Isaiah 11:1-16

1. Rod out of the stem] RV 'shoot out of the stock,' implying that the tree has been cut down. The Assyrians have been compared in the vv. preceding to cedars, which when felled throw out no fresh suckers; now the house of David is likened to an oak whose life remains in it after it has been cut down (Isaiah 6:13). From the royal family of Judah, though it may seem ruined, is to spring the ideal Ruler in the future. It has been already implied (Isaiah 9:7), and is here expressly stated, that the Messiah is to be of the house of David (Micah 5:2).