A Reading From the Book of Isaiah
by Rosemarie Adcock
The painting is a depiction of the first mention in the Bible of the resurrection, which Jesus would teach during His life, although no one really grasped what He was saying. The figures are reading the Scripture themselves, as if to discover why they're awake again. The flowers are Bird of Paradise and Easter Lilies in full bloom. The two dancing, rejoicing figures in the back are carrying sheaves of wheat, often used as symbols to describe the Lord's gathering of His people.
The gravestone on the left reads "Awake", while the stone to the back and right has the Hebrew inscription meaning "Sing" or "Shout for Joy."
There are many places in the Book of Isaiah that refer to the coming of the promised Messiah who would be the Lord Jesus Christ. His birth is described as miraculous, born of a virgin. In Chapter 53 Isaiah describes the Messiah as a suffering servant, a man in whom is no “stately form or majesty, nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.” As such, Jesus was misunderstood by His own people, as they were essentially waiting for someone who would deliver them from political oppression.