Many Old Testament Prophecies covered a whole gamut of themes, from things specific to the prophets' own circumstances, to Israel's captivity and restoration, to Messiah's first coming and second coming - and sometimes all in the same passage.
Sometimes the Prophets wrote in straight prose - but other times they described visions which from the start were intended somewhat symbolically.
The Prophets themselves probably didn't fully understand exactly when and how their own Prophecies would all pan out - the themes, details, sequences, timeframes, etc.
Even the disciples, despite being raised on Biblical Prophecy, and despite spending three years with the Messiah Himself, still did not understood that Messiah had to die - until after His resurrection, then they understood it.
Very few godly men and prophets, if any, understood at first that Messiah was to come twice.
Those are only some of the biggest themes in Old Testament Prophecy - yet it probably wasn't possible for someone to know just by reading the Old Testament Prophecies alone, that all those things even had to happen at all, let alone when or how and in what order.
So, it probably isn't possible to properly understand Old Testament Prophecies, except in the light of the teaching in the New Testament. Old Testament Prophecy can only be rightly applied within the framework of New Testament theology. Unless we're smarter than the disciples and prophets.
It just can't be - no matter how good our grammar is. It wasn't meant to be. Some things were kept hidden on purpose. A mystery.
But Jesus Christ came to reveal it. He expounded the Scriptures to His disciples after His resurrection. Their hearts burned within them while He opened up the entire Old Testament to them.
The Apostles derived their take on Old Testament Prophecy, from the Lord Himself. We can hear their take on it, by reading their assertions, in their sermons, in the Book of Acts.
As the work of the early Church progressed, the Holy Spirit made additional things clearer to them - such as God's plan to include the Gentiles. Jesus had said earlier that He had more things to tell the disciples but they were not able to bear them at the time, and that the Spirit of truth Whom He would send would guide them into all truth. We can see that happening in the Book of Acts, and we can read all about the Holy Spirit's guidance, and the decisions decreed by the Apostles and elders for the churches, in Acts.
It's called 'the Apostles' doctrine'. The Apostles explain it for us in detail in their Epistles. They proclaimed, decreed and explained the manner in which Old Testament Prophecy was seeing its fulfilment. They were eyewitnesses, taught by the Lord Himself from the Scriptures, and guided by the Holy Spirit - they called it the Gospel.
Today there are all sort of takes on Old Testament Prophecy. Some say Israel's salvation is still future, and that it must include a return to Levitical sacrifices; others spiritualise all those details in Prophecy. The Apostles' approach wasn't exactly either of those.
Many Old Testament Prophecies covered a whole gamut of themes, from things specific to their own circumstances, to Israel's captivity and restoration, to Messiah's first coming and second coming - and sometimes all in the same passage.
Sometimes the Prophets wrote in straight prose - but other times they described visions which from the start were intended somewhat symbolically.
The Prophets themselves probably didn't fully understand exactly when and how their own Prophecies would all pan out - the themes, details, sequences, timeframes, etc.
Even the disciples, despite being raised on Biblical Prophecy, and despite spending three years with the Messiah Himself, still did not understood that Messiah had to die - until after His resurrection, then they understood it.
Very few godly men and prophets, if any, understood at first that Messiah was to come twice.
Those are only some of the biggest themes in Old Testament Prophecy - yet it probably wasn't possible for someone to know just by reading the Old Testament Prophecies alone, that all those things even had to happen at all, let alone when or how and in what order.
So, it probably isn't possible to properly understand Old Testament Prophecies, except in the light of the teaching in the New Testament. Old Testament Prophecy can only be rightly applied within the framework of New Testament theology. Unless we're smarter than the disciples and prophets.
It just can't be - no matter how good our grammar is. It wasn't meant to be. Some things were kept hidden on purpose. A mystery.
But Jesus Christ came to reveal it. He expounded the Scriptures to His disciples after His resurrection. Their hearts burned within them while He opened up the entire Old Testament to them.
The Apostles derived their take on Old Testament Prophecy, from the Lord Himself. We can hear their take on it, by reading their assertions, in their sermons, in the Book of Acts.
As the work of the early Church progressed, the Holy Spirit made additional things clearer to them - such as God's plan to include the Gentiles. Jesus had said earlier that He had more things to tell the disciples but they were not able to bear them at the time, and that the Spirit of truth Whom He would send would guide them into all truth. We can see that happening in the Book of Acts, and we can read all about the Holy Spirit's guidance, and the decisions decreed by the Apostles and elders for the churches, in Acts.
It's called 'the Apostles' doctrine'. The Apostles explain it for us in detail in their Epistles. They proclaimed, decreed and explained the manner in which Old Testament Prophecy was seeing its fulfilment. They were eyewitnesses, taught by the Lord Himself from the Scriptures, and guided by the Holy Spirit - they called it the Gospel.
Today there are all sort of takes on Old Testament Prophecy. Some say Israel's salvation is still future, and that it must include a return to Levitical sacrifices; others spiritualise all those details in Prophecy. The Apostles' approach wasn't exactly either of those.
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