The Long Expected One
Charles Wesley wrote the hymn "Come Thou Long Expected Jesus.” The lyrics go like this:
“Come, Thou, long Expected Jesus,
born to set Thy people free.
From our fears and sins release us,
let us find our rest in Thee.
Israel’s strength and consolation,
hope of all the earth Thou art.
Dear desire of every nation,
joy of every longing heart.
Born Thy people to deliver,
born a Child and yet a King.
Born to reign in us forever,
now Thy gracious Kingdom bring.
By Thine own eternal Spirit,
rule in all our hearts alone.
By Thine all sufficient merit,
raise us to Thy glorious throne.”
John MacArthur has said, "What distinguishes a hymn from all other forms of music is that hymns stress theology. They stress a great truth about God that is found in His Word. This hymn [above] is no exception to that." [1]
Wesley identified Jesus as the “Long Expected” one: “Come Thou Long Expected Jesus.” What did Wesley have in mind when he chose that title for Jesus the Christ (the Messiah)? The Jews had “long expected” (and are still expecting) One who was to come that would be The Prophet of all prophets; the Anointed One (or Messiah) of all anointed ones; the Prince, Ruler and King of all princes, rulers and kings.
As we will see, every Jew in Christ’s time had this expectation. It was a very well known and accepted fact. In fact, when Herod inquired of the chief priests and teachers of the law where this Ruler was to be born that the Magi had inquired about, there was no doubt in any anyone’s mind that He was to come forth out of the city of Bethlehem in Judea. Herod asked them “where the Christ (the Messiah) was to be born”? (Mat. 2:4). Did we hear Herod say, “The Messiah”? Where did Herod get that from? The Magi hadn’t mentioned that this Ruler of Israel would be the Messiah. But evidently it was commonly understood that this Ruler was to be the Messiah. After all, Herod (an Idumean) did embrace the Jewish religion. And even the Jews didn’t question this statement made by Herod. They just answered Herod with what Micah the prophet had written (v. 6). But when we follow Micah’s statement, even all the way back through the prophets, the Psalms, and the law---and even all the way back to Gen. 49:8-11---we discover that they believed that “One was to come” from Judah, who would also be called “the Anointed One” (the Mashiach or, “the Messiah”); and even “The Coming One” or “The One to Come to Whom it belonged.”
In Mat. 3:11; Mk. 1:7; Lke. 3:15-16 and Jhn. 1:27 (cf. vv. 29-31), John the Baptist announces that he was the messenger that was to point out who “The Coming One” was. And later, in prison, he sends two of his disciples to inquire if Jesus was truly “The Coming One” (Gk., O Erkomenos), or should they be looking for another? (Mat. 11:2-4; Lke. 7:18-23). John was now in prison. And according to Isaiah (61:1-2), this anointed coming One was to set the prisoners and captives free. John, like many of the Jews (and even the disciples), looked forward to some kind of political kingdom to be set up by the Messiah. Jesus was physically delivering people everywhere, but He wasn’t doing anything about John’s plight in prison. So Jesus told John's disciples to go back and tell John what they had seen Him doing and that “the good news is preached to the poor,” the exact thing that Isaiah said The Messiah would be saying and doing—Jesus was doing it all. In addition, John was told not to become “offended.” In the KJV, everywhere this word “offended” (or “offence” or “offences”) is found in the gospels it literally means to become ensnared as in a trap and to stumble and fall. It is the same word used when Jesus told His disciples that they would all become offended of Him the night of His betrayal, and they would all begin to scatter. Then Peter tells Jesus, “Though all men shall be offended because of you, yet will I never be offended…I will not deny You” (Mat. 26:31-35 AKJV). Then Jesus told Peter that he would deny Him later that night. And later that night we learn that Peter did indeed become offended by the accusations that were being thrown his way (that he was one of Christ’s disciples), even to the point of falling away from the good confession of faith, and disowning the fact that he was one of the disciples of Christ. He wept bitterly.
This is what John the Baptist was told to avoid. Rather than be disowning of Jesus in his situation, he was told not to become offended by the plight of being left in prison; but to remain strong in his faith, embracing the suffering he was going through, and even about to go through.
This word for John, and for all of us, is that the kingdom of God is not about meat and drink and physical deliverance from prisons or beheadings, but about spiritual deliverance from the prison of sin. The purpose of the kingdom of God is to “bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives, and release from darkness for the prisoners” (Isa. 61:1). And not necessarily release for those who are physically held captive in prisons; though God did do this at times in the book of Acts. Some are delivered, some are not. The 11th chapter of the book of Hebrews, and even all the trials of Paul, can attest to this fact. So Jesus had to tell John to get refocused and to begin to get the big picture. He was to remain un-offended in his condition and not to stumble over the fact that Christ’s kingdom was not going to come in the manner John and many others had expected; in other words, to be a worldly political kingdom. Christ’s kingdom was “from another place” (Jhn. 18:37). To use an old Hebrew idiom, the nature of Christ’s kingdom was where men would “beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks.” And it would be a time when “nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore” (Isa. 2:4). This is the messianic kingdom that Christ preached about, and for which He suffered on the cross for. It was His finest hour when He became seated at the right hand of the Mighty God and manifested His power over all principalities, powers, mights and dominions, and over every name that is named; and from where He now rules and reigns; not only over the earth, but over the heavens and earth on a throne in heaven and not here on earth. And He must continue this rule and reign until He has put all enemies under His feet, even the last enemy of “death.” Then shall come the end (I Cor. 15:24-25). Jesus told the Pharisees, “If I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you” (Mat. 12:28). Truly it is a kingdom “not of this world,” and never will be.
Now if one looks closely at these two places in Mat. 11:2-4 and Lke. 7:18-23 in the NAS and NKJV, you will see that this title “the Expected One” or “the Coming One” is capitalized. And the reason it is capitalized is because it is not just a descriptive term (a verb). With the definite article “the” (Gk. “O”) placed beside it, it actually becomes a proper name. It becomes the title, “the Coming One,” or “the Expected One.” It is the translation of the Greek words, “o Erkomenos.” And it is a title of honor in Scripture reserved only for the Messiah, and no other, especially when used by itself with no other words near it to modify its meaning.
As we study this Greek phrase in Scripture, it is significant to keep this thought of it being a phrase “reserved” for the Messiah in the back of our minds lest we lose sight of it's significance or importance. To do so, as we will soon discover a little later, will only cause one to err and stray from the path laid out for us by this wonderful landmark throughout the Scriptures referred to as, “O Erkomenos” (or The Coming One) and miss out on all that God would truly have to say to us about this “One” who is to come, and His special ministry as the Prophet, Priest, and King. And similar to the appellations and accolades of “the First and the Last” (Rev. 1:17), “the Living One” (Rev. 1:18), “the Righteous One” (Isa. 24:16; Acts 3:14; 7:52; I Jhn. 2:1 NIV), “the Holy One,” “YHWH,” and “I am;” “the Coming One” is just one of the many names exclusively reserved for Christ.
We find the first mention of this “Coming One” in the Old Testament. And it is there in the Old Testament that this phrase has all its roots and foundation. And so John was asking Jesus, “Are You really that One”? Are you really that One, or should we expect another? Unbelieving Jews and the immature disciples in Christ’s day were “expecting another”--- a “political” Messiah. Today all the proselyte Jews still “expect another.” And even many Christians today are still “expecting another” and even teaching that Jesus will one day return and set up a political kingdom in the land of Palestine, with King Jesus ruling and reigning on a literal, physical throne; even ignoring the fact that Christ said His kingdom was not to come with any physical observation (Lke. 17:20), but was “within” (v. 21), and “not of this world” (Jhn. 18:36) but from “another place” (ibid). If it was to be of this world, Christ said, “My servants would fight [with tooth and nail] to prevent My arrest” (Jhn. 18:36). And when people (even His brothers) tried to encourage Him to form a political, earthly kingdom, He avoided any such attempts (Jhn. 6:15; 7:3-10). It was Jesus who also said that His kingdom was “like treasure hidden in a field” and “like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough” (Mat. 13:31-33). Paul said that in Christ are “hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Col. 2:3). Peter likewise said that a godly woman’s beauty was not to come from the outward adornment, but from “the hidden man of the heart” (I Pet. 3:4 KJV). And to him who overcomes, Jesus said He would give us the hidden manna” (Rev. 2:17). Truly Christ's kingdom is a kingdom that is not to come with “observation.”
