Welcome to the seventh lesson in the “Bible Prophecy and You” series.

Bible prophecy centers on Jesus Christ. The last lesson in this series pointed to the Old Testament prophecies that foretold many, many details of His first coming—of His birth, life, death and resurrection. The next lesson will focus on prophecies of His second coming, which will be the grand climax of world history!

But this lesson focuses on Jesus Himself being the greatest prophet who ever lived. A prophet is one whom God has sent to speak for Him—declaring His will and judgment in the present and what is yet to come. Jesus proclaimed both.

First of all, He is the member of the God family who directly inspired all the prophecies we find in the Bible. We could call the apostle John a prophet because he wrote the book of Revelation, but the book is actually “the revelation of Jesus Christ,” given to Him by God the Father, which John merely recorded (Revelation 1:1).

In addition, Jesus during His earthly ministry personally proclaimed approximately 100 prophecies—amazing, as most people today don’t even think of Jesus as a prophet. A great many of His teachings were prophetic! And His startling prophecies clarify many other Bible prophecies, especially those of the end time.

The Prophet in Moses’ place

Jesus of Nazareth was in fact the great “Prophet” earlier foretold by Moses.

After being delivered from slavery in Egypt and wandering in the wilderness for nearly 40 years, the Israelites were ready to cross the Jordan River into the Promised Land. On this occasion, God inspired Moses to summarize what they had experienced and what God had taught them. That summary is the book of Deuteronomy.

Moses reminded the Israelites that God was not permitting him to go into the Promised Land because he had impetuously not followed God’s specific instructions in dealing with the nation on a particular occasion (Numbers 20:7-12; Deuteronomy 3:23-28).

The Israelites must have felt pretty nervous at the idea of facing many new challenges and dangers without Moses, who had led them for 40 years. To reassure them, God did three things. First, He reminded everyone that He, the Lord, was in charge and that He personally would lead and protect them (Deuteronomy 31:8).

Second, He inaugurated Joshua to take Moses’ place and said, “As I was with Moses, so I will be with you” (Numbers 27:18-20; Joshua 1:5).

Third, God gave Moses and the nation a prophecy that someday there would be another prophet like Moses. God said, “I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him” (Deuteronomy 18:18).

At times during the ministry of Jesus, people guessed that He was the promised “Prophet” (John 6:14; John 7:40). After Jesus’ resurrection, Peter and Stephen both declared that Jesus was indeed “the Prophet” foretold through Moses (Acts 3:20-23; Acts 7:37).

What Jesus foretold

By some counts, Jesus Christ gave approximately 100 recorded prophecies of the future during His ministry. Many were about His eventual return to the earth and other end-time events.

Many others were about what would happen soon after He spoke—His arrest, trial, suffering, death and resurrection. In part, He was trying to prepare His disciples for all that would come. But more than that, His prophecies combined with their exact fulfillments constitute further proof that He was exactly who He claimed to be.

Let’s now take note of several important prophecies Christ gave and their fulfillments.

Did Jesus prophesy specific things about His disciples?

“Now as they were eating, He said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, one of you will betray Me.’ And they were exceedingly sorrowful, and each of them began to say to Him, ‘Lord, is it I?’ He answered and said, ‘He who dipped his hand with Me in the dish will betray Me. The Son of Man indeed goes just as it is written of Him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.’

“Then Judas, who was betraying Him, answered and said, ‘Rabbi, is it I?’ He said to him, ‘You have said it.’ . . .

“Then Jesus said to them, ‘All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for it is written: “I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.” But after I have been raised, I will go before you to Galilee.’

“Peter answered and said to Him, ‘Even if all are made to stumble because of You, I will never be made to stumble.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Assuredly, I say to you that this night, before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times’” (Matthew 26:21-25; Matthew 26:31-34).

Here Jesus foretold that Judas Iscariot would betray Him, that all His disciples would scatter and that Peter would deny Him three times. These were all fulfilled exactly (Matthew 26:47-50, 56, 69-75).

Jesus pronounced “woe” on three cities of His day. What happened to them?

“Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent: ‘Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.

“‘And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades [that is, into the ground]; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you’” (Matthew 11:20-24).

Jesus preached in and did mighty miracles in three towns where almost everyone reacted with disbelief. Then Jesus “began to rebuke the cities,” saying, “Woe to you . . . !”

Today, almost nothing remains of those three towns. Barnes’ Notes on the New Testament says: “This has been strictly fulfilled. In the wars between the Jews and the Romans, Chorazin, Bethsaida, Capernaum, etc., were so completely desolated that it is difficult to determine their former situation” (note on verse 23).

The people who lived in those towns will someday have their opportunity to repent and receive salvation, but the fate of those towns is testimony to the accuracy of Jesus’ pronouncement.

