The prophecies of the Old Testament were documented well before the New Testament period 529-2 - 14 - 3

The Septuagint was completed nearly three centuries before the birth of Jesus. The Dead Sea Scrolls discovered in 1947 include Book of Isaiah from ca. 125 BC.

The Septuagint (also known as the LXX) is a translation of the Hebrew Bible into the Greek language. The name “Septuagint” comes from the Latin word for seventy. The Septuagint was translated in the third and second centuries B.C. in Alexandria, Egypt.

Here are two often quoted prophetic verses from the Septuagint:

Esaias (Isaiah) 53:5, "But he was wounded on account of our sins, and was bruised because of our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and by his bruises we were healed. 6 All we as sheep have gone astray; every one has gone astray in his way; and the Lord gave him up for our sins."

Michaeas (Micah) 5:2 And thou, Bethleem, house of Ephratha, art few in number to be reckoned among the thousands of Juda; yet out of thee shall one come forth to me, to be a ruler of Israel; and his goings forth were from the beginning, even from eternity.

[Brenton, Sir Lancelot C. L. English Translation of the Greek Septuagint, Including the Apocrypha]

The Great Isaiah Scroll

"The Great Isaiah Scroll (1QIsaa) is one of the original seven Dead Sea Scrolls discovered in Qumran in 1947. It is the largest (734 cm) and best preserved of all the biblical scrolls, and the only one that is almost complete. The 54 columns contain all 66 chapters of the Hebrew version of the biblical Book of Isaiah. Dating from ca. 125 BCE, it is also one of the oldest of the Dead Sea Scrolls, some one thousand years older than the oldest manuscripts of the Hebrew Bible known to us before the scrolls' discovery."

[http://dss.collections.imj.org.il/isaiah]

Isaiah 53 at Qumran

"Among the Dead Sea Scrolls found in caves at the village of Qumran overlooking the Dead Sea (Hebrew, Yam haMelach, Salt Sea) were fragments or whole copies of 21 distinct scrolls of the prophet Isaiah. The best known is the Great Isaiah Scroll (designated 1QIsaa), the only complete copy of Isaiah at Qumran, measuring 24 feet long. It was among seven original scrolls found in 1947."

[http://www.hebrew-streams.org/works/qumran/isaiah-53-qumran.pdf]

2 Peter 1:19-21, “19 We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: 20 Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. 21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.” 

353 Prophecies Fulfilled in Jesus - A good witnessing Tool

Christhttp://www.accordingtothescriptures.org/prophecy/353prophecies.html

The Septuagint 526-1 - 9 - 6

The Septuagint Translation (LXX) of Hebrew Bible was compiled from 285-270 B.C. by 72 scholars at Alexandria hence the name Septuagint. It is the primary text quoted in the New Testament. It is the oldest Greek version of the Old Testament.

There is a question if the whole Hebrew Bible was completed by 270 B.C. Some scholars theorize only the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible. These books are Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. The remaining books were translated in the next two centuries well before the birth of Jesus. Not having complete confidence in most Bible academics, I tend towards all of the Hebrew Bible being completed by 270 BC.

A Brief History of the Septuagint

"The Origins of the Septuagint

The very first translation of the Hebrew Bible was made into Greek, probably as early as the third century BC. This, the so-called Septuagint translation of the Hebrew Bible into Greek, is traditionally dated to the reign of Ptolemy II Philadelphus of Egypt (285-246 BC).

It is commonly called the “Septuagint” version (from the Latin for “seventy”) because according to the traditional account of its origin, preserved in the so-called Letter of Aristeas, it had seventy-two translators. This letter tells how King Ptolemy II commissioned the royal librarian, Demetrius of Phaleron, to collect by purchase or by copying all the books in the world. He wrote a letter to Eleazar, the high priest at Jerusalem, requesting six elders of each tribe, in total seventy-two men, of exemplary life and learned in the Torah, to translate it into Greek."

The balance of this interesting article is at:

[http://www.biblearchaeology.org/post/2016/03/31/A-Brief-History-of-the-Septuagint.aspx#Article]

One fact I use as a witnessing tool is telling people that the Septuagint Bible was completed nearly 300 years before the birth of Jesus and that He fulfilled more than 100 prophecies found therein.

The following are direct comparisons of the KJV and the Septuagint both from the Pentateuch and the complete Hebrew Bible:

Genesis 3:15, "And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel."

