Study guide

The Promised Messiah

What God promised about His Christ, and what Christ did when He came. One page, two reference lists: the prophecies with their fulfillment, and the signs recorded in the Gospels.

Two lists, one question

How do we know that Jesus of Nazareth is the Christ? The first list sets God’s promises about the Messiah beside the passages where the New Testament reports them kept. The second gathers the works He did — what John calls signs, because they show who He is. Search either list by book, name, or word.

Foretold: prophecy and fulfillment

Long before Bethlehem, God said what His Christ would be like: where He would be born, how He would be received, how He would die, and that death would not hold Him. He did not merely predict these things; He brought them about, and He kept every word of them. Here are 153 of those promises with the passages where they are fulfilled.

The list is representative, not complete. The prophets say far more about Christ than one page can hold, and on the road to Emmaus Jesus read the whole Old Testament — Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms — as written about Himself (Luke 24:27, 44). It was built by working through the widely circulated list of 351 prophecies and checking each entry against the text: where the New Testament reference did not actually cite or answer the Old Testament passage, or where the passage will not carry the weight in its own context, the entry was left out rather than counted. One group below gathers shadows rather than sentences, and says so.

His lineage and His birth

The promise narrows from the whole human race to one line, one tribe, one town, one womb.

ForetoldThe promiseFulfilled
Genesis 3:15The offspring of the woman — He comes as one of us, taking our own flesh and blood.Galatians 4:4; Hebrews 2:14
Genesis 3:15He will crush the serpent’s head, and be wounded doing it.1 John 3:8; Romans 16:20
Genesis 9:26-27The blessing runs through the line of Shem.Luke 3:36
Genesis 12:3; 22:18In Abraham’s offspring all the nations of the earth will be blessed.Galatians 3:8; Acts 3:25-26
Genesis 12:7; 13:15The promise is made to Abraham’s offspring — one offspring, and that offspring is Christ.Galatians 3:16
Genesis 17:19; 26:2-5The line runs through Isaac, not Ishmael.Romans 9:7; Hebrews 11:17-19
Genesis 28:13-14The promise passes to Jacob, and through his offspring all the families of the earth are blessed.Luke 3:34
Genesis 49:10The ruler’s staff will not depart from Judah until the one it belongs to comes.Hebrews 7:14; Revelation 5:5; Luke 3:33
Genesis 49:10To Him shall be the obedience of the peoples.John 10:16
Numbers 24:17A star shall come out of Jacob, a scepter rise out of Israel.Matthew 2:1-2; Revelation 22:16
Deuteronomy 18:15-19God will raise up a prophet like Moses from among His people, and whoever will not listen must answer for it.Acts 3:22-23; John 5:45-47; John 6:14
2 Samuel 7:12-16David’s son will have a kingdom and a throne established forever.Luke 1:32-33; Acts 13:22-23
2 Samuel 7:14God says of David’s son: I will be to Him a Father, and He shall be to me a Son.Hebrews 1:5
Psalm 89:27, 35-37The firstborn, highest of the kings of the earth, whose throne endures like the sun.Colossians 1:15-18; Revelation 1:5
Psalm 132:11The LORD swore to David: one of your own sons I will set on your throne.Acts 2:29-31
Psalm 2:7The LORD says to His Anointed: you are my Son; today I have begotten you.Acts 13:33; Hebrews 1:5
Isaiah 7:14The virgin will conceive and bear a son, and His name will be Immanuel — God with us.Matthew 1:22-23; Luke 1:26-35
Isaiah 9:6-7A child is born who is Mighty God and Prince of Peace, reigning on David’s throne forever.Luke 2:11; 1:32-33
Isaiah 11:1-2A shoot from the stump of Jesse, on whom the Spirit of the LORD rests.Matthew 3:16-17; Romans 15:12
Isaiah 11:1A branch — in Hebrew netzer — out of Jesse’s stump; Matthew reads the name Nazarene as pointing here.Matthew 2:23
Isaiah 49:1, 5Called from the womb, named before He was born, formed to be God’s servant.Matthew 1:18-21; Luke 1:31
Jeremiah 23:5-6; 33:14-16A righteous Branch for David, whose name is: the LORD is our righteousness.1 Corinthians 1:30; Matthew 1:1
Micah 5:2The ruler of Israel comes out of Bethlehem, though His origin is from ancient days.Matthew 2:1-6; Luke 2:4-7
Haggai 2:23Zerubbabel is made God’s signet ring — the royal line kept safe through the exile.Matthew 1:12; Luke 3:27
Isaiah 60:6; Psalm 72:10-11Nations bring gold and frankincense, and kings bow down before Him.Matthew 2:1-11
Jeremiah 31:15Rachel weeps for her children and refuses to be comforted.Matthew 2:16-18
Hosea 11:1Out of Egypt God calls His son.Matthew 2:14-15

