Cyrus is My Shepherd
and Will Accomplish All that I Please
44: 24-28

Cyrus is My shepherd and will accomplish all that I please DIG: What truth about God is stressed here? How do these truths confirm the promises given? As an exile who had no freedom to leave Babylon, much less consider rebuilding Jerusalem, would you have responded to these promises with hope or with cynicism? In light of this, how might the exiles feel as they heard rumors of Cyrus’ conquests and approach to Babylon? What does that imply about the relationship between God’s actions and Cyrus’ plans?

REFLECT: Here the LORD is emphasizing the faithfulness, the surety, the reliability and the promises of His written Word through the prophets, His messengers. If you are a believer, His Word contains promises to you about your future with Him. What do you believe about these promises? Some have said, “The Bible says it, I believe it, and that does it!” Does that characterize you? Or do you have doubts? As you read about God’s promise of deliverance to the Israelites from the Babylon Captivity, and His faithfulness to them, how does that make you feel about His faithfulness to you?

The second half of the book of Isaiah is a message of comfort. Here God announces through His prophet the deliverance of the Jews by a Persian emperor named Cyrus. In the Hebrew text this is all one sentence. It is one of the longest sentences in the Hebrew text. First, he describes the LORD’s authority by saying: This is what ADONAI says (44:24a). We see that phrase again in 45:1, 11, 14 and 18. It is usually used to bring about confidence in the promises of God to redeem and deliver. This phrase underscores that these are the very words of God.

Then the LORD asserts: I am your Redeemer (44:24b, also see 43:14). He is Isra’el’s go’el, the Next-of-Kin, pledged to take and bear her every burden as His own (see the commentary on Ruth, to see link click Ax – Ruth and Boaz on the Threshing Floor). She is His family by His will. James, Yeshua’s half-brother, wrote to the twelve tribes scattered among the nations saying: He chose to give us birth through the Word of truth, that we might be a kind of first fruits of all He created (James 1:18). Isaiah then describes Isra’el’s special relationship with the LORD ten times by starting each sentence with the word who.

(1) Who formed you in the womb (44:24d). In the abortion debate people often argue about exactly when life begins. The Bible is very clear that life begins in the womb (Psalm 139:13-16; Isaiah 43:1, 7 and 21, 44:2 and 24; Jer 1:5 and 20:17). David would say: From my mother’s womb you have been my God (Psalm 22:10b). 

In a mother’s womb were two babies. One asked the other: “Do you believe in life after delivery?” The other replied, “Why, of course. There has to be something after delivery. Maybe we are here to prepare ourselves for what we will be later.”

“Nonsense” said the first. “There is no life after delivery. What kind of life would that be?”

The second said, “I don’t know, but there will be more light than here. Maybe we will walk with our legs and eat from our mouths. Maybe we will have other senses that we can’t understand now.”

The first replied, “That is absurd. Walking is impossible. And eating with our mouths? Ridiculous! The umbilical cord supplies nutrition and everything we need. But the umbilical cord is so short. Life after delivery is to be logically excluded.”

The second insisted, “Well I think there is something and maybe it’s different than it is here. Maybe we won’t need this physical cord anymore.”

The first replied, “Nonsense. And moreover if there is life, then why has no one ever come back from there? Delivery is the end of life, and in the after-delivery there is nothing but darkness and silence and oblivion. It takes us nowhere.”

“Well, I don’t know,” said the second, “but certainly we will meet Mother and she will take care of us.”

The first replied “Mother? You actually believe in Mother? That’s laughable. If Mother exists then where is She now?”

The second said, “She is all around us. We are surrounded by her. We are of Her. It is in Her that we live. Without Her this world would not and could not exist.”

Said the first: “Well I don’t see Her, so it is only logical that She doesn’t exist.”

To which the second replied, “Sometimes, when you’re in silence and you focus and listen, you can perceive Her presence, and you can hear Her loving voice, calling down from above.”

If you are a believer in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, I would caution you to believe in, and follow, the LORD’s Word to you rather than the lies of our current generation.

(2) Who had made all things (44:24c). Not only has the LORD made Isra’el, but He has also made all things without any assistance or advice (40:12-14 and 21-22). The fact that ADONAI is Isra’el’s Maker suggests that He would protect her and not see her destroyed. All creation has a relationship with God, but the people of Isra’el have a special relationship with Him. She is, after all, the apple of His eye (Deuteronomy 32:10c).

(3) Who alone stretched out the heavens and laid the foundations of the earth (44:24d and 51:13). Regarding stretching out the heavens (see the commentary on Genesis Ak – So God Made the Expanse Between the Waters), and for laying the foundations of the earth (see the commentary on GenesisAl – God Called the Dry Ground Land and Gathered the Waters He Called Seas). In other words, His continuing work as the Creator guarantees that He is in sole charge of everything (40:26), and there is no other God (Ps 96:5).

(4) Who spread out the earth by Myself (44:24e). And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it He rested from all the work of creating that He had done (see my commentary on Genesis Aq – By the Seventh Day God Had Finished His Work). The point is that ADONAI is responsible for the existence of the world as we know it.

(5) Who foils the signs of false prophets (44:25a). The Hebrew word for false prophets here means babblers. It is used in Isaiah 16:6, Job 11:3 and Jeremiah 48:30 in the sense of idle talk. But here and in Jeremiah 50:36 it is used of exaggerated claims of fortunetellers. They made false prophecies by their relationship with the demonic world and makes fools of diviners, or those who try to figure out the future by asking their gods of wood and stone. In both cases Ha’Shem is the frustrater of the occult. The false prophets are exposed because, like Hananiah (see the commentary on Jeremiah Et – The False Prophet Hananiah), what they prophesy does not come to pass.

(6) Who overthrows the learning of the wise. Regardless of what age they live in, the wise think they are hot stuff. I don’t know where you live, but there’s plenty of that going around in my neck-of-the-woods. But the Bible says: Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him (Proverbs 26:12). Isaiah had warned against this earlier (see Bi – Woe To Those Who Are Wise In Their Own Eyes). The LORD always turns man’s wisdom into nonsense (44:25b). The counselors of the king of Babylon who said God could not release His people would be proven foolish when God’s predictions were fulfilled. For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength (First Corinthians 1:18-25).

Adoniram Judson graduated at the top of his class in college, and then he headed to New York City to seek fame and fortune as an actor and/or writer. He had left the God of his father, thinking he was beyond such “primitive notions.” But such a life was empty for him. He was disillusioned, so he headed back to his home in Plymouth, Massachusetts, stopping for a night at a wayside inn. Adoniram had trouble sleeping that night, because a man in the next room was critically ill and moaning and groaning in pain. Obviously, his neighbor in the next room was dying. In the darkness of his room, Adoniram thought about the possibility of his own death and whether he was prepared for it. At times during the long hours he thought about returning to the Christian beliefs of his father, but then he imagined what his college friend Jacob Eames would say about his father’s faith. How he ridiculed God and anyone who would believe in such nonsense. He waited for morning to come so that the terrors of the night would be forgotten. Early the next morning, Adoniram went to the innkeeper.” That poor old man in the next room. How is he?” he asked. He passed away early this morning,” came the reply. “And he wasn’t old at all. He was a young man, about your age.” For some reason, Adoniram asked, “What was his name?” It was a rather stupid question, because Adoniram certainly didn’t know anyone in that section of the country. The innkeeper replied, “His name was Jacob Eames.” It was Adoniram’s college friend whose skepticism had turned Adoniram against the faith of his father. Dazed, Adoniram Judson returned to Massachusetts and to his father where after three months of a mental and spiritual battle, he “made a solemn dedication of himself to God.”

(7) Who carries out the counsel of His servants and fulfills the predictions of His messengers (44:26a). So, while the prophets of the Babylonian deities were frustrated because their predictions did not come true, ADONAI was able to confirm the words of His prophets, or His messengers. Isaiah insists that the LORD forms His own counsel and communicates His plans and desires through His prophets. God’s plans, unlike the king’s advisors, are not determined by stars or shapes of animal intestines, but by His holy character. His ultimate purposes are always good because God alone is good (Mark 10:17-18). Meditate on Psalm 34:8; 119:68; 2 Thessalonians 1:11 and James 1:17).

(8) Who says of Jerusalem, ‘It shall be inhabited’ of towns of Judah, ‘They shall be built,’ and of their ruins, ‘I will restore them’ (44:26b). ADONAI is the One who prophesies the return from Babylon. Through the prophets, His messengers, He said Jerusalem would again have people living in it, and indeed it would! The true prophet of God always conveys the certainty of His divine will (Deuteronomy 18:20-22).

(9) Who says to the watery deep, ‘Be dry, and I will dry up your streams’ (44:27). This watery deep is an allusion to the crossing of the Sea of Reeds (see my commentary on Exodus Ci – The Waters Were Divided and the Israelites Went Through the Sea on Dry Land). Can the LORD really restore Jerusalem, as He had said? It was as if ADONAI was saying, “Consider the exodus. If I can dry up the great watery deep, is there anything I can’t do?” God removed all Pharaoh’s obstacles, and in the same way all obstacles for the Israelites to return to Jerusalem would be removed.

(10) Who says of Cyrus, He is My shepherd (44:28a). This verse now clears up the hints that first appeared in 41:23 and 41:25. Who was it that the LORD called from the north and the east to subdue the Gentile nations and to set His heavyhearted people free? It was the Persian emperor Cyrus. In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia (538 BC), in order to fulfill the word of YHVH spoken by Jeremiah, God moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and to put it in writing:

This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: ADONAI, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and has appointed me to build a Temple for Him at Jerusalem in Judah. Anyone of His people among you – may his God be with him, and let him go to Jerusalem in Judah (Ezra 1:2-3a). As a result, the first return of 49,897 exiles under Zerubbabel (with the intention of rebuilding the Temple) took place that same year (Ezra 2). Two years later in 536 BC, the bronze altar and Temple foundations were built (Ezra 3:1 to 4:5).

It is important to understand that Cyrus was not a true believer in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. ADONAI accepted and understood this fact when He declared: You do not acknowledge Me (45:4b). The concern of the Persian king was to establish strong buffer states around his empire that would be loyal to him. Also, by having his subjects resettled in their own countries he hoped to have the gods in various parts of his empire praying for him to his gods Bel and Nebo. The famous Cyrus Cylinder (538 BC), which records his capture of Babylon and his program for repatriating his subjects in their homelands, includes this damning statement, “May all the gods whom I have resettled in their sacred cities daily ask Bel and Nebo for a long life for me.” Therefore, we can see that the fulfillment of Jeremiah’s words: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill My gracious promise to bring you back to this place (Jeremiah 29:10), were totally God’s doing.

The title that Isaiah gives him here is My shepherd. Cyrus will look after the interests of Isra’el as a shepherd looks after his flocks. By calling him My Shepherd, the Spirit of God indicates that Cyrus is going to perform shepherd duties for Isra’el. ADONAI will not only give them the right to go back to Jerusalem, but actually provide for them to do so. The whole argument against the idols is that they cannot tell the future. Nothing they supposedly said in the past can remotely explain the present, and nothing they could possibly say today is more than a mere rehash of the past.

And He will accomplish all that I please; he will say of Jerusalem, ‘Let it be rebuilt,’ and of the Temple, ‘Let its foundations be laid’ (44:28b). In addition, God says that Cyrus will accomplish all that I please. That which Cyrus has ordained and decreed, Cyrus will carry out. What has the LORD decreed? Concerning Jerusalem, let it be rebuilt; concerning the Temple, let its foundations be laid. Josephus, the ancient Jewish historian, who wrote about 75AD to 80AD, said that it was this passage that Dani’el the prophet showed to Cyrus the Great. When Cyrus read the prophecy and understood that his name was prophesied about 200 years earlier, ADONAI moved his heart and Cyrus issued the decree for the Israelites to go back to the city of Jerusalem.

God, through Isaiah, gives a near historical prophecy that clarified the allusions that first appeared in 41:2-3 and again in 41:25. Who was it that the LORD called from the north and the east to terrify the nations and return His people to the Land? It was Cyrus the Persian emperor. Remember that Cyrus was named and identified almost two hundred years before this prophecy was made. Yet, God was so specific that He was able to name the very Persian monarch that would bring an end to the Babylonian empire, and give the Jews the right to return to Judah. The contrast to the idols is stark. They could do no such thing.

One can only imagine what the Israelites thought when ADONAI called that pagan king, My shepherd. They believed that only David could shepherd God’s people (2 Samuel 5:2; Ezekiel 34:23). How could this be? The next three files tells the story. In Ic – This is What the LORD says to Cyrus His Anointed; Id – I Will Rise Up Cyrus in My Righteousness, I Will Make All His Ways Straight; and Ie – Turn to Me and Be Saved, For I Am God and there is No Other. God will give both a near historical prophecy concerning the coming of Cyrus, and, to reassure Isra’el of His ultimate plan for them, a far eschatological prophecy about her place in the Messianic Kingdom. They could rest assured; the calling of Cyrus was all part of their ultimate redemption.

Even if the house of David had fractured their relationship with the LORD (7:13, 39:7), He would find a new way to keep His Covenant with them (Deuteronomy 29). In an ironic twist that only the LORD could orchestrate, just as a foreigner, Ruth, became an ancestress of David (Ruth 4:13-22), the foreigner Cyrus was a snap-shot of the Davidic Messiah who would say: I am the good Shepherd (John 10:11).

The Deliverance by Cyrus the Great
44:24 to 45:25

ADONAI, the Redeemer of Isra’el and the Creator of the universe, has appointed Cyrus to accomplish His plans for His people. In this near historical prophecy, God names the man that He is going to use to deliver the Jews from Babylon (see the commentary on Jeremiah, to see link click Gu – Seventy Years of Imperial Babylonian Rule). Isaiah is living 150 years before Cyrus comes on the scene. Throughout Chapters 40 through 44, the LORD has been hinting of a man coming from the east and from the north, because one of Cyrus’ parents was Persian from the east and the other one was Median from the north. But God’s prophecies in those five chapters were becoming more and more specific. Throughout His hinting of the coming of Cyrus, without actually naming him so far, ADONAI has been comparing Himself with false idols and false prophets. This was to show that idolatry, especially Babylonian idolatry, is incapable of prophesying and predicting anything. But the LORD will predict everything in detail and everything He predicts will come true. Now in 44:28, God will specifically name the deliverer Cyrus.

The rise of Cyrus, king of Anshan (a city in Persia), was swift and impressive. When he came to the throne in 559 BC, Persia was subject to Media. By 549 BC, he was strong enough to rebel, kill the Median king Astyages, and found the Medo-Persian Empire. In the next few years he pushed out its boundaries dramatically. He first moved west, conquering King Croesus of Lydia in 547 BC and subduing Asia Minor (now Turkey). Then he turned east to extend his rule into northwest India. By 540 BC he had brought much of the former Babylonian Empire under his rule and was threatening Babylon itself. It fell to his general Gubaru without a fight in 539 BC, and seventeen years later Cyrus himself entered the city. There was no bloodshed; the previous king, Nabonidus, and his son Balshazzar, were deeply unpopular with the people of Babylon, many of whom regarded Cyrus as a liberator. For those who had been brought to Babylon against their will, the advent of Cyrus proved to be a blessing. He reversed the Babylonian policy of deportation and quickly embarked on a policy of repatriating displaced people and restoring their places of worship, the captives from Jerusalem being one of the first groups to benefit. The substance of his decree permitting their return is recorded in Ezra (see the commentary on Ezra-Nehemiah Ai – The Decree of Cyrus).¹⁶⁸

This important passage bursts upon us rather surprisingly at this point. The surprise is that Cyrus should be spoken of as the LORD’s shepherd (44:28) and His anointed (45:1), immediately after a passage in which idolatry had been so strongly condemned. For Cyrus himself was an idolater! But there is an important lesson here. ADONAI may disapprove of idolatry but use an idolater for some good purpose. The fact that He uses someone in a specific way does not mean that He approves of that person’s lifestyle. Because the LORD uses the Adversary’s evil schemes to achieve His own godly purposes, it should not surprise us that He could use a pagan king. As a result, we should not stand in judgment of  God’s actions nor draw wrong conclusions from them. His use of Cyrus to shepherd His people home was a stunning demonstration of that sovereignty.¹⁶⁹

I Have Swept Away Your Sins Like the Morning Mist,
Return to Me for I Have Redeemed You
44: 21-23

I have swept away your sins like the morning mist, return to Me for I have redeemed you DIG: In contrast to the idols that can do nothing, what things has God done for Isra’el? In turn, what does He call upon the people to do? What does He mean by it? The LORD has redeemed Isra’el before they returned to Him. What does that say about His nature? Who has to take the first step in the salvation process? Why?

REFLECT: Is your worship life more characterized by singing and joy, or ritual and dullness? Why? What helps you move toward joyful worship? Our faith is based on the faithfulness of Yeshua Messiah and not some here-today-and-gone-tomorrow theological fad. Can you remember the times that God has proved Himself faithful to you? When? Or is it difficult to think of anything? Why?

Here Isaiah repeats one of the great themes of the fifth book of Moshe, to remember: You are to remember everything of the way in which ADONAI led you these forty years in the desert, humbling and testing you in order to know what was in your heart – whether you would obey his commandments or not (Deuteronomy 8:2, also see 8:11 and 18, 9:7). At the foot of Mount Sinai, the Israelites were to remember as a means of motivation to obedient living. God asked them to remember what He had faithfully done for them in the past. Here in Isaiah, it is not so much the specific acts of the LORD that are to be remembered, but His very nature. Nevertheless, the meaning is the same. They were to remember the character of ADONAI as He had revealed Himself to them in the past, and they were not to chase after every current theological fad blowing in the wind, but remember His faithfulness.

Remember these things, O Jacob, for you are my servant, O Israel (44:21a). Then ADONAI asks the people to remember what God had done for them, with the intent of motivating them to obedient living. He uses the name Jacob because he had twelve sons that became the twelve tribes of the nation; his name is representative of all the tribes. But after Jacob wrestled all night with the LORD and his name was changed to Isra’el (see the commentary on Genesis, to see link click Hw – Jacob Wrestles with God) ADONAI said: Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Isra’el because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome (Genesis 32:28).

