This “tender plant”, of which the prophet Isaiah had foretold that... - All The Good Seed Daily Devotionals for 2023

He shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground.
Isaiah 53:2.

This “tender plant”, of which the prophet Isaiah had foretold that it would appear like a root out of dry ground, was none other than the Lord Jesus Christ.

His genealogy as the Messiah, His lineage at the time of His birth resembled rather a stump than a royal family tree. Both Mary, the mother of Jesus, and Joseph were descendants of the kingly house of David. But they were poor without any sign of royal majesty.

The prophet Micah had stated long before: “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to me the one to be ruler in Israel” (ch. 6, v. 2). And the angels of the heavenly host announced to the shepherds: “You will find a babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger” (Luke 2:12). Where was royal splendour to be seen there?

Yet the Magi, who had studied the stars, came from a foreign land and inquired, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east and have come to worship him” (Matthew 2:2). God used seemingly unsuitable messengers to show His Son the honour that His people withheld. But the people in whose midst Jesus grew up were later called “dry wood” by Him when they were about to crucify Him (cf. Luke 23:31).

However degraded and unpromising everything seemed, He was nevertheless the One sent by God, in whose eyes He was like a precious stone, “rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious” (1 Peter 2:4). All who would come to God must turn to Him to find grace.

Today’s reading: Zechariah 11:1-17 · Mark 14:43-54