The Branch is ALL About Jesus

Posted on by Pam Larson

The Branch of the Lord

Isaiah 4:2 In that day the branch of the Lord shall be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land shall be the pride and honor of the survivors of Israel.

Let’s look at some other passages that speak about this Branch:

Jeremiah 23:5-6   5 “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. 6 In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name by which he will be called: ‘The Lord is our righteousness.’

Notice: he is a branch, a righteous branch, in the line of David (the human side of this branch) but his name is Yahweh, the LORD our righteousness, his divine side.  So we see two aspects of this Branch:  He’s the God-man and the Davidic king. This is one of many Messianic prophecies, all pointing to Jesus

Jeremiah 33:15 In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David, and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.

Zechariah 3:8 Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, you and your friends who sit before you, for they are men who are a sign: behold, I will bring my servant the Branch.

Zechariah 6:12 And say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, “Behold, the man whose name is the Branch: for he shall branch out from his place, and he shall build the temple of the Lord.

Dr. S. Lewis Johnson, Jr reflects:

Let me just point out another thing about this term branch.  This is just something to make you think.  It is interesting how these expressions have been put in the word of God by the prophets.  Now, we know when we read the New Testament we read Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.  And we are taught from the beginning of the time that we study the Bible that the gospels give us four different pictures of the life and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ.  They are not attempts to give us the same story of our Lord, but they are attempts to give a particular story with a particular emphasis.  Call it a theological emphasis if you want.  That doesn’t mean it’s less true.  But it does lay emphasis upon the fact that the gospel records are different.

            For example, the gospel of Matthew is the gospel in which the royal dignity of the Lord Jesus is set forth most emphatically.  And when finally he says that Pilot wrote over the cross, this is Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews; well you can see that’s the climax of the gospel and the presentation of the Lord Jesus as the king.  And then when we turn to Luke we notice a great deal of stress upon the human side of the ministry of our Lord and so ordinarily students, speaking very generally, say Luke presents the Lord Jesus Christ’s ministry as the ministry of Messiah the man.  And then Mark, Mark is full of the word immediately, immediately.  And everything moves rapidly.  Our Lord follows the will of God implicitly and quickly.  It’s not surprising that Mark is said to be the gospel of the Lord Jesus as the servant, and then the gospel of John with its great stress on the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ is the Messiah, the Son of God.  Well usually people say John presents the Lord Jesus as the Son of God or as God.

            Now, when you go back and look at these terms in the Old Testament, the branch.  Well, we have for example in Jeremiah chapter 23 in verse 5, notice what is stated there in that use of the term branch.  “Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper.”  There we have the Lord Jesus Christ or the Branch in his royal aspect.  That’s his Gospel of Matthew aspect.

            And then when we turn to Zechariah and read in the 6th chapter and the 12th verse these words and speak unto him saying, “And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Behold the man,” the man, “whose name is The BRANCH.”  We have stress upon the human side of our Lord, the “man whose name is the Branch.”  Turning back to the 3rd chapter and verse 8, “For, behold, I will bring forth my servant the BRANCH.”  There is the Markan side of the ministry of the Lord.  And finally in Isaiah chapter 4, and verse 2 the passage that we’re looking at we have the Messiah called “the Branch of Jehovah.”  That stresses his kingly dignity and position.  He is the Branch of Jehovah.