<<   Title  Contents  >>

III Jesus Christ

4. CHRIST THE KING AND THE KINGDOM OF CHRIST

Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel. John 1:49.

It is not surprising that Nathanael knows Jesus as the Son of God because of his divine power. But why does he call him the King of Israel? For, these two things do not seem to be related. But Nathanael is looking deeper. He had heard that Christ is the Messiah; and now he confirms this doctrine which was given [by the prophets], with the further statement that He is the Son of God. Moreover, he reminds himself of the self-evident truth that the Son of God shall appear to become King over God's people. He is therefore right in confessing that the Son of God is also the King of Israel. Faith not only should be fixed upon the essence of Christ (as they say), but should also attend to his mission and power. It avails little to know who Christ is, without knowing also what his will for us was to be and to what end he was sent by the Father. This is why the papists have but the shadow of Christ; they care only to know his bare essence, and neglect his Kingship which consists in his power to save us.

Moreover, when Nathanael calls him the King of Israel, he shows that he is of little faith; because the Kingship of Christ extends to the ends of the world. His faith had not made enough progress for him to realize that Christ was destined to be the King of the whole world, or that the children of Abraham would be gathered together from all parts, so that the whole world might be the Israel of God.

For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day I have begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son?Heb. 1:5.

Thou art my Son. It cannot be denied that this was spoken of David, but in so far as Christ was in him;[83]therefore, the things we find in this psalm were foreshadowed in David, but manifested in Christ. When David conquered the many enemies surrounding his kingdom and enlarged its borders, there was a foreshadowing of the fulfillment of the promise,I shall give the nations for thine inheritance. But how little this was compared with the Kingdom of Christ, which extends from East to West! Again, David was called the Son of God because he was called to do great things. But his glory was a mere spark compared with that which shone forth in Christ, who bore the very image of the Father. Christ alone deserves the singular honor of bearing the nameSonbecause the Father has sealed him alone, and no one else, with his image. Therefore, it is blasphemous to give the titleSonto anyone but Christ.

But the argument of the apostle does not seem to be very strong. He claims that Christ is superior to the angels because he is called the Son. But Christ has this name in common with the princes and all those who are high in power, of whom it is written:Ye are gods, and the sons of the most high. Besides, the prophet conferred a greater honor upon the whole people of Israel when he called them the first-born of God (Jer. 31:9). In fact, in Scripture they are often calledsons. Again, elsewhere, David calls the angels also sons of God; as when he says, in Ps. 89:6,Who is like the Lord among the sons of God?But, the answer to all this is not difficult. The princes are given this name because of their peculiar position; Israel, because by God's grace they were his chosen people; the angels are called sons of the gods figuratively, because they are heavenly spirits and taste of divinity in their blessed immortality. But when David, representing Christ's Person, calls himself without qualification the Son of God, he means something unique, an honor far above that of the princes, or of the angels, or of the whole people of Israel. But it were most inapt and improper to set Christ above all others as the Son of God, if he had nothing more than they. For the expressionSon of Godsets him apart from the class and number of all other beings.Since thou art my Sonis spoken to Christ alone, it follows that no angel shares this honor with him.

If again someone takes exception to this argument and says that it raises David above the angels, I reply: It is not absurd that David should be set above the angels, in so far as he is the image of Christ; just as it was not an insult to the angels that the high priest who expiated sins was called a mediator. Neither David nor the high priest received the title for himself; but in pointing to the Kingdom of Christ, each derived his title from Him. The sacraments also, which are in themselves without life, are honored with titles which even the angels cannot claim without blasphemy. Hence it is clear that the argument from the use of the wordSonis valid.

As to Christ's being begotten, briefly speaking, I take it that in this verse it has to do with his relationship to us. Augustine's subtle reasoning, according to whichtodaymeans in eternity or perpetuity, is frivolous. Of course, Christ is the eternal Son of God, because he is the wisdom of God begotten before time. But this has nothing to do with our verse, which expresses the truth that men know Christ as the Son of God because the Father has revealed him as his Son. Similarly, thedeclarationmentioned by Paul in Rom. 1:4, was, so to speak, a kind of outward begetting. The secret and inward begetting which went before, was beyond human knowledge; it was above our understanding, until God gave us visible evidence of it.

