Prophecies of Jesus' Birth
By Paul Robison 

      Someone once wrote: “All the armies that ever marched, all the navies that ever sailed, all the parliaments that ever sat, and all the kings that ever reigned, put together, have not affected the life of man upon this earth as powerfully as has this one solitary life.” That one solitary figure was Jesus. Christianity is unique among world religions since it not only shows God reaching down to man but also proclaims Jesus as its centerpiece. The story of Jesus is found in the four gospels of the New Testament  (the most reliable documents on record from the ancient world). Combining the accounts in these four gospels gives us an interesting picture of Jesus' life. Let's try to understand the world and culture of Jesus' day in order to better understand His life and ministry. Centuries before His birth, God had revealed the coming of the Messiah through the Jewish prophets. Micah predicted the place of the Messiah's birth would be Bethlehem (Micah 5:2). Isaiah predicted there would be a forerunner to announce the coming of the Messiah (Isaiah 40:3). Jeremiah predicted that the Messiah's family line would be the royal family of King David (Jeremiah 23:5). Daniel predicted the establishment of the Messiah’s kingdom to be during the era of the Roman’s rule (Daniel 2:44). All of these supernatural prophecies were uniquely fulfilled at Jesus' birth: He was born in Bethlehem during a time of Roman taxation; His family had the royal blood of King David's family; John the Baptizer, a cousin of Jesus, later served as His forerunner! These predictions cannot be applied to any other person who has ever lived. God revealed His plan to send a savior into the world through His prophets, and only Jesus' birth squares exactly with those prophecies!