In this Sabbath lesson from Israel Church of the Firstborn in Indianapolis, Brother Obadiah teaches on the Branch, one of the many names of Jesus. He pulled the lesson back out of the archives, he says, because with so much death and trouble in the world right now there is nothing more joyful than talking about the Christ. The Branch is a tree that all nations will one day dwell inside of, but it had to come up out of dry ground, and that dry ground is Israel. The lesson follows the Branch from the woe against the pastors, through the Lord's vineyard and the rejection of his own, out to the throne where he builds the temple and restores Israel. Every passage is read in the King James Version.
Watch the full Sabbath lesson on YouTube.
1.We Are Living in the Last Days
Before the Sabbath script, he sets the scene with the state of the world, the earthquakes, the floods, the wars, and the shootings, and reads Second Timothy the third chapter to show that the word of God named these days in advance.
2 Timothy 3:1-5 KJV1This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.
2For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
3Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,
4Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
5Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
"If anybody has been looking at the news at all, the Lord is going off right now. We seeing death, we seeing war, we are seeing it all. And what we want people to understand is that we are living in the Bible days. We are living in the days that is going to be the return of the Lord."
"He said that in the last days perilous times shall come. Perilous means dangerous times. So the more and more wicked that it becomes in this world, the more and more closer you got to get to the Lord. Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof, from such turn away. That is why we chose to deal with a lesson dealing with Jesus today."
2.Jesus Kept the Sabbath, and the Branch Is One of His Names
To follow Jesus is to follow his example, so he goes to Saint Luke the fourth chapter to show where Jesus went to worship. Then he opens up the theme: Jesus has many names, and one of them is the Branch.
St. Luke 4:14-16 KJV14And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee: and there went out a fame of him through all the region round about.
15And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all.
16And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.
"As his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the seventh day, and stood up for to read. That is when Jesus went to church, on the seventh day, not the first day of the week. He went on the seventh day, and that is today."
"Jesus got a lot of names. We know they call him the Rock, because he is the rock of our salvation. He is a Saviour, because Jesus saves. He was known as Melchizedek, a priest for ever. And he had another name, his name was also called the Branch. So just think about an everlasting tree, because Jesus is going to come back and be that one branch that all nations on the planet are going to dwell inside of. But one thing about Jesus being the Branch, he had to come out of a dry ground, and that dry ground is Israel."
3.Woe to the Pastors, and the Righteous Branch
One reason the children of Israel got in trouble in the first place, he teaches, was the pastors who led the people astray. Jeremiah the twenty-third chapter pronounces woe on them, and then promises the righteous Branch who will reign and be called the Lord our righteousness. This is where the title of the lesson comes from.
Jeremiah 23:1-6 KJV1Woe be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! saith the LORD.
2Therefore thus saith the LORD God of Israel against the pastors that feed my people; Ye have scattered my flock, and driven them away, and have not visited them: behold, I will visit upon you the evil of your doings, saith the LORD.
3And I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries whither I have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase.
4And I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, saith the LORD.
5Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.
6In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.
"Woe be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture, saith the Lord. People ask me, why don't you like pastors, and I'm one of them. Because the person that stands in this position has the authority to persuade people that don't know nothing about the word of God. You got a lot of preachers that get up here and tell lies so they can deceive people to get money. The flock don't belong to you. The flock belong to God."
"Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch. Why did he say unto David? Because David is going to be a king too, but this one is going to be king over David. In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely, and this is his name whereby he shall be called, the Lord our righteousness. So that is another one of the Lord's names."
And there is no hiding from this Branch. In the same chapter the Lord says he is a God near at hand, who fills heaven and earth.
Jeremiah 23:23-24 KJV23Am I a God at hand, saith the LORD, and not a God afar off?
24Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the LORD. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the LORD.
"Am I a God at hand, saith the Lord, and not a God afar off? God is everywhere. You ain't got to go all the way up to the third heaven to see Jesus. Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? Do not I fill heaven and earth? It is nothing that you can hide from the Lord."
4.The Lord's Vineyard Is the House of Israel
He turns to agriculture, which he says the Lord's whole plan is centered around. In the Song of Solomon the Bridegroom is the keeper of a vineyard, and he speaks plainly of his own color.
Song of Solomon 1:5-6 KJV5I am black, but comely, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, as the tents of Kedar, as the curtains of Solomon.
6Look not upon me, because I am black, because the sun hath looked upon me: my mother’s children were angry with me; they made me the keeper of the vineyards; but mine own vineyard have I not kept.
"This is the Lord speaking to his bride, which is Israel. I am black, but comely, O ye daughters of Jerusalem. That don't mean you make an image of him, but he is telling you that he is black. They made me the keeper of the vineyards, but mine own vineyard have I not kept. So now let's show you who this vineyard is."
