The Bible clearly establishes a principle according to which the events of the Old Testament are prototypes and lessons for New Testament believers. God spoke in the language of imagery to show through these images what would happen in the future and how people should behave to please God and fulfill His will. God often used the language of imagery; for example, when conveying information to His prophets, He spoke to them in dreams and visions. They watched these "movies" and subsequently received from God the interpretation of what each shown image meant and what it pointed to in the future. For instance, the prophet Daniel saw beasts in visions, but these beasts were images of the Babylonian, Greek, and Medo-Persian empires.
This method of interpretation—seeing in Old Testament stories, personalities, and institutions prototypes (types) of future New Testament events or spiritual truths—is key to the Christian understanding of the unity of the Bible.
Here are Scripture passages that directly or indirectly confirm this same idea:
1. Direct Statements that the Old Testament Serves as an Example for Us
1 Corinthians 10:6: "Now these things occurred as examples for us, so that we might not desire evil as they did."
Here,Paul begins to explain specific examples (the story of the golden calf, the immorality at Shittim, etc.) and directly calls them "examples" (Greek: typoi — types, prototypes) for us.
Romans 15:4: "For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, so that by steadfastness and by the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope."
This is one of the clearest and most direct statements:all Old Testament Scripture was given for our instruction and teaching.
2 Timothy 3:16-17: "All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work."
Although this speaks of"all scripture," in the context of the letter to Timothy, who from childhood had known "the sacred writings" (v. 15), it primarily refers to the Old Testament. Its enduring usefulness is affirmed.
2. Indications that the Law and Historical Events are a Shadow of What is to Come
Colossians 2:16-17: "Therefore do not let anyone condemn you in matters of food and drink or of observing festivals, new moons, or sabbaths. These are only a shadow of what is to come, but the substance belongs to Christ."
The apostle Paul directly calls the Old Testament institutions(festivals, food prohibitions, Sabbath) "a shadow of what is to come," the reality of which is in Christ.
Hebrews 8:5 (concerning the service in the tabernacle): "[The priests] offer worship in a sanctuary that is a sketch and shadow of the heavenly one; for Moses, when he was about to erect the tent, was warned, 'See that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown you on the mountain.'"
Here,the earthly tabernacle and its service are presented as a "shadow" and "sketch" of the heavenly reality.
Hebrews 10:1: "Since the law has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered year after year, make perfect those who approach."
A very important verse.The law (and its sacrificial system) is the "shadow of the good things to come," not the reality itself, which is in Christ.
3. Specific Examples of Prototypes (Typology) Given in the New Testament
The New Testament itself shows how to read the Old Testament in this way, finding in it prototypes of Christ and the Church:
Jonah as a Prototype of Christ:
Matthew 12:40: "For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so for three days and three nights the Son of Man will be in the heart of the earth."
Jesus directly indicates that the story of Jonah was a prototype (a sign) of His death and resurrection.
· The Bronze Serpent as a Prototype of Christ:
John 3:14-15: "And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life."
The event from Numbers 21:9 is presented as a prototype of Christ's redemptive sacrifice on the cross.
· Adam as a Prototype of Christ:
Romans 5:14: "Yet death exercised dominion from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sins were not like the transgression of Adam, who is a type of the one who was to come."
Adam is directly called "a type of the one who was to come," that is, Christ, who is the "second Adam."
· Melchizedek as a Prototype of Christ:
Hebrews 7:1-17
An entire section is devoted to how Melchizedek, an Old Testament king and priest, was a prototype of the eternal priesthood of Jesus Christ according to the order of Melchizedek.
· The Events of the Exodus as a Prototype of Baptism and the Lord's Supper:
1 Corinthians 10:1-4: "I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that our ancestors were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, and all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink..."
Paul interprets the crossing of the Red Sea as a prototype of baptism, and the manna and water from the rock as a prototype of spiritual food and drink (the Eucharist) or God's revelatory word and the action of the Holy Spirit upon a person.
Conclusion
Thus, this is a central principle of New Testament interpretation of the Old Testament. The apostles and Christ Himself taught that:
1. The stories of the Old Testament are given as examples for teaching and warning.
2. The personalities of the Old Testament are often prototypes (types) of Christ or spiritual conditions.
3. The institutions and rituals (sacrifices, festivals, tabernacle) are a shadow or sketch of the spiritual reality that was fully manifested in Christ.
This shows the unity of the Bible as one book, written under the inspiration of one Author (God), where the Old Testament prepares and points to the New, and the New Testament reveals and fulfills what was laid down or encoded in images in the Old.
1 Corinthians 10:11: "These things happened to them to serve as an example, and they were written down to instruct us, on whom the ends of the ages have come."
The Bible constantly urges readers to learn from the experience of previous generations and to apply the acquired knowledge in their own spiritual lives. It is very important that God Himself reveals to us the meaning of each image and shows what it signifies for the future.
