The words of the final verse of the chapter (there is no peace for the wicked) function as a literary marker, bringing to a close this section on deliverance from Babylon (chaps. 40–48). A virtually identical phrase concludes the next major section (deliverance from sin, chaps. 49–57; see 57:21) and a similar but stronger theme closes out the last unit of the book (deliverance in the end, chaps. 58–66; see 66:24). The message of this verse brings a dose of reality into the context of hope created by vv. 20-21. Regardless of God’s coming deliverance, Israel is reminded that there is no peace for the wicked (v. 22). The nation must still turn to their God and follow Him.
2. Deliverance from Sin (49:1–57:21)
This section of Isaiah is the second major section (of three) in the oracles of the second half of the book (see chart of Isaiah’s structure in “Structure” in the introduction to this commentary). Each part of this oracular section emphasizes Israel’s deliverance—from Babylon (chaps. 40–48), from sin (chaps. 49–57), and in the end of days (chaps. 58–66). The significant element of this section is that it contains three of the four Servant Songs in Isaiah (49:1-13; 50:4-11; 52:13–53:12, the first being in the previous section, 42:1-9).
a. The Encouragement of Israel (49:1–52:11)
When the book of Isaiah was written, Israel was facing the gloom of anticipated captivity. In this section the prophet seeks to give encouragement to Israel, emphasizing the coming deliverance and restoration of Israel. The first part of that encouragement pertains to the Servant-Messiah’s roles in God’s plan for Israel and the nations.
(1) The Servant’s Roles (49:1-13)
Three sections comprise Is 49:1-13. The first depicts the Servant’s call to go to Israel (49:1-4); the second reveals the expansion of the Servant’s ministry to the Gentile nations (49:5-7); and the third indicates the Servant’s ultimate deliverance of Israel (49:8-13).
49:1-4. There has been some debate concerning the identity of the speaker in 49:1-13. The first view is that there are multiple entities called in chap. 49. Beginning with servant (vv. 1-4), the speaker shifts to servant Darius in vv. 5-6 and then to a herald (vv. 7, 13), the Lord (vv. 8-12, 15-21), and Zion (v. 14) in the rest of the chapter (Watts, Isaiah 34–66, 182–84). The identification of the various speakers is based on a reconstruction of the passage’s alleged historical background rather than specific elements in the text. A second view is that it was written by an individual prophet (Oswalt, Isaiah 40–66, 289). Yet the depiction of the speaker is too exalted to be a human prophet. A third possibility identifies the Lord as the speaker based on the similarities between the exhortation to listen to Me (v. 1) and the similar exhortations in other parts of Isaiah (46:3, 48:1, 12, 14, 16; Goldingay, The Message of Isaiah 40–55, 365).
It appears that the first half of v. 1 (Listen to Me, O islands, and pay attention, you peoples from afar) represents a direct exhortation from the Lord to pay attention to the message that will be spoken. The exhortation is universal in scope, thus emphasizing the scope of the Servant’s vocation. Beginning with the second half of v. 1 (The Lord called Me from the womb; from the body of My mother He named Me), a new speaker, identified as My Servant, Israel (v. 3), describes His calling. That the speaker is identified as Israel has caused some to suggest that the nation of Israel collectively is the servant of the Lord in view here. More likely the servant in this context is not the nation as a collective, but that the servant is the representative of Israel, the epitome of all that Israel was to be (see below for a defense of this view).
The Servant begins by describing His own calling to Israel. Using the first person, the Servant initially describes His preparation by God. First, God predestined His ministry, calling Him from the womb (v. 1). Second, God also equipped the Servant for ministry to Israel (v. 2) in two ways: (a) God enabled Him to speak effectively, making His mouth like a sharp sword. (b) God made the Servant like a select arrow, with the ability to penetrate the spiritual heart of the nation with His message. Third, God preserved the Servant for His ministry to Israel, with the Servant saying of God in the shadow of His hand He has concealed Me and He has hidden Me in His quiver. Both of these expressions are used of the care and protection of the Lord (cf. Ps 17:8; 27:5; 31:20; 64:2; Jr 36:26). Fourth, God proclaimed that the Servant would be the epitome of Israel that would glorify the Lord (v. 3). What Israel corporately was designed to do, the Servant will do for her, without, however, eliminating a future role for corporate Israel.
Calling the Servant by the name Israel has caused some to maintain that the Servant should be identified as the nation of Israel. This is unlikely because then the nation of Israel would have a mission to itself (see vv. 5-6). Moreover, the Servant is described as one who is “abhorred by the nation” (v. 7), indicating that He cannot be the nation. Therefore, the Servant-Messiah is called “Israel” because He is the true King of Israel and the epitome of what Israel ought to have been. He will succeed in all the ways that Israel the nation failed.
Besides His preparation, the Servant also describes His own frustration (v. 4). He felt He toiled in vain, reflecting His disappointment at Israel’s failure to receive His ministry. All His labor appeared to be wasted (for nothing and vanity).
49:5-7. In light of Israel’s rejection of the Servant, the Servant next declares the expansion of His calling to the Gentiles. In so doing, the Lord began by reaffirming the Servant’s ministry to Israel. Despite Israel’s rejection, the Servant is still called to bring Jacob back to the Lord (v. 5). But this was too small a task for one as glorious as this Servant. Not only will He raise up the tribes of Jacob and … restore the preserved ones of Israel, but He will also be a light to the nations (v. 6). This is so the salvation provided by God would not be limited to Israel but reach to the end of the earth. As a response to the previous frustration of the Servant (v. 4), the Lord reassured the Servant of His ultimate success. Although despised and abhorred by the nation of Israel, the Servant will be worshiped by the Gentile nations—kings will see and arise, princes will also bow down (v. 7). The word despised is the same root as used in the fourth Servant Song (53:3). He would be abhorred (which means “to be rejected as unclean or an abomination”) by the nation (i.e., Israel; Hb. goy, when used in the singular as here, usually refers to Israel; see Gn 12:2; Ex 19:6; Dt 4:6; Mc 4:7; Zph 2:9). God’s faithfulness will cause the Gentile nations (kings, princes) to worship Him.
49:8-13. Despite Israel’s prophesied rejection of the Servant in vv. 4-6, this final part of the Servant’s call looks to the more remote future when Israel will ultimately believe in Him and experience redemption. At the appointed time, God will make the Servant a covenant of the people. This is the same expression used in the first Servant Song, meaning that the Servant would be a covenant-mediator for the people of Israel. The phrase is a figure of speech (metonymy of effect [covenant] for cause [mediator]) for “covenant-mediator” (see a more full discussion at 42:5-7). This refers to the “new covenant” which includes both spiritual and material elements (Jr 31:31-34).
Associated with the new covenant are the restoration of the land of Israel and the granting of tribal allotments (v. 8). The servant will also free prisoners (v. 9). The reference to those who are in darkness is also likely a reference to the dispersed of Israel being kept in dungeons as it is in parallel with those who are bound referred to in the first line of v. 9. Those who are set free will experience the fruit of God’s blessing of the Servant’s work (vv. 9-11). God, through the Servant, will provide food and water for the people as they travel from exile back to the land of promise, as well as a safe, easy passageway on which the people may travel. God’s provision of sustenance is elsewhere associated with flocks of animals (Is 17:2; 40:10-11; 63:11), but, in this case, there are no flocks in mind, suggesting that God will provide for their needs and those of their animals, as they return to the Holy Land. Verse 10 describes God’s gracious provision of water and the protection of God’s people from the heat and sun. This restoration is linked to the Servant’s work and therefore does not refer to the return from Babylon (539 BC) but looks forward to the end-of-days restoration of Israel in the messianic kingdom.
