Article 20
By Steven J. Hogan
There’s hidden treasure in the Old Testament that if discovered will help you learn more about Jesus Christ and His coming kingdom. Now there are some who are uninformed and unaware of this valuable treasure. Others disregard it, and say that the Old Testament contains little if anything about Christ and our future. But I’d strongly disagree with that assessment, for we are talking about a large portion of God’s Word which is rich with promises and prophecies, and contains vital information about the future of the Jews and the church. Now I’ve already done some of the digging for you, and have uncovered hundreds of spiritual nuggets, rock solid truths, that when understood, give a wonderful description of Jesus Christ, and of His first coming and His second coming. I must also admit that there is a lot I don’t know on this subject, and so I am only sharing with you what I do know.
CONCERNING THE FIRST COMING OF CHRIST:
Genesis 3:15
Psalm 16:10, Psalm 22:1, Psalm 22:14, Psalm 22:16, Psalm 22:17, Psalm 22:18, Psalm 34:20, Psalm 35:11, Psalm 41:9, Psalm 69:4, Psalm 69:21, Psalm 78:2, Psalm 110:4, Psalm 118:22
Isaiah 7:14, Isaiah 9:1, Isaiah 11:1, Isaiah 35:5, Isaiah 50:6, Isaiah 52:14, Isaiah 53:5, Isaiah 53:7, Isaiah 53:9, Isaiah 53:12, Isaiah 61:1-2
Jeremiah 31:15
Hosea 11:1
Amos 8:9
Micah 5:2
Zechariah 9:9, Zechariah 11:12-13, Zechariah 12:10, Zechariah 13:7
(ALL THESE VERSES HAVE LITERALLY BEEN FULFILLED IN THE PAST.)
CONCERNING THE END TIMES, THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST AND THE KINGDOM AGE:
1) THE LAW:
Genesis 12:1-3, Genesis 13:14-16, Genesis 15:17-18, Genesis 17:2-8, Genesis 22:15-18, Genesis 26:2-5, Genesis 28:13-15, Genesis 32:12, Genesis 49:9-12
Exodus 2:24
Leviticus 26:42-45
Numbers 24:17-19, Numbers 25:12-13
Deuteronomy 4:31-40, Deuteronomy 7:6-9, Deuteronomy 33:26-29
Joshua 1:6-7
2) THE PSALMS:
Psalm 2:6-9, Psalm 22, Psalm 33:10-12, Psalm 37, Psalm 46, Psalm 47, Psalm 48, Psalm 67, Psalm 68:15-18, Psalm 68:28-35, Psalm 72, Psalm 89:20-36, Psalm 89:34-37, Psalm 96, Psalm 98, Psalm 99:1-3, Psalm 102:12-28, Psalm 105:8-11, Psalm 106:44-48, Psalm 110, Psalm 111, Psalm 115:9-18, Psalm 117, Psalm 122, Psalm 125, Psalm 130, Psalm 132:13-16, Psalm 136:21-22, Psalm 148:14, Psalm 149
3) THE PROPHETS:
2 Samuel 7:11-16, 2 Samuel 23:3-5
Isaiah 1:26-27, Isaiah 2:1-5, Isaiah 4:2-6, Isaiah 9:6-7, Isaiah 11:1-12, Isaiah 12:1-6, Isaiah 25:1-9, Isaiah 32:15-20, Isaiah 33:5-6, Isaiah 33:17-22, Isaiah 35:1-10, Isaiah 40:1-11, Isaiah 42:5-13, Isaiah 43:1-3, Isaiah 44:1-8, Isaiah 45:17-25, Isaiah 46:8-11, Isaiah 49:1-26, Isaiah 51:1-6, Isaiah 52:1-12, Isaiah 54:1-17, Isaiah 55:1-3, Isaiah 59:15-21, Isaiah 60:1-22, Isaiah 61:2-11, Isaiah 62:1-12, Isaiah 65:1-25, Isaiah 66:7-24
Jeremiah 3:16-17, Jeremiah 7:7, Jeremiah 16:14-15, Jeremiah 23:3-8, Jeremiah 30:1-24, Jeremiah 31:1-14, Jeremiah 31:31-38, Jeremiah 32:6-44, Jeremiah 33:6-25, Jeremiah 50:4-5
Ezekiel 11:17-20, Ezekiel 16:60-63, Ezekiel 17:22-24; Ezekiel 20:40-41, Ezekiel 34:23-31, Ezekiel 36:1-38, Ezekiel 37:1-28, Ezekiel 38:1-23, Ezekiel 39:1-29, Ezekiel 40-48
Daniel 2:40-45, Daniel 7:17-27, Daniel 9:24-27, Daniel 11:36-45, Daniel 12:1-13
Hosea 1:10-11, Hosea 2:16-23, Hosea 3:5, Hosea 14:4-7
Joel 2:27-32, Joel 3:12-21
Amos 9:13-15
Obadiah 15-21
Micah 2:12-13, Micah 4:1-8, Micah 5:1-5, Micah 7:14-22
Habakkuk 2:13-14
Zephaniah 1:14-18, Zephaniah 3:14-20
Haggai 2:4-9, Haggai 2:20-23
Zechariah 1:14-17, Zechariah 2:1-12, Zechariah 3:8-10, Zechariah 4:11-14, Zechariah 6:12-13, Zechariah 8:1-23, Zechariah 9:9-17, Zechariah 10:1-12, Zechariah 12:1-14, Zechariah 13:1-9, Zechariah 14:1-21
Malachi 1:11, Malachi 3:16-18, Malachi 4:1-6
