Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Isaiah 4:2


Copyright Ó 2012 J. Neely
Isaiah 4:2

2 In that day [yowm] shall the branch [tsemach] of the LORD [Yahovah] be beautiful [tsabiy] and glorious, [kabowd] and the fruit [pariy] of the earth ['erets] shall be excellent [ga'own] and comely for [tiph'arah] them that are escaped [paleytah] of Israel. [Yisra'el] KJV-Interlinear

2 In that day the Branch of the Lord will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth will be the pride and the adornment of the survivors of Israel. NASB

In that day, is again repeated, because it is the same time frame as in verse one as well as the previous chapter, the end of human rule on this earth and the end of the Tribulation.

On the one hand, the worlds population will have been devastated, with no rescue and no solution in sight.

On the other hand however, there is God the Son, the Savior, whom we now call Jesus Christ, but is herein referred to by His personal deity, the Lord.

He has a branch which He raises up.

A branch here, ‘tsemach,’ refers to a sprout or bud that springs up out of a root.  The Messiah or Savior is said to be the branch or root of Jesse, the offspring of David.  This refers to the Savior as being the descendant of Jesse.

Jesse is the tree that is fallen and then out of that fallen tree, springs up a new sprout, namely the Lord or Savior, born to Mary.

Both Joseph and Mary are descendants of David.  David was the King and through His descendants the royal line had fallen from power into poverty.  Thus the symbolism of the death of the line.  Joseph was a poor carpenter. 

But out of that line, that most had forgotten and thought lost, arises the birth of the Savior, who would return to the glory of royalty and better than that, to the glory of God, and thus reclaiming the thrown for all of eternity.

Thus the root or branch is set in most cases as a reference to the Messiah, Rom 11:12; Isa 11:1, 11:10, 53:2, Rev 22:16, Jere. 23:5, 33:15, Zech 3:8, 6:12, Job 8:16; 14:7; 15:30; Ezek 17:22.

Beautiful and glorious, refers to the chief or main ornament, the object of desire, that which portrays the main honor or distinction.  God is the ornament of note. 

In the previous chapter, the ornaments that people wore, were of gold and silver and stones.  They twinkled and tinkled and were used to draw attention to the external person.  The people wore various clothes made of the finest of materials.  And when the end finally came, none of these things had any value whatsoever, as most of the people had died and the remainder were in deep mourning, destitute of any self-worth.  People had placed their worth and trust in the many accessories, and still looked to these things even when life had ceased.

The Lord is the alternative to things.  The Lord is the unique and permanent alternative to ‘things,’ which are only temporary and have no value per se.

Fruit of the earth, is a reference to the production of that which is good.  The earth is often used in this context as the productive farm or vineyard or garden, from agricultural terminology.

Just as the first reference, the branch, is a reference to the Messiah, so too, this second symbolism is a reference to the Messiah, who grew up out of the fallen dynasty of David, and will produce far greater good, as a result of His existence, namely the family of God who are saved by means of faith in Him.  This too is a result of His work on the Cross.  So this is also a reference to all of Gods work, individually and collectively, within His divine plan.

Excellent, and comely, both refer respectively to the exaltation or honor, and the ornament of highest value or honor or status.

For the escaped of Israel, refers to the remnant who God has saved or delivered, out of the turmoil and trouble of the world.

Wicked people place their priorities and values in things, and they will lose out in life.

Believers who are advancing to maturity, place their value and priorities in Christ and doctrine.  Both Christ and doctrine are one and the same, for both refer to each other respectively.

To have doctrine in your soul through learning, is to have Christ.  And to have Christ is to have value and honor and meaning and purpose, beyond measure, permanent and forever.

So, in that day, when the end of human history finally occurs, there will be great mourning and death, but too, there will be great celebration, for there will be a remnant that will not have succumbed to the ways of the world.

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