“So the Light of Israel will be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame; It will burn and devour [Assyria’s] thorns and his briers in one day. And it will consume the glory of his forest and of his fruitful field, both soul and body; and they will be as when a…
“What will you do in the day of visitation, and in the desolation which will come from afar? To whom will you flee for help? Where will you leave your wealth?” (Isaiah 10:3 New Heart English Bible) Right after most-quoted section of Isaiah 6-12 (9:1-7), filled with words that glow with great light, we are…
“And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord … “ (Luke 1:46) The two accounts of Christmas in Matthew and Luke each has a different personality. In Matthew, I see an author who loves to cite his references, with the zeal of an accountant, or a former tax collector, I suppose. Matthew starts with…
“For a child has been born to us, a son has been given to us, and dominion rests on his shoulders, and his name will be: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Peaceful Prince.” “For the increase of dominion and for peace without limit upon the throne of David and upon his kingdom, to establish…
“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace“ (Isaiah 9:6 KJV) The Egyptian Queen Hetepheres sat on a throne just like this picture shows,…
My favorite opening to a movie review is: “Re-creations of 70’s schlock, from ‘Starsky & Hutch’ to ‘The Dukes of Hazzard,’ all seem to obey the second law of movie dynamics: remakes drift to a state of inert uniformity known as entropy.” (Alessandra Stanley, New York Times, Nov. 18, 2005, “TV WEEKEND: Red Update Alert:…
“They have no light of dawn. … only distress and darkness and fearful gloom.” (Isaiah 8:20c, 22a NIV); “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.” (Isaiah 9:2 NIV) These two texts, next to each other, may be the biggest…
“And he [YHWH] will become a sanctuary and a stone of offense and a rock of stumbling to both houses of Israel, a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.” (Isaiah 8:14 ESV) Suddenly the tone shifts in Isaiah 8:11, from horizontal to vertical relationships. YHWH is speaking not to the king and…
“So I approached the prophetess, and she conceived and gave birth to a son. Then the LORD said to me, ‘Name him Maher-shalal-hash-baz.’ “ (Isaiah 8:3 NASB) Poor Maher-shalal-hash-baz. He’s the middle child of the three children promised in Isaiah 7-9, and he has the typical complaint of middle children: everyone forgets about him. There’s…
“For this reason the sovereign master himself will give you a confirming sign. Look, this young woman is about to conceive and will give birth to a son. You, young woman, will name him Immanuel.” (Isaiah 7:14, NET Bible) In its original context, Isaiah 7:14 is a small prophecy, as small as the smallest seed,…
