SUMMARY
A new king will come from Bethlehem, the home of David, to rule justly over the nation. The ancient promises will again be restored.
ANALYSIS
Christians are familiar with this passage from its presence in Advent and Christmas readings. It is often regarded as a prophecyProphecy is the gift, inspired by God, of speaking and interpreting the divine will. Prophets such as Amos, Isaiah, and Ezekiel spoke words of judgment and comfort to the people of Israel on behalf of God. that was fulfilled when Jesus, the MessiahThe Messiah was the one who, it was believed, would come to free the people of Israel from bondage and exile. In Jewish thought the Messiah is the anticipated one who will come, as prophesied by Isaiah. In Christian thought Jesus of Nazareth is identified..., was born in Bethlehem. Though Jesus does not look like the kind of messiah that people were looking for, he did meet the requirement that he be descended from David. The genealogies in Matthew and Luke make that point. More, the narratives in Matthew and Luke place his birth in Bethlehem, reinforcing his legitimacy as a son of David. The everlasting covenantA covenant is a promise or agreement. In the Bible the promises made between God and God's people are known as covenants; they state or imply a relationship of commitment and obedience. that God made with the house of David was still intact. It had only been set aside temporarily during the years of exile and for several more centuries.
The prophecy states that the one who is to rule in Israel has his origin “from of old, from ancient days.” This probably is a reference to the ancient promise to David that his sons would rule on the throne of Israel forever (2 Samuel 7). Though a break in the dynasty had occurred, the promise had not been broken. When the Christians applied this passage to Jesus, it put him in continuity with the Davidic promise. As the belief in a preexistent Christ (Messiah) developed, God’s messianic work was pushed back even further into the past, not just to the time of David but to the presence of Christ in heaven with God. In the apocalyptic vision of Daniel 7:9-10, God is called the “Ancient One” (or “Ancient of Days”).