Did Jesus foresee the destruction of the temple and Jerusalem?

“Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said to them, ‘Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down’” (Matthew 24:1-2).

“But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those who are in the midst of her depart, and let not those who are in the country enter her. For these are the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled. But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! For there will be great distress in the land and wrath upon this people. And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled” (Luke 21:20-24; compare Luke 23:27-31).

The destruction of the temple and Jerusalem in A.D. 70 by the Roman army under Titus was a first fulfillment of this prophecy. Another destruction will take place in the future, as the Olivet Prophecy is primarily about the “end of the age” (Matthew 24:3).

Did Jesus foretell He would die and be raised to life in three days?

“Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.’ Then the Jews said, ‘It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?’ But He was speaking of the temple of His body” (John 2:19-21).

“We heard Him say, ‘I will destroy this temple made with hands, and within three days I will build another made without hands’” (Mark 14:58).

“And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again” (Mark 8:31).

At times, Jesus said He would rise “in three days” or “within three days,” which means no more than three days. At other times, He said “after three days,” which means no less than three days. Taken together, these statements show that it would occur right at three days.

Did Jesus announce that His body would be in the tomb for “three days and three nights”?

“Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, ‘Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.’ But He answered and said to them, ‘An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth’” (Matthew 12:38-40).

Jesus had performed many public miracles, and yet the hostile Pharisees still asked for another “sign.” At that point, Jesus did not entertain them with another miracle, but He gave them the ultimate sign and proof that He was who He said He was—the Messiah and Son of God. He said that after He died, He would be “three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.”

The popular idea of a Friday afternoon crucifixion and Sunday morning resurrection does not add up to three days and three nights! The truth is that Jesus died and was entombed on a Wednesday afternoon and was resurrected on the following Sabbath (Saturday) afternoon. For a full explanation and proof of this, search for “Good Friday—Easter Sunday” in the search box above.

Did Jesus promise that He would come to earth a second time?

“. . . I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:2-3).

“For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels” (Mark 8:38).

“Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect” (Luke 12:40).

“Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory” (Luke 21:27).

Jesus repeatedly referred to His second coming in His statements and parables. As earlier mentioned, the next lesson will focus on prophecies of Christ’s second coming.

Did Jesus prophesy terrible deception in the future, especially in the end time?

“And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying [that] I am Christ; and shall deceive many’ (Matthew 24:4-5, King James Version).

“Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many” (Matthew 24:11).

“Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There!’ do not believe it. For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you beforehand. Therefore if they say to you, ‘Look, He is in the desert!’ do not go out; or ‘Look, He is in the inner rooms!’ do not believe it” (Matthew 24:23-26).

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’” (Matthew 7:15-23).

Jesus began His Olivet Prophecy about the end time with the words, “Take heed that no one deceives you,” and then repeatedly warns of deceivers. Some deception is done in His name, by those calling Him Lord and claiming to be Christian and yet teaching against the Bible. What does Christ think of those who masquerade as His followers while preaching and living contrary to the truth? At the time of judgment, He will say to them, “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!” (Matthew 7:23).

Did Jesus indicate that many in the end time will be saying that this is the end time?

“And He said: Take heed that ye be not led astray: for many shall come in my name, saying [that] I am he; and, The time is at hand: go ye not after them’” (Luke 21:8, American Standard Version).

Jesus warned that a seemingly endless variety of individuals will claim that He is the Christ, but they won’t be teaching the truth. Today we see religious and secular leaders saying that we are approaching the end of the world as we know it, but with widely divergent messages about what we should do. Could this be Satan’s way of creating so many counterfeit messages that it becomes difficult for most listeners to tell who is teaching the truth of the Bible?

Did Jesus promise that He would build His Church?

“. . . On this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades [the grave] shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18).

Jesus promised He would build His Church, and He did. He also promised, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5). The Church began with power from God, as described in Acts 2. It has continued on in spite of incredible opposition from Satan and many other enemies. Even with periodic persecution and martyrdom of true Christians, the Church has survived and continues to do God’s work of preaching the gospel of the Kingdom of God and teaching and caring for those God has called. We will cover much more about the Church in other lessons.

Apply now

Read the very important 24th chapter of Matthew, Jesus’ Olivet Prophecy—though it actually continues through chapter 25 with three prophetic parables. This is an extended prophecy of the major trends and events leading up to the second coming of Christ. Plus it is very spiritually sobering and instructive.

Write down the things Christ asks us to do as we prepare for the times of trouble and the wonderful Kingdom of God Christ will bring when He returns. And read our free study guide Are We Living in the Time of the End? for a thorough explanation of this prophecy.