Peace in Isaiah
Isaiah 11:1-10
A shoot will grow up from the stump of Jesse;
a branch will sprout[a] from his roots.
The Lord’s spirit will rest upon him,
a spirit of wisdom and understanding,
a spirit of planning and strength,
a spirit of knowledge and fear of the Lord.
He will delight in fearing the Lord.
He won’t judge by appearances,
nor decide by hearsay.
He will judge the needy with righteousness,
and decide with equity for those who suffer in the land.
He will strike the violent[b] with the rod of his mouth;
by the breath of his lips he will kill the wicked.
Righteousness will be the belt around his hips,
and faithfulness the belt around his waist.
The wolf will live with the lamb,
and the leopard will lie down with the young goat;
the calf and the young lion will feed[c] together,
and a little child will lead them.
The cow and the bear will graze.
Their young will lie down together,
and a lion will eat straw like an ox.
A nursing child will play over the snake’s hole;
toddlers will reach right over the serpent’s den.
They won’t harm or destroy anywhere on my holy mountain.
The earth will surely be filled with the knowledge of the Lord,
just as the water covers the sea.
On that day, the root of Jesse will stand as a signal to the peoples. The nations will seek him out, and his dwelling will be glorious.
GATHERING FOR SUNDAY
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This Sunday, it’s time for the Peace candle! If you’ve heard one sermon about peace, you’ve mostly likely heard some iteration of the notion that, “Peace, when speaking of Shalom, is not just about an absence of conflict, but a state of being whole, righteous, just; being at a state of redeemed relationship with God, humans, and creation.” All this is a good and accurate reflection on the themes that arise through the scriptures to explain basic characteristics of Peace/Shalom. But there’s more.
Sunday’s sermon will explore the historical pathway of peace through the scriptures and in history. The longer I’ve spent trying to understand Biblical Peace or Shalom, the more I’ve come to realize that Shalom cannot be practiced humbly without tracing its course through the scriptures. We need to plumb the text’s ongoing exploration over why and how we are expected to “prepare a way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.”
We’ll see you on Sunday, friends, as we try to recover the shock and promise of Isaiah 11:1-10.
Peace,
Zach