Thursday 27 May 2010
- Bible Book:
- Isaiah
"The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder's den. They will not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain; for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." (v.8-9)
Background
Some scholars suggest that this familiar portion of Isaiah'swriting is made up of separate elements from different dates anddifferent authors. Nevertheless, they form a unit in presentinghope in terms of the restoration of King David's rule and in termsof the gathering of the scattered members of the now-exiledIsraelite community.
Today's passage provides a fitting climax to the collection of wisesayings which make up the opening part of the book. As we considerthe theme of the descending Spirit, this passage points towards theone in whom that Spirit will be made manifest - the long-awaitedMessiah. It illustrates the effects that the indwelling Spirit willbring about in the one who is to come, and in the community whoawaits his coming.
In the vision of the restoration of the Davidic kingdom, the peopleof God look for the messianic kingdom to be established. The losthope becomes refocused upon a new and future figure who wouldrestore the kingdom and fulfil the requirements of the true king.The activity of the divine Spirit will bring about the truekingdom. It will be a kingdom in which judgement with righteousnesswill overthrow evil. The right order to be established extendsbeyond humankind and into the natural order - in the ideal worldeven enmity between animals will cease. Peace and the truereligion, expressed as knowledge of the Lord, will be found in thewhole earth. The descending Spirit will usher in a new world orderin which all creation will live in harmony.
In the early 1990s, when the new South Africa was makingpreparations for their first post-apartheid free elections, atelevision advertisement ran which used Isaiah's image of the lamband the lion lying peacefully together - a clear allusion to theprophecy of Isaiah and an illustration of a new world order. Thedescending Spirit therefore was not only for distant and ancientPalestine.
To Ponder
Where in the wider world, or in your localcontext, has a 'new order' lead to improved relationships? What hasyour church done in your community to make significant changes tothe way things work? And what was the outcome?
Some people suggest that politics and religionshould be kept apart. And to change the world order does requirepolitical and social engagement. How can the Church support thosewhose daily lives bring them into such places of engagement?