His person: who He would be

Not events but identity. The Old Testament says what the Messiah would be, and the New Testament turns those exact words on Jesus of Nazareth.

ForetoldThe promiseFulfilled
Exodus 3:13-15God’s own name, given to Moses at the bush: I AM WHO I AM.John 8:58; John 18:5-6
Psalm 2:2The LORD’s Anointed — in Hebrew Messiah, in Greek Christ.John 1:41; Acts 2:36
Psalm 2:6God sets His King on Zion, His holy hill.John 18:36-37
Psalm 8:4-6Made lower than the angels for a little while, then crowned with glory and honor.Hebrews 2:5-9
Psalm 45:6-7Your throne, O God, is forever, and you have loved righteousness and hated wickedness.Hebrews 1:8-9
Psalm 45:2Grace is poured upon His lips.Luke 4:22
Psalm 102:25-27The one who laid the earth’s foundation does not change, and His years have no end.Hebrews 1:10-12
Isaiah 6:1-3Isaiah sees the LORD high and lifted up — and John says it was Christ’s glory he saw.John 12:41
Isaiah 9:6A child is born — His humanity; a Son is given — His deity.Luke 2:7; John 1:14
Isaiah 9:6His names: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.John 20:28; Colossians 2:9; John 16:33
Isaiah 11:2-3The Spirit of wisdom and knowledge rests on Him; He does not judge by what His eyes see.Colossians 2:3; John 2:24-25
Isaiah 43:11Besides the LORD there is no savior.Acts 4:12; Titus 2:13
Isaiah 45:23To me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear allegiance.Philippians 2:10-11; Romans 14:11
Isaiah 48:12I am the first, and I am the last.Revelation 1:17; Revelation 22:13
Micah 5:2His coming forth is from of old, from ancient days — from everlasting.John 8:58; John 1:1

Foreshadowed in the law and the offerings

These are patterns rather than predictions: shadows built into Israel’s worship, which the New Testament says were pointing at Christ all along (Colossians 2:16-17; Hebrews 10:1). They are listed as shadows, not as sentences that predict.

