Chapter II

The Testimony of Jesus the Spirit of Prophecy The Declarations of the Ancient Servants
of God Extracts from the Writings and Testimonies of Moses, Job, David, Isaiah,
Zechariah, Micah and Hosea, to be found in the Old Testament, with remarks.
In the chapter of Lukes Gospel, to which we have already referred, speaking of
Jesus, it is written, Beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in
all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.
If this be taken in the fullest sense, and we know of no reason why it should not thus
be received, there is a great principle developed, which is, that not only Moses, but all the
Prophets, testified concerning the coming Redeemer. As elsewhere stated, this must have
been the case, for we are told that the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy; and
this being admitted, how could they have the spirit of prophecy, or be Prophets without
having the testimony of Jesus? And we are told further that the Prophets sought what
manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified
beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow. 1 Peter, i, 11.
These scriptures evidently show that the testimony of Jesus was the very principle,
essence and power of the spirit of prophecy whereby they were inspired.
We find a great many statements corroborative of these facts in those portions of the
writings and prophecies of the ancient servants of God, that have been handed down to us
in the Old Testament, and from these testimonies we select a few to show how various and
how detailed have been the inspired utterances regarding the life and death of the Messiah.
The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy
brethren, like unto me, [Moses,] unto him ye shall hearken. * * * And the Lord said unto
me, They have well spoken that which they have spoken. I will raise them up a Prophet
from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall
speak unto them all that I shall command him. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever
will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him.
Deut., xviii, 15, 1719.
For I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon
the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see
God: Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my
reins be consumed within me. Job, xix, 2527.
Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the
earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against his
Anointed, saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. He
that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall he
speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure. Yet have I set my king
upon my holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree: the Lord hath said unto me, Thou art
my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine
inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Thou shalt break them
with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potters vessel. Be wise now
therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear, and
rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his

wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him. Psalm ii, 1
12.
While the first portion of the above psalm refers to the Anointed of the Lord, and
matters that would take place at His first appearing, still many of the things, therein
mentioned, have not yet transpired. The same may be said of the following passages from
Zechariah, which speak of His being pierced and of His rejection by the Jews as a thing
accomplished, when at that time these events had not taken place. But it does prove that His
people would reject and pierce Him, and that afterwards when He should come as their
deliverer (like Joseph, whom his brethren sold, appeared as their deliverer in Egypt), they
should look upon Him whom they had pierced.
And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem,
the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have
pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in
bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his first born. Zech., xii, 10.
And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thy hands? Then he shall
answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends. Zech., xiii, 6.
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be
upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God,
The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace
there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to
establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even forever. The zeal of the
Lord of hosts will perform this. Isaiah, ix, 6, 7.
Therefore, the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive,
and beat a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. Isaiah, vii, 14.
The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies
thy footstool. The Lord shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion; rule thou in the midst
of thine enemies. Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of
holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth. The Lord hath
sworn and will not repent, Thou art a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.
Psalm cx, 14.
Thou lovest righteousness, and hatest wickedness: therefore God, thy God, hath
anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. Psalm xlv, 7.
And the Redeemer shall come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression
in Jacob, saith the Lord. Isaiah, lix, 20.
Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I
have put my Spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles. He shall not cry,
nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street. A bruised reed shall he not break,
and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth. He shall
not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for
his law. Thus saith God the Lord, he that created the heavens and stretched them out; he
that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it; he that giveth breath unto the
people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein: I the Lord have called thee in
righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of
the people, for a light of the Gentiles; to open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from
the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house. I am the Lord; that is my
name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images. Behold,
the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I

tell you of them. Isaiah, xlii, 19.

Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed? For
he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no
form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire
him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and
we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he
hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of
God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our
iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord
hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he
opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her
shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from
judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the
living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. And he made his grave with the
wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any
deceit in his mouth. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when
thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days,
and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul,
and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he
shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall
divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was
numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the
transgressors. Isaiah, liii, 112.
Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy
king cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and
upon a colt the foal of an ass. Zech., ix, 9.
And I said unto them, If ye think good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So
they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver. Zech., xi, 12.
When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt.
Hosea, xi, 1.
Regarding which prophecy Matthew writes, When he arose he took the young
child [Jesus] and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt: and was there until the
death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the Prophet,
saying, Out of Egypt have I called my Son. Matthew, ii, 14, 15.
Thus saith the Lord; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping;
Rachel weeping for her children, refused to be comforted for her children, because they
were not. Jeremiah, xxxi, 15.
The same evangelist refers also to the fulfilment of this prophecy: Then Herod,
when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and
slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years
old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men. Then
was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, In Ramah was there a
voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her
children, and would not be comforted, because they are not. Matthew, ii, 1618.
But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah,
yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be Ruler in Israel; whose goings forth

have been from of old, from everlasting. Micah, v, 2.

Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope.
For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see
corruption. Psalm xvi, 9, 10.
This expression of the Psalmist evidently refers to the resurrection of the Son of
God. It is so quoted by Paul in his sermon at Antioch: And we declare unto you glad
tidings, how that the promise which was made unto the fathers, God hath fulfilled the same
unto us their children, in that he hath raised up Jesus again; as it is also written in the
second psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee. And as concerning that he
raised him up from the dead, now no more to return to corruption, he said on this wise, I
will give you the sure mercies of David. Wherefore he saith also in another psalm, Thou
shalt not suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. For David, after he had served his own
generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw
corruption. But he, whom God raised again, saw no corruption. Acts, xiii, 3237.
The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to
preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to
proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; to
proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort
all that mourn; to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for
ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they
might be called Trees of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that he might be
glorified. Isaiah, lxi, 13.
This prophecy is referred to in the following incident in the life of Jesus, narrated by
Luke:
And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was,
he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read. And there was
delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he
found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath
anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to
preach deliverance to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them
that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And he closed the book, and he
gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the
synagogue were fastened on him. And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture
fulfilled in your ears. Luke, iv, 1621.
Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors; and the
King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the
Lord mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O ye gates; even lift them up, ye everlasting
doors; and the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts,
he is the King of glory, Selah. Psalm xxiv, 710.
The above is made much more plain in the inspired version, where it appears as
follows:
Lift up your heads, O ye generations of Jacob; and be ye lifted up; and the Lord
strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle, who is the King of glory, shall establish you
for ever. And he will roll away the heavens, and will come down to redeem his people, to
make you an everlasting name, to establish you upon his everlasting rock. Lift up your
heads, O ye generations of Jacob; lift up your heads, ye everlasting generations, and the
Lord of hosts, the King of kings, even the King of glory, shall come unto you; and shall

redeem his people, and shall establish them in righteousness. Selah.