Isaiah 11:1-9
“The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze, their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder's den. They will not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain;
for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea” (Isaiah 11:6-9). These words from today’s Old Testament reading are filled with hope but also with almost comical imagery. Here is a scene that nature could never recreate: predators and prey, carnivores and herbivores, human children and the offspring of dangerous animals all coexisting in a way that even Disney’s “The Lion King” wouldn’t dare to suggest.
But then that’s the point, isn’t it? It isn’t natural, it isn’t an aspect of life as we know it, it isn’t the way things happen, but it is a parable about that which God is able to do. If we depend on ourselves we will fall short; the wolf will consume the lamb, the leopard will devour the kid, the lion will chow down on calf and ox and not think even once about straw; there will be pain and destruction all over the mountain if we try to pull this sort of thing off. Only God could make it work.
And only God could announce the approach of God’s reign with a baby born to humble parents in an out-of-the-way place and under extreme circumstances. What was God thinking? The arrival of God’s Son in the manger at Bethlehem isn’t natural, it isn’t an aspect of life as we know it, it isn’t the way things happen. If you want to bring lasting change you have to have a bigger stage and a wider audience than shepherds and traveling sages. So maybe the story of the birth of Jesus is a parable of sorts as well. Maybe it reminds us that with God all things are possible. With God love can overcome evil, pain can be soothed with mercy, poverty can be addressed with generosity, hunger can be assuaged with compassion. With God all things are possible and all things find their fullest purpose. So maybe Isaiah’s scene from the holy mountain is not as far-fetched as we may think. Maybe it really is a sign of what God is doing in our world.
Prayer: Lord, may all the world live in peace under your coming reign. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
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