Why Jesus Cannot Be the Messiah: Part 3

This one is all about Matthew. Much of the messiah myth rests on the multiple prophecies found in Matthew that Jesus supposedly fulfills. So lets take a look at them one at a time.

Matt 1:23"The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"—which means, "God with us."

Its counter is Isaiah 7:14. Unfortunately, all it takes is a bit of reading of that chapter to know that Isaiah is not talking about a future messiah, but to king Ahaz about his son and his kingship continuing on after the Assyrian invastion.

Matt 2:6"But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.'"

The counter prophecy to this lies in Micah 5:2 which says: Matt 5:1-3

1 Marshal your troops, O city of troops,
for a siege is laid against us.
They will strike Israel's ruler
on the cheek with a rod.

2 "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
though you are small among the clans of Judah,
out of you will come for me
one who will be ruler over Israel,
whose origins are from of old,
from ancient times. "

3 Therefore Israel will be abandoned
until the time when she who is in labor gives birth
and the rest of his brothers return
to join the Israelites.

Of course the problem is easy. No mention of a messiah exists, the ruler is very obviously a military ruler, Israel wasn't abandoned, and Jesus didn't reunite all of them. As well, Bethlehem Ephrathah is not referring to a city at all, but a person, and there is no lineage to have come from him to say this is some prophecy fulfilled in Jesus. Thus, this again is no fulfilled prophecy, in any manner at all.

Matt 2:15 15where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: "Out of Egypt I called my son."

The counter prophecy to this one is rather silly. Not like some are not, but lets just read the counter prophetic scriture Matthew is talking about.

Hosea 11:1, but I'm going to post through verse three.

1 "When Israel was a child, I loved him,
and out of Egypt I called my son.

2 But the more I called Israel,
the further they went from me.
They sacrificed to the Baals
and they burned incense to images.

3 It was I who taught Ephraim to walk,
taking them by the arms;
but they did not realize
it was I who healed them.

Clear as day, this scripture is referring to Israels release from the Egyptian bondage and how they let god down since. This isn't even a prophecy at all, let alone a messianic prophecy.

Matt 2:17-18
17 Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled:
18"A voice is heard in Ramah,
weeping and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her children
and refusing to be comforted,
because they are no more."

Jeremiah 31:15 is the counter prophecy to this verse. Matthew claims Jeremiah's prophecy is being fulfilled. So lets read it in contect.

Jeremiah 31:14-16
14 I will satisfy the priests with abundance,
and my people will be filled with my bounty,"
declares the LORD.

15 This is what the LORD says:
"A voice is heard in Ramah,
mourning and great weeping,
Rachel weeping for her children
and refusing to be comforted,
because her children are no more."

16 This is what the LORD says:
"Restrain your voice from weeping
and your eyes from tears,
for your work will be rewarded,"
declares the LORD.
"They will return from the land of the enemy.

This is not a prophecy at all either. Nothing in this says it is a prophecy, it doesn't predict anything, and it surely is not a messianic prophecy. This is a nostradamus like stretch. If this is valid prophecy, then so is all of Nostradamus work.

Matt 3:3
3This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah:
"A voice of one calling in the desert,
'Prepare the way for the Lord,
make straight paths for him.' "

Alright, the counter to this one is Isaiah 40:3 but we will take 1-5 for context.

Isaiah 40:1-5
1 Comfort, comfort my people,
says your God.

2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,
and proclaim to her
that her hard service has been completed,
that her sin has been paid for,
that she has received from the LORD's hand
double for all her sins.

3 A voice of one calling:
"In the desert prepare
the way for the LORD [a] ;
make straight in the wilderness
a highway for our God. [b]

4 Every valley shall be raised up,
every mountain and hill made low;
the rough ground shall become level,
the rugged places a plain.

5 And the glory of the LORD will be revealed,
and all mankind together will see it.
For the mouth of the LORD has spoken."

Again, what prophecy? If this is a messianic prophecy then it failed miserably. No valleys raised up, or mountains and hills made low, or rough ground level. And no glory of the loard revealed with all mankind together seeing it. Taken in context, there is nothing prophetic relating to anything about Jesus in this verse.

Matt 4:13-16
13Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali—

14to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah:

15"Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali,
the way to the sea, along the Jordan,
Galilee of the Gentiles—

16the people living in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of the shadow of death
a light has dawned."

