...the light has come...

1 “Arise, shine, for your light has come,

and the glory of the Lord rises upon you. 

2 See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you and his glory appears over you. 

3 Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn”

Isaiah 60:1-3.

Isaiah 60 casts a magnificent vision of Zion’s future — full of light, prosperity, and prestige.

This city, whose history is riddled with the wreckage of war and marked by the scars of empire, will exchange the sounds of violence and ruin for the clamor of reconstruction and international traffic. To gain a fuller appreciation for what this text hopes for and how it imagines Zion’s future, we should consider all of Isaiah 60:1-22.  When you look at it in its entirety, the oracle can be broken into three broad movements: vv. 1-3, 4-17, 18-22.

Today we consider just Isaiah 60:1-3, which is flooded with divine light: “Arise, shine, for your light has come; and the glory of the Lord rises upon you!” (v. 1). Darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you and His glory appears over you.” (v. 2).

This Light is the Light of Christmas, even though the echoes of the plague of darkness (Exodus 10:21-29) are clear, only this time, it is unleashed on a global scale: The whole earth will be plunged into darkness, and Zion alone will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn” (v. 3).

Dear friends, consider your need, and the world’s need, for the Light who is Jesus at Christmas! Make Advent your time top appeal to God for His Light to shine in you and in our world which is so desperately in need of the Light of Christ.

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, have mercy on me a sinner.

From the Bible:

“The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid” Psalm 27:1?

“And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light” Genesis 1:3.

“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” Psalm 119:105.