A Prophet like unto Moses

by Monte Judah

(This article is an excerpt from the March – April 2007 edition of the Sabbath Sentinel)

“When John the Baptist was in the wilderness, there was great expectation for several prophecies to be fulfilled. First and foremost, the Messiah was expected to come and throw out the occupying Romans. There was great hope that the Messiah would rise up from among the poor, the countrymen of the land. The primary prophetic text for this expectation was from Deuteronomy. “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your countrymen, you shall listen to him. This is according to all that you asked of the Lord your God in Horeb on the day of the assembly, saying, ‘Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God, let me not see this great fire anymore, lest I die.’ And the Lord said to me, ‘They have spoken well. I will raise up a prophet from among their countrymen like you, and I will put My words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. And it shall come about that whoever will not listen to My words which he shall speak in My name, I Myself will require it of him'” (Deuteronomy 18:15-19).

The second great expectation concerned the prophet Elijah. The prophet Elijah was expected to somehow return and restore the families of Israel. The prophecy of Elijah is mentioned at every Passover; they even set a cup for Elijah anticipating his return. The primary prophetic text for this expectation was from Malachi. “Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the Lord. And he will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the land with a curse” (Malachi 4:5-6). There was also the expectation of another person who would come and be a part of the events leading to the Messianic age. No, I am not referring to John the Baptist himself, the “one crying in the wilderness.” The New Testament speaks of this expectation in the first interchange with John the Baptist.”

To read the rest of this article, which starts on page 14, click this link:

http://biblesabbath.org/tss/524/tss_524.pdf