• His dying words were foretold (Psalm 22:1; see Matthew 27:46).
• He would die with criminals (Isaiah 53:9, 12; see Luke 22:37).
• His death would be for the salvation of mankind (Isaiah 53:6; see 1 Corinthians 15:3).
• He would rise from the dead the third day (Psalm 16:10). Jesus confirmed the Resurrection by referring to past Scriptures (Luke 24:46); Peter confirmed it by quoting David's prophecy (Acts 2:25–32).
Prophecy to Be Fulfilled
The prophecies yet to be fulfilled largely concern the return of Jesus Christ. "This hope," says the writer of Hebrews, "we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast" (Hebrews 6:19).
Billy Graham writes: "The importance of the hope of Christ's return is established by the frequency, extent, and intensity of its mention in the Bible. It is mentioned in all but four books of the New Testament. Christ referred constantly to His return, not only to His disciples, but to others as well. He said to the high priest, 'Hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven' (Matthew 26:64).
"One out of every thirty verses in the Bible mentions this subject. There are 318 references to it in 216 chapters of the New Testament. One-twentieth of the entire New Testament deals with this subject. It was predicted by most of the Old Testament writers: by Moses (Deuteronomy 33:2), by Job (Job 19:25), by David (Psalm 102:16), by Isaiah (Isaiah 59:20), by Jeremiah (Jeremiah 23:5), by Daniel (Daniel 7:13–14), by Zechariah (Zechariah 14:4), and by many others."
There are differing views concerning future prophecies. Instead of arguing about them, let us remember that "no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation" (2 Peter 1:20). We believe, however, that the socalled "premillennial" view offers the most comprehensive explanation of coming events. According to this view:
1. Christ's coming is imminent: It could occur at any time (Matthew 24:42–44; 1 Corinthians 15:52; Revelation 22:12).
2. The first stage of His coming is known as the "Rapture": "We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. . . . For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will