The intended result of the Servant’s work now comes to fruition as those who have been freed come from afar and from the north and from the west, indicating that this is a worldwide restoration (v. 12). The location of Sinim is debated, and the ancient versions give a variant reading here using the word “Syene.” The Masoretic, or Hebrew Text, reads Sinim, but the location of the land of Sinim is unknown. The name “Syene” is found in the copy of Isaiah among the Dead Sea Scrolls at Qumran. Several modern versions have adopted “Syene” in the translation of v. 12 (e.g., ESV; NIV has “Aswan”), whereas the NASB, the NET, and the HCSB retain Sinim. Syene is a town in Egypt near modern Aswan in southeastern Egypt. Those who come from afar should be identified as God’s people, given the reference to them in v. 13. God’s comfort of Israel is to be met with the praises of all creation represented in the sky, earth, and mountains (v. 13).
This Servant Song presents in prophetic form what Paul described in Rm 11. Israel (in part) rejected the promised Servant-Messiah, then God gave the message of Messiah to the Gentiles, of whom many received Him; but in the end, God will open the hearts of Israel so as a nation they will believe in Messiah Jesus and experience all the covenant promises. “Now if their transgression is riches for the world and their failure is riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their fulfillment be! … For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?” (Rm 11:12, 15; see the comments there).
(2) The Lord’s Reassurance of Faithfulness (49:14-26)
God continues to encourage Israel. The first part of that encouragement pertained to the Servant-Messiah’s roles in God’s plan for Israel and the nations (vv. 1-13). Now, the Lord encourages the nation by reassuring them of His loyalty to the covenant promises made to the nation.
49:14-16. In reply to Zion’s accusation of the Lord’s abandonment of the nation, The LORD has forsaken me, and the Lord has forgotten me (v. 14), the Lord states that He will always remember Israel. God uses a rhetorical question, Can a woman forget her nursing child and have no compassion on the son of her womb? (v. 15), to respond. Though it seems clear that the implied answer to the rhetorical question is no, the remainder of the verse offers an additional rhetorical flourish. Surely a mother could not forget her child, yet the text states that even these may forget, for the love of a woman for her child is not as sure or consistent as the love that the Lord exhibits toward His people. God will never forget Zion.
Aside from the hypothetical comparison between a woman and her child and the Lord and Zion, God states that He has inscribed the name of Zion on the palms of My hands (v. 16). Engraving Zion on His palms suggests a sense of immediacy, which is confirmed by the second poetic line of v. 16, stating that your walls are continually before Me.
49:17-21. God will not only remember, but He will also fully restore Israel. Zion will experience an influx of people as the sons of Jerusalem return and those who destroyed the city will leave it (v. 17). The sons will be like ornate jewels on a bride for the city of Zion, marking a reversal of fortune for the city (v. 19). The city that was once abandoned will now be bursting at the seams to the point that Zion will be confused about where all the people have come from (vv. 19-21). This is referring to the restoration of Zion in the millennial kingdom, not to the return from Babylon.
49:22-26. The Lord reassured Israel not only with the promise that He would remember and restore Israel, but also that He would ultimately exalt Israel. The repopulation of the city will be assisted by the Gentiles (v. 22). The nations will serve the sons and daughters of Zion. They will care for Israel and bow down in humility before the people of Israel (v. 23). When these things take place, the people of Israel will recognize that their hope in the Lord has not disappointed. The ferocity of Israel’s enemies makes no difference to the Lord (vv. 24-25). He will rescue Israel from those who contend with them. The defeat of Zion’s enemies will be brutal. The reference to Zion’s enemies eating their own flesh and being drunk with their own blood (v. 26) may be a reference to radical siege warfare in which the enemy is starved out to the point that they resort to cannibalism. It could also suggest, as Oswalt argues, that without anyone for them to attack “the bloodthirstiness of the oppressors becomes so strong that … [the oppressed] must turn on themselves” (Oswalt, Isaiah 40–66, 314). Whatever the reference, this behavior marks the moment in which all humanity recognizes that God is Lord, the Redeemer of Israel.
(3) The Servant’s Example (50:1-11)
The encouragement of Israel continues. Having reassured the nation of the Servant’s ministry to Israel and the world and the Lord’s faithfulness to Israel, the Lord now encourages Israel to follow the example of the Servant in facing dark times.
50:1-3. This paragraph functions as an introduction to the third Servant Song (vv. 4-11). The Lord declares Israel’s disobedience and unbelief is the cause of the people’s imminent exile to Babylon. Once again addressing the assertion that God had forgotten Zion (49:14), the Lord reminds the nation that He never broke His covenant with Israel or gave Israel away. The rhetorical questions included in v. 1 negate any suggestion that God was guilty of the evil of breaking His covenant which led to Israel’s exile. God did not divorce Israel or sell them to the nations because of some debt. Instead, it was the rebellion of Israel that resulted in their captivity, and God’s action in governing the exile was a judgmental reaction to Israel’s sin.
Verse 2 consists of four rhetorical questions followed by a set of assertions that continue into v. 3. The rhetorical questions highlight Israel’s culpability in the exile. God came, but no one welcomed Him. He called for the nation to repent and to trust Him for deliverance, but no one responded. God did not lack the capacity to rescue Israel. Instead, Israel refused to obey and trust in the Lord whose power has no equal. Now, facing the darkness of discipline, the Lord gives the example of the Servant-Messiah in His darkest hour to teach Israel how to respond to the trauma of exile (v. 4-9). The poem has two parts, the first giving the example of the Servant (vv. 4-9) followed by the exhortation to Israel based on the Servant’s example (vv. 10-11).
50:4-9. This brief section of the two-part poem presents the Servant as an example of trust in the Lord, persevering despite opposition. Written in the first person, the section has four parts, each introduced by the divine name the Lord GOD (vv. 4, 5, 7, 9). First, the Servant affirms that He is a disciple of the Lord (v. 4). He states that the Lord has given Him the tongue of disciples, instructing Him as a spokesman, in order to help those who need comfort. God has also given Him special attentiveness, allowing Him to listen as a disciple. The Lord, the Servant’s Father, awakened Him morning by morning to instruct Him personally as a disciple.
Second, the Servant affirms that He is submissive to the will of God (vv. 5-6). This emphasis on submissive obedience is evident in the life of the Servant. The Lord opened His ear, indicating that He listened to God and was not disobedient (lit., “rebellious,” v. 5). In saying that He had not rebelled, the Servant cannot be identified as the nation of Israel. There is only one place where the expression is used of Israel as not being rebellious (Ps 105:28) and that describes Israel before the exodus. Every time afterward the Scripture describes Israel as rebellious (cf. Is 3:8; 63:10).
Remarkably, the Servant’s submissive obedience is not enacted in a comfortable world free of confrontation and anguish. Instead, the Servant is persecuted, but refuses to fight back, offering Himself to His oppressors (v. 6). The NT depiction of the trial and crucifixion of Jesus demonstrates His submission to His Father’s will and to the beating and mockery of the Roman soldiers and even the religious leaders (Mt 26:67; 27:27-31, 39-44; see the comments there).
Third, the Servant affirms His confidence in His vindication by God. He recognizes that God’s aid will keep Him from experiencing shame and disgrace, giving the Servant an unwavering sense of purpose. The Lord will vindicate the Servant and defend Him from those who seek to accuse him (vv. 7-8). Using legal terms (vindicates, contend, case), the Servant anticipates a “not guilty” verdict. Of course, Jesus was condemned in trial before Pilate. His vindication would come not from Pilate but from the Lord (v. 9), when He would raise from the dead and the stone would be rolled away from His empty tomb.
Fourth, the Servant expresses confidence that He would be avenged. Those guilty of condemning Him would wear out like a garment and be eaten up by moths (v. 9). His false accusers would all face judgment from the Lord.
50:10-11. Having given the example of the Servant’s faithfulness during a time of deep trouble, the song next turns to exhort Israel, calling the nation to follow the example of the Servant in its time of trial. The exhortation has a positive (trust God in the darkness) and negative (do not trust oneself in the darkness) aspect. The positive exhortation begins with a question, asking Israel to identify who among them fears the Lord and obeys His Servant, but still walks in darkness and has no light (v. 10). Though the language of darkness is often used with reference to evil or blindness, in this case, it is likely that the darkness here refers to the difficulties the nation is facing. If the term is taken in this fashion, the force of the verse is exhortative. It calls those experiencing difficulty (i.e., darkness) to trust in the Lord. In this sense, it offers an answer to the question at the beginning of v. 10: those who fear the Lord and trust His Servant are those who trust in the Lord even in the absence of light. In darkness (suffering) they are to trust God even as the Servant did so they can experience the same glorious outcome. As Motyer writes, “Those who commit to the servant way will have a servant experience, normative for them because true of Him” (Motyer, The Prophecy of Isaiah, 401).
