Matthew 12:14-21 quotes the prophesy in Isaiah 42:1-3 and referring of its fulfillment
in Christ. The last verse of Matthew's quote is actually a quote from Isaiah 11:10, which
says: "And again, Esaias saith, There shall be a root of Jesse, and he that shall rise
to reign over the Gentiles; in him shall the Gentiles trust." It is clear in
the prophecy that Christ will reign over a certain group of gentiles.
But as we know, Jesus never reigned over a group of
gentiles when he came. And that, rather, he made Paul an apostle unto the
gentiles. Christ himself said that he is sent but unto the lost sheep of the
house of Israel (Matt 15:24). And also, he directed the apostles, before he was
yet to suffer crucifixion, to preach only to the lost sheep of Israel (Matt 10:5-6).
And as far as we know from the book of Acts, it was
only the gentile centurion, Cornelius, who heard of the gospel from Peter at
Christ's command. Afterwards, we never hear anymore of Cornelius.
There were gentiles, indeed, that believed with
Peter, Paul, and the disciples. But we do not hear any hint, even from Paul,
who is the apostle to the gentiles, to whom the prophecy of Christ reigning
over these gentiles
is fulfilled.
And in another twist of mystery, gentiles are not
allowed to reign with the apostles and disciples, at which time the Jews are
not yet blinded. If there are Jews who were not blinded and are faithful to
God, then the promises of God is still in effect to the Jews. So, at a time
when some Jews were still faithful, the
priesthoods, and the services of God, and the oracles, and the promises of God
are still in effect to the Jews. Read my blog, "The Jew First...",
touching this issue.
So, to get on our main subject, we will ask: Who are
the Gentiles to whom Christ will reign?
The proceeding verse that Matthew quoted in Isaiah 42,
the fourth verse, says:
He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have
set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law. Isa 42:4
The underlined part of the quote above refers of
gentiles that will wait for Christ's law. The gentiles do not refer to every gentiles for it is clear that the
gentiles referred here are located in the
"isles." Further, another description of
the isles was given:
Sing unto the LORD a new song, and his praise
from the end of the earth, ye that go down to the sea, and all that is
therein; the isles, and the inhabitants thereof. Isa 42:10
Also in Isaiah, we are also given description of the
people singing in the isles:
14 They shall lift up their voice, they shall sing
for the majesty of the LORD, they shall cry aloud from the sea. 15
Wherefore glorify ye the LORD in the fires, even the name of the LORD God of
Israel in the isles of the sea. 16 From the uttermost part of the
earth have we heard songs, even glory to the righteous... Isa 24:14-16
Again, another description about the isles was given
in Isaiah 49:1:
Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye
people, from far; The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of
my mother hath he made mention of my name.
Isaiah 49:1 is clearly calling a
people from far; and surely these people do not refer to the Greeks, nor
the Romans; for even the
apostle Paul was silent about these prophesies being fulfilled to them. Isaiah 51:4-5 will give us another description regards the isles, it says:
4 Hearken unto me, my people; and give ear unto me, O
my nation: for a law shall proceed from me, and I will make my
judgment to rest for a light of the people. 5 My righteousness is near; my
salvation is gone forth, and mine arms shall judge the people; the isles
shall wait upon me, and on mine arm shall they trust.
So the above gives us a another description of the
isles that wait upon the Lord, and of his law. Firstly it is a "nation" that Christ will
call. And, secondly, it is a people that
will put their trust in Christ.
Isaiah 55:3-5 further
gives us further description of the nation that Christ will call:
3 Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your
soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the
sure mercies of David. 4 Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people,
a leader and commander to the people. 5 Behold, thou shalt call a nation
that thou knowest not, and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee
because of the LORD thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he hath
glorified thee.
I hope it will not be hard for me to convince you,
the reader, that the person in the above prophecy, concerning the witness,
leader, commander, and to whom is given the sure mercies of David, is referring
to Jesus Christ. And in the above prophecy we will read of Jesus Christ calling
a "nation" that "he does not know." So then, the nation
that Christ will call, and is referred as the isles, is obviously not the
Greeks, nor the Romans, nor any nation that is known to Christ.
So the descriptions of the isles that will wait upon the Lord are:
·
referred
as "isles"
·
a
nation that “Christ will call”
·
a
nation that is “not” known to Christ
·
located
from the “uttermost part of the
earth”
·
it
is a people from “far”
·
located
where it “goes down to the sea”
These descriptions clearly exclude any nation that
were reached by the apostles and disciples.
The Philippines is the nation that Christ
will call, and is
the "isles" that will wait for the law of Christ.
(* Unless
otherwise noted, the King James Version is used in all verse references.)
Ron Visperas, Copyright 2016, All rights reserved.
