parallels in the bible?

Putting aside all the prophecies and obvious predictions, do you think that maybe there are some events in the old testament that ‘foreshadow’ events happening in the new testament? I know it may be a bit or a lot of a stretch but let me show you some examples.

Temptation to turn away from god: in the old testament, the devil sent job many misfortunes to try to induce him to curse god and deny god. but job resisted and in the end, god blessed him. in the new testament, the devil tempted Jesus in the desert, wanting him to deny god. but Jesus resisted and angels came and looked after him.

Sacrifice your only son: in the old testament, Abraham was instructed to offer issac up as a sacrifice to god. Abraham obeyed. issac was willing. just in time, god saved him. Abraham became the father of a great nation because of this. in the new testament, jesus was the willing sacrifice and god raised him to life again. because of this, Christianity was formed.

Curses into blessings: in the old testament, balaam was on his way to curse Israel. but along the way, he met an angel who warned him about his evilness. balaam ended up blessing Israel instead of cursing it. in the new testament, saul was “breathing threats and murder against the disciples” (gosh, I love that phrase). but he met jesus who warned him about his evilness. saul ended up converted and became paul.

you will have a son: in the old testament, sarah, abraham’s wife, was barren but was told she was to have a son, despite her old age. sarah doubted but god proved her wrong. her son, issac, became a great man. in the new testament, Elizabeth was barren but they were told that she would have a son. zechariah doubted and he was proved wrong. their son, john the Baptist, became a great man.

ascension: apparently, jesus wasn’t the only one to ascend like that into heaven. in the old testament, the prophet Elijah ascended into heaven with fire and wind, chariot of god.

raising the dead: in the new testament, jesus raised the little girl and also lazarus from the dead. in the old testament, Elijah raised a child from the dead too by calling on the power of the lord.

these are just some parallels that I found. I guess someone with a deeper knowledge of the bible would be able to find more. this foreshadowing thing is really interesting. I’m sure there’s a purpose for it, even if I don’t know what that purpose is. in lit, foreshadowing is used to heighten the dramatic effect of the text. but in the bible? maybe it’s just coincidence. or is god trying to tell us something here?

speaking of coincidence, this is my favourite. it’s not foreshadowing. in the new testament, after the disciples met jesus after the resurrection, ref john 21. jesus told them to cast their nets out. and they drew in 153 fish. curious about this precise number. I did my research. I believe the fish represent the nations in the world. if you count the number of countries in the world, considering those split countries as one, you get approx 153. coincidence? interesting.