Isaiah 42
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Prophecies of Condemnation (1:1–35:10)
Sign of Immanuel (7:1–25)
Prophecy of the Messiah’s Birth (9:1–7)
Restoration of the Messiah’s Kingdom (11:1–16)
The Historical Parenthesis (36:1–39:8)
Hezekiah’s salvation from sickness (38:1-22)
Hezekiah gets healed and given 15 more years, but when a gift is sent by emissaries from the king of Babylon because he was sick and recovered (probably to see if Israel would help them fight Assyria):
Isaiah 39:2 “2 And Hezekiah was glad of them, and shewed them the house of his precious things, the silver, and the gold, and the spices, and the precious ointment, and all the house of his armour, and all that was found in his treasures: there was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion, that Hezekiah shewed them not.”
Isaiah goes to Hezekiah and asks him who the men were and what he showed them. Hezekiah, full of pride, said “I showed them all the riches we have!”
Isaiah 39:5–8 “5 Then said Isaiah to Hezekiah, Hear the word of the LORD of hosts: 6 Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day, shall be carried to Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the LORD. 7 And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon. 8 Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, Good is the word of the LORD which thou hast spoken. He said moreover, For there shall be peace and truth in my days.”
Hezekiah’s pride will be the incentive that lures Babylon to become the instrument of Yahweh’s judgement for Manasseh’s sin of leading all Jerusalem into idolatry (2 Kings 21:11-15).
Part Three: The Prophecies of Comfort (40:1–66:24)
The Prophecies of Israel’s Deliverance (40:1–48:22)
Comfort because of Israel’s Deliverance (40:1–11)
Comfort because of God’s Character (40:12–31)
Comfort because of God’s Greatness (41:1–29)
Jerusalem falls to Babylon in 587/586 BC; Chapters 40-66 are Isaiah’s prophecies to and through the captivity, as if it has already happened. Naming Cyrus by name roughly 150 years before he appears.
That’s
Isaiah knows and is telling them “Yahweh is sovereign and this is His plan” and he sets out to convince them of two things:
First, events beginning to take shape about them, especially the rise and progress of the Persian king Cyrus (named explicitly in 44:28 and 45:1) are the LORD’s doing (2–4, 25–27).
Secondly, they themselves, as the surviving remnant of Israel, are God’s servant; he has chosen them and will not abandon them (8–10).
Therefore they are to see the fear which has gripped them as the irrational, baseless thing it is, and not give in to it (10, 14).
Isaiah is showing them the little g-god’s of the Nations can’t tell the future only Yahweh
Isa. 41:8-20 is Isaiah:
Calling them to remember who they were. As a nation they were God’s servant, just as Jacob had been, and as Abraham had been before him (8–9). As the descendants of Abraham, they still shared in his calling to be a blessing to the whole earth (Gen. 12:1-3).
And secondly, they are not to give in to fear (10, 14).
Isaiah 41:14 “14 Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel; I will help thee, saith the LORD, and thy redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.”
The “worm”, small and weak, powerless in themselves Yahweh promises…
Isaiah 41:15 “15 Behold, I will make thee a new sharp threshing instrument having teeth: thou shalt thresh the mountains, and beat them small, and shalt make the hills as chaff.”
God will make them a powerful instrument and He will judge the nations that stand against them, so fear not.
Isaiah 41:8–9 “8 But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend. 9 Thou whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and called thee from the chief men thereof, and said unto thee, Thou art my servant; I have chosen thee, and not cast thee away.”
"servant" is Israel — Jacob, seed of Abraham, chosen and not cast away. That is the servant who is fearful and needs reassurance.
But Isaiah then introduces them to another…
Comfort because of God’s Servant (42:1–25)
Comfort because of God’s Servant (42:1–25)
1 Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles. 2 He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street. 3 A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth. 4 He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law.
vs 1: Behold: “here is” my servant! Isaiah states it like he’s just told us about a fearful servant that needed help and with the next breath: “HERE IS MY SERVANT!”
the one Yahweh keeps for Himself
His “chosen one” in whom His soul is well-pleased
Yahweh has put HIS Spirit on him and this servant will “bring forth justice to the Nations”
judgement here isn’t condemnation; it’s justice: mishpat here is closer to right order, true rule, the establishing of God's justice and the true knowledge of God among the nations.