The shadowThe patternFulfilled
Genesis 14:18-20Melchizedek — king of righteousness, king of peace, priest of God Most High, with no recorded beginning or end.Hebrews 6:20; Hebrews 7:1-3
Genesis 22:8, 13God will provide for Himself the lamb — and a ram dies in the son’s place.John 1:29; Romans 8:32
Genesis 28:12A ladder joining earth to heaven with the angels of God on it.John 1:51
Exodus 12:5-13, 21-27A lamb without blemish is killed, and its blood shields the household from judgment.1 Corinthians 5:7; John 1:29
Exodus 17:6Water pours from the struck rock in the wilderness — and the Rock was Christ.1 Corinthians 10:4
Leviticus 1:2-9The burnt offering, given whole, a pleasing aroma to God.Ephesians 5:2
Leviticus 16:15-17One high priest, one day a year, carrying blood inside the veil for the people’s sins.Hebrews 9:7-14
Leviticus 16:27The sin offering is burned outside the camp.Hebrews 13:11-13
Leviticus 17:11The life is in the blood, and it is the blood that makes atonement.Hebrews 9:22; Matthew 26:28
Numbers 21:8-9A bronze serpent lifted up on a pole, and everyone who looks at it lives.John 3:14-15
Deuteronomy 21:23Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree.Galatians 3:13
Ruth 4:4-10The kinsman-redeemer pays the price himself to buy back what his relative lost.Ephesians 1:7; Galatians 4:4-5
1 Samuel 2:35God will raise up for Himself a faithful priest who does what is in His heart.Hebrews 2:17; Hebrews 7:24-25
Psalm 40:6-8Sacrifice you did not desire, but a body you prepared: behold, I have come to do your will.Hebrews 10:5-10

His ministry

How He would be announced, where He would preach, what He would do, and how He would be heard.

ForetoldThe promiseFulfilled
Isaiah 40:3-5A voice cries in the wilderness: prepare the way of the LORD.Matthew 3:1-3; John 1:23
Malachi 3:1God sends His messenger to prepare the way before Him.Mark 1:2; Matthew 11:10
Malachi 4:5-6Elijah comes before the great and awesome day of the LORD, turning hearts back.Matthew 11:13-14; 17:10-13; Luke 1:16-17
Malachi 3:1The Lord you are seeking will come suddenly to His temple.Luke 2:27-32; Mark 11:15-17
Haggai 2:6-9The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, and there God will give peace.Luke 2:27-32; Hebrews 12:26-28
Isaiah 9:1-2In Galilee of the nations, people walking in darkness see a great light.Matthew 4:13-16
Isaiah 61:1-2The Spirit of the Lord anoints Him to preach good news to the poor and liberty to captives.Luke 4:16-21
Psalm 40:9He tells the glad news of deliverance in the great congregation and does not keep it back.Matthew 4:17
Isaiah 2:2-3The nations stream to the mountain of the LORD to be taught His ways.Matthew 28:19-20; Luke 24:47
Isaiah 35:5-6Then the eyes of the blind are opened, and the lame leap like a deer.Matthew 11:4-5; Luke 7:20-22
Isaiah 53:4He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows.Matthew 8:16-17
Isaiah 42:1-4God’s chosen servant will not quarrel or cry aloud, nor break a bruised reed.Matthew 12:15-21
Isaiah 42:6-7Given as a covenant for the people and a light for the nations, to open blind eyes.Luke 2:32; John 9:39
Isaiah 40:11He tends His flock like a shepherd and carries the lambs in His arms.John 10:11-14
Ezekiel 34:23-24; 37:24-25One shepherd — my servant David — set over them, and He will be their prince forever.John 10:11-16
Isaiah 50:4The tongue of one who is taught, to sustain with a word him who is weary.Matthew 11:28-29
Isaiah 55:4Given as a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for them.John 18:37
Zechariah 3:8; 6:12Behold, my servant the Branch — in Greek the same word Zechariah’s song uses for the sunrise.Luke 1:78; John 17:4
Psalm 78:2He will open His mouth in parables and utter what has been hidden.Matthew 13:34-35
Isaiah 6:9-10They will keep on hearing and never understand, for their hearts are dull.Matthew 13:14-15; John 12:39-41; Acts 28:23-28
Isaiah 53:1Few will believe the report about Him, or see the arm of the LORD in Him.John 12:37-38
Psalm 80:17The man of God’s right hand, the son of man whom He made strong for Himself.Mark 14:61-62
Psalm 69:8A stranger to His own brothers, an alien to His mother’s sons.John 7:5
Psalm 69:9Zeal for God’s house consumes Him.John 2:13-17
Psalm 110:4A priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek.Hebrews 5:5-6; 7:17
Isaiah 28:16; Isaiah 8:14A precious cornerstone to those who believe, a stone of stumbling to those who will not.Romans 9:32-33; 1 Peter 2:6-8
Zechariah 9:9Your king comes to you humble, mounted on a donkey, on the colt of a donkey.Matthew 21:4-5; John 12:14-15
Psalm 118:22-26The stone the builders rejected becomes the cornerstone; blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD.Matthew 21:9; Acts 4:11
Psalm 8:2Out of the mouths of infants and nursing babies God has prepared praise.Matthew 21:15-16
Isaiah 49:6Too small a thing to restore Israel only — He is a light for the nations, salvation to the end of the earth.Luke 2:29-32; Acts 13:47