Zecharias 11:12-13, "12 And I said unto them, If ye think good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver. 13 And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of the LORD."

[KJV]

Genesis 3:16, "And I will put enmity between thee and the woman and between thy seed and her seed, he shall watch against thy head, and thou shalt watch against his heel."

Zacharias 12-13, "12 And I will say to them, If it be good in your eyes, give me my price, or refuse it. And they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver. 13 And the Lord said to me, Drop them into the furnace, and I will see if it is good metal, as I was proved for their sakes. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them into the furnace in the house of the Lord."

[Brenton, Sir Lancelot C. L.. English Translation of the Greek Septuagint, Including the Apocrypha]

When Jesus walked the earth, there was no New Testament. Jesus taught from either the Hebrew Bible or the Septuagint and most often from Deuteronomy. After the crucifixion and resurrection Jesus taught two disciples on the road to Emmaus. Luke 24:27, “And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.“

The Septuagint is indeed an excellent witnessing tool.

My whole heart is wrapped up in the private study of the Word. 540 - 3 - 4

I’m so convicted that the Word of God is just that, the Word of God that I want to study it in small Bible studies as well as in my alone time with God. I have a number of electronic gizmos and have installed Bibles on them. I go to sleep listening to the King James Version of the Bible and in the hope that the rapture will happen as I sleep. Often during the night I will wake up and think that I remember that part of the Bible and then drift off again. Asleep or awake, I can’t seem to get enough of the Word.

Unfortunately, this was not always the case as I was brought up in a conservative Protestant church. While I was in both the junior and senior choir I don’t remember ever caring a Bible into the church. Rather there was a wooden plaque with grooves near the altar where the verse of the day and page numbers of the hymns to be sung could be slipped into place. Sunday after Sunday the same format. Luckily when I was very young I had a friend whose father was a Baptist pastor so I had some exposure to the Bible. Years later and even before I started attending a Bible-based church I started to explore the Word. Now it is a consuming passion.

The Word is a wonderful gift that I seek to share with others. I try not to get annoyed by the dismissive and sometimes contemptuous attitude by those trying to marginalize the Word of God. How often I've heard/ responded to people who say the Bible is just a book written by men.

Rather than get into a no-win argument with these critics of the Bible I referred them to resources available through Koinonia House including Learn the Bible in 24 Hours, How We Got Our Bible and How to Study the Bible. I also point out that the Septuagint which was completed about 270 BC included more than 100 prophecies of the coming Messiah that Jesus fulfilled.

My goal is to be a better Christian apologist and I'm grateful to KI for the opportunity to immerse myself in the study the Bible.

My favorite Bible study tools E-501 - 3 - 7

My favorite Bible study tools include:

E-sword

KJV

Septuagint

The Internet in general and biblegateway.com/ specifically

The Franklin electronic Bible

Kindle fire

IPhone

E-sword is a free download well worth a donation as it is truly an asset in the study of the Bible. E-sword has many free tools such as downloadable commentaries and dictionaries. There is a build-in editor that I have yet to use, however, I’ve made and am making extensive use of Strong’s discretionary, only one of many available. I did purchase the AMG Complete Word Study Dictionary as it is not public domain but very helpful. This word study dictionary goes into greater detail than the public domain dictionaries.

The King James Version of the Bible is my usual go to source for Scripture. This version of the Bible was completed by a group of scholars hundreds of years ago. The video “A Lamp in the Dark, the Untold History of the Bible” is well worth the time required to watch it. Not only does it talk about the King James Version the Bible, it details the persecution of those who held to the word of God rather than man.

I like to refer people to the Septuagint and explain to them that it was completed nearly 300 years before the birth of Jesus. The fulfillment by Jesus of the many prophecies found in the Septuagint prove beyond question that Jesus was and is who he said he was.

The Internet is a wealth of materials that can be used in the study of the Bible. The however is that one must of course be very discerning. I’ve used Biblegate.com, the KJV, for many years for a quick look up for those verses that are relevant to what I’m doing. Often I can remember part of the Scripture but can’t remember the book, chapter and verse. A few keywords will usually bring up the Scripture I’m looking for.

For years I used the Franklin Electronic Bible and literally wore out two of them. Now I seldom use my third Franklin Electronic Bible, rather I use my Kindle fire and my iPhone when attending a Bible study. I will keep that part of the Bible we are studying on my Kindle Fire and use e-sword for IPhone as a quick look up to related Scripture.