So, the source of this one is Isaiah 9:1-2 so I'll quote a few more for context.

Isaiah 9:1-5
1 Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future he will honor Galilee of the Gentiles, by the way of the sea, along the Jordan-

2 The people walking in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of the shadow of death
a light has dawned.

3 You have enlarged the nation
and increased their joy;
they rejoice before you
as people rejoice at the harvest,
as men rejoice
when dividing the plunder.

4 For as in the day of Midian's defeat,
you have shattered
the yoke that burdens them,
the bar across their shoulders,
the rod of their oppressor.

5 Every warrior's boot used in battle
and every garment rolled in blood
will be destined for burning,
will be fuel for the fire.

Obviously this refers to something more than seeing Jesus. Because he refers to rejoicing at harvest, dividing plunder, and warriors bathed in blood. None of which relates to Jesus walk along the shore. Later, Isaiah 9 will once again be used to say Jesus fulfilled a prophecy. But once again, we will see it is nothing but palpable nonsense.

Matt 8:16-17
16When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick.
17This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah:
"He took up our infirmities
and carried our diseases."

Isaiah 53:4 is the counter "prophecy" to this prediction. This is the famous "suffering servent" passage so touted as referring to Jesus. See previous post as to why this is ridiculous.

Matt 11:10
10 This is the one about whom it is written:
" 'I will send my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way before you.'

Okay, so here, Matthew is putting words in John the Baptists mouth. So lets look at the counter prophetic verse.

Malachi 3:1-4
1 "See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come," says the LORD Almighty.

2 But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner's fire or a launderer's soap. 3 He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness, 4 and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the LORD, as in days gone by, as in former years.

If this is referring to Jesus, then god lied. People not only endured his coming, but they rejected him when he came. He didn't purify the levites, and there were no offerings of Judah and Jersusalem like in days gone by. Its a scam. There is a prophesy here, but Jesus doesn't match it at all.

Matt 12:17-21
17This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah:
18"Here is my servant whom I have chosen,
the one I love, in whom I delight;
I will put my Spirit on him,
and he will proclaim justice to the nations.
19He will not quarrel or cry out;
no one will hear his voice in the streets.
20A bruised reed he will not break,
and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out,
till he leads justice to victory.
21In his name the nations will put their hope."

Isaiah 42:1-4 is the counter, so lets read through and find out what Isaiah is talking about.

Isaiah 42:1-4
1 "Here is my servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen one in whom I delight;
I will put my Spirit on him
and he will bring justice to the nations.

2 He will not shout or cry out,
or raise his voice in the streets.

3 A bruised reed he will not break,
and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.
In faithfulness he will bring forth justice;

4 he will not falter or be discouraged
till he establishes justice on earth.
In his law the islands will put their hope."

I'm not sure why this is a prophecy. Seems like he is pointing out what his servant will be like. After all, Jesus did shout in the temple, he didn't bring justice to the nations, he didn't establish justice on earth, and his law is not the hope of said islands. If this is a prophecy, then just because someone says someone will be righteous doesn't mean that everyone who is righteous suddenly fulfilled the prophecy.

Matt 13:13-15
13This is why I speak to them in parables:
"Though seeing, they do not see;
though hearing, they do not hear or understand.
14In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah:
" 'You will be ever hearing but never understanding;
you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.
15For this people's heart has become calloused;
they hardly hear with their ears,
and they have closed their eyes.
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
hear with their ears,
understand with their hearts
and turn, and I would heal them.'

The counter to this is actually much much harsher that the prophecy is made out to be.

Isaiah 6:6-12
6 Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar.

7 With it he touched my mouth and said, "See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for."

8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?"
And I said, "Here am I. Send me!"

9 He said, "Go and tell this people:
" 'Be ever hearing, but never understanding;
be ever seeing, but never perceiving.'

10 Make the heart of this people calloused;
make their ears dull
and close their eyes. [a]
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
hear with their ears,
understand with their hearts,
and turn and be healed."

11 Then I said, "For how long, O Lord?"
And he answered:
"Until the cities lie ruined
and without inhabitant,
until the houses are left deserted
and the fields ruined and ravaged,

12 until the LORD has sent everyone far away
and the land is utterly forsaken.

So not only are they not supposed to hear or see, but they won't until everything is destroyed. So Jesus speaks in parables because of this prophecy? Wouldn't it not matter at all since they will be like that until everything is destroyed? Should someone who knew that scripture know that? Not a prophecy of Jesus, no matter who many times he quotes it.