So with such a carnal view and understanding about the kingdom of Christ, it is no wonder that John the Baptist, and even many of Christ’s first Jewish disciples, would wonder, “Are You the Coming One, or should we look for another?
John MacArthur has said that “the Old Testament description of the One who is to come is so complete and so clear that it actually describes the Coming One so well as to leave no doubt who it was.” (http://www.gty.org/Resources/Sermons/42-94). Of course, hindsight is now the best sight. But MacArthur says it is to now leave us with “no doubt” as to who this person is, as foretold by the prophets. Everywhere that we discover this appellation throughout the Scriptures, it too should leave us with “no doubt” as to who he is. Unfortunately, though, as we will soon see with regards to one particular passage in Scripture, and unbeknownst to many, it still remains doubtful as to who this individual is. And, ironically, even John MacArthur has failed to see this Coming One in this one particular passage of Scripture, even ascribing a name to him along with many others of none other than: the Antichrist. What should indeed be reserved and ascribed only to Christ has, sadly, been ascribed to the Antichrist. The honor, respect, and majesty that is to be due to our Messiah in this wonderful name, the Coming One, has been bestowed upon another of one's own making. And this is most likely due to the fact that most expositors have never even studied the Greek Septuagint in search of this “Coming One,” this "O Erkomenos." For if they had, then they would have discovered that in at least one more place, that in one of the most important prophecies in all of the Bible about Christ, we see “the Coming One” in all of His splendor and glory; both as the Redeeming Savior, and as the Ruler of all the kings of the earth. We see Him as the coming “Savior” and High Priest who makes atonement for the sins of His people, and we see Him as the coming “Ruler” and Righteous Judge of all the earth who gives an account for every act of disobedience. We see Christ as all, in all. We see that upon this “Coming One” the “government will be on His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace…He will reign [and now is] on David’s throne and over his kingdom establishing and upholding it in righteousness from that time on and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this” (Isa. 9:6-7).
Wesley identified Jesus as the “Long Expected” one: “Come Thou Long Expected Jesus.” What did Wesley have in mind when he chose that title for Jesus the Christ (the Messiah)? The Jews had “long expected” (and are still expecting) One who was to come that would be The Prophet of all prophets; the Anointed One (or Messiah) of all anointed ones; the Prince, Ruler and King of all princes, rulers and kings.
As we will see, every Jew in Christ’s time had this expectation. It was a very well known and accepted fact. In fact, when Herod inquired of the chief priests and teachers of the law where this Ruler was to be born that the Magi had inquired about, there was no doubt in any anyone’s mind that He was to come forth out of the city of Bethlehem in Judea. Herod asked them “where the Christ (the Messiah) was to be born”? (Mat. 2:4). Did we hear Herod say, “The Messiah”? Where did Herod get that from? The Magi hadn’t mentioned that this Ruler of Israel would be the Messiah. But evidently it was commonly understood that this Ruler was to be the Messiah. After all, Herod (an Idumean) did embrace the Jewish religion. And even the Jews didn’t question this statement made by Herod. They just answered Herod with what Micah the prophet had written (v. 6). But when we follow Micah’s statement, even all the way back through the prophets, the Psalms, and the law---and even all the way back to Gen. 49:8-11---we discover that they believed that “One was to come” from Judah, who would also be called “the Anointed One” (the Mashiach or, “the Messiah”); and even “The Coming One” or “The One to Come to Whom it belonged.”
In Mat. 3:11; Mk. 1:7; Lke. 3:15-16 and Jhn. 1:27 (cf. vv. 29-31), John the Baptist announces that he was the messenger that was to point out who “The Coming One” was. And later, in prison, he sends two of his disciples to inquire if Jesus was truly “The Coming One” (Gk., O Erkomenos), or should they be looking for another? (Mat. 11:2-4; Lke. 7:18-23). John was now in prison. And according to Isaiah (61:1-2), this anointed coming One was to set the prisoners and captives free. John, like many of the Jews (and even the disciples), looked forward to some kind of political kingdom to be set up by the Messiah. Jesus was physically delivering people everywhere, but He wasn’t doing anything about John’s plight in prison. So Jesus told John's disciples to go back and tell John what they had seen Him doing and that “the good news is preached to the poor,” the exact thing that Isaiah said The Messiah would be saying and doing—Jesus was doing it all. In addition, John was told not to become “offended.” In the KJV, everywhere this word “offended” (or “offence” or “offences”) is found in the gospels it literally means to become ensnared as in a trap and to stumble and fall. It is the same word used when Jesus told His disciples that they would all become offended of Him the night of His betrayal, and they would all begin to scatter. Then Peter tells Jesus, “Though all men shall be offended because of you, yet will I never be offended…I will not deny You” (Mat. 26:31-35 AKJV). Then Jesus told Peter that he would deny Him later that night. And later that night we learn that Peter did indeed become offended by the accusations that were being thrown his way (that he was one of Christ’s disciples), even to the point of falling away from the good confession of faith, and disowning the fact that he was one of the disciples of Christ. He wept bitterly.
This is what John the Baptist was told to avoid. Rather than be disowning of Jesus in his situation, he was told not to become offended by the plight of being left in prison; but to remain strong in his faith, embracing the suffering he was going through, and even about to go through.
This word for John, and for all of us, is that the kingdom of God is not about meat and drink and physical deliverance from prisons or beheadings, but about spiritual deliverance from the prison of sin. The purpose of the kingdom of God is to “bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives, and release from darkness for the prisoners” (Isa. 61:1). And not necessarily release for those who are physically held captive in prisons; though God did do this at times in the book of Acts. Some are delivered, some are not. The 11th chapter of the book of Hebrews, and even all the trials of Paul, can attest to this fact. So Jesus had to tell John to get refocused and to begin to get the big picture. He was to remain un-offended in his condition and not to stumble over the fact that Christ’s kingdom was not going to come in the manner John and many others had expected; in other words, to be a worldly political kingdom. Christ’s kingdom was “from another place” (Jhn. 18:37). To use an old Hebrew idiom, the nature of Christ’s kingdom was where men would “beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks.” And it would be a time when “nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore” (Isa. 2:4). This is the messianic kingdom that Christ preached about, and for which He suffered on the cross for. It was His finest hour when He became seated at the right hand of the Mighty God and manifested His power over all principalities, powers, mights and dominions, and over every name that is named; and from where He now rules and reigns; not only over the earth, but over the heavens and earth on a throne in heaven and not here on earth. And He must continue this rule and reign until He has put all enemies under His feet, even the last enemy of “death.” Then shall come the end (I Cor. 15:24-25). Jesus told the Pharisees, “If I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you” (Mat. 12:28). Truly it is a kingdom “not of this world,” and never will be.
Now if one looks closely at these two places in Mat. 11:2-4 and Lke. 7:18-23 in the NAS and NKJV, you will see that this title “the Expected One” or “the Coming One” is capitalized. And the reason it is capitalized is because it is not just a descriptive term (a verb). With the definite article “the” (Gk. “O”) placed beside it, it actually becomes a proper name. It becomes the title, “the Coming One,” or “the Expected One.” It is the translation of the Greek words, “o Erkomenos.” And it is a title of honor in Scripture reserved only for the Messiah, and no other, especially when used by itself with no other words near it to modify its meaning.
As we study this Greek phrase in Scripture, it is significant to keep this thought of it being a phrase “reserved” for the Messiah in the back of our minds lest we lose sight of it's significance or importance. To do so, as we will soon discover a little later, will only cause one to err and stray from the path laid out for us by this wonderful landmark throughout the Scriptures referred to as, “O Erkomenos” (or The Coming One) and miss out on all that God would truly have to say to us about this “One” who is to come, and His special ministry as the Prophet, Priest, and King. And similar to the appellations and accolades of “the First and the Last” (Rev. 1:17), “the Living One” (Rev. 1:18), “the Righteous One” (Isa. 24:16; Acts 3:14; 7:52; I Jhn. 2:1 NIV), “the Holy One,” “YHWH,” and “I am;” “the Coming One” is just one of the many names exclusively reserved for Christ.
