Isaiah 11:1-16 And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots:… We may well study this picture of the Messiah's reign on earth, drawn by a Divine hand and painted with unfading colours, because through it we see, as we cannot otherwise, what we are daily praying for. History does not fully interpret prophecy for us. If we knew just the changes in the nations before the fulness of the times comes, if we could be assured where and when and how Jesus would reign in an earthly way among men, still we should not have what the vision of Isaiah furnishes us. He saw nothing of this. And what did he see? First of all a mighty forest, whose tall trees sent their roots down deep into the earth, and whose branches east wide shadows. These were the proud nations that were oppressing Israel, and seemed strong enough to stand forever. But they were to lose their glory. Among them there was a stump, sending up from its decay and humiliation a small, tender, but vigorous shoot. This was the ancient but fallen house of David; and the green shoot coming up was only in fulfilment of the old covenant that there should always be one to sit on David's throne. As we look, through the seer's vision, we see the young tree dissolve into the form of a Man, a Man on whom the Holy Spirit rests with seven-fold gifts of wisdom and knowledge and counsel and might and understanding in the fear of the Lord. This Man is full of righteousness, and His robes are girdled with righteousness as He sits and judges among the people. And again, as we gaze, we see that the Man dissolves into a mountain — the mountain of the Lord which shall be established in the top of the mountains in the last days. This mountain is full of peace and security. Once more, as if to express in a sentence the whole thought and hope of the prophet, we see the whole earth filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. Interpreting this vision there are two truths that may well be dwelt upon. I. THE CHIEF FACT ABOUT THE KINGDOM OF CHRIST IS CHRIST HIMSELF, WHO MAKES HIS KINGDOM BY DWELLING IN THE HEARTS OF MEN. II. HIS REIGN IS LIKE THE REIGN OF THE LITTLE CHILD IN THE MIDST OF THE ANIMALS THAT NATURALLY HATE AND DEVOUR ONE ANOTHER. It is a reign of childlikeness and innocence, the power of weakness and purity over brute force. (E. N. Packard.) Parallel Verses KJV: And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots:WEB: A shoot will come out of the stock of Jesse, and a branch out of his roots will bear fruit. |
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