The Messiah Anna Longed For

Isaiah 54:1-4 “Rejoice, childless one, who did not give birth;
burst into song and shout,
you who have not been in labor!
For the children of the forsaken one will be more
than the children of the married woman,”
says the Lord.
² “Enlarge the site of your tent,
and let your tent curtains be stretched out;
do not hold back;
lengthen your ropes,
and drive your pegs deep.
³ For you will spread out to the right and to the left,
and your descendants will dispossess nations
and inhabit the desolate cities.

⁴ “Do not be afraid, for you will not be put to shame;
don’t be humiliated, for you will not be disgraced.
For you will forget the shame of your youth,
and you will no longer remember
the disgrace of your widowhood. (HCSB)

Anna, one day, will have children.

She will have so many offspring that they will fill the cities and drive out the nations. Her children will do what her ancestors, the tribe of Asher, had failed to do in the land of their heritage.

What a promise!

How will Anna have these children? She died old and barren. She lived alone in the temple for most of her years.

Well, physically unattached to another human being, anyway. People thronged in and out of the temple and her moments of quiet aloneness were likely few. But it was during those times of solitude that she clung to the promise that she preached. She clung to the future redemption of Jerusalem, of God’s chosen people, and of herself.

It is because she lived by this truth and faithfully proclaimed it that she would one day be accredited with children by her God.

Every person that listened as they passed Anna.

The people that admired her dedication and love of God.

The people those people told about her message.

And those through the ages that heard Anna’s testimony and looked to her example.

Anna’s children.