Jehovah-Jireh: God Will Provide Himself a Lamb

Advent Day #8

Blessed be the Lord God of Israel;
for he hath visited and redeemed his people,
And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David;
As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets,
which have been since the world began:
   That we should be saved from our enemies,
and from the hand of all that hate us;
To perform the mercy promised to our fathers,
and to remember his holy covenant;
The oath which he sware to our father Abraham,
That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies
might serve him without fear,
In holiness and righteousness before him,
all the days of our life. Luke 1:68-75

            Zechariah’s benediction alluded to the hope Israel had when the Messiah would come. Though the death of Jesus had been prophesied in the Psalms (22, 34:20), Isaiah (50:6, 53), Zechariah (12:10), and by Abraham in Genesis 22:8, Israel had focused on the prophecies of the coming Kingdom that the Messiah would set up.

            God promised Abraham, however, that he would be the father of many nations and that “in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because thou hast obeyed my voice.” Genesis 22:18.

            Abraham had been willing to sacrifice his promised son, Isaac, at God’s request. When Isaac asked his father where the sacrifice was when they arrived at Mount Moriah, Abraham, with great faith, assured his son that “God will provide Himself a lamb for a burnt offering.” (Genesis 22:8) Abraham laid his son on the altar as God had asked, and just as he was about to bring down the knife, God called to him from heaven to stop, and a ram was provided for the sacrifice. In that place, Abraham recognized God as Jehovah-Jireh which meant, “In the mount of the LORD it shall be seen.” Genesis 22:14 The same Mount Moriah is where Jesus, the Lamb of God, would be crucified for the sins of the world. His sacrifice for all the nations of the earth allowed Gentiles to be blessed, as well as God’s people. I am so thankful He came for me, too. Aren’t you glad He came for you?

Below, I have included the PDF of the first 8 days of this Advent series. If you have missed one along the way, it may be easier to download this copy rather than go back and find them on the blog. I am praying it will be a blessing!