Does The Old Testament Hint That Christ Would Be Crucified?
Bodie Hodge, M.Sc., B.Sc., PEI
Biblical Authority Ministries, October 14, 2026 (Donate)
God knows everything—even before it happens. When God gave
hints about Christ’s death, it was all-too-easy for Him! What can we
learn from the Old Testament about Jesus’ prophesied death? Actually, a lot.
The Old Testament never uses the word
"crucifixion," since Roman crucifixion as practiced in intertestamental
and New Testament times developed much later. Nevertheless, several Old
Testament passages describe specifics of the suffering and death of the Messiah
(i.e., Christ) in ways that remarkably resemble Christ's crucifixion.
Psalm 22: Why Have You Forsaken Me
Psalm 22 is especially powerful for this. Written by David nearly
1,000 years before Christ, it describes a righteous sufferer undergoing
terrible physical suffering while surrounded and mocked by enemies. Psalm 22:1a
begins:
My God, My God, why have You
forsaken Me? (NKJV)
These are the very words Jesus spoke from the cross (Matthew
27:46). Why is this so powerful? It is because Christ was declaring at that
moment on the cross that Psalm 22 was about Him.
As you continue in the Psalm, verses 7-8 describes people
ridiculing the sufferer—who is Christ. They are shaking their heads, and saying:
All those who see Me ridicule Me;
They shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, “He trusted in the
LORD, let Him rescue Him; Let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!” (NKJV).
At the crucifixion, Jesus' enemies used familiar words:
“He trusted in God; let Him deliver
Him now if He will have Him; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” (Matthew
27:43, NKJV).
Later, Psalm 22:14-15 describes terrible physical suffering:
I am poured out like water, And all
My bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; It has melted within Me. My
strength is dried up like a potsherd, And My tongue clings to My jaws; You have
brought Me to the dust of death. (NKJV).
These descriptions are consistent with the extreme physical
trauma and thirst associated with crucifixion. Then comes Psalm 22:16c:
They pierced My hands and My feet
(NKJV).
This is particularly significant in light of Jesus being
nailed to the cross. After His resurrection, Jesus showed His disciples His
hands and feet (Luke 24:39-40) where He had been pierced, and Thomas
specifically referred to the nail-prints in Jesus' hands (John 20:25, NKJV).
Psalm 22 even describes what happened to Christ's clothing:
They divide My garments among them,
And for My clothing they cast lots. (Psalm 22:18, NKJV).
John 19:23-24 points out the soldiers' actions at the cross were
fulfilling this very Scripture.
Notice that this type of described death isn’t what would
occur if someone was stoned, or died in battle, or was bedridden of a wasting disease.
Instead, it is a public event, while beaten and mocked, and pierced while
hanging in from of an onlooking crowd.
Isaiah 53: The Suffering and Death of Jesus Christ
Christians have historically understood Isaiah 53 as one of
the clearest Old Testament prophecies concerning the suffering, sacrificial
death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It was written approximately 700 years
before Christ's earthly ministry. This chapter (often avoided as the forbidden
chapter in Jewish thought) describes the coming Messiah as the Suffering
Servant who would bear the sins of His people.
Isaiah 53:3 says:
He is despised and rejected by men,
A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our
faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. (NKJV)
This was fulfilled in Jesus, who was rejected by many of His
own people (e.g., John 1:11). Isaiah 53:5 says:
But He was wounded for our
transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for
our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed. (NKJV)
This points to Christ's substitutionary atonement, suffering
and dying in the place of sinners (e.g., 1 Peter 2:24). Isaiah 53:7 reveals
that the Messiah is to be a lamb led to slaughter, remaining silent before His
accusers (consider Matthew 27:12-14 and Acts 8:32-35). Isaiah 53:9 foretells
His burial with the rich, fulfilled when Joseph of Arimathea placed Jesus in
his own tomb (Matthew 27:57-60).