Isaiah the fifth chapter names that vineyard outright. The Lord planted it, fenced it, and looked for good grapes, but it brought forth wild grapes, and the wild grapes are sin.
Isaiah 5:1-7 KJV1Now will I sing to my wellbeloved a song of my beloved touching his vineyard. My wellbeloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill:
2And he fenced it, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a winepress therein: and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes.
3And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men of Judah, judge, I pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard.
4What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes?
5And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down:
6And I will lay it waste: it shall not be pruned, nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns: I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.
7For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant: and he looked for judgment, but behold oppression; for righteousness, but behold a cry.
"My wellbeloved had a vineyard in a very fruitful hill, and that fruitful hill is the land of Canaan. He fenced it, and gathered out the stones, and planted it with the choicest vine, and looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes. All of these instruments were built because he was looking to bring forth good wine, but it only brought forth wild grapes, and these wild grapes represent none other than sin."
"For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant. That is who that vineyard is. He looked for judgment, but behold oppression, for righteousness, but behold a cry, the cry of the people crying out for a saviour."
And that is exactly why the nation went into captivity, he says, because they had no knowledge.
Isaiah 5:13 KJV13Therefore my people are gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge: and their honourable men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst.
"Therefore my people are gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge. If you go talk to the average Israelite today and ask him what throne Jesus is going to sit on, he can't tell you. He can't tell you the plan that God has for the salvation of man. That is the reason why you in captivity, because you ain't got no knowledge."
The same vine shows up in Psalm the eightieth chapter, brought out of Egypt, and there the psalmist calls the Lord the man of God's right hand.
Psalm 80:14-17 KJV14Return, we beseech thee, O God of hosts: look down from heaven, and behold, and visit this vine;
15And the vineyard which thy right hand hath planted, and the branch that thou madest strong for thyself.
16It is burned with fire, it is cut down: they perish at the rebuke of thy countenance.
17Let thy hand be upon the man of thy right hand, upon the son of man whom thou madest strong for thyself.
"Thou hast brought a vine out of Egypt, and this vine represents the house of Israel. Look down from heaven, and behold, and visit this vine, and the vineyard which thy right hand hath planted. So we just read about the right hand, and we know who the right hand of the Lord is. Let thy hand be upon the man of thy right hand, upon the son of man whom thou madest strong for thyself. Turn us again, O Lord God of hosts, cause thy face to shine, and we shall be saved. That is the only thing God requires, turn back to him."
5.The Broken Covenant: Why Israel Was Scattered
He is careful to lay the reason for the scattering where he says the Bible lays it. In Deuteronomy the twenty-ninth chapter, the nations ask why the Lord did this to the land, and the answer is a forsaken covenant.
Deuteronomy 29:24-26 KJV24Even all nations shall say, Wherefore hath the LORD done thus unto this land? what meaneth the heat of this great anger?
25Then men shall say, Because they have forsaken the covenant of the LORD God of their fathers, which he made with them when he brought them forth out of the land of Egypt:
26For they went and served other gods, and worshipped them, gods whom they knew not, and whom he had not given unto them:
"Even all nations shall say, wherefore hath the Lord done thus unto this land? Then men shall say, because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord God of their fathers. When you forsake the covenant, when you forsake the ten commandments, that is when the Lord is going to deal with you. It wasn't the white man's fault, it wasn't nobody else's fault. The reason why we got scattered was because of sin, because we would not deal with the commandments of the Lord."
And Jeremiah the eighth chapter shows what that sin looked like: the people worshipping the sun, the moon, and the host of heaven, and even taking their calendar from them.
Jeremiah 8:1-3 KJV1At that time, saith the LORD, they shall bring out the bones of the kings of Judah, and the bones of his princes, and the bones of the priests, and the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, out of their graves:
2And they shall spread them before the sun, and the moon, and all the host of heaven, whom they have loved, and whom they have served, and after whom they have walked, and whom they have sought, and whom they have worshipped: they shall not be gathered, nor be buried; they shall be for dung upon the face of the earth.
3And death shall be chosen rather than life by all the residue of them that remain of this evil family, which remain in all the places whither I have driven them, saith the LORD of hosts.
"They shall spread them before the sun, and the moon, and all the host of heaven, whom they have loved, and whom they have served. That is where they get the word lunar from, Luna, the moon goddess, and the lunar calendars. There is no sun, moon, or stars that is going to dictate the Lord's Sabbath days. God's word is going to dictate when his Sabbaths are. That is why I will never teach you no Babylonian practices at all."
6.Despised and Rejected: A Root Out of Dry Ground
Now he shows what the Branch went through at the hands of his own vineyard. Psalm the sixty-ninth chapter, he teaches, is the Lord speaking, a stranger to his own brethren, eaten up with zeal for the Father's house.
