JOYFUL HEART BLESSINGS 16
"Out of the stump of David's family will grow a shoot - yes, a new Branch bearing fruit from the old root." -Isaiah 11:1 NLT
Can you believe we're down to the single digit days to Christmas? Maybe it feels like busyness has hit the peak and you're holding on as the days zoom by too fast. Maybe you need a moment to slow down and take a breath - don't we all? This verse helped me to that. I read it a few days ago on the "verse of the day" on my phone, and then a pastor at our church also talked about it on Sunday, so I took extra notice.
I love a metaphor, which is what I feel like Isaiah is writing here. This beautiful Old Testament prophecy is all about Jesus. Some translations say "stump of Jesse," and Jesse was King David's father. These men came from the line of Boaz's family. Maybe you remember him from Bible readings as the "kinsman redeemer" who married a widow named Ruth. These verses in Isaiah 11 are saying that Jesus will come from that family line.
If you aren't marveling yet, I learned something new from a footnote in the Passion Translation: "Branch" or "twig" in Hebrew is netzer (נצר), which means "to grow green." Its root word is Nazarene, Nazarite, and Nazareth. Do those names sound familiar? Yes, Jesus is from Nazareth, meaning He is a Nazarene. He is the very essence of the word "branch"! Here's what the Passion Translation footnote says: "Christ is both the root and the offspring of David...this means that the "Branch" that grows from the roots points to the body of Christ, his church on the earth. Christ in us is the vine and we are his fruitful branches. Jesus Christ branches out through his people, and they grow from his root."
As Christ is the root from King David's lineage, we are His branches. When we abide in Him (as John 15 says) He abides in us and we can bear fruit. Why? Because Jesus is the true vine! He is the source, the root. He fulfills Isaiah 11 entirely. I love the ties between Old and New Testament Scriptures, as deep and intertwined as tree roots.
So on a busy day in mid-December, our to-do lists could probably compete, I'm sure. But I'm finding how quickly it fades to the background when I take a moment to dig into God's Word. It's all about Jesus, friend, and He wants nothing more in this season than for us to come to Him and marvel at what He's done.
While we're busy wrapping gifts to place under a tree, I want to remember the root and the One who gives us new life where there once was none. Thank You, Jesus.