I will be to him a Father. The same is true with regard to this second testimony, which refers to Solomon. Although Solomon was inferior to the angels, yet when God promises to be his Father, he was set apart from the commonality of men. God was to be a Father to him, not as to one of the sons of Abraham, or to one of the princes, but as to one who had pre-eminence over all the rest. The same preference which made him a Son, excluded all others from an equal honor. But now, the context of this verse makes it clear that Solomon is declared the Son, not in himself but as a figure, an exemplar of Christ. The universal kingship here mentioned as destined for the Son, is also said to be a kingdom without end. The kingdom of Solomon, on the contrary, was narrowly bounded; and it was far from being perpetual, since it was divided soon after his death; and a little while after it fell. Besides, in that psalm, the Lord makes a vow, with the sun and moon as witnesses, that so long as they shall shine in the heavens, his Kingdom shall stand. But this does not apply to David's kingdom which collapsed in a short while and finally was utterly destroyed. Further, we may gather readily from many passages in the prophets, that such promises belong to no one but Christ. And let nobody cavil that this is a new invention of ours. For, the Jews called Christ, commonly and usually, the Son of David.

But to which of his angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool?Heb. 1:13.

Again, he exalts the superiority of Christ by another testimony, in order to show the pre-eminence of Christ over the angels.

This verse is taken from Ps. 110, which can be made to apply only to Christ. We know very well from the story of Uzziah's leprosy, that even the kings had no right to act as priests (2 Chron. 26:18). Since it is clear that neither David nor the kings who followed him were ordained to be priests, it follows that here we have a prophecy of a new kingship and a new priesthood, in which king and priest were to be one. Besides, the eternal priesthood spoken of in this psalm fits the case of Christ alone.

Now, at the beginning of the psalm, he is put at God's right hand; which means, as I have said, that he is given a position second only to the Father. What we have here is a metaphor which signifies that Christ is the Father's agent and his head ambassador who exercises his power, so that the Father reigns by his hand. No angel was ever honored in this way. Christ therefore is exalted far above the host of angels.

Until I make. Since there never is any dearth of Christ's enemies who set themselves against his Kingdom, the church is always in peril; especially because his foes, who seek to overthrow it, are among the great men of this world; men who both resort to artifice and attack repeatedly with fury and violence. When we look at what is before our eyes, we cannot but conclude that the Kingdom of Christ is about to fall in ruin. But the promise made in this psalm takes away all our fear, because Christ shall not leave his seat [at the Father's right hand] until he has prostrated his last enemy to the ground. There are two things to keep in mind. First, there shall never be quietness for the Kingdom of Christ in this world, because it will always be infested and troubled by its enemies. Secondly, no matter what evils they perpetrate, the enemies of Christ shall not prevail, because Christ sits at God's right hand, not for a time but in eternity. Therefore, all those who do not submit to his sovereignty shall be thrown down and trodden under his feet.

That I may lead forth a people, blind who have eyes and deaf who have ears. Isa. 43:8. (Calvin's wording.)

The brevity of this verse makes its meaning unclear. There are some who translate " I will bring forth the blind and him who has eyes" ; that is, both the blind and the seeing, both the deaf and the hearing. Others explainblindas those who have eyes, but eyes which are too dim to be able to perceive the secrets of heavenly wisdom. But taking everything into consideration, I prefer to separate the two parts. " I will lead forth the blind, and restore sight to them; I will free the deaf, and they will regain their ears." So the words run:lead forth the blind, and they will have eyes; the deaf, and they will have ears.

The content of this verse requires careful consideration. First the people are freed; then eyes and ears are restored to them. The Lord fulfilled this promise when he led his people from Babylon, but the prophecy certainly extends beyond that to the Kingdom of Christ. For in his Kingdom the faithful have been gathered not only from Chaldea, but also from all parts of the earth. This began conspicuously long ago at the time of Peter's first speech (Acts 2:41), when great numbers from different countries joined in one confession of faith. But later others, who seemed wholly alien, joined with the same body and showed themselves sons of Abraham.

Therefore if we seek the full truth of this prophecy we must come to Christ, by whom alone we are delivered from slavery to the devil and confirmed in liberty. He restores eyes and ears to us who were formerly by nature both blind and deaf.

