The Gospel of Isaiah: Highlights of Chapter Four
The Gospel of Isaiah: Highlights of Chapter Four.
“In that day, the Branch of the Lord will be beautiful and glorious.” (Isaiah 4:2).
The Sacred Branch. When the royal tree of King David’s line was chopped down, the reign of David’s kingdom seemed nothing but a dead stump. But God’s word covenant with David remained in place. The ideal king, the Messiah, would somehow emerge in Israel in due time. When Jesus was called “the son of David,” the people were acknowledging that He was indeed the fulfillment of the prophecy given so long ago. A Messiah, a righteous Branch, will shoot out miraculously from that dead stump. And Jesus is the Branch. Jesus is that new growth springing forth from that old root beneath the ground, given up for dead. And so as we read the Hebrew Bible, we find time and again that “Branch” remained an important prophetic title for the Messiah. Isaiah once gain proclaimed in 11:1 that, “a Shoot will spring forth from the stem of Jesse, and a Branch from his roots will bear fruit.” And Jeremiah repeated this messianic image when he said in 23:5, “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; and He will reign as king and rule wisely, and will do what is just and right throughout the land. In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely, and this is His name by which He will be called, ‘the Lord is our Righteousness’;” and in 33:15, “In those days and at that time, I will cause a righteous Branch of David to spring forth; and He shall execute justice and righteousness on the earth.” And we can’t forget Zechariah as he proclaimed in 3:8: “Now listen, Joshua the high priest, you and your friends who are sitting in front of you – indeed they are men who are a symbol, for behold I am going to bring in my servant the Branch;” and in his prophetic word from 6:12: “Thus says the Lord of Hosts, Behold, a Man whose name is Branch, for He will branch out from where He is, and He will build the temple of the Lord. Yes, it is He who will build the temple of the Lord, He who will receive royal honor and will rule as king on His throne. Thus He will also serve as priest from His throne, and there will be perfect harmony between His two roles.” And lo and behold, what little village becomes Jesus’ home? Nazareth, a word meaning “Branch.” Certainly the biblical scholars witnessing the crucifixion must have realized that Pilate’s sign on the cross, right there above Jesus’ head, confirmed the messianic prophecy, proclaiming “Jesus the Branch, King of the Jews.”
The Beautiful Branch. “And the people were astonished beyond measure, saying, ‘Everything He does is beautiful, and is done with excellence!” (Mark 7:37). “Kalos” is the Greek term used in this gospel passage. Kalos means beautiful, perfect, excellent, very good, well done, admirable, wonderful, morally virtuous and honorable. Kalos was used over 100 times in the New Testament in a variety of contexts. It was often translated as “good” in passages such as good fruit, good ground, a good tree, and good works. But when applied to a person, it often referred to the moral character and the overall beauty of someone’s inner nature and outer work. In Jesus’ case, kalos was referring to His whole personhood that was beautiful inside and out; His attractive purity; the beautiful excellence He demonstrated in His everyday life; the beautiful sweetness in His interactions with those in need; the beauty of His inner goodness and virtue; the excellent usefulness and practical wisdom of His demonstrations of power. According to the people surrounding Him and watching His every move, everything Jesus did was beautiful, excellently done, and profoundly useful.
The Glorious Branch. The biblical meaning of God’s glory tends to emphasize the weighty splendor of God’s personal Presence; God’s supreme worthiness to be honored and praised; the overwhelming greatness of God’s beauty and power; the eternal weight of God’s substance; the heaviness of God’s inherent majesty. The weight of God’s presence outweighs the world; His presence is more substantive and heavier than the universe.