The Branch of Rest

emphasizes the Messiah as the Prince of peace. He will bring peace on the earth such as the world since the Fall has never known. The night Christ was born, the heavenly host declared, “Glory to God in the highest! And on earth, peace, good will toward men.” The heavenly announcement at His birth proclaimed the Messiah would bring peace on the earth.

His peace at His first coming was not between nations. Rome still continued to dominate and Judea continued to rebel until the Temple was destroyed in 70AD. His peace was accomplished on the cross of Calvary between God the Father and sinful mankind. God describes that peace well in For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh. Let us see the Lord as Isaiah saw the Lord—the Prince of peace in whom is perfect rest.

The Spirit Shall Rest Upon Him (11:1-5)

And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, And a Branch shall grow out of his roots:

2And 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 of the fear of the Lord;

3And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord:

And he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes,

Neither reprove after the hearing of his ears:

4But with righteousness shall he judge the poor,

And reprove with equity for the meek of the earth:

And he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth,

And with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked.

5And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins,

And faithfulness the girdle of his reins.

Following the prophecy concerning the destruction of Assyria, God gives Isaiah another prophecy. Isaiah sees the Messiah as a Branch that grows from a stump. The once mighty oak that was the nation of Israel was cut down. In the time of Christ, the nation was a stump in subjection to the Roman Empire. Joseph and Mary, though descendants of David, were poor and humble. But out of those humble circumstances, God sent His Son, the Lord Jesus, as a Branch that grew amid that stump of a nation. God can do mighty things even in humble settings. And He gives grace to the humble.

The writings of Warren Wiersbe have taught me to look carefully at the scriptures. His comments connect this title of the Messiah, Branch, which is used also in the books of Jeremiah and Zechariah, to the themes of the four Gospels. He says:

The four Gospels describe “the Branch” for us as follows: Matthew—David’s righteous Branch (); Mark—my servant the Branch (); Luke—the man whose name is the Branch (); and John—the Branch of Jehovah (). Thus, Jesus Christ will one day fulfill the OT promises God gave to the Jews and will reign over His kingdom in glory and victory ().[1]

Let me explain further what he is saying. Matthew is often regarded as the gospel that presents Jesus as the King of the Jews, a descendant of King David. It includes a lineage back to David. The kingdom of God is a prominent theme. Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.

Mark portrays Jesus as the Servant-Messiah, healing and performing miracles to help others. Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, thou, and thy fellows that sit before thee: for they are men wondered at: for, behold, I will bring forth my servant the BRANCH.

Luke emphasizes the humanity of Jesus as the “Son of Man.” The lineage of His human mother is given, and Jesus refers to Himself as the Son of Man (). And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD.

John stresses the deity of Jesus as the Word who was with God and was God. Jesus is the Son of God. In that day shall the branch of the LORD be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely for them that are escaped of Israel. I don’t know about you, but I like his observation.

Now some observations are contrived. I don’t know who came up with this concoction, but it looks like someone tried to put a meaning to this passage that isn’t there:

Let’s move on lest I waste time on this. I referred to verses 2 and 3 this morning in our study of , which mentions the “seven Spirits.” I said that seven in that context refers to the fullness of the Spirit in Christ.

Matthew Henry comments:

In general, the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him. The Holy Spirit, in all his gifts and graces, shall not only come, but rest and abide upon him; he shall have the Spirit not by measure, but without measure, the fullness of the Godhead dwelling in him, ; . He began his preaching with this (), The Spirit of the Lord is upon me.[2]

The fullness of the Spirit shall rest upon the Messiah, whom we know is Jesus.

The Earth Shall Rest in Him (11:6-9)

The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb,

And the leopard shall lie down with the kid;

And the calf and the young lion and the fatling together;

And a little child shall lead them.

7And the cow and the bear shall feed;

Their young ones shall lie down together:

And the lion shall eat straw like the ox.

8And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp,

And the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice’ den.

9They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain:

For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord,

As the waters cover the sea.

The gospel song, “Peace in the Valley” takes some inspiration from this passage. What a captivating portrait of a new earth of peace and rest that extends to even creatures of the earth! Animals that once were predators and dangerous will be passive and docile.

