“False messiahs and false prophets will rise up and perform great signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even God’s chosen ones”—Matthew 24:24 NLT
One of the many ways that Jesus’ prophecy is being fulfilled can be seen in recent US national politics. The following BBC online article illustrates this.
‘Anointed by God’: The Christians who see Trump as their saviour
Many churchgoers consider Trump their hope as more Americans turn away from religion.
Aleem Maqbool, BBC, November 16, 2024
Religion editor•@AleemMaqbool
BBC
Standing on a podium in a Florida convention centre on the night of the election, a row of American flags behind him and a jubilant crowd looking on, Donald Trump declared: “Many people have told me that God spared my life for a reason, and that reason was to save our country and to restore America to greatness.”read more
Seventy Weeks Prophecy of Daniel — Jesus and History
Daniel, through divine inspiration, accurately dated the coming of Christ 550 years in advance with the prophecy of the “Seventy Weeks”.
Critics and skeptics of the Bible claim that Daniel’s prophecy of the seventy weeks (Daniel 9:24-27) was written during the 160’s BCE, rather than the Biblically historically accurate date of “the first year of the reign of Darius the Mede” (Daniel 9:1 NLT) [539-538 BCE], and assert that the prophecy does not predict anything about the Messiah, Jesus Christ. The oldest extant manuscript of anything inDaniel 9:24-27 is the Dead Sea Scrolls manuscript 11Q13, dated to circa 100 BCE, which partially quotes Daniel 9:25, “until an anointed one, a prince”. This fact alone that that manuscript predates Jesus’ baptism by about 125 years, is powerful evidence of its prophetic accuracy. (For more facts and information about dating the entire book of Daniel, please see the article, “When Was the Book of Daniel Written?”, on this website). In the meantime, however, this present article investigates the Biblical and historical facts relating to the prophecy of the seventy weeks in Daniel 9:24-27, and its fulfillment.read more
Who wrote the book of Zechariah? And When was it written? Before the sixteenth century, the writership of the book of Zechariah was unanimously believed to have been written by “the prophet Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo,” beginning “in the eighth month, in the second year of Darius” king of Persia, in 520 BCE (Zechariah 1:1 ESV).
Theories of Different Writers
So, who wrote the book of Zechariah? And when was it written? Let’s look at some of the viewpoints about this.read more
Due to the fierce fighting that has been going on in Israel and Gaza lately, there is much keen interest in Israel and the Bible. Below are some articles on this website about Israel and the Bible:
“Should We Pray for Israel?”
“Does Modern Israel fulfill Bible Prophecy?”
“Are Restoration Prophecies About Israel Literal — Or Symbolic?”
The Bible accurately predicted details of Alexander the Great 200 years in advance.
Critics assert that accurate predictive prophecy is impossible. However, Alexander the Great was predicted in the Bible 200 years in advance.
“Alexander of Macedon son of Philip . . . defeated Darius king of the Persians and Medes, whom he succeeded as ruler, as first of Helias. He undertook many campaigns, gained possession of many fortresses . . . So he advanced to the ends of the earth, plundering nation after nation; the earth grew silent before him, and his ambitious heart swelled with pride. He assembled very powerful forces and subdued provinces, nations and princes, and they became his tributaries . . . Alexander had reigned twelve years when he died”—1 Maccabees 1:1-7 NJBread more
Increasingly Frequent Mass Murders – Is the End Near?
Are the increasing mass murders a sign the end is near?
Every day there are shocking reports of mass violence and murders in the news. Just when it seems like things can’t get any worse, they do! This same worsening scenario seems to be repeating day after day. Such horrible events are part of the fulfillment of Jesus’ prophecy:
“Because of the increase of lawlessness, the love of many will grow cold”—Matthew 24:12 NRSV
Does this mean the end is near?
Jesus predicted that: “As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man,” in that people in general would be going about completely absorbed their daily lives, and totally unaware of “the coming of the Son of Man” (Matthew 24:37-39 NIV), until it “will come on them suddenly” (1 Thessalonians 5:3 NIV).read more
Was Jesus Christ being born in Bethlehem, foretold, or predicted, in advance? Many of the Dead Sea Scrolls have been accurately dated to before Jesus was born.
“Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms”—Luke 24:44 NIV
Critics claim that Jesus was just an ordinary man, and that predictive prophecy is impossible, and therefore deny that Jesus fulfilled any Old Testament prophecies. Since there are so many prophecies that Jesus actually fulfilled, critics resort to claiming that the prophecies in the Old Testament were written after the fact, so as to conform to what happened to Jesus, and also that the New Testament recordings of these fulfillments are frauds, that is, written to conform to Old Testament predictions. read more
Astrology is an ancient pseudo-science which has been proven to be false in every way. The positions and movements of stars and planets have been proven to have no effect on the actions and choices of humans on earth. It was commonly practiced in the ancient world, and appears to have its roots in Babylon. There have been many cuneiform tablets discovered from the area of ancient Babylon, Assyria, and Persia, which contain astrological charts and other astrological references.
