Is Jesus of Nazareth the Predicted Messiah?: A Historical-Evidential Approach to Specific Old Testament Messianic Prophecies and Their New Testament Fulfillments

Christians in general--and preachers of prophecy in particular--attribute the fulfillment of hundreds of Old Testament messianic prophecies to Jesus of Nazareth. Often these claims arise in the uncritical environment of Christian churches or popular literature that is treating messianic prophecy. People with critical thinking abilities and those endowed with a skeptical nature often have key questions that remain unaddressed in such environments. These thinkers and skeptics are the people that will be most interested in this work. The primary question addressed is this: Do critically acceptable historical-evidential reasons exist for believing that Jesus Christ is the direct fulfillment of some specific Old Testament messianic texts? Approaching this question within a framework that eliminates any possibility of staged prophetic fulfillment and those that may occur by mere chance or collusion produces results that must be taken seriously. Even with these strict criteria Jesus emerges as the only viable candidate to fulfill some of the prophecies included in this study. For other prophetic texts the evidence is not as abundant or convincing. However even these texts yield several minimal facts that directly impinge on New Testament claims about Jesus. Dr. Scott has presented an excellent work that validates the use of historical evidence for believing that Jesus Christ is the direct fulfillment of specific OT messianic texts. His literature research on messianic prophecy in the Old Testament is one of the most complete reviews that I have read in my studies. --Robert N. Harden Retired Dean Harrison Graduate School Southwestern Assemblies of God University Many people readily draw prophetic connections between the OT and the life of Jesus. . . . Doug Scott offers a thoughtful and critical examination of the historical credibility of such claims. . . . [This book] is of great value to anyone both Christian and non-Christian interested in the historical reliability of Christianity. --Peter J. Morgan Professor Harrison School of Graduate Studies Southwestern Assemblies of God University Few subjects regarding Jesus of Nazareth seem to receive so much positive treatment in popular circles but next to none in professional studies. In this volume Doug Scott seeks to bridge that gap by subjecting many of the popular OT texts to careful critical scrutiny. . . . Recommended. --Gary R. Habermas Distinguished Research Professor Liberty University Doug Scott has provided a work of superb scholarship and also an invaluable demonstration of the veracity of a key dimension of Christian faith. . . . This work is a significant contribution to both the church and the academy. --Randy J. Hedlun Dean Graduate School of Theology Global University Douglas D. Scott is a professor of Bible and Theology for the Global University Graduate School of Theology. His doctoral work focused on the fields of theology and apologetics. He also earned an MDiv and MS in Bible and Theology from Southwestern Assemblies of God University. His undergraduate Business Administration degree is from Colorado Christian University. Douglas Scott and his wife Suzan are originally from Colorado and currently reside in Missouri. They have one daughter (Melisa) a son-in-law (Tim) and two grandsons (Deric and Zechariah). The Scotts serve as Assemblies of God world missionaries (AGWM) with International Ministries and Global University. As missionaries they served several years in South Africa as interim directors and faculty members of a Bible school. Presently they enjoy a worldwide higher education teaching ministry and serve in various roles at Global University.