Yeshua ha Meshiach or Yeshua the Messiah
Dear Jewish visitor,
Please note that the author of wildolive is not Jewish, but this page was jointly written with Jewish believers in Eretz Israel. Please accept this page in the name of Yeshua with much love and deep gratitude for all that Y'hudah has given us Gentile believers. You gave us the Tanakh, Yeshua and the Apostles who wrote our "New Testament". As Rabbi Shaul wrote to the believers in Rome (Romans 11 v17), we are like wild olive branches grafted into the cultivated olive tree of Israel. Please also accept our regrets for all the wrongs done to your people through History .
Hopefully the following quick trip through the Tanakh and Brit hadasha will help explain the basics of Messianic belief.
You may be blessed by Chuck Cohen's book, "Roots of our Faith", in which Chuck and his wife Karen take the major issues of faith in Yeshua and work them through from the Tanakh. (A book recommended for both Jews and Gentiles.)
From the beginning
When Elohim created man and woman and put them in a garden, He placed only one prohibition on them. He said, "You shall not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil or you will surely die". The serpent talked them into disobeying, promising that they would be like God. (Genesis 3 v5) They ate and their innocent relationship with Elohim died. This is sometimes referred to as "the Fall", or the first sin ( sin meaning falling short of the required standard). God threw them out of the garden into the world of death, decay and sadness we see today. However Elohim did promise that things would be put right one day.
Elohim still cared for people who trusted him. Avraham was a prime example, and Elohim made a most solemn agreement, a covenant, to make him a great nation. In time Elohim made a further covenant with the children of Israel (Ya'akov, the grandson of Avraham) when he freed them from slavery in Egypt and gave them laws to live by and feasts to remember the covenant he made with them. The essence of Elohim's covenant with man was a way of dealing with man's sin. Elohim, being perfect and sin free, could have no dealings with sinful man unless the penalty was paid. That penalty was death, but Elohim was prepared to accept the death of an animal. The life of the animal was its blood. The animal had to be perfect, not a reject.
The prophets announced events hundreds of years into the future concerning one referred to as Messiah (Meshiach) , meaning "The Anointed One". He is anointed by YHVH to deliver his people from the results of the disobedience, to reign as King in the line of David, and establish the Messianic age when evil is banished and Israel/Zion is restored. These prophecies were not specific about when they were to be fulfilled and some looked much further into the future than others.
(The Christian's word "Christ" comes from Kristos, the Greek for "the anointed one")
HOW TO RECOGNIZE THE MESSIAH
(From the writings of the Tanach)
While most Jews in the world today accept the concept of a Messiah as a Jewish precept, almost none - including those with Rabbinical training would be able to recite with any accuracy what is known and has been written about this individual in the Tanach for millennia.
For centuries, throughout Jewish history, the Messiah has represented the hope and confidence of the end of all suffering, pain and persecution. The Messiah remains the central expectation of absolute justice, complete peace, perfect unity and utter utopia.
With so much promise of heaven on earth, it's a wonder why more is not known about this person, the likely time of his arrival and the personal impact He would bring to each individual.
To that end, these scriptures are offered - that these facts will be brought out to all those seeking an answer to …how to recognize the Messiah!
THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE MESSIAH
Isaiah 9:6
…And the government will rest on His shoulders;
And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor,
Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.
Micah 5:2
. …From you One will go forth for Me to be ruler
in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago,
from the days of eternity.
Micah 5:4
…He will be great…and this One will be our peace.
Isaiah 11
…The Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him, the
spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit
of counsel and strength, the spirit of knowledge and
the fear of the Lord… (vs. 2)
… And He will delight in the fear of the Lord and
He will not judge by what His eyes see nor
Make a decision by what His ears hear; but with
Righteousness He will judge the poor, and decide with
Fairness for the afflicted of the earth; and He will
Strike the earth with the rod of His mouth and with
The breath of His lips He will slay the wicked. Also,
Righteousness will be the belt about His loins and
Faithfulness the belt about His waist. (vs, 4, 5)
Isaiah 61:1
The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because
The Lord has anointed me to bring good news to
The afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the
Brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to captives,
And freedom to prisoners.
MESSIAH BEN DAVID
Isaiah 11: -2-5
Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit. And the Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him, the Spirit of counsel and strength, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. And He will delight in the fear of the Lord, and He will not judge by what His eyes see, Nor make a decision by what His ears hear; But with righteousness He will judge the poor and decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth; And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth and with the breath of His lips And will slay the wicked. Also righteousness will be the belt about His loins, and faithfulness the belt about His waist.
Isaiah 11: 10
The it will come about in that day that the nations will resort to the root of Jesse, Who will stand as a signal for the peoples and His resting place will be glorious.
Jeremiah 23:5-6
Behold the days are coming declares the Lord when I shall raise up for David a righteous Branch, And He will reign as king and act wisely and do justice and righteousness in the land. In His days Judah will be saved and Israel will dwell securely; and this is His name by which He will be called, The Lord Our Righteousness.