We find the first mention of this “Coming One” in the Old Testament. And it is there in the Old Testament that this phrase has all its roots and foundation. And so John was asking Jesus, “Are You really that One”? Are you really that One, or should we expect another? Unbelieving Jews and the immature disciples in Christ’s day were “expecting another”--- a “political” Messiah. Today all the proselyte Jews still “expect another.” And even many Christians today are still “expecting another” and even teaching that Jesus will one day return and set up a political kingdom in the land of Palestine, with King Jesus ruling and reigning on a literal, physical throne; even ignoring the fact that Christ said His kingdom was not to come with any physical observation (Lke. 17:20), but was “within” (v. 21), and “not of this world” (Jhn. 18:36) but from “another place” (ibid). If it was to be of this world, Christ said, “My servants would fight [with tooth and nail] to prevent My arrest” (Jhn. 18:36). And when people (even His brothers) tried to encourage Him to form a political, earthly kingdom, He avoided any such attempts (Jhn. 6:15; 7:3-10). It was Jesus who also said that His kingdom was “like treasure hidden in a field” and “like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough” (Mat. 13:31-33). Paul said that in Christ are “hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Col. 2:3). Peter likewise said that a godly woman’s beauty was not to come from the outward adornment, but from “the hidden man of the heart” (I Pet. 3:4 KJV). And to him who overcomes, Jesus said He would give us the hidden manna” (Rev. 2:17). Truly Christ's kingdom is a kingdom that is not to come with “observation.”
So with such a carnal view and understanding about the kingdom of Christ, it is no wonder that John the Baptist, and even many of Christ’s first Jewish disciples, would wonder, “Are You the Coming One, or should we look for another?
John MacArthur has said that “the Old Testament description of the One who is to come is so complete and so clear that it actually describes the Coming One so well as to leave no doubt who it was.” (http://www.gty.org/Resources/Sermons/42-94). Of course, hindsight is now the best sight. But MacArthur says it is to now leave us with “no doubt” as to who this person is, as foretold by the prophets. Everywhere that we discover this appellation throughout the Scriptures, it too should leave us with “no doubt” as to who he is. Unfortunately, though, as we will soon see with regards to one particular passage in Scripture, and unbeknownst to many, it still remains doubtful as to who this individual is. And, ironically, even John MacArthur has failed to see this Coming One in this one particular passage of Scripture, even ascribing a name to him along with many others of none other than: the Antichrist. What should indeed be reserved and ascribed only to Christ has, sadly, been ascribed to the Antichrist. The honor, respect, and majesty that is to be due to our Messiah in this wonderful name, the Coming One, has been bestowed upon another of one's own making. And this is most likely due to the fact that most expositors have never even studied the Greek Septuagint in search of this “Coming One,” this "O Erkomenos." For if they had, then they would have discovered that in at least one more place, that in one of the most important prophecies in all of the Bible about Christ, we see “the Coming One” in all of His splendor and glory; both as the Redeeming Savior, and as the Ruler of all the kings of the earth. We see Him as the coming “Savior” and High Priest who makes atonement for the sins of His people, and we see Him as the coming “Ruler” and Righteous Judge of all the earth who gives an account for every act of disobedience. We see Christ as all, in all. We see that upon this “Coming One” the “government will be on His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace…He will reign [and now is] on David’s throne and over his kingdom establishing and upholding it in righteousness from that time on and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this” (Isa. 9:6-7).
His Roots and His Branches in Old Testament:
The root concept of this “Coming One” has its beginnings in seed form in Genesis 3:15. He is the One (the only One), the Messiah, who is to bruise the head of Satan. I do not think any believer would argue with this. In hindsight this is all so easy to realize. But, nonetheless, this is where all the prophecies about this “Coming One” have their origin. “Genesis” literally means, “beginnings,” and this is where it all began. This theme later develops with Jacob in his prophecy over Judah in Genesis 49:9-11. It continues its development in 2Sam. 7:11-16; 1Chr. 17:10-14 and especially in 1Chr. 5:2 and Mic. 5:2-5, where a descendant of David is to rule on David’s throne forever.
Psm. 118 is likewise acknowledged by all as a Messianic psalm, and verse 26 in the Greek Septuagint reads: “Blessed is The Coming One [O Erkomenos] who comes in the name of the Lord.” Isaiah gives us a glimpse of this Prince and Ruler in 9:6-7. Ezekiel hints of Him in 21:27. Daniel reveals Him in 7:13-14. Then, for the first time, Daniel reveals to us in chapter 9:26, in the Hebrew, “Nagib habba,” which literally reads: “The Prince, The Coming One,” with its Greek counterpart in the Greek Septuagint of “tw Eegoumeno, tw Erkomenw,” and literally translated also reads: “The Prince, The Coming One.” He is the Ruler that Daniel had just introduced to us in verse 25 as “the Messiah, the Ruler” that was to come, and here, in verse 26, this “Ruler” is the promised “Coming One.” Even Luke in chapter 19:38 alludes to this concept found in Daniel with the Greek rendering of “o erkomenos, o basileus,” “The Coming One, The King.” This was no arbitrary and shallow statement. It was rooted and grounded in the Old Testament Scriptures that the Messiah was to be the Prince of Peace, the Coming One and Ruler of all the kings of the earth.
Habakkuk 2:3 mentions Him in passing, the Septuagint translating the Hebrew with the Greek: oti erkomenos---“…for He will surely Come.” And the New Testament writer in Hebrews 10:37 qualifies the Septuagint rendering of Habakkuk as denoting God/Christ, as O Erkomenos, or “The Coming One.” Elsewhere in the New Testament we will come to see that this theme is developed extensively. So, as noted earlier, all the evidence is clearly and overwhelmingly in favor of the O Erkomenos as being none other in the Scriptures as Jesus, the Messiah. The term is never understood of anyone else who was of any importance. To do so would be to ascribe an accolade to a person or persona of one’s own making, and not how God wants us to understand this term.
So fasten your seat belt and get ready for one of the most exciting and exhilarating rides of your Christian life; and all around a very little known subject, entitled: O Erkomenos, The Coming One. He is truly a marvel to behold!
What Some Lexical Authorities Have To Say
The noted lexicographers, Ardnt and Gingrich, have this to say about the Greek “o erkomenos”:
…especially of the Messiah…who for this reason (on the basis of passages like Psm. 117:26 [LXX]; Hab. 2:3; Dan. 7:13 Theod.) is called o erkomenos [The Coming One], in Mat. 11:3; Lke. 7:19; Heb. 10:37 (Hab. 2:3)…Mat. 21:9; 23:39; Mk. 11:9; Lke. 13:35; 19:38; Jhn. 12:13 (in all cases Psm. 117:26 [LXX])….Jhn. 6:14; 11:27.…Mat. 3:11; Mk. 1:7; Jhn. 1:15, 27, 30.…Of God in Rev. 1:4, 8; 4:8.[2]
Kittel writes of “o erkomenos”:
d) the coming of the Messiah. Judaism often refers to the Messiah as The Coming One.[3]
Bullinger adds on “o erkomenos”:
Particularly, of “come,”…with article [“the”]), the one who is coming. Not merely the one who is about to come, but the coming one—in whom there is a stedfast and firm belief that He is coming (Mat. 11:3; Lke. 7:19). The article with the present participle denoting not merely that which will immediately happen, but that which is certain to take place.[4]
Harris, Archer and Waltke who note that the Hebrew “bo” is associated with “coming,” write:
Thirdly, the word is used in connection with the coming “Messiah”…Gen. 49:10...a ruler that will come from the tribe of Judah. Ezekiel and Zechariah further this hope for the “coming” one (Ezk. 21:27;…Zech. 9:9f). According to Zechariah this triumphant king is lowly, and comes riding on a donkey, a symbol of His lowliness.[5]
Now the Greek “Erkomenos” and its cognates are derived from the basic verb “erchomai,” and: “its basic sense is ‘to come’ or even ‘to go,’ often with a reference to people coming on the scene or to decisive events or natural phenomena, and sometimes in the sense of a hostile approach or coming (Lke. 14:31)…”[6]
There are only two other places in the Greek Septuagint of the Old Testament, and in the apocryphal writings, that are not mentioned by the above lexical authorities, where the terms “o erkomenos” in Psm. 118:26 and Hab. 2:3, and “tw erkomenw” (pronounced “tow erkomeno”) in Dan. 9:26, are known to be used; and we will be discussing these shortly. In the New Testament we find the phrases “o erkomenos” and “tw erkomenw” also used in a couple of places of individuals where the context determines that these terms are not speaking about the Messiah, but are modified by other words associated with them. And we also find these terms used in the context of a plurality of individuals who are also clearly not to be understood as the Messiah. We’ll also get to these shortly. But let’s first understand how these terms are used and to be understood in their given contexts.
