The Gospel of Isaiah: Ch. 52:7, Beautiful Feet

The Gospel of Isaiah: Ch. 52:7, Beautiful Feet. 

WANTED: An imaginative scribe who can write exquisite poetry. A faithful, articulate believer in Yahweh who can switch from one extreme to another at the Lord’s command… from a sublime vision of God’s glory, to a ridiculous demonstration of shameful nakedness; from confronting the people over their sinfulness, to comforting people with hopefulness; from being an outspoken messenger one minute, to a living object lesson the next; from having one foot in the immediate surroundings one minute, to one foot in the future messianic realm the next. Must be adaptable, thick-skinned, and extraordinarily brave. Person who answers, “Here I am. Send me!” will be especially considered. (from The Jerusalem Post, 740 BC).

“How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who announces shalom, who carries to others glad tidings of good things, who proclaims salvation, who says to Zion, ‘Your God Reigns!” (52:7).

How beautiful are the feet (Handel) | boy soprano Aksel Rykkvin (12y) & Vegar Sandholt (organ)

The Most Beautiful Feet in the History of the World. Yes, we can’t help but think of Jesus as the Messenger here, bringing to the world the best possible news anyone could hear, the Gospel of His deliverance and peace and the coming of His Kingdom. This passage is the prelude to the Song of the Suffering Servant in chapters 52-53, and it seems Isaiah was inspired to prepare us for Messianic prophecy that was soon to come. Yes, the messenger with the good news is the Messenger with the Gospel. The Messiah to come with the beautiful feet is none other than the Prince of Peace.

SHALOM = The ancient Hebrew word translated as peace: completeness or wholeness, as in the joining together of opposites; integrity, as in the effective holding together of separate pieces; to give/restore harmony; fulfillment; health; security; abundant well-being; the state of having the vitality needed to thrive and flourish; tranquility; freedom from disquiet and disorder; reconciliation; resolution of conflict/war; healing of division; prosperity. The Greek word for peace in the New Testament is “Eirene,” and means the same thing as “Shalom” in the Hebrew Bible. Shalom ranks the highest of all values in the Hebrew Bible, according to Jewish scholars. Shalom is the most important goal in all of life. “Rabbinic teaching describes it as the only vessel through which God’s blessings can flow into this world.” (Rabbi Arthur Green, These are the words: A Vocabulary of Jewish Spiritual Life).

Announcing the Good News. The Messenger of the Gospel soon enough beautified His feet once more when He proclaimed His glad tidings in Nazareth in Luke 4, taking His cues from Isaiah 61…  “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because the Lord has anointed Me, the Messiah, to preach the gospel of good news to the humble and poor. He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed, to announce liberty to the prisoners, to comfort all who mourn; to announce the year of God’s favor, when salvation and grace abound!” That’s not merely good news from the Messenger, that’s the best news possible!

The Feet of Christ. Walk, walk, walk, one foot after another. Sometimes it must have seemed to the disciples that’s all they did, walk one dusty trail after another. They were always on the move, constantly walking from here to there. There are over 100 references to Jesus’ walking in the gospels, and it is estimated by the Bible scholars who research such things that Jesus and His disciples walked an estimated 2,500-3,100 miles during their three-year ministry! They would not restrict their travels to trips from Capernaum to Jerusalem, a total of 85 miles, or from the Sea of Galilee to Jerusalem (70 miles), or a journey on foot from Nazareth to Jerusalem, a total of 65 miles. But the disciples would also find themselves following Jesus to the far northern port of Tyre, 104 miles from Jerusalem, or maybe for a short jaunt to Samaria, only 42 miles from Jerusalem. Hither and yon, here and there. As renowned Chicago pastor Rev. Otis Moss said, “Jesus had a mobile ministry, going to where He was needed!” Because Jesus announced the good news everywhere He went, His feet, spiritually speaking, were beautiful, even though physically they were probably more or less repulsive like ours would have been. After all, Messiah’s feet had a lot of mileage on them, so what would we expect? There are 26 bones in a human foot, one-fourth of the number of bones in the entire human body, and Jesus surely used every one of those bones.

The Significance of the Messenger’s Feet. There are 27 references in the gospels to Christ’s feet, and so as we consider Isaiah’s direct reference to the feet of the messenger, perhaps we would do well to remember…

1. When Simon the Pharisee arrogantly refused to wash Jesus’ feet as was customary as an act of hospitality, but then the local prostitute strolls into Simon’s house and proceeds to wash Jesus’ feet with her tears of repentance and her aromatic oil (Luke 7);
2. When Mary of Bethany had an especial affinity for Jesus’ feet… sitting at His feet and absorbed in His teaching (Luke 10); grieving at His feet in the death of her brother Lazarus (John 11); anointing His feet with costly perfumed oil as she foreshadowed His death (John 12);
3. When people would bring loved ones in need of healing at laid them at Jesus’ feet (Matt. 15);
4. When countless people fell at His feet in worship and gratitude;
5. When the women who found the empty tomb grasped His feet in adoration (Matt. 28);
6. When Jesus proved who He was by showing His disciples the scars on His pierced feet (Luke 24, John 20).
7. When John on Patmos couldn’t help but notice Christ’s glorified feet, which were like polished bronze glowing from a furnace, refined into something beautiful and permanent in His Kingdom (Rev. 1:15).

