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Author Topic:   Accuracy of Biblical Prophecy
lokiare
Member (Idle past 3649 days)
Posts: 69
Joined: 03-18-2014


Message 1 of 7 (722463)
03-21-2014 9:58 AM


How accurate is biblical prophecy compared to other sources of prophecy? I'd like to begin this thread by briefly discussing two prophecies.
The first prophecy is that around 150 years before the temple was rebuilt Isaiah predicted the king that would allow the Israelites to return to their homeland by name (Isaiah 45:1,4 - "Thus saith the LORD to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before him; and I will loose the loins of kings, to open before him the two leaved gates; and the gates shall not be shut;"
...
"For Jacob my servant's sake, and Israel mine elect, I have even called thee by thy name: I have surnamed thee, though thou hast not known me."). He then predicts that the same king will rebuild the temple (Isaiah 44:28 - "That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure: even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid."). The events that happened are recorded in (2 Chronicles 36:22-23 - "Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD spoken by the mouth of Jeremiah might be accomplished, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying,", "Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, All the kingdoms of the earth hath the LORD God of heaven given me; and he hath charged me to build him an house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Who is there among you of all his people? The LORD his God be with him, and let him go up.").
At least one external source that mention the prophecy can be found in "Josephus - the complete works". There may be others.
The second prophecy is the predicsion many hundred years ago that the nation of Israel would be scattered and then reformed (Hosea 3:4-5 - "For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim:", "Afterward shall the children of Israel return, and seek the LORD their God, and David their king; and shall fear the LORD and his goodness in the latter days.", Hosea 6:1 - "Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up.", Ezekial 20:34 - "And I will bring you out from the people, and will gather you out of the countries wherein ye are scattered, with a mighty hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with fury poured out.", Isaiah 11:11-12 - "And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.", "And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth").
They would do it by buying back the land (Jeremiah 32:44 - "Men shall buy fields for money, and subscribe evidences, and seal them, and take witnesses in the land of Benjamin, and in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, and in the cities of the mountains, and in the cities of the valley, and in the cities of the south: for I will cause their captivity to return, saith the LORD."), which they did.
It would be reborn in a day (Isaiah 66:8 - "Who hath heard such a thing? who hath seen such things? Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day? or shall a nation be born at once? for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children."). Which happened when the united nations recognized Israel as a nation on may 14, 1948.
The order of the return was even predicted (Isaiah 43:5-6 - "Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west. I will say to the north, `Give them up!' and to the south, `Do not hold them back.' Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth..." Psalm 107:2-3 - "Let the redeemed of the LORD say this -- those he redeemed from the hand of the foe, those he gathered from the lands, from east and west, from north and south.")
They returned to having a pure language (Zephaniah 3:8-10 - "For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the LORD, to serve him with one consent. From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia my suppliants, [even] the daughter of my dispersed, shall bring mine offering".)
The shekel would be used as a currency again (Ezekiel 45:12-16 - "The shekel is to consist of twenty gerahs. Twenty shekels plus twenty-five shekels plus fifteen shekels equal one mina.... All the people of the land will participate in this special gift for the use of the prince in Israel.")
Several cities were called out by name, that would never be inhabited again.(Matthew 11:21-23 NIV - "Woe to you, Korazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to the skies? No, you will go down to the depths. If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day.")
The desert will bloom and produce fruit. 75 years ago Israel was filled with deserts and malarial swamps. Now it is a fertile land producing fruit which they sell around the world (Isaiah 26:6 - "In days to come Jacob will take root, Israel will bud and blossom and fill all the world with fruit." Isaiah 35:1-2 - "The desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom. Like the crocus, it will burst into bloom; it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy...." ).
So are biblical prophecies much more accurate than other sources? It appears that it is so.
Edited by lokiare, : Reformatting to make it more information filled.
Edited by Admin, : For clarity, add a couple sentences introducing the two prophecies.

