If anyone examines the over 300 prophecies given about the coming of Christ in the Old Testament—centuries before the actual birth of Christ—they would soon have to acknowledge that the Bible is the Word of God.
Principles of Probability
The field of statistics and probability has its rules, definitions, and formulas that can be used to predict possible outcomes and events or combinations of these. To determine probability, you need to analyze by adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing the data that describes the original events. You may have a process for making predictions and do this so often that it’s automatic. The better you understand the ideas behind the formulas, the more likely you’ll be able to use them successfully.
Probability is the branch of mathematics concerning events and their likelihood of occurring. The theory of probability has been debated for
centuries: in 1600, French mathematicians used the rules of probability to place and win bets. Subsequently, the knowledge of probability has significantly evolved and is now an essential tool for statistics.
Properly applied, the laws of probability can give us insight into the workings of nature and our everyday world. Probability tells us how often events will happen after many repeated trials. You experience probability when you flip a coin, roll dice, or look at a weather forecast.
Today, mathematical probability is used by companies in insurance, health, economics, science, investment, psychology, statistics, leisure, and entertainment—you name it—to make important decisions. Another way to explain this concept would be to ask, “What are the odds that something could happen?” Let’s look at an example of statistical probability.
One of the greatest proofs of the Bible’s authenticity is the study of statistics regarding the laws of common probability. Take one single event that would be predicted about Jesus Christ (New Testament recordings) in the Old Testament. Say that laws of probability revealed the chance of this single event occurring randomly was 1:5. If another event in the Old Testament about Jesus Christ had the probability of 1:10, the chances of these occurring together in sequence is five multiplied by 10. So, the combined chance of both of these events or prophecies occurring in order
is 1:50.
We’ll review 17 easily understood prophecies in the Old Testament. The fulfillment of these 17 prophecies related to a single individual is an astronomical absurdity. Together, the chance of these predictions occurring is a combined probability of one in 480,000,000,000,000,000,000,000- 000,000,000, or one chance in 480 billion x 1 billion x 1 trillion!
If we take 48 of the major predictions regarding the promised Messiah, the number would be so large that our minds could not comprehend it. The conservative odds are the number 1 followed by 157 zeros.
So, why do so many still question the validity of the Bible? The fact is that people are willingly ignorant and fail to consider even the most obvious proofs. Recognizing that the Word of God is true puts people in a position of accountability and dependence—and that requires introspection, change, and even a transformation of someone’s life.
The following 17 prophecies are some predictions given about Jesus Christ, centuries before He lived.
| Old Testament Prophecy | New Testament Fulfillment | |
| 1. | Jesus would be born in Bethlehem from the tribe of Judah (Micah 5:2, Genesis 49:10). | Jesus was born in Bethlehem from the tribe of Judah (Matthew 2:1). |
| 2. | Jesus would be preceded by a messenger (Isaiah 40:3). | John the Baptist came as the messenger announcing Christ (Matthew 3:1-2). |
| 3. | Jesus would enter Jerusalem on a donkey (Zechariah 9:9). | On Palm Sunday, Jesus entered Jerusalem on a donkey (Luke 19:35-37). |
| 4. | Jesus would be betrayed by a friend (Psalm 41:9). | Judas betrayed Jesus (Matthew 26:47-48). |
| 5. | Jesus’s hands and feet would be pierced (Psalm 22:16). | As Jesus was hung on the cross, His hands and feet were pierced (Luke 23:33). |
| 6. | Christ’s enemies would wound Him (Isaiah 53:5). | Christ was scourged with a slow torture (Matthew 27:26). |
| 7. | Jesus would be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver (Zechariah 11:12). | Judas was paid 30 pieces of silver (Matthew 26:15). |
| 8. | Jesus would be spat upon and beaten (Isaiah 50:6). | Christ was humiliated (Matthew 26:67). |
| 9. | Potter’s Field betrayal money would be thrown in the temple (Zechariah 11:13). | Judas threw the money in the temple (Matthew 27:5-7). |
| 10. | Jesus would be silent before His accusers (Isaiah 53:7). | He had no guilt, yet Jesus remained silent (Matthew 27:12-14). |
| 11. | Jesus would be crucified with thieves (Isaiah 53:12). | Two thieves were crucified with Jesus (Matthew 27:38). |
| 12. | They would gamble for Jesus’s garments (Psalm 22:18). | Soldiers cast lots for Jesus’s garments (John 19:23-24). |
| 13. | The side of Christ would be pierced (Zechariah 12:10). | Jesus’s side was pierced with a spear (John 19:34). |
| 14. | None of Jesus’s bones would be broken (Psalm 34:20). | Although it was customary, they did not break Jesus’s legs or His bones (John 19:33). |
| 15. | Jesus’s flesh would remain whole, with no decay (Psalm 16:10). | Jesus’s flesh was not corrupted (Acts 2:31). |
| 16. | Jesus would be buried in a rich man’s tomb (Isaiah 53:9). | A rich man asked for Jesus’s body and buried Him in a tomb (Matthew 27:57-60). |
| 17. | The earth would be covered in darkness (Amos 8:9). | The sky darkened over the crucifixion scene (Matthew 27:45). |
REMEMBER: These 17 predictions (astronomical phenomenon) give usa combined probability of one chance in 480,000,000,000,000,000,000,000- 000,000,000 or one chance in 480 billion x 1 billion x 1 trillion. And there are over 300 fulfilled prophecies in the Bible. No other religious writing can make this claim.
God set in His Word the exact plan and coming of the Messiah, years before He physically came to earth. To the believer it is a confidence builder; to the searcher, it is powerful information that cannot be ignored. The Kingdom of God was brought to mankind in a very deliberate, calculated, and specific way—promised and delivered. These predictions were fulfilled by and through a divine plan, not by chance!
POINT TO PONDER: “I prefer to believe those writers who get their throats cut for what they write.” (Blaise Pascal, French philosopher and mathematician, developed the modern theory of probability, 1623-1662)