Astrology creates the impression that life is fatalistic, or pre-determined, and manipulates people to believe in false predictions. The Bible mentions astrology and astrologers in an unfavorable light.read more
When was Genesis through Judges written? What is significant about Hosea’s use of Genesis through Judges?
What about Hosea’s use of Genesis through Judges?
“The word of the LORD that came to Hosea son of Beeri during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and during the reign of Jeroboam son of Jehoash king of Israel”—Hosea 1:1 NIV
Jeroboam son of Jehoash of Israel reigned from 793 BCE to 753 BCE, and Hezekiah of Judah reigned from 715 BCE to 686 BCE, so Hosea’s prophetic years ran for at least for a minimum of 38 years, in the 8th century BCE, that is, from 753 BCE to 715 BCE. One thing that is significant about the Bible book bearing Hosea’s name is his use of Genesis through Judges, thus lending proof to the fact that these books had to have been written quite some time sometime prior to Hosea in the 8th century BCE. The reason that this is significant is that many “scholars” consider these books, Genesis through Judges, to be from the 6th century BCE, or even more recent. Another point of significance is that Hosea’s treatment of these Bible books shows how they were viewed through God’s interpretation of them during later Old Testament times, and also, in turn, gives us a better view of how the New Testament interprets the Old Testament.read more
To Understand Bible Prophecy, Consider the Context
Jehovah’s Witnesses recently published an article entitled “An Attack Coming From the North” (The Watchtower–Study Edition, April 2020), in which they admit that their prior explanation of the prophecy of Joel 2:7-9 was out of context, and therefore inaccurate. Their new explanation of this prophecy is very similar to what they call “Christendom” has explained for a long time, that is, the Babylonians would invade Judah and Jerusalem from the north and take over. Unfortunately for the JW’s, however, they still hold to their 607 BCE date for the destruction of Jerusalem, since it fits in with their ill-fated 1914 date.
In their explanation, the Witnesses make an astounding statement: “To understand a prophecy correctly, we generally have to consider its context”. “Generally”???—Why would we not always need to “consider its context”? Would there ever be a Bible prophecy that we could take out of context, and come up with an explanation that is correct?—-Absolutely not. It would be like trying to float a ship on dry land.
Then they go on to make another equally astounding statement. “If we focus on only one aspect of the prophecy and ignore the rest, we may draw the wrong conclusion”. “May draw the wrong conclusion”??? This is unbelievable. If we ignore every aspect of a Bible prophecy except one, how could we not draw the wrong conclusion?
At least the JW Organization admits they were wrong about Joel 2:7-9. However, they seem to downplay a vital point about wise decision making. Wise decision makers take into account all relevant facts–not just one–before making a final decision. This also applies to understanding Bible prophecy.
Why would they make statements such as these? It appears that it may be to cover up for a number of erroneous prophetic interpretations that they have made, including their most important ones; namely, Matthew 24:45 and 1914.
Jesus gave his great long range prophecy that is recorded in Matthew 24, 25. He concludes this with four parables that exhort each Christian to be faithful, always active, and working for Christ and his Kingdom’s interests, all the while without any figuring out when the Master will return, since Jesus admitted he didn’t know that date himself (Matthew 24:36-44).
It is the parable of the faithful and wise servant (Matthew 24:45-51) that the Witness organization has long used out of context to assert that their leaders fulfill this prophecy. The way the JW’s explain it, their leaders, guided by Almighty God, have been dispensing “spiritual food at the proper time since the year 1919”. If that is so, then why have the Witnesses had to change their explanations so many times? When they change their explanation, the former explanation becomes obsolete, or no longer correct.
“God, who cannot lie” (Titus 1:2 NASB) never makes a mistake, “his work is perfect” (Deuteronomy 32:4 NASB). Therefore, he doesn’t give out tainted spiritual food. This one fact means that God is not the one ‘guiding the witness leaders’.The JW’s glossing over this one fact, among others, contributes to the wrong explanation of the parable of the faithful and wise servant, applying to only a few Christians instead of each and every Christian.
The Bible makes clear that “interpretations belong to God” (Genesis 40:8 NRSV).
“He reveals deep and hidden things.” “There is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries” (Daniel 2:22,28 NIV).read more
BBC
Who wrote the book of Zechariah? And When was it written? Before the sixteenth century, the writership of the book of Zechariah was unanimously believed to have been written by “the prophet Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo,” beginning “in the eighth month, in the second year of Darius” king of Persia, in 520 BCE (