Justice is the Lord’s truth and the truth about the Lord
“bring forth”: seems to me, the truth is not something they search for and find little by little over time but something brought to them by the One that reveals it to them
vs 2-3: Verse 1 introduces us to the most perfect servant, 2 and 3 tell us His most perfect service
He won’t cry out to be heard, shout others down, or advertise how great he is
reeds were used as fishing spears, walking canes, and flutes. A bruised or damaged reed is useless
smoking flax is a smoldering wick in a lamp that’s just about burnt out
No matter how useless and near death they seem, Yahweh’s servant won’t finish them off
vs 3c-4: His divine revelation is faithfully done and is true
fail or be discouraged pick up smoldering and bruised.
The things that crush and quench he will experience, but he will triumph and succeed in ‘establishing’ justice, the revelation of God, on earth!
5 Thus saith God the LORD, he that created the heavens, and stretched them out; he that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it; he that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein: 6 I the LORD have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles; 7 To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house. 8 I am the LORD: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images. 9 Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them.
Vs 5-7 are addressed to the Servant himself, with Israel overhearing
vs 6: covenant to Israel (restoring the people) and light to the nations (extending beyond Israel)
the Servant being a covenant and a light (6b).
As creator, God is the one who gives breath to all people (5b).
Moreover, the God who made the world will keep it;
there is a ‘covenant’ between God the creator and His creation. The Servant, as a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles, is to be the very embodiment of that covenant.
It is through him that God’s purposes for His world will be realized, by the opening of blind eyes, the freeing of captives, and the release of those who sit in darkness (7).
release from exile/captivity (Babylon) then eventually freeing all the people of God.
Jesus will help them connect it all when he reads Isaiah 61 from the scroll in the temple in Luke 4
The Servant will undo all the horrible effects that sin has had on the human race and restore to people their true freedom and dignity as sons and daughters of God.
Vs 8-9: Isaiah 42:8 “8 I am the LORD: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.”
Yahweh's exclusive glory is why the idols fail and why the praise of vv. 10-13 belongs to him alone.
The prophesies made and the events unfolding gives the captives in Babylon proof of Yahweh’s sovereignty in all that’s happening.
the work of the Servant would open a new chapter in God’s relationship with his people and with the world, in which His glory would be shown in a new way, far beyond anything that had happened previously.
Eventually leading to new heavens and a new earth (Isa. 65:17; Isa. 66:22)
10 Sing unto the LORD a new song, and his praise from the end of the earth, ye that go down to the sea, and all that is therein; the isles, and the inhabitants thereof. 11 Let the wilderness and the cities thereof lift up their voice, the villages that Kedar doth inhabit: let the inhabitants of the rock sing, let them shout from the top of the mountains. 12 Let them give glory unto the LORD, and declare his praise in the islands. 13 The LORD shall go forth as a mighty man, he shall stir up jealousy like a man of war: he shall cry, yea, roar; he shall prevail against his enemies. 14 I have long time holden my peace; I have been still, and refrained myself: now will I cry like a travailing woman; I will destroy and devour at once. 15 I will make waste mountains and hills, and dry up all their herbs; and I will make the rivers islands, and I will dry up the pools. 16 And I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not; I will lead them in paths that they have not known: I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them. 17 They shall be turned back, they shall be greatly ashamed, that trust in graven images, that say to the molten images, Ye are our gods.
Isaiah breaks into praise and exaltation of Yahweh when the glory of the gospel gets to him
He calls on the whole world to join him in praising God—sailors and desert-dwellers, sea-creatures and human beings, islands and mountains
vs 17: The praise of anything or anyone other than God, especially idols, is foolish and pathetic when we know the power of the Almighty God!
vs 13-16: Redemption is accomplished with tremendous effort and at great cost, and it’s the glory of the LORD that he spares himself neither.
