Dr Paul Allen

Romans carry spoils from the Temple in Jerusalem, including a Menorah, sacred trumpets and the showbread table. Thereby pointing to the prohecy of Jesus. In the Gospel of Mark 13 -it contains Jesus' predictions of the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem and disaster for Judea, as well as his eschatological discourse. The picture directly above and below show the Arch of Titus with the imagery of stolen vessels from Jerusalem.  After his teachings in the previous chapter, all set in the Temple courts, Jesus finishes his teaching in the Temple for the day and leaves. On his way out of the Temple, an unnamed disciple remarks how extensive the Temple (Herod's Temple) is. The buildings might have reached up to 150 feet (45.72 m) in height and they were adorned with gold, silver, and other precious items. In Mark, the scale of the Temple is emphasized in Luke's gospel, the beauty of the stonework is highlighted. "Do you see all these great buildings?...

“And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open. And I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place; and he shall be for a glorious throne to his father’s house.” ( Isaiah 22:22-23 ) This prophecy was originally applied to Eliakim, the keeper of the treasuries in the reign of King Hezekiah. The wearing of the key to the treasuries on his shoulder was symbolic of authority. Isaiah, in fact, had used this same symbol in his great prophecy of the coming Messiah, saying that “unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder” ( Isaiah 9:6 ). Eliakim thus became a type of Christ in his capacity to open and shut doors with his special key. The Lord Jesus quoted from this passage in His promise to the church at Philadelphia: “These things saith . . . he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth; I know thy works: behold, I ...

Michael Willmann (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) In Romans 15:12, Paul refers to Isaiah 11:10 to reinforce his claim that Jesus is the Messiah . Isaiah’s prophecy includes three major characteristics of the Messiah: his family line, his position of power over all the nations and the hope he would bring to the Gentiles . First, the prophecy predicts that the Messiah would be a descendant of David’s father, Jesse.   Jesus was indeed born into the royal line of David, the son of Jesse (see Matthew 1:1 –16). This fulfilled the covenant God made with David (see 2 Samuel 7:5–16) as well as the promise God made to Abraham (see Genesis 12:2–3). Second, the prophecy states that the “ Root of Jesse ” would rule over all nations.   Although Jesus rejected earthly positions of authority while on Earth, he now reigns over a spiritual kingdom (see John 18:36) and will one day reign over all, for “the kingdom of the world [will] become the kingdom of our Lo...