MATH 201

DISCUSSION BOARD FORUM 2/PROJECT 4 INSTRUCTIONS

Note that you must do this project on your own—you may not work with other students. You are
always welcome to ask your instructor for help.

When performing a hypothesis test, you must make an assumption in order to perform it. Assume that
the hypothesis you are testing (the null hypothesis) is true. This assumption allows you to calculate the
probability of the test results. You then use that probability to decide whether or not to accept the
hypothesis and the claim associated with it. The more likely the results, the more readily you accept the
hypothesis.

This kind of analysis can be used to evaluate any idea for which there are enough facts or data. For
example, what about the premise that Jesus is the Son of God? Josh McDowell takes a similar approach
to answering this question in his book, Evidence That Demands a Verdict (Campus Crusade for Christ,
1972).

In his book, McDowell collects a variety of information that attests to the Bible’s validity and Jesus’
claims to being the Son of God. He includes the interesting results of a large volume of research. In the
section about messianic prophecy, he quotes the probabilistic analysis of Peter Stoner in Science Speaks
(Moody Press, 1963). Stoner used the assumption that Jesus was just a man and not the Son of God to
perform a probability analysis and hypothesis test on some messianic prophecies. In this case the
hypothesis was that Jesus was not the foretold Messiah or the Son of God. He then examined the
probability of a selection of prophecies coming true if Jesus was in fact not divine.

Using a selection of 8 prophecies, Stoner estimated that the probability of all 8 prophecies being fulfilled
is 1 in 1017. Using the language of hypothesis tests, this means that you would reject the hypothesis that
Jesus is not the Messiah for any α > 10-17. To put it another way, α > 0.00000000000000001. The
smallest α that is normally used for a hypothesis test is α = 0.01. This means that you can safely reject
the hypothesis that Jesus is not the Messiah or the Son of God.

For more on this, see Josh McDowell’s book Evidence That Demands a Verdict. Peter Stoner’s work can
be found in Science Speaks, published by Moody press. Stoner’s book has recently been rereleased in e-
book format. You can find it in the Module/Week 7 Additional Materials folder.

The references for the 8 Old Testament prophecies that Peter Stoner analyzed are listed below along
with the verse references for their fulfillment. It is likely that most students in this course believe that
Jesus Christ is divine, so listing probabilities of Him doing certain things is irrelevant. However, Stoner
says to the skeptical, “Okay, let’s have it your way for a second. If Jesus of Nazareth was just an
ordinary man, what is the probability that he could fulfill all the prophecies by chance?”

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 MATH 201

Old Testament Prophecies New Testament Fulfillment

Micah 5:2 Matthew 2:4–6
Malachi 3:1 Mark 1:2-8
Zechariah 9:9 Matthew 21:4–11
Psalms 41:9 Luke 22:21
Zechariah 11:12 Matthew 26:15
Zechariah 11:13 Matthew 27:3–10
Isaiah 53:7 Mark 14: 60-61
Psalms 22:16 John 19:17–18

In Discussion Board Forum 2, post a thread that includes the following:

1. Type out each Old Testament prophecy with the verse reference followed by the New Testament
verse with the fulfillment. (10 points)
2. Which one of the 8 prophecies and its fulfillment spoke to you the most? Write at least 150
words about this verse and your thoughts about it. (10 points)
3. These prophecies and their fulfillment are definitely evidence that Jesus is the Messiah. People
have different opinions about whether or not there is absolute proof of this. Do you think these
verses prove that Jesus is the Messiah? Write at least 250 words about your opinion on this. Be
sure to explain the reasons behind your thinking. Whether you believe that Jesus is the Messiah
or not, please give your honest opinion. Any honest, thoughtful opinion will receive full credit.
(12 points)
4. Submit replies of at least 50 words each to 2 classmates. (8 points)

This course utilizes the Post-First feature in all Discussion Board Forums. This means you will only be
able to read and interact with your classmates’ threads after you have submitted your thread in response
to the provided prompt. For additional information on Post-First, click here for a tutorial.

Submit your thread by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Saturday of Module/Week 7. Submit your replies to 2
classmates’ threads by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Monday of the same module/week.

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