(Continued-Chapter V-The Noonday Radiance of Messianic Glory)

Certain critics, being unable to extract the inherent meaning from this title, admit its correct significance but claim that the expression is simply "an oriental exaggeration." By such explanation one can break the force of innumerable passages both in the sacred Scriptures and in the writings of men. This method is a very convenient device with which one can soften any doctrine not according to his liking and thus modify its meaning. But is it ethical to modify the statements of those who have passed on and who cannot now speak for themselves and tell the world exactly what they meant? If one is at liberty to change the meaning of this title in Isaiah 9:6 by claiming that it is "an oriental exaggeration" when there is no positive evidence pointing in that direction, may he not with equal propriety characterize 10:21 similarly? But the context of this latter verse shows that the God of Israel is the subject of discussion. If the reader is not to tone down the expression in the one instance, he certainly is not justified in doing so in the other. Therefore let us not break the force of any passage by unwarranted assumptions. On the contrary, let us seek to learn the exact meaning which the Spirit of God intended to convey to us.

Some rationalists have tried to read this title in the light of such passages as Exodus 21:6: "then his master shall bring him unto אֱלֹהִים God, and shall bring him to the door, or unto the doorpost; and his master shall bore his ear through with an awl; and he shall serve him for ever." The marginal rendering of the Revised Version is judges. The translators of this version understood that אֱלֹהִים referred to the judges in Israel. Such an interpretation is possible but not at all necessary. God dwelt in the tabernacle in the form of the Shekinah of Glory. Hence when the servant was brought by his master to the sanctuary, one could correctly say that he was brought unto God. On the other hand, since the judges who officiated at the tabernacle were God's representatives, they could, in this accommodated sense, be called אֱלֹהִים God. This usus loquendi, is current among us today. For instance, when a prisoner is turned over by the officers of one state to those of another, he is said to have been delivered to the latter state.

Others attempt to extract the divine meaning from our title by reading it in the light of Psalm 82:1,6: "God standeth in the congregation of God; He judgeth among the gods.... I said, Ye are gods, And all of you sons of the Most High." In this context אֱלֹהִים does not have its regular connotation but is applied to the children of Israel to whom the Word of God was delivered. This fact is abundantly evident from the context. For example, the first statement, "God standeth in the congregation of God; He judgeth among the gods," is followed by this question, "How long will ye judge unjustly, And respect the persons of the wicked?" Since God is righteous and holy, it is evident that אֱלֹהִים is used in an accommodated sense. The following exhortation, "Judge the poor and fatherless," shows that men are meant.

Again, after the statement, "I said, Ye are gods, And all of you sons of the Most High," the Lord immediately added, "Nevertheless ye shall die like men. And fall like one of the princes. Arise, O God, judge the earth." Thus the context demonstrates the fact that gods in this particular case is used in a secondary sense. But inasmuch as we are to take every word at its primary, literal, and usual significance unless the context indicates otherwise, we shall be doing violence to Isaiah 9:6 if we attach a secondary meaning to the words אֵל גִּבּוֹר, since the facts of the context do not indicate a departure from the usual, literal connotation.

