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Questions
On Jesus In The Old Testament
Question 1. Why is
genesis 38 included in the bible. it seems to be unrelated to the rest of the book. it
seems to be unrelated to the rest of the book. what is the point of the passage? how does
it relate to contem- porary issues?
Answer As you look
at the context, the account of Joseph in Egypt, it does look quite out of place. What does
this strange story about Judah, one of Joseph's brothers, have to do with context and how
is it important to us today?
Its importance can be stated in one word, "Messiah". The reason it is important
is, it provides the link that brings about the continuation of the Messianic lineage.
GEN 38:27 ¶ And it came about at the time she was giving birth, that behold, there were
twins in her womb.
GEN 38:28 Moreover, it took place while she was giving birth, one put out a hand, and the
midwife took and tied a scarlet thread on his hand, saying, "This one came out
first."
GEN 38:29 But it came about as he drew back his hand, that behold, his brother came out.
Then she said, "What a breach you have made for yourself!"So he was named Perez.
GEN 38:30 And afterward his brother came out who had the scarlet thread on his hand; and
he was named Zerah.
One of the twins, Perez, born to Judah and Tamar, is in the lineage of Jesus. Without
Jesus, then where would we be today as far as salvation is concerned?
MAT 1:1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
MAT 1:2 ¶ To Abraham was born Isaac; and to Isaac, Jacob; and to Jacob, Judah and his
brothers;
MAT 1:3 and to Judah were born Perez and Zerah by Tamar; and to Perez was born Hezron; and
to Hezron, Ram;
Yes, God's Word is a fascinating account of how God worked among men to bring about
salvation. Even when men did evil and it looked like the plan of God would be overturned,
God worked His plan above man's evil so that we might have an opportunity to be saved. Contact Gary
Question 2. In Jeremiah chpt.
33:17 it talks about how there will not cease to be a descendant of of David's to rule on
the throne nor a priest to offer burnt offerings.
But weren't there periods of time when this did happen. Even today there
rules in Israel people who are not descendants of David and sacrifices are not being made.
Answer This is a
question that is going to require a rather lengthy answer, but I will do my best to boil
it down as much as possible without leaving out important content.
First, let me state the answer in summary in the beginning and then consider how we get to
this answer point by point. Instead of being a literal physical promise in regard to the
Davidic reign and the Levitical priesthood, this is a spiritual promise that is now being
fulfilled in Christ Jesus. He is now ruling as King over heaven and earth and is also our
High Priest, having offered the perfect sacrifice before God, His own blood. The key
passages that teach these truths are Acts 2 and Hebrews 7. Now, how do we get there?
First, concerning Jesus becoming King, God made a promise to David that He would set one
of his descendants upon the throne and he would rule forever. 2 Sam. 7. However, in Jer.
22:24-30, God says that in Jerusalem, there would never be a descendant of David ruling on
that throne again. So, in a physical literal sense, this promise would never come to pass.
Then, In Jer. 33:15-17, we are told that one of David's descendants would rule and
prosper. But, how? The answer is in Acts 2, where we read of the apostles speaking the
gospel for the first time. Jesus, having been crucified, is raised from the dead and
seated a the right hand of God. Here, He receives all authority from God to rule over all
the nations. Instead of the throne room being in Jerusalem, it is in Heaven itself.
Although there are some who look for Jesus t one day rule on the earth, this day is not
coming for He is ruling the earth from Heaven now. His reign will end at the resurrection
of the dead on the last day. 1 Cor 15:20-28.
Then, as to Jesus being our high priest, in Gen. 14:18-24, we read a strange story of
Abram (Abraham) giving tithes to a high priest named Malchizedek. This tells us that he
was above the coming Levitical priests because Levi was a descendant of Abraham who paid
tithes to Malchizedek.
Not much is told of him again until the 110th Psalm where we read that there would be one
who would not only be a priest like Malchizedek, but would also be a king. This is Jesus
who was our perfect high priest who offered the perfect sacrifice,His own blood, so that
we might be saved from our sins. Heb. 7. Jesus is now both priest and King. And, although
He is not a literal Levitical priest, He is greater than that priesthood was, for they
needed not only to offer sacrifices for the sins of others but also for their own sins.
Heb. 5.
Therefore, although the passages in Jer. 33:15-17 seems contradictory to what actually
happened in history, there is no contradiction for all has been fulfilled in the reign of
Jesus. He is both priest and king now! Contact
Gary
Question 3. What are the promises of
Abraham?
Answer The main passage we need to look at
is found in Gen. 12:1-4. It reads as follows.
GEN 12:1 Now the Lord said to Abram, "Go forth from your country, And
from your relatives And from your father's house, To the land which I will show you; GEN
12:2 And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your name great;
And so you shall be a blessing; GEN 12:3 And I will bless those who bless you, And the one
who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.
" GEN 12:4 So Abram went forth as the Lord had spoken to him; and Lot went with him.
Now Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.
Involved in what God said to Abraham are three interrelated promises.
First, He promised to make of him a great nation, however in order to do
that, he must have offspring. So, God promised him a son and this was fulfilled in
Gen. 21 when Abraham was 100 years old.
Secondly, God promised to make of Abraham (his descendants) a great nation
(Israel). He did this by giving them a law through Moses and a land, the land of
Canaan. This was fulfilled in Joshua 21:43-45.
Then, thirdly the most important part of the promises, in fact the reason
for all the preceding, He promised to bless all nations through the seed of Abraham.
This was fulfilled in Jesus who came and provided His blood for the forgiveness of
our sins. Read carefully and joyfully Galatians 3. Contact Gary
Question 4. What does the prophecy of
Genesis 3:15 mean as it relates to the history of mankind--God's seed and the devil's see
and the birth,death and resurrection of Jesus?
Answer The woman's seed of Genesis 3:15 is
Christ. He is called the seed of woman rather than man because He was born to a virgin,
hence no earthly father.
The enmity was between Christ and Satan. "He shall bruise your head, and you shall
bruise His heel" simply looks forward to the time when Christ was crucified (His heel
was bruised, i.e, not a mortal wound) and when Satan was defeated (i.e., Christ is now
all-powerful and the devil is reserved for judgement; his head is bruised, which is a
mortal wound).
This is only possible due to the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ.
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