There are many shadows and types of Christ in the Old Testament. If you have ever wondered, "What is a type of Christ in the Bible?" read or listen to this chapter from A Father Offers His Son for answers.



Table of ContentsJesus Said the Old Testament Is About HimJesus Is Primarily Revealed Two Ways in the Old TestamentThe New Testament identifies many shadows and types of Christ in the Old TestamentCertain people serve as shadows and types of Christ in the Old TestamentCertain practices serve as shadows and types of Christ in the Old TestamentCertain miracles serve as shadows and types of miracles Jesus would perform in a greater wayShadows and Types of Christ in the Old Testament Serve as a Treasure MapThe Law Reveals Our Need for the SaviorShadows and Types of Christ in the Old Testament Prevent You From Missing the Treasure



Many people search for Jesus. In the Bible, we have an account of someone finding Him and recognizing He is the Messiah. The person was Philip and he wanted his friend, Nathaniel, to meet Him too. When Philip spoke to Nathaniel, he revealed why he thought Jesus was the Messiah: “We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the Prophets, wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph” (John 1:45). The “Law and the Prophets” was a title for the Old Testament before the New Testament was written. Philip understood the Old Testament was about Jesus, which is why he believed Jesus was the Messiah. He expected Nathaniel to be convinced He was the Messiah as well because he would also recognize Him as the One identified in the Law and the Prophets.



Jesus Said the Old Testament Is About Him



Luke 24:27—“Beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, [Jesus] expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.”Luke 24:44—“[Jesus] said, ‘All things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me.’”John 5:39, 46—"You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me...For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me."Hebrews 10:7—“[Jesus said,] ‘Behold, I have come—in the volume of the book it is written of Me.’”



Jesus Is Primarily Revealed Two Ways in the Old Testament



First, there are prophecies of Him. For example, these verses state He would:



Be from the tribe of Judah (Genesis 49:10)Receive King David’s throne (2 Samuel 7:12-13)Be spat upon and beaten (Isaiah 50:6)Be silent in the face of accusations (Isaiah 53:7)Spend a season in Egypt (Hosea 11:1)Ride into Jerusalem on a donkey (Zechariah 9:9)



And the list goes on. And on. And on. Jesus fulfilled around 350 prophecies in His first coming.



Shadows and types of Christ in the Old Testament are the second way He is revealed :



Hebrews 10:1 says, “The law [was only] a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities” (ESV).Colossians 2:16-17 says a “festival or a new moon or sabbaths [are] a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ.”



“Shadows” are a fitting
way to describe the types of Christ in the Old Testament because shadows provide
an idea of what something looks like without completely revealing the object. The
Old Testament does this with Christ. A shadow is evidence that something is casting
it, or in the case of Christ, it is Someone. Finally, nobody looks at a shadow and
believes it is the real thing. Nobody sees the shadow of a tree or car and thinks
it is a tree or car. Shadows have no substance. They are not the reality. In Colossians
2:17, Jesus is the substance and in Hebrews 10:1, He is the reality.



The New Testament identifies many shadows and types of Christ in the Old Testament



Matthew 12:40 compares Jesus with Jonah: "For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.