His rejection, betrayal, and trial

The prophets describe the friend, the price, the silence, and the courtroom centuries before any of it happens.

ForetoldThe promiseFulfilled
Isaiah 53:2No form or majesty that we should look at Him, nothing in His appearance that we should desire Him.Philippians 2:6-8
Isaiah 53:3Despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief.John 1:11; Luke 23:18
Isaiah 49:7Deeply despised, abhorred by the nation, the servant of rulers.John 19:14-15
Psalm 41:9; 55:12-14A close friend who shared His bread lifts up his heel against Him.John 13:18; Matthew 26:47-50
Zechariah 11:12-13Weighed out as wages: thirty pieces of silver, thrown back to the potter.Matthew 26:14-15; 27:3-10
Psalm 69:25; 109:8The betrayer’s place is left empty, and another takes his office.Acts 1:16-20
Zechariah 13:7Strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will scatter.Matthew 26:31, 56
Psalm 69:20Reproaches have broken His heart; He looks for pity, and there is none.Matthew 26:37-38
Psalm 38:11His friends and companions stand aloof from His plague.Mark 14:50; Luke 23:49
Psalm 38:12Those who seek His life lay snares and meditate treachery all day long.Matthew 22:15; Mark 14:1
Psalm 35:11Malicious witnesses come forward and charge Him with what He does not know.Matthew 26:59-61; Mark 14:55-59
Isaiah 53:7Oppressed and afflicted, He does not open His mouth.Matthew 27:12-14; 1 Peter 2:23
Isaiah 53:8By oppression and judgment He was taken away — the very passage the Ethiopian was reading.Acts 8:32-35
Isaiah 50:6He gives His back to those who strike and His cheeks to those who pull out the beard, and does not hide from spitting.Matthew 26:67; 27:26-30
Isaiah 52:14His appearance marred beyond human likeness.Matthew 27:26-30; Luke 18:31-33
Psalm 2:1-2The kings of the earth and the rulers take counsel together against the LORD and His Anointed.Acts 4:25-28; Luke 23:12
Psalm 35:19; 69:4Those who hate Him without cause are more than the hairs of His head.John 15:24-25

His death

Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53 read like eyewitness accounts written from the wrong side of a thousand years.

