He was not much past thirty years of age, as being the incarnate Son of God, as the God-Man! Jesus, our Saviour!

And the Isaiah Passage we’re about to notice comprised His Text that notable day, long ago in Nazareth. (His “home town,” one could say, where He had been raised. In Luke 2:52 fashion: “And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.”

Here’s Luke’s Account of that unique Sabbath Day: “16 And he (Jesus) came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. 17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, 18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, 19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. 20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. 21 And he began to say unto them …” Luke 4:16-21

He went to the weekly worship service “as His custom was!” Verse 16, habitually an attendee!

And that day He was asked to read the Scripture selection, probably an “assigned” Portion of God’s Word. They (I understand) systematically read through the whole Old Testament, or at least Major Sections of it. (Think of the Beauty, the Divine Forethought of Jesus being asked to read this Golden Paragraph about HIMSELF!)

What Passage is that?

Isaiah 61!

“17 And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, 18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, 19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. 20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. 21 And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.”

Wow!

Jesus plainly told them, too … that the Prophet wrote (700 years in advance) of HIM! “This day is the Scripture fulfilled in your ears!”

Oh, exactly what did Isaiah write?

“1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; 2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God …” Verses 1 and 2 of Isaiah 61.

BUT … Jesus strangely stopped mid-Sentence with His Reading, mid-Verse I had better say, in the middle of verse 2.

See if you can discover what I mean.

And when you do, you will have found what I call “a two thousand year comma” in the Word of God!

The first part of that comforting Two-Verse Unit is “history” now.

But after that comma, it is still “prophecy!”

Over two thousand years later!

And Jesus knew that!

Jesus: “And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, 18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, 19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. 20 And he closed the book ….”

Isaiah: “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; 2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God …”

Our Lord stopped reading with the words “to preach/proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.”

And Jesus did NOT read the next phrase, after that comma! Note the comma: , and the day of vengeance of our God!”

Jesus was fulfilling all that precious text up to that comma! Grace and love and forgiveness!

But the time had not yet come (still has not yet come) for “the day of the VENGEANCE of our God!”

That’s the Tribulation!

Wow!

What a discerning Student of Scripture … our dear Lord Jesus!

Yes, a two thousand year comma!

Actually a little over two thousand years now, and still counting!

Amazing!

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

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