Isaiah 9:1
Nevertheless the dimness shall not be such as was in her vexation, when at the first he lightly afflicted the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, and afterward did more grievously afflict her by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, in Galilee of the nations.
The land named is Zebulun and Naphtali by the way of the sea beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles, with Capernaum standing on the seacoast in their borders. Its earlier light affliction and later grievous affliction will not leave it in dimness and vexation as before, for light and salvation come after darkness to that afflicted region. This was fulfilled when Jesus left Nazareth after His rejection there and came to dwell in Capernaum in Galilee, where He began His public teaching ministry. The promised great light is Jesus Christ Himself, the Sun of Righteousness and light of the world, who came to people sitting in terrible moral darkness under Satan's power in the region and shadow of death, preaching repentance because the kingdom of heaven is at hand and going about all Galilee teaching, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and demon-possession, thereby breaking Satan's control. That fulfillment gives the example of how to work, showing that believers are not to remain in favored places but to carry gospel teaching, preaching, and healing, including medical missionary work, into neglected villages, towns, and cities where multitudes may be drawn and doors for truth opened.
Land and Fulfillment
The names in the verse are the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali by the way of the sea beyond Jordan, which is Galilee of the Gentiles or nations. Capernaum stands upon the seacoast in the borders of Zebulun and Naphtali, within that coastal region beyond the Jordan in Galilee. The dimness and vexation shall not remain as before, for the land was at the first lightly afflicted and afterward more grievously afflicted, yet its trouble and darkness give way to change. That change is the coming of light and salvation after darkness to the afflicted region, when the Messiah brings the light of the Sun of Righteousness to people sitting in darkness and in the shadow of death.
The verse was fulfilled when Jesus, leaving Nazareth, came and dwelt in Capernaum in Galilee upon the seacoast in their borders. There He made Capernaum His home and began His public teaching ministry, preaching repentance because the kingdom of heaven is at hand. His teaching among the crowds on the shore of Galilee is the scene of the promised great light, heard as light amid darkness. That move to Capernaum followed His rejection in Nazareth, after which His ministry in that region brought the promised light to its people.
That same move followed the devil ending all temptation and departing for a season, when Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee and fame of Him went out through all the surrounding region. It also followed Jesus hearing that John was cast into prison, when He departed into Galilee, left Nazareth, and dwelt in Capernaum that the prophecy might be fulfilled. At Christ's first advent the people of Galilee of the Gentiles sitting in darkness and the shadow of death thus saw great light spring up from the very light Christ brought them.
Light in Darkness
The great light promised to end the dimness is Jesus Christ Himself, the Sun of Righteousness and the light of the world, bringing salvation to the afflicted land. He is the light that shines upon those sitting in darkness and in the region and shadow of death, giving them truth and life. The contrast is between the earlier trouble and darkness of Zebulun and Naphtali and the change that comes with His advent.
Those He came to were under Satan's power and in terrible moral darkness. Men were controlled by satanic agencies that were gaining control of bodies and minds, and the world was in a terrible condition.
The dawning of that light was Christ's own presence among the crowds on the shore, preaching repentance because the kingdom of heaven is at hand. It was His going about all Galilee teaching in the synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and disease. That healing reached the sick, the tormented, the demon-possessed, the lunatic, and the palsied, so that in human nature He resisted the forces of darkness, broke the enemy's control over body and mind, and held the enemy in check as a counterworking influence from the highest authority.
Although this is a plain specification concerning Christ, those claiming learning in the Scriptures and spiritual eyesight closed the eyes of their understanding to evidence piled upon evidence of His divine character. They made the record a different matter from what it testified, refusing to see because they were too self-exalted to be instructed. The darkness comprehended not the light, and such willful moral blindness is more dangerous and deplorable than physical blindness.
That same light springs up wherever the truths of the Bible are clearly presented, for the dawning there was both the presence of Christ and the clear presentation of Bible truth. Receiving that light by receiving Christ as Saviour brings daily victory over temptation. It brings life, even eternal life in the kingdom of glory, and those who gain it should be joyful and the most happy people in the world, not hesitating over what they give up.
Pattern for Mission
The fulfillment in Capernaum is given as the example of how to work, showing the methods to follow in teaching and the duty owed to fellow beings. The Prince of life left Nazareth and came to dwell in Capernaum upon the seacoast in the borders of Zebulun and Naphtali, by the way of the sea beyond Jordan in Galilee of the Gentiles. There the dimness lifts as the people sitting in darkness and in the region and shadow of death see a great light spring up. That light is Jesus beginning to preach repentance because the kingdom of heaven is at hand, and going about all Galilee teaching in the synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and disease.
He thus labored for those outside His own city, choosing as His missionary field places others did not see as of special advantage. After hearing that John was cast into prison He left Nazareth and dwelt in Capernaum on the seacoast in their borders, bringing the promised light to that darkness and death. That choice shows that important centers must be faithfully worked and must hear the last message of warning.
His going about all Galilee teaching, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and disease included healing the sick, the tormented, the demon-possessed, the lunatic, and the palsied, so that His fame spread through Syria and great multitudes followed from Galilee and Decapolis and Jerusalem and Judea and beyond Jordan. This teaching, preaching, and healing work is the work that will open doors for the truth. Therefore believers are not to colonize in Battle Creek and other favored places, but to follow the example of the Great Missionary by carrying this same teaching, preaching, and healing, including medical missionary work, into villages and towns and cities where there are no memorials for the truth.