Bible Verses That Prophesy Jesus Christ's Birth

Isaiah 9:6 - Christ Would be Filled with Power, Peace, and the Spirit from Birth

Prophecy - “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6).

“The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners” (Isaiah 61:1).

Fulfillment – Christ Himself fulfilled these scriptures. 

"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free” (Luke 4:18).

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Isaiah 7:14 - Christ Would be Born of a Virgin

Prophecy - “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14).

Fulfillment – Mary received this same prophecy when the angel Gabriel visited her, and we see this fulfilled clearly through Scripture. 

"The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God with us’)” (Matthew 1:23).

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Micah 5:2 - Christ Would be Born in Bethlehem

Prophecy - “The Lord says, ‘Bethlehem, you might not be an important town in the nation of Judah. But out of you will come a ruler over Israel for me. His family line goes back to the early years of your nation.  It goes all the way back to days of long ago'” (Micah 5:2).

Fulfillment – Christ was born in Bethlehem just as the prophecy foretold. 

“After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem” (Matthew 2:10).

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Hosea 11:1 - Christ Would be Called to Escape to Egypt

Prophecy - “When Israel was a child, I loved him and out of Egypt I called my son” (Hosea 11:1).

Fulfillment – God sends an angel to awaken Joseph in the night and warn him of Herod’s plan. 

"An angel of the Lord appears to Joseph in a dream. ‘Get up,’ he said, ‘take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him'" (Matthew 2:13).

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Numbers 24:17 - A Star Would Point the Way Towards Christ

Prophecy - “I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near; A star shall come forth from Jacob, and a scepter shall rise from Israel, and shall crush through the forehead of Moab, and tear down all the sons of Sheth” (Numbers 24:17).

Fulfillment – God places the star in the sky to lead the magi to Christ, that they might worship Him.

“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east, and have come to worship Him” (Matthew 2:1-2).

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Psalm 72:10 - There Would be a Presentation of Gifts to Him

Prophecy - “May the kings of Tarshish and of distant shores bring tribute to him. May the kings of Sheba and Seba present him gifts. May all kings bow down to him and all nations serve him” (Psalm 72:10-11).

Fulfillment – The magi who visited Jesus brought him gifts and bowed to worship Him.

“On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh” (Matthew 2:11).

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Psalm 72:9 - He Would be Worshipped by Shepherds

Prophecy – “May the desert tribes bow before him and his enemies lick the dust” (Psalm 72:9).

Fulfillment – The angels came to the shepherds to tell them the good news of Christ’s birth, and  they hurried to find him and worship Him.

“This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger…When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.’ So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child” (Luke 2:12, Luke 15-17).

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Jeremiah 31:15 - There Would be a Great Sorrow Surrounding the Time of His Birth

Prophecy - “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” (Jeremiah 31:15).

Fulfillment – Herod’s cruel scheme to kill Jesus didn’t work, so he maliciously ordered that all baby boys living near Bethlehem,  2 years old and younger, be put to death.

“When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled” (Matthew 2:16).

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Daniel 9:25 - The Timing of Christ's Birth and Life Would Come before the Destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple

Prophecy – “Now listen and understand! Seven sets of seven plus sixty-two sets of seven will pass from the time the command is given to rebuild Jerusalem until a ruler--the Anointed One--comes. Jerusalem will be rebuilt with streets and strong defenses, despite the perilous times. After this period of sixty-two sets of seven, the Anointed One will be killed, appearing to have accomplished nothing, and a ruler will arise whose armies will destroy the city and the Temple. The end will come with a flood, and war and its miseries are decreed from that time to the very end” (Daniel 9:25-26).

Fulfillment – Since Herod is known to have died in 4 B.C., it is presumed that Jesus was born before then (between 6 - 4 A.D.), and that his death may have occurred somewhere between 29 - 33 A.D. Before his death on the cross, Jesus had also told of the coming destruction of Jerusalem, thus confirming the prophecy of Daniel.

“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem” (Matthew 2:1).

"He himself bore our sins" in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; "by his wounds you have been healed" (1 Peter 2:24).

"Do you see all these things?" He replied. "Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be toppled" (Matthew 24:2).

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Genesis - The Entire Lineage Would be Confirmed Through Scripture

Prophecy - Jesus was from the line of Abraham (Genesis 12:3), Isaac (Genesis 17:21, Genesis 26:4), Jacob (Genesis 28:14), Judah (Genesis 49:8–12), Jesse (Isaiah 11:1), and David (Isaiah 9:7, Jeremiah 23:5).

Fulfillment – We see the entire fulfillment of Christ’s line of genealogy through Matthew 1:1-17 and Luke 1. 

“This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham…” (Matthew 1:1).

“Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come to his people and redeemed them.  He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David” (Luke 1:68-69).

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