The negative exhortation is to those who attempt to light their own way, using human manipulations rather than trusting God in the darkness. In their attempt to make their own light, they will be burned by that light and ultimately will lie down in torment (v. 11).
(4) God’s Promised Deliverance (51:1–52:12)
Having encouraged Israel by revealing the Servant’s roles (49:1-13), reminding of the Lord’s faithfulness (49:14-26), and reviewing the Servant’s trust (50:1-11), the prophet next provides encouragement to Israel with a reminder of the Lord’s promise of deliverance and restoration.
51:1-3. The Servant’s calling, activity, and example provide the launching point for an articulation of Israel’s hopeful future. The now-familiar exhortation to listen is addressed to those who pursue righteousness and who seek the LORD (v. 1). They are called to contemplate their origins, which are pictured metaphorically with mining imagery (the rock from which you were hewn … the quarry from which you were dug). Abraham and Sarah are cited as an example of God’s past action on behalf of His people. The certainty of the Lord’s comfort to Zion is confirmed by the past blessing of Abraham and Sarah and God’s covenant with them. The restoration of Zion will go beyond mere rebuilding. Instead, the city’s surroundings will become like Eden and her desert like the garden of the LORD (v. 3). Certainly this would not be fulfilled at the return from Babylon but awaits the appearance of the messianic kingdom. At that time, God’s care for the city will exceed any human expectations and will restore it to the glorious state of creation.
51:4-8. God gives another call to listen (v. 4), but in this case the Israelites are to hear the Lord’s “instruction” (Hb. torah may be translated “instruction”—its use here is not a reference to the Mosaic law but God’s instruction at the end of days; see comments on 2:3.) It is God who will be the source of justice and order that will become a light to the peoples (v. 4). God’s righteousness and justice will not be unwelcome. Instead, the coastlands (see Is 41:1) will wait in anticipation of His coming (v. 5). God’s justice is not transitory like the things of the world, or even like creation itself. God will usher in an everlasting salvation that will not wear out, but will continue to offer security and prosperity (v. 6). Israel is encouraged not to be afraid of the insults of humanity (v. 7). The description of people of Israel as knowing what is right and having God’s law (instruction) in their hearts suggests that such knowledge can eliminate fear. Those who are obedient have no need to fear because those who mock and taunt will not last. They will be like moth-eaten clothes that are devoured over time (v. 8). The vindication of the Lord will last through all generations (v. 8; cf. v.6). The contrast between the permanent and the transient in these verses is designed to highlight the value of the Lord’s righteousness over the so-called treasures of temporal society.
51:9-10. Next, God is addressed and called to awake and put on strength. The reference to the arm of the LORD is to God’s military prowess. Here, God is called to prepare for action to defend his people as He did in times past when He defeated the proud and brought order to chaos. Rahab refers to the primordial sea monster representing chaos and disorder. Beyond its most familiar reference to the prostitute and woman of faith (Jos 2; 6: 22, 25; cf. Hb 11:31), Rahab appears six times in the OT. Two of these occurrences refer to Egypt (Ps 87:4; Is 30:7) while the other occurrences refer to the mythic sea monsters (Jb 9:13; 26:12-13 [see the comments there]; Ps 89:8-10; Is 51:9). In this context, the reference to Rahab emphasizes God’s command over all created forces, regardless of how powerful. The point of the rhetorical question is to highlight God’s capacity to act and to anticipate His doing so.
A similar implication may be drawn from v. 10 in which the events associated with the Exodus are cited as additional evidences of God’s ability to control creation. The sea, in a manner similar to Rahab, is associated with the powers of chaos: “The image of a raging personified cosmic deep is perhaps the most pervasive symbol of chaos in ancient mythological texts” (F. J. Mabie, “Chaos and Death,” Dictionary of the Old Testament: Wisdom, Poetry and Writings, ed. Tremper Longman III and Peter Enns [Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2008], 44). God also demonstrated His power over the Red Sea in the deliverance of Israel from Egypt. The call for God to awake is rooted in the powerful memories of His past acts of deliverance for Israel.
51:11-16. God’s response to the plea for Him to rouse Himself on Israel’s behalf follows. It is, in many ways, a call by Him for Israel to maintain faithfulness and to wait on the Lord. Those whom the Lord has promised to rescue will be rescued, restored, granted posterity, and given everlasting joy (v. 11). God declares Himself to be the One who comforts Israel (v. 12a). The two questions that follow reflect God’s frustration over the peoples’ continued anxiety about the nations. Though these questions should not be understood as diminishing the difficulties of the people of Israel, they do challenge the doubts previously expressed concerning God’s apparent inactivity (vv. 9-10). If God is the One who brings comfort, then there is no need to fear humanity. Those die and are as fragile as grass. Israel must remember the Lord who created and continues to control all of creation (v. 13). There is no danger or oppression that can overwhelm the comfort of God. God’s people need only to exercise faithful patience, trusting in the Lord for comfort.
Verse 14 underscores God’s willingness to act as He declares that the exile will soon be set free and will be given provision. This release is grounded in the Lord’s identity as the one who stirs up the sea (v. 15). The imagery of the sea points to the Lord’s power over the chaotic aspects of life. The turmoil that Israel has experienced, in other words, is not solely the result of powers that stand in opposition to God, powers that He must defeat. Instead, it is also God who makes the waves roar, that is, He ordains these difficulties encountered by Israel because of their sin. But despite their difficulties, the people of Israel have been commissioned to speak for the Lord and to be called God’s people. Jerusalem is called to awake and to rise.
51:17-23. In this section, Zion is challenged to rouse itself, like a drunkard awakening from a binge. In this case, however, the cup of His anger, not alcohol, has caused Jerusalem’s senselessness. Israel’s experience of God’s discipline has left the nation’s senses dull, its reactions slow. Not only is Jerusalem drunk, but she is also alone—there is no one to help guide Jerusalem home. None of Jerusalem’s children are available to help their drunken parent.
There is no consolation for Jerusalem whose children lie in the street full of the wrath of the LORD (v. 20). Just as Israel has come to her lowest point, God, her defender, declares that the cup of His wrath which has left Israel reeling will be taken away and that the nation will never drink it again (v. 22). Instead, the cup will be passed to those who have tormented Israel. Israel’s oppressors truly walked on the backs of the bruised calling Israel to lie on the ground so that they could walk across them. They will feel the disorientation and hopelessness that comes from drinking too much of God’s wrath (v. 23). Plainly none of these promises were fulfilled at the return from exile in Babylon. Although some argue that the prophet is using hyperbole here, because the author gives no hint of using a figure of speech, it is better to still anticipate the fulfillment of God’s permanent restoration of Israel in the future messianic kingdom.
52:1-2. Now Zion is called to wake up, to put on strength and beautiful garments, because that which defiled the city (the uncircumcised Gentiles and the unclean pagans) will no longer enter it to bring it harm. Zion will now experience freedom from oppression and the influence of those who do not fear the Lord. They can now shake themselves from the dust and rise up (v. 2). The description of the conditions that resulted in Israel’s newfound freedom follow (52:3-6).
52:3-6. First, Israel will be redeemed. She who was sold for nothing and … will be redeemed without money. As Oswalt notes, “Since God had not been forced to hand over Judah to satisfy some creditor, nor had he sold her in order [to] get cash to pay his debts, but purely on his own volition, then on his own volition he could redeem her … There is no third party involved; it is strictly a matter between him and his people” (Oswalt, Isaiah 40–66, 361–362).
