“The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,
because the LORD has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor;
he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and the opening of the prison
to those who are bound;
to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor,
and the day of vengeance of our God…
(Isaiah 61:1-2 ESV)
Did you notice that when Jesus quoted these verses in his first sermon in the synagogue in Nazareth, that he left out that last bit? He left out “the day of vengeance of our God” (see Luke 4:18-19).
Everyone in the congregation must have noticed that, and must have known that by not saying it he was making a point.
His Jewish listeners were waiting for a Messiah (=anointed one) who was anointed who would not only proclaim a year of YHWH’s favor for Israel, but also bring on a “day of vengeance” on the their gentile oppressors, in this case: the Roman Empire.
What God promised, he will do. But by leaving this part out, Jesus was giving a clear indication of the timing of all these things.
There would be a time of favor at Christ’s first coming, for the Jew first and also for the gentile (Rom.1:16). And one day, which will be at Christ’s return, there will be a day of vengeance on God’s enemies. Because God’s enemies can’t fight God directly, they are fighting God’s people, Israel.
So when the antichrist will lead the charge against Jerusalem and will try to wipe out the remnant of Israel that still lives there, that’s when Jesus will return to execute “the day of vengeance of our God,” which is also referred to in the Bible as “the day of the LORD.”
The King of the Jews will come back to Jewish land to defeat the enemies of the Jews and will set up his righteous government in a Jewish city, Jerusalem.
That’s when the rest of the chapter here in Isaiah will be fulfilled – in the millennial reign of Jesus! That’s when Israel will finally bring YHWH’s blessing to all the nations of the world who are willing to submit to a Jewish King!
Enjoy the last day of 2023! Don’t forget to book your early bird tickets for the KNGDM Conference on Jan 26-27. Today’s your last chance to buy them cheap.
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