61:1, 2 Jesus quoted these words in Luke 4:18, 19. As he read to the people in the synagogue, he stopped in the middle of 61:2 after the words, “to proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD.” Rolling up the scroll, he said, “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears” (Luke 4:21). The next phrase in 61:2, “and the day of vengeance of our God,” will come true when Jesus returns to earth again. We are now under God’s favor; his wrath is yet to come.
61:6 Under the old covenant, God ordained the priests of Israel to stand between him and his people. They brought God’s word to the people and the people’s needs and sins to God. Under the new covenant, all believers are priests of the Lord (1 Peter 2:5), reading God’s Word and seeking to understand it, confessing their sins directly to God, and ministering to others.
61:8 We suffer for many reasons—our own mistakes, someone else’s mistakes, injustice. When we suffer for our own mistakes, we get what we deserve. When we suffer because of others or because of injustice, God is angry. God in his mercy says that his people have suffered enough. God will reward those who suffer because of injustice. He will settle all accounts.
61:10 “Me” could refer to the Messiah, the person appointed by the Spirit of the Lord (61:1), or to Zion (62:1), which symbolizes God’s people. The imagery of the bridegroom is often used in Scripture to depict the Messiah (see Matthew 9:15), while the imagery of the bride is used to depict God’s people (see Revelation 19:6-8). We, too, can put on our new clothes—right relationship with God—by putting our trust in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21).