A fitting conclusion to the discussion of this expression may be found in a quotation from Delitzsch, which I now give. "But all these and similar renderings break down in connection with chap. x. 21, where he to whom the remnant of Israel again penitently turns is called אֵל גִּבּוֹר. Moreover, we can not take אֵל (which in the sense of 'might' only occurs in the plural, with the exception of Ezek. xxxi. 11, where the Orientals write אִיל) in this name of the Messiah otherwise than in עִמָּנוּאֵל. And, in addition to this, אֵל in Isaiah is always a name of God, and he is strongly conscious of the contrast between אֵל and אָדָם as is shown by chap. xxxi. 3 (cf. Hos. xi. 9). Finally, אֵל גִּבּוֹר is everywhere else a designation of God, as in Deut. x. 17; Jer. xxxii. 18; Neh. ix. 32; and the noun גִּבּוֹר is used in the designation adjectively, like שַׁדַּי in אֵל שַׁדַּי The Messiah is therefore here called 'Strong God' (and so the designation is understood by Knobel and others,) but he is thus named as a hero equipped with divine powers; or according to Kuenen, who compares Zech. xii. 8, as a mighty God surpassing the children of men, and not as a supernatural ruler. We compare יְהוָה צִדְקֵנוּ in Jer. xxiii.6--a Messiah name which even the synagogue cannot call in question (see Midrash Mishe 57a, where it is cited as one of the eight names of the Messiah), and whose significance for the conscious faith of the Old Testament was that the Messiah would be the image of God as no other man (cf. אֵל , Ps. lxxxii. 1) and would have God dwelling in him (cf. Jer. xxxiii. 16). Who shall lead Israel to victory over the hostile world but God the Strong? The Messiah is the bodily presence of this Strong God; for He is with him, He is in him. He is in him with Israel."

The next element in this title is אֲבִי־עַד. What do these words signify? Two explanations are given. First, "according to the opinion of others, Father of eternity is he who will ever be a Father, and affectionate provider, comp. chap. xxii. 21, where Eliakim is called 'Father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.'" Undoubtedly this thought is contained in the expression but it by no means exhausts the significance of the term. Secondly, This title is to be construed according to the Arabic idiom, which usage also occurs in the Hebrew. For instance, the expression "father of goodness" means "the good one"; "father of mercy," "the merciful one." In keeping with this idiom, then, the father of eternity means the eternal father. This thought harmonizes with the context perfectly. In the preceding title this one is called God-hero. Being God the Hero, He is naturally thought of as existing throughout eternity. That Isaiah used the term עַד to indicate eternal existence is clear from his statement concerning God in chapter lvii. 15 כִּי כֹה אָמַר רָם וְנִשָּׂא שֹׁכֵן עַד וְקָדוֹשׁ שְׁמוֹ מָרוֹם וְקָדוֹשׁ אֶשְׁכּוֹן "Thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy: I dwell in the high and holy place." From the context we learn that the speaker in this passage is the Eternal God who says that He inhabits eternity. When, therefore, this child is called אֲבִי־עַד Father of Eternity, the Spirit of God indicates that He has an eternal existence. Since He is the Eternal Father as well as the God-hero, He is thought of as the loving one who meets man's need. This consoling thought prepares the way for the declaration concerning the last element of this title and blends most beautifully with it.

The last expression in this great title of King Messiah is Prince of Peace. About the significance of this phrase, considered etymologically, there is no question. Hence the only matter calling for attention is the nature of the peace here promised. The context decides this question most clearly. In the verses immediately preceding this divine title, we saw the overthrow of Israel's last enemy and the complete destruction of all armaments. Hence the peace here promised is a cessation of all war. The logical sequence of ideas in verses three to six shows that the one standing before us in this verse is He who conquers Israel's last foe and destroys the armaments of her oppressors.

In order for this one to accomplish the work of subjecting Israel's foes, He must be what these words imply, namely, the God-Hero, the Everlasting Father, and the Prince of Peace. As has been seen, the idiom occurring in this passage can be translated only in one way, which is the one adopted in the Authorized and Revised Versions. Therefore the rendering, "one shall call His name Wonderful, Counsellor, God-Hero, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace," is an exact representation of the original.

"Of the increase of His government and of peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon His kingdom, to establish it, and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this" (Isaiah 9:7).

When the Messiah mounts the throne of David, He establishes peace and sets up a firm government. By His almighty wisdom and strength He will extend His borders until His government encircles the globe. Then will be fulfilled the predictions that Israel's king shall reign from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth. Of this glorious reign all the prophets spoke. As an illustration, note our prophet's language in chapter 2:1-4.

"The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem. And it shall come to pass in the latter days, that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. And many peoples shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. And He will judge between the nations, and will decide concerning many peoples; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more."