Further we must remember, as I have emphasized rather often, that the return of the people from exile is connected with the restoration of the church accomplished by Christ. For what God began when he brought the people out of exile, he continued and fulfilled in the coming of Christ. So the redemption is one. And hence it follows that the blessing here described cannot be limited to any one short period of time.

And in mercy shall the throne be established; and he shall sit upon it securely in the tabernacle of David, judging, and seeking judgment, and hasting righteousness. Isa. 16:5.

The Hebrews apply the whole verse to Hezekiah, but this interpretation is by no means acceptable. The prophet is describing a greater restoration of the church. (Besides, the Moabites did not suffer punishment in the time of Hezekiah, nor did God's blessing then begin to shine among the Judeans.) What he means is: All the enemies of the chosen people are planning the destruction of the Kingdom which God had promised would be firm forever. But the faithful must not lose courage when they are miserably scattered; they must remember this well-known oracle which attests the continuance of God's Kingdom. And this passage can be interpreted as referring to none other than Christ; although I admit that Hezekiah stands as a symbol of Christ, as did David and his other successors. But all these [men] point us to Christ himself, who alone redeems and leads his people, who alone gathers his scattered remnant.

In this way the prophet recalls the faithful to Christ; it is as if he said: " You know the God whom you serve. He declares himself the guardian of your safety to keep you always secure and unharmed under his protection. And if all things have slid down to disaster, he has promised you a Redeemer under whom a wholly new happiness will rise and prevail. At the very moment of despair the Redeemer of the church will come and restore you to the full flower of freedom. Therefore be perfectly calm and wait for him, even when you see the church poor and scattered."

We must note these words carefully. All other comforts are temporary and illusory unless we depend wholly upon Christ. Therefore if we wish to be blessed and happy let our eyes be fixed upon him. He has promised that we shall be blessed even under the cross; that crucifixion and torture will be the door to a blessed life; that whatever hardships we suffer will end for us with the fullness of felicity.

In mercy. As Isaiah shows, this is no human achievement, but results from the goodness of God who is its sole architect. Therefore we must acknowledge his free favor, and accent the establishment of this holy throne among us as his gift. This the prophet asserts plainly. We should seek no other reason for God's kindness to us except his pure compassion; and truly there is no other cause for it.

Neither honor nor merits (of which surely there are none) can be brought forward as a reason for God's raising again the throne which had fallen through the guilt and the crimes of the people. Quite otherwise, when he saw that those whom he had chosen were lost, he willed to give an example of his infinite goodness. If God is the maker of this throne, by whom can it be overturned? Are the wicked stronger than he?

He will sit firmly in the tent of David. Almost every separate word has its own force, and this little clause is worth careful study. I like the allusion to the tent here because Christ was certainly a man of the common people before he was called to his throne. Also the prophet wishes to give a picture of the church which bears no resemblance to the thrones of kings and princes, and does not glitter with gold and gems. And in addition to presenting the spiritual rule of Christ under a humble and inglorious aspect, he declares at the same time that it will be revealed on earth and among men. For if he had said only that the throne of Christ would be erected, we could wonder if it would be located in heaven or on earth. When he saysin the tent of David, he shows that Christ reigns not only among angels but also among men. Therefore, we should not think that we must penetrate the heavens to seek him.

The ungodly think that what we proclaim about the reign of Christ is ridiculous; as if it were some phantasm of our own imagination. They wish to see with their eyes something open to their senses. But we have no need to receive any physical sign from him, and are content with his power and goodness.

In firmness(firmly).'emethmeans sometimescertainty, sometimestruth. Here the prophet means that Christ's Kingdom will be firm and enduring, even as Daniel (2:44; 7:14) bore witness, and the Evangelist also:Of his kingdom there will be no end(Luke 1:33). This permanence distinguishes it from the ordinary kingdoms. For although they are established with great and plentiful resources, they totter or sink by their own weight, so that they are no firmer than images of melting wax.

But Isaiah declares that the empire of Christ, although threatened often by destruction, will endure forever because it will be upheld by God's hand. We must keep his testimony on hand as a weapon against the temptations which arise when Christ's Kingdom is attacked by so many mighty enemies that it seems about to fall. For although the world plots [against it] in every way, and hell itself pours out fire and flame against it, the promise stands.

