The Threefold Fulfillment of the Cross

The Threefold Fulfillment of the Cross

by | Apr 15, 2025 | The Life of Jesus

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​From the time of the early Church it has also been realized that the Old Testament predictions of a promised Messiah or “Anointed One” show that prophesied figure as fulfilling three distinct roles: not only that of priest, but also the roles of prophet and king (all of whom were anointed to office in ancient Israel).Glimpses of the initial fulfillment of these roles can be seen throughout the life and work of Jesus; but what we do not always realize is that they all reach a climactic conclusion in the narratives of the crucifixion.

The Prophet

During his ministry, Jesus fulfilled the role of the “prophet like Moses” foretold in Deuteronomy (Deuteronomy 18:15-19 and compare John 1:45). It was clear to those who heard him that Jesus was a great prophet. “This is the prophet Jesus …” the crowds affirmed of him (Matthew 21:11 ESV) and “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!” (John 6:14 ESV). But in his final hours, Jesus exercised his prophetic office to an unprecedented degree. He made dozens of prophecies in the hours leading up to his crucifixion, not only predicting details concerning his own death, but also events that would occur after it. We see many of these prophecies in the “Upper Room Discourse” of his final evening (John 13-18), but they continue up to moments before his death (Luke 23:43).

The role of Jesus as prophet that culminated in his crucifixion was certainly clear to his enemies. We should not forget that the soldiers who mocked and tortured him hailed him as a prophet when: “They blindfolded him and demanded, “Prophesy! Who hit you?” (Luke 22:64).  As far as the Jewish religious authorities were concerned, they were crucifying a “false” prophet (John 7:52) – unaware that in reality they were condemning the very Prophet their scriptures foretold, and that in his death, this role would be affirmed (Matthew 23:37).

The Priest

Jesus also fulfilled the role of the “priest like Melchizedek” (Psalm 110:4 and compare Hebrews 7:17).  As the New Testament shows us, he carried out this priestly ministry by making an atoning blood sacrifice for all people. This is made clear by the author of the book of Hebrews who concludes: “Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself” (Hebrews 7:27).

This principle – of Christ fulfilling the role of priest by offering himself –  is found throughout the letters of the apostles, as we see, for example, in the writings of Paul: “God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood – to be received by faith” (Romans 3:25), and of John: “He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:2). But we must not forget that although Christ offered his life from the beginning, it is in the crucifixion that this role was fulfilled. And we see other glimpses of the priestly aspect of the crucifixion in the fact that Jesus was crucified at 9 am (Mark 15:25), the time of the morning temple sacrifice,  and died at 3 pm (Mark 15:33-38),  exactly the hour of the afternoon sacrifice.  It was also in his priestly role that Jesus offered a prayer from the cross on behalf of others –in this case his enemies, and by extension all of us (Luke 23:34).

The King

Although Jesus only began to fulfill the role of the “King like David” in his earthly life (2 Samuel 7:8-16, and compare Luke 1:32), his role as a king is directly spelled out in the gospel accounts.  He is identified as the king prophesied in the Old Testament throughout the Gospel of Matthew and also, occasionally, in the Gospel of John (John 12:15, 19:3, etc.). Even Mark, who mainly portrays Christ’s role as that of a servant, makes repeated reference to the kingship of Jesus in the passion narrative (Mark 15:2, 9, 17-18, 26, 32).

All four Gospels record the fact that Pilate referred to Jesus as the “King of the Jews” (Matthew 27:11; Mark 15:2; Luke 23:3; John 18:33) when he appeared before him. And all four Gospels record the fact that Pilate had “King of the Jews” inscribed above the crucified Jesus (Matthew 27:37; Mark 15:26; Luke 23:38; John 19:3).

The royal robe, scepter, and the crown of thorns, along with the title “King of the Jews” given to Jesus by the soldiers who mocked him (John 19:3), may have been given ironically, but they nevertheless were elements in the coronation of Jesus the king at his crucifixion –  which foreshadowed his true coronation after his resurrection (Hebrews 2:9).

Three Roles Fulfilled
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The offices of prophet, priest, and king that were foreshadowed by Jesus in his physical life all reached a high point of fulfillment in his death.  Having prophesied the nature of his last hours, having served as a great priest in offering himself and praying for those he represented, Jesus was clothed, crowned, and hailed as a king.  The crucifixion was not only the fulfillment of Christ’s atoning work on our behalf, but also it was the initial fulfillment of his three eternal roles of prophet, priest, and king.