Second, God will punish Israel’s oppressors (vv. 4-5). These verses discuss the history of Israel’s time in Egypt and Assyria, as well as their imminent exile under rulers who mock God’s people. Such a situation is untenable because the Lord’s name is blasphemed. The Septuagint, which is quoted in Rm 2:22-24 (see the comments there), adds the phrase “because of you among the nations” suggesting that God’s people are at fault for the blasphemy of the nations. Nevertheless, the actions of the nations will prompt God’s action, so that Israel, who has questioned God’s delay in deliverance, will know that it is God who is rescuing them (52:6). God declares, “Here I am showing that I am with you in your distress.”
52:7-10. The prophet next proclaims God’s kingship over Israel. The beautiful feet of the messenger and the good news He proclaims to the people of Israel result in praise. The Septuagint and the NT translate the Hebrew phrase rendered good news as “gospel.” Therefore, the term “gospel” carries with it a royal nuance that is frequently overlooked. In the context of Isaiah, the royal nuance of the good news is certainly in mind as God is identified as the One who reigns.
The watchmen of the city are the first to see the Lord’s restoration of Jerusalem (v. 8). The joy of the watchmen will be matched by the waste places of Jerusalem because of the comfort and redemption that the Lord will finally bring to Jerusalem. Jerusalem’s rejoicing will be preceded by the baring of God’s holy arm (v. 10), which is a metaphor of His military power. Jerusalem did not rescue itself—her newfound salvation is the work of the Lord.
52:11-12. God’s call for Israel to depart is likely a call for Israel to leave Babylon. The concern with purity is a statement against carrying foreign practices back to Jerusalem. When the Israelites leave Babylon, they must also leave behind the Babylonian practices. The Israelites need not leave Babylon in a rush or in secret since the Lord will guard them in the front and the rear, so there is no need to be fearful, since their return to Canaan would not be characterized as haste or flight (not as fugitives) (v. 12). Despite the call to leave Babylon, this should be viewed as a precursor to the events described throughout chaps. 51–52 which describe Israel’s ultimate restoration at the end of days.
b. The Sacrifice for Israel (52:13–53:12)
This section of Isaiah is focused on the exaltation and humiliation of the Servant. The second group of deliverance oracles, focusing on deliverance from sin (chaps. 49–57), began with oracles that were designed to encourage Israel (49:1–52:12). This poem at the center of the deliverance oracles presents the fourth Servant Song, depicting the Servant-Messiah as a sacrifice offered for Israel’s redemption. Whereas Is 42 described the responsibilities of the Servant, Is 49 His roles, and Is 50 His rejection, Is 52:13–53:12 describes the culmination of the Servant’s mission. He would be a sacrifice for Israel and thereby provide redemption for the nation and the whole world (see the chart on the Servant Songs with the comments regarding Is 42).
The structure of the poem is as follows: There are five stanzas, each consisting of three verses. The first (52:13-15) and last stanza (53:10-12) function as a prologue and epilogue to the poem; each has God speaking about the Servant’s exaltation. The main body of the poem contains three stanzas at the center (53:1-9), as the repentant nation of Israel speaks about the Servant’s humiliation.
The Jewish interpretation of this Song is significant. In the ancient Rabbinic literature, the Servant was frequently identified as the Messiah (e.g., Targum Jonathan ben Uzziel [written c. AD 100–200] on Isaiah 52:13 states, “Behold, my Servant the Messiah will prosper”; Bab. Sanhedrin 98a). However, the influential medieval Jewish interpreter Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki (Rashi, AD 1040–1105) identified the Servant as Israel. Today, most Jewish interpreters follow Rashi, as do most critical scholars. The following are six reasons the Servant in the fourth Song cannot be identified as Israel.
First, the pronouns of the Song would be inconsistent. In the body (53:1-9), the people of Israel are speaking and uniformly identify themselves in the first person (we, our, us). They also describe the Servant in the third person (He, Him). Thus, Israel cannot be the Servant.
Second, the Servant is said to die for “my people” (53:8). Isaiah’s people were the people of Israel. Therefore, the Servant cannot be Israel and also die for Israel.
Third, the Servant is described as completely innocent (“He had done no violence, nor was there any deceit in His mouth,” 53:9). Yet, throughout Isaiah, Israel is called guilty (e.g., 1:16-20; 5:7). The nation cannot be the innocent Servant.
Fourth, the Servant suffered for the sins of others (53:6). But the nation of Israel suffered for her own sins (40:2).
Fifth, the Servant was a willing sufferer, rendering “Himself as a guilt offering” (53:10). But Israel did indeed suffer, in fact, twice as much as she deserved (40:2), but never did so willingly.
Sixth, the Servant actually died (“cut off out of the land of the living,” 53:8). Certainly many in Israel did die but the nation collectively did not perish. In fact, God promised that the nations could never totally destroy His people (Jr 31:35-37). On the whole, it seems best to maintain the earliest Jewish view that the Servant should be identified as the Messiah.
(1) God Speaks: The Servant Will Be Exalted Despite His Humiliation (52:13-15)
The first stanza functions as a prologue or introduction to the Song. God is the speaker and He declares that the Servant will be exalted despite His suffering and humiliation.
52:13-15. The passage begins with the affirmation that the Servant’s actions will be in accordance with divine wisdom. Although translated that the Servant will prosper (v. 13a), the Hebrew is literally stating that He will “act wisely.” This is a metonymy of cause for effect, indicating that He will be successful or prosper. His exaltation is described with the glorious language of Is 6:1. There it states that God is “lofty and exalted.” Although translated as high and lifted up (52:13b), the same Hebrew words are used of the Servant as are used of God. It even goes further, adding the expression and greatly exalted, a phrase not used in Is 6:1.
In addition to the Servant’s exaltation, He is also said to have an appalling and disfiguring death: His appearance was marred more than any man (v. 14). The question arises as to who is being addressed. The NASB adds the italicized My people, indicating that the words were added and are not in the original text. There are several possibilities for dealing with the address to you. First, it is possible that this is a comparison—just as people would be appalled at the suffering of Israel, so they would be when seeing the disfiguring of the Messiah. Second, many ancient Hebrew manuscripts have the word “Him,” as in just as many were astonished at Him. This would make more sense in the context. A third possibility is that at times to heighten the drama in Hebrew poetry, the speaker can begin to address directly the individual being described throughout in the third person. In essence, it is as if for a moment the Lord stopped describing the Servant and instead spoke directly to Him. To capture the sense in English, it should be translated in the third person. It seems best therefore to translate this as the NIV and NLT do, that many would be appalled or amazed at “Him.”
It is through the Servant’s disfiguring death that He will accomplish His work and destiny, that He will sprinkle many nations (v. 15). There is a dispute about the meaning of the word translated here as sprinkle (yazzeh), with some translations indicating that the word should be “startle.”
The basis for the alternate translation “startle” is that this fits the parallelism with appalled or amazed in the previous verse as well as the parallelism with the line that follows: Kings will shut their mouths [in astonishment]. Furthermore, while it is agreed that the Hebrew word used here consistently means “sprinkle” throughout the Hebrew Bible (e.g., Ex 29:16; Lv 17:6; Nm 18:17; Ezk 36:25), it always has a preposition following it (“to sprinkle something on ”), indicating what object is being sprinkled. However, there is no preposition in this passage. Perhaps this is why the Septuagint translated this word “astonish.” Some have conjectured an Arabic cognate word to support this.
The argument for the traditional translation “sprinkle” is (1) that it is the plain definition of the word; (2) taking it as “startle” requires identifying it with a root completely unattested in the Hebrew language; (3) the word need not be parallel to “appalled” but could rather mean that the Servant’s disfiguring death would be the way He would “sprinkle” the nations; and (4) as a causative verb, it could be an exception to the general rule of needing a preposition, with the idea “He besprinkles many nations.” This verb is unattested in Hebrew for the concept of being “astonished” or “startled.” It seems best, therefore, to translate yazzeh as sprinkle. This is the same word used in Leviticus for sprinkling sacrificial blood (Lv 4:6; 16:14, 19), indicating that the Servant’s disfiguring death would function as a sacrifice for many nations. As a result, when Gentile kings understand the sacrificial reason for the Servant’s death, they will shut their mouths in reverence and submission.
