What Old Testament prophecy is fulfilled in Matthew 26:31? Setting the Scene • Jesus and the disciples have just left the upper room and are walking to Gethsemane. • Along the way, Jesus tells them something startling about an ancient prophecy coming true that very night. The Exact Old Testament Prophecy “Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd, against the Man who is My Companion,” declares the LORD of Hosts. “Strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered; then I will turn My hand against the little ones.” Jesus Identifies the Fulfillment Then Jesus said to them, “This 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.’” • Jesus quotes Zechariah word-for-word. • He unmistakably applies “the Shepherd” to Himself. • “The sheep” are His disciples, who will scatter when He is arrested. Layers of Fulfillment • Literal arrest and striking: In just a few hours, soldiers seize Jesus (Matthew 26:47–56). • Immediate scattering: “Then all the disciples deserted Him and fled” (Matthew 26:56). • Prophetic precision: Zechariah spoke roughly five centuries earlier, yet names both the Shepherd’s wounding and the flock’s panic as a single event. Wider Scriptural Harmony • Mark 14:27 repeats the same quotation, confirming its importance. • John 10:11—Jesus calls Himself “the good shepherd,” reinforcing the Zechariah link. • Isaiah 53:4-6—details the suffering Servant, dovetailing with the idea of the Shepherd being struck. • Acts 2:23—Peter later teaches that this was all part of God’s “deliberate plan and foreknowledge.” Why This Matters Today • Confidence in Scripture: A prophecy made in Zechariah is fulfilled verbatim in the Gospels, underscoring the Bible’s reliability. • Christ’s voluntary sacrifice: He knew the prophecy and still walked into it for our redemption (John 10:18). • Hope for scattered sheep: Though the disciples failed that night, the risen Shepherd regathered and empowered them (Matthew 28:10, 16-20). The prophecy of Zechariah 13:7 finds its literal, historical fulfillment in Matthew 26:31 as Jesus is “struck” and His disciples “scatter,” showcasing God’s sovereign plan woven seamlessly through both Testaments. |
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