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Prophetic Evidence

 

Prophetic Evidence refers to writings indicating future events.  These writings would be written prior to those events taking place.  The main criteria to consider is how detailed the prophesy was and how accurate is the prophesy to the event that takes place in the future.  

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Some past critics of the Bible have claimed that the Biblical text wasn't as old as it was believed at that time, that they were actually written after the event in question.  This way the writings look like a fulfilled prophecy but in actuality isn't.  A modern day example would be someone writing about a past Super Bowl, indicating which two teams played, and which team won.  If someone in the future found these writings and claimed they were written prior to the actual game, the writings would look like they were a prophesy of the then future game. 

 

This has been what is or has been claimed by past critics of Bible Prophesies.  One of the very important things to the credibility of the Bible has been archaeological discoveries.  The discoveries have verified the time and specifics of many of the writings of the Bibles and verified that the prophesies were in fact written prior to the then future events.  The Bible prophesies in many instances are very detailed and are proven to be written prior to the events prophesied, and often written hundreds and sometimes thousands of years prior to the event indicated.  Using the Super Bowl example, it would be like someone predicting the events of a Super Bowl game 200 years prior to the game of football having been invented, indicating not only the two teams who played, and which team won, but also indicating the score, some of the names of the players, and how many time outs were taken in the 4th quarter. 

 

While this type of accuracy and detail seem unbelievable it is important to look back to the God's Existence section.  The cause of the effect of the universe: space, time, and matter, must be outside of space, time and matter.  God being outside of time is not limited by time, and not restricted to the present.  As such, God will know specific details of events occurring in what is our future, and prophesy that comes from God can be very specific with 100% accuracy.

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This foreknowledge of God is the reason why the Bible indicates the high requirement it does for a prophet to be considered to speak "in the name of the Lord".  It is found in Deuteronomy 18:20-22

But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die.  And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the Lord hath not spoken?  When a prophet speaketh in the name of the Lord, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him.
Deuteronomy 18:20–22

 

The standard required is 100% accuracy. If a prophet made even a single prophecy that didn't come to pass "that prophet shall die", as indicated at the beginning of this Deuteronomy passage.  The fulfilled prophecies in the Bible show detail and accuracy that could not have originated from human speculation.  This is why prophetic evidence in the Bible is one of the evidences the Bible could have only come from God.  Anything outside the Bible cannot compare.

 

The prophesies and predictions made outside the Bible have been found with specific religions, religious leaders, and by psychics.  Predictions by psychics are usually made in the current year about an event in the upcoming year, so they are usually of a very short time frame in the future.  So how do these non-Biblical religious prophesies and psychic predictions compare to the Bible? 

 

The primary religions I found prophesies associated with, outside the Bible, are Mormon - Latter Day Saints, Jehovah's Witnesses, some religious leaders, and Islam.  The following are a few of the non-Biblical prophesies with links to additional ones.  

 

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= Mormon - Latter Day Saints Prophecies:

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   Doctrine and Covenants 87:1-3,6   (Joseph Smith)

1 Verily, thus saith the Lord concerning the wars that will shortly come to pass, beginning at the rebellion of South Carolina, which will eventually terminate in the death and misery of many souls;

2 And the time will come that war will be poured out upon all nations, beginning at this place.

3 For behold, the Southern States shall be divided against the Northern States, and the Southern States will call on other nations, even the nation of Great Britain, as it is called, and they shall also call upon other nations, in order to defend themselves against other nations; and then war shall be poured out upon all nations.

6 And thus, with the sword and by bloodshed the inhabitants of the earth shall mourn; and with famine, and plague, and earthquake, and the thunder of heaven, and the fierce and vivid lightning also, shall the inhabitants of the earth be made to feel the wrath, and indignation, and chastening hand of an Almighty God, until the consumption decreed hath made a full end of all nations;

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Did the Civil War of North America involve other nations and eventually end in a world war, and was there a worldwide famine or plague?  No.