As we have already seen, the throne of David was called the Throne of God and his kingdom, the kingdom of God. In view of all the facts, it is evident that they were thus named by way of anticipation. The Davidic kings simply were occupying the time "until He comes whose right it is," namely, King Messiah. When He mounts the throne of David, Jerusalem will be called the throne of God, because King Messiah is God in human form. Proof of this position is seen in Jeremiah 3:16, 17.

"And it shall come to pass, when ye are multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, saith the Lord, they shall say no more, The ark of the covenant of the Lord; neither shall it come to mind; neither shall they remember it; neither shall they miss it; neither shall it be made any more. At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the Lord; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the Lord, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the stubbornness of their evil heart."

E. Earth's Golden Era

"And there shall come forth a shoot out of the stock of Jesse, and a branch out of his roots shall bear fruit. And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord. And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord; and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither decide after the hearing of his ears; but with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth; and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. And righteousness shall be the girdle of his waist, and faithfulness the girdle of his loins. And the wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder's den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the root of Jesse, that standeth for an ensign of the peoples, unto him shall the nations seek; and his resting place shall be glorious" (Isa. 11:1-10).

In verse one the prophet declares that חֹטֶר a shoot shall go forth out of the stock of Jesse. This figure can be understood only by an examination of the context. In the preceding chapter, vss. 15f, appears the figure of a forest, to which the Assyrian army is compared. Later in the chapter this figure is extended to the nation. In vss. 28-32, however, the rapid march of a portion of the Assyrian army toward Jerusalem and its sudden appearance upon an eminence overlooking the city are depicted. In this commanding position it, with bristling weapons, again suggested to the prophet's mind the thought of a forest--even the cedars of Lebanon. Immediately in the verses following Isaiah compared the Lord to a mighty woodsman who would hew down this great forest: "Behold, the Lord, God of hosts, will lop the boughs with terror: and the high of stature shall be hewn down, and the lofty shall be brought low. And he will cut down the thickets of the forest with iron, and Lebanon shall fall by a mighty one." This prediction was fulfilled in the slaughter of 185,000 of his army by the death angel (chap. 37:36).

With the same comparison in mind the prophet conceived of the royal family of Jesse as if it were a tree which also had been hewn down, the stump of which remained in the ground. Unlike the stock of the cedar from which no shoot will spring forth, the root of Jesse will send forth a branch which will bear fruit. From this figure it is evident that Isaiah saw the time when the dynasty of David, like the hewn tree, would be cut down, that is, would be deposed and cease to function. But as a sprig grows out of the stump of a certain tree and bears fruit, thus shall arise later one of the Davidic dynasty who shall possess the fullness of the רוּחַ Spirit and shall, in the absolute sense of those terms, execute justice and righteousness throughout the earth.

From vss. 3-5 it is evident that this scion of the Davidic house will become the Judge of the entire earth. Unlike other jurists, He will not have to depend upon oral testimony or concrete evidence. This fact shows that though he is a man, being a descendant of Jesse, he possesses superhuman knowledge which enables Him to discern the secret thoughts and the hidden motives of men's hearts.

According to these same verses He by supernatural power (He speaks and His commands are executed by a stroke of divine judgment) slays the wicked and establishes righteousness in the earth--an accomplishment never before known.

Verses 6-9 foretell the restoration of the animal kingdom to its primitive condition. Such a transformation should be expected when by divine fiat and power all the wicked of earth are slain and righteousness and peace are firmly established. Isaiah repeated this prediction in describing the blessedness of the earth when it is renewed (see chap. 65:17-25). Hosea foretold this same restoration (chap. 2:18). This picture of perfection is most beautifully and graphically set forth in Ezekiel 34:25-31.