(2) Israel Speaks: The Servant Was Not Recognized because of His Humiliation (53:1-9)
The speaker changes from God to Israel in 53:1, and the nation continues speaking through the three stanzas of the body of the poem (53:1-9). Israel speaks from the perspective of finally understanding the identity of the Servant after many years of rejection. This is penitential Israel, finally recognizing the long-rejected Messiah. In a parallel passage, Zechariah predicts that when Israel finally recognizes the Messiah, the nation will repent with great mourning (Zch 12:10). The words in this section aptly express that mourning and repentance. In the body of the song, penitent Israel gives three reasons for failing to recognize the Messiah in the past.
53:1-3. Israel states that the Servant was too plain to be the Messiah. It was difficult for Israel to believe in the Servant (Who has believed our message?, v. 1) because He was not what was anticipated. The arm of the LORD, previously mentioned in Isaiah (44:12; 48:14; 50:2; 51:5; 51:9; 52:10), was unrecognizable even to those who know it is coming. The tender shoot, or root (v. 2), did not meet the people’s expectations of a Deliverer. Oswalt describes the shoot as “the normally unwanted shoot that springs up from an exposed root of a tree” (Oswalt, The Book of Isaiah, Chapters 40–66, 382). Such an understanding is suggested by the following parallel lines in which the Servant is described as having no stately form or majesty. The entire verse emphasizes the Servant’s seeming insignificance. While Israel was looking for a royal deliverer, the Servant appeared ordinary. His appearance was unimpressive. No one would have any reason to be attracted to Him. Rather the Servant was despised and forsaken of men; sorrow and suffering characterized His life (v. 3). He knew grief. The term grief is often rendered “sickness” (HCSB; Dt 7:15; 28:59, 61; 1Kg 17:17; 2Kg 1:2,4; 8:8-9; 13:14; 2Ch 16:12; 21:15, 18-19; Ps 41:3; Ec 5:16; 6:2; Is 1:5; Jr 6:7; Hs 5:13). Since the Servant was not physically ill, it may be best to translate the term as “suffering” and understand it to refer to the physical pain of a tortured and disfiguring death that He endured (52:14).
Describing the Servant as one from whom men hide their face (v. 3) suggests that those who rejected the Servant considered Him contemptible. Therefore He was despised and did not receive proper esteem. The term despised is the same Hebrew word used of the singularly contemptible Antiochus Epiphanes (Dn 11:21, translated “despicable”).
53:4-6. Israel states that He was punished for His own sin. The despised Servant bore our griefs (better translated “suffering”; see comments on 53:1-3) and carried our sorrows. The words may contain the idea of sickness, leading some to believe that faith in the Servant guarantees immediate healing of all diseases. However, this does not mean that all sicknesses will immediately be cured because of the Servant’s vicarious suffering. Rather it is promising that the Servant’s death would ultimately provide deliverance and healing for all who believe in Him. The Servant did indeed take the punishment for sin and therefore would provide immediate forgiveness to someone who trusts in Him. However, removing the penalty for sin will not remove the presence of sin in a believer’s life until after the resurrection. In the same way, the forgiveness of the sins that cause sickness does not guarantee healing from diseases until the presence of sin is removed at the resurrection at the end of days.
Israel now confesses that upon viewing the Servant’s suffering, the nation had concluded that the Servant was undergoing divine punishment. He was stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted (v. 4), all terms that indicate punishment for sin. The word stricken, meaning “to smite with disease for sin,” was used when both Miriam (Nm 12:9-10) and Uzziah (2Kg 15:5) were stricken with leprosy for sin.
Penitent Israel now recognizes that while the Servant was indeed being punished for sin, it was not for His sins but theirs. The Servant’s suffering included being pierced through for our transgressions (v. 5). The Hebrew word translated pierced (mekholal) means “wounded to death” and conveys a violent and painful death (Dt 21:1; Is 51:9). The Servant was crushed for our iniquities. Although the word crushed means “broken” or “shattered to pieces,” it is not generally used in a literal way but with a metaphorical sense, as in a “contrite [lit., “crushed”] spirit” (Is 57:15) or “contrite heart” (Ps 51:17). Israel now understood that the Servant took the punishment (chastening) they deserved, that He was flogged (by His scourging) in order to bring their spiritual healing. The substitution of the Servant for the people certainly foretells the sacrifice of the Messiah Jesus as a sacrifice for the sickness of sin (1Pt 2:24).
Penitent Israel now summarizes what they have learned: They are the ones who have strayed from God like sheep and followed their own desires. Consequently, the Lord has caused the punishment for the iniquity (guilt) of us all to fall on Him (v. 6).
53:7-9. Israel states that the Servant was too passive to be innocent. The Servant’s silence at His trial and His submission to death demonstrates His acceptance of suffering and His willing participation. The Servant did not proclaim His own innocence, making those who observed Him mistake His behavior for passivity and acquiescence brought about by His own guilt. But the real reason for the Servant’s acceptance of His suffering was that He understood that His suffering was coming upon Him to fulfill God’s purpose. As Goldingay notes, “He ‘bore’ and ‘carried’ not because he had to but because he agreed to. So there was no basis for or logic in protest … he was at every point a victim, but he maintained a form of control of his destiny, not letting anyone else determine his reaction to it” (Goldingay, The Message of Isaiah 40–55, 506).
Additionally, the Servant submitted to a crooked trial (v. 8). The phrase by oppression and judgment is a hendiadys, two separate words describing just one subject; they are better translated “oppressive judgment,” indicating a corrupt legal procedure. As a result, His contemporaries (His generation) considered that He brought His death upon Himself by His own sin rather than understanding the real reason for His death: to bear the punishment for the transgression of the people of Israel.
After His death, the Servant’s grave was assigned with wicked men (v. 9). The implication is that even after the Servant died, His innocence was not recognized and He would be buried as a common criminal. Instead, however, He was with a rich man in His death. This was because the Servant was genuinely innocent (He had done no violence, nor was there any deceit in His mouth; It was as if God had said, “This far and no farther,” and spared His Servant the final humiliation of a dishonorable burial. The Servant’s innocence caused the Lord to place Him in the tomb of a rich man (cf. Mt 27:57-60).
(3) God Speaks: The Servant Will Be Exalted because of His Humiliation (53:10-12)
The final stanza of the Song serves as an epilogue. The Lord is once again the speaker, just as He was in the opening stanza. Just as the first stanza depicted the Servant’s exaltation, this one does as well. The difference is that in the first stanza the Servant is promised exaltation despite His humiliation but now He is promised exaltation precisely because of His humiliation.
53:10. The Servant will be restored because of His humiliation in serving as a substitutionary sacrifice for sinners. Just before the oracle proper where the Lord begins to speak, the prophet Isaiah states that the will of the Lord will be accomplished through the Servant’s sacrifice and ultimate exaltation. Although the NASB states that the LORD was pleased to crush Him, the Hebrew word translated “pleased” may also be used to indicate will or purpose (cf. Jdg 13:23) and therefore translated “willing.” That this is so here is indicated by the active voice (lit., “The Lord willed”) and the grammatical construction (to be precise, an active voice verb [“willed”] followed by an infinitive [“to crush”] with a pronominal suffix in the accusative [“Him”], these elements typically expressing purpose). God took no pleasure in the death of His Servant but He “willed” to crush (cf. 53:5) Him for the ultimate purpose of providing salvation.
The Servant’s exaltation would come as a result of His making Himself a guilt offering (v. 10). This is a reference to the restitution offering (cf. Lv 5:14-6:7) when one wronged God or other people. A sacrifice was offered to God providing atonement for the wrong done (Lv 5:15, 18; 6:6; 19:20) along with a restitution or fine to the offended human party. Regardless, this sacrifice did provide expiation for sin. The use of this term in relation to the Servant identifies His death as an atonement for the damage and injury done by sin.