Therefore, ADONAI spoke of the nation as being His faithful servant, depending on Him. He declared: I have made you, you are My servant (44:21b). This is no ordinary servant but a bondservant. Doulos is a Greek word that means bondservant. In the New Covenant times it was not uncommon for a freed slave to voluntarily re-enter servitude to a master whom he loved. This servitude was called bond-service. Only a freed slave could be a bondservant, and once he (she) had chosen to become one, he (she) could never be freed again. Neither could he (she) be bought or sold, and he (she) served his (her) chosen master until death. When a freed slave chose bond-service, he (she) was taken to the front entrance of the house, and his (her) right ear was laid against the door post. A nail was driven through his (her) ear, and an earring was placed in it. That earring was a symbol to all of the servant’s choice and of his (her) immunity to being sold. ADONAI wanted Isra’el to willingly choose to be His bondservant.

Furthermore, He declared His unwavering devotion to her when He said: O Isra’el, I will not forget you (44:21c). In the worship of dead idols everything depended on the devotee, but here, everything depends on the living God. But even if Isra’el would forget, the LORD declares for all the ages: I will never forget you (see Ip – Zion Not Rejected). This verse refutes the belief by some today that the Church has replaced Isra’el (replacement theology), and all the promises given to Isra’el are now transferred to the Church.

Paul and Peter spoke of themselves as being bondservants to Messiah (Romans 1:1 and Second Peter 1:1). And a servant to Christ does not seek to be served, but rather has a focus of serving others (Matthew 20:28; Mark 10:45). And as believers, we need to be conformed, literally pressed or molded, into the likeness of Yeshua (see the commentary on Romans Cl – Our Bodies and Redemption).

Here it is not so much specific acts of God that are to be remembered, as are certain concepts about Him. Yet, the sense is the same. Life is to be lived on the basis of reflection on the character of ADONAI, not human psychology. So, when the LORD says remember these things, He is saying, “Remember all the evidence that you have witnessed – I am superior to idols.” No idol could possibly save them. God, not the idols, would redeem His people, for He had redeemed her for a special purpose (see my commentary on Exodus Bz – Redemption); to declare to the world that the LORD was the one and only ADONAI. Therefore, she must not interpret the Babylonian exile to mean that Ha’Shem had forgotten her. But physical deliverance was not her greatest need. The real cause of the exile was sin. And until that sin was addressed, not only forgiven but corrected, the real significance of the exile would not be realized. Then, and only then, could He sweep away their offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist (44:22a).

The final phrase starts with, return to Me. The Hebrew word return, shuv, is the key word in Jeremiah (see the commentary on Jeremiah Ac – The Book of Jeremiah From a Jewish Perspective: Key Word). It has two forms. The first form means to turn away from, backslide or apostatize. But the second form means to repent, to return or turn back. Here, ADONAI is telling Isaiah’s spiritually wicked generation to turn around and go in a different direction. Why? Because their redemption had already taken place, opening the door for a return, making Isra’el’s redemption both possible and effective.

For I have redeemed you (44:22b), underlines the importance of the human response to God’s plan. Isra’el is captive, both to Babylon and to her sins. She can do nothing to deliver herself. The first step is up to God. If she is to be bought back, redeemed, God alone must do that. But how will Isra’el respond to the LORD’s first step? His making the first step does not in itself produce a response. Isra’el must be willing to act in faith (Genesis 15). As long as Isra’el lies down in hopelessness and despair, the coming of Cyrus, or even the coming of the Messiah, will be in vain. This is why God says not to fear and not to believe that they are forgotten. He said: See, I have engraved you on the palms of My hands (49:16). This is a figurative way of expressing that ADONAI will never forget Isra’el. The greatest danger of the exile would not be that God would be unable to act on their behalf, but that Isra’el herself would fail to respond in faith to His first step. Like a man wooing or courting his bride, God is always the initiator and we are always the responders.

We can say no to God and make it stick. The LORD can open the door for us, but we have to walk through it. As much as He loves us, He will not violate our free will. The unique thing about love is that it cannot be forced. You cannot make someone love you. The exciting thing about love, however, is that when someone loves you, they choose to love you. That’s what ADONAI wants, He wants us to choose Him over the Adversary and this world. But the Ruach Ha’Kodesh is a Gentleman; He will not kick down the door to your heart. He can only be invited in. What’s your choice?

In the far eschatological future God’s redemption of Isra’el will cause all of creation to rejoice. All idolatry will ultimately cease because it will be shown to be what it is – folly and futility. But the One God, who works in history, who is eternal, will prove Himself to be all that He has claimed when the restoration of Isra’el comes. Why? For ADONAI has redeemed Jacob (44:23b). The Hebrew verb has redeemed is a prophetic perfect, meaning an action still in the future but as certain as if it had already happened. He displays His glory in Isra’el (44:23c). At that time, all of creation will rejoice along with Him. The Hebrew verb displays is an imperfect, indicating a continuing statement of fact. It is with Isra’el that the LORD chooses to adorn Himself.

This section ends with the hymn of praise. ADONAI wanted Isra’el to focus on their hopeful future to motive them to turn from their idol worship. He tells them to sing for joy, O heavens, for the LORD has done this; shout aloud, O earth beneath. Burst into song, you mountains, you forests and all your trees (44:23a). When ADONAI accomplishes redemption for Jacob, the curse will be lifted from the whole of creation (Romans 8:19-21). The idolater cut down trees to make an idol, but redemption frees them to burst into song for the true God. The prophet calls for all nature to join in song in celebration of the marvelous redemption of God’s people, a redemption that is fraught with the greatest consequences in the religious history of the world. The heavens and earth are invited to sing for joy.

The emphasis on ADONAI’s redemption of His people is completely appropriate to precede the Cyrus oracle that follows (see Ia – The Deliverance by Cyrus the Great). The cycle will be complete when heaven and earth themselves participate in the redemption (65:17-25, 66:22-23). It is clear that this blueprint of redemption is progressively revealed in Isaiah and includes a lot more than merely the Babylonian Exile and return. Though it does provide the background for the larger picture of Israel’s ultimate redemption (Psalm 96:11-13).

We can’t imagine what our Redeemer has in store for us. The Spirit of God gives us a few clues, but it is like a person blind from birth trying to comprehend color. Imagine if you lived in a world of darkness – then could suddenly see. Imagine if you lived in a world without taste – and suddenly could taste a wonderful holiday buffet with all the trimmings. Imagine if you lived in a world without sound – then could hear beautiful music. How awesome is THAT! That is a little bit of what it will be for those who have been redeemed by the Lamb. That is a little bit of what it will be for those who are children of God.

All Who Make Idols are Nothing
and the Things They Treasure are Worthless
44: 6-23

Central to the redemption and restoration of Isra’el is the uniqueness of God. He alone controls human history and is neither surprised nor stymied by Isra’el’s spiritual adultery. The people are in captivity for one reason: their broken covenant with the LORD. This was foretold. However, His uniqueness means that the idols that Isra’el had been worshiping could do nothing to prevent Him from delivering them when He chose to do so. The deliverance was also told of in advance. To all that had already happened, and to all that would happen, Isra’el was a witness. This section caps the entire argument. It begins with the superiority of the LORD and the futility of idolatry in 44:6-20, then Isaiah explains that ADONAI is Isra’el’s only Redeemer in 44:21-22, and finally a hymn of praise in 44:23. Through it all, God’s Spirit, through Isaish, drives the final nail of persuasion through the hearts of idolaters. It is foolish to compare the living God to dead idols.

We face the challenge of idolatry in our own age just as Isaiah did in his. The question for contemporary believers, especially young ones, is whether we will confront our society as directly as Isaiah and the rest of the prophets of Isra’el did theirs. Young people are under terrific pressure to conform to the anti-God culture of today. Many times they are being encouraged to look at the past, especially at their parents, with contempt. They have been encouraged to flaunt their defiance of all authority, as though authority is an evil thing.

Let the young believers in Messiah today refuse to bow down to the false idols of this world just as believers did in Babylon 2,700 years ago. The meaninglessness and pointlessness of life in a world where the LORD has been shut out is clearly seen in the media today. We are already reaping the bitter fruits of the view that this world is all there is. Can things made with human hands save us from ourselves any more today than they could then? Not at all. Therefore, believers must reject all the gods and goddesses of unlimited sex, the god of power through wealth, the god of the drunkard’s party scene, and the gods and goddesses of physical attractiveness today as we seek the face of God more than anything else. He alone can free us from the dungeons in which those gods and goddesses abandon us at the end of the day. These are the lies of Satan and they are as old as the world itself. This requires much courage. ADONAI is writing our history and no one else please delete and He who holds our future in His hand. When we choose to follow Him as our Lord, He writes our name in His Book of Life and promises to always be with us (see my commentary on Hebrews, to see link click De – Believer’s Behavior in Relations to Ourselves). So we can dare to be different, and continue to be lights for the truth so that others lost in this dark world can find their way home to God our Father.¹⁶⁶

For I Will Pour Out My Spirit on Your Offspring
and My Blessing on Your Descendants
44: 1-5

For I will pour out My Spirit on your offspring and My blessing on your descendants DIG: What is the prophet emphasizing by saying but now? Since the Spirit of God seems to have been given only to Isra’el’s leaders in the past, what is the significance of the promise in 44:3?

REFLECT: Is the “flower” of your spiritual life still in seed? Breaking ground? In full bloom? How so? How do you typically let others know that you are a believer? What new “show and tell” idea does 44:5 suggest?

One can have little doubt of the connection between 44:1-5 and 43:22-28. Not only are certain words and concepts repeated, but the opening, but now, emphasizes the relation of contrast of what has just been said about Isra’el’s condition and what ADONAI nevertheless promises. Once again, as in 43:25 but on a larger scale, the grace of God is emphasized. He reminds His people that their sin has freed Him from any obligation to act on their behalf. They cannot demand anything from Him. But that does not mean that He will not act on their behalf. It only means that what He does is pure grace. It is a free gift flowing from His love for them.

Earlier Isaiah dealt with the restoration of the exiles returning back into the Land from Babylon (43:14-21). Now he summarizes two restorations. The first is the near historical restoration from the Babylon of King Nebuchadnezzar (44:1-3a). These verses speak of the restoration from Babylon, which came in 536 BC. He announces again the return of God’s grace to Isra’el.

Again, the prophet emphasizes God’s choosing: But now listen, O Jacob, My servant, Israel, whom I have chosen (44:1). Being chosen was part of God’s unconditional promises to Abraham: I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you and whoever curses you I will curse; and all the peoples on earth will be bless through you (Genesis 12:2-3). The doctrines of unconditional election, where God chooses us (Acts 13:48; Romans 8:29-30; Ephesians 1:4-5 and 11, 2:8; First Thessalonians 2:13;Second Timothy 1:9), and free will, where we choose God (John 3:16; 6:29 and 40, 11:25-26), seem to be mutually exclusive. How can the relationship between the LORD’s sovereignty and mankind’s limited free will be explained? I believe they are an antinomy. That is, two truths, both of which are proven true by Scripture, but, from man’s viewpoint, cannot be reconciled. A good example would be the Trinity. The Bible teaches that ADONAI is one (Deuteronomy 6:4), yet at the same time is three distinct Persons. That is antimony.

This is clearly seen in Romans 9 and 10. In Romans 9, election is viewed from ADONAI’s perspective – absolute predestination; however, in Romans 10, we see election from mankind’s standpoint – free will. Predestination says, “You were chosen by the LORD before the foundations of the earth,” while free will says, “I can say no to God and make it stick.” Both of these viewpoints are true and that is the antinomy. Romans 9 is like someone looking at the predestination side of a pitched roof of a house but can’t see the other free will side; while Romans 10 is like looking at the free will side of the roof and not being able to see the election side. But when God looks down on the house from on high, He sees both sides of the roof.

Salvation is ADONAI’s doing, not man’s (Ephesians 2:8-9). Though it is an act of grace (Roman’s 11:5-6; 2 timothy 1:9), based on His will (Ephesians 1:5, 9, 11), a person is responsible to believe (Ephesians 1:13). YHVH chose you to be saved . . . through belief in the truth (Second Thessalonians 2:13). The purpose of His election is to make believers blameless. This Greek word amomous, means without blemish and is used eight times in the B’rit Chadashah (Ephesians 1:4; 5:27; Philippians 2:15; Colossians 1:22; Hebrews 9:14; 1 Peter 1:19; 2 Peter 3:14, Revelation 14:5). In the Septuagint it is used of sacrificial animals; only those without blemish could be offered to God. The emphasis of predestination is more on the “what” than the “who” in that the believer’s predetermined destiny is their being adopted as full-fledged sons and daughters of God through Yeshua Messiah, the Agent of the adoption.

It is a joy to think of predestination/election in the way God intended it to be thought of: not as referring to “personally salvation”; but rather as “God’s plan” (Ephesians 1:11) for the salvation of all who chose holiness through the blood of Christ. Through His blood we have redemption. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace (Ephesians 1:7). The blood of Christ was poured out on the cross/altar, taking our place, just like the lamb that was slaughtered for the sins of the Israelites (Leviticus 1:4). For He chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight (Ephesians 1:4). When the emphasis is taken off the “who” gets in and then the emphasis is put on to the “what qualifies” someone to get in – the light is thrown onto God, for it is God’s plan of redemption by adopting those who hope in Christ (Ephesians 1:12) as their Lord and Savior. All who hear and believe, God makes holy for adoption: Having believed, you also were included in Christ, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation (Ephesians 1:13a, b). Praise to God is the natural response for His gift which grantees our salvation’s inheritance. Having believed you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession – to the praise of his glory. (Ephesians 1:13c-14). The joy is all about ADONAI and what He did. Joy and praise for God’s planned pathway in Christ’s blood which gave us holiness so we could be adopted and sealed (Ephesians 1:3, 12, 14).

Isaiah faithfully recorded that this is what the LORD says: He who made you, who formed you in the womb (see 44:24), He will help you (44:2a). Life beings at fertilization because God, who made you, already has a plan for your life before you are born. The Psalmist, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, would say: For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be (Psalm 139:13-16).

What is it that their Maker wants the Israelites to hear? Do not be afraid of the consequences of sin in this world (44:2b). In other words, do not fear mankind, but do fear Me (Luke 12:4-5)! The fear of ADONAI is the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 9:10). The promise to blot out and forget stands (43:25), but cancelled sin leaves no room for fear: I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world (John 16:33). Regardless of her state, God still held Isra’el close to His heart and would continue to do so. For God’s gifts and His call are irrevocable (see the commentary on Romans, to see link click Da – The Redemption of Isra’el).

O Jacob, My servant (see Hl – The Cone of Isaiah), Jeshurun, whom I have chosen (44:2c). Here God uses the name Jeshurun, which is another name for Isra’el. The ending of un is a diminutive of affection. The world may be related to yasar, meaning the upright one. Imagine that, the LORD called these people, sinners from the beginning (43:27), the upright one. Jeshurun is used only three times in the Bible (Deuteronomy 32:15, 33:5 and 26). Deuteronomy is called the book of the Covenant. While the first four books of Moshe merely spell out God’s commandments to Isra’el, the fifth book of Moses is the covenantal agreement between God and the nation of Isra’el. If she would keep the commandments, she would be blessed. But if Isra’el disobeyed the commandments, she would be cursed. Ultimately they were cursed by captivity, and dispersion (see my commentary on Jeremiah Gu – Seventy Years of Imperial Babylonian Rule). By calling upon Isra’el as Jeshurun, God is reminding Isra’el of His love and His covenantal relationship with her. And that is why the Jews are ultimately indestructible. Not because they have merit, but because the God of Isra’el has merit. He is the One who keeps His promises.

Secondly is the far eschatological restoration from MYSTERY BABYLON (see the commentary on Revelation Dd – The Woman was Drunk with the Blood of God’s People). For I will pour water on the thirsty Land, and streams on the dry ground (44:3a). The image of water in a dry Land is prominent in Isaiah 12:3, 30:25, 32:2 and 15, 33:21, 35:6, 41:18, 43:20, 51:3, 55:1, 66:12). When God pours out His Spirit, both the thirsty Land (35:1-4) and the thirsty people, the righteous of the TaNaKh (43:20) will be brought back to life (Isaiah 32:15; Joel 2:12-14 and 28-29).

The Jews understood that the pouring out of the water symbolized the pouring out of the Holy Spirit. They had a ceremony called the pouring out of the waters performed during the Feast of Tabernacles, not so incidentally the only feast that will be celebrated during the messianic Kingdom (Zechariah 14:16-19). It was the highlight of the festival (see the commentary on The Life of Christ Gp – On the Last and Greatest Day of the Feast). On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice: Let anyone who is thirsty come to Me and drink. Whoever believes in Me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them. By this He meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified (John 7:37-39).

Therefore, the sequence of Isaiah’s message from 43:8 to 44:5 indicates that Isaiah expected the saving acts of ADONAI, to which the holy ones (Psalms 16:3 and 34:9) would be witnesses (43:10 and 12, 44:8), would culminate with the infusion of the Holy Spirit in God’s people. That sequence is: you are My witnesses (43:8-13), the deliverance from Babylon (43:14-21), deliverance based upon grace not merit (43:22-28), and here, the outpouring of the Ruach resulting from the fulfillment of the Abrahamic promises (see above in 44:1). This shows that Isaiah looked forward to the day, if not the specific details, of Shavu’ot (Acts 2:41).

The final restoration at the end of the Great Tribulation, then, will come upon a different generation than the descendants of those who first came from Babylon (see my commentary on Revelation Ev – The Basis for the Second Coming of Jesus Christ). He says: I will pour My Spirit on them because that final restoration will be preceded by Isra’el’s national regeneration. There is going to be an outpouring of the Spirit of God upon every Jew living at that point (Zech 12:10 to 13:1). At that time, God’s blessing will be on their descendants (44:3b).

