Thoughts for the Day

A shoot shall come out from the stock of Jesse,
and a branch shall grow out of his roots.
The spirit of the Lord shall rest on him,
the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the spirit of counsel and might,
the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
His delight shall be in the fear of the Lord.

He shall not judge by what his eyes see,
or decide by what his ears hear;
but with righteousness he shall judge the poor,
and decide with equity for the meek of the earth;
he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth,
and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.
Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist,
and faithfulness the belt around his loins.

(Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

As a gardener I have a rather inherent dislike of "shoots", particularly when applied to bushes and trees. It usually means something I want to get rid of keeps reappearing - like blackberry, lilac, or sycamore. Isaiah uses the concept of a shoot as a sign that the future will be different. In John's Gospel the miracles of Jesus are called signs. A sign is not necessarily something as big as a miracle, it can be a visual confirmation of a warning or promise made by a prophet. At the time of Isaiah's prophecy about the coming of a righteous king, Israel's king Ahaz is anything but righteous. He has allied himself to the Assyrians and in 732 BCE, he goes to Damascus to swear homage to Tiglath-Pileser and his gods, in the hope of saving his kingdom. Isaiah's words of wisdom to be patient and put his faith in God are ignored.

The sign Isaiah promised was a child whose name would be 'Immanuel' which in Hebrew means "God with us". He is to be a descendant of Jesse (father of King David), and the 'Spirit of the Lord' will rest on him. In many translations of the bible this spirit is given a capital letter, to indicate that this is the power of God Himself, and the spiritual gifts (of wisdom and understanding etc) are given a small s, to show these are gifts that God gives.

The most important thing about this prophetic sign is that the coming King-Messiah will be inspired and led in all that he does by the 'Spirit of the Lord'. This Advent we prepare for the anniversary of this King's birth, and we await His second coming in quiet contemplation.

Lord Jesus Christ,
in whom the Spirit of the Lord rested,
and through whom You exercised
His gifts of wisdom and understanding,
counsel and might,
and knowledge and the fear of the Lord,
may we learn from Your example
to have patience and faith this Advent,
putting all our trust in You,
and looking forward to the future
that You have promised to Your faithful people.
Amen.