SUGGESTED VERSES FOR MEMORIZATION & MEDITATION

But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. (Isaiah 53:5 ESV)

Therefore the LORD himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14 ESV)

OPENING THOUGHT

The Messiah, or Serpent-Crusher, was promised within the first moments of humanity’s fall into sin and death; however, thousands of years passed and hundreds of generations died without His arrival.

But God did not leave humanity without signs.

He promised to Abraham, Judah, and David that the Messiah would be their offspring, and that He would be an eternal prophet, priest, and king.

After the deaths of David and his son, Solomon, Israel split into two kingdoms under the rule of Rehoboam. For the next several hundred years, God sent prophets to speak to the people of Israel and Judah, rebuking the wickedness of their kings and the idolatry of the people.

In the midst of the pleas of these prophets, the LORD speaks through them many new promises of the coming Messiah.

This week’s readings then will be a sampling of some of the most significant prophecies concerning the promised Serpent-Crusher. Throughout the several hundred years of Israel’s two kingdoms, God continued to prophesy through the prophets about the Savior who would defeat evil, sin, and death finally.