Amazingly, Isaiah 53:10-12 prophesied that the Servant's
(Christ) life will continue and have ultimate victory after His sacrificial
death, which we understand as pointing toward Christ's resurrection. That is,
His victory over death!
Ultimately, the entirety of Isaiah 53 is a powerful prophetic
testimony about Jesus’ death and resurrection. Jesus Christ willingly
suffered and died for sinners—taking the full brunt of God’s infinite
punishment that we deserve.
Christ fulfilled God's redemptive plan that was predicted
before the foundation of the world (1 Peter 1:19-20). But again, God knows
everything, and by doing all this is, it shows God is all-powerful too!
Other Passages
Other Old Testament passages reinforce the crucifixion picture.
Zechariah 12:10 says,
“And I will pour on the house of
David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication;
then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as
one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves
for a firstborn. (NKJV)
The Holy Spirit through John applies this directly to Christ
(John 19:37)! Psalm 69:21 says:
They also gave me gall for my food,
And for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink. (NKJV)
This corresponds with those lifting up sour wine at the
cross (John 19:28-30). Psalm 34:20 says:
He guards all his bones; Not one of
them is broken. (NKJV),
And this relates to John 19:33-36. It connects with the
soldiers not breaking Jesus' legs nor breaking any bones in the crucifixion. And
crucifixion itself is a manner of causing an extremely painful death without breaking
bones anyway when done right. The Romans knew how to do it right.
Finally, Deuteronomy 21:22-23 associates being hung on a
tree with bearing a curse. In Galatians 3:13-14, Paul applies this passage to
Christ:
Christ has redeemed us from the
curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is
everyone who hangs on a tree”), that the blessing of Abraham might come upon
the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit
through faith. (NKJV).
Christ “became sin for us” (2 Corinthians 5:21) and took the
punishment we deserved for the curse of sin (Isaiah 53:12).
Taken together, the Old Testament presents a striking
prophetic picture:
· a righteous sufferer is rejected
· mocked, public humiliation
· judged falsely (e.g., Isaiah 53: 7-8; Psalm 27:12)
· thrown in prison and brought our unjustly (Isaiah 53:7-8; Psalm 109:2-3)
· pierced in His hands and feet
· experiences terrible suffering and thirst
· has His garments divided by lot
· is numbered with transgressors
· dies without His bones being broken
· bears the sins of others.
The Holy Spirit through New Testament writers repeatedly
identify these passages as being fulfilled in the crucifixion of Jesus
Christ. The word crucifixion wasn’t use in the Old Testament (as the word wasn’t
invented yet). Nevertheless, the devices of crucifixion were and details
surrounding Christ’s death were accurately predicted with amazing detail.
□
Bodie Hodge, Ken Ham's son in law, has been an apologist
defending 6-day creation and opposing evolution since 1998. He spent 21 years
working at Answers in Genesis as a speaker, writer, and
researcher as well as a founding news anchor for Answers News. He
was also head of the Oversight Council.
Bodie launched Biblical Authority Ministries in
2015 as a personal website and it was organized officially in 2025 as a
501(c)(3). He has spoken on multiple continents and hosts of US states in
churches, colleges, and universities. He is married with four children.
Mr. Hodge earned a Bachelor and Master of Science degrees
from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale (SIUC). Then he taught
at SIUC for a couple of years as a Visiting Instructor teaching all levels of
undergraduate engineering and running a materials lab and a CAD lab. He did
research on advanced ceramic materials to develop a new method of production of
titanium diboride with a grant from Lockheed Martin. He worked as a Test
Engineer for Caterpillar, Inc., prior to entering full-time ministry.
His love of science was coupled with a love of history,
philosophy, and theology. For about one year of his life, Bodie was editing and
updating a theological, historical, and scientific dictionary/encyclopedia. Mr.
Hodge has over 25 years of experience in writing, speaking and researching in
these fields.
*Image by generative program as requested by Bodie Hodge
