“But with righteousness He will judge the needy, with justice He will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth; with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked.” (NIV)
Isaiah is telling the people of Judah, who have become corrupt, immoral and are worshipping idols from surrounding cultures, that a Messiah is coming. He is from the royal line of David - we now know this to be Jesus. This is a fulfilment of what God had previously promised David in 2 Samuel 7:12-16. He says he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, so we know He is supernaturally blessed. This Messiah will be righteous when judging others, unbiased, unprejudiced. Unlike some of us on earth He will take consideration of all the facts before deciding on the judgement needed. He will be fair and impartial to those in society who lack power and judgement. In some societies the poor are often marginalised, oppressed and overlooked, but not by this Messiah. (See Psalm 72:4) We are all equal in the eyes of God.
“Rod of his mouth” symbolises that Gods power and authority are used through Jesus. (A rod was often used as a symbol of authority and discipline in Near Eastern culture at the time).
“Breath of his lips” signifies that the Lord’s words can be life-giving (see Genesis 2:7) but also have a life-taking power. He can destroy the wicked by bringing justice and judgement to those who are not obeying the word of God.
We too should fight for equality and justice in our world. The hope we have in Jesus will encourage us to persevere in our faith and lead us to be righteous as we live with others.
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Application:
Allow ourselves the time to read the Bible and learn from the scripture, “the breath of his lips,” so that we can let it shape our thoughts and actions, and so we too can spread the word of the Lord to others.
Prayer:
Dear Lord, I pray that you will help me to see others as you see them. Take away any bias I may have and help me to recognise corruption in our world. I trust in you that I will not judge others unfairly and that I will show love and mercy to others as you show to me. Amen.