ForetoldThe promiseFulfilled
Psalm 22:1The sufferer cries out: my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34
Psalm 22:1Forsaken not for His own sin, but for the sin of others.2 Corinthians 5:21
Isaiah 53:4-6Pierced for our transgressions and crushed for our iniquities; the LORD lays on Him the iniquity of us all.1 Peter 2:24; 2 Corinthians 5:21
Psalm 22:7-8They mock Him and wag their heads: he trusts in the LORD, let the LORD deliver him.Matthew 27:39-43; Luke 23:35
Psalm 22:12-13Strong bulls encircle Him; they open their mouths at Him like a ravening lion.Matthew 27:36-44
Psalm 22:14Poured out like water, His bones out of joint, His heart melted like wax within Him.John 19:34
Psalm 22:15His strength dried up, His tongue sticking to His jaws.John 19:28
Psalm 22:16They have pierced His hands and His feet.John 20:25-27; Luke 24:39-40
Psalm 22:17They stare and gloat over Him, and He can count all His bones.Luke 23:35
Psalm 22:18They divide His garments among them and cast lots for His clothing.John 19:23-24; Matthew 27:35
Psalm 69:21They give Him gall for food, and sour wine for His thirst.Matthew 27:34, 48; John 19:28-30
Isaiah 53:12Numbered with the transgressors, He bears the sin of many and makes intercession for them.Luke 22:37; Mark 15:27; Luke 23:34
Amos 8:9; Isaiah 50:3The sun goes down at noon and the earth darkens in broad daylight.Matthew 27:45; Luke 23:44-45
Psalm 31:5Into your hand I commit my spirit.Luke 23:46
Psalm 22:31They will tell a people yet unborn that He has done it.John 19:30
Zechariah 12:10They will look on Him whom they have pierced, and mourn for Him.John 19:34-37; Revelation 1:7
Exodus 12:46; Numbers 9:12; Psalm 34:20Not one of His bones will be broken.John 19:31-36
Isaiah 53:9Assigned a grave with the wicked, He is buried instead with a rich man, having done no violence and spoken no deceit.Matthew 27:57-60; 1 Peter 2:22
Isaiah 53:10When His soul makes an offering for guilt, the will of the LORD prospers in His hand.Hebrews 10:10-14
Isaiah 53:11By His knowledge the righteous one makes many to be accounted righteous, for He bears their iniquities.Romans 5:18-19
Daniel 9:24Seventy weeks to finish transgression, atone for iniquity, and bring in everlasting righteousness.Romans 3:25-26; Hebrews 9:26
Daniel 9:26The Anointed One is cut off and has nothing — and afterward the city and the sanctuary are destroyed.Matthew 27:50; Luke 19:41-44

His resurrection, ascension, and reign

The promises do not stop at the tomb; they run through the empty grave to the throne, and on to the day He returns.

ForetoldThe promiseFulfilled
Job 19:25-27I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will stand upon the earth; in my flesh I shall see God.John 5:28-29; 1 Corinthians 15:20-23
Psalm 16:10God will not abandon His Holy One to the grave or let Him see corruption.Acts 2:24-32; 13:34-37
Jonah 1:17Three days and three nights in the deep, and then brought up alive.Matthew 12:38-40
Hosea 6:2On the third day He will raise us up, that we may live before Him.1 Corinthians 15:4
Isaiah 53:10-11After His suffering He will see His offspring, prolong His days, and be satisfied.Romans 6:9-10; Hebrews 7:25
Isaiah 55:3The holy and sure blessings promised to David.Acts 13:34
Isaiah 25:8He will swallow up death forever and wipe away tears from all faces.1 Corinthians 15:54; Revelation 21:4
Hosea 13:14O Death, where are your plagues? O Sheol, where is your sting?1 Corinthians 15:55-57
Psalm 22:22I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will praise you.Hebrews 2:11-12
Isaiah 52:13My servant shall act wisely; He shall be high and lifted up and greatly exalted.Philippians 2:9; Acts 2:33
Psalm 68:18He ascends on high, leading a host of captives, and gives gifts to His people.Ephesians 4:7-10; Acts 1:9-11
Psalm 110:1Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool.Matthew 22:41-45; Acts 2:34-36
Zechariah 6:12-13The Branch will build the temple of the LORD and be a priest on His throne.Hebrews 8:1
Daniel 7:13-14One like a son of man comes with the clouds and is given everlasting dominion.Matthew 26:63-64; Revelation 1:7
Joel 2:28-32God pours out His Spirit on all flesh, and everyone who calls on His name is saved.Acts 2:14-21; Romans 10:12-13
Jeremiah 31:31-34A new covenant, with the law written on the heart and sins remembered no more.Luke 22:20; Hebrews 8:6-13
Isaiah 52:15Kings shut their mouths because of Him; those who were never told will see and understand.Romans 15:20-21
Isaiah 52:15So shall He sprinkle many nations — the cleansing His blood accomplishes.Hebrews 9:13-14; 1 Peter 1:2
Isaiah 11:10The root of Jesse stands as a signal for the peoples, and the nations inquire of Him.Romans 15:12; Revelation 5:5
Psalm 72:17May His name endure forever; in Him all nations are blessed and call Him blessed.Galatians 3:8
Psalm 22:27-28All the ends of the earth shall turn to the LORD, for kingship belongs to Him.Revelation 11:15
Isaiah 59:20The Redeemer will come to Zion, to those who turn from transgression.Romans 11:26-27
Isaiah 22:22The key of the house of David laid on His shoulder: He opens and none shall shut.Revelation 3:7
Daniel 2:44-45A stone cut from a mountain by no human hand breaks the kingdoms and fills the whole earth.Matthew 21:44; Revelation 11:15
Psalm 2:8-9The nations are given Him for an inheritance, and He rules them with a rod of iron.Revelation 19:15
Isaiah 11:3-4He judges the poor with righteousness and strikes the earth with the rod of His mouth.Acts 17:31; Revelation 19:11-15
Isaiah 40:10Behold, the Lord GOD comes with might, and His reward is with Him.Revelation 22:12
Zechariah 14:4On that day His feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives.Acts 1:11-12