The Messenger of Salvation/Deliverance. The Hebrew word for salvation is “yeshua” or, to save “yasha,” both words coming mighty close to Someone we know and love. Salvation means to be delivered, liberated, to be set free into the wide open; to be rescued in a time of desperate need; to be saved from destruction and certain death. “Salvation” literally means to become spacious, with one translator saying that it refers to “the sense of deliverance from an existence that had become confined, compressed, or cramped.” When Jesus delivers us from our inner spiritual prison, we are released into a wide open, broad, expansive place. Could there be better news brought by the Messenger than being freed from out spiritual captivity? Weaving together many translations of Ps. 107:10-18, the following paraphrase can best be understood as what salvation looks like when we are delivered from our spiritual captivity. I have written the following in the more direct and personal first person instead of the more impersonal and distant third person.

“We are those who sat in darkness, locked up in a gloomy prison, living in the shadows that were as dark as death. We were prisoners in absolute misery, bound in chains. All this because we defied the instructions of Lord Yahweh, we despised the counsel of our God, scorning the thoughts of the Most High. So Yahweh humbled our hearts through suffering, and if we fell down, there was no one there to pick us up again. We cried out to the Lord in our distress, and He saved us. He rescued us from our miserable plight. He delivered us from the gloomy darkness and the deathly shadows. He shattered our chains of captivity, He broke the jail wide open. We thank Yahweh for His goodness and lovingkindness, His faithful love for us, His wonderful works for the children of mankind. He broke open those gates of bronze, He smashed the iron bars, and He shattered those heavy jailhouse doors. Yes, we cried out to Lord Yahweh in our distress, and He saved our lives from the Abyss, the pit of destruction, from certain death. We will thank the Lord for His mercy, faithfulness, and goodness!”

The Good News of Being Saved and Delivered. The gospel idea of a savior/rescuer started with Moses. He delivered the Jewish nation from slavery in Egypt, and he brought them to the Promised Land forty years later. Moses freed his people from bondage. God gave Moses the mission of delivering his people, and Moses succeeded. The Exodus has been used ever since in Christian thought as an historical picture of a spiritual truth. God appointed Moses to be a savior. God appointed Jesus to be the Savior. Jesus’ mission spiritually fulfilled Moses’ mission. Moses brought the Jews salvation from slavery. Jesus brought all people salvation from sin. Moses brought the physical reality of deliverance, Jesus brought the spiritual reality of deliverance. Moses illustrated the gospel story, while Jesus embodied it. Moses led the old Exodus. Jesus led the new Exodus, the exodus of the soul, freeing humanity from the bondage of, not Egypt, but sin. The Red Sea was a landmark in Biblical history, a signature moment in the Jewish faith, as well as Christian. The Red Sea miracle is a defining event in Judeo-Christian belief, and is an illustration of redemption, of salvation and deliverance, of a people being “redeemed” and “purchased” by God, as Moses sang in his song (verses 13 and 16).

The Messenger Announces Victory! The beautiful feet of Messiah brings Him to the people to verbally and personally publish the message of victory, of the King’s defeat of all His enemies, and our enemies as well. Isaiah closes this verse with a crescendo… “Your God Reigns!” The Messenger proclaims that He is bringing God’s Kingdom here to earth, His rule, His dominion, His authority that desires to maintain the best of all possible worlds that is beyond our wildest imagination. So let’s pray about that as Jesus taught His disciples, asking the Father for His Kingdom to come and His will to be done, on earth as it is in heaven…

1. “Your Will Be Done.” We understand, Father, that in order for Your Kingdom to come, You need for Your will to be done. As the King, You need to be obeyed. You have every right to expect this, Lord, since You are the royal Sovereign of the universe. You have every right to expect Your purposes here on earth to be fulfilled. Only You, Lord King, know the best way to manage Your Kingdom. Please help us as we grow in our trust of You and in our ability to lean fully into You. We embrace Your Word, Father, and have come to know that You have revealed Your will clearly in Scripture. We know Your will is for us to submit to You, to be rich in mercy, to promote justice, to grow in righteousness, to increase in humble faith. We realize the importance of living into Your will by growing in the fruit of the Holy Spirit in our lives. We also know that You desire for us to grow into the likeness of Your Son. We ask You, God, that our trust in You will develop to the point of agreeing to Your will even before we know what that will might be. Help us to be like Isaiah, who said, “Here I am! Send me!” before he even received instructions from You. Help us to be like Samuel, who with the faith of a child said, “Speak Lord, for your servant is listening” before he even knew what You were going to say. May we be like Moses who said, “Here I am, Lord, You have my full attention” at the burning bush when he received his Great Commission. And may we be like Your friend Abraham, who faithfully left his home at Your simple request, not knowing his destination. Teach us how to follow Your will like all the saints, Father, and then enable us to fulfill it. Doing Your will, O King, obeying Your orders, is a privilege and will bring us great joy and peace. May we follow in your footsteps and may Your feet become our feet in this world.
2. “On Earth as It is Done in Heaven.” Your wish is our command, King of heaven. We stand ready to do Your bidding here on earth just like Your servants who do Your bidding in heaven. Your angels surround Your throne, God, and are poised to obey You, thrilled that they could be of service to You, God. Help us to surround Your throne with praises in our hearts now, Lord, ready to do Your will. The angels stand ready to be a part of Your wonderful Kingdom, and we want to be like them. They are committed to doing Your will immediately without a second thought. They can be trusted to accomplish Your desires completely and with single-mindedness. Your angels find joy and fulfillment in cooperating with You, Father, for Kingdom purposes. Your angels protect and defend the righteous, they minister to those in need. They reflect the light of heaven as they serve You, O King, and represent Your presence. Help us, Lord, to be just like Your angels. Help us to do Your will here on earth just like the angels do in heaven. And may we serve You with a song in our heart, just like the angels who worship You day and night with holy music around Your throne. Help us, God, to serve You just like them, doing Your will on earth as it is done in heaven, with divine purpose and a lightness of heart that reflects the joy of Your heavenly Kingdom.