Behold! My Servant whom I have chosen, My Beloved in whom My soul is well pleased!

But when Jesus knew it, He withdrew from there. And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them all. Yet He warned them not to make Him known, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:

"Behold! My Servant whom I have chosen,

My Beloved in whom My soul is well pleased!

I will put My Spirit upon Him,

And He will declare justice to the Gentiles.

He will not quarrel nor cry out,

Nor will anyone hear His voice in the streets,

A bruised reed He will not break,

And smoking flax He will not quench,

Till He sends forth justice to victory;

And in His name Gentiles will trust."

- Matthew 12:15-21

In yesterday's reading, we read of Jesus' confrontation with the Pharisees. They criticize Him for breaking the rule of the Sabbath rest, when His disciples plucked grain to eat as they passed through a field. But Jesus challenges their rigid interpretation of the Law, giving them examples from the Old Testament of blameless violations of the Sabbath, including that of David and his men. Furthermore, He teaches that "The Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath." But Jesus also comes to their synagogue and boldly challenges them yet again. There was a man there with a withered hand. "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?" He asked. Any one of them would save a sheep they owned from danger on the Sabbath -- is not a man worth more than a sheep? "Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath." He commanded the man to stretch out his hand, and healed him. Then, we are told, the Pharisees went out and plotted against Him, how they might destroy Him.

But when Jesus knew it, He withdrew from there. And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them all. Jesus has provoked a deliberate confrontation with the Pharisees (in our previous reading) over issues of mercy, of doing good, of healing. Which is most important for the Sabbath? And what does it mean to take our Sabbath rest if it does not include healing and the good of man? But His mission is not over yet, and He withdraws from further confrontation. True to Himself and His teachings, He continued to heal.

Yet He warned them not to make Him known, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: "Behold! My Servant whom I have chosen, my Beloved in whom My soul is well pleased!" Jesus continues to hide His messianic identity -- it is only for those who can see it, receive it, understand it. He wants people to come to Him by faith. But the Evangelist quotes from Isaiah, the words about the Suffering Servant. Although Jesus has just announced that the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath - thus expressing the divinity of the Messiah, and Sonship with the Father - it is still left to people to come to Him through faith. My study bible says that the Servant of God refers both to the Messiah and to all God's elect.

"I will put My Spirit upon Him, and He will declare justice to the Gentiles." Isaiah foresees also the participation of Gentiles in this ministry, and the going out of the gospel to all people after Pentecost.

"He will not quarrel nor cry out, nor will anyone hear His voice in the streets, a bruised reed He will not break, and smoking flax He will not quench, till He sends forth justice to victory; and in His name Gentiles will trust." This is a picture of a gentle Messiah, one who is meek and lowly of heart. The Evangelist emphasizes that it is not yet time for Jesus to reveal Himself, by using the prophecy of Isaiah which also foresees the character of this Suffering Servant. My study bible notes that there are several reasons for secrecy, including: "(1) The growing hostility of the Jewish leaders, (2) the people's misunderstanding of messiahship as political and earthly, and (3) Jesus' desire to evoke the response of faith -- He wants people to discover His identity for themselves."

So, we observe Jesus. He does not back down from defense of mercy and love (see yesterday's reading). But yet, it is not His time. People must come to Him voluntarily. If they are going to recognize His greatness, His identity as Messiah, it is going to have to be with the eyes of love, with the hearts and minds of those who can respond to His message without force or manipulation of any kind. This is a relationship -- and recognition -- of love that is at work, and you have to be able to hear and see that love to recognize it. Isaiah gives us a picture not of a Messiah leading to military victory, but one who has the Spirit with Him, and who will suffer. He is One who is gentle and lowly of heart, whose yoke is easy and whose burden is light. He is the light that will enlighten the nations, that will go even to all the Gentiles. And this is the way. Jesus shows us the way. It is through love and caring. It is not through wasted or false confrontation -- but through healing, for healing, for love. And He picks His battles carefully. In this ministry, there will be a "battle" of witnessing. Can we read Isaiah's words and take them to heart for ourselves? Can we see Jesus and understand His commitment to God, to the ways of the Suffering Servant, to the instructions of the Spirit, that are all couched in love? Let us take His words to heart from yesterday's reading, also repeated earlier in the Gospel, as He quotes from Hosea: "I desire mercy and not sacrifice." God wants us in a relationship of love, and does not compel us to love Him. How is that love at work in you? Does the word of the Suffering Servant come to you in your heart, even in a secret place? Can it teach you a Way in life? There is so much in the gospel about what is secret and hidden, yet remains for us to see and hear. Even, here, there is the tremendous secret of the Messiah's incarnation, the whisper that God has become human!