Matt 13:34-35
34Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. 35So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet:
"I will open my mouth in parables,
I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world."

As you can guess, it has a scriptural counter that is of course not a prophecy at all when looked at in context.

Psalm 78:1-3
1 O my people, hear my teaching;
listen to the words of my mouth.

2 I will open my mouth in parables,
I will utter hidden things, things from of old-

3 what we have heard and known,
what our fathers have told us.

Title of this psalm is A Maskil of Asaph. So this is a psalm to the people, he is essentially teaching the people and telling them he will teach them in parable that they have known from their fathers. No prophecy is a good prophecy if you ask me!

Matthew 15:7-9
7You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
8" 'These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
9They worship me in vain;
their teachings are but rules taught by men.'"

COunter Isaiah 29:13 but reading 12 and 14 with it helps a bit.

Isaiah 29:12-14
12 Or if you give the scroll to someone who cannot read, and say, "Read this, please," he will answer, "I don't know how to read."

13 The Lord says:
"These people come near to me with their mouth
and honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
Their worship of me
is made up only of rules taught by men.

14 Therefore once more I will astound these people
with wonder upon wonder;
the wisdom of the wise will perish,
the intelligence of the intelligent will vanish."

In context, it appears to be directly addressing someone in possession of scripture but doesn't know how to read it. There is no prophecy here either.

Matt 21:3-5
3If anyone says anything to you, tell him that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away."

4This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:
5"Say to the Daughter of Zion,
'See, your king comes to you,
gentle and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.' "

Okay, Zechariah 9:9 gets the nod here. So lets look at it with some context.

Zechariah 9:9-10
9 Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion!
Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem!
See, your king [a] comes to you,
righteous and having salvation,
gentle and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

10 I will take away the chariots from Ephraim
and the war-horses from Jerusalem,
and the battle bow will be broken.
He will proclaim peace to the nations.
His rule will extend from sea to sea
and from the River to the ends of the earth.

Unless Jesus brought peace to the nations and his rule extended to all the earth, then this isn't about him. Now, I know christians who say "he will when he makes his second comming". Well, ain't that special. Funny thing about prophecy. In order to validate something through prophecy, the prophecy must come true. Thus, if this verse of prophecy "will" come true, until it does, it not only doesn't validate Jesus as messiah or ruler, but is evidence against that idea.

Matt 21:31
31Then Jesus told them, "This very night you will all fall away on account of me, for it is written:
" 'I will strike the shepherd,
and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.'

Zechariah 13:7 is the counter. Sorry JC, you are wrong on this. That isn't what that verse is about at all.

Zechariah 13:6-8
6 If someone asks him, 'What are these wounds on your body [a] ?' he will answer, 'The wounds I was given at the house of my friends.'
The Shepherd Struck, the Sheep Scattered
7 "Awake, O sword, against my shepherd,
against the man who is close to me!"
declares the LORD Almighty.
"Strike the shepherd,
and the sheep will be scattered,
and I will turn my hand against the little ones.

8 In the whole land," declares the LORD,
"two-thirds will be struck down and perish;
yet one-third will be left in it.

Jesus conveniently leaves out the rest of the verse that doesn't make sense to what he is saying. As well, this is clearly talking about the lords vengeance against people. It even gives numbers of people to be struck down. This has zero to do with Peter and his denial.

Matt 27:8-10
8That is why it has been called the Field of Blood to this day. 9Then what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: "They took the thirty silver coins, the price set on him by the people of Israel, 10and they used them to buy the potter's field, as the Lord commanded me."

First off, the counter is not in Jeremiah, it is in Zechariah, so there is the first idiotic writing.

Zechariah 11:12-14
12 I told them, "If you think it best, give me my pay; but if not, keep it." So they paid me thirty pieces of silver.

13 And the LORD said to me, "Throw it to the potter"-the handsome price at which they priced me! So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them into the house of the LORD to the potter.

What on earth does this have to do with Judas? Nothing, thats what. No prophecy again.

In fact, there is only one prophecy in all of Matthew that is actually a prophecy and it is clearly no about Jesus. Not to mention, I know there is a scripture in Matthew that says that Jesus was born in Nazereth to fulfill the prophecy that he would be called a Nazerene. But that companion verse actually is referring to Samson, and it is that he will be called a Nazerite, not a Nazerene which means he has long hair and will never cut it. The writer of Matthew clearly made much of what he wrote up and clearly didn't understand the translations of scripture very well.