Psalm 69:8-11 KJV8I am become a stranger unto my brethren, and an alien unto my mother’s children.
9For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me.
10When I wept, and chastened my soul with fasting, that was to my reproach.
11I made sackcloth also my garment; and I became a proverb to them.
"I am become a stranger unto my brethren, and an alien unto my mother's children. An alien is somebody that people are unfamiliar with. For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up, and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me. When people were sinning, they were sinning against the Father's word, but the Father did not come down and die for the sins of the people. That was Jesus. All the reproaches fell on Jesus, and Jesus became the scapegoat, the sin offering."
"I made sackcloth also my garment, because he was fasting all the time. The disciples wasn't fasting, but Jesus was fasting all the time, and I became a proverb to them, a song of the drunkards."
They rejected him because he came in the Father's name. Saint John the fifth chapter, he says, is Jesus telling them exactly why they would not receive him.
St. John 5:39-43 KJV39Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.
40And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.
41I receive not honour from men.
42But I know you, that ye have not the love of God in you.
43I am come in my Father’s name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.
"Search the scriptures, for in them ye think ye have eternal life, and they are they which testify of me, and ye will not come to me that ye might have life. I am come in my Father's name, and ye receive me not. It is mighty funny that he came in the name of the Father, and that is the main name that everybody in the world rejects, because they do not understand that the name came from heaven."
"If another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive. How can ye believe, which receive honour one of another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God only? That is the only honour that you need."
And then the cross itself, in Saint Luke the twenty-third chapter, where one thief railed on him and the other repented and was received in a moment.
St. Luke 23:39-43 KJV39And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us.
40But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation?
41And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss.
42And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.
43And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.
"One of the malefactors railed on him, saying, if thou be Christ, save thyself and us. But the other rebuked him, saying, Dost thou not fear God? We indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds, but this man hath done nothing amiss. This man was smart. He knew he deserved death, but he knew Jesus had done nothing wrong."
"And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise. Because he repented to Jesus right before he died. He returned unto the Lord."
All of it was written ahead of time in Isaiah the fifty-third chapter, the tender plant, the root out of a dry ground.
Isaiah 53:1-5 KJV1Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?
2For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.
3He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
4Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
5But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
"For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground. Remember that vineyard that had all the thorns and the stones in it? That dry ground represented Israel. Even though there wasn't no water around this plant, it grew up tender, because it got its water from the Father."
"He is despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities, that means he was killed for our sins. The chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with his stripes we are healed. Whatever you going through, the Lord is going through it right there with you."
7.The Parable of the Branch
Ezekiel the seventeenth chapter is a riddle of two great eagles, one that carried Israel and one that was Babylon. At the end of the parable the Lord takes a tender twig from the highest branch and plants it himself.
Ezekiel 17:22-24 KJV22Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will also take of the highest branch of the high cedar, and will set it; I will crop off from the top of his young twigs a tender one, and will plant it upon an high mountain and eminent:
23In the mountain of the height of Israel will I plant it: and it shall bring forth boughs, and bear fruit, and be a goodly cedar: and under it shall dwell all fowl of every wing; in the shadow of the branches thereof shall they dwell.
24And all the trees of the field shall know that I the LORD have brought down the high tree, have exalted the low tree, have dried up the green tree, and have made the dry tree to flourish: I the LORD have spoken and have done it.
"I will also take of the highest branch of the high cedar, and I will crop off from the top of his young twigs a tender one, that tender one that we read about in Isaiah fifty-three, and will plant it upon a high mountain. This is talking about Jesus now. In the shadow of the branches thereof shall all fowls dwell, and that is talking about all nations. I have brought down the high tree, and made the dry tree to flourish. That dry tree that came out of a dry ground, it is going to flourish."
The Master taught the same picture in Saint Matthew the thirteenth chapter, the least of all seeds growing into a tree where the birds lodge.
St. Matthew 13:31-32 KJV31Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field:
32Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.
"The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which indeed is the least of all seeds, but when it is grown it becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof. This parable is talking about Jesus gathering all nations, and they all going to serve him in the end. That is why they call him the Branch."
8.Behold, My Servant the Branch
Now he arrives at the title verse. In Zechariah the third chapter, Joshua the high priest is cleansed and clothed, and the Lord names his servant.
Zechariah 3:8-9 KJV8Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, thou, and thy fellows that sit before thee: for they are men wondered at: for, behold, I will bring forth my servant the BRANCH.
9For behold the stone that I have laid before Joshua; upon one stone shall be seven eyes: behold, I will engrave the graving thereof, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day.
