Even the way that story has been told is unique. Some of it has been told in advance, before it happened. The Jewish prophets saw visions of the future which they attributed to divine foreknowledge. "I (God) told you these things long ago; before they happened I announced them to you." (Isaiah 48:5 NIV) The Bible contains specific prophetic predictions about the future, and much of that prophecy focuses on Israel.

If the Bible is, as it claims, the divinely inspired Word of God, we would expect corroboration of what the prophets foresaw by the testimony of history.

The empirical evidence does indeed demonstrate a remarkable correlation between the predictions of the Bible, and the experiences of the Jewish people.

• The Bible predicted the Jewish people would suffer a long exile from their ancient homeland.

• The Bible predicted the magnificent Temple, their center for worship of the God of Israel, would be destroyed at the beginning of that exile.

• The Bible predicted an extended period when the Jewish people would live without kings, priests, or Temple sacrifices.

• The Bible predicted the physical deterioration of the promised land itself during the long exile. The area promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, once called the Beautiful Land, would become incredibly desolate.

• The Bible predicted that that Jewish people in exile would be treated as pariahs among the nations, never accepted. Their existence there would be characterized by misery, dread, and despair.

• The Bible predicted that during that period of Diaspora, the Jews would be repeatedly expelled from one nation after another.

• The Bible predicted that the Jewish people would suffer incomparable persecution and barbaric slaughter at the hands of the gentiles, who would try to justify their brutality as God's punishment against the Jews.

• The Bible predicted that despite the difficulties, the Jewish people would never lose their national identity during that long period estranged from their land, unlike the many ancient peoples who have ceased to exist.

• The Bible predicted that after such a long time wandering among the nations, the Jews would be gathered back to their land, an event that would be regarded around the world as incredible, unprecedented, miraculous.

• The Bible predicted that those Jews who returned to form a nation in the land promised to Abraham would be ferociously opposed by their malicious neighbors.

• The Bible predicted the specific area of land the world now calls the "West Bank" would be the object of particular contention by parties who try to violently seize it for themselves. Those parties would gain worldwide support in their attempt to take Israel's land, and Israel would become the object of international scorn because of this conflict.

• The Bible predicted the "Holy Mountain" where the Temple had once stood would be usurped by hostile entities who would flaunt their possession of it.

• The Bible predicted that the land which had laid desolate for a long time would flourish and blossom physically when the Jews returned.

• The Bible predicted that in the end days, Jerusalem would increasingly become the focus of world attention and dispute.

• The Bible predicted that in a final showdown with the rebellious nations, God Himself comes down and defends Jerusalem. He defeats all His enemies in a spectacular display of power. When His last foe is vanquished, He commences His rule, a kingdom of peace and righteousness on earth.

All but the last of these predictions has been fulfilled. It also will be.

What are the odds of all these very specific predictions, penned two to three thousand years ago, coming true? The only plausible explanation for the source of the predictions is a supernatural being outside of our time dimension, who could see all the future in a glance.

God.

This should convince us that the Holy Bible is absolutely reliable. We can personally rely on what God has communicated to us.

The predictions that were cited above are only a small portion of the prophecies of the Bible. Many other prophecies are still unfulfilled; they speak of events yet future.

Regarding the nation of Israel, the prophets foresaw the restoration process still in progress today. The return of the Jewish people back to their promised land is incomplete. The heart of that land is where the world wants to create a Palestinian state. But God says otherwise.

Since His other pronouncements about Israel's future have come true, we can expect that all of them will. If you think the list cited earlier was remarkable, you will be very impressed with what God has yet in mind to do.

But don't take my word for it. Discover for yourself the riches of the Bible. You need not learn secondhand what God's plans are. He intends to reveal them to you personally, if you have eyes to see.

Copyright 2005 Trumpet Sounds, All Rights Reserved.