Isaiah 11:1-5

Righteous Reign of the Branch

1 Then a 1shoot will spring from the 2stem of Jesse, And a 3branch from 4his roots will bear fruit.
2 The 5Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him, The spirit of 6wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and 7strength, The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.
3 And He will delight in the fear of the LORD, And He will not judge by what His eyes 8see, Nor make a decision by what His ears hear;
4 But with 9righteousness He will judge the 10poor, And decide with fairness for the 11afflicted of the earth; And He will strike the earth with the 12rod of His mouth, And with the 13breath of His lips He will slay the wicked.
5 Also 14righteousness will be the belt about His loins, And 15faithfulness the belt about His waist.

Isaiah 11:1-5 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO ISAIAH 11

This chapter is a prophecy of the Messiah, and gives an account of his descent, as man; of his qualifications for his office, as a Judge and King; of his performance of it; of the peaceableness of his kingdom; of the spread of it among the Gentiles, by the preaching of the Gospel; and of the last and general conversion of the Jews. His original and descent from David the son of Jesse, under the titles of a rod and branch, is described as mean and obscure, expressed by stem and roots, Isa 11:1 his gifts and qualifications for his work, in general and particular, Isa 11:2 the performance of it, both with respect to good men and bad men, in the fear of the Lord, with all equity, righteousness, and readiness, Isa 11:3-5 the peaceableness of his kingdom is figuratively expressed, by the agreement of savage and tame creatures, the former becoming the latter, and so losing their malignant and hurtful nature, through the efficacy of the Gospel, spreading the knowledge of Christ all over the world, Isa 11:6-9 particularly among the Gentiles, comparable to those savage creatures, who, upon the exhibition of Christ in the Gospel; should seek to him, and find rest in him, Isa 11:10 which will be followed or accompanied with a collection of the Jews out of all lands, and the conversion of them, which will be brought about by the power and grace of God, all impediments being by him removed out of the way; the consequences of which will be, peace among themselves, and obedience among the Gentiles, Isa 11:11-16.

Cross References 15

  • 1. Isaiah 4:2; Isaiah 53:2
  • 2. Isaiah 9:7; Isaiah 11:10; Acts 13:23
  • 3. Isaiah 6:13; Jeremiah 23:5; Zechariah 3:8
  • 4. Revelation 5:5; Revelation 22:16
  • 5. Isaiah 42:1; Isaiah 48:16; Isaiah 61:1; Matthew 3:16; John 1:32
  • 6. John 16:13; 1 Corinthians 1:30; Ephesians 1:17, 18
  • 7. 2 Timothy 1:7
  • 8. John 2:25; John 7:24
  • 9. Isaiah 9:7; Isaiah 16:5; Isaiah 32:1
  • 10. Ps 72:2, 13, 14; Isaiah 3:14
  • 11. Isaiah 29:19; Isaiah 32:7; Isaiah 61:1
  • 12. Psalms 2:9; Isaiah 49:2; Malachi 4:6
  • 13. Job 4:9; Isaiah 30:28, 33; 2 Thessalonians 2:8
  • 14. Ephesians 6:14
  • 15. Isaiah 25:1
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