Introduction
Christ Jesus has variously been portrayed in the Law (i.e. the Books of Moses). It is written that the law was our schoolmaster which was intended to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith (Gal 3:24). This implies that presently, ” the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets” (Rom 3:20). Therefore, Christ is the end of the righteousness that comes by observing the law (Rom 10:4). The witness of the law about the Messiah is presented in this piece of writing.
The Seed of the Woman
Moses prophesied about the Messiah after the fall of man. It is read that:
“And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: 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” (Gen 3:14-15).
The victory of the seed of the woman as indicated above describes what theologians call “protevangelium”, that is the first gospel ever preached. It is taken to be the earliest promise concerning the Messiah, His life, and suffering, as well as His ultimate victory over the prince of this world. This seed of the woman pointed to Jesus Christ as Paul rightly writes, that when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth his Son, who was made of a woman to redeem those who were under the curse of the law (Gal 4:4-5).
Shiloh
The Book of the Law again refers to Jesus Christ as Shilo (h) as seen in the below Scripture:
“Judah is a lion’s whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up? The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be”.(Gen 49:9-10).
The meaning of Shiloh, according to Smith´s Dictionary, is “Peace”, a name which is used to refer to Christ Jesus (Isa 9:6). Meyer also interprets Shiloh to mean “Peace-Giver”. Therefore, the above scripture could be taken to mean that afflictions would not depart from the Jews until the incarnation of the Prince of Peace, to whom belongs all authority and power.
The Promised Prophet
In the Book of Deuteronomy, Moses prophesied about the coming of the Savior. He foretells that:
“I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him” (Deut 18:18-19).
Peter cited the above passage when He was defending the authority and superiority of the Messiah as promised by Moses (Acts 3:22-23). Stephen also referred to this passage in his defense statement when he was talking about Moses’ words about the coming Messiah (Acts 7:37). Having this passage in mind, Jesus Himself attested that Moses did write about Him (Joh 5:45-47). The phrase “Unto Him ye shall hearken” was re-emphasized by the Holy Spirit during the transfiguration of Christ Jesus (Mat 17:4-5).
Conclusion
The Law or the Books of Moses both explicitly and metaphorically speaks about the birth and the life of the Messiah. Moses foresaw Christ Jesus as the Savior and preached Him to his followers.
Prayer: May the Almighty God open the eyes of our understanding to see Jesus as we study the pages of the Holy Scriptures. In the name of Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen!