https://www.sermonaudio.com/sermons/49251329414905

Hymns: RHC 242 Blessed Quietness 243 The Comforter Is Come 245 Channels Only

Isaiah 49

1 Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name. 2 And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me; 3 And said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified. 4 Then I said, I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nought, and in vain: yet surely my judgment is with the LORD, and my work with my God. 5 And now, saith the LORD that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and my God shall be my strength. 6 And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth. 7 Thus saith the LORD, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nation abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the LORD that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose thee. 8 Thus saith the LORD, In an acceptable time have I heard thee, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee: and I will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages; 9 That thou mayest say to the prisoners, Go forth; to them that are in darkness, Shew yourselves. They shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall be in all high places. 10 They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall the heat nor sun smite them: for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide them. 11 And I will make all my mountains a way, and my highways shall be exalted. 12 Behold, these shall come from far: and, lo, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim. 13 Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains: for the LORD hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted. 14 But Zion said, The LORD hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me. 15 Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. 16 Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me. 17 Thy children shall make haste; thy destroyers and they that made thee waste shall go forth of thee. 18 Lift up thine eyes round about, and behold: all these gather themselves together, and come to thee. As I live, saith the LORD, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all, as with an ornament, and bind them on thee, as a bride doeth. 19 For thy waste and thy desolate places, and the land of thy destruction, shall even now be too narrow by reason of the inhabitants, and they that swallowed thee up shall be far away. 20 The children which thou shalt have, after thou hast lost the other, shall say again in thine ears, The place is too strait for me: give place to me that I may dwell. 21 Then shalt thou say in thine heart, Who hath begotten me these, seeing I have lost my children, and am desolate, a captive, and removing to and fro? and who hath brought up these? Behold, I was left alone; these, where had they been? 22 Thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles, and set up my standard to the people: and they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders. 23 And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me. 24 Shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the lawful captive delivered? 25 But thus saith the LORD, Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered: for I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children. 26 And I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh; and they shall be drunken with their own blood, as with sweet wine: and all flesh shall know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.

Christ’s Coming Foretold (1)

OUTLINE

• His Mission and Rejection (v1-8)
• His Glorious Work of Salvation (v9-
• His Salvific Work to the Gentiles

INTRODUCTION

The LORD is the speaker in this passage. Cyrus was prominent, for he was God’s instrument to make it possible for Israel to leave Babylon and return to its homeland. In him, the world power was concentrated and made subservient to the kingdom of God. Although Medo-Persia was a part of the colossus of Daniel 2, the figure representing the world empires and thus a member of the anti-God world power, nevertheless its king Cyrus was chosen by God to take the first steps in breaking the power that had destroyed the theocracy.

Here in this chapter, Cyrus is not mentioned, for the prophet Isaiah now concentrates upon the delivery from sin to be brought about by a Deliver infinitely greater than Cyrus, the Servant of the LORD. 

He who speaks with great compelling authority is the Messiah, the Christ, as Head of His people. As the isles or islands are to hearken unto Him, so our attention is to be directed unto Him throughout this chapter.

Earlier in Isaiah 48:20, the people had been commanded to declare that God has redeemed His servant Jacob.

Isaiah 48:20 (KJV) Go ye forth of Babylon, flee ye from the Chaldeans, with a voice of singing declare ye, tell this, utter it even to the end of the earth; say ye, The LORD hath redeemed his servant Jacob.  

Thus there is preparation for the worldwide proclamation with a message not merely addressed to Israel but to the world.

The isles indicate not merely actual islands, but the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea; and the nations of the Gentiles. Thus, the address is to the entire heathen world with emphasis to nations from afar or far away.

• His Mission and Rejection (v1-8)

1 Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name.

The first verb “listen” from the verb “to hear” the Hebrew verb “shamar”, speaks of listening attentively, consider diligently leading to obedience. The second verb “hearken” is the stronger with emphasis, “keshab” means “give heed, incline, regard”, not merely to hearken, it is attentively to give ear to what the servant proclaims.

The servant emphasizes the word “LORD”. He has not abruptly come forth upon his own, but was one whom the LORD has prepared. 

When the world power first began its rise and threatened the kingdom of God, its first king, Tiglath-pileser II, was a usurper. Not so the one who will establish an eternal kingdom. He comes to do his Father’s will.

The expression “from the womb” supports the fact that the servant is an individual. This phrase is used also of Jeremiah’s call (Jer. 1:5). In itself the phrase merely indicates a divine call to a particular work.

When Assyria was coming to prominence Isaiah predicted the coming of the King, the virgin’s Son.

Now that the world power is exercising its might and will take God’s people captive, Isaiah announces the Servant of the LORD as the true Deliverer. This two epoch point us to the Messiah, first to His person, then to His work.

2 And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me;

The words of the servant will cut like a sword. His is an office of the mouth, his task a declaration of the Truth; for he is a prophet par excellence, and his word is the Gospel, which to the one is a savor of death unto death, and to the other life unto life.

Hebrews 4:12 (KJV) For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Revelation 1:16 (KJV) And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.
Jeremiah 23:29 (KJV) Is not my word like as a fire? saith the LORD; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?

In order that He may bring to naught all the opponents of God’s Holy Name, the LORD will send His servant to earth.

Likewise, through the servant’s mouth the truth of redemption will be proclaimed to the poor and needy. 

The servant as a prophet whose word brings life and judgment.

The shadow of his hand is probably the shadow produced when an object is held in the hand and so concealed. The object is concealed, held ready for use like a sword in its scabbard.

Isaiah 51:16 (KJV) And I have put my words in thy mouth, and I have covered thee in the shadow of mine hand, that I may plant the heavens, and lay the foundations of the earth, and say unto Zion, Thou art my people.

The servant is compared to the polished arrow suggesting that the servant is equipped to destroy even the enemies of God that are far away as well as those nearby. The thought of piercing, penetrating power is present.

Psalm 45:5 (KJV) Thine arrows are sharp in the heart of the king’s enemies; whereby the people fall under thee. 

This arrow hits the work with penetrating deadly accuracy.

3 And said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.

God acknowledges to the servant that the servant is His, a declaration of consolation and strength which will sustain the servant in the task ahead of him.

4 Then I said, I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nought, and in vain: yet surely my judgment is with the LORD, and my work with my God.

The expression of discouragement is no thought of unbelief, but simply of a genuine modesty borne from a consciousness of one’s own weakness. It is, we believe, Jesus Christ in His humiliation of whom the prophet speaks. 

Although He is God’s eternal Son and one with the Father, yet for our redemption He humbled Himself, “being born, and that in a lower condition, made under the law, undergoing the miseries of life, the wrath of God, and the cursed death of the cross.

As man He was weak and tempted in all points as we, but without sin. In Gethsemane He suffered the deep anguish of grief, trembling, and fear. He sought the companionship of His disciples; He prayed; He sweat great drops of blood. In the days of His flesh He offered up prayers and supplications to Him who was able to save Him from death, and He was heard for His godly fear (Hebrews 5:7).

Hebrews 5:7 (KJV) Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared;

The prophet’s language points forward to the humiliation of our Lord: true man yet very God. Before the sublime mystery of the Person of our Lord we can but bow in reverent wonder. 

Passing from an expression of despondency to one of sure confidence, the servant sets forth his firm assurance that God is with him.

5 And now, saith the LORD that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and my God shall be my strength.

This verse forms the true contrast to 4a, in that it gives the LORD’s answer to the servant’s disappointment. 

The servant is conscious that God has prepared him for his mission, even knowing that God had formed him from the womb. The servant was born to accomplish a specific mission.

The language emphasizes the fact that the servant is God’s and serves Him. [EJ Young]

To be continued….