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Isaiah— the Presentation of the Messiah
08.10.22
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. (7) Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this. (Isaiah 9:6, 7)
In this article we are going to focus on where Christ is found in the Book of Isaiah. One commentator wrote this: “Appropriately enough, the basic theme of Isaiah’s message is that salvation is bestowed only by grace, by the power of God, the Redeemer, rather than by the strength of man or the good works of the flesh. The holy God will not permit unholiness in His covenant people, and will therefore deal with them in such a way as to chasten and purge them and make them fit to participate in His program of redemption. Isaiah sets forth the doctrine of Christ in such full detail that he has rightly been described as ‘the evangelical prophet.’
The book is filled with references to Christ Jesus, the Messiah of Israel. They cover three categories. For each, there will be one text quoted, and others for your consideration.
First, those concerning His first coming. Along with the key verses noted at the outset of this article, others speak of His birth— (7:14) Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel. (11:1) There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots. (also 40:3-5)
Others speak of His ministry— (61:1) The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound. (also 35:5, 6; 40:11)
The second category speaks of Jesus and His saving work at Calvary. The most prominent of these extends from 52:13-53:12. A small section of this reads: Surely He has borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him, and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. (also 1:18; 12:2, 3; 25:8; 28:16; 32:2; 38:17; 42:6, 7; 43:25; 44:6, 22; 45:22; 47:4; 48:22; 49:6; 50:6 55:1, 2; 59:1, 2, 16; 61:10; 64:6, 7)
The final category presents Jesus as the coming King. (11:2-5) The Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him, The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and might, The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD. His delight is in the fear of the LORD, And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, nor decide by the hearing of His ears; 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 slay the wicked. Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins, and faithfulness the belt of His waist. (also 2:2-4; 4:2-6; 22:22, 23; 24:23’ 33:22; 42:1-4; 43:15; 60:1-3; 61:2, 3; 62:11)
Jesus Christ is the answer to every need!