Wisdom's Corner
The Sprout

Have you ever seen a small new growth coming out of a stump? Or have you ever seen a new tree just beginning to grow out of the ground? These plants are called a sprout when they are just beginning to grow.

In Isaiah 11:1-2, we read, " And 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, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord."

The word "rod" in the first verse comes from a Hebrew word for sprout. And we know that these verses are a prophecy about Jesus. So Jesus is the sprout growing out of Jesse. Jesus is the one who had the wisdom, understanding, counsel, and might of God.

It is interesting that in Matthew 2:23 we learn that Jesus grew up in Nazareth. This was to fulfill a prophecy that he would be called a Nazarene. What is very interesting about the name Nazareth is that it comes from the same root word for sprout. So Jesus was not only a sprout coming out of Jesse, but he grew up in a town with a name meaning sprout.

I am glad that we have the Bible. God gave it to us so that we could learn about His plan for the salvation of man. If we read the Bible we can see how God planned and guided all things about Christ. We can also learn what God wants us to do to obey Him.

Keep studying your Bible. Learn all about God's plan. And if any of this is hard to understand, ask an adult to help you.

Mark McWhorter

Copyright 2002

Published by The Old Paths Bible School
(http://www.oldpaths.org)