January 11, 2022 – Tuesday
Matthew 4:15-16 NIV
15 “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—
16 the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.”
Comment.
This past Sunday I taught on Luke 11:14-36, but used quotes from John as bookends. This was because I thought the entire section was about light and darkness … in the heart or soul. That evening my dear bride Sharon asked if I had ever thought to write about light as it occurs in the bible. I had not, but at her suggestion I started looking. Turns out the Old Testament has 174 references to light and the New Testament has 89 (NIV). Made a decision to use those in the New Testament that in one way or another refer to Jesus.
The verses above have the first reference to Jesus as light in the New Testament. However, surprisingly, they are from the Old Testament, Isaiah 9:1b-2. Our verses for today come shortly after Jesuss was tested in the wilderness. Afterwards He heard about John being arrested whereupon we read,
13 Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali— 14 to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah:
15 “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—
16 the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.”[f]
17 From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
Matthew is making clear to us that Jesus is the light spoken of in Isaiah and He is bringing light to those living in darkness through His message, Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near. In Matthew Isaiah 9:2 refers to a land of the shadow of death, but in the original it verse 2 reads, The people walking in darknesshave seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned. The Jewish translation of Isaiah into Greek, known as the Septuagint translation, is much closer to what we read in Matthew, O people walking in darkness, behold a great light: ye that dwell in the region and shadow of death, a light shall shine upon you. So, whether you use land of the shadow of death or land of deep darkness, you are talking about the same thing.
And especially, the great light that was prophesied was indeed Jesus to lead them out of the darkness of their slavery to sin. It would be good to make a point here that will probably be made a few times as we go through the references to Jesus as the light. Many think of light and darkness as opposites, just as they do when speaking of life and death, but in neither case are the opposites. Darkness is not the opposite of light, instead it is the absence or non-existence of light. It is the same with life and death. Death is not the opposite of life; it is the absence or non-existence of life.
Light and life are related as well as John 1:4 tells us speaking about Jesus, In Him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. Not only of mankind, but of all creation as Colossians 1:16 makes clear, For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, Thank You for sending Your Son as the light to a world filled with so much darkness. It is His light that offers so much hope to this lost world. – In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
RileyD, nwJ
Riley D. Driver – Pastor
Calvary Chapel of Dayton
in Beavercreek