of the Baha'i Faith, in 1844, corresponds to the year 1260 in the Islamic calendar. The two witnesses were Ali and Muhammad. |
