Promises of a Messiah: Isaiah 7, 9 and 11 (part 3)

A strange but powerful preacher had caught the attention of the crowds.  He was frank, blunt and practical – calling on people to change their ways and then to give a public demonstration by being baptized.

Many of us know the story.  Apparently the preacher already knew this man who was now coming to be baptized, and this time the preacher tried to stop Him.  "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?"

But Jesus was insistent.  John baptized Him, and as Jesus came up out of the water the Spirit of God came down on Him like a dove, and a voice from heaven said,"This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased."  The Trinity in a moment of time. (Mat 3:13-17)

Stained glass window with a symbol of the Trinity

The Son of God – Immanuel, God with us – was sent by the Father, and empowered by the Spirit.  We’ve seen the incredible promises of the incarnation as we’ve looked at this trinity of prophecies in Isaiah 7, 9 and 11.

Isaiah 7 – a virgin would conceive and bear a Son, and would call His name Immanuel (read more here).

Isaiah 9 – a multi faceted description of God-with-us, the powerful Ruler of peace, Creator and Counsellor, human yet eternal. (read more here)

In Isaiah 9 the look forward continues as we see the spiritual power of this great, wise King:

There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.

And 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 the fear of the LORD.

And his delight shall be in the fear of the LORD.  He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear, but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and 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 of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins.
(Isa 11:1-5)

The Messiah would be a descendant of David (as Jesus was).

Next we see a hint of the Trinity – this Messiah, God-with-us, the Mighty God, would have the Spirit of God on Him – the Spirit of the fear of the LORD.

He wouldn’t judge just by what He saw and heard – but with justice and righteousness.  This is certainly a description of how Jesus was, and is, and how He will be as He rules forever.  As we read the Gospels, we see Jesus looking at the heart and cutting to the heart of the matter over and over and over.  Consider Luke 9:46-48, or Luke 18:18-30, or Matthew 12:1-13.  What a Wonderful Counsellor!

Jewish writings over and over affirm that this passage is speaking of Messiah, from the Targum on Isaiah to the Midrash on Psalms, the Babylonian Talmud, Midrash Rabbah, the writings of Rabbis and more.  For more see Behold Your King by William Webster.

Finally in Isaiah chapter 12, we see a song of rejoicing from the remnant that God has saved.  It’s a song that can be echoed by all of us who know the truth of Romans 5:1:  Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

You will say in that day:

"I will give thanks to you, O LORD,
for though you were angry with me,
your anger turned away, that you might comfort me.
Behold, God is my salvation;
I will trust, and will not be afraid;
for the LORD GOD is my strength and my song,
and he has become my salvation."
With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.  And you will say in that day:
"Give thanks to the LORD,
call upon his name,
make known his deeds among the peoples,
proclaim that his name is exalted.
Sing praises to the LORD, for he has done gloriously;
let this be made known in all the earth.
Shout, and sing for joy, O inhabitant of Zion,
for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel."
(Isa 12:1-6)

Let’s make it known in all the earth!