The signs He did

John never calls them miracles. He calls them signs — real mercies to real people that also point past themselves, so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name (John 20:30-31). They are not stunts to compel belief; He refused to work those (Matthew 12:38-39). These are the 36 the Gospels tell in full.

They are only a sample. The Gospels often sum up whole days of healing in a sentence (Matthew 4:23-24; Mark 1:32-34), and John ends by saying the world itself could not contain the books that would be written if everything Jesus did were told (John 21:25). And note what the same Gospel admits: many watched Him do these things and still did not believe (John 12:37). A sign can be seen and not received; the eyes to recognize Him are themselves God’s gift.

Authority over sickness

Bodies mended one at a time — usually by a touch, sometimes by a word from miles away.

The signWhat happenedWhere it is told
The official’s son at CapernaumA father begs Him to come down before the boy dies; Jesus heals him from twenty miles away with a word.John 4:46-54
Peter’s mother-in-lawThe fever leaves her when He takes her hand, and she gets up and serves them.Matthew 8:14-15; Mark 1:29-31; Luke 4:38-39
A man full of leprosyJesus stretches out His hand and touches the untouchable, and the leprosy is gone.Matthew 8:1-4; Mark 1:40-45; Luke 5:12-16
The centurion’s servantHealed at a distance, at the request of a Gentile soldier whose faith astonishes Jesus.Matthew 8:5-13; Luke 7:1-10
The paralytic let down through the roofJesus forgives his sins first, then tells him to rise, pick up his bed, and go home.Matthew 9:1-8; Mark 2:1-12; Luke 5:17-26
The invalid at the pool of BethesdaThirty-eight years disabled, healed on the Sabbath by a man he cannot at first identify.John 5:1-15
The man with a withered handRestored in the synagogue on the Sabbath while His enemies watch for a reason to accuse Him.Matthew 12:9-14; Mark 3:1-6; Luke 6:6-11
The woman with a discharge of bloodTwelve years of bleeding end when she touches the fringe of His garment from behind.Matthew 9:20-22; Mark 5:25-34; Luke 8:43-48
Two blind menThey follow Him crying Son of David, and He opens their eyes according to their faith.Matthew 9:27-31
A deaf man with a speech impedimentJesus sighs and says Ephphatha — be opened — and the man hears and speaks plainly.Mark 7:31-37
A blind man at BethsaidaSight comes back in two stages: first men like walking trees, then everything clearly.Mark 8:22-26
The man born blindMud, the pool of Siloam, an interrogation by the Pharisees, and a beggar who ends up worshiping Him.John 9:1-41
A woman bent over for eighteen yearsShe straightens up for the first time in eighteen years and glorifies God.Luke 13:10-17
A man with dropsyHealed at a Pharisee’s dinner table while the guests watch to see whether He will dare.Luke 14:1-6
Ten men with leprosyAll ten are cleansed as they go; one, a Samaritan, turns back to give thanks.Luke 17:11-19
Blind BartimaeusThe crowd tells him to be quiet; he shouts louder, and Jesus stops and calls for him.Matthew 20:29-34; Mark 10:46-52; Luke 18:35-43
The ear of MalchusIn the garden Jesus heals the servant of the man who came to arrest Him.Luke 22:49-51

