In this 2-part series, we are discussing the fact that Jesus’ birth as a human baby in Bethlehem was not the beginning of his story as recorded in the Bible. Rather, this was the point at which God became flesh. Yet Jesus had always existed, even before creation itself. In part 1, we looked at a couple of his preincarnate appearances – when he physically visited Abraham and Jacob, speaking to them, and interacting in their lives. In fact, we could spend all day in the first book of the Bible alone and see Jesus everywhere. The Bible is his story, and we will find him on every page if we choose to look hard enough.
However, there are also old testament passages that directly point us toward his death on the cross. The first can be found in Genesis 3, right at the point when sin entered the world after Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden fruit. When God cursed the serpent, he included the words in Genesis 3: 15: “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”
If we understand that the “offspring of the woman” is a term for Jesus, we will see the promise that although Satan will deal him a blow (striking the heal), which of course he did on the cross, ultimately, Jesus will strike the head of the serpent, having total and complete victory. Before sin entered the world, God already had a plan.
Next, if you study Abraham being commanded to sacrifice his son Isaac in Genesis 22, you will see many parallels with what would later happen to Jesus. In verse 2: God’s command to Abraham is: “Take your son, your only son whom you love – Isaac – and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.” Immediately when I read the words “Your only son” I think of John 3: 16, where we are told that God so loved the world that he sent his only begotten Son, that whosoever believe in him will not perish, but will have eternal life. Incidentally, many Bible scholars believe the place Abraham and Isaac went to was actually the same site where Jesus would later be crucified.
Also, in Genesis 22 verse 6, we notice that Abraham placed the wood for the burnt offering on Isaac’s bac, which reminds us of how Jesus had to carry his own cross.
Finally, when God stops Abraham from lifting the knife to harm his son, he provides an animal substitute – a ram caught in a thicket, just as our Saviour is the substitute lamb of God who bore our sin on the cross. These are just a few parallels we can find in this story with the account of Jesus’ death.
Another obvious passage we can search is the Exodus story, where the Jews had to paint the blood of the lamb they had sacrificed on the doorposts and lintels of their homes. Many people believe these blood markings made the shape of a cross. God said he would pass over their houses and not allow the angel of death to destroy the firstborn if he saw the blood. And likewise, it’s Jesus’ blood shed for us that prevents us from being the victims of the angel of death, for although our earthly lives will come to an end, we get to spend eternity with him in heaven.
I’m just giving you some of the more obvious old testament examples that point to the Saviour, but if you set out to search for them, I can assure you you’ll find many more. Some are very subtle references to Jesus or predictions of what he would do for us, and they would take a great deal of time to explain, so I would encourage you to seek them out during your private studies.
The penultimate scripture we will consider in this devotional is Psalm 22, which reads like something Jesus could’ve said while he was hanging on the cross. Yet it was written by David a long time before Jesus took on human flesh.
The parallels begin right at verse 1, which says: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from my cries of anguish?” Recall how Jesus cried out some of those very same words from the cross.
Next, in verses 7-8, David writes: “All who see me mock me.
they hurl insults, shaking their heads. “He trusts in the Lord,” they say, “let the Lord rescue him. Let him deliver him, since he delights in him.” Jesus was mocked and jeered at by many, including one of the thieves who was being crucified beside him.
Verse 15 reads: “My mouth is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth; you lay me in the dust of death.” Recall how one of Jesus’ statements from the cross was “I thirst.”
Verse 16 includes the words: “they pierce my hands and my feet”, even though crucifixion was not a recognised form of punishment in David’s day.
Finally, verse 18 reads: “They divide my clothes among them and cast lots for my garment.” So many prophecies in one Psalm, and they were all fulfilled to the letter.
Finally in our considerations of Jesus in the old testament, there is the whole of Isaiah chapter 53. This is such a moving chapter, but let’s just read verses 4-7. “Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.” WE shake our heads in wonder at the accuracy of these prophecies.
I hope that during these past 2 weeks we have seen that in the old testament, we find not just prophecies of Jesus, but also times when he himself appeared and interacted with people, like he did with Abraham, Jacob, and many others. Therefore, when we’re considering our Saviour, we can’t just look to the new testament, but to the whole Bible, and the more diligently we look, the more we will find him.