The book of Isaiah spans one of the most turbulent periods in Israel’s history. Isaiah prophesied during the 8th century B.C., a time when the once-unified kingdom of Israel had divided into the northern kingdom (Israel) and the southern kingdom (Judah). As Assyria’s power surged across the ancient Near East, the northern kingdom fell to its armies in 722. Meanwhile, Judah watched as the threat of foreign domination grew.
Isaiah’s ministry in the capital of Judah, Jerusalem, spanned the reigns of several kings, including Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah (Isa. 1:1). He warned Judah about the consequences of their idolatry, injustice, and misplaced trust in political alliances rather than in the Lord. His early prophecies focus on coming judgment, yet they are also laced with hope, most famously in the promise of Immanuel, “God with us” (Isa. 7:14).
The later chapters of Isaiah reflect a shift in tone and timeline, addressing a people either in exile or anticipating it. By then, Assyria had waned, and Babylon had risen to dominate the region, eventually conquering Jerusalem and carrying many Judeans into exile in 586 B.C. These later chapters speak with extraordinary hope about God’s power to redeem, restore, and bring his people home through this Immanuel, his one and only son, Jesus.
It is Jesus, the incarnation of the living God, who Isaiah promised would come as a child born, a son given (Isa. 9:7). Jesus, the holy seed (Isa. 6:13) from the root of Jesse (Isa. 11:10), who would go to the cross for our sake: “being despised and rejected” and “pierced for our transgressions; crushed for our iniquities” (Isa. 53:3,5). In the midst of exile, Isaiah prophesied only one way home to our God: through the arrival of the God-man, Jesus.
As Pastor Matt Popovits (the author of this series) writes, “What becomes plain [through the book of Isaiah] is this: when Jesus comes, he brings with him a Kingdom. A reign. A Home and haven under God’s care that is very, very good.”
This Advent, we will focus on several passages in Isaiah where the promises of God – fulfilled in either Jesus’ arrival or his second coming – proclaim to us that while we long to find peace, belonging, and comfort this time of year, our ultimate Christmas gift is our citizenship in his kingdom. For He is the Home who has come to win us back from exile, keep us safe in His embrace, and promises that we will someday reside with Him forever.
