NO MAN IS AN ISLAND
by Bob Wickizer
Scripture: Isaiah 42:1-9, Psalms 29:1-11, Acts 10:34-43, Matthew 3:13-17
No Man is an Island
Bob Wickizer
Isaiah 42:1-9; Psalm 29; Acts 10:34-43; Matthew 3:13-17
No man is an island
Here we are at Epiphany in the year of our Lord 2023! How did this happen? Where did the time go? Every year we hear the words of Deutero Isaiah about the "suffering servant." This passage was written 500 years before Jesus to give hope to the Jews who were exiled in Babylon at the time. They had no political or military power. They were under a kind of house arrest, and they had no idea how they were going to get out of that place and back, 600 miles to their home in eretz Israel, Jerusalem.
The suffering servant described here, would be the one to deliver them or, in their words, save them. Early on, Christians adopted this passage as a description of our savior, Jesus. But I still find the language and the logic enigmatic at best.
a bruised reed he will not break,
and a dimly burning wick he will not quench;
he will faithfully bring forth justice.
With such overwhelming weakness, how does he bring forth justice? How does that happen?
Or
He will not cry or lift up his voice,
or make it heard in the street;
he will bring forth justice to the nations.
This doesn't sound like a description of someone who will kick you know what and take names does it?
But the Lord says "I have put my spirit upon him..." later the Lord says about the Israelites who are a dire predicament in exile,
"I am the LORD, I have called you in righteousness,
I have taken you by the hand and kept you;
I have given you as a covenant to the people,
a light to the nations,
to open the eyes that are blind,
to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon,
from the prison those who sit in darkness.
Who is the "you" in these declarations? Who is going to do all this work of making justice happen? Why do we look for a savior in hope when God is telling us that WE are going to do all the work?
By the way, the word "you" in the Hebrew and Greek texts, is ...
Bob Wickizer
Isaiah 42:1-9; Psalm 29; Acts 10:34-43; Matthew 3:13-17
No man is an island
Here we are at Epiphany in the year of our Lord 2023! How did this happen? Where did the time go? Every year we hear the words of Deutero Isaiah about the "suffering servant." This passage was written 500 years before Jesus to give hope to the Jews who were exiled in Babylon at the time. They had no political or military power. They were under a kind of house arrest, and they had no idea how they were going to get out of that place and back, 600 miles to their home in eretz Israel, Jerusalem.
The suffering servant described here, would be the one to deliver them or, in their words, save them. Early on, Christians adopted this passage as a description of our savior, Jesus. But I still find the language and the logic enigmatic at best.
a bruised reed he will not break,
and a dimly burning wick he will not quench;
he will faithfully bring forth justice.
With such overwhelming weakness, how does he bring forth justice? How does that happen?
Or
He will not cry or lift up his voice,
or make it heard in the street;
he will bring forth justice to the nations.
This doesn't sound like a description of someone who will kick you know what and take names does it?
But the Lord says "I have put my spirit upon him..." later the Lord says about the Israelites who are a dire predicament in exile,
"I am the LORD, I have called you in righteousness,
I have taken you by the hand and kept you;
I have given you as a covenant to the people,
a light to the nations,
to open the eyes that are blind,
to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon,
from the prison those who sit in darkness.
Who is the "you" in these declarations? Who is going to do all this work of making justice happen? Why do we look for a savior in hope when God is telling us that WE are going to do all the work?
By the way, the word "you" in the Hebrew and Greek texts, is ...
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