“The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together against the LORD and His Anointed…” Psalm 2:2. “He was oppressed and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth…” Isaiah 53:7

Until I was writing the (March 25th) post about the different aspects of Eden’s curse that our Lord took upon Himself at the time of His crucifixion, I’d never considered human oppression as one of them. I almost skipped over the last phrase in “Eve’s part” of the curse, “… he will rule over you” (Gn 3:16c).

But Isaiah 53:7 says, “He was oppressed,” and the record shows how he was dragged from one authority to the other and never got a shred of justice.

Now looking at Psalm 2:2, which Acts 4:26-28 declares is a prophecy fulfilled in Christ’s earthly persecution, I find myself staring at this issue again.

Facts of Life

The spirit of “he shall [lord it] over you” has plagued more of humanity than just woman. Although God declared certain aspects of the Curse to Serpent, others to Adam, and others to Eve, every one of them affects every one of us—sorrow, pain, death, striving with one another, and all the rest—much of it the natural result of sinful selfishness.

Oppression and power struggles form the fiber of recorded history. And the more you read about this—or try (futilely) to fix it—the more depressed you can get! Ecclesiastes says we shouldn’t be shocked when we see it; it’s a fact of life “under the sun” (Ec 5:8 NIV).

While the poor and helpless suffer under the oppression, even the top dogs in the human power struggle find themselves pushed and pulled by political tides and rival threats, never at ease on their high thrones. Such was the case with those who took “counsel together against the LORD and His Anointed” that long ago holy week (Jn 11:47-48; Mt 27:15-20,21-24; Mt 14:1-5,6-10).

…And Facts of Life

Well, thank God, there’s also Life under the Son—a whole different story. And it was Christ’s willing placing of Himself under earth’s most unjust oppression that broke open for us the entrance to His new life, and just Kingdom!

Someday “all oppression will cease,” as the Christmas carol proclaims. Those of us who have obtained Eternal Life in Christ already “own” that freedom essentially, and in Eternity will enjoy it absolutely!

Who’s In Charge, Anyway?

Jesus told Pilate he had no power except what God gave him (Jn 19:11). God had not only granted this ruler his power, but had orchestrated its part in Christ’s sacrificial death on the Cross to bear the penalty for our sin and break the power of the Curse.

One day Christ will return, to usher in His everlasting and ever-just Kingdom, and though the process then won’t all be pretty, either, the end thereof will be beautiful and glorious beyond our wildest imagination. What a relief and joy to anticipate: that utter absence of oppression in God’s coming Kingdom–as we fix our eyes on the now-empty cross!