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Additional sites:

Joseph Smith's False Prophecies

https://carm.org/false-prophecies-of-joseph-smith

Was Joseph Smith a False Prophet?

www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xSxH8MOZsU

False Prophecies of LDS Mormon "Prophet" Joseph Smith

www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=60&v=9gaFFMKQYRc

False Prophecies

http://mit.irr.org/false-prophecies

LDS List of False Prophecies

https://amos37.com/lds-list-of-false-prophecies/

Was Joseph Smith an Inspired Prophet?

www.youtube.com/watch?v=xW95Vfw6HZM

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= Jehova's Witness Prophesies:

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1918 "Therefore we may confidently expect that 1925 will mark the return of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and the faithful prophets of old, particularly those named by the Apostle in Hebrews 11, to the condition of human perfection," (Millions Now Living Will Never Die, p. 89).
1922 "The date 1925 is even more distinctly indicated by the Scriptures than 1914," (Watchtower, Sept. 1, 1922, p. 262).
1923 "Our thought is, that 1925 is definitely settled by the Scriptures. As to Noah, the Christian now has much more upon which to base his faith than Noah had upon which to base his faith in a coming deluge," (Watchtower, Apr. 1, 1923, p. 106).
1925 "The year 1925 is here. With great expectation Christians have looked forward to this year. Many have confidently expected that all members of the body of Christ will be changed to heavenly glory during this year. This may be accomplished. It may not be. In his own due time God will accomplish his purposes concerning his people. Christians should not be so deeply concerned about what may transpire this year," (Watchtower, Jan. 1, 1925, p. 3).
1925 "It is to be expected that Satan will try to inject into the minds of the consecrated, the thought that 1925 should see an end to the work," (Watchtower, Sept., 1925, p. 262).
1926 "Some anticipated that the work would end in 1925, but the Lord did not state so. The difficulty was that the friends inflated their imaginations beyond reason; and that when their imaginations burst asunder, they were inclined to throw away everything," (Watchtower, p. 232).
1931 "There was a measure of disappointment on the part of Jehovah's faithful ones on earth concerning the years 1917, 1918, and 1925, which disappointment lasted for a time . . . and they also learned to quit fixing dates," (Vindication, p. 338).

 Jehovah's Witnesses and their many false prophecies

https://carm.org/jehovahs-witnesses-and-their-many-false-prophecies

Note the acknowledgement that the 1925 prophesy didn't come to pass. 

 

The 1931 publication indicates a "disappointment on the part of Jehovah's faithful ones".  I think this gives additional insight as to why prophecy is taken so seriously in the Bible.  To claim to speak for God and then be wrong will cause some to actually blame God, and have doubts about God's character.  
 

Additional Sites:

Jehovah's Witnesses and their many false prophecies

https://carm.org/jehovahs-witnesses-and-their-many-false-prophecies

Jehovah’s Witnesses and False Prophecy

www.4jehovah.org/jehovahs-witnesses-and-false-prophecy/

JW False Prophecies DOCUMENTED

www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nXKNAi_jnA

Jehovah's Witnesses a long history of false prophecies

www.youtube.com/watch?v=whuvlwDb_no

Have Jehovah's Witness leaders ever given false prophecies?

www.youtube.com/watch?v=63ZPaHtEimA
 

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= Islamic Prophecies:

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I was able to find a few actual Islamic sites referencing the same prophecies indicated as fulfilled by these sites.  I've indicated one site specifically as it has the more readable listing of the fulfilled prophecies.

Fulfilled Prophecies of The Holy Quran

www.alislam.org/library/articles/fulfilled-prophecies-of-holy-quran/

The same page indicates 5 criteria to determine actual fulfilled prophesy as compared to luck.  I've underlined two specific criteria to think about as you read their indicated fulfilled prophecy:

“Some criteria are needed in order to distinguish cases of lucky guesses from those of true prophecy. Let us define a genuine prophecy as one that satisfies the following five criteria:

  • The prophecy must be clear, and it must contain sufficient detail to make its fulfillment by a wide variety of possible events unlikely.

  • The event that can fulfill the prophecy must be unusual or unique.

  • The prophecy must be known to have been made before the event that is supposed to be its fulfillment.

  • The event foretold must not be of the sort that could be the result of an educated guess.

  • The event that fulfills the prophecy cannot be staged, or the relevant circumstances manipulated, by those aware of the prophecy in such a way as to intentionally cause the prophecy to be fulfilled.”

 

Here are a few of the the 14 prophecies the site indicates as fulfilled, , preceded by the category of modern fulfillment and explanation:

Genetic Engineering

“They will alter Allah’s creation.” (4:120)

The holy Quran has prophesied the plastic surgery, genetic engineering and cloning in this short and concise sentence.

