A withered tree stump; no lovely arching branches or majestic trunk, just old and ugly – could it possibly be good for anything but the fire? Isaiah 10 talks about how God chops down the arrogant like one felling tall trees. The actual people being addressed are the decedents of Israel. They had forgotten God and become disobedient. Great foreign armies came and enslaved them. It was a dark time.

There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.

Isaiah 11:1

Then Isaiah 11 tells of a shoot coming up from a old stump…and there is not just a hint of life in the new sprout, there is an abundance of it. It will become the source of life for all! Isaiah is using the analogy of the tree stump to foretell that God will still bring the Messiah through Israel’s descendants. When Jesus sacrificed Himself on the cross, He not only paid the price for all people’s disobedience towards God, He released believers from the heritage of sin.

Give thanks today for the amazing gift of your Savior’s sacrifice. Pray that many across America will believe and convey a heritage of abundant life to every dry and dark place in the land.

Recommended Reading: Isaiah 10:33-11:5