Isaiah has warned of coming judgment. He has handed down a guilty verdict due to the overwhelming evidence of sin. He has described the coming devastation and captivity. And there was more, redemption has been promised. Not based on the goodness or potential goodness of the Israelites but purely from God’s grace and for His glory. Then in a surprising sort of turn of events, Isaiah proclaims that the salvation to come will be a Person! The Messiah, the Son of God, will appear. he will be the Suffering Servant who will bear the iniquities of God’s people. But there’s more - there’s much more to this redemption - more than you can imagine!
Isaiah 61:1-3 describes the work Messiah will accomplish and its implications for those who trust in Him. “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, because the Lord has anointed Me to bring good news to the poor; He has sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to grant those who mourn in Zion—to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.”
Sin, of our own choosing, left us broken, miserable, captive, and ruined. Messiah will not only remove the guilt, He will replace the ruin with the new, the mourning with joy! He will completely save, renew, and re-create! So much so that His people will be recognized as new and different, and the radical change of salvation will have one primary purpose: the glory of God!
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