New Transport Systems

“And when the she-camels, ten months pregnant are abandoned.” (81:5)“And He has created horses and mules and asses that you may ride them, and as a source of beauty. And He will create what you do not yet know.” (16:9)

As we know people, specially those living in deserts, have now abandoned camels and other animals for travelling. But this prophecy of invention and emergence of new transport systems is on-going as we witness new and faster modes of transportation emerging all the time.

Roads in Mountains

“And when the mountains are made to move.” (81:4)

Centuries before the invention of dynamite, the holy Quran prophesied the blowing up and moving of the mountains.

Modern Communication Systems

“And when various people are brought together.” (81:8)

Fast transport systems, telephone, satellite systems and internet have brought so close to each other proving the truthfulness of the holy Quran.

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Do these prophecies seem to fulfill the requirements of being sufficiently detailed, unusual or unique, and does the heading given fit as a fulfillment of the prophecy?  When compared to the detail of the Biblical prophecies, I think the obvious answer is "No".

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A few additional sites:

Islamic sites:

THE PROPHECIES OF THE QURAN

​www.islamreligion.com/articles/347

 

Fulfilled Prophecies Of The Holy Quran

www.nairaland.com/225114/fulfilled-prophecies-holy-quran

Critical sites:

The Qur'an (Koran) vs. The Bible

http://worldview3.50webs.com/quranvbible.html

THE IRREFUTABLE FAILURE OF ALLAH’S PROPHECIES IN THE QUR’AN

https://davidiqbalkarim.wordpress.com/2013/06/03/31/

 

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= Some Christian Leaders Predicting Christ's Return

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There have also been Christian leaders who have predicted the return of Christ, and all have been wrong.  Outside of the prophesies of the Bible, trying to know what will happen in the future is a guess.  What I do find interesting about Christian leaders trying to predict the second coming of Christ is the clear message in the Bible related to Christ's second coming:

Matthew 24:36 “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.

It seems clear that if not even angels or Christ himself knows when this event will be, why would anyone try to determine the date?
 

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= Psychic Predictions

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The last category of those predicting the future are psychics.  Do they fare any better with their predictions than those who think they are hearing from God?

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At Lindsay Edwards site, she indicates future predictions for 2017-2020

PSYCHIC PREDICTIONS FOR 2017/2018/2019/2020

https://lyndsayedwards.com/psychic-predictions-2017/

And the disclaimer from her site:

*Disclaimer – All psychic predictions on this website are given to me by spirit and are not my thoughts/words/wishes.​

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Fortunately, she does give a disclaimer for the predictions she has been given by "Spirit" so that any incorrect prediction isn't her fault, but the spirit's fault.  Here are the last third of the predictions from Lindsay Edward's page above:  

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Notice with her predictions that there are a number which are specifically wrong:

 

Note:  As I'm writing this on the evening of December 30, 2018, there is a possibility that President Trump could make a major announcement resigning his presidency in the next 30 hours, before the end of 2018  ;-)

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Other than the many failed predictions, most of the others are very vague:

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Considering Lindsay Edward's disclaimer and the inaccuracy of the "Spirit's" predictions, it's a wonder Lindsay hasn't considered switching to the true Holy Spirit.

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Here are additional sites showing failed psychic predictions, as well as videos of psychics shown to be wrong while they are on television broadcasts:

2017 failed and forgotten psychic predictions

www.relativelyinteresting.com/2017-failed-forgotten-psychic-predictions/

55 HILARIOUS FAILED PREDICTIONS FROM PSYCHICS

https://glitternight.com/2018/01/02/55-hilarious-failed-predictions-from-psychics/

Collection of Failed Predictions:

www.csicop.org/superstition/activities/failed_predictions

The Most Brutal Psychic Fail Compilation Pt. 1

www.youtube.com/watch?v=GITxVhvDlig

The Most Brutal Psychic Fail Compilation Pt. 2

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ksmd2pBEOhY

Psychic Cringe Fails - More Amazing James Randi

www.youtube.com/watch?v=joADD7jWqa4

Psychic Cringe Fails 2 - The Best of James Randi

www.youtube.com/watch?v=uq5MtA33OHk

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= Bible Prophecies

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As has been indicated previously, there are over 20 religious works considered by different people to be divinely inspired.  Of these 20+ religious works only the Bible contains specific fulfilled prophecies.  The Bible indicates an estimated 2500 prophesies with 2000 having been confirmed as fulfilled so far.  As well, no prophesy has been proven wrong by any archaeological discovery. 

