When God’s Anointed King appears, He will not accomplish salvation by divine fiat, nor will He conquer the world with a battlecry and simply declare the deliverance of His people. Rather, His appearing will be subtle, almost obscure, like the slow growth of a young plant or a root out of dry ground (Isa. 53:2). He will have no form or majesty to draw the admiration of the world and “no beauty that we should desire Him” (v. 2).

“Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:10–11)

O what glorious wonders are contained in that little word, “Christ”! Such a short designation, such a simple title, and yet it contains within it all the hope of this fallen world. Like the Rock at Horeb, which poured forth water for a thirsty people when it was struck (Ex. 17:6), so this little word pours forth streams of living water when we begin to examine it. Strike it even once and life issues forth like rivers in the desert.

One of the places we first encounter the “Christ” (i.e. God’s anointed king) is in Psalm 2, where universal dominion is ascribed to Him: “‘Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession’” (v. 8). Following this thread we find that His dominion will also be an everlasting dominion: His throne “shall be established forever” (2 Sam. 7:16). Moreover, His reign, indomitable and unending, will be a reign of peace rather than chaos, bringing Yahweh’s salvation to the very ends of the earth (Isa. 9:7; 49:6). Through Him the nations will be grafted into Israel’s inheritance and “built up in the midst of my people” (Jer. 12:16). They will forsake their idols, “learn the ways of my people,” and glory in Yahweh alone (4:2), when He establishes His “servant David” over them to “feed them and be their shepherd” (Ezek. 34:23).

The reign of God’s Christ will also have implications for creation. Under His rule the “wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat…they shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea” (Isa. 11:6, 9). The curse, in other words, in all its grim totality, will be rolled back and eradicated through the rule of this Spirit-anointed King (Isa. 11:1). He will usher in a new age when He comes, a new world where every trace of sin has been wiped away. As He says in John’s vision in the New Testament: “‘Behold, I am making all things new’” (Rev. 21:5).

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