Why Jesus Cannot be the Messiah: Part 2

This scripture is another famously touted prophecy that Jesus fulfills.

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. Isaiah 7:14

Immanuel of course means "god with us" so Jesus was god, thus Immanuel, and born of Mary the Virgin. But there is a problem here. Lets ignore the translation issues with "virgin" that everyone knows about but christians justify away and do what christians tell us to. Lets read it in context and find out what this is all really about. I'll quote most of Chapter 7 of Isaiah to prove the point.

1. When Ahaz son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, was king of Judah, King Rezin of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel marched up to fight against Jerusalem, but they could not overpower it.

2. Now the house of David was told, "Aram has allied itself with Ephraim"; so the hearts of Ahaz and his people were shaken, as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind.

3. Then the LORD said to Isaiah, "Go out, you and your son Shear-Jashub, to meet Ahaz at the end of the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Washerman's Field.

4. Say to him, 'Be careful, keep calm and don't be afraid. Do not lose heart because of these two smoldering stubs of firewood—because of the fierce anger of Rezin and Aram and of the son of Remaliah.

5. Aram, Ephraim and Remaliah's son have plotted your ruin, saying,

6. "Let us invade Judah; let us tear it apart and divide it among ourselves, and make the son of Tabeel king over it."

7. Yet this is what the Sovereign LORD says:
" 'It will not take place,
it will not happen,

8. for the head of Aram is Damascus,
and the head of Damascus is only Rezin.
Within sixty-five years
Ephraim will be too shattered to be a people.

9. The head of Ephraim is Samaria,
and the head of Samaria is only Remaliah's son.
If you do not stand firm in your faith,
you will not stand at all.' "

10. Again the LORD spoke to Ahaz,

11. "Ask the LORD your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights."

12. But Ahaz said, "I will not ask; I will not put the LORD to the test."

13. Then Isaiah said, "Hear now, you house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of men? Will you try the patience of my God also?

14. Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.

15. He will eat curds and honey when he knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right.

16. But before the boy knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, the land of the two kings you dread will be laid waste.

17. The LORD will bring on you and on your people and on the house of your father a time unlike any since Ephraim broke away from Judah—he will bring the king of Assyria."

And there you have it, plain as day. The "prophecy" is a prophecy to Ahaz that he will not be destroyed by Assyria and that his son will be born and he will be a good king. Before his son is even old enough to know right from wrong, the lands he fears will be laid to waste and things will be good for him and his family, better than ever before. CLEARLY this is about Ahaz! Christians like to talk about Cherry picking, but come on, this is possibly the worst case of cherry picking I have ever seen.

Jesus was never called Immanuel, and the scripture is clearly not about him. So much for messianic aspirations of Jesus in the Old Testament.

Why Jesus Cannot Be the Messiah: Part 1

Christians have long presented evidence from the Bible that backs up their claim that Jesus is/was the messiah. And while the external evidence simply blows that evidence out of the water, none of it makes a dent because christians believe only the bible. So, this time I'm playing by their rules, on their turf. I will show that Biblically, Jesus could not have been the Messiah.

Lets start here.

Isaiah 53:10

Yet it was the LORD's will to crush him and cause him to suffer,
and though the LORD makes his life a guilt offering,
he will see his offspring and prolong his days,
and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand.

This is straight out of the famed "suffering servant" passage in Isaiah 52 and 53 in which it supposedly perfectly describes Jesus as the Messiah. However, this part of the suffering servant chapter seems to be over looked most of the time.

In this passage, the lord ensures that he will have offspring and will prolong his days and prosper his hand. Jesus supposedly had no offspring, didn't have a prolonged life, and didn't end up very prosperous. Unless of course you consider being in heaven prosperous.

But that won't work either because if Jesus is god, he is just returning to where he was before, which is hardly prospering. But what offspring does Jesus have? What prolonged days did he have? None and none.

The suffering servant passage is likely talking about the Messiah, but it is clearly talking about a HUMAN messiah, not god in the flesh.

The famed suffering servant passage has its own death knell in it when it assigns clearly human promises to the servant, a human servant who will live on after the sacrifice, not in heaven, but on earth, having kids, prospering, and living a long life.

Gotta believe it, its in the book!