(ALL THESE VERSES WILL LITERALLY BE FULFILLED IN THE FUTURE.)
Here is some more information and more clues that you will help you to find and understand the great and hidden treasure that God has for us in the Old Testament.
1. The truth that is discovered in these verses is to be taken literally. This is God’s Word and it needs to be taken at face value. You are not to try to find some deeper meaning. God’s Old Testament Word is not to be taken figuratively, it is not to be spiritualized, and it is not to be allegorized. Yes, there are figures of speech, similes and metaphors, but these are common writing tools that are used to illustrate the truth, making it easier to understand.
2. The Old Testament gives us a mother lode of information about the future. It is no small subject, for there are literally over 1000 verses covering the end times, the 2nd coming of Christ, and the 1000 year kingdom. This great amount of information alone should motivate every Christian to take the time to read and study it, and then see how it relates to the future of the church. Indeed, this will be a golden age, a most glorious time, for the King of kings will be reigning over this earth, and as Christians, we will be reigning with Him.
3. This Old Testament treasure relates directly to the promises given by God to Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3), David (2 Samuel 7:11-16), and Jeremiah (Jeremiah 31:31-38). These promises speak about Jesus Christ, the salvation of a remnant of Jews, the Jews inheriting land, and the Jews having a great number of descendants. The focus of all these verses is on the Jews, and that in the future, Christ the King will reign over them and over the entire world.
4. The information found in these Old Testament verses is first and foremost about Jesus Christ. But it is also about four future time periods that Christ is personally involved with – the end times, the 2nd coming of Christ, the day of the Lord, and the 1000 year kingdom age on earth. It is important to remember this as you are putting the puzzle pieces of truth together, for then you will be able to see the entire treasure, and begin to grasp the great and rich blessing that will be for the Jews, for all believers, and for the entire world. Most importantly though, it is for the glory of God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. “The earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.” Habakkuk 2:14
5. A motivation for being involved in this Old Testament treasure hunt is knowing that you are an integral part of all that God is doing during these end time church days, as well as during the entire kingdom age. In this age to come, all Christians will be glorified and will be serving Jesus Christ. We will be going from here to there, flying from place to place, using our gifts and abilities to serve the Lord and people on this earth, with the result that God the Father and Jesus Christ His Son, will be glorified like never before. Revelation 5:12-13
6. The prophets were extremely interested in these prophecies about Jesus Christ, but they didn’t fully understand it. They knew that what they had written was precious, but they couldn’t grasp how it all fit together. Peter talks about this – “As to this salvation, the prophets who prophesied of the grace that would come to you made careful searches and inquiries, seeking to know what person or time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Christ, and the glories to follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, in these things which have now been announced to you… things into which angels long to look.” 1 Peter 1:10-12.
