Hi ,
Some 350 prophesies were fulfilled in Jesus, many of them at His birth. But none was
more pointed than the one found in Daniel 9:25. Here's what it says: "Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the command to restore and build Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince, there shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks." This represents a period of 483 years. So, this clock started running when Artaxerxes issued this command.
The Jewish leaders certainly knew this. And this prophecy was fulfilled exactly in Jesus' lifetime! They had to be looking for their Messiah! They had to know He'd make his appearance soon! They knew the signs He would perform. All this, and much more, Jesus did!
Yet, they still had at least
one problem, or so they thought. John 7:27 records a remarkable statement. Jewish people wondered if their leaders had really decided that Jesus was indeed the long-sought Messiah. They reached a tentative conclusion that He really couldn't be because they thought they knew His family. They assumed Joseph was His true father. John 7:27 records them saying: "But we know where this man comes from, and when the Christ appears, no one will know where he comes from.”
Why would they say that? Was it merely tradition? Or, was there a scriptural verse that implied this? The roots of this idea could possibly have come from the remarkable account of Melchizedek expanded for us in Hebrews 7:3: "He is without father or mother or genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life..." The people were assuming that their
Messiah would just.... appear, sort-of like Melchizedek did in Genesis 14:18-20. Jesus, in their view, was just another human being, with two human parents.
Wrong! Jesus knew that one of their big mistakes was their assumption that His physical father was Joseph, and therefore He was merely of human descent. So He then called out: "Yes, you
know me, and you know where I come from. But, I have not come of My own accord, but He who sent Me is true. You do not know Him."
There's the key! If they really had been watching all the many, very clear signs, and if they really knew the Father, they would have recognized Jesus right away as the One they were seeking!
He came to provide the answers that they all sought, and to fulfill the prophecies that they all believed in. But, they stumbled over tradition, misplaced trust, legalism, preconceptions, lies,... you name it. And most of the Jews at that time missed Him, even as He fulfilled more prophecies as He died and rose again!
He still provides those answers today, and not just for the Jews! He provided for the deepest need humans have --- the freedom from the penalty of sin. Have you missed Him, too? If you wonder who He really is, start by reading the book of John, in the New Testament of the Bible.
