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Jesus was born in 6 BC, "in the fullness of time" (
). In those days the Jews were under Roman occupation, and had lost the authority to administer capital punishment. It was foretold that the Messiah would come before the destruction of the temple, which was still standing in Jerusalem at that time, and the Jewish people were awaiting their Messiah (the temple was destroyed in 70 AD, about 43 years after Jesus' death).
Most Jews at that time did not know the scriptures well. Only the Chief Priests and Magistrates had access to the scrolls and they taught the people mostly through customs and practices stemming back to the laws of Moses. But one Jewish man knew the scriptures in detail, and he understood that according to the prophets, the Messiah would be arriving soon. His name was Simeon (see " ") and when the Holy Spirit moved him to do so, he went to the Temple, and there he met Mary and Joseph who had arrived to consecrate their firstborn son to the Lord. When Simeon looked upon the baby Jesus he held Him in his arms and immediately knew that he was holding the promised Messiah.
The majority of the Jews did not recognize these signs. They were not looking for a suffering Messiah, they expected the Messiah to come as a conqueror that would defeat the Roman army and assume the position of the Jewish King. But the prophets had described a different Messiah, and they gave clues as to the timeframe of His coming. The prophet Daniel actually foretold the precise day that the Messiah would be announced to His people - 483 years, to the exact day, after the decree to rebuild the city of Jerusalem, and remarkably that was the day that Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey and was hailed as the Messiah by the Jewish people.
Prophecy
- "The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs and the obedience of the nations is his." (Genesis 49:10)Fulfillment - "Pilate said, "Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law."
"But we have no right to execute anyone," the Jews objected." (John 18:31)
Prophecy
- "Know and understand this: From the issuing of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the ruler, comes, there will be seven 'sevens,' and sixty-two 'sevens.' It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble.'" (Daniel 9:25)Fulfillment - "The next day the great crowd that had come for the Feast heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, 'Hosanna! '
'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!'
'Blessed is the King of Israel!'" (John 12:12-13)
Prophecy
- "After the sixty-two 'sevens,' the Anointed One will be cut off and will have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed." (Daniel 9:26)Fulfillment - "And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split." (Matthew 27:50-51)
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The timeframe for the Messiah's arrival should have been enough to alert the Jewish leaders of the approaching event. But many children are born everyday. How could they distinguish the Messiah from other boys born around the same time? Well, the Bible also tells us from which family line the Messiah would be born, and this would certainly help to narrow down His identity. Click 'Next' to learn about the Messiah's genealogy.
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Copyright � 2000 R. Mark Williams - All Rights Reserved.