Thanks to Lynne and Gardener for the references.
16. Isa 40:3 (The Messiah is to be preceded by a Precursor – John the Baptist was not coincidental) "[3] The voice of one crying in the desert: Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the wilderness the paths of our God." : the scribes knew this prophesy well and St. John the Baptist - whose ministry is also recorded in Josephus and other historical sources - cited it to them to show them that the foretold time of the Messianic advent had come.
17. Mal 3:1 (The Lord Himself will come suddenly and unexpectedly as a Messenger to the Temple; to be read along with the passage in Isaiah, as the promise of the Precursor is here confirmed once more) "[1] Behold I send my angel, and he shall prepare the way before my face. And presently the Lord, whom you seek, and the angel of the testament, whom you desire, shall come to his temple. Behold he cometh, saith the Lord of hosts." The promise of a Precursor and the assurance that the time of the Messiah draws near.
18. Isa 7:14 (As a sign, Immanuel, i.e. God with us, will be born of a Virgin – the Incarnation of the Word is foretold) [14] Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign. Behold a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel. - this prophesy is cited by St. Matthew the Apostle, regarding the Virgin Birth of Christ to His Virgin Mother Mary. It was already pre-announced in Gen 3:15, which has been called the Proto-evangelium, since it implies God will be born as the Seed of the Woman without a human father; then the Messiah, by His Mother, would crush the Serpent's head. In Isa 66:7-8, the promise of a miraculous birth is confirmed, "[7] Before she was in labour, she brought forth; before her time came to be delivered, she brought forth a man child. [8] Who hath ever heard such a thing? and who hath seen the like to this?" in a prophetic figure referring to the mystical city of God, Who is our Immaculate Virgin Mother Mary.
19. (Isa 9:1-2) (The Light of Christ will shine forth from Galilee) At the first time the land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephtali was lightly touched: and at the last the way of the sea beyond the Jordan of the Galilee of the Gentiles was heavily loaded. [2] The people that walked in darkness, have seen a great light: to them that dwelt in the region of the shadow of death, light is risen. - the scribes of Jesus' day had clearly overlooked this prophesy, and looked down on Gentiles in general. They had forgotten that great things were promised for the Gentiles and to the land that had been in darkness, that a great Light would arise upon them. The Prophet Isaiah who foretells the gathering of the Gentiles by Christ also foretells a special promise to Galilee. Nazareth was a city of Galilee (Luc 1:26). The prophesy is mentioned by St. Matthew in the Gospel. (Mat 4:16)
20. Zech 13:1 (The fountain of regeneration that is Holy Baptism is here foretold in the Prophets) "On that day a fountain will be opened to the house of David and the residents of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and impurity."
As there are so many prophesies and prophetic foreshadowings of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, and of the Eucharistic Presence in the Church, so Baptism and the other Sacraments were foretold. In the old covenant, it was very difficult to obtain forgiveness of sins; circumcision was necessary before Baptism was instituted. God foretells that in a fountain of water, all sins will be washed away. St. Paul seems to be citing this when he relates, “Rise up, and be baptized, and wash away your sins” (Acts 22:16), showing the power of the Sacraments left to the Church to remit sin, and regenerate the soul.
No mere man could have done and accomplished so much – a new Priesthood, new rites for forgiveness of sins, a new universal Sacrifice offered everywhere from dawn to dusk etc - certainly not any man who died on a Cross but remained dead. Jesus Christ did it because He is God and rose again.
In the Prophet Isaiah itself, God often says He fore-announces events well in advance, so that at least after those wondrous things have come to pass, no one may any longer waver in doubt, weakness, unbelief, and double-mindedness, but come to firm and constant faith and fidelity to Him.
In another thread, we saw St. Montfort mention that helping a sinner to come to God and receive Him is in a certain sense an infinite good, since it allows one who was perishing to receive the infinite God and be saved. It is hoped that by a study of these Messianic prophecies, (1) greater interest in studying the Scriptures in general will be kindled. (2) the Faith of Christians will be confirmed, strengthened and increased, and finally (3) serious non-Christians will study more carefully the life and Person of Jesus Christ, leading them to find eternal salvation and endless happiness in Him and in His Church. God bless.