Even though the nation of Judah will fall to the Neo-Babylonian Empire, and even though all but the poorest of the citizens of Judah will be carried captive to a foreign land, the Lord's promise of an eternal King and kingdom from the royal line of David still stands. It will appear to human eyes as if it is impossible for the Lord to keep His promise but nothing is impossible for the Lord. Babylon will be conquered by another nation, the Medo-Persian Empire, and the captive people of Judah will be given permission to return and rebuild. In addition, the line of succession from David's descendants will not be cut off. It was customary for many conquering kings of ancient times to execute the kings of the nations they conquered. But this will not happen to the direct line of succession for the royal house of Judah. This is why, in the New Testament, we find the genealogy of Jesus of Nazareth descending directly from King David.
We learned in our last study session that the coming King will delight in the laws of God the Father and will be the embodiment of all holy wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, and knowledge. Because He is God the Son, and because He operates according to all the laws and righteousness of God the Father, He will be the only ruler who has ever ruled with perfect justice, as Isaiah assures us below.
"He will not judge by what He sees with His eyes, or decide by what He hears with His ears; but with righteousness He will judge the needy, with justice He will give decisions for the poor of the earth." (Isaiah 11:3b-4a) Human judges can be deceived. Human judges can only rule according to the evidence that has been presented to them. Evidence is sometimes circumstantial and scanty. Witnesses sometimes lie under oath. A human judge---even one who dearly wants to do what's right---is limited by his inability to see into human hearts and human minds. The Lord has no such limits. He knows the truth of every situation. He doesn't judge by outward appearances or by what people say. In addition, He cannot be bribed to rule in someone's favor. In Isaiah's day some of the judges had been swayed by greed. They were accepting bribes from rich people to rule against poor people. The Lord can always be counted on to do what's right. He is not like man and does not suffer from man's temptations.
A day of judgment is coming for all the wicked who have repudiated the Lord and who have scoffed at His righteous laws. The Lord's own words will be a testimony against the wicked, for they have violated His holy word. "He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth; with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked." (Isaiah 11:4b) In the book of Revelation 19:15 we find the Lord Jesus Christ depicted with a sword coming out of His mouth. This doesn't mean that He literally has a sword coming out of His mouth but this imagery symbolizes the way He will judge the wicked of the earth by presenting them with the laws they have broken.
We can compare this to our own court system today. If we break a law, we will stand before a judge in court and be presented with the wording of the law we have broken. We can then plead guilty or innocent but, if we are judged guilty, the judge will then advise us of the penalty that is attached to the law we have broken. In this same way, the Lord Jesus Christ will present the wicked with the wording of the holy laws they have broken, which is why in the Apostle John's vision he saw the Lord with a sword coming out of His mouth when He saw the Lord coming to earth to call the wicked to judgment.
We need not fear that the Lord will make a mistake and throw the righteous into "jail", so to speak, along with the wicked. The Lord knows who are His. (2 Timothy 2:19) We also don't need to fear that the Lord will judge wrongdoers more harshly than they deserve. He will match the penalty to the crime. "Righteousness will be His belt and faithfulness the sash around His waist." (Isaiah 11:5)
However the Lord chooses to deal with the wicked will be done in perfect justice. Sins aren't equal and neither is the punishment for sins. It's alright---and good---to feel sad about the judgment that awaits the wicked. We ought to feel sad that there are people who have chosen to reject the Lord. But we can rest assured that the Lord will deal with each person in a way that is perfectly holy, righteous, and fitting.
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