Most people have a big question about Biblical prophecy: “Can I trust that what I read in the Bible will happen the way it says in the Scriptures?” Does the Almighty God, the Creator of the Universe, really know the future? In describing His foreknowledge of events, the Lord states:
9Remember the former things, those of long ago; I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. 10I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please’ (Isaiah 46:9-10). Also read Isaiah 48:3-7.
When the people of Israel were wandering far from God and worshipping demons masquerading as nature deities in the form of idols, God spoke to them about a test to prove who was God. To set Himself apart from other so-called deities, God said: “I am the Lord; that is my name! I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols. See, the former things have taken place, and new things I declare; before they spring into being I announce them to you” (Isaiah 42:8-9). To prove and authenticate that He alone is God, the Lord challenged the false gods and idols to do the same:
21“Present your case,” says the LORD. “Set forth your arguments,” says Jacob’s King. 22“Tell us, you idols, what is going to happen.Tell us what the former things were, so that we may consider them and know their final outcome. Or declare to us the things to come, 23tell us what the future holds, so we may know that you are gods. Do something, whether good or bad, so that we will be dismayed and filled with fear (Isaiah 41:21-23).
The Lord God tested all false religions—"tell us what the future holds if you are God." No other scriptures from any other holy book tell the future ahead of time. To prove that He is God, again and again, the LORD spoke of things future. Let's take just one for today, the prophecy about the city of Tyre in Ezekiel 26:1-14. I don’t have room to reproduce the whole passage. You can read it online elsewhere or in the Bible. God spoke ahead of time about six specific things that would happen to Tyre:
1) Nebuchadnezzar would attack and capture the city (v.7, 10).
2) Many nations would come against the city and plunder it (v.3-5).
3) There would be a siege on the city by Nebuchadnezzar (v.8).
4) The stones, timber, and rubble of Tyre would be thrown into the sea.
5) The city would be a bare rock and a place for fishermen to spread their nets.
6) The city would never be rebuilt.
Seventeen years after this prophecy, history records that Nebuchadnezzar, the Babylonian king, came against the mainland city of Tyre. You can check this out on Wikipedia.org. He was after the great treasure there—the city of Tyre had become very prosperous. Nebuchadnezzar was after their wealth to finance his army. When he arrived with his army, their dust covered the city. He used massive force, and with battering rams, he broke down the walls and captured the city. There was only one problem; ships had shifted most of the treasure to the two little islands half a mile from the land. Nebuchadnezzar and his army were furious but tried with all their might; they were unsuccessful in capturing the island fortress, partly because they had no ships. Nebuchadnezzar carried on down the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. Some would say that this left the prophecy partially unfulfilled, and for several years it was so. Two hundred forty years later, Alexander the Great came on his conquest of the Persian Empire. He also attacked the city of Tyre, and to get to the island city off the coast, he built a causeway with the rubble of the mainland city of Tyre, leaving the site bare where the city once stood. Alexander finally captured the last remaining stronghold on the island, and even today, there are pictures of the local fishermen spreading their nets on the bare rock of where the ancient city stood. The causeway changed how the tide ran past the island city, making the old city underwater, just as Ezekiel prophesied.
Yes, God can completely see the future, and it looks bright for those who love Him. Keith Thomas
Would you like to read more fulfilled prophecies? Check out the series on The End Times and read the first study, Can We Trust Bible Prophecy?