First of all, without a noun or other phrase accompanying these irregular verbs, they in and of themselves actually become a noun by the fact that the definite article “O” accompanies them and thus become translated into our English as, “the coming one,” or “the one coming,” and in this case taking on the distinction of the proper name of someone.
Secondly, when a noun or phrase, such as a person(s) or thing(s) accompanies this verb, the phrase takes on a further meaning of who or what is “coming.” For example, in Gen. 24:63 it mentions “camels coming”; in Gen. 33:1, it is “Esau coming”; in Gen. 37:19, it is “the Dreamer [Joseph] coming”; in Gen. 42:5, “the sons of Israel came”; in Jdg. 20:11, “all the men of Israel came together”; 1Sam. 2:14, “the Israelites who came to Shiloh”; 1Sam. 2:17, “the man of God came to Eli”; 2Sam. 15:32, “Hushai the Arkite came to meet him”; 2Ki. 4:25, “she came to the man of God”; Psm. 21:30, “the generations coming”; Ecc. 11:8, “everything that comes is vanity”; Isa. 27:6, “in days to come”; Jer. 13:20, “those who are coming”; Dan. 11:10, “one of them [one of the sons of the northern king] will keep on coming” (NAS); 2Macc., “therefore he [Maccabeus] came.”
Thirdly, when a text reads, “o erkomenos, o basilea,” the construction here denotes the same person being referred to, but with a dual understanding of who or what he is. What we have here are two back to back proper names, both being used as descriptive terms for the same individual. For example, in Daniel 9:26, “the Messiah, the Ruler” in verse 25 who was to come, and of whom in context the entire prophecy is about, is restated in verse 26 as, “the Ruler, the Coming One”; and we will be discussing this also in more detail shortly. As noted earlier, in Lke. 19:38 Jesus the Messiah who is come riding on a donkey, is “the King, the Coming One.” And Jesus elsewhere is called both, “Prince” (Acts 3:15; 5:31) and “Ruler” (Rev. 1:5; Mat. 2:6); and of course, even “King” and “Lord” many times as well. In Jhn. 4:25, Jesus the Messiah who was to come, in context, is noted by the Samaritan woman as: “Messiah, the Coming One.” In Jhn. 6:14, Jesus (again in context) the Messiah who was to come, is “the Prophet, the Coming One.” And in Jhn. 11:27, Jesus, the Messiah who was to come, is “the Messiah, the Son of God, the Coming One.”
In Mat. 2:6, mentioned in passing above, the cognates of the Greek Septuagint’s “Hegoumenou/ Hegoumeno” (for “prince”) that are used to translate the Hebrew word “nagid” in Dan. 9:25 and 26, are also used to speak of the “princes” of Judah (the “hegemosin”) and of Christ Himself (the “Hegoumenos,” or “Governor” in the KJV), and reads in the NIV:
There is only one more occurrence in the Old Testament where a similar back to back construction as mentioned above is found. According to Hatch and Redpath’s Concordance to the Greek Septuagint it is in Lev. 25:25. It reads in the LXX English translation:
There are only two other places in the Greek Septuagint of the Old Testament, and in the apocryphal writings, that are not mentioned by the above lexical authorities, where the terms “o erkomenos” in Psm. 118:26 and Hab. 2:3, and “tw erkomenw” (pronounced “tow erkomeno”) in Dan. 9:26, are known to be used; and we will be discussing these shortly. In the New Testament we find the phrases “o erkomenos” and “tw erkomenw” also used in a couple of places of individuals where the context determines that these terms are not speaking about the Messiah, but are modified by other words associated with them. And we also find these terms used in the context of a plurality of individuals who are also clearly not to be understood as the Messiah. We’ll also get to these shortly. But let’s first understand how these terms are used and to be understood in their given contexts.
First of all, without a noun or other phrase accompanying these irregular verbs, they in and of themselves actually become a noun by the fact that the definite article “O” accompanies them and thus become translated into our English as, “the coming one,” or “the one coming,” and in this case taking on the distinction of the proper name of someone.
Secondly, when a noun or phrase, such as a person(s) or thing(s) accompanies this verb, the phrase takes on a further meaning of who or what is “coming.” For example, in Gen. 24:63 it mentions “camels coming”; in Gen. 33:1, it is “Esau coming”; in Gen. 37:19, it is “the Dreamer [Joseph] coming”; in Gen. 42:5, “the sons of Israel came”; in Jdg. 20:11, “all the men of Israel came together”; 1Sam. 2:14, “the Israelites who came to Shiloh”; 1Sam. 2:17, “the man of God came to Eli”; 2Sam. 15:32, “Hushai the Arkite came to meet him”; 2Ki. 4:25, “she came to the man of God”; Psm. 21:30, “the generations coming”; Ecc. 11:8, “everything that comes is vanity”; Isa. 27:6, “in days to come”; Jer. 13:20, “those who are coming”; Dan. 11:10, “one of them [one of the sons of the northern king] will keep on coming” (NAS); 2Macc., “therefore he [Maccabeus] came.”
Thirdly, when a text reads, “o erkomenos, o basilea,” the construction here denotes the same person being referred to, but with a dual understanding of who or what he is. What we have here are two back to back proper names, both being used as descriptive terms for the same individual. For example, in Daniel 9:26, “the Messiah, the Ruler” in verse 25 who was to come, and of whom in context the entire prophecy is about, is restated in verse 26 as, “the Ruler, the Coming One”; and we will be discussing this also in more detail shortly. As noted earlier, in Lke. 19:38 Jesus the Messiah who is come riding on a donkey, is “the King, the Coming One.” And Jesus elsewhere is called both, “Prince” (Acts 3:15; 5:31) and “Ruler” (Rev. 1:5; Mat. 2:6); and of course, even “King” and “Lord” many times as well. In Jhn. 4:25, Jesus the Messiah who was to come, in context, is noted by the Samaritan woman as: “Messiah, the Coming One.” In Jhn. 6:14, Jesus (again in context) the Messiah who was to come, is “the Prophet, the Coming One.” And in Jhn. 11:27, Jesus, the Messiah who was to come, is “the Messiah, the Son of God, the Coming One.”