Jeremiah 30:7-9
Alas! For the day is great. There is none like it;' and it is the time of Jacob's distress But he will be saved from it. And it will come about on that day declares the Lord of hosts, that I will break his yoke from off their neck and will tear off their bonds and strangers shall no longer make them their slaves. But they shall serve the Lord their God and David their king, whom I will raise up for them.
Hosea 3:5
Afterward the sons of Israel will return and seek the Lord their God and David their king; and they will come trembling to the Lord and to His goodness in the last days.
THE BIRTH OF THE MESSIAH
Isaiah 7:14
Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign:
Behold a virgin will be with child and bear a son,
And she will call His name Immanuel.
Isaiah 9:6
For a child will be born to us, a son will be given
to us; And the government will rest on His
shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful
Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of
Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His
government or of peace, On the throne of David
and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold
it with justice and righteousness, From then on and
forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will
accomplish this.
Isaiah 48: 12, 16
Listen to Me, O Jacob, even Israel whom I called;
I am He, I am the first, I am also the last.
Vs. 16…From the first I have not spoken
In secret, From the time it took place I was there.
And now the Lord God has sent Me and His Spirit.
MESSIAH'S PURPOSE
Isaiah 42: 1-4
Behold My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen
One in whom My soul delights. I have put My
Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to
the nations. He will not cry out or raise His voice
nor make His voice heard in the street. A bruised
reed He will not break, And a dimly burning wick He
will not extinguish; He will faithfully bring forth
justice. He will not be disheartened or crushed,
until He has established justice in the earth…
Isaiah 61:1-3
The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because
the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to
the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the
brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to captives
and freedom to prisoners; To proclaim the
favorable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance
of our God; To comfort all who mourn,
to grant those who mourn in Zion, Giving them
a garland instead of ashes, The oil of gladness instead
of mourning, The mantle of praise instead of a spirit
of fainting.
MESSIAH'S BETRAYAL
Zechariah 11:12,13
And I said to them, "If it is good in your sight, give
me my wages; but if not, never mind!" So they
weighed out thirty shekels of silver as my wages.
Then the Lord said to me, "Throw it to the potter,
that magnificent price at which I was valued by
them." So I took the thirty shekels of silver and
threw them to the potter in the house of the Lord.
Psalm 41:9
Even my close friend, in whom I trusted who ate
my bread has lifted up his heel against me.
Psalm 55:12-14
For it is not an enemy who reproaches me.
Then I could bear it; Nor is it one who hates
Me who has exalted himself against me, then
I could hide myself from him. But it is you, a
man my equal, my companion and my familiar
friend. We who had sweet fellowship together.
MESSIAH'S SCOURGING
Isaiah 52:13,14
Behold, My servant will prosper, He will be high
and lifted up and greatly exalted. Just as many
were astonished at you, My people, So His
appearance was marred more than any man
and His form more than the sons of men
MESSIAH'S REJECTION
Psalm 31:11-13
Because of all my adversaries, I have become
a reproach, especially to my neighbors and an
object of dread to my acquaintances. Those
who see me in the street flee from me. I am for-
gotten as a dead man, out of mind, I am like a
broken vessel. For I have heard the slander of
many. Terror is on every side; while they took counsel
together against me. They schemed to take away my
life.
Psalm 109:3
They have also surrounded me with words
of hatred, and , and fought against me without
cause. In return for my love they act as my
accusers; But I am in prayer, thus they have
repaid me evil for good and hatred for love.
MESSIAH'S DEATH
Isaiah 53
Who has believed our message? And to whom has
the arm of the Lord been revealed? For He grew
up before Him like a tender shoot, And like a root
out of parched ground; He has no stately form or
majesty That we should look upon Him, Nor
appearance that we should be attracted to Him.
He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of
sorrows, and acquainted with grief; And like one
from whom men hide their face, He was despised, and we
did not esteem Him.
Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows
He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken,
smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was pierced
through for our transgressions, He was crushed for
our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being
fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are
healed. All of us like sheep have gone astray.
Each of us has turned to his own way; but the
Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall
On Him.
He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet
He did not open His mouth; Like a lamb that
is led to slaughter, And like a sheep that is
silent before its shearers, So He did not
open His mouth. By oppression and judgment
He was taken away; and as for his generation,
who considered that He was cut off out of the
land of the living, For the transgression of
my people to whom the stroke was due? His
grave was assigned with wicked men, Yet He
was with a rich man in His death, Because He
had done no violence, Nor was there any deceit
in His mouth.
But the Lord was pleased to crush Him, putting
Him to grief; If He would render Himself as a
guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will
prolong His days, And the good pleasure of the
Lord will prosper in His hand. As a result of
the anguish of His soul, He will see it and be
satisfied; By His knowledge the Righteous One,
My Servant, will justify the many, as He will bear
their iniquities. Therefore, I will allot Him a portion
with the great, and He will divide the booty with the
strong; Because He poured out Himself to death, And
was numbered with the transgressors; Yet He Himself
bore the sin of many, and interceded for the transgressors.
Psalm 22
They open wide their mouth at me, as a ravening and
a roaring My God, my God, why has Thou forsaken me?
