Without God every person is in darkness. That is what the Bible teaches, and this darkness began in humanity’s earliest days. Paul said in Ephesians 2 that the Gentiles were without hope and without God in the world. The context of that passage was God’s good news going from the Jews to the Gentiles. The Jews had the light of God because God had long ago chosen Abraham and done his great work through Abraham’s descendants.
Abraham was shown a great light. Eventually the nation of Israel was shown a great light. Finally, the Gentiles were shown a great light. That light was what God did through the child that was born. God said it would happen as Isaiah recorded. We have that prophecy made more complete. Continue reading to see this Christmas prophecy which God gave us through Isaiah more than 2 millennia ago.
2 The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone. 3 You have multiplied the nation; you have increased its joy; they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest, as they are glad when they divide the spoil. 4 For the yoke of his burden, and the staff for his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, you have broken as on the day of Midian. 5 For every boot of the tramping warrior in battle tumult and every garment rolled in blood will be burned as fuel for the fire. 6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:2-6–ESV)
Who was in the dark?
Isaiah said the people of Israel were in the dark. By the time of Jesus’ birth it had been 400 years since any prophet came to Israel. Many generations had come and many gone without the voice of God coming to bless them. No one alive when those angels came could recall any fresh word from God. They had the words of the prophets and maybe some inkling of what a prophet would be like, but no grandparent could tell a story of hearing a man from God tell any new thing. Idolatry had died out with the return from Babylon, but it seemed that prophecy too had gone dark.