Twigs and forests
Isaiah 11: The life-giving Spirit of God will hover over him.
The flow from current events to spiritual events of the future makes some passages hard to read. Isaiah has declared that the army of their enemy, Assyria, was used of God to purge his people, but went too far. He pictures Assyria as a great forest filled with huge trees. However, for all its majesty, that forest will be leveled because of the anger of God. Then, with no real segue Isaiah continues with his “forest” illustration, proclaiming that out of the remains of Judah just one small twig will spring up. Compared to the great โforestโ that is Assyria, this green twig might seem insignificant. That โtwig,โ though, will be overshadowed by the Spirit of God. It will grow to such a size that all the forests of the world will seem small in comparison and that โtwigโ will reach out in wisdom, understanding, direction, strength, and knowledge. I donโt know what Isaiah or his contemporaries thought of the unexpected direction of this prophecy, but to a Christian reader it makes perfect sense. The army of Assyria is long gone, only of interest to historians and archeologists. However, that โtwigโ โ the one who sprang up as a helpless baby in Bethlehem so long ago โ well, his Kingdom continues to flourish to this very day.
Take Away: โAnd he shall reign for ever and ever more. Hallelujah!โ