"And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause evil beasts to cease out of the land; and they shall dwell securely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods. And I will make them and the places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in its season; there shall be showers of blessing. And the tree of the field shall yield its fruit, and the earth shall yield its increase, and they shall be secure in their land; and they shall know that I am the Lord, when I have broken the bars of their yoke, and have delivered them out of the hand of those that made bondmen of them. And they shall no more be a prey to the nations, neither shall the beasts of the earth devour them; but they shall dwell securely, and none shall make them afraid. And I will raise up unto them a plantation for renown, and they shall be no more consumed with famine in the land, neither bear the shame of the nations any more. And they shall know that I, the Lord their God, am with them, and that they, the house of Israel, are my people, saith the Lord God. And ye my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, are men, and I am your God, saith the Lord God."

At the time this prediction is fulfilled, Jerusalem will be the capital of the earth and-the manifestation of the divine glory will be seen abiding there. "And it shall come to pass in that day, that the root of Jesse, that standeth for an ensign of the peoples, unto him shall the nations seek; and his resting-place shall be glorious" (vs.10). The word translated glorious is כָּבוֹד, a substantive. The use of a noun in the predicate position instead of an adjective is an idiom which brings out the meaning in the strongest manner possible. For example, in Psalm 109:4 we have this statement: "For my love they are my adversaries: But I give myself unto prayer." The words, give myself unto, are not in the original. By supplying these words the translators have weakened the meaning. The force of the statement can be seen by omitting them. "For my love they are my adversaries: But I am prayer." In violent contrast with the malignant attitude of his enemies, David consumed his entire time in prayer, evidently for his protection and for their good. Prayer therefore was the consuming passion of his soul. Such is the force of the use of כָּבוֹד in Isaiah's statement. Everything in Jerusalem at that time will be a reflection of the divine glory or in keeping with His presence. In other words, Jerusalem will be transformed and become, as it were, heaven transferred to earth.

A glance at Isaiah 4:5,6 shows that our verse assumes what the former has clearly stated. "And the Lord will create over the whole habitation of Mount Zion, and over her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night; for over all the כָּבוֹד glory shall be spread a covering. And there shall be a pavilion for a shade in the daytime from the heat, and for a refuge and for a covert from storm and from rain." The keyword that unlocks these verses is בָרָא create. Only the Lord can perform the act of creation, which means to bring into being that which had not formerly existed. Hence in the original text this verb always has the Lord as its subject. According to this promise He will create a great canopy over Jerusalem. In reading this promise one is reminded of the symbolic evidence of God's presence in the form of the cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night which attended Israel in the wilderness.

The same promise is seen in Isaiah 60:1: "Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee." This exhortation is addressed to Jerusalem. Light in the first line answers to glory of the Lord in the second. As has already been seen, this verse was interpreted by the ancient synagogue as referring to Messiah. Thus the glory of God radiates from His person. In keeping with the ancient oriental custom, with which Isaiah was familiar, the abiding place of King Messiah, the royal city of His Excellency, will be overspread by a canopy created by a special decree of the Almighty and supernaturally sustained--the insignia of the divine presence. Isaiah described the same scene in chapter 65:17,18: "For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former things shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create; for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy." Jeremiah foresaw the same vision of glorified Jerusalem. "And it shall come to pass, when ye are multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, saith the Lord, they shall say no more, The ark of the covenant of the Lord; neither shall it come to mind; neither shall they remember it; neither shall they miss it; neither shall it be made any more. At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the Lord; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the Lord, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the stubbornness of their evil heart" (Jer. 3:16,17).

From the quotations given above it is evident that the transformed condition of Jerusalem bespeaks the presence not of man but of God Himself. One of the social laws of our being is that one's surroundings should reflect his dignity and position in life. Throughout the Scriptures is abundant proof that God has adapted His revelation to man's understanding and condition. Therefore upon these principles we would naturally expect God to be present in such a transformed heavenly place as Jerusalem is destined to be. This inference is lifted from the category of the theoretical to the positiveness of definite prediction in the concluding verse of the Book of Immanuel: "Cry aloud and shout, thou inhabitant of Zion; for great in the midst of thee is the Holy One of Israel" (Isa. 12:6). The drift of the prediction in chapters 11 and 12 shows that this one who is of the seed of David is the Holy one of Israel.

