On August 13, (or day 225 if you are not following the Bible studies by date) we began studying Bible prophecies that have a lot of symbolism. Now, in the 2nd week of September (day 254), we began studying the book of Zechariah in these one-year daily chronological Bible studies. In interpreting Bible prophecy, here are 6 essential things you should know.
1. Nature of Bible Prophecy
Bible prophecy was first a proclamation (a forth- telling) of God’s message for the people of that time. Because of Israel’s sins, most prophecies began with a message of judgment, urging his people to repent, and then ended with words of comfort. The LORD never left the Israelites without future hope. He often drew back the curtain of the future to show the people of Israel what will happen to them and to other nations.
2. Double Fulfillment of Prophecy
Prophecies of the Bible usually have a near fulfillment, which is partial, and a distant fulfillment, which is always complete. In the prophecies of the Bible, it is not always clear which is partial, or a model of things to come, and which is future. The immediate context and correlation with other similar Bible texts and contexts are the keys to interpretation.
3. Context of Prophecy
Not all prophecies are in their chronological order. The context of each Scripture passage is, therefore, crucial to interpreting future events.
4. Correlations between Prophecies
Comparisons between prophecies and their fulfillment are vital to interpretation. One prophecy will often shed more light on the interpretation of another prophecy.
5. Literal Fulfillment of Prophecy
Since five hundred of the 1,000 prophecies of the Bible have been fulfilled literally, we can expect the next five hundred to also be fulfilled literally (Every Prophecy in the Bible by John F. Walvoord, “Introduction,” Victor, ©1999)
6. Symbolism in Prophecy
Some predictions are couched in symbolism, such as numbers and metaphorical expressions. Again, context and correlation with other Bible texts give us clues for interpretation.
Do you struggle with any particular prophecies? Perhaps, if you post your question in the comments section, we can help each other come up with a Biblical solution.
Do you want to know more about the Bible? Here are some links that might interest you:
11 unique Bible Types for your enrichment
Three ways to recognize the work of the Holy Spirit
Pingback: 15 reasons to love these unique chronological Bible studies