First Thursday in Advent
The fourth devotional in a four week series on the meaning of the coming of God to Earth as a human being to join us in our sufferings as well as in our joy.
The Lesson:
“When Ahaz son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, was king of Judah, King Rezin of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel marched up to fight against Jerusalem, but they could not overpower it. Now the house of David was told, “Aram has allied itself with Ephraim”; so the hearts of Ahaz and his people were shaken, as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind.
Then the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out, you and your son Shear-Jashub, to meet Ahaz at the end of the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Launderer’s Field. Say to him, ‘Be careful, keep calm and don’t be afraid. Do not lose heart because of these two smoldering stubs of firewood—because of the fierce anger of Rezin and Aram and of the son of Remaliah. Aram, Ephraim and Remaliah’s son have plotted your ruin, saying, “Let us invade Judah; let us tear it apart and divide it among ourselves, and make the son of Tabeel king over it.” Yet this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘It will not take place,
it will not happen,
for the head of Aram is Damascus,
and the head of Damascus is only Rezin.
Within sixty-five years
Ephraim will be too shattered to be a people.
The head of Ephraim is Samaria,
and the head of Samaria is only Remaliah’s son.
If you do not stand firm in your faith,
you will not stand at all.’”
Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz, “Ask the Lord your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights.” But Ahaz said, “I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test.” Then Isaiah said, “Hear now, you house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of humans? Will you try the patience of my God also? Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. He will be eating curds and honey when he knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, for before the boy knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, the land of the two kings you dread will be laid waste. The Lord will bring on you and on your people and on the house of your father a time unlike any since Ephraim broke away from Judah—he will bring the king of Assyria.”
- Isaiah 7:1-17
Meditation:
Typically, when Isaiah Chapter Seven is used as devotional literature, only verses fourteen through sixteen are specified to be read. These three verses provide an important oracle about the Messiah, sandwiched between other prophecies about the destruction of Israel and Syria, and eventually, the destruction and exile of the nation of Judah. So why did I choose to include these other verses, many of which are not pleasant, in this devotional reading? I did so because if this prophecy is important–and its reference to the Virgin Mary certainly makes it so–then the context of the prophecy is also important. The prophecies of Isaiah 7 were delivered before the exiles, and yet, while Yahweh had already decided that Israel and Judah had violated the covenant, he had already devised a plan to renew his covenant with his people. I want to spend a moment to reflect upon Yahweh’s plan to cut a new covenant with Israel. In the ancient near east, when a more powerful King (a suzerain) “cut a covenant” with a subject King and his people, the ritual involved the less powerful party walking between sections of partially butchered animals, which symbolzied the curses that came with violating the covenant. When Yahweh cut a covenant with Israel, however, instead of demanding that Israel’s representative walk through the alley of corpses, Yahweh’s representative did so on their behalf, symbolizing that the penalty for violation would fall upon Yahweh himself, and not upon the people. With this in mind, we can clearly see that Yahweh’s plan has always included the self-sacrifice of the divine in order that the divine and humanity might fully experience one another. This is yet another reason to join with all of the saints in proclaiming, “Come, Lord Jesus, Come!”
Liturgical Prayer:
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his mercy endures forever.
It is better to take refuge in the LORD
than to trust in man.
It is better to take refuge in the LORD
than to trust in princes.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Open to me the gates of justice;
I will enter them and give thanks to the LORD.
This gate is the LORD’s;
the just shall enter it.
I will give thanks to you, for you have answered me
and have been my savior.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
O LORD, grant salvation!
O LORD, grant prosperity!
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD;
we bless you from the house of the LORD.
The LORD is God, and he has given us light.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
The Collect:
Stir up your power, O Lord,
and come to our help with mighty strength,
that what our sins impede
the grace of your mercy may hasten.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
May the Lord bless us, protect us from all evil and bring us to everlasting life. Amen.