The gentleness toward the weak (vv. 1-4) and the ferocity toward what enslaves them (vv. 13-15) are two sides of the same servant
He is totally committed to the welfare of his people, however blind they may be and however dark their circumstances; he will not forsake them (16)
I can imagine Isaiah as he introduces the perfect servant and his perfect mission, leading to him looking and raising his arms toward heaven as he praises Yahweh and lifts his voice in glory and adoration
Then he snaps his head back down to the people of Israel!
18 Hear, ye deaf; and look, ye blind, that ye may see. 19 Who is blind, but my servant? or deaf, as my messenger that I sent? who is blind as he that is perfect, and blind as the LORD’S servant? 20 Seeing many things, but thou observest not; opening the ears, but he heareth not. 21 The LORD is well pleased for his righteousness’ sake; he will magnify the law, and make it honourable. 22 But this is a people robbed and spoiled; they are all of them snared in holes, and they are hid in prison houses: they are for a prey, and none delivereth; for a spoil, and none saith, Restore. 23 Who among you will give ear to this? who will hearken and hear for the time to come? 24 Who gave Jacob for a spoil, and Israel to the robbers? did not the LORD, he against whom we have sinned? for they would not walk in his ways, neither were they obedient unto his law. 25 Therefore he hath poured upon him the fury of his anger, and the strength of battle: and it hath set him on fire round about, yet he knew not; and it burned him, yet he laid it not to heart.
Isaiah goes back to Israel as the servant, and it’s not pretty
vs 19: How unlike the perfect servant they are!
The perfect Servant (vv. 1-4) is framed by the failed servant on both sides (41 and 42:19).
Israel-weak, Servant-perfect, Israel-blind.
That’s the whole point — the blind servant needs the seeing Servant. If you leave this morning only knowing that fact in your heart, the Lord has used my mess of a lesson.
God’s people are anything but full of praise. Israel has so given in to bitterness and unbelief that all they are capable of is complaining.
They are deaf to God’s word, and blind to his purposes (18–19)
And this blindness is twice as bad, since Israel, unlike the other nations, had been given special revelation. Yahweh, for the sake of his own righteousness, purposed to make his law great and glorious — and that magnifying of the law only deepens Israel's guilt, since they had it and still wouldn't see. (21)
They are no better than their ancestors, whose stubborn rebelliousness led to the punishment of the exile (23–25)
Isaiah 42:25 “25 Therefore he hath poured upon him the fury of his anger, and the strength of battle: and it hath set him on fire round about, yet he knew not; and it burned him, yet he laid it not to heart.”
Even under judgment, Israel doesn't understand why. That's the deepest blindness — not just failing to see God's purposes, but failing to read one's own suffering as connected to one's own sin.
Conclusion
Conclusion
We opened with Hezekiah hearing "your sons will be carried to Babylon" and answering "good is the word of the Lord — there'll be peace in my days."
We closed with Israel in that very Babylon, judged and still not laying it to heart.
The chapter's blind servant is the fulfillment of the blind king's complacency — and the only answer to both is the seeing Servant of vv. 1-9.
Matthew 12:15–21 “15 But when Jesus knew it, he withdrew himself from thence: and great multitudes followed him, and he healed them all; 16 And charged them that they should not make him known: 17 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, 18 Behold my servant, whom I have chosen; my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased: I will put my spirit upon him, and he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles. 19 He shall not strive, nor cry; neither shall any man hear his voice in the streets. 20 A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory. 21 And in his name shall the Gentiles trust.”
Isaiah says the Servant carries justice through to truth; Matthew says victory — and both are right, because the gentleness and the triumph are the same thing. He wins by not breaking the weak.
the Servant is God's provision (he comes gently, given as covenant and light), which calls for repentance and gratitude (the new song of vv. 10-12), and stands as warning to those who, like the blind king and the blind nation, hear the word of the Lord and still will not lay it to heart. Provision, response, warning
The servant Isaiah spoke of is the Lord Jesus. Gentle and lowly, meek and mild. YET powerfully and completely bringing God’s truth, God’s salvation, and God’s rule to all of God’s people. He also brings God’s judgement to those who refuse to come to Him in faith