 

The other approximately 500 prophesies speak of events that will take place in the future, which is why they haven’t been fulfilled yet. In the later section on Jesus, Prophesies About Jesus, there are listed some of the over 300 prophesies about Christ which were written in the Old Testament.

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The amazing fact about the prophesies of the Bible is not just that the Bible is the only religious volume containing very specific fulfilled prophesies, but that all of these specific prophesies were written hundreds and, sometimes, thousands of years before they were fulfilled!  And again, these prophesies were not vague but they were very specific and detailed.  There is no other book like the Bible, which has the confirmation of fulfilled prophetic evidence as proof of being from God. 

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Of course, since God is outside of time then He knows everything that will happen at any point in time; past, present, and future.  God will know every detail from any event that will happen in the future and the prophesies he imparted to the prophets will be 100% fulfilled.  The accuracy of very detailed prophecies and evidence of these prophesies being written hundreds and thousands of years before they were fulfilled prove that the Bible could have only come from a being who is outside of time. God is outside of time and has given the fulfilled prophesies as one proof of His existence!

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I am including only the one Bible prophecy in this section from the bottom link below.  The reason is not because there are not more examples of fulfilled prophecies in the Bible, but because of the author's in-depth analysis of the extensive detail of the passages indicated, and the amount of information covered.  Unlike the above sections, I've placed the prophecy after the links below.

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Fulfilled Prophecy as Evidence for the Bible's Divine Origin

www.faithfacts.org/search-for-truth/maps/fulfilled-prophecy-as-evidence

List Of Bible Prophecies Fulfilled

https://believersportal.com/list-bible-prophecies-fulfilled/

Fulfilled Prophecy: Evidence for the Reliability of the Bible

www.reasons.org/explore/blogs/todays-new-reason-to-believe/read/tnrtb/2003/08/22/fulfilled-prophecy-evidence-for-the-reliability-of-the-bible

Additional sites showing fulfilled Bible prophesies

www.100prophecies.org

http://bibleprobe.com/365messianicprophecies.htm

https://carm.org/prophecy-bible-and-jesus

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The Irrefutable Failure of Allah's Prophecies in the Qur'an

https://davidiqbalkarim.wordpress.com/2013/06/03/31/

This last link is the last one from the Islamic prophecies section above.  I include it in this section showing fulfilled Bible prophecies, because it includes a fulfilled prophesy from the Bible.  The reason it is in the Islamic section is because the author analyzes it and a prophesy from the Quran indicated as fulfilled by Muslims.  This is to show you how different the two prophecies are pertaining to detail, accuracy, and proof of fulfillment. 

 

The Bible prophecy from davidiqbalkarim.wordpress.com:

PROPHECIES IN THE BIBLE

Though there are hundreds of fulfilled prophecies in the Bible, we will focus on just one to establish our point. Jeremiah became a prophet in 647 B.C.E. This was in the 13th year of the reign of King Josiah of Judah (659-629 B.C.E.). On account of their relentless sinful attitude, Jehovah prophesied through Jeremiah that He would bring King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon against the southern kingdom of Judah to defeat and destroy their land. The inhabitants of the southern kingdom of Judah would also be carried off to captivity in Babylon for 70 years. However at the end of the 70 years, Babylon would be defeated. (Jeremiah 25:8-14) And Jehovah prophesied that at the end of the 70 years, he would bring the people of Judah out of Babylon and return them back to their homeland. (Jeremiah 29:10-11)

Jeremiah 25:1-2: “The word that occurred to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, the king of Judah, that is, the first year of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon; which Jeremiah the prophet spoke concerning all the people of Judah and concerning all the inhabitants of Jerusalem.”

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Jeremiah 25:8-14: “Therefore this is what Jehovah has said, ‘“For the reason that you did not obey my words, I am sending and I will take all the families of the north,” is the utterance of Jehovah, “even sending to Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and I will bring them against this land and against its inhabitants and against all these nations round about; and I will devote them to destruction and make them an object of astonishment and something to whistle at and places devastated to time indefinite. And I will destroy out of them the sound of exultation and the sound of rejoicing, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the hand mill and the light of the lamp. And all this land must become a devastated place, an object of astonishment, and these nations will have to serve the king of Babylon seventy years.”’ “‘And it must occur that when seventy years have been fulfilled I shall call to account against the king of Babylon and against that nation,’ is the utterance of Jehovah, ‘their error, even against the land of the Chaldeans, and I will make it desolate wastes to time indefinite.’”