Furthermore, there is going to be a rapid increase in Isra’el’s population. They will spring up like grass in a meadow, like popular trees by flowing streams (44:4). When Yeshua Messiah returns there will be the spiritual renewal promised by the prophets. Ezeki’el said it this way: I will make a New everlasting Covenant of peace with them (Jeremiah 31:31-34), I will put My Sanctuary among them forever. My dwelling place will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be My people. Then the nations will know that I the LORD make Isra’el holy, when My Sanctuary is among them forever (38:26-28).

In addition, the effects upon the Gentiles are described. One will say, “I belong to the LORD;” another will call himself by the name of Jacob; still another will write on his hand, “The LORD’s,” and will take the name Israel (44:5). Not all unbelieving Gentiles will be killed at the end of the Great Tribulation. Millions upon millions will enter the Kingdom (20:1-6). They will experience Messiah’s reign from Jerusalem in peace and will have until their hundredth birthday to accept Him as LORD of their lives or die (see Kq – The Wolf and the Lamb Will Feed Together, and the Lion Will Eat Straw Like the Ox). Because ADONAI specifically forbids tattoos (Leviticus 19:28), this writing on the hand must symbolize the personal commitment to Him, as if saying to themselves and others, “I belong to the LORD.” Throughout the Jewish dispersion, Jews were often forced to convert to Christianity by the Gentiles. And when that happened they were often forced to change their names from Jewish names to Gentile names. But Isaiah says that the day is coming when the Gentiles will change their names from Gentile names to Jewish names.

But for believers in Yeshua today, hope does disappoint us because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Spirit of God, whom He has given us (Romans 5:5). He loves us so much that He gave His one and only Son, the whoever believes in Him shall not perish by have eternal life (John 3:16b). And for those who accept His offer of salvation, the LORD takes His indescribable and undeserved love and pours it into our hearts of those who believe in Him (First Corinthians 15:3-4) by the Ruach Ha’Kodesh. Poured out refers to generous outpouring to the point of overflowing. ADONAI does not measure out His love in tiny drops but in immeasurable, tsunami like torrents.

Out spiritual security is not in our ability to live godly lives, but in the power of the indwelling Spirit of God in make us godly. The Greek word for power is dunamas, where we get our English word dynamite. Only God can make believers godly, and the Spirit’s leading us in a dynamic way into godliness is one of the great evidences of salvation. For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you live in fear again (Romans 8:14-15a). Praise the LORD, as the children of God we do not have to live in fear!

I Blot Out Your Transgressions for My Own Sake
43: 22-28

I blot out your transgressions for My own sake DIG: With what attitude do you imagine the exiles carried out their religious practices? What does that show about their view of God? Although the LORD has not wearied them with His demands, how have they wearied of Him? In spite of their attitudes, what has God done for them? What does the LORD say about Himself in these verses? What does ADONAI mean by blotting out sins for His own sake?

REFLECT: In your worship life, are you lavishly giving yourself to God? Or callously wearying Him with meaningless rituals? When has it been different? What accounts for the change? In your service to the LORD, are you wearying yourself for Him? Or are you wearying Him?

ADONAI will show favor on Isra’el and bring the Jews back from Babylon, but it is not on the basis of Israel’s merit. Isra’el is unworthy of God’s goodness. She did nothing to please Him while in Babylon and did not call upon His Name. On the contrary, she grew tired of calling upon His Name and always burdened Him with her sins. Isra’el also stopped the sacrifices. Being captive in Babylon, Isra’el could not bring sacrifices to the Temple in Jerusalem. The purport of the accusation, therefore, cannot be blame for not doing the impossible, but rather to contrast the LORD’s treatment of His people with their behavior towards Him. In the absence of sacrifices, Isra’el should have attuned her mind and heart to the true service of ADONAI and acted in the Spirit, if not the letter of the prescribed sacrificial ritual. But, some of Isaiah’s hearers believed that any deliverance from Babylon would be deserved in the light of their acceptable worship of Him.

Instead, God declares that Isra’el had burdened Him with their sins and bothered Him with their offenses. Yet, you have not called upon Me, O Jacob, you have not bothered yourselves for Me, O Isra’el (43:22). The double use of the pronouns Me . . . Me, emphasizes the need to convey the correct interpretation. Although the Israelites had been formed for the purpose of praising the LORD, they had not done it. Why not? Were they bothered by the LORD’s excessive demands? How could they be, since they did not conform to what God really wanted? ADONAI is saying that although they may have thought they were giving Him acceptable worship, they were not, and that is the reason that He was so tired of their unacceptable worship (1:11-14, 66:3; Jeremiah 7:5-10; Hosea 6:6; Amos 4:4-6; Micah 6:3-8).

As far as God was concerned, they had shut Him out. As a result, what they thought of as worship, the LORD viewed as mechanical, aloof repetition. Earlier, Amos had prophesied: I hate, I despise your religious feasts; I cannot stand your assemblies. Even though you bring Me burnt offering and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Though you bring choice fellowship offerings, I will have no regard for them. Away with the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps (Amos 5:21-23). Then Isaiah had said to the rebellious nation: When you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide My eyes from you; even if you offer many prayers, I will not listen (1:15a). Finally, Yeshua would say it this way: They worship Me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men (Matthew 15:9). Sin always takes you further than you want to go and costs you more than you wanted to pay!

Regardless if one lives before the cross or after the cross, faith always saves. In fact, without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6a). Bringing a sacrifice to the bronze altar (see the commentary on Exodus, to see link click Fc – The Sin Offering) for a sin offering did not forgive the sin of the Israelite; the faith of bringing a sacrifice to the bronze altar forgave the sin. ADONAI is always looking for internal change, not external ritual. Micah said it this way: He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God (Micah 6:8).

You have not brought Me sheep for burnt offerings (see the commentary on Exodus Fe – The Burnt Offering), nor honored Me with Your sacrifices. I have not burdened you with grain offerings (see the commentary on Exodus Ff – The Grain Offering) nor wearied you with demands for increase (43:23). Rituals themselves were not what ADONAI wanted, so He could say here and elsewhere that He had not commanded them (Amos 5:25-26; Jeremiah 7:22). What He really wanted was a people with whom He could have fellowship because their collective hearts reflected His own. The rituals were useful representations of lives surrendered to Him, but the symbols themselves could not save.

You have not brought any fragrant calamus for Me (43:24a). Calamus is possibly sweet, fragrant cane (Exodus 30:23 and Jeremiah 6:20). You have not lavished, literally saturated, on Me the fat of your sacrifices (43:24b). The people had certainly drenched the bronze altar with fat, the most desirable part of the sacrifice and hence the part reserved for God (Leviticus 4:26). But it was all for show. But you have burdened Me with your sins and bothered Me with your offenses (43:24c). God had not burdened and bothered His people with tiring, worn out ritual; they had burdened and bothered ADONAI with their sins and transgressions. It was as if the Ruach Ha’Kodesh was saying to the Israelites, “Your carefully planned rituals are useless because they do not reflect a broken heart. You are not crushed by your sin. You have no change of heart and are merely going through the motions.” Their efforts to manipulate God had failed. They had refused to release the steering wheel of their lives to the King. They were sitting on the throne of their own hearts and they stubbornly refused to get off. But even though they were sinful and stubborn, they were still the apple of His eye (Deuteronomy 32:10). God’s remedy was, and always is, grace.

So, yes, ADONAI would return Isra’el to the Land from which they had come, but it certainly was not because they had earned it. Well, then why? Their return would be on the basis of His grace. God would forgive them on the same basis that He forgives us. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast (Ephesians 2:8-9).

No sooner was the need diagnosed, than the remedy was given: I, even I, am He would blot out your transgressions (deliberate rebelliousness), for My own sake, and remember your sins no more (43:25). To blot out their sins meant to wipe them clean. After King David was confronted with his twin sins of murder and adultery (Second Samuel 11) by the prophet Nathan (Second Samuel 12:1-13a), he cried out: Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion, blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin (Psalm 51:1-2). Sin leaves a mark that only ADONAI can wash away. And not only does He wash our sins away, but He remembers them no more (Jeremiah 31:34), as if throwing them into the depths of the sea (Micah 7:19b).

Therefore, the only reason God will show favor to Isra’el is on the basis of His grace. He announces that He will blot out, or forgive Isra’el’s sins. Notice that the LORD says He will do this for His own sake. Not for Isra’el’s sake, as if she earned this forgiveness, because nothing Isra’el had done, or could do, would qualify them for forgiveness like this.

But there is a fundamental problem in both Isra’el and ourselves. We humans do not like grace; we like to feel that we deserve everything we get. We want to be able to say that our good behavior has earned favorable treatment for us before the bar of God. Interestingly, the same verb, my praise, that occurred at the end of 43:21 occurs here, your innocence, at the end of 43:26. But here instead of recounting the praise of ADONAI, the people were recounting all their good deeds, and by association, the mistreatment they have suffered at the hands of God. This is always the way it is. Until we recognize our need for grace, all of our energies, energies designed for the praise of the LORD, will be spent in fruitless self-justification.¹⁶⁴

Therefore, to make sure it is not on the basis of Isra’el’s merit, God again issues a challenge to her. The easiest way to understand these next few verses is as a brief court scene in which the accused is given the opportunity to establish his or her innocence. ADONAI said to the Israelites: Convince Me that you have earned forgiveness on your own. Review the past for Me, let us argue the legal matter together, state the case for your innocence and show Me that you have not sinned against Me (43:26). But there is only silence because Isra’el’s history was one of sin. But the LORD answered as if in rebuttal.

The prosecution’s case was then stated. Before Isra’el can be judged, she must be confronted with the hopelessness of her case. God said: Your first father sinned (43:27a). Adam was the first father of mankind, but Abraham was the first father of the nation of Isra’el. He was the first one to be called a Hebrew (Genesis 14:13). Tracing their sin back to Abraham did not get them off the hook however. In biblical thought, their guilt increased with each succeeding generation (Matthew 23:31-32, 35-36).

Then God added that Isra’el’s spokesmen, their prophets and priests, had also rebelled against Him (43:27b). Those who interpreted the LORD’s word, spoken or written, to His people also had their faults and sins. We only need to read about the lives of Moses, Samson, David, Solomon, Hezekiah or Josiah to be reminded of this ugly fact. Nor could anything glorify their transgressions as is typical of heroic literature. Their stories are distasteful and embarrassing, and their sins had deadly consequences. These could not be sugarcoated.

For example, as we read about Abraham’s life we will find that God appeared to him seven times, each time to develop faith in his life. But this does not mean he was faultless. The fact of the matter is that he failed many times. ADONAI gave him seven tests and he fell flat on his face on four of them. First, he stayed in Hebron when he should have gone to the Promised Land (11:31b). Secondly, he left Palestine, went to Egypt, lied to Pharaoh, and picked up an Egyptian maidservant named Hagar (12:10-20). But then Abram turned down riches from the King of Sodom and passed that test; if he were going to be rich, it would be from God and not from man. Thirdly, he listened to his wife instead of waiting on the LORD, which resulted in the birth of Ishmael and untold problems (16:1-16). And fourthly, his lapse of faith continued as he refused to trust ADONAI for his and Sarah’s safekeeping when he lied to Abimelech (20:1-18). Abraham’s last two successful tests occur at the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah and the offering of his son Isaac. But he still failed four of seven times. However, like Simon Peter, he got up, brushed himself off, learned from his mistakes, and started to follow the LORD again in faith.

Rather than being of any merit, from the very beginnings of Israel’s history, there was the characteristic of sin right from her very first father Abram, later renamed Abraham (Genesis 17:5). So here is the fork in the road. If Israel chose the route of self-justification, they were lost. If we chose the same route, we are lost also.

Because of the persistent sinfulness of Isra’el, God had no other choice but to judge her. By His very nature, He cannot tolerate sin. Utterly disgusted with them, He said: I will disgrace the dignitaries of your Temple (43:28a). The priests had led the nation astray and the disgrace the LORD described here is the judgment of defilement. It would have been particularly horrible for them because they had spent their entire lives concerned with supposedly being holy (Isaiah 65:2-5 and Leviticus 10:3). Now ADONAI Himself would disgrace them with defilement of the Temple (see the commentary on Jeremiah Gb – The Destruction of Solomon’s Temple on Tisha B’Av in 586 BC).

Furthermore, God said that I would consign Jacob to destruction and Isra’el to scorn (43:28b) when they went into exile (see the commentary on Jeremiah Dd – Isra’el Will Serve the King of Babylon Seventy Years). This term destruction refers to the cherem judgment of the LORD, which literally means devoted to destruction. Before the battle of Jericho, ADONAI said to Joshua: Keep away from the devoted things, so that you will not bring about your own destruction by taking any of them. So, they devoted the city to the LORD and destroyed with the sword every living thing in it – men, women, young and old, cattle, sheep and donkeys. Then they burned the city and everything in it (Joshua 6:18, 21, 24). When God used this word, He was signaling that the nation had sunk so far into sin, that there was no further justification for its existence. The irony here is that the destruction was particularly applied to the Canaanites and Amalekites, the enemies of Jacob’s family who sought to prevent the fulfillment of ADONAI’s promises to them (Joshua 6:17; First Samuel 15:21). The Most Holy Place had become unholy in the LORD’s eyes and Jacob had become Canaan. Isra’el, created to witness to the glory of God by sharing in that glory (Exodus 19:5-6), had been turned over to the greatest mockery possible. The nation had not merely sinned; it had become the very opposite of what it was meant to be. Far from its behavior providing some justification for deliverance, that behavior gave ample reason for its complete abandonment. Nevertheless, the LORD will not allow that to happen. Why not? Solely because of His own grace.¹⁶⁵

In Chapter 43 we have seen a brilliant and devastating satire against idolatry. Unfortunately, this will become a reoccurring theme until the seventy years of the Babylonian rule had been completed. The human heart has a way of turning from God to some idol. Today, we do not go after graven images like the Israelites did, but we need to understand that anything that a person gives himself or herself to instead of ADONAI is an idol. It can be wanting to accumulate money for its own sake, seeking fame or self adoration. Or it could even be good things in life that we abuse, like pleasure, sex, alcohol, or a career. Even our families or our ministries can become idols. In fact, anything that we replace God with in our lives is an idol. The LORD said: I Am a jealous God (see the commentary on Exodus Dl – You Shall Not Make For Yourselves an Idol). That means if there is anything between you and Him, He wants it out of the way no matter what or who it is. As we leave this chapter, we leave the darkness of judgment and move into the light of the coming Messianic Kingdom and the promise of the Ruach ha-Kodesh.

I Am the LORD, Your Holy One,
Isra’el’s Creator, Your King
43: 8-21

I am the LORD, you holy One, Isra’el’s creator, your king DIG: Although Isra’el has been blind and deaf to the LORD in the past (42:18-20), what is the purpose for which He will lead them out of Babylon (44:10, and also see 41:20)? What will that act of deliverance communicate to the nations? With what attitude do you imagine this witness will be carried out? What contrasting attitudes has God found in the Babylonians, in the wild animals, and in Isra’el (43:14, 20 and 22)? With what attitude do you imagine the exiles carried out their religious practices (43:22-28)?

REFLECT: When has ADONAI worked to the good in your life despite your blindness and deafness? How would you explain to a non-believer what the LORD has done for you? What should be our motivation in witnessing to others of God’s grace in our lives? When has God seemed like a dusty memory to you? At those times, what helps you get in touch with Him? How might recalling the acts of ADONAI in your past give you courage to face the present and future? What has God done in your past that you especially can look to as evidence of His presence with you? What “streams in the desert” are bubbling up for you now? What new thing has the LORD done in your life? What is He doing now? What former things from your past, in 43:18, do you have difficulty forgetting? How might 43:25 help?

ADONAI invited Isra’el, still spiritually blind and deaf (42:20, 48:8), to be brought before the nations. Lead out those who have eyes but are blind, who have ears but are deaf (43:8). Imagine a litigant depending on the blind to testify on what they had seen and the deaf to what they had heard! So why can Isra’el serve as a witness? In spite of Isra’el’s blindness she can testify that God predicted the events that will come to pass 150 years later. Even though Isra’el did not believe the prophecies at the time they were given, they must now testify that the prophecies were given and are in the process of being fulfilled.

God calls the Gentile nations to produce the strongest case for idolatry to see if they can compare with what ADONAI has done. All the nations gather and the peoples assemble (43:9a). In theory, Isra’el is supposed to be dependent upon God. In theory, the nations are supposed to be dependent upon their idols. But rather than being consistent and worshiping her God alone, Isra’el was prone (up to the point of the Babylonian captivity) to worship the idols of the Gentiles. Now, both are called before God’s courtroom scene.

Here God calls upon the nations to produce their case concerning the validity of the worshiping of idols. Which of them foretold this and proclaimed to us the things of the past (43:9b)? It is obvious that the idols could not predict the future, so instead, ADONAI wanted them explain the significance of the things that have happened in the past in order to validate that they were indeed gods. Let them bring in their witnesses to prove they were right, so that others may hear and say, “It is true” (43:9c). If they can do this, then idolatry would be valid. If idolatry is valid, then Isra’el would be justified in worshiping the idols. But if they were silent about both the past and the future, then Isra’el should turn away from her idolatry and worship God alone.

God then turned to His people, who perhaps thought they would merely be interested spectators at the trial, with the shocking realization that He would rest His claims of deity on their testimony. “You are My witnesses,” declares the LORD, “and My Servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe Me and understand that I Am He” (43:10a). The opening pronoun, you, emphasizes that the Israelites, and no one else, were to be His witnesses, and that point is highlighted when He said: declares the LORD. This was no casual, offhand statement, but a profound word directly from ADONAI. These three verbs know, believe, and understand detail the progress of faith, extending from initial experience of the LORD through dependence on Him, to an understanding of His nature and ways.¹⁶¹ So now God asks Isra’el to speak the word to these Gentile nations that have gathered whether ADONAI has prophesied or not.

