PART FIVE: THE LORD'S SERVANT WILL BRING SALVATION THROUGH VICARIOUS SUFFERING (49 - 57) - The chief themes being: the character, mission, and achievement of the Divine Servant; and the glory of redeemed Zion.
I. THE SERVANT IS COMMISSIONED (49:1-26) - The conservative commentators agree that the Servant in view here is Jesus Christ.
A. He Will Bring Salvation Unto The End Of The Earth (49:1-7)
1. Endowments for His work (49:1-4)
(1) This message involves all the nations of the earth. The womb refers to the spiritual remnant that returned from Babylon. The mother of the Ideal Servant then is spiritual Zion (see also Mic. 4:10; 5:2,3; Rev. 12:1-5; Mt. 2:6). In the present portrait of the Messiah, Isaiah styles Him as the Servant-Redeemer. It is in Jesus Christ that the two offices of King and Servant are united (Isa. 7:14; 9:6).
(2) The Servant will conquer His foes with words by making them His allies. Those with heathen hearts will not listen to His words and thus be destroyed. The Servant is an arrow which God will use to penetrate the hearts of men. This mission of the Servant will remain hidden until the time appointed by God (Isa. 64:4; 1 Cor. 2:9-13; Gal. 4:4).
(3) Here the Servant is given the personal name Israel. This poses no problem as to the Servant's identity because of the following verses and the use of this very passage by Paul (Acts 13:47) to refer to Christ. The new Israel will be a spiritual nation headed by the Ideal Servant who in fact personifies Israel.
(4) The Servant knows that His work will be largely rejected, by physical Israel as well as by the Gentiles. Yet Jehovah will determine the measure of His victory and give the increase from among those with a good heart.
2. The enlarged mission (49:5-7)
(5) Of course the Servant is disappointed at not reaching the majority of His own people, but the Lord assures Him that there are those who will follow Him, both from among Israel (the remnant) and from without (the Gentiles).
(6) The preserved of Israel represent the faithful remnant. The Servant will become the light unto the Gentiles, a mission that the Jews still do not understand. Furthermore our premillennial friends do not see the spiritual nature of His kingdom and are waiting in vain for a political and material one.
(7) The Servant will not be well received. In general, man will despise and disdain Him and hold His teachings in contempt. His own people (Israel) will abhor Him. However, His final victory will be complete. All rulers of all nations along with all their people will fall down and worship Him in the judgment day.
B. He Will Comfort His People And Provide Spiritual Food And Water (49:8-13)
(8) In the day of salvation, Jehovah will help His Servant. Paul confirms that this is a reference to the Messianic period (2 Cor. 6:2). We are living in the acceptable time, the gospel age. This gospel will be carried throughout the world, as the Servant will be given to raise up land. He will bring the people a spiritual power to overcome opposition.
(9-11) Spiritual Israel is assured of God's perpetual care. The unfaithful are called upon to return to the fold. The Shepherd will lead His flock to a safe place, past any obstacles, where He will continue to watch after them and care for them.
(12) Those being led are not the refuges from Babylon, since they will be long dead, but instead peoples from all the corners of the earth.
(13) Isaiah once again calls for universal rejoicing. These verses go beyond the Jewish return from Babylon and look forward to the universal ingathering of Jews and Gentiles under Jesus Christ. There will much more to say about this as we proceed (Isa. 66:18-24).
C. He Will Not Forget Zion (49:14-26)
1. Zion's complaint and amazement (49:14-21)
(14) This prophecy also looks beyond the return of the Babylonian exiles. Their complaint reflects a despondent attitude that can only be healed by the coming of the Messiah.
(15) Jehovah tenderly responds to this cry of despondency. His love compares to the love a mother has for her infant. Even when a child makes a mistake a mother still shows compassion for her child - and so does Jehovah for His own. Yet His love is better than even a mother's love. It is infinite and never fails.
(16) Zion is always in the heart and on the mind of Jehovah. From before time Jehovah has had a plan for building up spiritual Zion through Christ (Eph. 3:11; Heb. 12:22-24; 1 Pet. 2:5,6; Rev. 14:1-5).
(17) Now the prophet compares Zion to a mother whose prodigal children are returning. The destroyers are gone and the children are coming home.
(18) The days of despondency are over. The full realization of this prophecy came only in the days of the Messiah, not after the return from Babylon.
(19,20) Spiritual Zion cannot be contained by the boundaries of physical Zion. The opposition that the children once faced will be removed and they will be free to practice their religion behind Jehovah's spiritual wall of fire (Zech. 2:4,5).
