Thursday, March 11, 2004
Lenten Fast
Sophronios, Patriarch of Jerusalem
6th Hour: Isaiah 11:10-12:2 1st Vespers: Genesis 7:11-8:3 2nd Vespers: Proverbs 10:1-22
Isaiah 11:10-12:2 RSV, especially vs. 12:2: "Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will
not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation." Since the day of Pentecost,
the Church has proclaimed the Lord Jesus as the "root of Jesse" foretold by Isaiah (Is. 11:10): "In that day the root of Jesse
shall stand as an ensign to the peoples; Him shall the nations seek, and His dwellings shall be glorious."
In the phrase, "the root of Jesse," the Holy Fathers perceived Christ's Incarnation. St. John of Damascus, in explaining Is.
11:1, a verse employing imagery similar to 11:10, says: "the holy and much-lauded ever-virgin one, Mary, the Mother of
God,...being pre-ordained by the eternal, prescient counsel of God and imaged forth and proclaimed in diverse images and
discourses of the prophets through the Holy Spirit, sprang from the root of David, according to the promises that were made
to him. 'For the Lord has sworn, He says in truth to David, He will not turn from it: of the fruit of your body I will set upon
your throne' "(Ps. 131:11 LXX).
From Mary, then, came the Lord Jesus Himself. St. Nikolai of Zica asks, "Who else is this rod from the stem of Jesse but
the Lord Christ?" Since Jesse was the father of King David, it follows that the Lord Jesus, from the root of Jesse, was also
from the House of David through the lineage of His Mother, even to the extent of being born in the city of David,
Bethlehem.
In the Septuagint, the next two phrases of the Is.11:10 read, "He that shall arise to rule over the Gentiles," and "His rest
shall be glorious." In these, the Church perceives the Lord's Resurrection and enthronement at the right hand of God the
Father. St. Eusebios assigned the first phrase to the Resurrection, applying "His rest" to Christ's regal and heavenly
session, from which He rules over the nations. St. Jerome, however, understood the imagery of "His rest" to refer to the
Holy Sepulcher: "As often as we enter it we see the Savior in His grave clothes, and if we linger we see again the angel
sitting at His feet, and the napkin folded at His head." Long before the Sepulcher was hewn out, St. Jerome says, "Isaiah
foretold its glory: 'His rest shall be glorious,' meaning that the place of the Lord's burial should be held in universal
honor."
In addition, Isaiah's prophecy foretold the ever-expanding reign of Christ over all the nations of earth begun at Pentecost
(vs. 11). The language foreshadows the Christian description of those who gathered on Pentecost: "Parthians and Medes
and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and
the part of Libya adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs - we hear them
speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God." (Acts 2:9,10,11).
Notice also, the Apostolic message included the proclamation of the Cross of Christ, "...to those who are called, both Jews
and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God" (1 Cor.1:24). Theodoret of Cyrus, speaking of verse 12 of
Isaiah, says: "To what other standard could this relate, except the symbol of the cross?"
In verses 13-16, Isaiah received a glimpse of the Lord's final, great reign. He foretold the end of ancient jealousies such as
existed between the ten northern tribes who called themselves Israel, and the two southern tribes, known as Judah (vs. 13).
And how much more jealousy there is around the world! The Fathers noted how the Gospel already had spread in their
times into all the lands named in verses 14-15. Finally, concluding in Chapter 12, Isaiah foretold how, in His mercy, God
would turn aside His wrath and become our Savior (vss.1,2).
Thy Prophet Isaiah foretold the way of salvation, O Savior, by the grace of Thy Spirit. Grant that we too may follow in the
way which Thou hast shown us. O Lord, Glory to Thee.
