Messianic Christology [Paperback]

Arnold Fruchtenbaum (Author), Arnold Fruchtenbaum (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: 1998

Messianic Christology is a study of Old Testament prophecy concerning the First Coming of the Messiah. Dr. Fruchtenbaum works his way through the Old Testament following the first century Jewish arrangement of the books, the arrangement that Jesus was familiar with. He shows from The Law, The Prophets and The Writings... how the revelation of the Messiah gradually progressed and built-up to reveal a magnificent picture of the Deliverer to come.

The Hebrew Scriptures formed the very basis for evangelism in the New Testament. First, Jesus with His disciples, and then the disciples themselves used the Old Testament to substantiate His claim to be the Messiah. When the messianic expectations of Hebrew prophecy are fully understood, it becomes clear that Jesus and only Jesus can fulfill these requirements.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Arnold G. Fruchtenbaum was Born September 26, 1943 in Russia, after his father was released from a Communist prison. Even though he is Jewish, his father was accused of being a Nazi spy when he fled Poland from Hitler. The Fruchtenbaums escaped from behind the Iron Curtain with help from the Israeli underground. They resided in Germany from 1946 to 1951, where Arnold received orthodox Jewish training. The Fruchtenbaums immigrated to Brooklyn in 1951, where they first came in contact with the American Board of Missions to the Jews (now Chosen People Ministries). At age 13, Arnold G. Fruchtenbaum became a believer in the Messiahship of Jesus. Arnold's father strongly opposed his beliefs, however; he allowed Arnold to continue associating with and learning from other Jewish believers until the family moved to Los Angeles in 1958. Once in Los Angeles, Arnold was forbidden to read the Bible, attend Christian meetings, or have anything to do with Messianic Jewish groups. Arnold, however; continued to maintain contact with Jewish believers and to walk with the Lord as best he could. Upon his graduation from High School, he was informed by his father that he would have to leave home because of his beliefs. In 1962, Arnold began undergraduate education at Shelton College. In 1966 He transferred to and graduated from Cedarville University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Hebrew and Greek. He moved to Israel that July, and studied archaeology, ancient history, historical geography, and Hebrew at the American Institute of Holy Land Studies and at the Hebrew University. In September 1967, Arnold enrolled at Dallas Theological Seminary. He also began working as a missionary with the American Board of Missions to the Jews. He graduated in 1971 with a Master of Theology degree. In June 1968, he married Mary Ann Morrow. In 1971, they moved to Israel, settling in Jerusalem. They worked with the local messianic congregation training young Israeli believers for service. His activities for Messiah drew the anger of the religious authorities in Jerusalem, finally forcing them to leave Israel in 1973. For the next two years he was a minister for the American Board of Missions to the Jews, and editor of The Chosen People. In 1976, he joined the staff of The Christian Jew Foundation as Associate Director of the largest Messianic Jewish broadcasting ministry in the world. In the summer of 1976, Arnold, along with others in Jewish missions, discussed the lack of discipleship and intensive biblical and theological training of Jewish believers. The early concepts of Ariel Ministries were born at that time. In December 1977 Ariel Ministries became a reality based on the principles of evangelism and discipleship. Arnold now serves as the director of the ministry. In 1989, Arnold completed his Ph.D. at New York University. He is the author of several books and has contributed articles in a number of books and journals. Frequently in demand as a conference speaker and teacher, he has traveled throughout Europe, Asia, Israel, and the United States, becoming intimately acquainted with the Messianic Jewish movement.

Product Details

• Paperback: 166 pages
• Publisher: Ariel Ministries (1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 091486307X
• ISBN-13: 978-0914863076
• Product Dimensions: 10.5 x 8.4 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #50,908 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

94 of 97 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant exposition of OT prophecies of Christ's 1st coming, December 6, 2000

By 

Dr. J. Sarfati (Brisbane, Queensland Australia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Messianic Christology (Paperback)

The Hebrew Christian (or Messianic Jewish) scholar, Dr Arnold Fruchtenbaum, goes through the entire Hebrew Bible -- the Law, Prophets and Writings -- and shows that Jesus Christ was prophesied in many places. He has a knack of communicating deep material in an easy-to-understand way. Where necessary, he analyzes the original Hebrew, and is erudite on Jewish interpretations of the passages.