The Jews are asked to be witnesses to three things: First, that the LORD is the only true God. He has no competitor or equal. He alone is God. ADONAI alone holds this unique position. Before Me no god was formed, nor will there be one after Me (43:10b). Before the gods were made, He was, and after all the gods are gone, He will be. Consequently, what Isra’el is called to learn is that ADONAI is not merely great or loving, or just or powerful, but much more than that. He is the only One to whom all of creation must come to terms.

Secondly, of all the religions in the world only the Messiah guarantees salvation. I, yes I, am ADONAI; besides Me there is no Savior, there is no Savior (43:11). Other religions assemble quite a program, but they certainly do not guarantee salvation. The LORD said: Besides Me there is no M’falti (the Savior or Deliverer). Free! Free indeed! Through M’falti, I am eternally released from the hands of my enemies, from all kinds of bondage, accusations, curses, and every sin that so easily entangles me. Then God brings up the subject of idolatry.

The truth of the previous verse is made clear here. In an allusion to the challenge of the gods, God declares that He alone had revealed the future and made it known. I have revealed and saved and proclaimed – I, and not some foreign god among you. You are My witnesses, declares the LORD, that I Am God (43:12). Isra’el worshiped the god Bel, but Bel did not rescue the Jews from Babylon. Isra’el worshiped Ba’al, but Ba’al did not rescue the Jews from Babylon. Isra’el worshiped the Ashtoreth, but the Ashtoreth did not rescue the Jews from Babylon. Only one Person is going to redeem the Jews from Babylon, and that is the One God of Isra’el. So, they must now witness to the fact that the LORD is the only Savior, for all the other gods the Jews had been prone to worship had failed to redeem them from Babylon. It was as if God was saying, “As long as you will avoid idolatry and turn away from that will which will lead you away from Me, I will bless you.”

Thirdly, no one can stop God. Yes, and from ancient days I AM He. No one can deliver out of my hand. When I act, who can reverse it (43:13)? From the first day of creation, He was the only God and whatever He chose to do, no other god could hinder. It was God who worked out the Babylonian captivity. And all the worship of the Bel, Ba’al, or the Ashtoreth could not save the Jews from it. So Isra’el, the blind witness, is called to worship. God asks: When I act, who can reverse it? The implied answer was, and is, of course, “No one!”

Yeshua quoted 43:10 when He said to His disciples: You will be My witnesses (Acts 1:8), and He was using the term in the same sense that Isaiah used it. He was calling on His disciples to give evidence from their own personal experience that Jesus Christ was who He said He was. John also did that (1 Jn 1:1-3). It is interesting that God does not command us to be His witnesses. He simply declares the fact: you are My witnesses.

Being a witness means that a person has a vital, first-hand experience of Christ that has transformed the way he or she lives. Like it or not, we have been changed. If this is not the case, there is nothing to witness to. That person is a blind witness, just like Isra’el, with no knowledge of God or His ways. This is demonstrated by the sons of Sceva, who were evidently trying to minister out of a secondhand knowledge of Messiah. Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish priest, were doing this. One day the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and I know about Paul, but who are you?” Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding (Acts 19:14-16).¹⁶² The only way to be an effective witness for Jesus is to have a personal relationship with Him. We are the evidence of the transforming power of ADONAI. Being witnesses is not something we do, it is something we are.

Then Isaiah revealed to the Israelites their deliverance from Babylon in 536 BC, a near historical prophecy given about 150 years beyond Isaiah’s own day. He started out with a promise of the coming liberation. Three things should be noted here. First, God says that He is the only Redeemer that Isra’el will ever have. This is what the LORD says – our Kinsman Redeemer (43:14a). He is both willing and able to redeem them (see my commentary on Exodus, to see link click Bz – Redemption).

Secondly, although the people had not fulfilled their obligations, He will buy them back at the cross; He is the Kinsman Redeemer (see my commentary on Ruth Ax – Ruth and Boaz on the Threshing Floor), and by position He is the Holy One of Isra’el (43:14b). The same unique moral qualities that made ADONAI not One to be mocked in Chapters 1-39, make Him uniquely able to save those who call on Him in Chapters 40-66. Therefore, the two sections of the book complement each other on the nature and holiness of God. Yes, humanly speaking, it was Cyrus that overthrew Babylon. But it was actually the LORD working behind the scenes that had, in reality, liberated the Israelites. If He used human instruments, that was well and good, but it was ADONAI who was actually at work.

And thirdly, ADONAI spells out the judgment on Babylon. Why will these mighty events occur? For your sake I have sent the Medes and the Persians to Babylon to destroy it. These two nations were consolidated under Cyrus the Great to bring about the fall of the Babylonian Empire. Thus, the Babylonians will become fugitives on their own ships in which they took pride (43:14c). They learned how to navigate the Euphrates River down to the Persian Gulf. And since they were able to do the very thing the Assyrians before them were unable to do, they took great pride in this. But now Isaiah says that the very thing in which they take pride in will be their means of escape when Babylon is conquered by the Medo-Persian Empire lead by Cyrus.

Then God describes Himself as the Holy One who will judge Babylon, saying: I Am the LORD, your Holy One, Isra’el’s Creator, your King (43:15). God takes responsibility for bringing Isra’el into existence. Every anti-Semite should take note of this. He is her King. When Yeshua Messiah came to earth and made His claim to Kingship, the believing remnant knew He was claiming to be Immanuel . . . God with us (Matthew 1:23). Isaiah prophesied that the LORD would judge Babylon because she mistreated Isra’el and He is Isra’el’s Creator, her King.

ADONAI makes plain that the reason for the coming miraculous deliverance from Babylon was not because of who the Israelites were, but because of whose they are (see 43:10-13). It was because they belong to the LORD, and because of what sort of God He is, that the end of the Babylonian Captivity was to come to an end. The four descriptions in 43:15 are a miniature TaNaKh theology. In short, He is ADONAI who revealed Himself at Mount Sinai (see my commentary on Exodus Db – The Revelation at Mount Sinai), He is Holy One who had called the Israelites to be holy because I, the LORD, am holy and have set you apart from the nations to be My own (Leviticus 20:26), He is Israel’s Creator who had called them into existence from nothing, He is their King whom they owe their complete allegiance.

Verses 16 and 17 give an unusually long introduction to verse 18. The introduction is made up of a series of statements identifying ADONAI as the speaker by His actions. This kind of introduction is common in Chapters 40 through 45. Its purpose is to establish both the context and credibility of the surprising announcement of the new thing in 43:18-21.

Then Isaiah presents a contrast between the former thing, or old deliverance and the new thing, or the new deliverance. This is what the LORD says – He who made a way through the Sea of Reeds, a path through the mighty waters (43:16). Here Isaiah alludes to the parting of the waters in the Sea of Reeds by which the Jews crossed away from Egypt. The old deliverance concerns the Exodus; the new deliverance concerns the return from Babylon in 536 BC. First, look at the old deliverance. Then the Ruach Ha’Kodesh alludes to the destruction of the Egyptian army. Who drew out the chariots and horses, the army and reinforcements together, and they lay there never to rise again, extinguished, snuffed out like a wick (43:17). This is military terminology illustrating how a general commands. ADONAI, not Pharaoh, was the commander of the Egyptian army and He drew them out to destruction, never to be seen again.

But then He announced a new deliverance, which was deliverance from Babylon. Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past (43:18). God calls upon Isra’el to no longer concentrate on the miracles of the old deliverance of the Exodus, but to concentrate on the miracles of the new deliverance, the return from Babylon. For Isra’el, the glorious saving event of the past had become a straitjacket into which every other act of God was forced. As a result, the Israelites were frequently unable to recognize the LORD’s new actions when they came. He came to that which was His own, but His own did not receive Him (John 1:11). It was as if Isaiah was saying, “Remember, ADONAI has done many things, but do not limit the way He did them. Why? Because He is the Creator. He does not need to do things the same way twice. Of course, He is consistent, but His methods can always be new. If we make an idol of His methods, we might miss His blessings.” The past can teach and illustrate but it must not bind. The LORD always has greater things in store for us; He is revealed in the past; however, He is always more than the past has revealed.

The former things were those events that had already been predicted and fulfilled in the past (41:22, 42:9, 43:9, 46:9, 48:3); here, clearly the exodus. God was predicting a new exodus that should not be made to conform to the previous one but allowed to stand on its own. So, then He announces: See, I am doing a new thing and promises to prosper the way home. Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland (42:19). Looking with eyes of faith, the new thing seems to be exploding right before the prophet’s very eyes. Like the blindness of their imminent judgment, Isaiah is amazed that the Israelites do not recognize it.

There is a song entitled, “Give Me That Old Time Religion.” And in the song it says, “It was good for the Hebrew children, and it is good enough for me.” But it wasn’t good enough for the Hebrew children. The faith of Abraham was not adequate for them; ADONAI had something more. The LORD had to deliver them from the bondage of Egypt and show them something new. The Red Sea would part, Mount Sinai would explode with fire and with the voice of God. Commandments would be given and there would be new lessons learned in the wilderness. The song says, “It was good for Paul and Silas.” The truth is that the old-time religion was not good enough for Paul and Silas. For years Paul wanted it to be good enough, until he met Jesus on the road to Damascus. He wanted to keep the old wineskin of Jewish tradition, but Yeshua was bursting the seams of that wineskin. New wine had come and new wineskins were called for. You can’t have the old-time religion. Your mother’s faith will not do, it has to be your faith. Your father’s faith is not adequate, you have to have your own experience with the LORD. In fact, your faith, the faith used to get you by several years ago, will not do for today. If your faith has not grown since you first met Christ as a kid, the wineskin has dried and become brittle. It will not do for the new thing that God wants to do in you today. You can’t remain static. You can’t stay where you are. Yesterday’s experience will not do for today. Your faith must be current. In 43:18-19, ADONAI says: Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.

In the process of returning from Babylon, God will again perform miracles, such as providing water in the desert and streams in the wasteland to give drink to My people, My chosen (43:20). Earlier, Isaiah had said that when the Messiah came there would be a spiritual refreshing. It would be like water gushing forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert (35:6b). The Messiah could not be born in Babylon, He was to be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2). The return of the exiles to Isra’el would be, in a sense, a spiritual refreshing because it would be from there that Christ would come.

It is perhaps hard for us to fully appreciate what a frightening prospect this journey must have been to those who faced it. First, it was across unknown territory. Most of those who were young and fit enough to travel would have been born in the exile, and although Babylon was not their true home it would have been the only place they knew. The wilderness represented a break with even that limited security. Secondly, Jerusalem was a long way off, between 500 and 900 miles, depending on the route. The returnees could expect to be traveling for at least four months through harsh terrain, in which they would be vulnerable not only to exhaustion but also to attack by bandits. The wilderness meant hardship and danger. And what could they expect on arrival? A reception with open arms? A land flowing with milk and honey? No. They would arrive to see a devastated land, and would face the difficult task of rebuilding their lives from scratch. In a different way the wilderness was just as frightening as captivity in Babylon.¹⁶³ How would they make it? How would they survive? As we shall see next, it would only happen for them the way it only happens for us. The grace of God is, in reality, the only thing that can carry us through.

Isaiah saw the purpose of the nation and why the Messianic people were formed. God says the people were formed for Myself, that they may proclaim My praise (43:21). The Israelites were created, formed, and chosen to be ADONAI’s witnesses (43:10, 44:8), and this continues to be the function of His people today. Paul tells us: For you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light (First Peter 2:9). We have been formed to worship Him. The potter and the clay motif (Isaiah 41:24-26; Jeremiah 19:1-3; Romans 9:20-22) reminds us that we can face the troubles of life with confidence – even when, as here, we are the causes of our own misfortune by rebellion and disobedience. The pressures of life are the loving touches of the Potter’s hand as He perfects what He has planned.

I Have Created You, O Jacob:
Fear Not, for I Have Redeemed You,
You are Mine
43: 1-7

I have created you, O Jacob: fear not, for I have redeemed you, you are mine DIG: Compare 42:23-43:2 with Romans 3:19-24 and Ephesians 2:11-13. What does the “but now” in each of these passages emphasize about your relationship with God? In what ways do you see Yeshua Messiah as your Kinsman Redeemer?

REFLECT: Which side of the “but now” are you on? If you were to set these passages to music, what type of music would you use for the material before ”but now”? For the material afterwards? What waters or fire in 43:2 seem to be fearfully close to you at the moment? What does it mean to you that the LORD says He will be with His people through these things? How have you experienced that in the past? Why doesn’t He just let us avoid them? How does it make you feel to know that while you were still a sinner, Christ died just for you (Romans 5:8)?

Spiritually deaf and blind, Judah had ignored and disobeyed the Torah (42:18-25). As a result, the Israelites would have to endure the exile (see the commentary on Jeremiah, to see link click Gu – Seventy Years of Imperial Babylonian Rule) until her hard service had been completed (Hd). In this section, however, the Ruach Ha’Kodesh revealed that God was not through with Isra’el. Denying that the LORD has a future purpose for her is the same as unbelief. In the B’rit Chadashah, Spirit of God asks the question: Did God reject His people? And His answer is: By no means (Romans 11:1)! And the fact that He is not through with her is clearly seen in this chapter.

Once again Isaiah will prove himself as a prophet. Remember, according to Deuteronomy 18, the way you test a prophet is to first see if his near historical prophecies are reliable, then you can trust his far eschatological prophecies. But here Isaiah will start out with the opposite motif, a far eschatological prophecy of the final deliverance from the Babylon of the Great Tribulation.

He starts out with the promise of redemption. Chapter 42 ended with a question. Who handed Jacob over to become loot, and Isra’el to the plunderers? Was it not the LORD, against Whom we have sinned (42:24)? The reason for the Babylonian captivity and the worldwide dispersion of the Jewish nation is because Isra’el had sinned. She had sinned by committing spiritual adultery (see Hosea) and breaking the Torah. Therefore, God had turned her over to robbers to be plundered. Chapter 43:1 starts out by saying: But now, In contrast to former days when God had turned Isra’el over to robbers, as God looks to the future through His prophet Isaiah, He sees the coming time when Isra’el will once again return to Him and be fully redeemed. In contrast to the end of Chapter 42, in Chapter 43 we have the return of grace. God has not forgotten, nor is He unable to deliver His children that He brought into existence. Isra’el need not fear; redemption is absolutely certain.

The kinsman redeemer concept of the Torah is embedded in the first four verses (see the commentary on Ruth Ax – Ruth and Boaz on the Threshing Floor). If a Jew got himself so far into debt that he could not pay, according to the Torah, there was only one option. He had to sell himself into slavery for a period of seven years. After the seventh year, the sabbatical year, he would be released. But after selling himself into slavery there was another option. Another man could come and pay the redemption price to free that man out of slavery. Three stipulations were required for one to be the redeemer of a slave. First, he had to be a near relative or kinsman redeemer. Secondly, he had to have the price of redemption. He had to be able to pay the debt off. Thirdly, he had to be willing to pay the price. The Torah did not require the kinsman redeemer to pay the price; it only permitted him to do so. It was left up to the man’s free will. All three stipulations are spelled out in 43:1-4. Because of Israel’s sin against Ha’Shem, He had sold her to robbers and had become a slave to the Gentile nations. But now God is going to function as the Kinsman Redeemer.

The first requirement was that of being a kinsman. Whatever misfortunes life may have brought the Israelite, no one needed to be ensnared in them forever. A way was made for a family member, a friend, or even oneself to pay back the debt, to set the slave free, to commute the sentence. In ADONAI’s world chance did not have the last word. The verb ga’al means redeemer (35:10). The LORD made Himself Next-of-Kin of the people He created. They are His family and He shoulders all their needs as if they are His own. They would be redeemed by Him (see my commentary on Exodus Bz– Redemption).

Whatever Judah’s blindness and deafness was in the past, ADONAI said that they were to forget that and concentrate on whose they are. But now, this is what the LORD says – he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Isra’el: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are Mine (43:1). This is about as clear as it can be. It was God who created, formed, and redeemed Jacob. I do not think you could be confused about God’s unconditional love for Isra’el unless you deliberately wanted to be confused. The LORD declared: I have called you by name. This expression in Hebrew always means being called for a specific task. You will find this to be true everywhere in the TaNaKh. Have redeemed and have called are prophetic perfects, expressing a future action with absolute certainty as if it had already taken place. The latter verb indicates the creation of a special relationship between God and Isra’el. He also adds you are Mine, meaning that there is a special, intimate relationship between ADONAI and Isra’el. Because of this relationship, God fulfilled the first requirement of the redeemer – that of being a kinsman.

The second requirement was the willingness to pay. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you (43:2a). When the Israelites passed through the Red Sea, the Angel of God, the Second Person of the Trinity, who had been traveling in front of Isra’el’s army, withdrew and went behind to protect them (Psalm 105:39; and also see my commentary on Exodus Ci – The Waters Were Divided and the Israelites Went Through on Dry Land). This Angel of God would eventually become the Suffering Servant of Isaiah (see Hp – Here Is My Servant, Whom I Uphold). He was pierced for our transgressions on the cross, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed of our sins (53:5). In other words, He was willing to pay the price.

When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze (43:2b). The prophet Dani’el and his three Jewish friends experienced this first hand. As some of the best and brightest of Judah, Hanniah, Mishael and Azariah, had been given the Babylonian names of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. Dani’el had also been renamed Belteshazzar. They had been taken captive and exiled in Babylon. Because they refused to worship the idol of gold set up by King Nebuchadnezzar (Dani’el 3:16-18), they were thrown into the blazing furnace that was heated seven times hotter than usual (Dani’el 3:19). But they were not alone in the fire, one like the son of the gods was with them (Dani’el 3:25). Although Nebuchadnezzar did not know the Son of God, he did recognize that the Person appearing with the three Jews was God in human form. That preincarnate Messiah would ultimately pay the redemption price: For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16). After the king of Babylon called for them to come out of the furnace he and his royal court realized that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair on their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them (Dani’el 3:26-27).

Like Dani’el and his friends, God said to the Israelites of Isaiah’s day: When you walk through the fire you will not be burned (43:2). The same can be said of us. To refine and purify us, God sometimes uses the furnace of affliction. He didn’t say if. And Peter said: Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. None of us knows when we’ll be called on to walk through the fire or how hot the furnace will be. But we do know this: ADONAI’s purpose for the flames is to purify us, not to destroy us (even though the world might just do that). Sometimes, the only way God hurries holiness is by turning up the heat.