Not only will the creatures of the earth be at rest when Christ returns, but also the people of the earth will gather to His rest.

His People Shall Gather to His Rest (11:10-12)

And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse,

Which shall stand for an ensign of the people;

To it shall the Gentiles seek: And his rest shall be glorious.

11And it shall come to pass in that day, That the Lord shall set his hand again the second time To recover the remnant of his people, Which shall be left, from Assyria, And from Egypt, and from Pathros, And from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, And from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.

12And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, And shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, And gather together the dispersed of Judah From the four corners of the earth.

Believers in Jesus Christ find rest. We find spiritual rest as the Spirit fills that hollowness from unbelief. Believers also have the promise of a place of perfect and glorious rest with Christ. Jesus has promised to go and prepare a place for us so that we can be with Him for eternity.

Gentiles would seek His rest and find it. God salvation plan has always been by faith. Abel was saved by faith before the Law. So was Noah and Abraham. Moses was saved by faith, not by the Law. Joshua was saved by faith. Rahab the Canaanite was saved by faith. Ruth the Moabitess was saved by faith. Jesus marveled at the faith of a man who wasn’t a Jew. He was a Roman centurion. Both Jew and Gentile of the early churches were saved by faith. Both Jew and Gentile today seek rest in Jesus and His rest is glorious.

His People Shall Rest in Victory (11:13-16)

The road to peace is paved with victory over all enemies. The envy also of Ephraim shall depart, And the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off: Ephraim shall not envy Judah, And Judah shall not vex Ephraim. 14But they shall fly upon the shoulders of the Philistines toward the west; They shall spoil them of the east together: They shall lay their hand upon Edom and Moab; And the children of Ammon shall obey them. 15And the Lord shall utterly destroy the tongue of the Egyptian sea; And with his mighty wind shall he shake his hand over the river, And shall smite it in the seven streams,

And make men go over dryshod. 16And there shall be an highway for the remnant of his people, Which shall be left, from Assyria; Like as it was to Israel In the day that he came up out of the land of Egypt.

Just as miraculously as the Lord will gather His people from around the world, He will subdue His enemies. His people, who have suffered persecution throughout history, will rest in victory.

This 11th chapter of Isaiah shows us the Messiah who brings peace and rest. If I’ve quoted it once, I’ve quoted it a thousand times. You could probably quote it along with me. Jesus said in Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. With fresh in our minds, we can see how Jesus’ declaration is not only a promise for today and tomorrow but also a fulfillment of prophecy of the past. Jesus said that He came to fulfill Scripture and I trust that you can see that He is the fulfillment of the Law, the Prophets, the History, and the Wisdom of the First Testament.

Verse 15 uses an odd term “dryshod.” It means footwear, in biblical times, sandals. God’s people in their return won’t need hipboots to cross the rivers and waters. They won’t need flippers and scuba gear. The Lord will miraculously make the way, just as He made the way for them when they left Egypt.

Likewise, God has made the way glorious to Him. It is by way of the cross. We don’t come with our good deeds. We don’t come with pride. We come to Him on our knees, humbly seeking His grace and peace. We come by way of the cross through the blood of Christ. Without the shedding of blood there is no remission for sin.

Both Jew and Gentile will come to Christ, according to this prophecy. The New Testament reveals that Jesus is the fulfillment of this promise. God wrote through the Apostle Paul about how both Jew and Gentile would come to Christ by faith. encourages both Jewish and Gentile believers to accept one another in peace as believers in Jesus. Wherefore receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God. Now I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers: And that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy; as it is written, For this cause I will confess to thee among the Gentiles, and sing unto thy name. And again he saith, Rejoice, ye Gentiles, with his people. And again, Praise the Lord, all ye Gentiles; and laud him, all ye people. And again, Isaiah saith, There shall be a root of Jesse, and he that shall rise to reign over the Gentiles; in him shall the Gentiles trust. In the Lord Jesus Christ, both Jew and Gentile find rest.

Do you know that glorious rest in the Lord Jesus Christ?

[1] Warren W. Wiersbe, Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines on the Old Testament (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1993), .

[2] Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume (Peabody: Hendrickson, 1994), 1101.

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