In Mat. 2:6, mentioned in passing above, the cognates of the Greek Septuagint’s “Hegoumenou/ Hegoumeno” (for “prince”) that are used to translate the Hebrew word “nagid” in Dan. 9:25 and 26, are also used to speak of the “princes” of Judah (the “hegemosin”) and of Christ Himself (the “Hegoumenos,” or “Governor” in the KJV), and reads in the NIV:
But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers [hegemosin, “princes”] of Judah; for out of you will come a Ruler [Hegoumenos, “Prince”] who will be the Shepherd of My people Israel.This “Ruler” (or “Prince”), as noted twice in Daniel, is our “Ruler/Prince” here in Matthew who is to shepherd His people Israel. And the Greek “arkonta” (Prince/Ruler) of Micah 5:2 in the LXX (cp. with Gk. “arkegon/arkonta” used of Christ in Acts 3:15; 5:31 and Rev. 1:5) Matthew evidently thought to be synonymous with “Hegoumenos” here in his gospel, and used also in the LXX translation of “Hegoumenou/Hegoumeno” in Daniel 9:25 and 26. He is the one and selfsame individual in both places. And here in Matthew another name is ascribed to Him, “the Shepherd-King.” As Albert Barnes notes of this Shepherd-King, “Among the Greeks, kings are called, by Homer, λαων ποιμενες, shepherds of the people…As the government of a good king was similar to the care a good shepherd has of his flock, hence ποιμην signified both shepherd and king; and ποιμαινω, to feed and to rule among the ancient Greeks.”[7]
There is only one more occurrence in the Old Testament where a similar back to back construction as mentioned above is found. According to Hatch and Redpath’s Concordance to the Greek Septuagint it is in Lev. 25:25. It reads in the LXX English translation:
“And if thy brother who is with thee be poor, and should have sold part of his possession, and his kinsman who is nigh to him come, then he shall redeem the possession which his brother has sold.”
The literal Greek rendering of “and his kinsman who is nigh to him come” is “kai elthn o agkisteuwn o aggiswn autw,” or “and come the kinsman, the one near him.” Of all the translations, God’s Word Translation seems to come the closest to this rendering. It reads:
“If your brother becomes poor and sells some of his property, then the one who can assume responsibility, his nearest relative, must buy back what he sold.”
Now the point being in all this is that “the near one” isn’t just anyone coming, but is closely linked to “the kinsman.” He is “the kinsman, the near one,” the definite article in the Greek helping us to denote this. The two belong together as denoting one and the selfsame individual. He isn’t just anyone “coming,” he is “the one,” the “nearest” one in relation to his brother. So, when we speak of “the Messiah, the Coming One” he is not to be just any anointed individual; He is to be “the” Messiah, “the” Coming One. When we speak of “the King, the Coming One” as mentioned earlier in Lke. 19:38, he isn’t just any king, but “the” King who is “the” long expected one, “the” Coming One. In Daniel 9:25, He’s “the” Messiah, “the” Ruler; and no less “the” Ruler, “the” Coming One in verse 26. Do you see what is being emphasized here? Do you see "the Coming One" here in all of these places? He’s everywhere to be seen. The Scriptures are replete with such appellations about Christ (or Messiah) as “the Coming One.” There is no way for mistaking who, or what, He is. All these descriptive names for Jesus are inclusive of the idea that He is “the Coming One” as a King or Prince, as a Shepherd, as a Prophet, as the Son of God and so on so forth. More names will be seen to be given to this "Coming One" in the remainder of this article.
Interestingly, Lev. 25:25 is in the context of the year of Jubilee and is speaking about redeeming land that a poor brother had to sell, by a kinsman-redeemer. But if the one who sold the land becomes wealthy enough to redeem it himself, then he can do so at a price; and if no means is acquired to buy back the land, what the brother had sold will be returned to him in the year of Jubilee (vv. 26-28). Could it be that God placed this in Scripture as a type of “the Kinsman-Redeemer” who was to come and who redeems only those who have come to the realization that they cannot redeem themselves? No doubt Christ is our Kinsman-Redeemer and our Jubilee.
Now the only other two places where the exact phrases “o erkomenos” and “tw erkomenw” are used in the Old Testament and in the apocryphal writings are in 2Sam. 2:23 and 1Macc. 4:28.
In 2Sam. 2:23, “o erkomenos” is translated in English “every one came” in the LXX, is “every man…came” in the NIV, and “all those who came to the place” in the Bible in Basic English (BBE). Here, “o erkomenos” clearly is being associated with a mass of people who stopped fighting in a battle as soon as Asahel was thrust through with Abner’s spear. They all came to the place where Asahel fell dead. This context has nothing to do with the Messiah. This was not about “the One Coming” that the Jews were in expectation of and clearly indicated for us in the Scriptures. And they wouldn’t think about this passage as referring to such an individual. This is one of those cases, as mentioned earlier, where a word or phrase accompanies the Greek wording of “one coming” with the word “every” and therefore denotes, and as every translation attests, that it is “every one coming” who was fighting in the battle, not a singular “Coming One.”
So, this leads us to an important question: Can we honestly affirm that this term “o erkomenos” is used strictly with regards to Christ? The short answer is: No, it doesn’t! At least not when referring to “a group” of individuals or when the context determines that it is not speaking about Christ. But the long answer is that whenever this term, in a given context, is associated with the Messiah, one must affirm: Absolutely! In such a case, especially in the Bible, it is a term reserved only for the Christ, the Messiah, and no one else.
In every case in the Old Testament and New Testament where the singular “the Coming One” is mentioned and is used in close association with another persona, it is always speaking about the Messiah (or Christ). In the Old Testament, we've seen how in Psm. 118:22 Christ is the “Stone” and “Cornerstone”; in Dan. 9:25-26, “the Messiah” is twice mentioned and is “twice” called “the Ruler”; in Hab. 2:3, this coming one (or Christ) is said to be God himself (Hab. 2:3 has been very difficult for many to translate, but if we stay with the “inspired” testimony of the writer of the epistle to the Hebrews, then all difficulty is removed and the understanding is plainly ascertained for us. The translators of the LXX agreed, “it” is really “He” who is to come, or the Messiah). In the New Testament we have seen how that in Lke. 19:38 Jesus is said to be, “the King, the Coming One”; in Jhn. 4:25, He is the “Messiah, the Coming One”; in Jhn. 6:14, He is “the Prophet, the Coming One”; and in Jhn. 11:27, He is “the Messiah, the Son of God, the Coming One.” And this isn’t all the New Testament has to say about Christ “the Coming One,” as we will soon find out below.
Again, the words of John MacArthur are apropos and worth repeating here:
Interestingly, Lev. 25:25 is in the context of the year of Jubilee and is speaking about redeeming land that a poor brother had to sell, by a kinsman-redeemer. But if the one who sold the land becomes wealthy enough to redeem it himself, then he can do so at a price; and if no means is acquired to buy back the land, what the brother had sold will be returned to him in the year of Jubilee (vv. 26-28). Could it be that God placed this in Scripture as a type of “the Kinsman-Redeemer” who was to come and who redeems only those who have come to the realization that they cannot redeem themselves? No doubt Christ is our Kinsman-Redeemer and our Jubilee.
Now the only other two places where the exact phrases “o erkomenos” and “tw erkomenw” are used in the Old Testament and in the apocryphal writings are in 2Sam. 2:23 and 1Macc. 4:28.
In 2Sam. 2:23, “o erkomenos” is translated in English “every one came” in the LXX, is “every man…came” in the NIV, and “all those who came to the place” in the Bible in Basic English (BBE). Here, “o erkomenos” clearly is being associated with a mass of people who stopped fighting in a battle as soon as Asahel was thrust through with Abner’s spear. They all came to the place where Asahel fell dead. This context has nothing to do with the Messiah. This was not about “the One Coming” that the Jews were in expectation of and clearly indicated for us in the Scriptures. And they wouldn’t think about this passage as referring to such an individual. This is one of those cases, as mentioned earlier, where a word or phrase accompanies the Greek wording of “one coming” with the word “every” and therefore denotes, and as every translation attests, that it is “every one coming” who was fighting in the battle, not a singular “Coming One.”
So, this leads us to an important question: Can we honestly affirm that this term “o erkomenos” is used strictly with regards to Christ? The short answer is: No, it doesn’t! At least not when referring to “a group” of individuals or when the context determines that it is not speaking about Christ. But the long answer is that whenever this term, in a given context, is associated with the Messiah, one must affirm: Absolutely! In such a case, especially in the Bible, it is a term reserved only for the Christ, the Messiah, and no one else.