Authority over unclean spirits

The demons recognize Him before the crowds do, and they leave at a word.

The signWhat happenedWhere it is told
The unclean spirit in the synagogueIt calls Him the Holy One of God; one command silences it and casts it out.Mark 1:21-28; Luke 4:31-37
The demoniac among the tombsA legion is cast out, and the man is found sitting, clothed, and in his right mind.Matthew 8:28-34; Mark 5:1-20; Luke 8:26-39
A mute man, demon-oppressedThe demon is driven out and the man who could not speak speaks.Matthew 9:32-34
A blind and mute man, demon-oppressedHe sees and speaks, and the crowds begin asking whether this is the Son of David.Matthew 12:22-23; Luke 11:14
The Syrophoenician woman’s daughterFreed at a distance because of her mother’s humble, persistent faith.Matthew 15:21-28; Mark 7:24-30
The boy with a mute spiritWhat the disciples could not do, Jesus does — while the father prays, I believe, help my unbelief.Matthew 17:14-21; Mark 9:14-29; Luke 9:37-43

Authority over creation

The wind, the sea, the bread, and the fish answer to Him the way they answered at creation.

The signWhat happenedWhere it is told
Water into wine at CanaThe first sign: six stone jars of water become the best wine of the wedding feast.John 2:1-11
The great catch of fishAfter a night of nothing the nets tear, and Peter falls down at His knees.Luke 5:1-11
Calming the stormHe rebukes the wind and the sea, and there is a great calm.Matthew 8:23-27; Mark 4:35-41; Luke 8:22-25
Feeding the five thousandFive loaves and two fish feed a crowd, with twelve baskets left over — the one miracle told in all four Gospels.Matthew 14:13-21; Mark 6:30-44; Luke 9:10-17; John 6:1-14
Walking on the waterHe comes to them across the sea in the fourth watch of the night, and Peter walks out to meet Him.Matthew 14:22-33; Mark 6:45-52; John 6:16-21
Feeding the four thousandSeven loaves and a few small fish for a hungry crowd in Gentile country.Matthew 15:32-39; Mark 8:1-10
The coin in the fish’s mouthThe temple tax for Peter and Himself, found in the mouth of the first fish Peter catches.Matthew 17:24-27
The withered fig treeA tree full of leaves and empty of fruit, cursed as a warning about fruitless religion.Matthew 21:18-22; Mark 11:12-14
The catch of fish after the resurrectionThe risen Jesus fills their nets from the shore and has breakfast waiting.John 21:1-14

Authority over death

Three funerals interrupted, and one tomb He walked out of Himself.

The signWhat happenedWhere it is told
The widow of Nain’s sonJesus stops the funeral procession, touches the bier, and gives her only son back to her.Luke 7:11-17
Jairus’s daughterTalitha cumi — little girl, arise — and she gets up, and He tells them to give her something to eat.Matthew 9:18-26; Mark 5:21-43; Luke 8:40-56
Lazarus of BethanyFour days in the tomb; Jesus weeps, then calls him out by name.John 11:1-44
His own resurrectionThe sign He staked everything on: He lays down His life and takes it up again.John 10:17-18; Matthew 28:1-10; John 20:1-18