Hæc dicit Dominus Deus: Egredietur virga de radice Iesse, et flos de radice eius ascendet. Et requiescet super eum spiritus Domini: spiritus sapientiæ et intellectus, spiritus consilii et fortitudinis, spiritus scientiæ et pietatis: et replebit eum spiritus timoris Domini. (From the Propers for the Ember Friday in Advent, Isaias xi, 1-3: " Thus saith the Lord God: And there shall come forth a rod out of the root of Jesse, and a flower shall rise up out of his root. And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him: the spirit of wisdom, and of understanding, the spirit of counsel, and of fortitude, the spirit of knowledge, and of godliness. And he shall be filled with the spirit of the fear of the Lord.")
Orthodoxos —Then let us pass on to another prophetic testimony and let us hear the same prophet saying, "There shall come forth a rod out of the root of Jesse, and a flower shall rise up out of his root."
Eranistes —I think this prophecy was delivered about Zerubbabel.
Orthodoxos —If you hear what follows, you will not remain in your opinion. The Jews have never so understood this prediction, for the prophet goes on, "and the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him: the spirit of wisdom, and of understanding, the spirit of counsel, and of fortitude, the spirit of knowledge, and of godliness" This would never be attributed by any one to a mere man, for even to the very holy the gifts of the Spirit are given by division, as the divine apostle witnesses when he says, "To one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom, to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit," and so on. The prophet describes Him who sprang from the root of Jesse as possessing all the powers of the spirit.
Eranistes —To gainsay this were sheer folly.
Orthodoxos —Now hear what follows. You will see some things that transcend human nature, he goes on. "He shall not judge according to the sight of the eyes, nor reprove according to the hearing of the ears, but he shall judge the poor with justice, and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked." Now of these predictions some are human and some divine. Justice, truth, equity, and rectitude in giving judgment exhibit virtue in human nature.
Eranistes —We have so far clearly learned that the prophet predicts the coming of our Saviour Christ.
Orthodoxos —The sequel will show you yet more plainly the truth of the interpretation. For he goes on, "The wolf shall dwell with the lamb," and so on, whereby he teaches at once the distinction of modes of life and the harmony of faith; and experience furnishes a proof of the prediction, for they that abound in wealth, they that live in poverty, servants and masters, rulers and ruled, soldiers and citizens and they that wield the sceptre of the world are received in one font, are all taught one doctrine, are all admitted to one mystic table, and each of the believers enjoys an equal share.
Eranistes —It is thus shown that God is spoken of.
Orthodoxos —Not only God but man. So at the very beginning of this prediction he says that a rod shall grow out of the root of Jesse. Then at the conclusion of the prediction he takes up once more the strain with which he began, for he says, "In that day the root of Jesse, who standeth for an ensign of the people, him the Gentiles shall beseech, and his sepulchre shall be glorious." Now Jesse was the father of David, and the promise with an oath was made to David. The prophet would not have spoken of the Lord Christ as a rod growing out of Jesse if he had only known Him as God. The prediction also foretold the change of the world, for "the earth" he says "is filled with the knowledge of the Lord, as the covering waters of the sea."
Saint Theodoret of Cyrus
Dialogues
Dialogues