In every case in the Old Testament and New Testament where the singular “the Coming One” is mentioned and is used in close association with another persona, it is always speaking about the Messiah (or Christ). In the Old Testament, we've seen how in Psm. 118:22 Christ is the “Stone” and “Cornerstone”; in Dan. 9:25-26, “the Messiah” is twice mentioned and is “twice” called “the Ruler”; in Hab. 2:3, this coming one (or Christ) is said to be God himself (Hab. 2:3 has been very difficult for many to translate, but if we stay with the “inspired” testimony of the writer of the epistle to the Hebrews, then all difficulty is removed and the understanding is plainly ascertained for us. The translators of the LXX agreed, “it” is really “He” who is to come, or the Messiah). In the New Testament we have seen how that in Lke. 19:38 Jesus is said to be, “the King, the Coming One”; in Jhn. 4:25, He is the “Messiah, the Coming One”; in Jhn. 6:14, He is “the Prophet, the Coming One”; and in Jhn. 11:27, He is “the Messiah, the Son of God, the Coming One.” And this isn’t all the New Testament has to say about Christ “the Coming One,” as we will soon find out below.
Again, the words of John MacArthur are apropos and worth repeating here:
“The Old Testament description of the One who is to come is so complete and so clear that it actually describes the Coming One so well as to leave no doubt who it was.” (ibid).
Need we say anymore? Not unless one has a doctrine of their own making. The Scriptures no nothing of such a doctrine of any other "Coming One" except for that of Christ. Let us give only to Him all the glory, honor, and majesty that is due to this accolade, and not to another such as the Antichrist! It is Satan’s sole purpose and duty to overturn and reinterpret every jot and tittle of God’s Word. And he has done a real job on this one in Dan. 9:25-26. He works feverishly to turn God’s saints away from the wonderful truths that are about Christ, unto the adoration and acknowledgement of another—namely an Antichrist. God help us to see through his schemes!
Now the second occurrence I was going to talk to you about is in the Apocryphal writing of 1Macc. 4:28. There the Greek words “tw erkomenw” (as also found in Dan. 9:26 in the LXX), are translated in the English translation as, “in the following year.” It should better read: “in the coming year.” Here we see that “tw erkomenw” is being associated with regards to time, and with a specific time at that, in “the coming, or following year.” Clearly, an individual such as the Messiah (or anyone else for that matter) is nowhere to be found in this context. Here the word "year" modifies what is coming here.
The other couple of occurrences noted earlier in passing in the New Testament that have nothing to do with the Messiah, are: Lke. 6:47; 14:31; Jhn. 6:35, 37 and Rev. 7:14.
In Lke. 6:47, the Greek is “Pas o erkomenos pros me,” and literally reads: “Everyone coming to Me,” i.e., everyone coming to Christ. In Lke. 14:31, Jesus talks about the cost of becoming a disciple using the illustration of two kings. He says, “Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Will he not first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming [Gk. tw meta eikosi kiliadwv erkomevw] against him with twenty thousand?” Clearly, the Messiah is not the subject here either. In Jhn. 6:35, the Greek is “o erkomevos pros eme,” and literally reads: “the one coming to Me”, i.e., the one coming to Christ. In Jhn. 6:37, the Greek is ““tov erkomevov pros me,” and literally reads: “the one coming to Me”, i.e., the one coming to Christ. And finally, in Rev. 7:14, the Greek is “outoi eisiv oi erkomevoi ek tns thliphws,” and literally reads: “these are the ones coming out of the affliction.” Again, no clear reference in context is to Christ here.
So, with all of that behind us, let us go on to find out more about the “One” who is to come that everyone was in expectation of. All the Jews who knew the Scriptures called the Messiah who was to come, “the Coming One,” so it behooves us to understand all the places in both the Old and New Testaments where this “catchphrase” was clearly understood to be the case.
Gen. 3:15: The One Coming Seed
There is to Come One, the seed of the woman. Notice not “the seed of the man,” but "of the woman.” This is significant. This foretold of the virgin birth of the Messiah who is to bruise the head of the Devil. Only the One who was to Come, the Messiah, was capable of doing this.
Gen. 49:8-11: He Who Comes To Whom It Belongs
"Shiloh" mentioned in verse 10 in NASB, KJV, ASV and ERV is not a translation, but an English transliteration of the Hebrew word. “Shiloh” or Shilo is the name of a town in every other passage of the Old Testament. And just as many other names of cities are names of persons, i.e., Enoch (Gen. 4:17), and Shechem (Gen. 34:2); so Shiloh might also be a personal name, and denote not merely a place of rest; but the man, or the bearer of such "rest." Shiloh, therefore, as a title of the Messiah, in common with the entire Jewish tradition and the Christian Church, in which, although there may be uncertainty as to the grammar here, there is perfect agreement as to the fact that Jacob is here proclaiming the coming of the Messiah, or The Coming One. Notice verse 10c: “unto Him shall the obedience...be” (ASV), and not an inanimate object. So a “place” or “city” is out of the question here. I believe the NIV correctly translates this phrase as “He who comes to whom it belongs.” Micah 5:2 picks up on this same idea, where it says: "from you shall come forth for Me one." (ESV).
Numbers 24:17-19 also picks up on this theme: “I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob, a scepter will rise out of Israel. He will crush the foreheads of Moab, the skulls of all the sons of Sheth. Edom will be conquered; Seir, His enemy will be conquered, but Israel will grow strong. A Ruler will come out of Jacob and destroy the survivors of the city.”
1Chronicles 5:2: The Prince to Come
1Chr. 5:2 (KJV) continues, “Judah prevailed above his brethren, and of him is the Chief Ruler [‘Prince’ in the margin].” “The Hebrew word here is Nagid and is the same word which is translated ‘the Prince’ in Dan. 9:25” (Pink, Gleanings in Genesis, p. 323). And what Pink says here with regards to Dan. 9:25, is also true in Dan. 9:26 which likewise reads in the NIV: “The Prince who is to come” (Nagid habba), or lit., “The Prince, The Coming One”; and as also noted in the Greek rendering of the Septuagint.
This “Prince” or “Ruler” in Dan. 9:26 is the same Ruler (“Prince”) in verse 25, and who is also identified in context as "the Messiah." And also of note is the fact that in the Greek Septuagint translation of the “Ruler” in 1Chr. 5:2 the Greek word “Eegoumevov” is used, which is the same “Eegoumenou” in Dan. 9:25 and “Eegoumenw” in verse 26. So it is no stretch of the imagination that this Greek term for “Prince” here in 1Chr. 5:2 is a name which is ascribed to the Messiah in Dan. 9:25-26, and not necessarily to an Antichrist at all as many erroneously suppose.
Now in 1Chr. 5:2 the word “came” is italicized in the KJV and the NAS. It is not in the original. So it isn’t just someone who “came” (past tense), but is a reference to the promise made way back in Genesis 49 of all Judah’s rulers, especially to “He who comes to whom it belongs” (NIV). The AMP reads: “Judah prevailed above his brethren, and of him came the prince and leader [and eventually the Messiah],…”
Micah 5:2: Shall Come The One, The Ruler
Micah 5:2 adds: “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting” (NKJV). This “Coming One” to be the “Ruler” is no doubt the Messiah in Mat. 2:6.
Psalm 118:26: The Coming One
Psalm 118 (a Messianic Psalm) in verse 26 reads: “Blessed is He Who Comes in the name of the Lord.” Literally in the LXX., “o erkomenos,” or "the Coming One." This is the first time that the Greek is written this way introducing a Coming One as a proper name for an individual, and not just as a verb. He is not just anyone coming, but “the” Coming One. All, both Jews and Christians alike, understand this to be a reference to the Messiah. These were no idle words. This phrase is reserved in Scripture only for Jesus, and no other.
Daniel 9:25-26: The Messiah, The Prince/The Prince, The Coming One
In Daniel 9:26, “the coming prince” in the Hebrew reads: Nagib habba, which literally translated in the Hebrew reads: “The Prince, The Coming One.” The Septuagint agrees: tw Eegoumeno, tw erkomeno, lit., “The Prince, The Coming One.”