As a result of His atoning death, the Servant will experience restoration as the first aspect of His exaltation. The Servant’s restoration has three components. First, He will have followers, not rejecters. Although He was despised and forsaken of men (53:3), the Servant is promised that He will see His offspring (lit., “His seed”). Normally this term refers to physical progeny, but the context about rejection and the timing of this after His death indicates that the word “seed” should be taken figuratively for “followers” (as it is used in Is 57:4).
The second aspect of the Servant’s restoration is that He will have life, not death. Despite the gruesome death described previously (52:14, 53:8-9), here He is promised prolonged days (v. 10), indicating an indirect reference to the resurrection. Third, the Servant’s restoration will include God’s pleasure and prosperity in His life rather than suffering and sorrow.
53:11. The Servant will be satisfied because of His justification of sinners. The Servant’s exaltation will also include His own satisfaction with what He accomplished. He will not consider His death as a sign of failure, but rather be satisfied with the forgiveness He provided. From His anguish, He will see it, but the object it is not in the Hebrew text. In fact, there is no object to the verb see. Both the Septuagint and the Qumran scroll of Isaiah do have the word “light” as the object. This reading, which is more likely, indicates that after anguish the Servant will see light. The NIV translation correctly translates this as a reference to resurrection: “he will see the light of life.”
It is by His knowledge that the Servant will justify the many. This should more likely be read in the objective case (“knowledge of Him”), indicating that many people will come to know (believe in) the Servant. As a result, God’s righteous Servant will provide justification. This is a play on the words, as both righteous and justify have the same Hebrew root word. The Righteous One will “declare righteous” (justify) those who know Him. As a result, He will bear their iniquities. This is what brings the Servant satisfaction—knowing that His suffering and death will bring forgiveness to those who turn to Him. It is almost universally recognized by Pauline scholars that Is 53:11 is what provides the theological basis for much of what Paul says about the atoning, justifying death of Jesus Christ (see Rm 3:21-29).
53:12. The Servant will be rewarded because of His intercession on behalf of sinners. The Servant’s ultimate exaltation will not only include His restoration (53:10) and satisfaction (53:11) but also His reward. This verse uses the imagery of victory after battle. First, the Servant will receive a portion, not meaning “a part” but “spoil, inheritance.” The content of that portion is not with the great, but as the HCSB translates it, “the many.” The word “many,” used five times in this Song (52:14, 15; 53:11, 12), here indicates the many people He has redeemed. The Servant will receive the redeemed as His reward after His deadly battle with sin. His spoil will also include the nations (“He will receive the mighty as spoil,” HCSB).
All this will be His because of His willing death and identification with transgressors (rebels against God). As such, the Servant bore the sin of those He redeemed (the many) and interceded for them. This intercession likely refers to the Servant’s perpetual priestly mediation for those who know Him (cf. Heb 7:25). The ultimate message of this Song is that God will bring glory and reward to His Servant, who endured a humiliating and horrific death to redeem sinners.
F. B. Meyer correctly states, “There is only one brow upon which this crown of thorns will fit” (F. B. Meyer, Christ in Isaiah: Expositions of Isaiah XL-LV [New York: Revell, 1895], 158). Only Jesus of Nazareth fulfilled the specific prophecies of this remarkable Song. What follows are ten specific fulfillments of prophecy:
1. Jesus suffered an appalling, disfiguring death (52:14).
2. Jesus’ blood sprinkled nations and brought kings to submission (52:15).
3. Jesus was rejected by Israel for being too plain (53:1-3).
4. Jesus’ suffering was considered to be punishment for His sin by Israel (53:4-6).
5. Jesus suffered and died without resistance, accepting God’s will to provide atonement for Israel and the world (53:7-8).
6. Jesus was buried in a rich man’s tomb (53:9).
7. Jesus was resurrected from the dead (53:10-11).
8. Jesus was given innumerable followers (spiritual seed) (53:10).
9. Jesus is satisfied today with the forgiveness His death provided (53:11).
10. Jesus has been rewarded by God the Father as the victor over sin (53:12).
c. The Salvation of Israel and the Nations (54:1–57:21)
The second group of deliverance oracles, focusing on deliverance from sin (chaps. 49–57), began with a section designed to encourage Israel (49:1–52:12) and were followed by the fourth Servant Song (52:13–53:12), depicting the sacrifice of the Servant for the sins of Israel. Now the prophet turns to the third section, emphasizing the salvation of Israel and the nations. First he speaks of the salvation of Israel (54:1–55:13) and then addresses the salvation of the Gentiles.
(1) The Salvation of Israel (54:1–55:13)
The prophet begins by describing the promise of salvation (54:1-17) and then will invite Israel to receive it (55:1-13).
(a) The Promise of Salvation (54:1-17)
54:1-3. The first aspect of the promise is that God will enlarge and repopulate the land of Israel. Zion is told to rejoice, Shout for joy! (v. 1). The imagery of the barren woman whose offspring will be more numerous than that of a woman who has a husband implies that there is a reversal of fortune coming. Those who had no hope will now experience abundant blessing. After the call to rejoice, Israel is told the reason: Enlarge the place of your tent … lengthen your cords and strengthen your pegs (v. 2). All three phrases depict the expansion of a tent and direct them to the Lord’s promise that Israel will one day widen their borders and take control of the nations (54:3).
54:4-10. The second aspect of the promise of salvation is that, in the day when the entire nation will turn to the Servant for deliverance, Israel will be fully restored. The nation will no longer feel shame or humiliation because of the nation’s relationship with the Lord (vv. 4-5). The shame of your youth (lit., “maidenhood,” from the same root as the word for “virgin” in 7:14) and the reproach of your widowhood both indicate times when a woman was ashamed in that culture because she had no husband (v. 4). This humiliation will be removed because the Lord will become Israel’s husband. Alongside the descriptions of God as the Holy One of Israel and as your Redeemer (v. 5), the relationship between God and Israel is depicted in terms of a marital relationship, with God, Israel’s creator, as Israel’s husband. This imagery is also used here (cf. 54:6) and elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible (cf. Is 50:1; Jr 3:8, 14, 20; 31:32; Hs 2:2, 16). The relation is often stated negatively in the context of divorce and unfaithfulness, but ultimately suggests the permanence of Israel’s relationship to God and implies the protection and security that was available to God’s spouse. The restoration of the relationship will occur when God’s call for Israel to come from dispersion will resemble a husband calling his wife back to him after she was rejected (v. 6). Although it might be thought that this was fulfilled at the return from Babylon, the full restoration of Israel did not occur then. Therefore, this certainly points to the restoration of Israel in the messianic kingdom.
Israel’s restoration reflects the permanence of God’s reunion with His estranged wife. Her time of abandonment had been relatively short and will ultimately result in a compassionate regathering (v. 7). A similar sentiment is further expressed, but God’s anger at their sin is identified as the reason for Israel’s temporary abandonment (v. 8). The comparison to the time of Noah (v. 9) offers Israel assurance that God’s anger has subsided and that He will never again rebuke Israel. Just as God promised never again to discipline the earth with a flood and gave the rainbow as a sign of this covenant (Gn 9:8-17), so God promises never to rebuke again. Since Israel did indeed endure discipline after the return from Babylon, this promise must be understood as referring to the end of days when Israel turns to the Messiah in faith (cf. Hs 3:4-5). It is a reference to the promise not to abandon or discipline Israel once they have been restored in the millennium. The elaboration of the promise in v. 10 clarifies this understanding by depicting the stability of God’s lovingkindness, which stands firm when the mountains are shaken and the hills removed. The Hebrew term translated lovingkindness, used 245 times in the OT, would best be translated “loyal love.” It is linked to God’s “covenant faithfulness” or God’s steadfast loyalty to His people.
Just as God made the rainbow covenant with Noah, so He indicates that He will establish a covenant of peace with Israel. The phrase covenant of peace (v. 10) occurs elsewhere in the OT (cf. Nm 25:12; Ezk 34:25; 37:26). In Nm 25:12, the phrase appears to denote the agreed upon peace between God and Israel. The “covenant of peace” in Ezekiel is associated with security and blessing (see the comments on Ezk 34:25). Given the other uses of the phrase in Numbers and Ezekiel, the covenant of peace as used here refers to the new covenant (cf. Jr 31:31-34), when Israel will be at peace with God and experience the security having been re-established in the land.
