What did Isaiah Prophesy about Jesus?
Isaiah is appropriately called the Messianic prophet. No one seems to have had a clearer picture of God’s holiness and greatness, the person and mission of Jesus, and God’s glorious purpose for His church. Isaiah is rightly regarded as the king of Israel’s celebrated prophets, and his writings as the masterpiece of all prophetic writings. These prophecies span both Christ’s first and second comings.
In Chapters 40-66, Isaiah sets forth one of the most striking pictures of Israel and Israel’s God found anywhere in the Bible.
- These chapters reveal one of the Bible’s most illuminating pictures of God’s infinite greatness and goodness.
- In them is set forth the great mission of the church. Isaiah saw clearly that Christ would come as a “light to the Gentiles” and that His mission of salvation would eventually go “unto the end of the earth” (Isaiah 49:5).
- Chapter 53 is Inspiration’s most poignant prophetic description of Christ as the suffering Saviour.
In the book of Isaiah, Biblical scholars have discovered 128 prophecies concerning Jesus. Each one has been accurately fulfilled in the life of Christ. Let’s explore some of the major ones:
Symbolism of the Number 666
SUBJECT | PROPHECY | FULFILLMENT |
|---|---|---|
Jesus would be born of a virgin | Isaiah 7:14 | Luke 1:34-35 |
Jesus’ name would be Immanuel meaning ‘God with us’ | Isaiah 7:14 | Matthew 1:21-23 John 12:45
John 10:30
|
Jesus would be a ‘stumbling block’ to the Jews
| Isaiah 8:14 | Matthew 21:42-44 |
Jesus would minister in Galilee | Isaiah 9:1-2
| Matthew 4:12-17 |
Jesus’ birth is prophesied | Isaiah 9:6 | Luke 2:11 |
Jesus would be the ‘Wonderful Counsellor’, the ‘Mighty God’, the ‘Everlasting Father’, and the ‘Prince of Peace’ | Isaiah 9:6 | John 7:46 John 10:30 Revelation 1:8 Colossians 1:20 |
Jesus would be a descendant of David | Isaiah 9:7 | Matthew 1:1 |
Jesus would be a descendant of Jesse | Isaiah 11:1,10 | Luke 3:32 |
Jesus would have the Spirit of God, the spirit of wisdom and quick understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge, and the fear of the Lord | Isaiah 11:1-3 Isaiah 42:1 Isaiah 61:1-2 | Matthew 3:16-17
Luke 2:40
Matthew 7:28-29
Matthew 8:27
John 7:29
Hebrews 5:7
Luke 2:46-47 |
Jesus would not judge according to externals, but He would judge with righteousness | Isaiah 11:3-4
| John 7:24 Mark 12:41-44 |
Jesus would come for all nations | Isaiah 11:10-12 | Acts 13:47-48 |
Jesus would defeat death | Isaiah 25:8 | Revelation 1:18 |
Jesus would be the Cornerstone which the builders rejected | Isaiah 28:16 | 1 Peter 2:4-8 |
Jesus would heal the blind, the deaf, the lame, and the dumb | Jesus would heal the blind, the deaf, the lame, and the dumb | Isaiah 35:5-6
Isaiah 42:7
|
Jesus would be the Good Shepherd | Isaiah 40:11 | John 10:11 |
John the Baptist would prepare the way for Jesus | Isaiah 40:3 | Matthew 3:1-3 |
The Jews would reject Jesus | Isaiah 49:4 Isaiah 53:1 | John 5:43 John 12:37-38 |
Jesus would speak with knowledge given to Him by God | Isaiah 50:4
| John 12:49 |
Jesus’ back would be whipped, and His face beaten and spat upon | Isaiah 50:6 Isaiah 52:14 Isaiah 53:5 | Matthew 27:26 Matthew 26:67-68 |
Jesus would not be turned aside from His mission | Isaiah 50:7 | Luke 9:51-53 |
Jesus’ blood would be shed to make atonement for all | Isaiah 52:15 | Revelation 1:5
|
Jesus would look like an ordinary man | Isaiah 53:2 | Philippians 2:7-8 |
Jesus would be despised, and rejected by men | Isaiah 53:3 | Matthew 27:21-23 |
Jesus would experience great sorrow and grief and many of His people would hide from being associated with Him |
Isaiah 53:3 | Luke 19:41-42 Mark 14:50-52 |
Jesus would have a healing ministry | Isaiah 53:4 | Luke 6:17-19 |
Jesus would bear the sins of this world | Isaiah 53:5-6 | Luke 23:33 Galatians 1:4 1 John 4:10 |
Jesus would be oppressed and afflicted but He would be silent before His accusers | Isaiah 53:7 | Matthew 27:27-31 Matthew 27:12-14 |
Jesus would be the sacrificial Lamb
| Isaiah 53:7 | John 1:29 |
Jesus would be tortured, judged, and killed | Isaiah 53:8 | Matthew 26:47-27:31 John 18:13-22 Matthew 27:35 |
Jesus would die for the sins of the world | Isaiah 53:8, 10-12 | 1 John 2:2 John 18:11 Matthew 20:28 Romans 5:8-9 Hebrews 9:28 2 Corinthians 5:21 |
Jesus would be buried in a rich man’s grave | Isaiah 53:9 | Matthew 27:57-60 |
Because of His sacrifice, Jesus would be highly exalted by God | Isaiah 53:12 | Matthew 28:18 Philippians 2:8-11 |
Jesus would make intercession on behalf of mankind before God
| Isaiah 53:12 | Luke 23:34 Hebrews 7:25 Hebrews 4:14-16 |
Jesus would preach the good news of salvation | Isaiah 61:1-2 | Luke 4:17-21 John 8:31-32 John 5:24 |
Jesus identified Himself as the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecies concerning the Messiah when He read from the scroll of Isaiah in the synagogue of Nazareth and announced, “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears”.
Luke 4:16-21 (KJV) – “And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up: and, as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read.
And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He hath anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He hath sent Me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised. To preach the acceptable year of the Lord”.
And He closed the book, and He gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. And he began to say unto them, “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears”.
Dr Peter Stoner, former chairman of the mathematics, astronomy, and engineering departments at Pasadena College (California), worked with 600 students for several years applying the ‘principle of probability’ to the prophecies concerning Jesus in the Old Testament. They chose just eight from the many available and finally decided that the chances of all eight being fulfilled in one man’s lifetime are one in 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000. What would the odds be on just the 128 prophecies Isaiah gave about Jesus, excluding the many others in the Old Testament? It couldn’t just happen!
In exploring the prophecies of Isaiah regarding the birth, lineage, ministry, and sufferings of Jesus Christ, we have embarked on a journey that highlights the profound connection between the Old and New Testaments. These prophecies provide a remarkable glimpse into the person and work of Jesus Christ, emphasizing His role as Saviour and Almighty God. They prove the inspiration of the Word of God, the Bible.