In the investigation of "The Book of Immanuel" we have seen that the supernatural conception and the virgin birth of Messiah were foretold in chapter 7, that His divine nature and His conquests were portrayed in chapter 9, and that His peaceful reign over the earth*, when the curse is lifted, was simply yet graphically outlined in chapter 11. From the testimony of this section of Scripture it is evident that Messiah is God in human form who enters the world by virgin birth.

Micah, a contemporary of Isaiah, lived in the latter half of the eighth century before the common era. He was fully aware of the deplorable conditions which obtained among his countrymen. Especially sensitive was he in regard to the corruption among the leaders of the nation, both political and spiritual. By the Spirit of God he condemned the political heads in chapter 3:1-4 of his prophecy and the religious leaders in vss. 5-8. In vss. 9-12 he pronounced the judgment that would come upon the nation, especially Jerusalem, for their moral delinquencies and spiritual lapses. In contrast with the devastation which would come in the comparatively near future, the prophet foretold (4:1-8) the sublime glories of the distant future when Jerusalem should no longer be in a state of waste and ruin but under the blessing of God would be the metropolis of the earth. According to the prophecy, thither shall the nations yet go to appear before the God of Jacob who will teach them the law of the new order and the Word of the Lord. At that time He will be the righteous Ruler who will cause wars to cease unto the ends of the earth. Hence every man will dwell under his own vine and fig-tree. At that day the former dominion of the daughter of Zion, on a greater and more glorious scale, however, will be restored to her.

In 4:9,10 the prophet returns to a description of the impending calamity, the Babylonian siege and captivity, and compares it, as other prophets have done, (cf. Isa. 66:7-9) to the ordeal of childbirth. In the verses following he blends with this description the final siege and fall of Jerusalem when all nations shall be gathered against it to battle. Thus the account of both catastrophes imperceptibly blend. In vss. 12,13, the prophecy of the last calamity, Jerusalem and her environs are compared to a threshing-floor and the nations, to sheaves of grain which are to be threshed. In this case Judah, strengthened and protected by the omnipotence of the Almighty, is the ox doing the treading. In 5:1 the threshing-floor representation is dropped and Zion is addressed as the "daughter of troops" against whom the nations have sent their armies. Before the deliverance is granted, the forces of the enemy will press her sorely and smite her judge upon the cheek.

The writer carries the story to a thrilling climax, the smiting of her judge; then he dramatically ceases the prediction. In an abrupt manner turning from Jerusalem he addresses the little town of Bethlehem from which the future ruler of the nation is to come forth. This dramatic action and address in the light of the context proves to be both a parable and a prophecy. When the nation is in dire need of deliverance from the titanic blows and terrific pressure of the enemy, it, in fulfillment of the prophetic action on this occasion, will turn for help to the Ruler who comes from little Bethlehem. At that time God will make the nation like the ox whose hoofs are of brass and whose horn is of iron. Then shall the sheaves, the nations, be threshed. The final victory will be won and Israel's dream of peace will be realized.

B. The Eternal Nature of this Ruler

וְאַתָּה בֵּית־לֶחֶם אֶפְרָתָה צָעִיר לִהְיוֹת בְּאַלְפֵי יְהוּדָה מִמְּךָ לִי יֵצֵא לִהְיוֹת מוֹשֵׁל בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל וּמוֹצָאֹתָיו מִקֶּדֶם מִימֵי עוֹלָם׃

"But thou, Beth-lehem Ephrathah, which art little to be among the thousands of Judah, out of thee shall one come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting" (Micah 5:2).

The first question to be settled in this investigation is: Who is the subject of this prediction? Some scholars have claimed that very anciently certain Jewish commentators referred it to Zerubbabel. But this interpretation has been called in question. Hence we pass by it without further comment.

Hengstenberg claims: "All the Jewish interpreters adhere to the Messianic interpretation, and in this they are headed by the Chaldee, who paraphrases the words מִמְּךָ לִי יֵצֵא in this way: ממך קדמי יפק משיח i.e... From thee Messiah shall go out before me." I know of no scholars who doubt the messianic character of this passage. Hence we shall accept without further consideration the prophecy as referring to Messiah.