The third requirement was the ability to pay the price of redemption. The redemption price was the nations mentioned in 43:3 and mankind in 43:4. Now the LORD gives His own names to Isra’el as an indication of His support for His people no matter what may come in the years ahead. For I am ADONAI, your God, the Holy One of Isra’el, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush (Ethiopia) and Seba in your stead (43:3). As much as Isra’el is the LORD’s, the LORD is Israel’s. That was what the Covenant was all about (see my commentary on Exodus Dd – The Mosaic Covenant), Isra’el was committed to God, and incredibly, God was giving Himself to Isra’el.

In 43:3 He mentions three names; Egypt, Ethiopia, and Saba. These are three nations all in the continent of Africa. So, God was willing to sacrifice an entire continent like Africa to bring about the final redemption of Isra’el. For I am ADONAI. Here God calls Himself ADONAI, and whenever you see this name, it is always describing God as a covenant keeper, your God, uniquely Isra’el’s God; the Holy One of Isra’el, your Savior, the One who is both willing and able to pay the price of redemption.

Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give men in exchange for you, and people in exchange for your life (43:4). The reason God will pay the price is because Isra’el had been precious and honored in His sight, and because He loved her. In spite of Israel’s sinfulness she has been precious, honored, and loved in God’s sight. For those reasons, God is both willing and able to pay the price of redemption.

There is a chiastic relationship, or a parallelism, in these verses where the first letter is parallel to the second letter, and so on, with the letter C being the key point:

A I have created and formed you; fear not, you are Mine (43:1)

B When you pass through the rivers and through the fire, I will be with you (43:2)

C For I Am ADONAI, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior (43:3)

C Because I love you, I will give people in exchange for your life (43:4)

B Do not be afraid, for I Am with you and will bring you back from the ends of the earth (43:5-6)

A I created everyone who is called by My name for My glory (43:7)

Isaiah describes the final, worldwide regathering of the scattered exiles. Three major points are made in these three verses. First, we are told that this regathering is from the four corners of the world. Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west. I will say to the north, “Give them up!” and to the south, “Do not hold them back.” (43:5-6a). Isaiah is not prophesying about the return from Babylon because that was from only one area of the world. Isaiah is describing the far eschatological regathering after the Great Tribulation in preparation for the Messianic Kingdom.

Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth (43:6b). In words similar to those of 11:11-12, 27:13, 49:12 and 60:4, ADONAI promises to bring Jacob’s children back from every corner of the earth. This promise confirms the same promise Moses made in Deuteronomy 30:3-6. Furthermore, this regathering will be aided by the Gentile nations who will be called upon to bring the Jews back (see Dl – The LORD will have Compassion of Jacob).

But perhaps the most significant thing is that God views the final gathering of Isra’el on the magnitude of the original creation of man. Everyone who is called by My name, whom I created for My glory, whom I formed and made (43:7). The only time you see the words created (Genesis 1:27), formed (Genesis 2:7) and made (Genesis 1:26) together is in the creation passages. They were brought into existence for one purpose, to glorify ADONAI. Consequently, the people of God could not be left in exile. His name was on them. Whatever would happen to them or not happen to them was directly attributable to Him. If they were disgraced, He would be disgraced. They are called by His name, they belong to Him, they are part of His family (Deuteronomy 28:10; Jeremiah 14:9, 15:16; Ezeki’el 36:20).

In the final analysis, Isra’el, had sinned. But one of the fundamental principles of the Kingdom of God is that His grace precedes everything else. The most concise statement of this truth in the New Covenant is found in Romans 5:8. But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. That is, the LORD did everything necessary to deliver us from the consequences of our sin before there was any indication that we would respond to Him. The Adversaries lie that God is somehow holding out on us; that in some way He doesn’t really love us and want the best for us, is refuted by this one verse. The LORD’s character radiates free, self-giving love, without the slightest taint of selfishness, the “what’s in it for me” attitude of the human nature. The ultimate proof of that is the cross. ADONAI comes to us in Messiah, offering Himself to us (53:10). There is nothing we have done or ever could do to merit such an offer. It is free. It is the grace of God.¹⁶⁰

The Coming Deliverance from Babylon
43:1 to 44:5

The last of the seven sections of Isaiah are Chapters 40 to 66, the Book of Comfort. The redemption and restoration of Isra’el are the basic themes throughout these last 27 chapters. That is why this last section is also sometimes called the Book of Consolation. It is consoling for Isra’el to understand that, despite all she has endured, she is still the beloved people of God, and that a bright future is in store for her. Isra’el will pass unscathed through fire and water, mighty nations will take her place in bondage and Israel’s scattered children will be gathered from the farthest corners of the earth and brought back to their homeland.

The Book of Comfort started out with a prologue in Chapter 40:1-11. Then in 40:2 Isaiah gave us an outline of the remainder of the book. The first part of this outline was that her hard service is completed. The LORD had been at war with Isra’el because of her sin. Now that her hard service had been completed, consolation was about to come in Chapters 40 through 48. ADONAI is doing several things throughout this section. On the one hand, Isaiah prophesies concerning the coming deliverance from the Babylonian captivity under Cyrus the Great (see the commentary on Ezra-Nehemiah, to see link click Ah – Cyrus Decrees: Rebuild the Temple). He was speaking prophetically because Judah had not yet gone into exile when Isaiah lived. That would come 150 years later (see the commentary on Jeremiah Gu – Seventy Years of Imperial Babylonian Rule). At the same time, He prophesied about Israel’s final deliverance through the Great Tribulation and the final restoration of the Messianic Kingdom.

Throughout this section Isaiah constantly talks about idolatry. It was because of idolatry that the Jews went into exile in the first place. But during the Babylonian captivity they were cured of idolatry, and since their return from Babylon, idolatry has ceased being a problem for them. When ADONAI judged Babylon, as we will see in Chapters 46 and 47, for subjugating the Jews, He will also judge the gods of Babylon.

Hear, You Deaf; Look, You Blind, and See!
42: 18-25

Hear, you deaf; look , you blind, and see DIG: What things have the exiles seen and heard but failed to notice? What was the result? What was God’s original plan for the northern kingdom of Isra’el? For the southern kingdom of Judah? How have they failed to live up to it? What have they become instead? If you were in exile, what comfort would you find in this passage?

REFLECT: Are there times in your past when you were deaf or blind to the obvious will of the LORD? How was it obvious, now that you look back on it? Did ADONAI give up on you? If God needed to gain your attention today, where would you place yourself on the scale of 1 (deaf) to 10 (all ears)? Are there areas of your life where you might still be turning a deaf ear or a blind eye to the LORD? What lesson for the future could you learn here?

After stating that God would deliver His people in 42:10-17, ADONAI now addresses the people’s present condition. The dispute was not between God and idols as in 41:21-29, or between the LORD and idol worshipers as in 41:1-7, but between ADONAI and His own people. Why has God been so blind to the sufferings of His people? Why has He been so deaf to their cries? In His grace He had given them the Torah, but they had refused to believe it, they were not willing to walk along the path laid out for them. Then when the punishment came for their rebellion, they refused to learn the lessons that the LORD was trying to teach them. To all this, it was as if Isaiah was saying, “It is not God who is blind and deaf, look in the mirror, it is you!”

ADONAI called attention to Judah’s condition by saying: Hear, you deaf; look, you blind, and see (42:18)! Who is blind but my servant, and deaf like the messenger I send? Who is blind like the one committed to Me (42:19)? In verse 18 blind and deaf are plural, but in verse 19 blind is singular. The plural looks back to 42:7 and 16, where the blind are the lost Gentile nations. Since verse 19 is singular, this points to nation of Judah, God’s servant. It was as if the LORD was asking them, “Can the blind lead the blind?” How could Judah lead the pagan Gentile nations into the truth if she was blind herself? Later, when the Israelites sat on the banks of the Euphrates River in Babylon they probably wondered what had happened to them. Why were they exiled from the Land and their Temple? Isaiah would answer their question by saying that they were spiritually deaf and blind to the Torah. When Ezra would finally lead the people back to the Promised Land, this question would ultimately lead to the formation of the Oral Law (see my commentary on The Life of Christ, to see link click Ei – The Oral Law), by building a fence around the Torah.

But as an encouragement, God points out that her spiritual blindness will be healed in the future. Her future spiritual health would be in sharp contrast to the state of Judah in Isaiah’s day. Theirs was not the total darkness of the Gentile world. ADONAI would say to them: You have seen many things. Isra’el had been given the Torah; but unfortunately, she paid no attention to it. Judah had been given the prophets; but even though her ears were open, she heard nothing (42:20). And because of that, there were two results.

First, came the necessity of punishment. Why? Because for God’s own sake, His righteousness demanded punishment for sin (42:21a). The meaning here is steadfastness and purpose. God acts in accordance with His predetermined plan. Secondly, the Torah had to be upheld. It specified that if the Israelites lived according to God’s righteous commandments He would bless them. In that sense the Torah would be great and glorious because it would reveal His righteousness to the Gentile nations (42:21b). Therefore, if the Torah had to be upheld it demanded punishment because it clearly stated chastisement was the result of disobedience. What was their punishment? They would be driven out of the Land (Deuteronomy 28:49-53).

The Israelites where in an utterly helpless position. But this is a people whose cities would be plundered and looted (also see Ezeki’el 7:21, 26:12, 29:19), all of them trapped in pits or hidden away in prisons. They have become plunder, with no one to rescue them; they have been made loot, with no one to say, “Send them back” (42:22). In the future they would be plundered and looted by the Babylonians. They will be hidden away in pits or hidden away in prisons with no one to rescue them except for the LORD. And just as sure as night follows the day, judgment follows spiritual blindness. Far from influencing the Gentile world, the Gentile world ended up influencing her! Through her failure of making the Torah great, Judah had lost her status in the world and her protection of ADONAI. That was the truth taught in the Song of the Vineyard (5:1-7): no fruit equaled no protection! Far from being the ones who could assist in the deliverance of the lost through the Torah, they themselves needed deliverance.

Which of you will listen to this or pay close attention in the time to come (42:23)? The judgment of Judah and Isra’el in this section is in light of her state of deafness. Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor His ear too dull to hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not choose to listen to you any more (59:1-2). Who was really deaf here? A man told his doctor that he thought his wife was going deaf. The doctor told him to conduct a simple test. When the man reached the front door of his home, he called out, “Honey, is dinner ready?” Hearing no response, he walked inside and repeated himself. Still no reply. On the third try, when he was immediately behind her, he finally heard her say, “For the third time, yes!” ADONAI had sent Isaiah to prophesy to Judah about her impending judgment, but the message had fallen on deaf ears.

Was it that the LORD could not protect them? No, the LORD demanded judgment, and here the judgment is described. Isaiah points out that the Israelites must indeed learn their lesson. What exactly was the lesson? Who was the cause of their suffering? Perhaps the immediate cause was the Gentile nations. Assyria. Babylonia. Medo-Persia. Greece. Rome. The Arabs. Nazi Germany. Soviet Russia today. But Who is the ultimate cause? The answer is that God is the ultimate cause of their suffering. He is the one who handed Jacob (or Judah) over to become loot and Isra’el to the plunderers because of her sins (42:24a). The means of judging Judah or Isra’el has always been to turn them over to the Gentiles. Now these Gentile nations are sinful, wicked nations, and because God punishes sin, He eventually ends up punishing those Gentile nations also. But God uses their wickedness to discipline Judah and Isra’el.

Why did God judge and discipline them? Was it not ADONAI they sinned against (42:24b)? Grammatically, the only answer was, “Yes.” They would not follow His ways; they did not obey His commandments. They had an unsubmitted, rebellious will. Why the dispersion after the Romans destroyed Jerusalem in 70 AD? They were still blind to their sin and His ways. That is why God would send His Servant to open their eyes.

So, on account of their sins and disobedience to the Torah, God’s anger was against them. So He poured out on them His burning anger, the violence of war (42:25a). The theme of Chapters 40-48 is that her hard service had been completed. Here the prophet brings out the fact that for centuries God has been disciplining Judah and Isra’el. When Israel was assimilated by Assyria, or when Judah was sent into exile in Babylon, they thought ADONAI was deaf when they cried out to Him. They were actually the problem.

But Isra’el’s response was that even though God enveloped them in flames, they did not understand. Isra’el did not know who was disciplining her because of her deafness. Even though God consumed them, they did not take it to heart (24:25). You can talk to rabbis today, and this is still very true. If you ask them why the Jews were dispersed, the answer that you get is that God dispersed them for the purpose of spreading Judaism throughout the world. The discipline of ADONAI did not cause the nation to repent and return to Him. They still would be blind to their sin and His ways. We know this because of the reaction of the religious leaders of the nation when Messiah presented Himself (see Gl – The Three Messianic Miracles). But did that thwart the purposes of the LORD? Never. It did not frustrate the purposes of God for Judah. She would be regathered into the Land as seen in the coming deliverance from Babylon from 43:1 to 44:5.

Could it be that the LORD is trying to tell you something but you aren’t listening? Let’s examine ourselves carefully. ADONAI speaks to us through His gentile whisper (1 Kgs 19:11-12), and His Word: All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work (2 Tim 3:16). His voice isn’t audible, but if you are paying attention, it is unmistakable. We need to listen with both our hearts and our brains to hear Him.

Sing to the LORD a New Song,
His Praise from the Ends of the Earth
42: 10-17

Sing to the LORD a new song, His praise from the ends of the earth DIG: Who is encouraged to sing a new song to the Servant? What places does the prophet call upon here? Who are all these people singing to the LORD? How does this widespread call relate to the mission of the Servant in 42:6-7? How is God like a mighty man? Why does He first shout the battle cry, then gasp and pant? Why does Isaiah finish the good promises here with a warning?

REFLECT: How do you acknowledge the blessings in your life that ADONAI provides? Is it hard for you to picture the LORD as a warrior (Josh 5:13-15; Num 21:14)? How has God turned darkness into light for you?

Victorious over His enemies, the LORD is praised at His Second Coming. The prophet gives the reason why even the idol worshipers, the enemies of God, must now recognize His greatness and stop their foolish ways. This is the first of four Servant Songs (49:1-6, 50:4-9, 53:13 to 53:12). Here the prophet Isaiah calls the whole world to sing to the LORD a new song of praise (42:10a). The outburst of praise literally begs to be asked what triggered it in the first place. His praise from the ends of the earth, you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it, you islands, and all who live in them (42:10b). It is especially noteworthy that the entire earth is called on to give this praise in the form of a new song. Surely it is prompted by the previously announced coming of the Servant of the LORD (to see link click Hp – Here Is My Servant, Whom I Uphold).

The entire earth should rejoice at that news. Let the desert and its towns raise their voices; let the settlements where Kedar lives rejoice. Let the people of the Sela sing for joy; let them shout from the mountaintops (42:11). Kedar (21:16-17) is in the north (Syrian) Arabian desert, and Sela was a city in Edom. The earth (the islands and the desert) joins its people (all who live) in praise because the creation itself will be released from bondage of corruption. Rabbi Sha’ul tells us so: The creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed (First John 3:1-2). For the creation was subject to frustration, not by its own choice but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God (Romans 8:19-20).

The call to praise reaches its climax at this point. Exactly because the Servant will be coming, the Ruach HaKodesh encourages all those living in Isaiah’s day to give glory to the LORD and proclaim His praise in the islands, or the outermost reaches of the earth (42:12). Why? In light of the promise of new revelation to come, Isaiah calls the whole world to sing a new song. This repeated call to praise introduces the cause of all this overflowing joy. It is the triumph of the mighty man, the tender warrior, ADONAI.

Why? Because the LORD will march out like a mighty man (see the commentary on Genesis Ec – When Abram Heard Lot Had Been Taken Captive, He Went in Pursuit as far as Dan). He will not come meek and mild as the Servant came in 42:1-4. But when Jesus comes again at His Second Coming (63:1-6) like a warrior He will stir up His zeal; with a shout He will raise the battle cry and will triumph over His enemies (42:13). The comparison of ADONAI to a warrior is one of the oldest in the Bible (Exodus 15 and Judges 5). He battles on behalf of His people. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that Isaiah should identify Him in this way here and elsewhere in the book (28:21, 30:30-31, 31:4, 59:16-18, 63:3-4; also see Zechariah 9:14 and 14:3). It will not be the Persian, Cyrus, who will ultimately deliver Isra’el, the Servant by His mighty arm (30:32, 48:14, 51:9, 52:10, 53:1, 59:1)

Isaiah sings as God speaks again and promises new prophecies. Now God gives that new prophecy He promised to give back in 42:9, which is a far eschatological prophecy about the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. The rabbis teach that this section refers to the return of the exiles. For a long time I have kept silent, I have been quiet and held myself back. Isaiah had prophesied for many years and then there seemed to be a period of silence. There does appear that many years elapsed between Chapter 39 and Chapter 40 of Isaiah. The first 39 Chapters may have been written when Isaiah was a young man and then Chapters 40 to 66 were written when he was an older man. But to be sure, all of Isaiah was written by the same prophet.

ADONAI, seemingly silent for a long time (the whole history of the Gentile world), will act in judgment though, humanly speaking, it will be painful for Him. With the change to the first person, God Himself speaks of His coming battle for His people. But now, like a woman in childbirth I cry out, I gasp and pant (42:14). The rabbis teach that the LORD was crying out against the injustice done to Judah. They teach that God will no longer tolerate the sufferings of His people and the continued ruin of their country.

When Christ returns His silence will be broken and the earth will be judged. The old order of things will be ended. He declares: I will lay waste the mountains and hills and dry up all their vegetation (42:15a). The mountains and the hills will be devastated. I will turn rivers into islands and dry up the pools (42:15b). We know that when the LORD returns the earth with bloom with abundance. The desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom like the lily (35:1a CJB). Even the Negev will blossom. So this verse cannot be speaking of a literal drying up. Consequently, we must interpret it in a figurative way and assume that God will dry up the places where people do not revere Him.