54:11-17. The third aspect of the promise of salvation is that Israel will be renewed. The description of the future rebuilding of Jerusalem, here called the afflicted one (v. 11), underscores the peace and security that God will bring to the people. Jerusalem will be rebuilt with precious stones and jewels, suggesting luxuriousness and highlighting the unique love that God has for the city (vv. 11-12). God will not simply rebuild Jerusalem, but will construct it from extravagant materials that will set it apart from any other city. In the coming idyllic state of Jerusalem (vv. 13-17), Israel’s children will experience peace, having been taught of the LORD (54:13). In this context, being taught likely assumes that the students have also learned what the teacher seeks to convey. The children of Israel will not simply hear the Lord’s teachings, but will obey them (see Is 30:20-21 and the comments there).
Not only will the next generation of Israelites obey the Lord, but also God will usher in an unprecedented era of peace and safety. Israel will not be ruled by tyrants. They will have no need to be afraid any longer because God will protect them from oppression … and from terror (v. 14). In the millennial kingdom (the one-thousand-year reign of Messiah Jesus literally and physically on the earth; cf. Rv 20:1-6, and see the comments there) God will not allow any nation to defeat Israel. In the past God allowed the destroyer (Babylon) to ruin. But in the end of days, no weapon that is formed against you will prosper (v. 17). There is no blacksmith in the world who can forge a weapon that will defeat Israel in those days. God’s people have been vindicated and stand before God as part of an everlasting covenant. God’s role in the formation of Israel’s enemies has been emphasized throughout the book. His involvement offers comfort to Israel since God’s wrath will be checked by His mercy and compassion for His covenant people.
(b) The Offer of Salvation (55:1-13)
Having promised salvation to Israel, the Lord next offers Israel an opportunity to receive the gift. However, the offer is also extended beyond Israel to the nations as well (cf. Is 49:6).
55:1-5. At the outset, the Lord invites Israel to come and enjoy the nourishing presence of God and His blessing, and thereby experience spiritual satisfaction. This section highlights not only the amazing provisions of God, but also that these provisions are free. In contrast to those who charge the thirsty for drink, God offers water and wine at no charge (v. 1). The rhetorical questions (v. 2) continue the previous thought, emphasizing the futility of spending hard-earned money on food that will not nourish. God calls His people to eat what is good and rich without charge. The figurative nature of the previous verses is evident in what follows (v. 3). Though physical sustenance will surely be provided, Israel will be sustained through their obedience to the Lord and His provision of the everlasting covenant, a reference to the new covenant (see Jr 31:31-34), guaranteeing God’s ongoing nourishment. Next, the Lord explains how to respond to the invitation, namely by turning to the Servant, the Davidic Messiah (v. 4). In this verse, the Lord shifts from addressing Israel (you, your, v. 3) to speaking of the Servant-Messiah (him). He is described as a witness, a leader, and a commander. That these are to be understood as messianic is evident in that: (1) this language is too exalted for any other ruler and (2) the word leader (nagid) is specifically used of the Messiah (Dn 9:25). That the antecedent to these titles is David (v. 3) does not negate the messianic interpretation in that the prophets frequently call the Messiah “David” (cf. Jr 30:9; Ezk 36:23-24, 37:24-25; Hs 3:4-5) by metonymy because He and David are so closely connected and He is the fulfillment of the Davidic covenant (called here the faithful mercies shown to David, 55:3; cf. 2Sm 7:12-16). The word witness refers to one who speaks truthfully. Leader means “ruler” and is used as a synonym for “king” (see 1Sm 9:16; 10:1; 1Kg 1:35). Commander refers to a leader with authority to issue commands, a royal lawgiver. The Lord’s Servant-Messiah is addressed directly (55:5) where God tells Him that He will have command over a nation that He does not know because the Lord has glorified Him. When the Servant-Messiah takes His throne, He will not only rule Israel but the Gentile nations as well.
55:6-7. Having invited Israel to find spiritual nourishment from the Lord (55:1-3) and identifying the Servant-Messiah as the source of that nourishment (55:4-5), God now calls on all to repent and turn to Him. The promise here is plain: if people will seek the LORD in a timely manner, turn from wickedness and return to the LORD, then He will abundantly pardon. These phrases are not calls for works righteousness but are calling for genuine faith leading to divine forgiveness and transformed behavior. This is evident from the opening words of this Song (vv. 1-2), calling Israel to obtain salvation freely (not by works) since it is only available by God’s gracious gift.
55:8-11. What follows is an answer to an implicit question concerning the repentance of the wicked. The question is, “How will repentance produce God’s pardon?” The answer comes in a series of explanatory clauses beginning with the word for. The first two clauses assert that God’s way of thinking cannot be constrained by humanity’s understanding of it (vv. 8-9). As Oswalt puts it, “Our understanding is not the measure of what God can do” (Oswalt, Isaiah 40–66, 434). Another reason is related to the certainty of God’s Word, which is highlighted through a comparison with rain and snow. Beyond certainty, however, God’s word produces repentance and pardon, just as the rain and snow water the earth so that it yields vegetation (vv. 10-11).
55:12-13. In the final two verses of the chapter God’s assurance of pardon brings joy. A transformed creation, including the mountains and the hills praise God, even as the trees … clap their hands. The replacement of plant life associated with the curse (i.e., thorn bush and nettle) with cypress and myrtle trees (v. 13) suggests the removal of toil and trouble. All this is done as a memorial to the Lord and will be an everlasting sign. This indicates that this restoration is accompanied by the repentance and restoration of God’s people whose ongoing faithfulness will yield God’s blessing.
(2) The Salvation of the Nations (56:1–57:21)
That Gentiles would be included in Messiah’s kingdom was broached in the previous chapter (55:5). Now, however, this promise becomes the focus of the prophet’s message.
(a) The Inclusion of the Gentiles (56:1-8)
56:1-2. God’s attention turns from Israel to the foreigner and the eunuch. The initial call to promote justice and to obey the Lord is rooted in God’s readiness to deliver (v. 1). The inclusive nature of the Lord’s blessing (v. 2) suggests that, regardless of one’s ethnicity, the obedience of faith is God’s means of blessing to every individual. Obedience that day would include keeping the sabbath (v. 2). Sabbatarians have used this verse to maintain that Gentile believers today are required to keep Israel’s Sabbath while some, having moved the Sabbath requirements to Sunday, still use it to argue for a renewed Christian Sabbath. However, the Sabbath was a sign of the Mosaic covenant (Ex 31:12-17) and is not commanded of believers in the Church. Nevertheless, this verse indicates that Sabbath requirements will be renewed in the messianic kingdom.
56:3-8. The natural question an Israelite would ask is how could foreigners or eunuchs be included in God’s kingdom. Addressing this question, the prophet indicates that when those excluded from the promises bind themselves to the Lord, they will receive a memorial, and a name better than that of sons and daughters … an everlasting name which will not be cut off (vv. 4-5). All who obey the Lord and respect His ways will experience life with the Lord forever (vv. 6-7). That this brief discussion of the nations was addressed to Israel is evident in that the Lord tells Israel that she will not be the only nation regathered to God, but He will also gather Gentiles (v. 8). This is a fulfillment of the promise to Abraham to bless all nations through him and his seed (cf. Gn 12:3; 22:18; see also Is 60:3-11; 66:18-21; Jn 10:16).
(b) The Condemnation of the Wicked (56:9–57:21)
The preceding section’s affirmation that foreigners will be saved alongside Israel heightens the denunciation of Israel’s paganism that follows. Together the passages highlight the need for unconditional faithfulness to the Lord.
56:9-12. It was not enough for Israel to have a covenant with God; the nation also needed to follow Him. Yet Israel’s leaders, the spiritually blind watchmen (v. 10), had led the nation astray. They were selfish shepherds (v. 11) who drank their days away, thinking that life would continue unchanged (v. 12) and that God would not intervene to hold them accountable.
