Prophecy of the Day

The last type of scripture that we find is reserved prophecies. In this scripture, there is a revealing of the prophecy, and then we see that a part of this is fulfilled, but not all; or that some part will be revealed both in the past and in the future. In some cases as well, this is referred to as a "now and not yet" kind of prophecy.

For Genesis 49:10, we see that "the sceptre", or a ruler or series of rulers, "shall not depart", or in other words reign over all the tribes, "until Shiloh come". This is a direct reference to the Christ, the Messiah. So there is a partial fulfillment in David and the thone of Judah, but there is a future fulfillment in Christ the King of Kings and Lord of Lords!

Barnes, in his Notes on the Bible, writes,

Here John is veiwing a new heaven and earth.

Regardless of your Eschatology, almost everyone will understand this to be something new and different, a prophecy that has been revealed but has not yet been fulfilled. After the final judgement in Revelation 20, "old things are passed away, and behold, all things are become new".

The People's New Testament Commentary writes,

This is a partial list of the many passages that contain prophecies revealed. Some will be fulfilled already, some will not, but all will show to all of us the Majesty and Glory of God Himself!

In the first chapter of the New Testament, we see the fulfillment of a prophecy that happened over 700 years ago.

Now there are some prophecies where we don't know if they are fulfilled, or (because of our system of Eschatology) we might have some disagreements about. But this one we know for sure - there is a passage in Isaiah 7, and this is the fulfillment.

Barnes, in his Notes on the Bible, writes,

However you read it, God spoke His word in the Old, and fulfilled it it in the New!

Another type of Scripture that we see is a covenant. This is a promise made by God, but unlike an IF-THEN statement, a covenant is unconditional! Regardless of whether or not a person do or doesn't do anything, God's word will stand forever.

Many Bible Scholars will refer to these statements as Covenants that God made with the individuals involved. The following comments from an article by Les Fleetwood should help in our understanding of these ideas -

A curse is the exact opposite of a blessing. In many cases, it is also an IF-THEN statement, if it talks about the future. But in some ways, it is very different from a promise; for in many cases, it is seen as a BECAUSE-THEN statement. BECAUSE you have done this, THEN this will happen to you.

This is the first curse in the Bible, and the first punishment as well. Note that this punishment was not to man, but to the serpent, or to the devil himself. BECAUSE you have deceived the woman, THEN you will go upon your belly, and eat dust all your days.

Now, the next verse will speak expressly to Satan, which we've covered at little, but for now, just realize that ultimately, Satan was the first being to be judged, and although everything he does is fallen and tainted, yet in the end, God's plan will endure and He will Reign forever! Amen!

Re 22:07 Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.

A promise, spoken by God, is intended to bring us comfort or blessing. Many of these are conditional, in that the Bible says, IF you do this, THEN that will happen to you.

This verse is in two parts. The first part is, "Behold, I come quickly." This saying by Christ is both a prophecy and a promise, that He will come!

The second part is, "blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book." This is clearly called a blessing, and it is written as an IF-THEN statement. IF you keep the sayings of the prophecy of this book, THEN blessings will come upon you.

There are other promises and blessings that are all throughout Scripture, take a look and see for yourself!

A Promise

Ge 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

Again, we see that God spoke; this time to man in the garden, and what He says is terrible and wonderful at the same time. Terrible, for man must now face the consequences of his actions, and the price for his sin must be paid.

Wonderful, because even as sin entered into the world, God already promised a Savior. Verse 15 is known by many as the "protoevangelion", also known as the first gospel. There is a promise of the Redeemer, the seed of the woman. This is the prophecy of Christ, who would bruise the head of the serpent. Over 4,000 years before He came and died on the cross, God knew what He was doing to save mankind.

What wondrous love is this, that even before time began, God was working to save man!

Ge 01:03 ¶ And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.

The first words ever recorded in the Word of God, spoken by God Himself, was a prophecy! And a fulfillment, at the same time!

You see, God spoke. He said, Let there be light. Before this, there was ... nothing. If you or I had been standing there, we would have seen ... nothing. But then, God spoke, and He said, Let there be light.

Now, you or I would say, What's light?! Huh?!

Because we would have never seen anything like ... light, did you say?? Huh?!

But God knew. It was all according to His Perfect Plan. And so, He said it, and there was creation happening, and prophecy being spoken, and prophecy being fulfilled, and promises kept, all at the same time.

Ge 1:4 And God saw the light, that it was good.

Nuff Said.