Charles Boutflower keenly has this to say about these verses:
Now the second occurrence I was going to talk to you about is in the Apocryphal writing of 1Macc. 4:28. There the Greek words “tw erkomenw” (as also found in Dan. 9:26 in the LXX), are translated in the English translation as, “in the following year.” It should better read: “in the coming year.” Here we see that “tw erkomenw” is being associated with regards to time, and with a specific time at that, in “the coming, or following year.” Clearly, an individual such as the Messiah (or anyone else for that matter) is nowhere to be found in this context. Here the word "year" modifies what is coming here.
The other couple of occurrences noted earlier in passing in the New Testament that have nothing to do with the Messiah, are: Lke. 6:47; 14:31; Jhn. 6:35, 37 and Rev. 7:14.
In Lke. 6:47, the Greek is “Pas o erkomenos pros me,” and literally reads: “Everyone coming to Me,” i.e., everyone coming to Christ. In Lke. 14:31, Jesus talks about the cost of becoming a disciple using the illustration of two kings. He says, “Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Will he not first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming [Gk. tw meta eikosi kiliadwv erkomevw] against him with twenty thousand?” Clearly, the Messiah is not the subject here either. In Jhn. 6:35, the Greek is “o erkomevos pros eme,” and literally reads: “the one coming to Me”, i.e., the one coming to Christ. In Jhn. 6:37, the Greek is ““tov erkomevov pros me,” and literally reads: “the one coming to Me”, i.e., the one coming to Christ. And finally, in Rev. 7:14, the Greek is “outoi eisiv oi erkomevoi ek tns thliphws,” and literally reads: “these are the ones coming out of the affliction.” Again, no clear reference in context is to Christ here.
So, with all of that behind us, let us go on to find out more about the “One” who is to come that everyone was in expectation of. All the Jews who knew the Scriptures called the Messiah who was to come, “the Coming One,” so it behooves us to understand all the places in both the Old and New Testaments where this “catchphrase” was clearly understood to be the case.
Gen. 3:15: The One Coming Seed
There is to Come One, the seed of the woman. Notice not “the seed of the man,” but "of the woman.” This is significant. This foretold of the virgin birth of the Messiah who is to bruise the head of the Devil. Only the One who was to Come, the Messiah, was capable of doing this.
Gen. 49:8-11: He Who Comes To Whom It Belongs
"Shiloh" mentioned in verse 10 in NASB, KJV, ASV and ERV is not a translation, but an English transliteration of the Hebrew word. “Shiloh” or Shilo is the name of a town in every other passage of the Old Testament. And just as many other names of cities are names of persons, i.e., Enoch (Gen. 4:17), and Shechem (Gen. 34:2); so Shiloh might also be a personal name, and denote not merely a place of rest; but the man, or the bearer of such "rest." Shiloh, therefore, as a title of the Messiah, in common with the entire Jewish tradition and the Christian Church, in which, although there may be uncertainty as to the grammar here, there is perfect agreement as to the fact that Jacob is here proclaiming the coming of the Messiah, or The Coming One. Notice verse 10c: “unto Him shall the obedience...be” (ASV), and not an inanimate object. So a “place” or “city” is out of the question here. I believe the NIV correctly translates this phrase as “He who comes to whom it belongs.” Micah 5:2 picks up on this same idea, where it says: "from you shall come forth for Me one." (ESV).
Verse 8: The Coming King
Though he did not have the right of the firstborn, Judah had been chosen over all the others as the royal tribe. In the phrase in verse 8: “your father's sons will bow down to you,” it is difficult not to see in this an intentional allusion to the dream of Joseph (37:10), not only in regards to his exaltation, but also to his suffering. What had happened to Joseph is portrayed as a picture of what would happen to Judah “in the days to come” (49:41; i.e., “in the last days”). The sons of Israel would bow the knee to Jesus.
Verse 9: One Comes To Whom It Belongs
The image of The Victorious One or warrior is given with the picture of Judah as a “young lion” (v. 9). The point of Jacob’s words is that Judah will hold such a status among the tribes of Israel until One comes “to Whom it belongs.” Those who reign from the house of Judah will do so in anticipation of the One to Whom the kingship truly belongs. David acknowledged such a one when he prophesied: “The Lord said unto my Lord.” This coming One, this Ruler, is no doubt Jesus the Messiah, “the Lion of the tribe of Judah” in Revelation (Rev. 5:5).
Verse 10: He Who Comes
Ezekiel, when predicting the downfall of the Davidic kingdom, prophesied that this overthrow would last until He should come of whom the right belonged, and to whom Jehovah would give it (21:27). Ezekiel in his words, “until He comes to Whom it [the throne] rightfully belongs,” takes up, as is generally admitted by all, the prophecy of Genesis 49:10, “till Shiloh Comes,” or lit., “He who comes to Whom it belongs.”
The next description of this One here in Genesis from the tribe of Judah is: “unto Him shall the obedience of the peoples [or nations] be” (v. 10b, ASV). The use of the plural word “peoples” (or nations), rather than the singular “people” (or nation), suggests that God had in view a kingship that extended far beyond the borders of Israel. The kingdom of The One would include other nations as well, as was also promised to Abraham “in thy seed (the One seed, Christ) shall all the nations [or peoples] of the earth be blessed” (Gen. 22:18). Isaiah says of this “root of Jesse” that “the nations [or peoples] will rally to Him” (11:10); and Jesus said He is “the Root and the Offspring (or seed) of David, and the Bright Morning Star” (Rev. 22:16) who in turn, is of Jesse. So here are some more appellations or proper names given to Christ. This Coming One is said to be: “the Root,” “the Seed,” and “the Bright Morning Star.”Numbers 24:17-19: The Ruler to Come
Numbers 24:17-19 also picks up on this theme: “I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob, a scepter will rise out of Israel. He will crush the foreheads of Moab, the skulls of all the sons of Sheth. Edom will be conquered; Seir, His enemy will be conquered, but Israel will grow strong. A Ruler will come out of Jacob and destroy the survivors of the city.”
1Chronicles 5:2: The Prince to Come
1Chr. 5:2 (KJV) continues, “Judah prevailed above his brethren, and of him is the Chief Ruler [‘Prince’ in the margin].” “The Hebrew word here is Nagid and is the same word which is translated ‘the Prince’ in Dan. 9:25” (Pink, Gleanings in Genesis, p. 323). And what Pink says here with regards to Dan. 9:25, is also true in Dan. 9:26 which likewise reads in the NIV: “The Prince who is to come” (Nagid habba), or lit., “The Prince, The Coming One”; and as also noted in the Greek rendering of the Septuagint.
This “Prince” or “Ruler” in Dan. 9:26 is the same Ruler (“Prince”) in verse 25, and who is also identified in context as "the Messiah." And also of note is the fact that in the Greek Septuagint translation of the “Ruler” in 1Chr. 5:2 the Greek word “Eegoumevov” is used, which is the same “Eegoumenou” in Dan. 9:25 and “Eegoumenw” in verse 26. So it is no stretch of the imagination that this Greek term for “Prince” here in 1Chr. 5:2 is a name which is ascribed to the Messiah in Dan. 9:25-26, and not necessarily to an Antichrist at all as many erroneously suppose.
Now in 1Chr. 5:2 the word “came” is italicized in the KJV and the NAS. It is not in the original. So it isn’t just someone who “came” (past tense), but is a reference to the promise made way back in Genesis 49 of all Judah’s rulers, especially to “He who comes to whom it belongs” (NIV). The AMP reads: “Judah prevailed above his brethren, and of him came the prince and leader [and eventually the Messiah],…”
Micah 5:2: Shall Come The One, The Ruler
Micah 5:2 adds: “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting” (NKJV). This “Coming One” to be the “Ruler” is no doubt the Messiah in Mat. 2:6.
Psalm 118:26: The Coming One
Psalm 118 (a Messianic Psalm) in verse 26 reads: “Blessed is He Who Comes in the name of the Lord.” Literally in the LXX., “o erkomenos,” or "the Coming One." This is the first time that the Greek is written this way introducing a Coming One as a proper name for an individual, and not just as a verb. He is not just anyone coming, but “the” Coming One. All, both Jews and Christians alike, understand this to be a reference to the Messiah. These were no idle words. This phrase is reserved in Scripture only for Jesus, and no other.
