If Isaiah 9:1-4 sounds familiar it's because verses 2-7 are appointed for the Christmas season in the Year of Matthew. But here we are again, in chapter 9, not looking at "a child born to us" but the promise of a new day for the residents of the land of Zebulun and Naphtali. This passage, appointed for the 3rd Sunday of Epiphany in the Year of Matthew, has a slightly different emphasis, as we look back at the "former time" and ahead to the "latter time" when God's deliverance will take place. The preacher's task will be to proclaim this deliverance.
(The following questions are not meant to be exhaustive, but are best used in conjunction with other fine sets of questions with other concerns. These questions seek to answer the question, "What is the Word doing?" a central concern of Law and Gospel preachers. For more on this method and on Law and Gospel preaching in general, see my brief guide, Afflicting the Comfortable, Comforting the Afflicted, available from wipfandstock.com or amazon.)
1. How does the Word function in the text? These words are pure Gospel. They announce God's intention to rescue those "who have lived in a land of deep darkness" and provide them with light, joy, freedom, and abundance.
2. How is the Word not functioning in the text? Although there are many references to the trouble from which God is rescuing us, there is no call to repentance here - no word of Law. The "former time" which included darkness, despair, and all the rest is passing away and the "latter time" which is coming, will include none of that.
3. With whom are you identifying in the text? We are those being addressed here. We all have known "former times" when we were struggling, grieving, suffering, or all of those things. We all long to hear of days to come when such things will no longer be present.
4. What, if any, call to obedience is there in this text? The actor in this text is God. There are no imperatives. The call to obedience is not present. A classic call to obedience is in the appointed gospel text where Jesus says, "Follow me," or in the 2nd reading where Paul says, "Be united in the same mind and purpose."
5. What Law/Gospel couplet is suggested by this text? There are many couplets present in the text and others that suggest themselves: darkness/light; lack/multiplication; hunger/harvest; defeat/victory.
6. Exegetical work: A Hebrew word study shows that the "deep darkness" of vs. 2 is the same word translated in Psalm 23 as "the shadow of death." It is a metaphor for deep despair. When looking for references to Midian (vs. 4) we see two instances in Hebrew history, one in Numbers 31 where God commands the Israelites to utterly annihilate the Midianites, and another in Judges 7 where God's people rejoice in a miraculous victory over Midian under the leadership of Gideon. Jamieson, Faussett, and Brown, in their classic commentary, suggest that the latter reference is the most likely: "As Gideon with a handful of men conquered the hosts of Midian, so Messiah 'the child' (Isa. 9:6) shall prove to be the 'Prince of Peace.'" (JFB Commentary, online Textweek reference for Epiphany 3). Juliana Claassens, in her contemporary commentary, brings this text to the present day: "Very much breaking into a time of war, violence, and imperial domination, these images capture people's imagination, helping them to look up from their current circumstances and imagine that a world of peace and justice and an end of war, might just be possible." (Working Preacher, Textweek).
7. How does the Crossings Community model work with this text? Steve Albertin, in his 2015 analysis, does a nice job of raising up the Law/Gospel couplets that are present, especially darkness and light. It might be interesting for the sermon to take Albertin's lead and spend some time ferreting out what "darkness" feels like, and then what the coming of the light might mean in that context. See Albertin's whole commentary at crossings.org/text-study, archived under its references.
Blessings on your proclamation!
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