Advent Reflections Day 11 –The Incarnated Christ Sprouts from the Shoot of Jesse – Anointed King to Judge with Justice and Shepherd for Unity

 Isaiah 11:1-16

In yesterday’s reflection (Genesis 16:1-16), we were reminded that Christ had made theophany (visible appearance as God) before his incarnation. Christ appeared to Hager, the Egyptian maidservant of Sarah, who was the wife of Abraham, when was psychologically and spiritually lost as she did not know what do to amidst her suffering and physically lost in the wilderness. Hager suffered from the mistreatment by Sarah. So, in the middle of nowhere in the wilderness, happened to be by an oasis, Hager was at loss. It was when Christ came to her in the angelic appearance, which the Book of Genesis describes as the angel of the Lord. Christ in the angelic form comforted her and assured of the prosperity of her son’s offspring – though also prophesized challenges that he would face, because he would not be Abraham’s hair though he is his firstborn son. Hager’s dried soul was revived with the real living water that came from the comforting words of Christ in the angel of the Lord (which literally means a messenger sent by Yahweh, God the Father). In her delight, she named the spring where she encountered Christ in the angel “Beer-lahai-roi”, which means “living God sees me”. In a way, this seems like how the incarnated Christ in Jesus later “revived” the dried soul of the Samaritan woman by the Jacob’s well (John 4:4-42).

Through Advent, in spirit and collective memory, as we continue to work hard on ourselves to make sure our hearts are the welcoming place for Christ’s arrival, making it better than his arrival in about 2,000 years ago, in a manger, we repent our sins and purify our hearts, as instructed by John the Baptist (i.e. Mark 1:3-5).

Now, turning our focus back on the incarnated Christ, who is coming…who is on the way to dwell in our hearts.

Today, we reflect on the incarnated Christ’s aspect of the Davidic (relating to King David) family line, prophesized by Isaiah.

There are two lineages for Christ: of David and of Melchizedek.  As the eternal King, Christ draws the legal lineage of King David. As the eternal High Priest, Christ is on the lineage of Melchizedek, who was also king of Salem (Jerusalem) (Hebrews 7:13-17). In today’s reflection, we are going to reflect on how incarnated Christ’s Davidic lineage was prophesized nearly 700 years before the incarnated Christ’s first theophany in the birth of Jesus.

A shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse, and from his roots a bud shall blossom (Isaiah 11:1).

Like a great light shining in darkness (Isaiah 9:1), a powerful shoot sprouts out of the stump of Jesse, during the dark time of the history of the Israelites, God’s first chosen people. And, this darkness was mainly because of King Ahaz’s sins and decision-making to keep Ephraim (the Kingdom of Israel) enemy by becoming Assyria’s vassal state, against God’s will (2 Kings 16), as reflected in Isaiah 7, and out of that, God announced to send the incarnated Christ through the virgin (Isaiah 7:14).

Now we know that the son of the virgin, named Emmanuel (Isaiah 7:14) is not only the great light (Isaiah 9:1) but draws the lineage of David, son of Jesse (a shoot sprouting from the stump of Jesse)(Isaiah 11:1).

Jesse is the father of David (Matthew 1:6). So, the incarnated Christ shall come out of the lineage of David.

So, who this Davidic Christ in the human figure shall be?

The spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him: a spirit of wisdom and of understanding, a spirit of counsel and of strength, a spirit of knowledge and of fear of the Lord and his delight shall be the fear of the Lord (Isaiah 11:2-3a).

The spirit (ר֧וּחַ /ruah) of the Lord (יְהוָ֑ה/Yahweh) is upon this incarnated Christ. It means that he is anointed with the spirit of Yahweh, God the Father, just as Samuel, on behalf of Yahweh anointed David as the king of Israel to replace failing king, Saul (1 Samuel 16:13).

It is important to note that the incarnated Christ is endowed with the gifts of the Holy Spirit (Spirit of the Lord – the Spirit of Yahweh), such as wisdom, counsel, and knowledge, just to name a few (Isaiah 11:2). It means that the incarnated Christ is wise as he is loaded with the divine wisdom.

As Davidic King with wisdom, the incarnated Christ shall judge with justice (Isaiah 11:3b-9), and his rule with justice shall bring his Kingdom peace, which is characterized with all creatures living in harmony – a kind of peaceful harmony where even wolves and lambs can be together. This is also how the earth will be transformed with the knowledge of God (Isaiah 11:9).

See how important it is to teach Christ to the word? (Mark 16:15; Matthew 28:19; cf Colossians 3:16).

God the Father has sent His only begotten Son, as the King with the Davidic lineage, to judge and to bring peaceful harmony, filling us with the knowledge of Him. And, it is our call to be a part of this plan by learning and teaching about God.

As mentioned, the historical context of this prophecy is the darkness brought by a bad king of Judah, Ahaz. Although Ahaz was on the lineage line of David (Matthew 1:6-9), he ruled against God’s will, while David did faithfully to God (2 Kings 16:2). Thus, God the Father is sending His only begotten Son, as the incarnated Christ, the Word, as to spell out the darkness brought by this sinful king, Ahaz, and to restore the Davidic kingdom to its glory (Isaiah 11:10-16).

In this restoration of the Davidic Kingdom by the incarnated Christ as the new Davidic King, there shall be a reconciliation between Judah and Ephraim (Isaiah 11:13). It means to reunite the divided Kingdom of Israel, the original Davidic kingdom, which was divided because of Solomon’s sin (1 Kings 11:1-13). Thus, this is at least a double damage control, wiping out the darkness brought by Ahaz’s sin and healing the pain of division brought by Solomon’s sin.

Finally, as reflected in Isaiah 11:16, the incarnated Christ as the new Davidic King will bring all scattered people back to his fold, resonated in Ezekiel 34:15-16 (cf Zechariah 13:7-9; Matthew 18:12–14//Luke 15:3–7).  So, here, there is an indication that the incarnated Christ is the Shephed-King. He is the Davidic King, as well as the Good Shepherd (John 10:1-18).

Now, we have much better view on the one who is coming to us, the one, whose arrival we have been awaken to and been diligently preparing for.

Though he did not wait until his incarnation in making theophany, as he responded the cry of Hager as the angel of the Lord, Christ in the human flesh of Jesus is born of the Blessed Virgin, who is the Immaculate Conception, the light shining the darkness of sins, and is, indeed, the Davidic King to rule and judge with justice in order not only to restore the divided kingdom but to perfect the Kingdom. Also, he  is the Good Shepherd to keep all his Father’s sheep as one.