Daniel 9:25-26: The Messiah, The Prince/The Prince, The Coming One
In Daniel 9:26, “the coming prince” in the Hebrew reads: Nagib habba, which literally translated in the Hebrew reads: “The Prince, The Coming One.” The Septuagint agrees: tw Eegoumeno, tw erkomeno, lit., “The Prince, The Coming One.”
Charles Boutflower keenly has this to say about these verses:
“The people of the Prince that shall come”: lit. according to the Hebrew usage, “the Prince, the Coming One,” Nagid habba. As stated above, “the Prince that shall come” is to be identified with “Prince Messiah” in the previous verse. The picture there is of Christ coming to save; here, of His coming to inflict judgment. This, then, is one of the passages from which Messiah appears to have received the appellation "the Coming One." "When John heard in the prison the works of Christ,"…the works that the Christ was to do, “he sent by his disciples and said unto him, Art thou he that cometh?"—better, "Art thou the Coming One?"—Gr. o EpXomenos = Heb. habba—"or look we for another,” a different person? John seems to have doubted for the time being whether the Coming One and the Messiah were one and the same person…. The thought of the Messiah was associated with works of mercy and love …. [John] thought of the Coming One, with the sterner work of justice and judgment. Could it be then that they were two different persons? This passage in Daniel might seem at first sight to lend itself to such a supposition, seeing that Mashiach Nagid comes to suffer, whilst Nagid Habba comes to inflict judgment. In this connection it is noticeable that in Heb. 10. 37 the title o, EpXomenos, “the Coming One” [see AMP. Bible], is actually used of Christ’s coming…[to Judge]. The passage is an adaptation of Hab. 2:3 in the LXX version, and runs thus: “For yet a very little while, he that cometh”—or better, “the Coming One”—“shall come, and shall not tarry.”
To this part of Daniel’s vision [in 9:26] our Savior refers in the parable of the marriage of the King’s Son, Mat. 22:7: "But the King was wroth; and He sent His armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned their city." It will perhaps be objected that the King in the parable [in Matthew] is Almighty God. Be it so; but the avenging army is under the command of His beloved Son. Compare Psm. 110:1, 2, 5, 6.
….Stier, writing on our Lord’s parable in Matt. 22, says,…“The Lord refers precisely to this passage in Daniel”…“As at chap. 24:15 He mentions ‘the abomination of desolation’, so now He says…‘He sent forth His armies’ [Mat. 22:7], which corresponds to ‘the people of the prince that shall come’ in Daniel”…. “Just when Messiah the Prince appears as the Messiah cut off, He comes as the Prince to destroy the city and sanctuary. The Romans as hostile hosts, serve the judging Lord and God of Israel, as angels [or messengers] of judgment.”
….[Even] the character of [Stephen’s] preaching as described by his enemies is suggestive that he not only understood the details of Daniel’s vision [as such], but that it gave the tone to his public addresses: “We have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth shall destroy this place” [Acts 6:14]—compared [with] v. 26 [in Daniel], “the people of the coming Prince shall destroy the city and sanctuary”; — [and also Stephen’s statement] “and shall change the customs that Moses delivered unto us”—compared [with] v. 27 [in Daniel], “In the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and oblation to cease.”[8]
In opposition to Boutflower, and for other a priori reasons, Leupold states, “Israel does not appear to be utterly in the dark as to who [the ruler in v. 26] was to be expected, for a participial modifier follows with the article habba’, ‘the one that is to come.’”[9] Leupold then goes on to say, “The mashi(a)ch nagidh used in the preceding verse [v. 25] cannot be referred to because the important feature of that double expression was the first word, ‘Anointed One.’ This ‘prince’ [in v. 26] has no anointing.”[10] But Leupold entirely misses the point here, overlooking the obvious. For even if this prince were an evil king, he would have no power unless it were given to him from above. In Isaiah 45, Cyrus, the ungodly king of Persia, is said no less to be an “anointed one” by God (v. 1); in other words, Cyrus received his ability and kingship from the Lord. And it was only because of an ability given to him from the Lord that Cyrus could do what he did. The anointing for Cyrus to do what he did didn’t make him holy; it only consecrated him for the purpose for which God had called him to. All in authority are anointed by God as such. Romans 13:4 establishes the fact that these leaders are all “God’s servant, an agent of His wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer.” So the absence of the word “anointed” before “the ruler” noted by Leupold in Dan. 9:26 proves nothing. It is only a futile attempt to prove that “the Prince” in Dan. 9:26 is not the Christ, but an Antichrist. All this really does is to further substantiate the fact that this “Ruler,” “the Coming One,” is indeed “the Anointed One, the Ruler” in verse 25 and “the Coming One” referred to overwhelmingly in the Scriptures as that of Christ. If Cyrus could surely be one who was "anointed" by God to do what he did, how much more so Christ? When we think of these people of this Prince, the Coming One coming in Dan. 9:26 to destroy the city and sanctuary, the Scriptures are replete with examples of God (or Christ) no less using the heathen armies as His instruments (or servants) to mete out His judgments upon others with, and even upon Israel. Please read: Mat. 22:7 with 21:40-41; Lke. 19:21; 20:16; cf Ex. 22:24; Ezk. 11:8-10; 12:14; 24:21; 25:13-14; 30:24-25; Jer. 9:16; 12:12, et al). See also Isaiah 10 for a similar idea of God using the Assyrian armies as His “rod,” “club,” “ax,” and “saw” to mete out judgment upon Israel. In Isaiah 13, Isaiah gives a prophecy against Babylon, and in verse 17 the Lord says: “See, I will stir up against them the Medes…” Then in verse 19 the Lord says, “Babylon…will be overthrown by God like Sodom and Gomorrah.” Who is going to come against Babylon and overthrow her? The Medes, the armies God uses in order to overthrow the Babylonians. Again, in judgment against Israel God says: “the Lord is about to bring against them the mighty floodwaters of the River—the king of Assyria with all his pomp. It will overflow all its channels, run over all its banks and sweep on into Judah, swirling over it, passing through it and reaching up to the neck” (Isa. 8:7-8). And lastly, in Isa. 5:26 it says that the Lord “lifts up a banner for the distant nations, He whistles for those at the ends of the earth. Here they come, swiftly and speedily!” This is all so self-evident to us that one should not even begin to question whether all of the armies of the world are at "the Messiah, the Ruler’s" beck and call. The Scriptures refute any charges to the contrary, proving beyond all doubt that Jesus as the Ruler of all the kings of the earth is just that, as has been clearly articulated for us in the Bible time and time again. (Click here for part 2)
footnotes:
[1] www.gty.org/Resources/Sermons/42-94. Word in brackets mine; MacArthur has this particular hymn in mind.
[2] A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament, pp. 310-311. Words in brackets mine.
[3] Theological Dict. of the New Testament, p. 258. Italics for emphasis mine.
[4] A Critical Lexicon and Concordance to the English and Greek New Testament, p. 166. Words in brackets mine.
[5] Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, vol. 1, p. 94-95.
[6] Kittel’s TDNT, p. 257.
[7] Barnes’ Notes on Matthew.
[8] Boutflower, In and Around the Book of Daniel, pp. 194-195, 197). Words in brackets mine, italics for emphasis his.
[9] Exposition of Daniel, p. 428.
[10] Ibid.
footnotes:
[1] www.gty.org/Resources/Sermons/42-94. Word in brackets mine; MacArthur has this particular hymn in mind.
[2] A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament, pp. 310-311. Words in brackets mine.
[3] Theological Dict. of the New Testament, p. 258. Italics for emphasis mine.
[4] A Critical Lexicon and Concordance to the English and Greek New Testament, p. 166. Words in brackets mine.
[5] Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, vol. 1, p. 94-95.
[6] Kittel’s TDNT, p. 257.
[7] Barnes’ Notes on Matthew.
[8] Boutflower, In and Around the Book of Daniel, pp. 194-195, 197). Words in brackets mine, italics for emphasis his.
[9] Exposition of Daniel, p. 428.
[10] Ibid.
