March 8
A New King
“And there shall come forth a rod…” —Isaiah 11:1
Read Isaiah 11:1-9
Yesterday’s Scripture passage compared the Assyrians to a mighty forest filled with tall trees that were cut down to the ground. In contrast to this portrait of the enemies’ destruction, we are now given the image of a stump. In a vision, the prophet saw the remains of a tree. No branches were to be seen on this tree, neither was there a trunk; only an insignificant stump remained. This was a picture of the royal house of Judah; this is what Israel would look like after experiencing the judgments of the Lord. However, the stump was not the end – a small green shoot began to grow out of the roots. The root system still contained life; the royal house of David would again flourish and become illustrious.
This image is further developed in verse 2. The future would be more glorious than the past. The new Ruler does not have His origins in this earth, but in the living God, Who would give His people a King like they never had before. Our Scripture passage tells of the Messiah who was to come with His messianic reign of peace and salvation. This Messianic King receives His power from God, who endows Him with His Spirit.
What was actually promised concerning the Messiah?
This devotional was taken from “The Time of Your Life” a daily devotional published by the Youth & Educational Committee of the FRC. To order a printed copy of this book, contact: bookorders@frcna.org.