Looking for Jesus (Part 2)

What if the oldest promises in Scripture were always pointing to a single person—and not just in vague metaphors, but with names, titles, and a story arc that lands on a cross and an empty tomb? We follow that thread through two major voices: Samuel, who preserves Hannah’s fierce song of reversal and introduces the Bible’s first use of “Messiah,” and Isaiah, who sketches the breathtaking portrait of a virgin-born King, a gentle Servant, and a suffering substitute who yet lives to justify many.

We start with Hannah’s song, where God humbles the proud and lifts the lowly, then arrive at a startling promise: Yahweh will judge the ends of the earth and exalt his anointed. From there, the promises tighten. A faithful priest will do all God’s will. A descendant of David will reign forever. Peter later stands in Jerusalem and says that the risen Jesus is that descendant, the one death could not hold. It’s a cumulative case built on covenant, priesthood, kingship, and resurrection.

Isaiah intensifies the case with details hard to ignore. A child is called Mighty God and Prince of Peace. A branch rises from Jesse, the Spirit rests on him, and he brings justice to the nations without crushing the weak. Most arresting of all, the servant bears our griefs, is pierced for our sins, and then “will see” and “will justify many,” language that signals a life beyond death. Jesus reads Isaiah 61 in the synagogue and says, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled,” claiming the anointing to bring good news to the poor and freedom to the captive.

Video available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQnE1d30uao