Replies to this message:
 Message 2 by Admin, posted 03-22-2014 6:41 AM lokiare has not replied
 Message 3 by AdminPhat, posted 03-22-2014 8:28 AM lokiare has replied

Admin
Director
Posts: 12995
From: EvC Forum
Joined: 06-14-2002
Member Rating: 2.3


Message 2 of 7 (722538)
03-22-2014 6:41 AM
Reply to: Message 1 by lokiare
03-21-2014 9:58 AM


lokiare writes:
For instance 200+ years before the temple was rebuilt they predicted the king that would rebuild the temple by name.
Could you provide the passage that makes this prediction?
They predicted several hundred years ago that the nation of Israel would reform, the shekel would be used as a currency again, and the desert would bloom.
This one's a little confusing. What does it mean for the Bible to have predicted something several hundred years ago, since its most recent book was written at least 1700 years ago? And could you provide the passage for this one, too?

--Percy
EvC Forum Director

This message is a reply to:
 Message 1 by lokiare, posted 03-21-2014 9:58 AM lokiare has not replied

AdminPhat
Inactive Member


Message 3 of 7 (722540)
03-22-2014 8:28 AM
Reply to: Message 1 by lokiare
03-21-2014 9:58 AM


hi lokiare... welcome to EvC
In general, we try and make our first post deep and provide details and frame the issue...then once we have the topic framed, we get to ask casual questions...feel free to rewrite this topic and we will know where to put it.
The Bible: Accuracy and Inerrancy
Is the Bible the inerrant word of God? Or is it the words of men?
Faith and Belief
Is God an objective reality or a subjective concept?
which direction shall we go with your proposed discussion?

This message is a reply to:
 Message 1 by lokiare, posted 03-21-2014 9:58 AM lokiare has replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 4 by lokiare, posted 03-22-2014 9:44 AM AdminPhat has not replied

lokiare
Member (Idle past 3649 days)
Posts: 69
Joined: 03-18-2014


Message 4 of 7 (722543)
03-22-2014 9:44 AM
Reply to: Message 3 by AdminPhat
03-22-2014 8:28 AM


hi lokiare... welcome to EvC
In general, we try and make our first post deep and provide details and frame the issue...then once we have the topic framed, we get to ask casual questions...feel free to rewrite this topic and we will know where to put it.
The Bible: Accuracy and Inerrancy
Is the Bible the inerrant word of God? Or is it the words of men?
Faith and Belief
Is God an objective reality or a subjective concept?
which direction shall we go with your proposed discussion?
Probably "The Bible: Accuracy and Inerrancy".
Should I just edit the first post or create a new topic or clarify in an additional post?

This message is a reply to:
 Message 3 by AdminPhat, posted 03-22-2014 8:28 AM AdminPhat has not replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 5 by Admin, posted 03-22-2014 4:39 PM lokiare has replied

Admin
Director
Posts: 12995
From: EvC Forum
Joined: 06-14-2002
Member Rating: 2.3


Message 5 of 7 (722566)
03-22-2014 4:39 PM
Reply to: Message 4 by lokiare
03-22-2014 9:44 AM


Editing Message 1 will be fine - thanks.

--Percy
EvC Forum Director

This message is a reply to:
 Message 4 by lokiare, posted 03-22-2014 9:44 AM lokiare has replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 6 by lokiare, posted 03-23-2014 8:38 AM Admin has seen this message but not replied

lokiare
Member (Idle past 3649 days)
Posts: 69
Joined: 03-18-2014


Message 6 of 7 (722593)
03-23-2014 8:38 AM
Reply to: Message 5 by Admin
03-22-2014 4:39 PM


I've edited it to include the references.

This message is a reply to:
 Message 5 by Admin, posted 03-22-2014 4:39 PM Admin has seen this message but not replied

Admin
Director
Posts: 12995
From: EvC Forum
Joined: 06-14-2002
Member Rating: 2.3


Message 7 of 7 (722601)
03-23-2014 9:03 AM


Thread Copied to Faith and Belief Forum
Thread copied to the Accuracy of Biblical Prophecy thread in the Faith and Belief forum, this copy of the thread has been closed.

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