Who will judge. I takejudge(shaphat) as " govern" ; as if the line ran " who will govern." We often see a magnificent throne without an occupant; and it often happens that kings are either figureheads or cattle, so that they are without good judgment, or prudence, or wisdom. But on this throne, the prophet says, will sit one who truly fulfills the office of Governor. Then he makes a further addition to assure us that Christ will be our protector. For when he attributesjusticeandrighteousnessto him, he displays the royal banner under the protection of which Christ receives us and which he will not allow to be violated. And so long as we give ourselves to faith in him, with calm and quiet minds, he will not permit the wicked to injure us with impunity.

The wordhastenis used to teach us that our reward will be swift and prompt; and this speed must be set against our impatience. For he never seems to us to bring aid quickly enough. But when we are tormented with fervent longing, let us remember that we suffer from impatience because we do not give room enough to his Providence. When to our carnal mind he seems slow, he is really fitting his acts of judgment to the time which he best knows. Let us then submit to his will.

He will judge among many peoples and accuse (or blame) strong nations afar off; and they will beat their swords into plowshares and their lances into sickles. They shall not lift the sword, nation against nation, and they will no more be accustomed to war. Micah. 4:3. (Calvin's wording.)

Here the prophet describes the fruits of the teaching of God's word. God will recall all peoples to gentleness, so that they will strive to promote brotherly peace among themselves and will lay aside all desire to inflict injuries. As he said before, the church of God can be established in no other way than by the Word. True service of God cannot be begun, nor can it endure, except where God is served by the obedience of faith. Now he shows the goal to which the teaching leads. Those who once lived in mutual hostility and burned with the desire to hurt one another, now, with character transformed, are wholly intent on mutual kindness.

But before the prophet comes to this point, he sayshe will Judge among many peoples and accuse strong nations. The wordjudge,shaphat, in Hebrew also means govern. God is certainly the subject of the sentence. The prophet is saying that although formerly men did not obey God, they will in the future know him as King and concede supreme power to him. God indeed has always governed the world by his hidden providence and so governs it now. However much the devil and wicked men may rage, however much they boil with their own unrestrained anger, there is no doubt that God checks and curbs their madness with a hidden bridle.

The Scripture speaks in two ways of God's rule. God governs the devil and all the wicked, but not by his Word nor by the Spirit's sanctification. They obey God against their wish and will. God's special rule applies to his church alone, where God by his Word and Spirit turns the hearts of men to obedience, so that they follow him freely and voluntarily. They are thoroughly taught within and without; within, by the inspiration of the Spirit, without, by the preaching of the Word. Then, as Ps. 110:3 says,your willing people will assemble. Such is the Kingdom of God, which the prophet here describes.

Godwill judge, not as he now governs the whole world, but in a special way he will subject the faithful to himself so that they desire nothing so much as to surrender themselves wholly to him.

But because men must be subjugated before they offer such submission to God, the prophet has added in plain termsHe will convict(oraccuse)many people. And this addition must be carefully noted, because from it we learn that our inborn pride is too great for anyone, unless mastered by force, to be ready to be God's pupil. The teaching by itself would congeal in the great corruption of our nature, if God did not convict us, that is, unless he prepared us beforehand by force and violence. Now we see the prophet's wisdom in including correction in God's rule. The verbyakachmeans sometimes " remonstrate with," " accuse," sometimes''convict." In any case, it here implies the wickedness and perversity of our flesh, since even the best of men never surrender themselves to God until they are subdued. Subdued how? Truly by God's use of force in their correction.

Such are the beginnings of the reign of Christ. The prophet speaks here ofstrong peoplesto glorify that reign and to illuminate it by his words. We see here the power of the teaching of the Word, because, after receiving its correction, strong men offer themselves without any hesitation to be ruled by God. The correction is very necessary, but God does not use external force nor any armed soldiers when he wishes to subdue his church. And yet he gathers in it strong men. The power of the teaching is therefore undeniable. For among men, where there is strength, there also is assurance and pride, and afterwards rebellion. But the Word, without any external aid, corrects men's obstinacy, and we see that God works in an unbelievable way when he gathers his church.

There is certainly no doubt that this passage must refer to the Person of Christ. Micah speaks of God without specific mention of Christ, because Christ had not yet been manifested in the flesh. But we know that God's rule of the world and the submission of the peoples of the whole earth to him had its fulfillment in Christ. Also we have affirmed that Christ is true God, for he was not called his Father's servant like Moses or the other prophets. He was supreme King of his church.

