Apart from the prophecies that are written out about an event. There are also pictures that are presented to us in the Bible. These pictures are sometimes referred to as types. These pictures, events or celebrations proclaim future events. A few such types / pictures are shown below:

The flood of Noah

God created man to have fellowship with him. Man instead of have seeking to have fellowship with God seeked to live in way that was right in own eyes. Man was living in wickedness and immorality. There was a man called Noah, who decided to seek to fellowship with God despite the circumstances around. God was sad that He created mankind and decided to destroy all of mankind. He asked Noah to build an ark and that anyone that would come into the ark would be saved from the flood to come. Noah built the ark according the command given by God. God gave instructions to Noah, on the animals that should get into the ark. It was 120 years later when the day of the flood, finally came. Only 8 people decided to get into the ark Noah, his wife, his 3 sons and 3 daughter in laws. The flood covered the earth all of mankind was destroyed except those in the ark. (Genesis chapters 6 to 8)

This was an actual event that occured in history but also paints a picture of what Christ was going to do. The flood was a picture of the judgement to come. The people in the ark are the people who chose to repent for their sins and receive forgiveness. The ark was a picture of Jesus. In a parable in John chapter 10, in verse 9, Jesus says He is the door and anyone who enters in shall be saved. Everyone who chooses to enter the ark would be saved (Romans 8:1) from the coming judgement. (Matthew 25:31).

This picture was used by Jesus when He talked about the end times. In Matthew chapter 24 we read the following

Mat 24:37 When the Son of Man appears, things will be just as they were when Noah lived.
Mat 24:38 People were eating, drinking, and getting married right up to the day that the flood come and Noah went into the big boat.
Mat 24:39 They didn't know anything was happening until the flood came and swept them all away. That is how it will be when the Son of Man appears.

The sacrifice of Issac by Abraham

There is no place in scripture where God approves of child sacrifice. It does seem unusual that God would ask Abraham to sacrifice His son Isaac but in it is a wonderful picture that God paints for us. This event is captured in Genesis chapter 22.

Abraham obeys God and takes his son to the mount Moriah where he would offer his son as a sacrifice . With his son, he takes two other young men with him. Abraham laid the wood on Isaac. On the third day Abraham saw the place from afar. Abraham told the two young men that they would go and come back after they worshiped the Lord. Isaac asks his father, we have the wood and the fire but where is the sacrifice? Abraham told Isaac that God himself would provide a lamb for the offering. Isaac was placed on the wood to be sacrificed and the Abraham stretched out his arm to strike Isaac when the angel of the Lord commanded Abraham not, and that he feared God and that he would not withheld his son, his one and only son. When Abraham looked up he saw a ram and sacrificed the ram instead of his son

This was a true incident that occured in which Abraham went to sacrifice his son and God prevented him from sacrificing his son at the last moment. God did give attestation to Abraham's obedience and his fear of God.

There is however, Do you can see the picture God is painting of Jesus in this event. The key words have been in italics. And let us take a closer look at them.

Mount Moriah, the place where Abraham sacrified Isaac was the place where King Solomon (the son of King David) would construct a temple for God. This region had been earlier destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BC.The stones quarried to build the temple cut a large gorge, leaving the westernmost portion of the mountain standing alone. In Jesus' day this portion was called Golgotha, "the place of the skull." This was the place Jesus would be crucified for the sins of the world. (John 19:17). It is amazing how Abraham was performing the sacrifice of his son on the same mount where God would sacrifice His Son for our sins about 2000 years later.

There were two others who came with him, just has there were two others who were crucified with him (John 19:18). Abraham laid the wood on Isaac was a picture Jesus who would carry a wooden cross. From the command given to Abraham to sacrifice his son, it was three days. In Abraham's mind his son was dead on the third day, Isaac's life is spared, just as Jesus died and rose again on the third day. Abraham mentions to the young that they would worship and come back. He believed that if he sacrificed his son that God would resurrect him back again. (Hebrews 11:19), just like Jesus was resurrected on the third day. God would provide himself a lamb, in the new testament John the baptist when addresses Jesus, told them "Behold the lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29). The angel of the Lord mentions that he did not withhold his son, his one and only son. Abraham had two sons one Ishmael and the other Isaac. Isaac was the one God promised He would give Abraham. Abraham had another son, with Hagar who name was Ishmael. But God addresses Isaac has the one and only son, the son of promise through whom the Messiah would come. This correlates with the verse in John 3:16 that say "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life".

Joseph, the two dreams

Joseph was one of the sons of Jacob (in who lineage the Messiah was promised). Joseph's brothers were jealous of him because he was his father's favorite and received a special coat from his father. He was sold to some gypsies ( they decided to sell rather than kill him). The gypsies were headed to Egypt where a man by the name of Portiphar decided to take him as his slave. Things prospered in Protiphar house when Joseph was there. Portiphar's wife, who had an eye on this man asked him to sleep with her. He tried to avoid to wife of Portiphar. One day, however Portiphar's wife got a hold of his vest and asked him to sleep with her, he refused and ran from her without his vest. When Portiphar came back, his wife told him that Joseph tried to make advances at her so he was thrown into prison. In the prison, everything went well because God was with Joseph and blessed what he did. There were two inmates (one a wine taster of the king and the other baker who served the king) that were present in the prison who had dreams. They didn't know what they meant so they asked Joseph what they meant. Genesis chapter 40, we read that one had a dream with three branches withclusters of grapes and that with those grapes he get wine that he would serve the king. Joesph told him that they three branches were three days and that in three days he would get back his position as a wine taster. Next the baker told his dream that he saw three white baskets on his head that he served the king with, then he saw some birds come and eat from the basket. Joseph gave the interpretation of the dreams that the three baskets represented three days and that in three days that the bakers would be hung on the tree and the birds would eat his flesh. After they were released from prison, just as Joseph said the Wine taster was restored to his position and the baker was hanged and the birds ate his flesh.

This is an incident which did refer to two actual people in the prison who had these dreams and the were fulfilled.

However, they do paint a wonderful picture of Jesus, Jesus said He was the bread of life (John 6:35). He said He was the vine branch (John 15:1). On the night of his betrayal, he gave them wine, telling them it represented his blood that was going to be shed for you (Luke 22:20) and the bread that was going to be broken (I Corinthians 11:24). He asked them to do this in remembrance of Him. As we saw that in three days the wine taster would be given life and the baker would have his life taken. We see that picture of how Jesus would die and on the third day He would rise again.

There are many more pictures / types found, some of which will hopefully be put on the website shortly. Just to leave a few more types that can be looked into as further study: