O Dayspring, splendor of light everlasting: Come and enlighten those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death.
Today we are looking at the 5th of 7 Old Testament names for Jesus. So far we have seen Him called O Wisdom, O Adonai, O Root of Jesse, and O Key of David. In today’s antiphon, we will see Him in a way we all recognize- as the Light of the World. The passage below, from Isaiah, is a familiar one that we hear read at Christmas time. The one in Revelation is the ultimate fulfillment of the one in Isaiah. But my favorite passage is in the Gospel of John where Jesus is described as the Light of men.
John 1:1-14 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.  There came a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the Light, but he came to testify about the Light. There was he true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man.  He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him.  He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Isaiah 9:1-7 But there will be no more gloom for her who was in anguish; in earlier times He treated the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali with contempt, but later on He shall make it glorious, by the way of the sea, on the other side of Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles. The people who walk in darkness will see a great light; Those who live in a dark land, The light will shine on them. You shall multiply the nation, You shall increase their gladness; They will be glad in Your presence As with the gladness of harvest, As men rejoice when they divide the spoil.  For You shall break the yoke of their burden and the staff on their shoulders, The rod of their oppressor, as at the battle of Midian. For every boot of the booted warrior in the battle tumult, And cloak rolled in blood, will be for burning, fuel for the fire. For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, On the throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this.
Revelation 22:16-17 I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.” The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost.
Dayspring is an antiquated word, but it literally means the first light of day or dawn. The picture of Jesus in this title is that of light coming to dissipate the darkness.
And so we see two great metaphors here- light for the works of God and darkness for the works of the devil and man. Because of the sinfulness of man and the devil, the world was plunged into darkness- and through sin, came death. It is interesting that darkness and death are usually associated with each other just as light is associated with life. This is true in the physical world as well as the spiritual context.
Without light, nothing lives or grows. Physically, we are dependent on the sun for life. Spiritually, we see the same idea- we are dependent on the Son- the light of life. But in Jesus, He is not only a spiritual metaphor, He is actually light. When God led the nation of Israel out of Egypt, He appeared to them as a pillar of fire at night. When Jesus was transfigured before Peter, James and John, they said He became so bright that His face shown like the sun and His clothes became as bright as light.
So in this antiphon, we see Jesus as the essence of light and life, and we also see Him as the supplier and bringer of light. In 2 Corinthians 4:6 the Apostle Paul says “For God, who said, “Light shall shine out of darkness,” is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.â€
That is why the antiphon asks “Come and enlighten those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of deathâ€. Without God shining the light of Christ in our hearts, we would all still be sitting in darkness. We can’t shine the light into our own hearts, that is the work of God and it is a mighty work of grace. The fact that anyone ever gets saved is a miracle of eternal and infinite proportions- because given our choice, we would choose darkness where we think we can hide our sin, guilt and shame. But the great truth is that when the light of life has come into our life, our shame and guilt is removed because our sin is forgiven. The light invades the darkness and the darkness is no more.
Take some time to think of when Jesus was your Dayspring- the dawning of light and truth in your life. Praise Him for His grace and that He has shone His light in your heart.
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