Surely he has borne our grief and carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him, and by his stripes we are healed.
— Isaiah 53:4-5
Imagine, if you will, writing the details, the minute details, of the life of someone who would live in the 28th century a. d. What do you know about anyone? You know absolutely nothing whatsoever. But now, hear the Word of God, who knows the end from the beginning: “Who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? For he grew up before Him as a tender plant and as a root out of a dry ground.” (Isaiah 53:1–2a).
There is no way Isaiah 53 could be said to have been written after Christ was born. I have seen the actual Isaiah manuscript taken from the Dead Sea Scrolls—sealed and hidden before Christ was born.
Furthermore, in the Septuagint translation (begun in the third century b. c.), the Old Testament was translated into Greek and spread around the world. It would have been impossible to insert anything at a later date. This was, indeed, written seven centuries before Christ was born.
It is truly remarkable. It obviously proves that the Scriptures are inspired by God. There is no other way a writing such as this could exist.
Question to ponder:
How does the inspiration of Scripture make the reading and studying of it different from any other book?