Far from my Deliverance are the words of my groaning…
But I am a worm ,And not a man, a reproach of men,
and despised by the people, All who see me sneer at me;
They separate with the lip, they wag the head, saying
"Commit yourself to the Lord; let Him Deliver him;
Let Him rescue him, because He delights in Him."
(vs. 1, 6-8)
I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of
joint; My heart is like wax; It is melted within me. My
strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue cleaves
to my jaws; and Thou dost lay me in the dust of death, For
dogs have surrounded me; A band of evildoers has encompassed
Me; They pierced my hands and my feet. I can count all my
bones. They look, they stare at me; They divide my garments
Among them, and for my clothing they cast lots. (vs. 13-18)
MESSIAH'S TRIMPHANT ENTRY INTO JERUSALEM
Zechariah 9:9
Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O daughter
of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; He is just and
endowed with salvation, Humble and mounted on a donkey,
even on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
MESSIAH WILL NOT SEE CORRUPTION
Psalm 16:10
For Thou wilt not abandon my soul to Sheol; Neither wilt
Thou allow Thy Holy One to undergo decay.
Psalm 49:15
But God will redeem my soul from the power of
Sheol; For He will receive me.
MESSIAH TO DRINK VINEGAR
Psalm 69:21
They also gave me gall for my food, And for my thirst
They gave me vinegar to drink.
Psalm 69:3
I am weary with my crying; my throat is parched.
MESSIAH - THE SON OF GOD
Psalm 2
He said to Me, Thou art My Son, today I have
begotten Thee. (vs. 7)
Do homage to the Son, lest He become angry and
you perish in the way, For His wrath may soon be
kindled. How blessed are all who take refuge in Him! (vs. 12)
Proverbs 30:4
Who has ascended into heaven and descended?
Who has gathered the wind in His fists?
Who has wrapped the waters in His garment?
Who has established all the ends of the earth?
What is His name or His Son's name?
Surely you know!
MESSIAH'S BIRTHPLACE
Micah 5:2
But as for you, Bethlehem Ephratah, Too little to be
among the clans of Judah, From you One will go forth
for Me to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from
long ago, from the days of eternity.
MESSIAH TO BRING PEACE
Micah 5:5
And This One will be our peace.
MESSIAH REVEALED IN THE LAST DAYS
Zechariah 12:10
And I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him as one mourns for an only son and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a first-born.
THE TIME OF THE MESSIAH
Daniel 9:24-27
Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people
and for your holy city, to finish the transgression to
make an end of sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring
in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy
and to anoint the most holy place.
So you are to know and discern that from the issuing of a
decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah,
the Prince there will be seven weeks and sixty-two
weeks; it will be built again, with plaza and moat, even
in times of distress.
Then after the sixty two weeks the Messiah will be cut
off and have nothing, and the people of the prince who
is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. And
its end will come with a flood; even to the end there will
be war; desolations are determined.
MESSIAH WITH GOD FROM THE BEGINNING
Proverbs 8:22-30
The Lord possessed me at the beginning of His way, before
His works of old. From everlasting I was established. From
the beginning, from the earliest times of the earth. When there
were no depths I was brought forth, When there were no springs
abounding with water. Before the mountains were settled, before
the hills I was brought forth. While He had not yet made the
earth and the fields, north first dust of the world. When He estab-
lished the heavens I was there. When He inscribed a circle on
the face of the deep. When He made firm the skies above. When
the springs of the deep became fixed. When He set for the sea its
boundary, So that the water should not transgress His command,
when He marked out the foundations of the earth; Then I was
beside Him, as a master workman; and I was daily His delight
rejoicing always before Him.
Genesis 1:26
Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image,
According to Our likeness…
The Saviour
When the time was right Yeshua explained one last time, at the Passover Seder, that he was about to die to take on the sin of the world, but that he would return to life to prove that the price for sin had been fully paid and his sacrifice had been accepted. He allowed himself to be betrayed to the authorities, mocked, abused and crucified. Crucifixion was about the most agonizing death available but it fulfilled a word from the law, which says, "Cursed is he who is hanged on the tree". He took the curse of our sin. After he was dead his body was taken down and laid in a borrowed tomb which was closed with a huge stone. After three days, some of his followers came to put spices on his body but found the stone rolled away and the body gone. Over the next forty days Yeshua appeared to five hundred of his followers; but not to the unbelieving public. After that he was taken up into heaven from the Mount of Olives, outside Jerusalem. An angel promised his disciples that he would return as they had seen him go. Indeed Yeshua and the prophets said that nobody would be in any doubt when he returned. He told them of certain things that had to happen before his return, but he warned us not to believe anybody who said he knew the date of his return. Even He did not know when his return would be; only the Father knows. Remember - His title, "the anointed one" means he is to be King, but He has yet to take his throne in Jerusalem to govern the world in Justice and righteousness.
Please click Accepting Yeshua if you want to go further.
Please do not try and make yourself good enough before you approach God - let Him do it - see Problem Page
Please see also the second half of Beginners guide (which was written for non-Jews) for a simple explanation of the issues of getting right with the God of Israel, through the work of Yeshua the Messiah, and the practical implications of this change of life.