O come, O Department of Jesse’s stem,
Unto your individual and rescue them!
From depths of hell your individuals save,
And provides them victory o’er the grave.Rejoice! Rejoice! Immanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
“O come, O Department of Jesse’s stem” is initially an unassuming, even underwhelming line. We’d anticipate to hail the promised deliverer as “Cedar of Lebanon” or “Oak of Righteousness” or “Tree of Life,” not as “Department” or “Sprout.” Such a nickname appears extra becoming for a junior-varsity level guard than for the Savior of the world. But the previous hymn attracts our consideration to a wealthy biblical theme of hope on the opposite facet of calamity, renewal from the rubble, deliverance by way of devastation.
The “department” or “root” of Jesse invokes an incredible Previous Testomony prophecy and its stunning achievement. Jesse the Bethlehemite is the grandson of Boaz and Ruth and the daddy of David, the enormous slayer and nice king of Israel. In 2 Samuel 7, Yahweh guarantees to set his love on this son of Jesse and to ascertain his descendant’s kingship without end. The Davidic dynasty continues for hundreds of years, and most of those rulers are hardly males after God’s coronary heart like David. When King Jehoiachin is banished to Babylon (2 Kings 24), David’s line is decreased to a dull stump.
The yawning chasm between the expectation of a permanent kingdom and the damage of exile leads the devoted to wish, “Lord, the place is your steadfast love of previous, which by your faithfulness you swore to David?” (Psalm 89:49).
Evergreen Hope
But hope stays due to the prophetic promise. Seven centuries earlier than Christ, Isaiah pens these hope-filled phrases:
There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a department from his roots shall bear fruit. And the Spirit of the Lord shall relaxation upon him, the Spirit of knowledge and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and may, the Spirit of data and the worry of the Lord. And his delight shall be within the worry of the Lord. . . . In that day the basis of Jesse, who shall stand as a sign for the peoples — of him shall the nations inquire, and his resting place shall be superb. (Isaiah 11:1–3, 10)
The prophet speaks of a shoot from the stump, new life rising from destruction and loss of life. This Spirit-endowed sovereign would “reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom” and encourage hope not only for Israel however for the nations as properly. Solely “the zeal of the Lord of hosts” may accomplish such a shocking reversal (Isaiah 9:7).
“Immanuel will come once more, O Israel, O nations, to fell each foe and lead us safely dwelling.”
Jesus Christ is the prophesied sprout from Jesse’s inventory. The opening verse of the New Testomony designates him as “the son of David” (Matthew 1:1), and his beginning in Bethlehem and endowment with the divine Spirit match the prophetic profile for the messianic king. But Jesus is born in a lowly manger, raised in backwoods Nazareth, and travels about with nowhere to put his head — hardly a “superb” royal resting place. Furthermore, he’s hailed as “King of the Jews” not by joyful topics however by jeering adversaries as he’s lifted up on a cross. Satirically, the Department from Jesse’s stem is impaled on a life-taking tree.
The crucifixion appears to be like just like the loss of life blow to those prophetic hopes for a without end king. Then, within the best reversal of all, the damaged Department bounds out of the tomb on the third day.
The Root’s Stunning Fruit
Revelation 5:5 triumphantly declares, “Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, in order that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.” This remembers Isaiah’s prophecy of David’s higher son who would rule with righteousness and faithfulness and strike down his foes. But when John turns to behold this lionlike King, he as an alternative sees a Lamb. This apocalyptic imaginative and prescient reveals that the messianic king “conquers” in a most stunning style: not by crushing rebels however by dying of their stead after which standing victorious over the grave.
Solely the zeal of the Lord of promise may convey forth from Jesse’s stump a righteous Ruler who would rescue the world. Within the fullness of time, Jesus Christ — each Lion and Lamb — involves a world condemned to rescue his individuals for a world renewed. Our King conquers by way of sacrificial loss of life and resurrection life. This damaged Department from Jesse’s stem produces the sweetest fruit: life, therapeutic, and hope.
O Christian, rejoice on this God of glory and style whose arm is just not too quick to save lots of, who overcomes all obstacles to maintain his covenant commitments. Rejoice! Rejoice! Immanuel has come to you, O Israel, O nations. Rejoice! Rejoice! Immanuel will come once more, O Israel, O nations, to fell each foe and lead us safely dwelling.