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Jeremiah 29:10: “For this is what Jehovah has said, ‘In accord with the fulfilling of seventy years at Babylon I shall turn my attention to you people, and I will establish toward you my good word in bringing you back to this place.’”

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These predictions qualify as the type of prophecy we are looking for because it is outside the scope of any humans to predict or fulfill it. Furthermore, there are at least seven very specific predictive details listed out in this prophecy:

  • The specific name of the country that would lead the attack: Babylon

  • The specific name of the kingdom that would be attacked: Judah

  • The outcome of the attack:The defeat of Judah at the hands of Babylon.

  • The consequence of the defeat: Judah would be taken captive to Babylon.

  • The time period of captivity: To be held captive for a period of 70 years.

  • The final outcome: The restoration of the inhabitants of Judah to their homeland at the end of the 70 years.

 

The above comprehensive prophecy is one of the most authentic criterion to test the truthfulness of a book claiming divine authorship. This is because the action of taking the people of Judah into captivity, which was carried out by Nebuchadnezzar, as well as the length of their captivity, would be outside the control of Jeremiah or of the people of Judah.

 

FULFILLMENT

Archaeology and ancient history confirm the precise fulfillment of this comprehensive prophecy of Jeremiah. In 607 B.C.E. King Nebuchadnezzar’s armies subdued Judah, taking thousands of Jews captive to Babylon. This process continued until virtually all of the people of Judah were taken captive. The Babylonian captivity of Judah lasted until Babylon fell to Medo-Persia. Then in 537 B.C.E., Cyrus the Persian King issued a decree permitting the Israelites to return to the land of Judah. Just as it was foretold, they returned and rebuild the temple. The captivity lasted 70 years – exactly as it was prophesied in the Holy Bible. The accurate fulfillment of this detailed prophecy reveals the fact that not only was Jeremiah a genuine prophet of God but it also proves that the Holy Bible is the genuine Word of the true God.

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These Biblical prophecies can be verified by a host of authentic historical records. About two years after the conquest of Babylon in 539 B.C.E., Cyrus issued a decree in 537 B.C.E. that allowed a Jewish remnant to return to their homeland. In time, Jerusalem’s temple was rebuilt. (Ezra 1:1-11) Archaeology has confirmed that such a decree was in harmony with Cyrus’ policy. On a clay cylinder found in the ruins of Babylon, we find the following declaration of Cyrus:

“I returned to (these) sacred cities…the sanctuaries of which have been ruins for a long time, the images which (used) to live therein and established for them permanent sanctuaries. I (also) gathered all their (former) inhabitants and returned (to them) their habitations.”

 

The Cyrus Cylinder, a cuneiform inscription found in 1879, records that after taking Babylon in 539 B.C.E.; Cyrus applied his policy of returning captives to their homelands. Among those to benefit were the Jews. In 1883 an archive of over 700 cuneiform texts was found in Nippur, near Babylon. Among the 2,500 names mentioned, about 70 can be identified as Jewish. They appear, says historian Edwin Yamauchi, “as contracting parties, agents, witnesses, collectors of taxes, and royal officials.” The evidence that Jews continued to conduct such activities close to Babylon in this period is significant. It corroborates the Bible’s prophetic statement that while thousands of Israelites returned to Judea from exile in Babylon, some did not. (Isaiah 10:21, 22)

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Amazingly, the Nabonidus Chronicle, now in the British Museum, says that “the army of Cyrus entered Babylon without battle.” This was exactly what the Bible predicted would occur, years in advance. Jeremiah 51:30 states, “The mighty men of Babylon have ceased to fight.” Again, we can see the accuracy of the Bible’s predictive powers.

 

The prophecies in the Bible are both accurate and comprehensive. When the Bible prophesied about the birthplace of Jesus, it mentioned Bethlehem by name. (Micah 5:2) So when Jesus was born in Bethlehem, there was no mistake as to the fulfillment of this prophecy. (Matthew 2:1) Also when the Bible prophesied about the death of Jesus Christ, Isaiah 53:9 stated, “And he will make his burial place even with the wicked ones.” Centuries later, this prophecy was fulfilled in remarkable detail. Matthew 27:38 recorded, “Two robbers were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left.”

 

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It is clear when comparing the prophecies of the Bible to any other source, there is no second as to amazing detail, accuracy, and fulfillment.  But again, this is no problem to a God outside of time.

 

 

Next Page:  Manuscript Evidence 

 

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