(21) Zion will be amazed at the number of Jehovah's true children. Physical Zion had shrunk due to their exile and their wandering to and fro. She was lonely because her wayward children had deserted her and the time of the Messiah was not yet at hand.
2. Jehovah's assurance to Zion (49:22-26)
(22) Jehovah will lift up His hand and set up a flag (ensign) to signal the ingathering of His spiritual people (Isa. 13:2). The Gentiles will answer this call and will come bearing Zion's lost ones on their own shoulders.
(23) Previously Zion had been the servants of others, but under the Ideal Servant even those that are generally served (kings and queens) will become servants to the people. The "royalty" of Zion are of a superior quality to those roundabout. They are a "royal priesthood" (1 Pet. 2:9) and brethren to the supreme King (Heb. 2:11,12).
(24) Zion is skeptical as to whether God's promises can be accomplished. Can the captives be returned from their captors?
(25) Jehovah's answer to their skepticism is an emphatic yes. Contending with God's promises is contending with God Himself. He tells Zion, I will save thy children.
(26) A gruesome end awaits anyone who contends with Him, oppresses His people, or hinders His purposes. God's enemies will destroy one another. The Servant will accomplish His mission and the world will know that Jehovah is the Savior, the Redeemer, and the Mighty One of Jacob. [TOP OF THIS PAGE]
II. GOD'S PEOPLE ARE ADMONISHED TO "HEARKEN" (50:1-51:23)
A. Israel Is Encouraged To Trust In The Name Of The Lord (50:1-11)
1. The exiles are rebuked for thinking they were totally rejected (50:1-3)
(1) Now the prophet addresses the people as if they are the children of mother Zion (Isa. 49:14-22). Jehovah had neither divorced (cast off) their mother nor sold them as slaves. They still belong to Him (Deut. 24:1-4). In the case of the northern kingdom Jehovah had cast them off (Jer. 3:8,14,16) and would not collectively take them back.
(2) The people had hardened their hearts to the extent that none would heed Jehovah when He spoke through the prophets. To illustrate that He does have the power necessary to deliver the people He demonstrates His power over the physical world. But the people have no faith because they lack knowledge.
(3) If Jehovah has the power to deliver the people from Babylon, then He can further deliver them from Satan.
2. The Lord God will help his Servant (50:4-9) - In this song the Servant considers His preparation and qualifications for His work and His reception by the people. Throughout their history, Israel had treated God's prophets with contempt (Mt. 23:31; Acts 7:52). They would not change their stripe when the Ideal Servant appears (Mt. 22:15; 26:68). Some men cannot abide to hear the truth. "There is something in the mere utterance of truth, that arouses the devil in the hearts of many men" (Smith). In this song there is a plain description of the Ideal Servant and man's response to His God-given message.
(4) The Servant will receive His qualifications from the Lord (Deut. 18:18; Acts 3:22,23). These qualifications allow the Servant to approach His task fully prepared. He will be able to sustain with words, him that is weary. He is ever ready to speak these words of truth because Jehovah keeps them coming to Him in an endless supply.
(5) The Ideal Servant will never shrink from His duties as many of His predecessors did (Moses, Jonah, Jeremiah, etc.). He totally submits to His teacher's will. He speaks only what God reveals to Him.
(6) When persecuted for His words, the Servant will not repay evil for evil. Plucking out hair was an expression of wrath or moral indignation (Ezra 9:3; Neh. 13:25). Spitting on another person is an act of defilement and contempt (Lev. 15:8; Num. 12:14). Jesus would take no precautions to avoid such situations (Mt. 26:67; 27:30).
(7) Jehovah will support and assist His Servant. The shameful treatment that the Servant will endure at the hands of man will not cause Him to waver. With Jehovah's help and His own determination and submission, He will be victorious.
(8) The Servant will challenge any and all comers to a duel of words - His truth versus their lies. Jesus made this very challenge in (Jn. 8:46) and it has never been answered (Mk. 14:55,56).
(9) The Servant reiterates the source of His help - Jehovah. His challenge to His enemies is: who shall condemn me? The enemies of the Servant will fade away like a moth-eaten garment.
3. The Lord will help all who trust in Him (50:10,11)
(10) The obedient will demonstrate their obedience by fearing, trusting, and relying upon Jehovah and by obeying the voice of the Servant.
(11) The speaker now turns to those that reject the words of the Servant. They attempt to light their own pathway with firebrands, but are destroyed by those very firebrands. This is an example of what will happen to any man that rejects the Lord's ways and follows his own.