Just as the LORD will do unheard of things in the judgment of the wicked in order to set His people free, He will do unheard of things in their deliverance. He will guide those who have faith, trust, and belief in Him, giving them light and healing. I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them and make the rough places smooth (42:16a). The word blind in this verse is in the plural, pointing to the unenlightened Gentile world out of which He will lead His Servant, and those whom He chose to illuminate. He will heal their spiritual blindness. He will lead them to spiritual truth. These are the things He will do; He will not forsake them in any way (42:16b). This is the way ADONAI leads His own. You and I are blind to the future, but He is not, and He will lead all who put their trust in Him.

However, those who trust in idols will be judged. Although there will be unsaved people living during the Great Tribulation (see the commentary on Revelation Fc – The Sheep and the Goats), idol worship will not be tolerated. This final note was aimed at the idol worshippers during Isaiah’s own day. It was as if he was saying to them, “There will be a day, in the time to come (42:23), when you will regret worshipping idols of mere stone and wood.” Those who say to images, “You are our gods,” will be turned back in utter shame (42:17, 44:9 and 11, 45:16). Ultimately their trust was in themselves and what they could do. We see this today in the New Age notion that somehow mankind can discover the god within. That god is the way of works, not by grace. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast (Ephesians 2:8-9). Many are the woes of the wicked, but the LORD’s unfailing love surrounds those who trust in Him (Psalm 32:10). When all else fails, trust God!

Here Is My Servant, Whom I Uphold
42: 1-9

Here is My Servant, whom I uphold DIG: In Isaiah’s time, a king’s servant stood in a position of great importance. What terms express this servant’s relationship to God in 42:1-7? His mission? His character? Who is the servant referred to here? Why will God’s Servant not shout or cry out (Proverbs 8:1-4 and 9:13ff)? What is meant by a bruised reed and smoldering wick (36:6)?

REFLECT: In what ways does Yeshua fulfill this picture of God’s Servant? Which of those qualities have you experienced recently? When was the last time you felt like a bruised reed? Looking back on it, how did Messiah find a way to let you know that He was right there with you? How did He treat you with tenderness even if you did not recognize it as such at the time?

As the Cone of Isaiah comes to it’s point (to see link click Hl – The Cone of Isaiah), the LORD is speaking and He presents the Servant, the Messiah, to the nations of the world and to Judah in particular. Not coincidentally, the Trinity is in view here. Evidence from the TaNaKh that ADONAI is indeed a Trinity is found in the fact that only three Persons are ever called God, and no more than three Persons are ever seen together. There are four examples of the Trinity in Isaiah; the first is seen here in 42:1. The Trinity can also be seen in 48:12-16, again in 61:1, and also in 63:7-14. The doctrine of the Trinity is a fundamental belief of the Church. Those who deny the Trinity expose themselves as either being a member of a cult, like the Jehovah’s Witnesses, or merely believing in false doctrine like non-messianic Jews. One cannot be saved and not believe in the Trinity.

Here is My Servant, whom I uphold, My chosen one in whom I delight; I will put My Spirit on Him and He will bring justice to the nations (42:1). Six things are said about the Servant. First, God says He is My Servant, His special Servant (John 4:34 and Philippians 2:5-8). Secondly, He is the One that God upholds (Mark 1:12-13). Thirdly, He is God’s chosen (First Peter 2:4-6). Fourthly, ADONAI says: You are My Son, whom I love; with You I am well pleased (Luke 3:22). Fifthly, God says: I will put My Spirit on Him (42:1a). Sixthly, He will bring justice to the nations (42:1b).

The second Person is the Speaker’s Servant, or as He says My Servant. And the third Person is said to be My Spirit. Here is a passage where there are three and only three Persons, no more and no less. Three times Isaiah describes the placing of the Spirit on the Messiah: once in 11:2, a second time here in 42:1, which is also referred to at the baptism of Christ in Matthew 3:16-17 and Luke 3:22, when Ruach Ha’Kodesh came down upon Him in the visible form of a dove, and a third time in 61:1. This passage deals with the public ministry of the Servant. And finally, what is said about the status of the Servant is that He will bring justice to the (Gentile) nations (42:1b). This He will do at the Second Coming.

Then we have the manner of His ministry. He will not shout or cry out, or raise His voice in the streets (42:2). So, while the apostles will be active in street evangelism, Jesus will not. Matthew connects the quietness, the soft-spokeness of the ministry of Yeshua with the prophecy of Isaiah here. Matthew 12:15-21 quotes 42:1-4 with some minor variations, relating it to Messiah and His ministry in Isra’el. As the LORD’s Servant, the Messiah, did what Isra’el could never do. He perfectly carried out the will of the Father so that people everywhere could believe. This is an example of the B’rit Chadashah interpreting the TaNaKh.

In addition, the way that He will conduct Himself is described. A bruised reed He will not break. This phrase means He will not crush the oppressed. He will help the oppressed, not crush them. He will be characterized by mercy, truth, and justice. Those who come to Him for help will be accepted and treated with great tenderness.¹⁵⁹ And a smoldering wick He will not snuff out (42:3a). The smoldering wick refers to those who have lost all hope. He will not snuff out our hope; on the contrary, He gives us hope.

Finally, we are told that the Messiah will succeed in His ministry. Four statements are made to that effect. First, He will not falter or fail. Second, He will not be discouraged till He establishes justice on the earth (42:4a). If there was any time that Jesus should have been discouraged, it was when Isra’el rejected Him as the Messiah and said He was demon possessed (see the commentary on The Life of Christ Ek – It is only by Beelzebub, the Prince of Demons, That This Fellow Drives Out Demons). Yet, God says that He will never be discouraged. Nor do we find any discouragement in the statements that Christ makes during His ministry. Third, in faithfulness He will bring forth justice (42:3b). Justice has not yet been done on the earth. But when Messiah returns at the Second Coming, distant lands will put their hope in His Torah (42:4b). Back in Chapter 2 Isaiah stated that when Messiah reigns from Jerusalem, the Torah will go forth from Jerusalem. So distant Gentile lands will wait for the fulfillment of this prophecy.

The fact that Jesus is compassionate and mends broken lives does not mean that the lives of believers will be without sorrow. After all, Yeshua made it quite clear when He said to His disciples: In this world you will have trouble (John 16:33). Yet many times when trouble comes, it is easy to forget that Jesus, a man of sorrows (53:3), is still right there with us even if we cannot feel His presence because of our overwhelming pain. Sometimes nothing consoles me when I am in pain. Praying or reading my Bible does not even give me relief from my torment and I feel guilty about that. But despite my feelings, as I look back on my time of trouble, I can see that He is a Promise Keeper and there really are His footprints in the sand as He carried me through it.

This is what God, ADONAI says: He who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it, who gives breath to its people, and life to those who walk on it (42:5). The one who called the Servant to establish His Kingdom on the earth was in fact the Creator of the earth. As a result, the Servant’s ministry would not be something new, but would be, in fact, the renewal of the creation. The exclusive use of participles points us to the identical descriptions of God earlier: He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a canopy, and spreads them out like a tent to live in (40:22). Equally important is the fact that the Servant is the One who gives breath or spirit, to us. His concern for us is seen next as One who brought us into being and sustains us with every breath we take.

God the Father then commissions the Servant. He promised His Servant full and constant support in the accomplishment of the mission entrusted to Him. I, ADONAI, have called You in righteousness (42:6a). The call to the Servant comes from God and is translated in righteousness. Then comes the promise. I will take hold of Your hand (the Father will sustain Him). I will keep You and will make You to be a Covenant for the people (42:6b). The word people is singular here, so God is talking about a united northern kingdom of Isra’el and southern kingdom of Judah. The relationship of the Servant to the Jewish people is to be very intimate. Yeshua Messiah is to be the One who will fulfill the Jewish covenants. He will be the mediator of the covenants and is the basis for the teaching of Messiah in the different feasts of Isra’el.

He is not only the mediator and the maker of the Covenant, He is also the essence of the Covenant itself. God says: You will be a Covenant. The Covenant God is talking about is the New Covenant. Soon Isaiah will mention the New Covenant in two places (54:10 and 61:8). But it is Jeremiah who gives us the details (Jeremiah 31:31-34). It is also mentioned in Ezeki’el 16:60. Therefore, we have three of the four major prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezeki’el that mention the coming of a New Covenant. Therefore, the concept of a New Covenant is found within the pages of the TaNaKh. Even though God said: I will make a New Covenant with the house of Isra’el and with the house of Judah (Jeremiah 31:31). ADONAI declares that the Servant will restore the tribes of Judah and bring back the faithful of Isra’el that He has kept (49:6c). This is part of the condition of the New Covenant that is made with the Jewish nation.

The Gentiles would also benefit. God the Father said: I will also make You a light for the Gentiles (see the commentary on The Life of Christ Au – Jesus Presented in the Temple), that You may bring my salvation to the ends of the earth (Isaiah 42:6c, 49:6 and Luke 2:21-40). So anyone who receives salvation, Jew or Gentile alike, would receive it from the Messiah or the Servant of the LORD. In relationship to the united kingdom of Isra’el, the New Covenant will ultimately lead to her final salvation and restoration (see Kp – My Chosen People Will Inherit My Mountains). To open eyes that are spiritually blind and to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness (42:7). For centuries the Gentiles had dwelt in darkness because they did not have the Scriptures. Only when the gospel moved out of the land of Isra’el to the Gentiles, did they finally receive light (see my commentary on Acts Az – The Good News Spreads to Samaria). This is exactly what Luke 2:28-32 and John 8:12 state regarding Christ; that, although He came initially for the Jews, the Gentiles would also benefit because He came to be their light.

Here God said: I am ADONAI, that is My name (see the commentary on Exodus At – I Am Has Sent Me To You), I will not give My name glory to another or My praise to idols (42:8). The name of ADONAI, or the LORD, implies that He is a Covenant Keeper. He faithfully carries out His promises. The fact that He alone is the Covenant Keeper of all “other gods” is the uniqueness of His glory. God said I will not give my Sh’khinah glory to another or my praise to idols. No idol will ever be the Covenant Keeper.

Because God alone transcends the world, He alone can explain the course of history. See, the former things have taken place, and new things I declare; before they spring into being I announce them to you (42:9). God says that some of His earlier prophecies, or the former things in the book of Isaiah have taken place, or have been fulfilled. Especially prophecies dealing with the Assyrian invasion and destruction. But He now announces that He has new things, or prophecies, to declare. And as God fulfilled His former predictions, so will He bring His new ones to realization. God, unlike idols, can tell the future, and this divine ability adds to His glory.

The Servant of God the Father
42: 1-17

These verses are the first of Isaiah’s four Servant Songs (49:1-6, 50:4-9, 53:13 to 53:12) referring to the first coming of the Messiah. As believers, we call such passages messianic prophecies. Isra’el is called the servant of the LORD (41:8, 42:19, 43:10, 44:1-2, 22, 45:4, 48:20), and the Messiah, on whom God has placed His Spirit (42:1, 11:2) is also called the Servant (49:3-7, 50:10, 52:13, 53:11). Whether Isaiah is referring to Isra’el or the Messiah must be determined by the context and the characteristics assigned to the servant/Servant. Isra’el, as God’s servant, was supposed to help bring the world to a knowledge of God, but she failed. Thus, the Messiah, the LORD’s Servant, who epitomizes the nation of Isra’el, will fulfill His will.

And as it is important to understand who the Servant of God is, it is just as important to understand who the servant of God is not! Paul warned us: For such men are false prophets, deceitful workmen, masquerading as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve (Second Corinthians 11:13-15). Today the Muslims teach that Muhammad, not Jesus, is the fulfillment of 42:1-17. Muhammad Nubee wrote this information in a pamphlet entitled Christian and Muslim Dialogue. And I have taken the quotes below from pages 41-42. It teaches Muslims how to convert Christians and messianic believers to put their faith in Muhammad and Allah as the one true religion. Taken from Christian and Muslim Dialogue, this is what Muslims believe:

A clearer fulfillment of the prophecy of Muhammad [Praise Be Unto Him] is found in Isaiah 42:

1. Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my spirit upon him and he will bring justice to the Gentiles. (Also called my messenger in verse 19. No doubt all Prophets were indeed servants, messengers and elect of Allah). Yet no Prophet is universally called by these specific titles as Muhammad [PBUH] in Arabic Abduhu wa Rasuluhul Mustapha, or His slave servant and His elected messenger. The testimony of a person accepting Islam is, “I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and messenger.” This same formula is repeated five times daily, immediately before the beginning of each prayer, nine times a day in the Tashahhud during the minimum obligatory prayers, and several more times if a Muslim performs additional recommended prayers. The most common title of Prophet Muhammad [PBUH] is Rasoolullah, or the messenger of Allah.

2. He will not shout or cry out or raise his voice in the streets. This describes the decency of Prophet Muhammad [PBUH].

3. . . . in faithfulness he will bring forth justice.

4. He will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth. In his law the islands will put their hope. This is to be compared with Jesus, who did not prevail over His enemies and was disappointed because of the rejection by the Israelites.

5. I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles. The Muslims teach that the phrase I will keep you means that no other Prophet will come after him. In a short time, many Gentiles were guided to Islam.

6. To open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness. Blind eyes, a life of darkness denotes here the pagan life. Freeing captives from prison denotes the abolishment of slavery for the first time in the history of mankind.

7. I am the LORD, that is my name! I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols. Prophet Muhammad [PBUH] is unique among all Prophets as he is the Seal of all Prophets and his teachings remain undistorted until today, compared with Christianity and Judaism.

8. Sing to the LORD a new song, his praise from the ends of the earth: The Muslims teach that the phrase a new song is not in Hebrew or Aramaic, but Arabic. The praise of God and His messenger Muhammad [PBUH] is chanted five times daily from the minarets of millions of mosques all over the world.

9. Let the desert and its towns raise their voices; let the settlements where Kedar lives rejoice. Let the people of Sela sing for joy; let them shout from the mountaintops. From Mount Arafat near Mecca the Pilgrims chant every year the following: “Here I come [for Your service] O, Allah. Here I come. Here I come. Verily Yours is the praise, the blessings and sovereignty. There is no partner besides You.” Isaiah 42 can never be applied to an Israelite Prophet as Kedar is the second of Ishmael (Genesis 25:13).

10. Let them give glory to the LORD and proclaim his praise in the islands. And really Islam spread to the small islands as far as Indonesia and the Caribbean Sea.

11. He will triumph over his enemies. In a short period the Kingdom of God on earth was established with the advent of Muhammad [PBUH]. This 42^nd chapter of Isaiah fits exactly to the character of Prophet Mohammad [PBUH].

To these lies, believers say in one voice: The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God (2 Corinthians 4:4).

Present Your Case says the LORD
41: 21-29

Present your case says the LORD DIG: These verses resume God’s address to the nations. To what “competition” does Ha’Shem challenge the idols? Why do the idols fail when God succeeds? What will be the outcome for those who had placed their trust in the idols? Who is this one from the North and the one from the East? Although Cyrus credited his victories to many gods, what was the real truth about this period of history? How do the military conquests of Cyrus stand in contrast to those of Assyria (10:12-13)?

REFLECT: Anything you put between your soul and God is your idol- regardless of what it is (see the commentary on Exodus, to see link click Dl – You Shall Not Make for Yourselves an Idol). Is there anything that you are allowing to take the place of your relationship with the Lord? If so, He wants it out of the way. Where do you go to find the answers to problems in your own life? What new perspective have you gained from this chapter on God’s wisdom? On His dependability?

The pagan understanding of existence rested on the concept of continuity. According to this concept, everything that exists is part of everything else. Thus humans, nature, and God are all inseparably bound together. The world is eternal. What is, always has been, and what has been, always will be. There is no beginning and no end, and nothing ever changes. Thus, the way to tell the future is to understand the past. For what happened under similar circumstances will happen again. The “gods” are not powerful enough to tell us how the world began, change the cycle of nature, or tell us something that has never happened before. Therefore, Isaiah’s attacks here demonstrate an understanding of the pagan concept of continuity. He attacks it precisely at its weak point. His attack illustrates the difference between his (the Bible’s) conception of God and that of Judah’s neighbors. What kind of a God knows something that has never happened before? What kind of a God is He who can explain how the world began? He is One who has made everything operate according to His sovereign will. He is One who is Himself the first and the last (41:4 and 22, 44:6, 48:12). But these idols could do nothing of the sort. Thus, God’s challenge to them.

What happened to the idols that God called into court in the early verses of Chapter 41 to prove that they were really viable gods? First, ADONAI gave a near historical prophecy regarding Cyrus (41:1-7), then a far eschatological prophecy about His Servant and the final deliverance of Isra’el (41:8-20). Now Isaiah returns to another near historical prophecy (41:21-29), where God challenges idols to present their strongest case why they should be believed. This near, far, near pattern is not unusual for Isaiah.

In contrast with idols that are manmade and unable to help people, God can, and does, tell the future. The challenge comes from ADONAI. Present your case, says the LORD. Set forth your arguments, says Jacob’s King (41:21). This emphasis on a merely national God was intentional. ADONAI came before the court as one God among many because that was the issue – who was the one true God? In this courtroom scene ADONAI demanded that the idols prove their case by prophesying about the future. The LORD had just given a near historical prophecy about the coming of Cyrus (41:1-7), and a far eschatological prophecy of Israel’s ultimate restoration (41:8-20). So here, He challenges the idols to do the same. The challenge is in two statements. First, bring in your idols to tell Us (the Trinity is in view here) what is going to happen, or prophesy what is yet to come (41:22a). Secondly, tell Us (again, the Trinity) what the former things were, so that we may consider them and know their final outcome (41:22b). In other words, declare the significance of what has already happened in history. That would separate the true God from the imposters. But there was only silence.