"And Satan standing at his right hand to resist him. You going to try to do right, but Satan is always going to be at your right hand to resist you, to make a reason why you shouldn't be doing God's word. But the Lord said, Take away the filthy garments from him, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment, and those change of raiments are white raiments."
"Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, for behold, I will bring forth my servant the Branch. This is where we get the title of the lesson from. I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day, and Jesus is going to reign a thousand years to do it."
And in Zechariah the sixth chapter the Branch is named as the man who builds the temple of the Lord and rules on his throne as a priest.
Zechariah 6:12-13 KJV12And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD:
13Even he shall build the temple of the LORD; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between them both.
"Behold the man whose name is the Branch, and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the Lord. He shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne, and he shall be a priest upon his throne, and the counsel of peace shall be between them both, and that is talking about the Father and the Son."
9.Not By Might: Zerubbabel Builds the Temple
Who physically builds it? Zechariah the fourth chapter answers with the vision of the candlestick and the two olive trees, and the word to Zerubbabel.
Zechariah 4:6-9 KJV6Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.
7Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it.
8Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
9The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto you.
"This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts. Zerubbabel is going to be the one that builds the third temple. Not something divine, like they teach in Judaism, and not the Gentiles waiting on a red heifer. The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house, and his hands shall also finish it, with those seven, which are the eyes of the Lord that run to and fro through the whole earth."
Haggai the second chapter promises that though this latter house looks like nothing next to Solomon's, its glory will be greater, for the Lord will shake all nations.
Haggai 2:6-9 KJV6For thus saith the LORD of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land;
7And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the LORD of hosts.
8The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the LORD of hosts.
9The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the LORD of hosts: and in this place will I give peace, saith the LORD of hosts.
"Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land, and I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come. The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the Lord of hosts, and in this place will I give peace. You getting ready to read about the return of the Lord."
10.The Branch Enthroned
He gives a visual of the Branch in his kingdom. Revelation the fourth chapter shows the throne, the rainbow of the covenant, the four and twenty elders, and the seven lamps.
Revelation 4:2-5 KJV2And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne.
3And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald.
4And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold.
5And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.
"One sat on the throne, and there was a rainbow round about the throne. That is the covenant, that he would not destroy the world no more with water. Round about the throne were four and twenty seats, and upon the seats four and twenty elders, clothed in white raiment, with crowns of gold. These same twenty-four elders came from the sons of Aaron. And there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, the same seven spirits of God that helped Zerubbabel build the temple."
And Isaiah the fourth chapter shows the Branch of the Lord as beautiful, and the remnant left in Zion called holy.
Isaiah 4:2-3 KJV2In that day shall the branch of the LORD be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely for them that are escaped of Israel.
3And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem:
"In that day shall the Branch of the Lord be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely for them that are escaped of Israel. He that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy. When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, that is what he is going to do, he is going to take care of all of us."
11.The Branch of Righteousness and the Peaceable Kingdom
The lesson ends where it started. Jeremiah the thirty-third chapter brings back the branch of righteousness growing up unto David, and the Lord our righteousness.
Jeremiah 33:15-16 KJV15In those days, and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land.
16In those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely: and this is the name wherewith she shall be called, The LORD our righteousness.
"In those days, and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David, and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land. We ended the same way we started. In those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely, and this is the name wherewith he shall be called, the Lord our righteousness. So we read it in Jeremiah twenty-three, and we read it again in Jeremiah thirty-three."
And the last stop, Isaiah the eleventh chapter, the rod out of the stem of Jesse, the Branch out of his roots, and the peaceable kingdom where the wolf dwells with the lamb.
Isaiah 11:1-6 KJV1And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots:
2And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD;
3And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the LORD: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears:
4But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked.
5And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins.
6The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.
"There shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots, and the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him. If you going to be like Jesus, you got to have that same spirit, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord."
"The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and a little child shall lead them. If none of this is going on, then Israel ain't back home yet. For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea, and I cannot wait for this day."
Closing Word
"In that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people, to it shall the Gentiles seek, and his rest shall be glorious. And that is, for behold, I will bring forth my servant the Branch. I hope you got some understanding in Jesus. Thank y'all for your time."
Brother Obadiah carried one name all the way through the lesson: the Branch. It is a tender plant that came up out of the dry ground of Israel, despised and rejected by its own vineyard, yet planted by the Father's own hand on the high mountain of Israel. That Branch is the man who builds the temple, sits and rules as a priest on his throne, and grows into a tree where all nations come and lodge. The whole hope of the lesson is his return, when Judah is saved, Israel dwells safely, and the earth is full of the knowledge of the Lord.
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This lesson was taught at our Sabbath service at Israel Church of the Firstborn in Indianapolis, IN. Join us every Saturday at 12PM, or watch the Sabbath live online.