Building Bible Confidence: Part 13

Jonathan Edwards
Apr 28
5 min read

Part 13: The Promised Messiah Revealed (Part 1)

Introduction: Timothy and the Messiah

When Paul wrote his final letter to the young evangelist Timothy, he provided insight into his conversion. Paul recalled how Timothy was raised and trained through a family faith:

You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. (2 Timothy 3:14-15, see also 2 Timothy 1:5).

A brief timeline of Timothy’s youth reveals something interesting: He was saved by grace through faith in Jesus before there were any written gospels. That means there was no sacred writings about Jesus in the New Testament canon during Timothy’s childhood (based on Acts 16:1-2 and the traditional timeline of the New Testament writings). The gospels were written between 50-70AD. What kind of sacred writings did Timothy have from childhood that were able to lead to a salvation through faith in Jesus?

Faith in Jesus Based on the Old Testament

The sacred writings of the Old Testament are valuable for showing us examples of faithful and unfaithful people (Romans 15:4, 1 Corinthians 10:6, Philippians 3:17). But an even greater value is the promise, foreshadowing, and need of the Messiah. Timothy was raised with the old law. When he heard the gospel of Jesus, he “connected the dots” of faith based on the promise of the Messiah from the Old Testament. He concluded as Jesus said:

These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled, (Luke 24:44).

The Old Testament points directly to Jesus. As we prepare to consider a small portion of the references to the Messiah, let’s pause for a moment and consider the beauty of the Scriptures. Chris Harrison rendered a massive 63,779 cross references between the Old and New Testaments. This includes the Messianic references we are about to study. According to Harrison:

The bar chart that runs along the bottom represents all of the chapters in the Bible, starting with Genesis 1 on the left. Books alternate in color between light and dark gray, with the first book of the Old and New Testaments in white... Each of the 63,779 cross references found in the Bible are depicted by a single arc - the color corresponds to the distance between the two chapters, creating a rainbow-like effect (Harrison, 2025).

Such an image captures the wonder and complexity of the Scriptures. It provides the scope for how much God had planned. Let’s turn our attention now to the promises about the Messiah. While the promised Messiah may not be the main focus of every moment in the Old Testament, the overarching theme of redemption and the need for God’s intervention is at the heart of the Testament. Scholars suggest as many as 400 references to Jesus, the redemption plan, or some other messianic reference. For brevity and organization, We will observe one reference per Old Testament book. The criteria of this observation are as follows:

(A) The sacrifice and/or priest element of the Messiah

(B) The kingdom(ship)/reign/covenant of the Messiah

(D) The lineage and/or life history of the Messiah

(E) ‘Types’ of Messiah (to be fulfilled in the anti-type)

The Promised Messiah Revealed in Old Testament Books of Law

The first section of the Old Testament is primarily about God's covenants with the patriarchs and the beginning of the Israelite nation. Within the narrative history and the specific laws themselves are numerous references to the Messiah.

In Genesis -- Protoevangelium (A)

And I will put enmity between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel (Genesis 3:15).

The protoevangelium (a Greek compound of “first” + “gospel”) was the first reference to the gospel plan. Jesus was the seed and the devil bruised Him by crucifixion. Figuratively, Jesus’ sacrifice crushed, or bruised, the head of the devil (see Romans 16:20, Colossians 1:13).

In Exodus – the Passover Lamb (A+E)

Go and take for yourselves lambs according to your families, and slay the Passover lamb. You shall take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood which is in the basin, and apply some of the blood that is in the basin to the lintel and the two doorposts; and none of you shall go outside the door of his house until morning (Exodus 12:21-22).

In addition to painting their door posts in blood, the Israelites ate a special meal inside as the Lord’s wrath passed over them. This foreshadowed the sacrifice of Jesus. He is our “Passover lamb.” His blood is our spiritual protection (see 1 Corinthians 5:7, 1 Peter 1:18-19).

In Leviticus – The Great High Priest (A+E)

Then Aaron shall offer the bull of the sin offering which is for himself and make atonement for himself and for his household, and he shall slaughter the bull of the sin offering which is for himself (Leviticus 16:11).

The first section of the Old Testament is primarily about God’s covenants with the patriarchs and the Israelite nation. Within the narrative history and the specific laws themselves are numerous references to the Messiah.

In Numbers – The Bronze Serpent (E)

And the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live (Numbers 21:8-9).

Jesus referenced this action in John 3:13-15. The antitype of the bronze serpent was Jesus crucified. He was lifted up and all who look upon Him (an obedient faith) will be saved.

In Deuteronomy – A Prophet Like Moses (E)

I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him (Deuteronomy 18:15)

Moses was a type of Jesus in many ways. They both escaped death as a child from a tyrant. They both were a deliverer of a people from bondage. They both were a law giver and mediator of a covenant with God. However, it was their connection as a prophet that is revealed by God in Deuteronomy 15. Jesus referenced and fulfilled this in John 12:48-50.

* Image Source: “Bible Cross-References.” Chris Harrison | BibleViz, www.chrisharrison.net/index.php/visualizations/BibleViz. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.

**This article was taken from The Bible Series, a twelve-part study written by Jonathan Edwards. This study is available for free PDF download at www.pureandsimplebible.com