Isaiah with Training Wheels: 41:21 – 42:17
The previous section was the Gospel to the House of Israel.
This section is the Gospel to the Gentiles.
We also get to look at the first of the four Servant Songs.
But what I think is interesting is the identity of the Servant… there is more depth there than I originally supposed.
41:21 Produce your cause, saith the Lord; bring forth your , saith the King of Jacob.
22 Let them bring them forth, and shew [nagad] us what shall happen: let them shew [nagad] the former [rishon] things, what they be, that we may consider them, and know the latter end of them; or declare us things for to come [bo].
23 Shew the things that are to come hereafter [ata], that we may know that ye are gods: yea, do good, or do evil, that we may be dismayed, and behold it together.
24 Behold, ye are of nothing, and your work of nought: an is he that chooseth you.
25 I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come [ata]: from the rising of the sun shall he call upon my name: and he shall come [bo] upon princes as upon mortar, and as the potter treadeth clay.
26 Who hath from the beginning [rosh], that we may know? and beforetime, that we may say, He is righteous? yea, there is none that sheweth [nagad], yea, there is none that declareth, yea, there is none that heareth your words.
27 [I was first declare] to Zion, Behold, behold them: and I will give to Jerusalem one that bringeth good tidings.
28 For I beheld, and there was no [idol god]; even among them, and there was no counsellor [to their gods], that, when I asked of them, could answer a word.
29 Behold, they are all ; their works are nothing: their molten are wind and [meaninglessness].
42:1 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 [rasas] 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 [rasas],
till he have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law.
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.
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.
Notes:
Court Scene 41:21-29
A: Judicial Challenge: The Lord challenges idols in court (21)
B: The issue to be tested before the court: Can Idols Predict? (22-23)
C: Judicial Summary: Idols are nothing (24)
A: Judicial Challenge: The Lord claims (25)
B: The issue to be tested before the court: Only the Lord can predict (26-27)
C: Judicial Summary: Idols are useless (28-29)
Arguably, A & B should be combined. The structure is the most clear in the Hebrew.
v. 41:21 ‘strong reasons’ – literally ‘strong things’, ie. proofs, best arguments
v. 41:22-23 Idolators, bring your idols out. Tell us what is going to happen.
- Can you us what has happened in the past and its outcome?
- Can you predict the future?
“good or bad” – ie. do anything you want. We just want to see if you are capable of doing anything
v. 41: 25 “calls on my name” – his actions proclaim the Lord
v. 41:26 “was righteous” – “he was right”
“none that sheweth” – the idols do not declare anything, no one hears them
v. 41:27 “First” refers to the Lord. “them” refers to True Prophecies.
v. 41:28 reference here is either to idols or to idol worshipers.
v. 41:29 wind – lacking substance, confusion -meaninglessness
First Servant Song 42:1-4
This is the first of four Servant Songs.
This court scene feeds directly into the Servant Song. The word translated as ‘behold!’ is /hen/ or Look! See! It is used in verse 41:29 and then the next verse, 42:1.
This Servant Song focuses on how the Servant will bring Judgement. This is a translation of the word /mispat/. But I think a clearer translation for this song would be The Laws of God or Truth or Commandments of God. The preceding section (the court scene) was not primarily about the injustice of idols, but about the their lack of knowledge (cf. 41:28) Idols, or the corrupt philosophies we idolize, do NOT give us truth. The Servant Song contrasts with the court scene, because the Servant brings truth. That servant is both the Savior AND us. We are to do the Savior’s work. 42:6,9 expand on the theme of teaching truth.
There is a debate about the identity of the Servant.
Christians look at this and intuitively say, this is the Savior.
The Jews look at this, and point out, correctly, that the scripture identifies Israel as the Servant.We might inquire if the Book of Mormon makes this clear as definitely one or the other. And the answer is no. But perhaps the fault is us trying to pigeonhole the identity as only one. The Book of Mormon quotes the Servant Songs except for this one. But the only one with commentary is the last one, and there are suggestions it is both a prophet, and also the Savior.
I think that is the correct interpretation – that these are what we are supposed to do, but what we could not do, because of iniquity or weakness. We should become like Christ, and should do his work. And that puts them in a far more interesting and applicable light. This is not merely what the Savior did. This is what we are supposed to do. Ultimately, He did what we could not. Still, there is much we can and should do.
The Servant Song shows the Servant being neither discouraged nor burned out as he brings forth the truth. He is not violent nor overbearing in teaching. Even the weakest (a crushed reed) are left unharmed. The Savior is our Example here.
42:1 He shall bring forth the Law of God to the Gentiles
42:4 He brings forth the Laws of God to the Gentiles
Explanatory Section – 42:5-9
This enlarges on the Servant Song.
We see a three-fold structure here.
• Lord of Creation (42:5)
It is the Lord that is in control
• Lord of Servant (42:6-7)
In light of realizing the Servant is both the Savior AND us, this verse takes on renewed meaning. We are to be that light, etc.
We bring both the truth and the covenants of God to the people. We are the means by which people enter the covenants, by teaching.
Notice the comparison and contrast with Cyrus – “called in righteousness”. cf. 41:2
• Lord of Idols (42:8-9)
It isn’t idols doing this. It is the Lord and his servants. The ‘former things’ – this may be history, or more specifically Cyrus. Is Christ the “new things”?
New Song – The World’s joy in the Lord’s victory 42:10-17
Three-fold Summons to the World to Sing (42:10-12)
The Lord as a Man of War, prevailing over his enemies (13)
Divine Restraint (14a)
Example 1: Woman in Labor (14b)
Example 2: Destruction (14c-15)
Example 3: Rescue the Blind (16a)
Divine Commitment (16b)
Idol-worshipers repulsed (17)
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