In Isaiah 53:10, we read that “when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring.” What does that mean? Also the very next chapter (Isaiah 54) begins with a birth announcement for “barren” Israel. Whatever just happened with the Suffering Servant in chapter 53 means that the righteous remnant that seemed to be wasting away without offspring should “‘break forth into singing and cry aloud…For the children of the desolate one will be more than the children of her who is married,’ says the LORD.” We know that Jesus while on earth never married, so what kind of offspring is this talking about? And what might that mean for how we think about offspring in this Church Age that Jesus ushered in?
It’s important to note that Scripture does picture Jesus as the embodiment of righteous Israel. This was made especially clear in the second Servant Song, Isaiah 49:1-7, which said, “You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified….to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” So the Servant not only IS Israel, He will also gather Israel and He will expand Israel.
If you recall, the nation of Israel is named after a man. The patriarch Jacob was given a new name – “Israel” – which means “He strives with God.” That name then became the name of a nation made up of Jacob’s descendants [with the subtle implication that Israel is made up of those who are willing to strive with God…but that’s a topic for another day]. The man Israel had twelve sons. These sons then became the fathers of the twelve tribes of Israel, from whom all the ancient people of God were descended. Over the next 1500 years, continuing the bloodline was everything. It was through physical progeny that the promises to Abraham were passed down and that the land inheritance rights were maintained.
Fast forward to Jesus – the greater Israel. He had no physical sons, but rather twelve spiritual sons. It is through them that the gospel went out and produced new life in Christians of every generation. Throughout His ministry, Jesus’ comments persistently challenged traditional family expectations (Matthew 10:21-39, 12:46-50, 19:29, Luke 9:57-62, 11:27-28). As His last word before ascension, instead of a Garden Commission of “be fruitful and [physically] multiply,” He left us with the Great Commission – be fruitful by making disciples of all nations.
This shift from a focus on physical progeny to a focus on spiritual progeny has many implications, such as:
- The kingdom work we’re most called to is not the creation of large families, as it’s often perceived to be in traditional Jewish, Muslim, or Mormon circles.
- While we cherish, nurture, and honor our nuclear families and families of origin, we live out of a loyalty that knows the family of Christ will outlast these merely physical bloodlines [though we pray that our kids, parents, siblings would be Christ’s offspring too].
- The legacy of a single and/or childless person who lives all-out for Christ can far outshine the legacy of a happily married patriarch or matriarch of a large clan who lives in a manner that’s absorbed with their own family. To return to Isaiah…chapter 56 says, “To the eunuchs…who choose what pleases me and hold fast to my covenant—to them I will give…a memorial and a name better than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that will endure forever.”
May we all long for that memorial better than sons and daughters. May we all seek to see the descendants of Christ multiplying!