It is quite obvious that the prophets were very excited about what they had written with regards to the Messiah’s future, both His suffering and His glories. But do you realize that Peter was talking about those living in this church age when he said, “they were not serving themselves, but you, in these things which now have been announced to you…” That means us! Church age believers like us have the distinct advantage of being able to look back and see clearly that there are two comings of Christ. We know now that His suffering is over, but that He is coming again, and then His glories will be seen over the entire earth, and for all eternity. And since we are alive at the end of this church age, since we are living in the end times, then we should be super excited to be learning about Christ and the future God has for us. What a great time to be alive, and to know that Christ is returning soon, and that it won’t be long before Old Testament prophecies and promises will be coming true.
7. Finally, we need to read Jesus’ instructive and motivating words to these two men on the road to Emmaus. Jesus could’ve said a lot of things to these men, but what did He say? “ ‘O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer all these things and to enter into His glory?’ Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.” Luke 24:25-27. Now what did Jesus say? First, He chastises these men for not knowing what the Law and the Prophets said about Himself. He says they are “foolish men and slow of heart to believe” all that the prophets had spoken. Then He reminded them that He had to suffer. Then He used the Old Testament, and in particular the Law and the Prophets, to explain to them what it said about Himself. What’s interesting is that Jesus uses all the prophets and all the Scriptures to instruct these men about Himself. This must have been an extensive, enlightening and most encouraging Bible study – I sure would’ve loved to have been there.
But there’s more. Shortly after Jesus appears to these two men He appears to His eleven disciples. Notice what He says to them: “ ‘These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.’ Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.” Luke 24:44-45. Jesus’ instruction to His disciples is similar to what He had just said to these previous two men. He tells them that the truth about Himself is to be discovered in the Law and the Prophets, but here He adds the Psalms. And again He gives them a Bible study. We learn that the Law, the Psalms and the Prophets are essential if we are to learn about Jesus Christ. We learn that God has to open our minds, that we can’t by ourselves understand God’s Word. We also see that all that is written in the Old Testament about Christ must be fulfilled. I want you to notice too that the apostle Paul used the Law and the Prophets to teach the people about Jesus Christ. In Acts 28:23 we read, “He (Paul) was explaining to them by solemnly testifying about the kingdom of God and trying to persuade them concerning Jesus, from both the Law of Moses and from the Prophets, from morning to evening.”
It is imperative that Christians love and live by the truths of the entire Bible. And in this short article, I want you to know that I am not at all trying to minimize the importance of the New Testament. My goal is to always maximize the truth of both the New Testament AND the Old Testament. But my focus here is the Old Testament. My encouragement to you is to read the Old Testament, and specifically the Law, the Psalms and the Prophets, for there you will learn a great deal of valuable information about Jesus Christ and the future God has for you. And if you want a place to start, then go back to the verses that I already listed out for you. There is no doubt that the truths, promises and prophesies of the Old Testament ought to be like silver and gold to you. “Look for it as silver and search for it as hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding.” Proverbs 2:4-6
We have a spiritual treasure in the Bible. Do you see it for what it really is? Do you see what it means? Do you see how it talks about Jesus Christ, and the future of this world, the age to come, and the great glory that will then be given to Jesus Christ, our Lord, Savior and King? This valuable truth that is found in the Law, the Psalms and the Prophets, will undoubtedly enrich your lives.