The identity and purpose of the messiah are unknowable from a Bible verse—and even many Bible verses. The profile proceeds along conceptual trajectories that eventually merge into a portrait. And so Jesus’ question (Luke 24:26) to the two men on the road to Emmaus makes eminent sense: “Was it not necessary that the Christ suffer these things and enter into his glory?” Yes, of course it was. It’s just hard to see that unless you know what you’re looking for. The messianic portrait can only be discerned by assembling a hundred terms, phrases, metaphors, and symbols, which themselves take on
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