But before I come to the fruits of Christ's reign, the phrase inserted here,'ad rachoq, must be noted. Both length of time and distance of place can be so expressed. The Targum of Jonathan[84]takes it as length of time, because God accuses people through the ages. But I have no doubt that the prophet wished to include far-separated regions; as if he said, God would be King not of one people only: his Kingdom would be extended to the farthest ends of the earth. Therefore he willconvict nations afar off.

Then the prophet describes the consummation:They will beat their swords into plowshares and their lances into sickles. I have already stated briefly his meaning. He speaks of the great change which will come when the nations have been taught the Word of God. Then all will strive to devote their work and their kindly acts to their neighbors. When he talks ofswordsandlances, he shows with few words that men have always been prone to unjust violence until they were tamed by the Word of God. Such a change would be impossible while every man followed his own nature. There is no one who does not want his own private comforts; so insatiable is man's greed. Therefore, when all are so intent on gain, when each one is blinded by his self-love, cruelty bursts out from this evil source. Men cannot cultivate peace among themselves, because each one wishes to be first, and snatches everything for himself. No one yields willingly. Thence come disagreements, and from disagreements, wars. This the prophet knows. Yet he adds that as the result of Christ's teaching those who had before then been bristling brutes would become tame.Therefore they will beat their swords into plowshares and their lances into sickles. They will not, he says,draw sword, nation against nation, and they will practice war no more.

This puts more clearly what I said before. The gospel of Christ will be like a signal of peace for the nations. When a battle standard is displayed, the soldiers gather for the fight and their ardor is kindled. Micah ascribes the opposite result to the gospel of Christ. It will recall men, formerly bent on evil-doing, to a desire for peace and concord. When he saysthey will not draw swords, nation against nation, he shows, as I have said, that where Christ does not reign men are wolves to men. Each one would gladly devour all the others.

By nature, men rush blindly to attack one another, and the prophet says this madness can be corrected, so that wars cease and men refrain from doing injury, only when Christ is made their teacher. For by the wordlamad, he means that in general men are always struggling with one another and are always ready to inflict injuries unless they change their natures. Whence is gentleness born? Truly from the teaching of the gospel. This passage is memorable because we learn from it that the truth of the gospel has not reached us, unless mutual love and friendliness prevail among us, and the desire to do kindness.

And although today the pure gospel is preached among us, yet if we consider how little each one of us practices brotherly love, we shall rightly be ashamed of our negligence. Daily God declares himself reconciled to us in his Son. Christ bears witness in this law of love that he is [the giver of] peace with God. He offers himself for us, so that we may willingly and quickly be brothers to one another. And we desire indeed to be enrolled as sons of God; we desire to enjoy the reconciliation won for us by the blood of Christ. But meanwhile we tear at one another; we sharpen our teeth; our minds are wholly ruthless. If we wish to prove ourselves disciples of Christ we must heed this part of his teaching and each one of us strive to help his neighbors.

Now this cannot be done without opposition from the flesh; for we are prone to love ourselves and to seek too much our own private advantage. We must shed these immoderate and hurtful emotions of self-interest, if brotherly love is to take their place. We are warned here that it is not enough to refrain from doing injury; a man must be helpful to his brothers. The prophet could have said simply " they will break their swords and lances and refrain from inflicting further damage." But he does not say merely this; he adds,They will turn(orbeat)their swordsinto plowshares and lances into sickles. That is: when they have ceased doing evil, they will desire to concern themselves with acts of kindness. So Paul (Eph. 4:28) urges those who steal to steal no more and also to work with their hands to serve others Therefore unless we want to help our brothers' need and to offer them our aid, we are only half converted. Many people are not cruel, they rob nobody, they give nobody reason to complain; but they live for themselves and enjoy a useless leisure. This idleness the prophet indirectly condemns when he speaks of plows and sickles.

