“In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples…[The Lord] will raise a banner for the nations…”

                 The great conquering armies of old like the Romans carried them into battle.  In modern times Hitler had his armies do so too.  Red banners with a black swastika centered on a white circle dotted public places in Germany in the ‘30’s and ‘40’s, giving a universal reminder of what the people were supposed to be about and who was in charge.  Everywhere the German army advanced and conquered, the banner went and was displayed over defeated countries and peoples.  For those conquered, it stood for force, oppression, and complete surrender to Nazi policies and will.

Isaiah 11:10 says, “In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples…”  However, in stark contrast to the swastika, this banner does not represent force or oppression, and the context tells us why.  First, the phrase “in that day” describes a future period of time that includes the coming Kingdom of God on earth.  Numerous other prophets similarly used this phrase.  Second, this kingdom is described as righteous (11:3-5), peaceful (vs. 6-8), knowledgeable of the Lord (v. 9) and just (vs. 13-16).  These terms describe no other kingdom or nation that has ever existed on earth.  In fact, it is quite impossible for any country to be described in this way.  We are talking of God’s work, God’s Kingdom, not something man can do.  Indeed, when human history is full of “sexual immorality…hatred… jealousy…[and] selfish ambition,” to name just a few “acts of the sinful nature” (Galatians 5:19-21), what can we expect from whole groups of such people — nations — except more of the same on a wider scale?  Of course, some nations may not be as bad as others, but the point still stands.  Later Isaiah records, “Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket; they are regarded as dust on the scales… Before [God] all the nations are as nothing; they are regarded by him as worthless and less than nothing” (40:15, 17).

No, God’s Kingdom is entirely different.  “The Root of Jesse” describes a descendant of Jesse.  Jesse’s “root” historically, from Isaiah’s place in time, was King David, the most famous of Israel’s kings past.  But another of Jesse’s descendants, the coming Messiah (Jesus), would likewise would become king over God’s Kingdom future.

Notice too that this Root of Jesse stands “as a banner for the peoples” (v. 10).  Verse 12 says this banner will be “for the nations.”  This is quite different than other banners, which stand for the ruler’s policies and the alleged greatness of imperfect and sometimes ruthless nations ruled by evil, arrogant tyrants.  Jesus stands “for the peoples,” both individuals and groups.  So much so that “the nations will rally to him” (v. 10).  Imagine that.  When a banner is raised, it is meant to serve as a rallying point.  Responding obediently shows loyalty to the regime and its leader(s).  Sometimes the rally is done under compulsion, but not so with Christ.  Of him the French General Napoleon Bonaparte, no stranger to banners, said, “I have inspired multitudes with such devotion that they would have died for me.  But to do this it was necessary that I should be visibly present, with the electric influences of my looks, of my words, of my voice.  Christ alone has succeeded in so raising the mind of man toward the unseen that it becomes insensible to the barriers of time and space.  Across the chasm of 1,800 years, Jesus Christ makes a demand which is, above all others, difficult to satisfy….  He asks for the human heart.  He demands it unconditionally, and forthwith His demand is granted.  In defiance of time and space, the soul of man with all its powers becomes an annexation to the empire of Christ.  All who sincerely believe in Him experience that remarkable supernatural love toward Him.  This phenomenon is unaccountable….  This it is which proves to me quite conclusively the divinity of Jesus Christ.”  Despite his conclusion, the man who crowned himself French emperor died an unbeliever, never aligning himself under the banner of Christ.

Jesus said, “But I, when I am lifted up from the earth [on the cross], will draw all men to myself” (John 12:32).  This was his ultimate act demonstrating that he was “for the peoples and nations.”  Who are you for?  If you raised your own banner, who would appear on it — something of yourself (like Napoleon’s personal presence or Hitler’s swastika), or Jesus?  Whose kingdom are you promoting today?