*For more information on this topic, see our free e-book Inside the Four Gospels.

“The Length of Two Noses” – Understanding Idioms in the Bible

“The Length of Two Noses” – Understanding Idioms in the Bible

by | Oct 17, 2021 | Bible Study

We take idioms for granted in our own language. When someone says, “It’s raining cats and dogs,” we don’t expect to see falling animals – we understand that words used in idioms don’t have their usual individual meanings and that the expression has taken on a new significance altogether.  So we easily understand the idiom to “see the light” as meaning simply to understand or the expression to be “in hot water” to mean to be in trouble.

This use of idioms is common in most languages and when it comes to the Bible, ancient Hebrew was no exception. In fact, the Old Testament is particularly rich in this regard.  A great many Hebrew idioms have to do with body parts –  especially the face, hands and feet –  and these are often “guessable” in context even if they sound strange to our ears – as when we read “his face was fallen” (Genesis 4:6) and we sense the meaning is that the individual was sad.  To take a couple of other simple examples, in the Old Testament to have “clean hands” is to act purely (Psalm 24:4) and to have “closed hands” is to act selfishly (Deuteronomy 15:7).

These examples may make sense to us, but at other times it is not quite so easy to see the underlying meaning of Hebrew expressions.  The idiom “his nose burned” means “he was furious” (as in Genesis 30:2), and the expression “the length of two noses” means “to be patient” (as in Exodus 34:6 and elsewhere).  Fortunately, translators usually make such expressions understandable for us, and the more modern the translation, the more idioms tend to be translated with modern expressions rather than literally.

An example is found in 1 Samuel 24:3 where the Hebrew expression “to cover his feet” is translated literally, word for word, in the King James Bible (KJV), but more modern versions translate the meaning “to relieve himself,” as we find in the New International Version (NIV) and English Standard Version (ESV). While the KJV translates the Hebrew expression “having uncircumcised ears” literally in Jeremiah 6:10 and elsewhere, the NIV and ESV translate the idiom accurately as “not listening.”

This kind of idiom-to-meaning translation is particularly important because idioms can confuse us even though we may think we understand them.  We may know that in Hebrew the idiom “hearts and kidneys” (KJV “hearts and reins”) means what we would call our “thoughts and emotions.” But even knowing that “hearts” means “thoughts,” we may miss the fact that the Hebrew expression “heart lifted up” does not always mean to be “happy” (as in 2 Chronicles 17:6), but can also mean “prideful” (as in Deuteronomy 8:11-14).

Again, most modern translations help us make sense of idioms such as the ones we have looked at, but they will also sometimes leave idioms untranslated. This is particularly true in the New Testament – and especially in the Gospel of Matthew which was likely originally written in Hebrew.  We see this throughout Matthew when he speaks of the “kingdom of heaven” as opposed to the “kingdom of God” as we find in the other Gospels. In Hebrew, the word “heaven” was used idiomatically for “God” so a true meaning-to-meaning translation would render “kingdom of heaven” as “kingdom of God” in Matthew also.

Consider another example from Matthew. In Matthew 19:24 we read the famous words of Jesus: “… it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”  Most English translations from the KJV to the NIV translate this verse in this way, but for centuries commentators have disagreed on the origin for the phrase “a camel to go through the eye of a needle.”  Some have speculated that the expression is based on a small “needle gate” next to a larger gate in Jerusalem – the smaller gate being left open at night so that a camel, kneeling down and without its rider, could just pass through.  Attractive as this explanation might sound, there is no proof of it and no historical evidence of any such gate.  In reality, the expression is based on a known idiom.  The Hebrew word gemala translated “camel” does often mean camel, but idiomatically it can also mean a thick rope, and this is more likely the original meaning of Jesus’ words –  that it is easier to thread a small needle with a thick rope (as opposed to a thin thread) than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.

At least one modern translation does translate the idiom in this way, and the lesson for us is simple.  No matter how much we may be attached to an older translation of the Bible, such as the KJV, we owe it to our understanding of the Scriptures to at least occasionally read a newer translation.  Certainly no version is perfect, but good modern translations are more likely to translate Hebrew idioms with accurate meanings rather than with word for word translations that are often not fully understandable to the modern reader.  A person who knows biblical Hebrew may recognize the idioms left untranslated in the KJV, but for most readers, a good modern translation will help render those idioms understandably –  rather than with expressions that may require “the length of two noses” to understand.