But the question may be raised: How has this been fulfilled by Christ's coming? The prophet is not describing here the state of the church at any time; he is showing what Christ's Kingdom will be like at the end. Moreover we know that when the gospel was first preached, the whole world was more savagely embroiled in war than ever before; and now, although in many places the pure gospel is preached, disagreements and quarrels do not cease. We see greed, ambition, covetousness flourishing; and from them arise both dissensions and bloody wars. Yet it would seem to be an absurdity for the prophet to speak this way about the reign of Christ, if God did not mean to execute in reality what was predicted. I answer, the reign of Christ had already begun when God wished the gospel to be preached everywhere, and today it is still in progress and not yet complete. Consequently what the prophet describes here does not yet appear before our eyes. And because the number of the faithful is small and the majority of men despise and reject the gospel, robbery and evil deeds do not cease in the world. Do you ask why?

The prophet speaks of Christ's followers. He shows the fruit of the teaching. And truly it bears fruit wherever it takes good root. But the teaching of the gospel takes root in hardly one out of a hundred. We must look at the amount of progress. For in so far as any man has taken hold of the teaching of the gospel he becomes gentle and desires to help his neighbors. But since we still carry around with us in our flesh the remains of sin, and a perfect knowledge of the gospel does not exist in us, it is not strange that no one has rid himself wholly of the unrighteous and stupid desires of his flesh.

Hence it is easy to see how limited is the imagination of those who on the basis of the gospel wish to remove the use of the sword from the world. We know how the Anabaptists have clamored that the whole political order is the enemy of Christ's Kingdom; as if the Kingdom of Christ were bound up in one doctrine -- there shall be no use of force. This teaching would indeed hold, if in this world we were angels. But as I have said the number of the faithful is small and therefore it is necessary that the rest of the crowd be restrained by a forcible curb. For the sons of God are intermingled with great, savage beasts, or with wolves and false men. For some are openly rebellious against God and others are hypocrites. Therefore the use of the sword will continue until the end of the world.

Now we must notice under what circumstances our prophet was speaking. Isaiah used the same words, and it is probable that Micah was Isaiah's disciple. For although they held their prophetic office at the same time, Isaiah was the elder. But Micah was not ashamed to follow Isaiah and to borrow words from him. Nor was he so concerned for his own importance that he had to produce everything himself. He conformed to what Isaiah had done, and repeated his words exactly, showing the agreement between himself and God's illustrious servant, in order to give the teaching greater authority. We recognize his humility when he gave no thought to ill-natured and spiteful men who might say: " What! He's only repeating somebody else's words." He cared nothing for such slander, and was content to affirm faithfully what God commanded.

The wordsafar offare not in Isaiah, but otherwise the two passages agree.

Behold the days will come, saith the Lord, and I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he will reign as king and act wisely(orprosper).He will do judgment and righteousness on the earth. Jer. 23:5. (Calvin's wording.)

The prophet confirms what he has just said about the restoration of the church. For it would not have been enough to promise shepherds who would faithfully perform their duty, if that one Shepherd on whom God's covenant was founded had not been assured to them. For, the fulfillment of every good for which men can hope must be sought in him.

It is usual for all the prophets, whenever they want to give the people hope of a happy future, to declare the coming Messiah. For in him have always been all the promises of God, now and forever, amen. This appears more clearly in the gospel; but the faith of the fathers could be complete only when they turned their thoughts to the Messiah. For apart from Christ, the fathers could not have had assurance of the love of God, or sure evidence of his kindness and fatherly goodness. This is the reason the prophets set Christ before men's eyes when they wish to inspire good hope in the distressed, who would otherwise be overcome by their sorrow and yield to despair.

We should notice how often the prophets do this, so that we may realize how cold God's promises would be to us, how they would hang in the air or vanish completely if we do not turn our minds to Christ, and seek in him the answer we shall find nowhere else.

There follows:He will act wisely(orprosper),and will establish righteousness and judgment on the earth.Shakalhas both meanings, " act wisely" and " prosper," but the prophet seems to be speaking of just judgment rather than of good success, because the two clauses should be read together: " The Messiah will act wisely and then establish righteous judgment." He apparently means that Christ will be endowed with both wisdom and a spirit of right and justice, and so will fulfill all the requirements for a good and perfect king. And the first necessity is wisdom; for honesty is not enough in a king (indeed even among private citizens it gets only moderate praise); if he lacks intelligence, his honesty is of little use. Therefore the prophet here praises Christ for his true wisdom and then speaks of his love for justice and right.