B. Hearken, You That Follow After Righteousness (51:1-23)
1. Faithful Israel Is admonished to hearken (51:1-8)
(1) Even among those that kindle a fire and walk into its midst, there is a faithful remnant. Here Jehovah urges these faithful to hearken (v.1), attend unto me (v.4), and hearken unto me (v. 7). Righteousness can only be achieved by listening to God's words and obeying them. Because the remnant will be so few and will become discouraged, Jehovah prompts them to look back to their faithful ancestors for encouragement.
(2) They should look back to the example of Abraham and Sarah the source of their own existence. The promise was made to Abraham that through his seed (Isaac) all the nations of the earth would be blessed. The remnant are the children of Isaac through faith and therefore are part of the promise that God made to Abraham. In the same spirit that Jehovah allowed Sarah to have a child when she was beyond her years, Jehovah can deliver the remnant to carry out His purpose of building a great spiritual nation.
(3) Once again the prophet speaks as if his prophecy has already come true (Rom. 4:17). However, due to the fact that only a remnant of the remnant hearkened and attended to Jehovah, the prophecy was only fulfilled to a limited extent until the Servant appeared.
(4) The people must pay close attention and be prepared to obey. The spiritual remnant will stand as a light not only to the nation of Israel, but to all the peoples. The Servant will fulfill this obviously messianic prophecy.
(5) This verse also has messianic implications. When studied in light of (Gal. 3:8) and Peter's sermon in (Acts 3:24-26) it can be seen that Isaiah is talking about salvation from sin. Remember, the plural peoples refers to the Gentiles and they have been the Lord's chosen only since the time of Christ.
(6) The Jewish order will pass away as did the pagan order. In their place will come the Servant. It will not be possible to sustain a proper relationship with God through any system that has been done away. The Servant will establish a new system of righteousness that will be for all nations to follow.
(7) Righteousness can only be known by those that let the law live in their hearts and allows that knowledge to be expressed through their will and actions. Those of the new order must be prepared to withstand the revilings and reproach of men.
(8) The same destruction that will come upon the enemies of the Servant will come upon the detractors of His people. These enemies will have the same fate as those of (50:9).
2. An appeal to the Lord and His reply (51:9-16)
(9) Upon hearing the assurance and encouragement of (vv. 1-8) the prophet calls upon the Lord to take action. This action could be in the form of action taken in the past, such as against Rahab and the monster (probably Egypt).
(10) The prophet calls on God to deliver the exiles from Babylon just like he earlier delivered the people from Egypt. What has been done in the past, God can do again in the present.
(11) This verse is a word for word repetition of (35:10). Compare the application there with here. Here the verse expresses the people's joyous spirit upon their return from Babylon and looks forward to the joy to come through the Messiah.
(12) I, even I emphasizes Jehovah's claim to be the One True Deliverer. Those who will acknowledge this fact have nothing to fear from man. While man is temporal, God is eternal.
(13) The only reason that Israel would fear man in the first place is because they had forgotten Jehovah. The power that God possesses to create the world shows just how ultimately powerful He is. Comparatively speaking no earthly oppressor can match the fury of God.
(14) Those that are under Babylonian captivity will be loosed, but only in God's good time. Jehovah will care for His people so that the remnant will not see corruption.
(15) Their assurance is God's word. Further proof of His power is His control over nature.
(16) God's words have been delivered to His prophets. His prophets and therefore His words are protected by His infinite power. His words promise a new order, a spiritual Zion. This city of the new spiritual people exists through the Messiah now and forever!
3. An appeal to Jerusalem to awake (51:17-23)
a. Jerusalem's tragic plight (vv. 17-20)
(17) Compare this pitiable picture to (Ezek. 16:23-43). The woman pictured is Jerusalem and the cup she has drained is Babylon. She drinks, she staggers, stumbles, and falls. Her judgment is complete as she drains even the dregs of the cup of God's wrath.
(18) None of Jerusalem's children is capable of guiding her back to sobriety and the true path. Only Jehovah can restore Jerusalem and her family.
(19) Who will comfort Jerusalem in her drunken state? Who will give her sympathy? Two things had come against Jerusalem: 1, desolation and destruction, and 2, famine and the sword. Only the Lord can comfort her in such a condition and only the Lord is willing to do so.
(20) The sons of Jerusalem are helpless as animals caught in the hunters nets.
b. Jehovah's gracious promise (vv. 21-23)
(21) Because of Jerusalem's condition she needs the Lord's advice - to listen to what the Lord has to say.
(22) Jehovah had administered his judgment , now He will set the extent of its duration and the time of restitution. He will remove the cup of wrath from their hands.
(23) Babylon will now drink the cup of wrath that they once had been (Jer. 51:7). Jerusalem had been subjected to cruel and harsh treatment at the hands of Babylon. In turn Babylon would get a dose of her own medicine (Jer. 51:54-56; Hab. 2:15,16).