It fills an important gap, because most Christians seem exclusively concerned with the New Testament, and forget about the Old Testament on which it rests.

His introduction is important, and warns against sensationalising, e.g. the claim that Jesus fulfilled over 300 prophecies at his first coming, when there are less than 100. Another error is forgetting that the Bible is a progressive revelation of God's Messianic program, foreordained from eternity but worked out in history. This results in falsely assuming NT understanding by OT saints who couldn't have had this.

The book provides many fascinating insights, e.g. into Genesis 4. There is also deep analysis of well-known prophecies. For example, he shows that Isaiah 7:14 was indeed prophesying a virginal conception of the Messiah, and that almah really does mean 'virgin' not 'young woman'.

Fruchtenbaum also shows that Isaiah 53 was really talking about the Messiah, as shown by the context. It is provides vital apologetic for witnessing to non-Christian Jews, because he shows that the vast majority of Jewish commentators, including Maimonides, believed that the passage is Messianic. The supposedly 'Jewish' view that it's referring to Israel is a fairly modern revisionist interpretation that was fiercely resisted by Rabbi Crispin as 'forced and far-fetched'.

There are also very valuable chapters about the plurality, unity and Triunity of the Godhead in the OT. The appendices also have much of value, including Daniel's '70 sevens' prophecy, 'How did the Wise Men know?', 'How the NT quotes the OT' and 'Jewish Objections to Jesus'.

I am also a Hebrew Christian or Messianic Jew, and think this book is unexcelled for Jewish insights into Yeshua Hamashiach. I think the only likely 'answers' to this book will be ad hominem, arbitrarily defining people like Fruchtenbaum and me as non-Jews, although we believe in the Jewish Messiah who fulfilled prophecies of the Hebrew Bible, and believe the New Testament also written entirely by Jews (including Luke!).

28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must for all who love the Bible, October 2, 2005

By 

J. Parry "Jnet" (UK) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Messianic Christology (Paperback)

DO NOT BE PUT OFF BY THE TITLE! This is not another longwinded, dry theological tome gathering dust on the shelves of elderly clergymen! Arnold Fruchtenbaum has the rare gift of being able to write in a scholarly but clear, extremely readable manner.

"Messianic Christology" is the first book of his that I have read, and I want more! The title is simply the official term for a study of Jesus as the Jewish Messiah. As the author is both Jewish and fluent in Hebrew, he is able to explain some of the finer points of what the Old Testament actually says. I never studied Hebrew but he explains things so clearly that this is no difficulty, and even an experienced Hebrew scholar will find fresh insights.

The main aim of the book is to show how Jesus fulfills the Messianic prophecies. The Old Testament scriptures are divided into the (Jewish) traditional three sections, the Law, the Prophets and the Writings (Psalms etc).

Charts and timelines are included as appropriate, and each chapter has brief "soundbites" at the end, summarising what the section has shown about the Messiah, for example: "Messiah is to be be a king"; "Messiah must be born prior to the destruction of the Temple in 70AD".

Finally, the printing is,like the content, very clear and easy to read.

The only fault I find with the book is that it's a paperback and likely to wear out long before I've finished with it!

25 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Insightful and enlightening, February 17, 2005

By 

Damien Spillane (Sydney, NSW Australia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Messianic Christology (Paperback)

Dr Fruchtenbaum has opened Biblical prophecy in ways that i have never seen before. He forcefully expounds the Old Testament prophecies that forecast the Messiah with such skill that it leaves me wondering how any Jew of today can not take the claims of Christ seriously.

For the Christian, this study will renew your appreciation of the supernatural unity of the Bible and augment your understanding of the identity of Jesus Christ. I thoroughly recomment this work to every Christian!