“Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.” Isaiah 60:1.
At the time when the first couple had to leave their special country, darkness swept over the earth. Yet here and there shone rays of hope that assured the faithful that this darkness would come to an end and the glorious morning would come when their hearts would find comfort.
The prophet Isaiah – the gospel writer of the Old Testament – described the state of the world in his days with words quoted above, but he also explained that the day was coming when darkness would have to stand back before the light. Not only Isaiah, but the other prophets also had this definite aim in mind and they did not cease to warn mankind and to remind them of the coming events.
In old times God used the prophets and he declared his plan of salvation to the world. They were his messengers, to proclaim to individuals and the whole nation of retributive judgments that were to befall them, or other important events.
We also see this in the history of the Israelite nation and especially during the life of Jesus Christ on earth. For centuries the prophets had foretold this event. Much earlier the time and place of his birth were determined by prophetic visions – when and how the Christ was to be born, what acts he was to do, and also the period of his ministry. Such prophecies include Michah 5:2; Isaiah 53; Daniel 9:25-27. If the Jews had paid attention to these prophecies, they would not have been left in darkness in view of these prophecies. They would have recognized him as the promised Messiah.
“For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me; for he wrote of me. But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words?” John 5:46, 47.
But they did not take heed to the voice of prophecy, for the apostle Paul writes:
“For they that dwell at Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew him not, nor yet the voices of the prophets which are read every sabbath day, they have fulfilled them in condemning him.” Acts 13:27.
Jesus himself, after his resurrection, reminded his disciples of the importance of the prophetic Word. His disciples had not given the prophecies the attention they deserved.
“And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.” Luke 24:27.
Jesus gave a special place to the prophetic writings and endowed them with special importance. After Jesus had expounded the writings of the Old Testament prophets about the Messiah to some of his disciples after his resurrection, the two disciples were able to ask the following question:
“Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?” Luke 24:32.
Which book did the apostle Phillip use in his talk with the eunuch? He took the prophetic word of Isaiah, “And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias… Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.” (Acts 8:30, 35).
We see the same thing in the work of the apostle Paul:
“And when they had appointed him a day, there came many to him into his lodging; to whom he expounded and testified the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, from morning till evening.” Acts 28:23.
The prophetic scriptures are the unerring evidence that the Holy Scriptures reveal the voice of the living God. A peculiar attribute of God is that he predicts and describes the future events that are to transpire in the world.
Through this means, all the time God has been testifying of himself, to reveal that the Most High overrules all kingdoms and men in his purpose to make an end of sin and give eternal salvation to his people.
“Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying… I have spoken it, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it.” Isaiah 46:10, 11.
The fulfillment of the prophetic Word is revealed all over the pages of history. Before the eyes of God, the future is like an open book, just like the present time. The Word that describes the future events has been spoken and written by the prophetic pen on parchment scrolls. Centuries have passed and when the hour of the fulfillment of a particular prophecy comes near, then the accomplishment of it appears.
This is equally true of individuals and nations. The history of some strong cities and kingdoms that the world has never seen appear a second time testify through the ages of the fulfillment of the prophetic word.
Christ himself, the greatest prophet of all time, predicted the end of the world and for this reason, he reminded his followers to take heed, especially in the book of Daniel (Matt. 24:15). Their reverence to the prophetic word saved his disciples in those days from taking part in the doom that befell Jerusalem. Won’t we experience the same in these final days of the history of mankind? The book of Daniel was not understood in its fullness in past ages, as it was sealed for the last days.
“And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand.” Daniel 12:9-10.
Centuries testify of the fulfillment of the prophetic Word. The prophetic scriptures present to us a clear picture of the history of the world. Strong and glorious kingdoms were turned into ruins and wasteplaces. God did not direct his word of warning only to those who accepted it in the past, but it is written in the Book of Truth as a testimony for all times that the Bible is the Word of God and that he has revealed his plans and that all his promises are sure. The message of God that his prophets declared to nations in past times contains also declarations for our days.
The fulfilled prophecies are a testimony through the ages of the living God. The exact fulfillment of the prophecies is an invitation from God to men to acknowledge the true God and accept the Holy Scriptures as a Word from heaven.
“I have even from the beginning declared it to thee; before it came to pass I shewed it thee: lest thou shouldest say, Mine idol hath done them, and my graven image, and my molten image, hath commanded them. Thou hast heard, see all this; and will not ye declare it? I have shewed thee new things from this time, even hidden things, and thou didst not know them.” Isaiah 48:5-6.
Truly, no man can cast a glance at the evidence of history regarding the fulfillment of prophecy without recognizing the truth that he who speaks this word knows all things from the beginning.
And he who finds the living God in the positive prophetic word must also be ready to take heed in the rest of the Scriptures that talk about sin and the path of forgiveness through Jesus Christ.
It is of utmost importance to us to give attention to the Word that speaks for our time and the events that are now taking shape on the earth, which have been predicted to occur just before the end of the world. The apostle Peter admonishes us to take heed to this Word and place a high value on it:
“We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts…” 2 Peter 1:19.