This is a common complaint about prophecy today. People often say this to mean: This has no real meaning, it is figurative. Ignore it.

Lets look at the book of Romans. Romans 1 refers to fulfilled prophecy of Jesus resurrection and views it as having been understandable.

“2 which he promised before through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3 concerning his Son, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, 4 who was declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,”
Rom. 1:2-4. WEB

Look closely at the verses following Rom 1:2. Is not Paul right in treating these things as understandable?

Now most of these prophecies used symbolic language.

“He was oppressed, yet when he was afflicted he didn’t open his mouth; as a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and as a sheep that before its shearers is mute, so he didn’t open his mouth.” Isa 53:7

Was Isaiah 53:7 about a sheep or a person. (We jest.) (Oh no! we might say, We cannot accept Isaiah 53 as evidence about Jesus. It includes [shudder-r-r-r!] figurative language!)

But then Paul goes on to discuss some of this subject as if Isaiah 53 and many other passages, all of which included figurative language, were very understandable, unless you have trouble accepting the Word of God, OR if you have decided that God cannot or would not ever foretell the future, Or have decided, “Well God would NEVER allow His Christ to die.” Was Paul wrong?

Was “prophecy” beyond comprehension?

Clearly if figurative language [shudder-r-r-r!] puts a prophecy out of bounds for evidence about the resurrection, then you do not have any prophetic evidence for the resurrection, and Isaiah 53 and Psalm 22 and all the rest, would be clearly out of bounds for use as evidence.

There is plenty about prophecy in Romans chapter 2 for instance, including:

“But according to your hardness and unrepentant heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath, revelation, and of the righteous judgment of God;” Rom. 2:5 WEB.

And,

“oppression and anguish, on every soul of man who works evil, on the Jew first, and also on the Greek.” Rom. 2:9 WEB.

These are prophecies of what God will do, which demand action on our part.

Romans 3 speaks a future justification by faith.

“since indeed there is one God who will justify the circumcised by faith, and the uncircumcised through faith.” Rom 3:30 WEB

It says “God who will,” or perhaps in your translation says “God shall,” all of which is future. That is right. It will be when God raises us from the dead. This is a prophecy of what God “will do, and that is the fabric of the discussion.

The whole book of Romans is about what God WILL do, and why you and I must change to fit what WILL happen! Is it understandable? Yes. But our resistance to the message may make all of this beyond what we are willing to comprehend.

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901