These words are not adequate for honoring Christ. But the figure is taken from human experience; and it is true that the first gift of kings is wisdom, the second integrity. We know that Christ is often compared to earthly kings, or the picture of an earthly king is drawn for us to help us see Christ. For God adapts himself to our dull capacity. Since we cannot comprehend the unthinkable justice or wisdom of Christ, God brings us by easy steps to the knowledge of him by giving us a shadow of him in these similes. . . .

But the difference between the justice of Christ and the justice of other kings must be thoroughly understood. Those who rule well among men can exercise justice and judgment when they try to gave every man his just due, by restraining the boldness of the wicked and protecting the good and harmless. This is all that can be asked of earthly kings.

But Christ is altogether different. Not only is he wise to perceive what is best and right, but also he endows his servants with wisdom and insight. He not only does judgment and justice by defending the harmless and aiding the oppressed, by helping the poor and checking the wicked; but alsohe establishes justicein regenerating us by his Spirit. And,he establishes justicefurther by putting a bridle on the devil.

Now we see what I meant when I said that we must attend to both Christ's unlikeness and his likeness to earthly kings. His unlikeness is exceedingly great; yet the comparison has value for us.

And on that day, Israel will be, with Egypt and Assyria, a third blessing in the midst of the earth. For the Lord of hosts will bless saying, Blessed be my people Egypt, and Assyria the work of my hand, and Israel my inheritance. Isa. 19:24-25. (Calvin's wording.)

Isaiah ends the promise with the addition that there will certainly be a blessing for Egypt and Assyria as well as for Israel. Earlier God's grace was in a sense limited to Israel, because with them the Lord had entered into a covenant. For the Lord had extendedhis cordto Jacob, as Moses and David say (Deut. 32:9; Ps. 147:20).He hath not so dealt with every nation and revealed to them his judgments. The blessing of God dwelt in Judea alone.

But the prophet says this blessing would in the future belong also to the Egyptians and the Assyrians. Under these names he includes all nations. He specifies these two, not to honor them, but because, since they had been continual enemies of God, they seemed the most alien and the farthest from hope of favor. God had earlier adopted only the sons of Abraham; he now wished to be called the Father of all nations without distinction.

The third. The interpretation of some that Israel will have third place does not please me. For since the Hebrew word is feminine, it ought to be joined tobarakah, blessing. This blessing is to be understood as an example or mirror of all blessings.

Because he will bless. The repetition serves to explain the preceding. The prophet teaches that by God's free kindness, Assyria and Egypt will be united and associated with the chosen people. He means, " Although this title belonged only to Israel, it will be given also to other nations whom the Lord shall adopt for his own." There is a mutual relation between God and his people. They whom God by his own mouth names a holy people rightly call him their God. And this public naming is now extended to Egyptians and Assyrians.

But although the prophet meant to unite distant nations with the Jews, he differentiates their appropriate positions with suitable labels. By calling the Egyptians the people of God, he means that they will share the distinction with which God had formerly honored the Jews alone. By calling the Assyrians the work of his hands, he distinguishes them by the praise suited to God's church. We have said elsewhere that the church is called to[therefore] poi/ hmaof God (Eph. 2:10), orhis work, because the faithful are remade by the spirit of regeneration and bear the image of God. The prophet means bythe work of God's hands,not that we were first created by God, but that we who are separated from the world and are made new creatures, are transformed for a new life. As we well know, nothing in that new life is to be ascribed to us; for we know it all to be God's work.

Israel he honors with its own unique privilege. Because it is God's inheritance, it keeps the right and honor of the first-born among its new brethren. Certainly God's covenant, which he first made with them, gave to them a priority which not even their own ingratitude could erase.

. The Christian Life; IV. The Christian Life

[83]Literally, he bare the Person of Christ.

[84]The Targums are Aramaic translations of the Hebrew Old Testament. Such translations were first made orally in the synagogues to convey the meaning of the Hebrew text to the Aramaic-speaking congregations (cf. Ezra 4:7; Neh. 8:7). Later, written translations were made. That of Onkelos on the Pentateuch is a very literal and exact translation; but the Targum of Jonathan on the Prophets is an edifying paraphrase rather than a translation. It was probably written in the first century A.D., although the tradition of interpretation which it represents is much older.

<<   Title  Contents  >>