Or declare to us the things to come, tell us what the future holds, so we may know that you are gods. Do something, whether good or bad, so that we will be dismayed and filled with fear (41:22c-23). Here the LORD, through His prophet, attacked the very roots of their pagan religion. Those who lived in Babylon, Canaan or Egypt could undoubtedly point to things their gods had done. But opposed to their false concept of continuity, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob was not locked in an endless repetition of the past. ADONAI is sovereign and can act independently of the past. Then, exasperated, He repeated the challenge; prove yourselves to be gods. It’s as if ADONAI was saying, “I don’t care if you do good or do evil, but do something to prove that you are gods.” However, there was still no response from the idols of wood and stone.

Finally, God drew His own conclusion at the trial. Because they could neither explain the past nor tell the future, because they were unable to do anything independently, they had no claim to be called gods. The idols are less than nothing and your works are utterly worthless; anyone who chooses you is detestable (41:24). The LORD declared that the ones who chose to worship idols of stone and wood in place of the living God of Isra’el prove themselves to be detestable. An abomination really, and that is the key point here. In and of themselves, the gods meant little. But to exchange the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles is always tragic for the worshiper (Romans 1:18-23).

Perhaps Joshua said it most succinctly. Speaking to the Israelites at Shechem at the end of his life he declared: Now fear ADONAI and serve Him with all your faithfulness. Throw away the false gods that your forefathers worshiped beyond the River (see the commentary on Genesis Dt – I Will Bless Those Who Bless You, and Whoever Curses You I Will Curse), and in Egypt (see the commentary on Jeremiah Gj – Jeremiah’s Final Words of Judgment in Egypt), and serve ADONAI. But if serving Him seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD (Joshua 24:14-15). What is your choice?

Since the challenge failed to be taken up, God passes the sentence upon the idols. This is the sentence of the court. First, God summarizes His prophecies. Notice how specific the prophecy gets. This is something that the oracles of the ancient Middle East could never accomplish. In 41:25a ADONAI declared: I have stirred up one (Cyrus) from the North, and he comes – one (Cyrus) from the rising sun (east). How could both be true? They could both be true for one reason. One of Cyrus’ parents was a Mede, and the Medes were from the north. The other one of Cyrus’ parents was Persian, and Persia is in the east. That is how specific the prophecy is: Cyrus and the Medo-Persian Empire ended the Babylonian Empire. He treads on rulers as if they were mortar, as if he were a potter treading the clay (41:25c).

Furthermore, God describes Cyrus as one who calls on My name (41:25b). But Cyrus was not a true believer in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Yet, God says through Isaiah that Cyrus would call upon the name of God. Did he? Yes, he did. The books of First and Second Chronicles gives us God’s viewpoint of Jewish history. There, the Ruach Ha’Kodesh points out that in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of ADONAI spoken through Jeremiah, ADONAI moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and to put it in writing. This is what Cyrus the king of Persia says: The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a Temple for Him at Jerusalem in Judah. Anyone of his people among you – may the LORD his God be with him, and let him go up (Second Chronicles 36:22-23). And in Ezra 1:1-4 we have the decree of Cyrus permitting the Jews to return to Jerusalem. In both passages Cyrus calls upon the God of heaven when giving Judah permission to return to the Land. As a result, God proceeded to summarize the prophets.

Who told of this from the beginning, so we could know, or beforehand, so we could say, “He was right?” No one told of this, no one foretold it, no one heard any words from you (41:26). Once again Isaiah points out that ADONAI was the only One who prophesied about it. Not one whisper of Cyrus’ coming had been made by the idols of Babylon, of Assyria, of the Medes, or of the Persians. Hence, God was the one who told of this from the beginning, so we could know, or beforehand, so anyone could say: He was right (41:26).

What the false gods could not do, the LORD claims to have done. But of the idols, no one foretold it, no one heard any words from you. God said through His prophet, “I was the first to tell Zion, ‘Look, here they are! I gave to Jerusalem a messenger of good news’ (41:27).” The pronoun they refers to the prophecies. He is saying: Look, here are the prophecies that I have told you about.

Finally, then, we have the conclusion of the case against idolatry. The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob declared: I look but there is no one – no one among them to give counsel, no one to give answer when I ask them (41:28). ADONAI had prepared a Savior. Earlier He had declared through His prophet, “For to us a Child is born, to us a Son is given, and the government will be on His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it. With justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD of heaven’s angelic armies (CJB) will accomplish this” (9:6-7). But the false gods had neither said nor done anything. This is the first occurrence of a theme that we will see several more times in the book: ADONAI is the only source of salvation (43:12, 50:2, 59:16, 63:3). Even “the wisest” of the supposed gods have no clue. When the LORD asks them, they cannot speak. Only God has the answers in this life.

They are utterly silent because they are merely wood and stone. Therefore, God declared: See, they are all false! Their deeds amount to nothing; their images are but wind and confusion (41:29). God uses four words to sum up the idols. They are false, nothing, wind, and confusion. Confusion is the end result of idolatry, religion, or philosophy that is anti-God or atheistic. They do not have the answers to the problems of life. These man-made systems cannot touch the human heart. Where one places created things above the Creator, there is nothing that humans can do to fill that spiritual void. The only answer is found in the One who brings good news of great joy that will be for all the people (Luke 2:10).

I am the LORD, Your God,
Who Takes Hold of Your Right Hand
41: 11-20

I am the LORD, Your God, who takes hold of your right hand DIG: Why does God address the exiles as worm Jacob and little Isra’el? What type of thirst is Isaiah referring to here (also see Psalm 42:1-2)? How will their situation soon change? Why will the LORD restore His people? Of all the peoples conquered by Babylon, only the Jews retained their religious, ethnic, and political identity. How might this be a witness to the other nations? How does this relate to Israel’s call to be God’s servant?

REFLECT: If God moves heaven and earth in order to protect and save His people, how should that knowledge affect your prayers? Your worship? Your attitude in hard times? Your priorities and purpose in life? How might meditating upon the picture of God in Chapters 40-41 help you to grasp this truth? How can you be little and a worm? What mountains and hills are there in your life today? If you compare your faith to Israel’s threshing sledge, how new, sharp, and many are your teeth?

In this scene we see a far eschatological prophecy, or the final deliverance of Isra’el. In contrast with ADONAI’s choosing and helping Isra’el, He will not protect the Gentile nations who oppose her. All who rage against you will surely be ashamed and disgraced. There will be a mounting tide of hostility against Isra’el during the Great Tribulation starting with the emotion of rage, (see the commentary on Revelation De – The Events in the Middle of the Great Tribulation),  moving on to the formation of a complaint from those who opposed them, next will come active opposition from their enemies, leading to open war against them (see the commentary on Revelation, to see link click Ds – The Woman and the Dragon). But God says: those who oppose you will be as nothing and they will perish (41:11). When the Gentile nations of the world align themselves, with their demonic leader the antichrist, to persecute the Jews it will signal their descent into oblivion. God will bring princes to naught and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing (40:23).

God promises that He will help Isra’el in her distress. Furthermore, the nations that were Isra’el’s enemies will disappear. Though you search for your enemies, you will not find them. Those who wage war against you will be as nothing at all (41:12). Not only will they not be found, but they will also be as something that never existed. When God destroys the Gentile nations at the end of the Great Tribulation, for all practical purposes, it will be like they never even existed. How does this happen? God tells us through His prophet.

He is the One who will support and sustain Isra’el during the calamity of the Great Tribulation. For I am the LORD, your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you: Do not fear. I will help you (41:13). This verse parallels 40:10, where ADONAI says: Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Interestingly, where verse 10 points to God’s right hand, verse 13 says that He will uphold their hand. Taken together, these two verses pose a powerful picture of parent and child. In the father’s right hand is a mighty weapon ready to defeat any enemy, but his left hand is holding the child’s right hand. The father is not merely defending the child, he is with the child – safe and secure.

Could you use some courage? Are you backing down more than you are standing up? Jesus scattered the butterflies out of the stomachs of His nervous apostles . . . We need to remember that the apostles were common men given a compelling task. Before they were the stained-glassed saints in the windows of cathedrals, they were somebody’s neighbor trying to make a living and raise a family. They weren’t cut off from theological cloth or raised on supernatural milk. But they were an ounce more devoted than they were afraid and, as a result, did some extraordinary things under the power of the Spirit of God. Earthly fears are hardly any fears at all. If we answer the big question of eternity, the little questions of life fall into place.

Do not be afraid, O worm Jacob, O little Isra’el, for I myself will help you, declares the LORD, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Isra’el (41:14). Here the word redeemer, or go’el, makes its first appearance in Isaiah (see the commentary on Exodus Bz – Redemption). It is the key word in Chapters 40 to 55. Elsewhere in the TaNaKh the word go’el is used of a near relative who delivers a poor person from enslavement and the loss of family inheritance because of their poverty (see my commentary on Ruth Bb – Bo’az Redeems Ruth the Moabitess). But it is also used of a person who avenges the blood of a murdered person by killing the murderer (Numbers 35:21-27; Deuteronomy 19:6; Joshua 20:5).

Do not be afraid, O worm Jacob, O little Israel: Both Isra’el or Jacob are referred to here as a worm. This is a symbol of meekness and humility. In fact, in Psalm 22:7 the crucifixion is depicted where Yeshua is nailed to the cross. He is looked upon as a worm because He is in a total helpless condition with nothing left but to die. So, when Isra’el comes to a point of total helplessness, God will intervene to help (see Kg – The Second Coming of Jesus Christ to Bozrah). He is Isra’el’s Redeemer, and is strong enough and compassionate enough that no one will be able to prevent Him from defending His people. He not only desires to do so, He is able.

The context here is the end of the Great Tribulation. The antichrist will receive the news that Babylon has fallen (Revelation 18:1-24). Although his entire army will still be intact, he does not move east to engage his enemies. At that point Satan will control him and he will be fixated on annihilating the Jews. So, instead of moving east the antichrist, his army and the armies of the world, will move south against Jerusalem and the Israelites from the Valley of Jezreel (Zechariah 12:2-3, 14:1-2).

But because God will greatly energize the Jews, the antichrist and his armies will not have an easy time of it. See, I will make you like a threshing sledge, new and sharp, with many teeth (41:15a). We have the same picture given to us in Zechariah 12:5-9 where all the weak Israelites begin to fight as David’s mighty men (Second Samuel 23:8-39; First Chronicles 12:1-40). Here, Zechariah merely elaborates on this very same prophecy given by Isaiah. It will be as though the Israelites are threshing the mountains around Jerusalem, inflicting heavy casualties on their enemies. They will fight so courageously that it will seem as if they reduce the hills to chaff (41:15b), but their success will be short lived.

The armies of the antichrist will suffer heavy losses. God will make Jerusalem an immovable rock for all the nations. All who try to move it will injure themselves (Zech 12:3). The temporary empowerment of the Jews is also described in Micah 4:11-5:1. The LORD said: You will winnow them, the wind will pick them, and a gale will blow them away (41:16). Although the Jewish forces prove very formidable, the antichrist, his army, and the armies of the world will prevail. After their victory the City will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the women raped. Jerusalem will fall into Gentile hands for the last time. Half of the Jewish population will be taken away to be made slaves and the rest will remain in Tziyon to await their fate (Zech 14:2).

The poor and the needy search for water, but there is none; their tongues are parched with thirst (41:17a). Any time the terms the poor and the needy are used together it points to the faithful remnant. This will be that segment of the Jews who reject the covenant with the antichrist (see the commentary on Revelation Bz – The Signing of the Seven Year Covenant with the Antichrist) and refuse the mark of the beast (see my commentary on Revelation Dp – The Mark is the Name of the Beast or the Number of His Name). As a result, they will not be able to buy or sell. They will be persecuted and driven into the wilderness at Bozrah or defeated by the armies of the antichrist in Tziyon.

But I, the LORD, will answer them; I, the God of Isra’el, will not forsake them (41:17b). The persecution of the antichrist will cause the spiritual scales to fall from their eyes and they will finally recognize Yeshua as the Messiah. Simultaneously, the Jews in Jerusalem and the Jews in Bozrah will look to Yeshua, the One they had pierced, and they will mourn for Him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a first-born son. As a result, they cry out for Jesus to return (see the commentary on Revelation Ev – The Basis for the Second Coming of Jesus Christ) and will rejoice in the LORD and glory in the Holy One of Isra’el (41:16b).

After His Second Coming (see Kh – The Eight Stage Campaign of Armageddon), ADONAI promises that He will make rivers flow on barren heights, and springs within the valleys. He will turn the desert into pools of water, and the parched ground into springs during the messianic Kingdom (41:18). Not only will God miraculously provide food and water as He did during the Great Tribulation, but when the Messianic Kingdom is established, God will also reforest the Land with seven kinds of trees. And all seven are listed here. He will put in the desert the cedar and the acacia, the myrtle and the olive. He will also set pines in the wasteland the fir and the cypress together (41:19).

Then He gives us the purpose for all the miracles that will be seen during the millennial Kingdom: So the people may see and know, may consider and understand. The first purpose is that Isra’el may see, know, consider, and understand. These are four key words to understanding the truth: that they may see spiritual truth, that they may know spiritual truth, that they may begin to consider, or meditate upon spiritual truth, and that they may understand or comprehend spiritual truth. Secondly, they might know that the hand of the LORD has done this, that the Holy One of Isra’el has created it (41:20). What a day that will be!

The Cone of Isaiah
41: 8-10

The cone of Isaiah DIG: What terms does God use to address the exiles in these verses? What do they reveal about God’s relationship with them? How would these terms calm their fears?

REFLECT: Why is the fact that God has not rejected Israel because of her sin, good news for you?

In contrast to the frightened pagan nations, the Israelites are under special protection of ADONAI because they are His servant. Isra’el does not need to create false gods to protect her (41:6-7), for she has the protection of the true God Himself. But you, O Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, you descendants of Abraham My friend (41:8). For the first time in Isaiah we are presented with the concept of the servant. From now on, whenever Isaiah uses the term servant, it will be used in one of three senses. First, when he uses the term servant, he is talking about the nation of Isra’el, and he uses it three times in 41:8-16, 42:18-22, and 43:10. Secondly, when he uses the term servant, he is dealing with the faithful remnant, and he uses it three times in 44:1-5, 44:21, and 65:8-16. Thirdly, when he uses the term Servant, it is in reference to the Messiah, and we find it in 42:1-9, 49:1-7, 50:4-9, and 52:13 to 53:12. Only the context will tell us which way he is using it.

The Israelites should have been encouraged by the fact that, like Abraham, Moses and David, they had been especially chosen to serve the LORD. O descendants of Israel His servant, O sons of Jacob, his chosen ones (First Chronicles 16:13; Psalm 105:6). Their relationship to their Redeemer, the Holy One of Isra’el (41:14b), was not merely a judicial act. No, their bond was based on friendship because their ancestor, father Abraham, was His friend. Their relationship was rooted in a common love, both the love of ADONAI for His chosen ones, and the love of the chosen for their God. Consequently, as those chosen to serve the LORD, descendants of His unique friend (2 Chronicles 20:7; James 2:23), they had nothing to fear (John 15:14-15).

ADONAI had already taken the ancestors of Abraham, the Israelites, from all over the world. He said: I took you from the ends of the earth, from its farthest corners I called you, saying: You are My servant; I have chosen you and have not rejected you (41:9). He could do it again and indeed He purposed to regather them after seventy years of Babylonian Captivity (see my commentary on Jeremiah, to see link click Gu – Seventy Years of Babylonian Rule). Discipline was necessary but the exile would change their relationship. They would not be forsaken.

We must also experience the wonder that once saved (John 3:16; First Corinthians 15:3b-4), our sin cannot change the LORD’s love for us. Once we realize that we are children of God (see my commentary on The Life of Christ Bw – What God Does For Us at the Moment of Faith), we have nothing to fear.

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I Am your God (41:10a). Here ADONAI addresses His chosen ones. Because of their relationship with Him they do not need to fear. This is not some positive thinking mumbo-jumbo. Nor will it be a yoga or philosophy class. They could not humanly will themselves to contentment with “good thoughts.” No, they could take courage because their God was with them.

But who was He? One more of the helpless gods? No, He is the great I Am (see my commentary on Exodus At – I Am Has Sent Me to You). Every other being in the universe is dependent; He alone is self-existent, complete in Himself. He had given Himself to them to be their God. There was no new message. It was the same word Isaiah had given Ahaz: Don’t be afraid (7:14b), and that Moses had declared to the Israelites at the Red Sea: Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance that ADONAI will bring you today. . . the LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still (Exodus 14:13-14), and to Joshua on the plains of Mo’ab: The LORD Himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged (Deuteronomy 31:8). It was the key to Joseph’s success: ADONAI was with Joseph (Genesis 39:2, 21, 23), and also to Isaac’s: I will be with you and bless you. For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands and confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham (Genesis 26:3). But sitting on the bank of the Euphrates in Babylon, they would think to themselves, “How could we be chosen of the LORD when we have been forcibly taken from our Temple and the Land?” They needed to hear in clear terms that ADONAI was still with them and that He was still willing to be called their God.

The LORD was not a passive companion. Since ADONAI, their God, was with them, they could expect certain things from Him. His presence brought them active strength, expressed as a mountain tsunami of assistance: I will strengthen you and help you; moreover I will uphold you with My righteous right hand (41:10b). Not only has He strengthened them, but He has helped them, and not only has He strengthened and helped them, but He has also upheld them. That help was symbolized by the LORD’s righteous right hand. Therefore, God’s great and powerful right hand will do the right thing for His suffering people and deliver them.

Oh, how blessed it is to know that when the times of pain come and when our hearts become broken, we have Someone to whom we can turn that will give us Strength and that will keep us Safe. Only Jesus does that! A little girl and her father were returning from the funeral of their dearly loved mother and wife. Some kind neighbors invited them to spend a few days with them so they wouldn’t be alone in the house with all its sad memories. However, the father decided it would be better to go home. That night the father placed the little girl’s bed next to his, but neither could fall asleep. Finally the child said, “Daddy, it’s dark, I can’t see you. But you’re there, aren’t you?” “Yes, dear, Daddy’s here right next to you. Go to sleep.” The little girl finally dropped off to sleep. In the darkness and the depth of sorrow, the father in tears said aloud, “O Heavenly Father, it’s so dark, and my heart is overflowing with sorrow. But You are there, aren’t You?” And immediately there came to him a passage from the prophet: Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.

