PSALM 80:8-15
8 You transplanted a vine from Egypt;
you drove out the nations and planted it.
9 You cleared the ground for it,
and it took root and filled the land.
10 The mountains were covered with its shade,
the mighty cedars with its branches.
11 Its branches reached as far as the Sea,[c]
its shoots as far as the River.[d]
12 Why have you broken down its walls
so that all who pass by pick its grapes?
13 Boars from the forest ravage it,
and insects from the fields feed on it.
14 Return to us, God Almighty!
Look down from heaven and see!
Watch over this vine,
15 the root your right hand has planted,
the son[e] you have raised up for yourself.
THE BRANCH MADE STRONG
“Look down from heaven and see the branch that You made strong for yourself.” (vss.14-15 NKJV)
We closed yesterday with the prophesy of Jesus being the Son called out of Egypt. Now the Holy Family is safely back in Nazareth, fulfilling the prophecy, “Joseph came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, ‘He shall be called a Nazarene” (Matthew 2:23).
“The prophets” (plural), could be a combination of three notable ones early on including Isaiah, Jermiah, and Zechariah. The significant name used by all three is Branch. The Hebrew word for Branch is netzer, possibly a root word for the spelling of Nazareth, the nondescript little town in Galilee where Jesus would grow, mature and work in Joseph’s carpenter shop before embarking on His holy mission.
In our Psalm along with the three prophets, the branch is found among the luscious vineyards that branched out over a vast countryside. The prayer for the strengthening of the Branch is Psalm 80:8-11, 14-15.
I am cutting this devotional short so that you can continue your Advent experience by reading the suggested scriptures to revel in the beauty and splendor that these three prophets of old have painted for us:
Isaiah 4:2; Isaiah 11:1-10; Jeremiah 23:5-6; Jeremiah33:14-16; Zachariah 3:8-10; 6:12-13.
Incidentally, all six letters of BRANCH occur in caps in both of Zechariah’s passages. Happy Reading,
Author: Garth Hyde
Other Scriptures for today:
- Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19
- 2 Samuel 7:18-22
- Galatians 4:1-7
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