The reading
Isaiah 9:1-7
1 But there will be no gloom for those who were in anguish.
In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of
Naphtali, but in the latter time he will make glorious the way of the sea, the
land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations. 2 The people who walked in
darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness—
on them light has shined. 3 You have multiplied the nation, you have increased
its joy; they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest, as people exult
when dividing plunder. 4 For the yoke of their burden, and the bar across their
shoulders, the rod of their oppressor, you have broken as on the day of Midian.
5 For all the boots of the tramping warriors and all the garments rolled in
blood shall be burned as fuel for the fire. 6 For a child has been born for us,
a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7 His
authority shall grow continually, and there shall be endless peace for the
throne of David and his kingdom. He will establish and uphold it with justice and
with righteousness from this time onward and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord
of hosts will do this
The message
I didn’t use most of
this sermon this morning. Throughout the
week, I just kept feeling like I was not exactly saying what I wanted to. I felt like it was just too informational,
sharing facts that you could look up in bible study notes or on websites. As much as I value knowing the context and
history of a reading, I wanted to focus on something much more significant,
what this reading means for us today in our darkness. I preached without this manuscript and
focused on a few points.
I honestly had a hard time figuring out what this text was
about, what word there was for us today in it. I do not say that too often,
since it’s kind of my job to know these things and I don’t like standing up
here saying I don’t know how to do my job.
On Monday, I read through it and thought, oh, that’s easy, it’s the
scripture quote we see on Christmas cards all the time, with the words For a
child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his
shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father,
Prince of Peace written over snow covered winter church scenes, nativities,
stars, decorated Christmas trees or other familiar holiday sites. By Wednesday morning, I was still stuck, so I
turned to some commentaries and online groups.
There I was met by statements from scholars like “this is one of the
most mysterious passages in Isaiah” and fellow pastors writing “I have no idea
what to do with this reading” or “im going to use another text”. Aside from
helping me not feel alone in my confusion, not much else there.
One of the most odd aspects of this reading is that things
that will happen in the future are written about as though they occurred
already. This passage in written in a style or part of grammar known as the
present perfect. For Isaish, if God shows him it will happen, it is as good as
seeing it happen. That is why the prophet
talks of events that will happen in the future as if they occurred
already. That is how we should live our
faith.
This prophesy is for the people in the land of Zebulun and
the land of Naphtali, a small corner of the kingdom of Israel, a place know as
Galilee of the gentiles. Galilee was a significant city in Israel, with
diversity and strong religious faith. In contrast, the land of Zebulun and
Naphtali, was seen as less spiritual and
less pure, a diverse place, significant but not exactly faithful. There were
many non-Jews in the city and many people who followed other religions. There was a series of bad things that happened
in the area, defeats and disasters, that lead people to think this place and
its ways of life were not pleasing to the Lord. The areas immediately around them were taken
over by the Assyrians who established their own cities there. This was not a
place where light was expected to shine, if God were to visit the world, this
would not be the first stop. (Centuries later, we learn, Jesus the messiah,
would be born in an unexpected place, a barn in Bethelelm, to a poor, unknown
family)
People who try to see the Old Testament outside of a
Christian context suggest that the hero figure in this reading, the wonderful
counselor and prince of peace refers to King Hezekiah, one of the great leaders
of Israel, with a long, faithful and successful reign. King Hezekiah, as much as he did, unlikely
but may be called wonderful counselor or prince of peace, but would definitely
not be called “mighty God or everlasting father.
When a passage starts with the word “but” or “nevertheless”,
it’s probably important to read the verses before it. In Isaiah 8, we learn what the darkness is
that had covered the land, blinding the people and sending them to seek help in
all the wrong places. Isaiah 9 is
talking about a very specific type of Darkness. The people were not so happy
with God’s answers or speed and they were seeking guidance and advice from
other places, namely some types of divination (psychic things like reading tea
leaves, cards and communicating with the dead).
They did not even realize they were in darkness.
In Isaiah 8, we hear Now if
people say to you, “Consult the ghosts and the familiar spirits that chirp and
mutter; should not a people consult their gods, the dead on behalf of the
living, for teaching and for
instruction?” surely, those who speak like this will have no dawn! They will pass through the land, greatly
distressed and hungry; when they are hungry, they will be enraged and will
curse their king and their gods. They will turn their faces upward, or they will look to the earth, but will see
only distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish; and they will be thrust into
thick darkness.
The contrast between darkness and light is a familiar theme
in the bible. We see it here with the prophets and we will see it throughout
John’s Gospel when we start that book in a few weeks. Darkness means things that are hidden and
uncertain, things that make us anxious. Once
the promised person comes, divination, guessing and all that will no longer be
necessary, once the wonderful counselor comes, he will make God’s plan
known.
While the Prophet Isaiah is writing about a very specific
issue, today, we have dug out all kinds of new caves, places of darkness,
places where people go unnoticed, where people are crying out for someone to
see them. Today, we have people in economic, digital,
drug induced and social darkness. We have a opioid crisis, we have online
bullying, mass shootings, individual shootings, a lot of people in prison, a
lot of inequality, a lot of racism, a
lot of people left out or ignored, a lot of doubts, of each other and religion
and everything else.
Against this, we have a promise The people who walked in
darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness—
on them light has shined. One of the most aggravating experiences I have is
when people say “you don’t understand, you don’t get it, you have not been
there. It bothers me partially because it’s annoying to hear but mostly because
it’s true. I glance by most of this
darkness, offering a word of prayer or time of listening but not much
else. We have to stop trying to be the
light and let ourselves see the light. Today, we see the light in the midst of
the darkness, the place where it shines the brightest.
The next time you send a Christmas card, saying The light has shined in the darkness, a child
has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders;
and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of
Peace, remember it might be going to someone desperate to hear that news.
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