Here the prophet introduces a concept known as the Cone of Isaiah. The nation of Israel is pictured as the Servant in verses 8 to 16, the believing remnant is seen as the Servant in verses 17 to 29, and then the Messiah is portrayed as the Servant in Chapter 42:1-9. Like a cone, it gets more and more narrow. It starts at the base as the nation of Israel, and then progresses to the faithful remnant and finally to the point, which could only be the Messiah.

In several places where Isaiah draws a contrast between Isra’el the servant and Messiah the Servant to show that where Isra’el the servant failed, Messiah the Servant will succeed. Then the success of Messiah the Servant will be applied to the nation of Isra’el. All the promises ADONAI has made to Isra’el are eternal and binding. The LORD does not and will not reject Isra’el because of her sins. He is the Promise Keeper. If He says He is going to do something, He will accomplish what He has set out to do. Israel’s sin (or our sin) doesn’t surprise Him. This is Good News for you and me. Because God will not reject Isra’el because of their sin, He will not reject us because of our sin.

In this passage we have the nation of Isra’el referred to as my servant. ADONAI says that the nation is descended from Abraham, My friend. There are three different places in Scripture where Abraham is called the friend of God: here in Isaiah 41:8-10; Second Chronicles 20:7, and James 2:23. The main residence of Abraham was in Hebron, where he lived and was buried. The name Hebron in Hebrew means friend.

The LORD had already taken the descendants of Abraham, the Israelites, from the ends of the earth to their new home in Canaan. He could do it again, and after seventy years of captivity He would do it again. The exile would not change their relationship to Him. So even though Isra’el might be languishing in the Babylonian captivity before the coming of Cyrus, God made it clear to Isra’el (even before she went into the Babylonian captivity) that He had not rejected her. ADONAI says this in eight different ways: First, But you, O Israel, are my servant; secondly, Jacob, whom I have chosen; thirdly, You descendants of Abraham, my friend; fourthly, I took you from the ends of the earth; fifthly, From the farthest corners I called you; sixthly, I said: You are my servant; seventh, I have chosen you and eighth, I have not rejected you.

Then, Isaiah gives the application. In light of the fact that God has chosen Isra’el, and that Isra’el has a very unique position as His ancestors, they are not to fear or be dismayed. Why? Because He is with them, and He is, after all, their God. And ADONAI promises to strengthen, or empower, them; The LORD will help, or assist, them and uphold, or support, them. All of these three blessings of empowerment, assistance, and support will come with the righteousness of God’s right hand.

The LORD says to You,
Do not Fear, I Will Help You
41: 8-20

In this scene we see a far eschatological prophecy, or the final deliverance of Isra’el. Having described the alarm and powerlessness of the idol-worshippers, the prophet, speaking in the name of ADONAI, addresses Isra’el, God’s servant, assuring her of divine care and protection and announcing the crushing defeat of her enemies. The scene then shifts from the frightened people of Babylon, terrified by the works of the LORD, to the people of God. They are comforted by the knowledge that they are chosen (41:8-10), the Gentile nations will ultimately be defeated (41:11-13), Isra’el will be victorious (41:14-16), and a faithful remnant will remain (41:17-20).

Who Has Stirred Up the One from the East?
41: 1-7

Who has stirred up the one from the east? DIG: Having reassured the exiled Jews in Chapter 40, whom does God address here? What do you picture is happening to these nations? The one from the east was Cyrus, the Persian king who overthrew Babylon in 538 BC (Isaiah 45:1-7). What is God saying about Himself by claiming that He is the One behind Cyrus’ success? Why was the victory of Cyrus good news for the Jewish exiles in Babylon (2 Chron 36:22-23)? How are the other nations reacting to this onward march of Cyrus’ army in 41:5-7? How is their response different from the one God urges upon the Jews in 40:8-10?

REFLECT: What world problems today seem to be beyond solution? What forces in the world appear to you to be out of control? Do you react to these problems with: Helplessness? Cynicism? Sorrow? Disgust? Hope? Why? What does this chapter show us of God’s involvement in human history? How should this affect our attitude toward world problems?

This is the first of several more trial scenes that are common in this part of the book (also see 41:21-29, 42:18-25, 43:8-13, 44:6-20, 45:20-25). Isra’el is the intended audience. There is no doubt about the outcome. God is the judge and jury, bailiff and prosecutor. He summons the court, makes His case and then declares the verdict. Be silent before Me, you islands (41:1a)! Of the fifteen occurrences of islands in the TaNaKh, fourteen are in Isaiah. Together the islands and the nations in the next sentence suggest the ends of the earth, therefore, all the people in the world. Let the Gentile nations renew their strength! Let them come forward and speak; let us meet together at the place of judgment (41:1b). Since Isaiah was writing in advance for the Jewish people who would be enslaved in Babylon, this near historical prophecy points to the coming of Cyrus (44:28, 45:1) at least a hundred years before he was born. The LORD confronted the Gentile nations and the islands by calling them to trial. He calls on them to renew their strength or come and present the strongest case for their idols.

First, ADONAI presented His case. Who has stirred up one from the east (41:2a)? The evidence that God produces is the future Cyrus. It was Cyrus, the first emperor of Persia, who came from the east. The east here refers to Persia. Who has called him in righteousness to his service (41:2b)? It was the LORD who called the Persian king in righteousness. How is this so, because we know from history that Cyrus was anything but righteous? The answer is that God is not calling Cyrus righteous, but the providence of God in raising Cyrus to the throne, shows the outworking of God’s righteousness. So it was God’s righteousness, not that of Cyrus. Then Isaiah recites the victories that Cyrus will have. ADONAI handed nations over to him and subdued kings before him. He turned them to dust with his sword, to windblown chaff with his bow (41:2c). Nations are conquered, kings are subdued and will offer no resistance. His victorious march is so rapid that his feet do not seem to touch the ground.

He pursues them and moves on unscathed, by a path his feet have not traveled before (41:3). God says Cyrus will be able to conquer territories he had never seen before. Normally, when conquering a new land, spies are sent out to see if there is anything about the geography that would hinder or aid any conquest. But Cyrus will not even bother doing that and will still be able to conquer new territories with ease. Although an invasion would normally involve many dangers, the Persian king would face none of them.

Then the LORD’s case comes to a conclusion. He asks a rhetorical question: Who has done this and carried it through, calling forth the generations from the beginning (41:4a)? Who is responsible for Cyrus’ spectacular victories? ADONAI is the One who had done it, and accomplished it. So God is both the author and finisher of these prophetic events, saying: I, I the LORD, referring to God as a Covenant Keeper, with the first of them, the One who exists before all, and with the last, the One who will prophesy to the last generation of men, I am He, meaning the eternal One (41:4b). I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End (Revelation 22:13). So we see God’s case.

Then we are shown the reaction of the pagan idol worshipers when Cyrus arrived on the scene. What was the response to the evidence God has given? Isaiah mocked the notion that the nations could withstand the advance of Cyrus and the Persians as they carried out God’s will. The islands have seen it and fear; the ends of the earth tremble (41:5a). The ends of the earth is a phrase that Isaiah uses frequently to suggest people everywhere (5:26, 24:16, 40:28, 41:5 and 9, 42:10, 43:6, 45:22, 48:20, 49:6, 52:10, 62:11). From one end of the earth to the other they will be terrified of what they see. The nations tremble and run for protection to their newly manufactured gods.

They approach and come forward, each helps the other and says to his brother, “Be strong” (41:5b-6)! Facing the prospect of Cyrus and his army crashing down on them, they are terrified of what they see and try in vain to seek mutual help. Fear, because while the God of Isra’el gave the Jews warning of the coming of Cyrus 150 years in advance, the idols themselves said nothing. These nations were not warned about the conquests of Cyrus. So the only reaction they can have is fear. How sad it is for those whose only hope is to whistle in the dark and try to convince themselves that their protection will be to simply build more gods.

Rather than turning to the true God of Isra’el, they continue in idolatry and build even more gods. They cannot be created by just one Person; it takes a whole range of people to keep them coming. The craftsman encourages the goldsmith, and he who smooths with the hammer spurs on him who strikes and the anvil (41:7a). After all, maybe more gods will help. One idol maker encourages another idol maker in the hopes that this would be of help to them. They make every effort to make it look good. It’s not nice for gods to look ugly. They also strengthen the base of the idols. After all it’s not nice for gods to topple over. But in the last analysis, the idols, which have already been mocked by Isaiah (40:19-20), would not help them against the onslaught of Cyrus’ coming conquests.

He says of the welding, “It is good.” He nails down the idol at its base so it will not topple over (41:7b). One cannot help but see Isaiah reflecting on Genesis here: God saw all that He had made and it was very good (see my commentary on Genesis, to see link click Ao – Let Us Make Man in Our Image, In Our Likeness). In both cases the maker sees his product as being good. But there the similarity ends. In Genesis it is the quality the Creator attributes to His creatures; here it is the creatures saying it of a “creator” they have made. These few words expose the difference between creation as described in the Bible and the lie of evolution. It reveals the conflict of a world where the truth of our existence comes from beyond us, to one which we can create our own values, indeed, our own gods.

Idolatry on Trial
41: 1-29

The basic content of Chapters 41 through 48 can be stated in this way. God will demonstrate His absolute superiority over the idols by doing something never before done in human history: causing a people, His people, to return from exile (41:1 to 44:22). The background to this entire section is the Babylonian captivity. Isaiah is prophesying to events that are 150 years in the future. Therefore, the words penned here are not so much for Isaiah’s generation, but for those Jews who would be living during the Captivity. ADONAI will not only punish Babylon; He will also demonstrate, as He did with the ten plagues of Egypt, that the gods of Babylon were utterly powerless. In this chapter the LORD puts the entire system of Babylonian idolatry on trial. He will prove His superiority over Babylonian idolatry by prophesying future events. In 41:1-7 He gives a near historical prophecy regarding the coming of Cyrus. He will not name Cyrus until we get to Chapters 44 and 45, but it is obvious that Cyrus is the person he is talking about in 42:1-7. Remember the prophetic system. After first successfully prophesying near historical events, Isaiah’s far eschatological prophecies could be believed.

But Those Who Hope in the LORD
Will Renew Their Strength
40: 27-31

But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength DIG: What is the complaint of the exiles in 40:27? What must they still learn about God before they can be restored to their homeland (40:21 and 28)? As a weary exile, which of these promises would you find most uplifting?

REFLECT? Practically and theologically, how does one soar like an eagle? Compare verse 31 with Exodus 19:4 and Deuteronomy 32:10-11. How is learning to hope in God like a fledgling bird learning to fly? How has God “caught” you when you have fallen instead of flying? In what way is He teaching you to fly now?

The prophet now turns to Isra’el, pointing to God’s omnipotence, and assures them of His compassion to those who trust Him. In 40:12-21 we have seen the greatness of God; in 40:18-26 we have seen the incomparableness of God. The point of all this is seen here in 40:27-31, where Israel has a common complaint that He overlooks her plight, whether dealing with the near historical Babylon and the far eschatological Babylon.  Why do you say, O Jacob, and complain, O Isra’el, “My way is hidden from the LORD; my cause is disregarded by my God” (40:27)? The imperfect tense of the opening verbs highlights the constant nature of the heartbreaking allegations. This was not merely something that had been said once, it was ongoing. Why do you continue to say? The choice of words here is not accidental. Isaiah subtly reintroduces the theme of comfort found in 40:1-11. This was not just any people; they were ADONAI’s Covenant people, the apple of His eye (Deut 32:10), and His wife. How could they imagine that He had forgotten them (49:14-16)?

The names of Jacob and Isra’el are synonymous for all twelve tribes. In Chapters 40 through 49, Isaiah uses these two words together sixteen times. God’s people should never have thought that He had forgotten them. Nevertheless, that was their common complaint. In light of God’s greatness and His incomparableness, they thought their condition, their state of deprivation, was hidden from the LORD and He had overlooked the legal justice that they had coming to them. In other words, God wasn’t fair and He didn’t care. At first Israel viewed herself as suffering an injustice when in exile during the Babylonian captivity. Likewise, when Israel suffers through the Great Tribulation, she will continue to view herself as a victim of injustice. In both cases she believes ADONAI sees the injustice but overlooks it.

Here, then, the message comes across that in light of God’s greatness and incomparableness, how can you think ADONAI would overlook the justice that is due to you? Again, Isaiah brings out the character of God, but this time it is no longer related to the Gentile nations and their idolatry (40:21), but is related to Isra’el. Do you not know? Have you not heard? It is understandable why the Gentiles would have not known the greatness and incomparableness of God because they did not have the revelation that Isra’el had. But because Israel did have it, how can she not have known or heard?

Both Jacob and Isra’el might speculate about God’s perceived slowness to act. They could say He does not want to act (the argument in 40:1-11), or He is unable to act (the argument in 40:12-26). Consequently, Isaiah seems to say, “In light of what I have just said, how can you believe God is ignoring you? Don’t you understand? God is fundamentally different than we are. He does not work on our timetable. He operates outside of time and has none of our limitations. However, no matter how it seems to in the moment, rest assured that He is at work and you can depend on Him.”

Isaiah says that there are four reasons why God will not overlook the justice due to Israel. First, Do you not know? Have you not heard? ADONAI is El ‘Olam, the everlasting God (40:28a). Here Isaiah picks up words already used in context (40:21), although here they are in the perfect tense (a past completed action with continuing results), reflecting that the information has long been available. This is the God of eternity who knows the beginning from the end.

God, You are without beginning or end. You have existed through all time. You are forever the same, unchanging, infinite, boundless, without measure, and limitless. I find peace in knowing that you are my “forever” God.

Secondly, because YHVH, which is God’s personal name, will keep His promises to Isra’el (see the commentary on Exodus, to see link click Ac – Introduction to the Book of Exodus, specifically The Use of the Hebrew name ADONAI for YHVH). ADONAI is the everlasting God (40:28b). Whenever God’s personal name is used, it is always in reference to Him as the Covenant Keeper. God has made covenants with Isra’el and He will keep those covenants with Isra’el. She should not worry; the justice due to Her will be given.

Thirdly, He is the Creator of the ends of the earth (40:28c). Since the LORD is the eternal Creator, His strength is tireless and His wisdom without end. He can do whatever He wishes in His own time. Apparent delay never means either lack of awareness or lack of ability on His part.

Fourthly, He will not grow tired or weary, and is all knowing, His understanding no one can fathom (40:28d). Therefore, God is the Covenant Keeper, eternal, all-powerful, and all knowing. It is because of these four attributes that the justice due to Isra’el will indeed come to pass.

He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak (40:29). God will provide Isra’el with strength and power if she will choose to not to rely upon herself but on ADONAI. But those who choose to rely upon themselves, even young men in the most robust health of their lives, will grow tired, weary, stumble and fall (40:30).

But those who wait on the LORD (40:31a NKJ). The Hebrew word waw, meaning but, points out that it should be read together with the previous verse. Waiting on the LORD (Psalm 27:14, 130:5) implies two things. First, complete dependence on God and a willingness to allow Him to take the steering wheel of your life. To wait on Him is to admit that we have no other help, either in ourselves, anything else or anyone else. As a result, we are helpless until He acts. But that does not mean we get to play the victim. Because secondly, to wait on Him is to declare our confidence in His eventual action on our behalf. As a result, waiting in Hebrew (qawa) is not merely killing time, but a life of confident expectation (8:17, 25:9, 33:2, 49:23, 64:4).

An example of faith was found on the wall of a concentration camp. On it a prisoner had carved the words, “I believe in the sun, even though it doesn’t shine; I believe in love, even when it isn’t shown; I believe in God, even when He doesn’t speak.” Try to imagine those words. I try to envision his skeletal hand gripping the broken glass or stone that cut into the wall. I try to imagine his eyes squinting through the darkness as he carved each letter. What hand could have cut with such conviction? What eyes could have seen good in such horror? There is only one answer: Eyes that chose to see the unseen.

But, Jacob and Isra’el were tired of waiting. That is why they are complaining. The justice due me is hidden from my God. He has overlooked the justice due me. They had forgotten what the Psalms taught – He had not overlooked the justice due them. But the time was not right for Him to bring forth the justice. Just wait. If you fail to wait, you will grow tired, weary, and stumble and fall. In addition, God will provide Isra’el strength and power if they will choose to rely on Him.

But those who wait on the LORD will renew their strength. Those who give up their own frantic efforts to save themselves and turn expectantly to God will be able to exchange their worn-out strength for a new strength. It is a different kind of strength, as if people become eagles, a strength brought about by transformation; it is divine strength, a strength like ADONAI’s own that does not grow weary or faint. They will soar on wings of eagles, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint (40:31). The Jews enduring the Babylonian Captivity and the Jews suffering during the Great Tribulation would be reminded that ADONAI had not forgotten them. Far from being crushed to the earth by their own helplessness, by either Nebuchadnezzar or the antichrist, those who trust in the LORD depend on Him to act in His own time for their benefit.

God knows about the difficulties and problems of His people. If you belong to Him, He is able to quiet the storms of life, but sometimes there are lessons for believers to learn in the storm. So when you find yourself in the midst of a storm, instead of feeling sorry for yourself or worse, blaming ADONAI for your troubles, look around and find out what lesson He wants you to learn. The LORD will not let you pass through a trial unless He has something for you to learn. And once you have learned it, don’t waste your sorrows. Pray that God would allow you to help someone else going through the same thing.

Hence, we have a message of comfort given to Israel in the light of the greatness of God and the incomparableness of God. This message is also applicable to us today. The key is to wait on the LORD. To renew literally means to “exchange strength.” If we look to the Lord, we will exchange our weakness for God’s great strength. The imagery of a new garment lies behind this idea of exchanging. In Isaiah 52:1 Jerusalem is told to change her outfit, to put on garments of splendor and thus to clothe herself with strength. Paul commands believers: Clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ [and with the] new self, which is being renewed . . . in the image of its Creator (Romans 13:14; Colossians 3:10). This same divine strength is still available for those who are weak and discouraged.¹⁵⁸