2. Analysis of the oracle

The prediction is put in the form of an address to Bethlehem from which insignificant village the ruler over Israel is to come forth. The correct understanding of this verse depends upon the answers given to the following questions: first, why is emphasis laid upon the unimportance and smallness of Bethlehem? second, what do the words לִי יֵצֵא come-forth to me signify? third, what is meant by מוֹצָאֹתָיו goings forth? and fourth, what is the significance of מִקֶּדֶם מִימֵי עוֹלָם from of old, from everlasting? To the investigation of these queries we will now turn.

Bethlehem was the city of David, a hamlet about six miles to the southeast of Jerusalem. From the standpoint of size and significance it was too small to be considered with the more important cities of Judah. Notwithstanding its unimportance, the prophet sees that out of it shall arise the one who is to be the ruler over Israel. According to the covenant which the Lord made with David (II Sam. 7, cf. II Samuel 23:1-7), the Messiah, the great Ruler of the future, was to come of his house. But since Jerusalem was the capital of the nation and since the Davidic kings had reigned in that city for approximately 350 years, the natural thought was that Messiah would be born in Jerusalem, at the proper time would mount the throne, and from there would extend his authority over the nations until He subjected the world to His control. On the contrary, this oracle foretells His coming forth out of Bethlehem, the ancestral home of David. The assumption underlying this prediction is that the reigning house will cease to function in Jerusalem but will continue its existence in Bethlehem and that the long-expected Ruler will emerge from the ancestral home town. This presupposition is based upon the definite prediction made to the corrupt officials concerning the judgment that would fall upon Jerusalem on account of their wickedness: "Therefore shall Zion for your sake be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest" (Mic. 3:12). This stroke of judgment was, comparatively speaking, in the immediate future and was fulfilled by the fall of Jerusalem in 606-585 before the common era. The verse following this warning, on the other hand, looks forward to the distant future--the time of "the birth-pains of the days of Messiah" at the conclusion of which Zion shall be glorified and the former dominion (on a sublimer scale) shall be restored to her. At that time the nation will be pure and free from all corruption, and the Lord God Himself will reign personally in the city.

"Hear this, I pray you, ye heads of the house of Jacob, and rulers of the house of Israel, that abhor justice, and pervert all equity. They build up Zion with blood, and Jerusalem with iniquity. The heads thereof judge for reward, and the priests thereof teach for hire, and the prophets thereof divine for money: yet they lean upon the Lord, and say, Is not the Lord in the midst of us? No evil shall come upon us. Therefore shall Zion for your sake be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest. But in the latter days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and peoples shall flow unto it. And many nations shall go and say Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths. For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem; and he will judge between many peoples, and will decide concerning strong nations afar off: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; nations shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig-tree; and none shall make them afraid: for the mouth of the Lord of hosts hath spoken it. For all the peoples walk every one in the name of his god; and we will walk in the name of the Lord our God for ever and ever. In that day, saith the Lord, will I assemble that which is lame, and I will gather that which is driven away, and that which I have afflicted; and I will make that which was lame a remnant, and that which was cast far off a strong nation: and the Lord will reign over them in mount Zion from henceforth even for ever. And thou, O tower of the flock, the hill of the daughter of Zion, unto thee shall it come, yea, the former dominion shall come, the kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem" (Micah 3:9-4:8).



Footnotes:

* According to the evolutionary hypothesis as it is applied to the social sciences, the idea of a world ruler and a universal kingdom was the product of Isaiah's age. The contention of those holding this theory is that it was psychologically impossible for the Hebrews to entertain an idea of a universal kingdom prior to the rise of the mighty Assyrian empire. In reply to this position, it will be necessary only to call attention to the messianic predictions which we have already studied and which are embedded in the Torah of Moses. In his day there was no universal empire as in Isaiah's time; nevertheless he spoke by the Spirit of the universal reign of Messiah.

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