Old Testament prophecy fulfilled by Jesus
The deaf will hear and the blind will see.
God gave Isaiah details about things that would happen hundreds of years beyond the life of the prophet. Some of those words were about the Messiah (Jesus) who would come.
The difference between a true prophet of God and an imposter was that everything God’s prophet said would happen—really happened.
In a similar way, Jesus proved He was who He said He was through His miracles. Many men before Jesus claimed to be the long-awaited Messiah. But they were liars and imposters. When Jesus began His earthly ministry, He did what the imposters could not do.
Jesus’s miracles proved He was the one true Messiah.
No false Messiah could fulfill the words spoken by God’s prophet, Isaiah. But Jesus fulfilled them.
God gave His prophet, Isaiah, these words:
On that day those who are deaf will hear words of a book, and out of their gloom and darkness the eyes of those who are blind will see. Isaiah 29:18.
And:
Then the eyes of those who are blind will be opened, and the ears of those who are deaf will be unstopped. Then those who limp will leap like a deer, and the tongue of those who cannot speak will shout for joy. Isaiah 35:5-6a.
The deaf would hear.
The mute would shout for joy.
The blind will see.
The lame will leap like a deer.
No false Messiah could do those things. But the one True Messiah would do them all, and more.
In Mark 7, a deaf man who also had a speech problem was brought to Jesus. Jesus healed him:
32 And they brought to Him one who was deaf and had difficulty speaking, and they *begged Him to lay His hand on him. 33 And Jesus took him aside from the crowd, by himself, and put His fingers in his ears, and after spitting, He touched his tongue with the saliva; 34 and looking up to heaven with a deep sigh, He said to him, “Ephphatha!” that is, “Be opened!” 35 And his ears were opened, and the impediment of his tongue was removed, and he began speaking plainly.” Mark 7:32-35.
37 And they were utterly astonished, saying, “He has done all things well; He makes even those who are deaf hear, and those who are unable to talk, speak.” Mark 7:37.
When John the Baptist was in prison, he sent his disciples to ask Jesus: “Are you the Expected One, or do we look for someone else?”
John knew the words of Isaiah. John knew the true Messiah would do what no false Messiah could do. Jesus answered John in such a beautiful way which is recorded in Luke 7:
20 When the men came to Him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to You, to ask, ‘Are You the Coming One, or are we to look for another?’” 21 At that very time He cured many people of diseases and afflictions and evil spirits; and He gave sight to many who were blind. 22 And He answered and said to them, “Go and report to John what you have seen and heard: people who were blind receive sight, people who limped walk, people with leprosy are cleansed and people who were deaf hear, dead people are raised up, and people who are poor have the gospel preached to them. Luke 7:18-22.
Jesus told them to report back to John all that He had done:
He had given sight to the blind.
He had healed the deaf and mute.
He had healed the lame.
He had healed leprosy.
He had raised the dead.
And the poor had heard His gospel.
Jesus is assuring John that He was indeed the Expected One. The Messiah.
Carla Killough McClafferty