57:1-6. These foolish leaders of Israel were insensitive to the death of the godly and would not experience the blessing of the Lord. Though the upright would experience blessing (vv. 1-2), those who practice the shameful sexual sins of paganism described in vv. 3-5 would ultimately experience God’s punishment (v. 6a). He will not relent in judgment.
57:7-13. The prophet continues his condemnation of paganism. The Israelite’s sacrifice upon a high and lofty mountain refers to hilltop shrines with idolatrous altars, as well as the placement of the pagan symbols within their homes and their tireless efforts to deliver sacrifices to the king. Some suggest that king (v. 9) should be amended to “Molek” (NIV), the Ammonite god to whom children were sacrificed. There is no textual support for this but the king in question was likely a pagan god—this idolatrous worship was but one of many of paganism and betrayal of the Lord (cf. vv. 7-10). The Israelite journey to sacrifice to the king prompts rhetorical questions in v. 11. The Israelites, who have not heard from the Lord, forget God and do not fear Him. As such, God will surrender Israel to their idols, but save those who trust in Him (vv. 12-13), thereby underscoring that faithfulness to God will yield God’s blessing.
57:14-21. The tone of Is 57:14-19 shifts to one of hope in which God promises to heal humanity and to bring rest despite human rejection of Him. The high and exalted God promises that He also dwells with the penitent. They are called contrite and lowly of spirit (v. 15). The word contrite literally means “crushed” and refers to those who have been brought low by discipline from God. He will revive the heart of the contrite. Here the verb is the same as that found in David’s psalm of confession, “a broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise” (Ps 51:17). The grace and mercy of God is evident in that He who is exalted above all will descend and dwell with the lowly when they turn to Him. He promises to discipline those who keep on turning away (v. 17) but will also restore comfort (v. 18) upon repentance. There will be prosperity and peace when God’s anger relents and He puts praise on the lips of the mourners in Israel (v. 19). The contrast between the penitent and the wicked is evident—God’s peace will not be upon those who oppose His ways (vv. 19-21).
The words of the final verse of the chapter (there is no peace … for the wicked) function as a literary marker, bringing to close this section on deliverance from sin (chaps. 49–57). A virtually identical phrase concludes the previous major section (deliverance from Babylon, chaps. 40–48) and a similar but stronger theme closes out the last unit of the book (deliverance in the end, chaps. 58–66, 66:24).
3. Deliverance in the End (58:1–66:24)
This section of Isaiah is the third major section (of three) in the oracles of the second half of the book (see chart of Isaiah by Rydelnik in the introduction). Each part of this oracular section emphasizes Israel’s deliverance—from Babylon (chaps. 40–48), from sin (49–57), and in the end of days (58–66). The significant element of this section is that it takes a theme that has been raised throughout the book, eschatology, and makes it the central message. Above all, this final unit of Isaiah demonstrates that God will be faithful to His promises to Israel despite the nation’s failures and that He will be King over all the earth.
a. God’s Initiative Delivers Israel (58:1–60:22)
The final unit of Isaiah (chaps. 58–66) begins by demonstrating that God’s initiative will produce His end-of-days deliverance (58:1–60:22). It is not Israel’s righteousness but God’s faithfulness and grace that accomplishes His purposes.
(1) God Describes Israel’s Sinfulness (58:1–59:8)
The prophet presents God’s words, depicting God as speaker in this section. The Lord presents Israel’s primary sin as hypocrisy.
58:1-12. The first way Israel behaved hypocritically was in fasting. God describes Israel as a manipulative worshipers who attempt to fool God into thinking they are truly seeking him (vv. 1-2). They appear to have been impressed by their own activities to the extent that they are offended that God has not noticed their fasting (v. 3a). The peoples’ fasting, which they count as an act of humility, is tainted by their ongoing quest to obtain their own selfish desires (v. 3b). This manipulation was compounded by their oppression of workers (v. 3c). Moreover, the point of fasting was not contrition but merely a means of covering their contentious behavior (v. 4). The command which follows demands that the fasts not be used to make your voice heard on high. The fast has become an attempt to manipulate Yahweh in order to gain or sustain advantage over others. Their fasts were not acts of humility, but were political tools employed in an effort to obtain blessing.
God did require fasting that would be accompanied by penitence and changed behavior. Those fasting would allow the oppressed to go free (v. 6) and care for the downtrodden (v. 7). These acts of repentance will result in messianic blessing. The light (a metaphor for the Messiah, cf. Is 9:2) will come as will their recovery (literally, “healing” referring to spiritual and physical restoration) (v. 8). The nation will experience righteousness and the glory of the LORD. Most importantly, the LORD will answer their prayers and guide them (vv. 9, 11). At that time, the nation will rebuild the ancient ruins of Israel (v. 12). Although it is certain that genuine repentance will always bring God’s blessing, this passage is speaking of God’s blessings in the end, in the messianic age.
58:13-14. The second way Israel practiced hypocrisy was in Sabbath observance. The Sabbath was not acceptable as long as the people observed it in a self-serving way and maintained oppressive labor practices. God called Israel to turn from hypocritical Sabbath practices to those that honor the Sabbath as a holy day resulting in enjoyment of God. Rather than legalistic Sabbath observance, true faith would bring God’s messianic blessing—then Israel would truly honor the Sabbath. At that time God would provide for the nation. The phrase ride on the heights of the earth (v. 14) is an allusion to Dt 32:13 and refers to the provision of food. God will also feed them with the heritage of Jacob indicates that the land promised to Jacob will provide all the food the nation will need.
59:1-8. Besides hypocritical fasting and Sabbath observance, Israel is indicted for general hypocrisy. This section identifies Israel’s true problem: disobedience. God is strong enough to deliver them, but the disobedience of the nation has alienated the people from God (vv. 1-2). Isaiah 59:3-7 describes the unjust practices of this “religious” people, encompassing both word and deed, as represented by the mention of the people’s hands and tongue[s] (v. 3). The people’s lack of concern for justice results in false witness as is commensurate for those who refuse to trust God. Self-interested logic permeates society as the people in power do whatever they must in order to ensure their own comfort and security. Their actions are rarely benevolent, nor do they have the capacity to be (vv. 5-6). Their activities result in injustice and a lack of peace. They desire only to preserve themselves through oppressive, selfish acts that disregard the justice of God (vv. 7-8).
The point of this section (58:1–59:8) has been to show the hypocritical sinfulness of Israel. It proves that they are too sinful to initiate their own redemption.
(2) Israel Confesses Its Own Sinfulness (59:9-15a)
59:9-11. The shift from the third person (“they”; 59:1-8) to the second person (“us”; 59:9-15) indicates that Israel is now speaking. The nation recognizes their sinful behavior (described in vv. 1-8) that has kept them from experiencing God’s light of salvation (v. 9). Instead, the people fumble about aimlessly in the dark (v. 10) and make the inarticulate sounds of bears and doves (v. 11). The bear imagery is not used elsewhere in Scripture, but the image of the cooing, or mourning, dove is found in biblical laments (cf. Is 38:14; Ezk 7:16; Nah 2:7).
59:12-15a. Israel’s people confess their sin and rebellion against God. Since this confession initiates eschatological redemption, these words will be offered by Israel at the end of days. The nation will confess that they have committed transgressions (meaning “rebellion” or “violation of rights”; cf. Gn 31:36; 50:17; 1Sm 24:11; 25:28), indicating they have rebelled against God and violated His right to their submissive behavior. They also recognized their sins, a word that means “to miss the mark” (Jdg 20:16) of God’s righteous standard. They also know their iniquities, a word that refers to being twisted or bent and indicates that they had behaved perversely or crookedly. Israel’s sins caused societal virtues such as justice, righteousness, truth, and uprightness to be absent (v. 14). As a result, if even one person repents and turns aside from evil, that person places himself in danger from the rest of corrupt society (v. 15a).
(3) God Initiates Israel’s Redemption (59:15b-21)
59:15b-19. The corrupt situation will not stand because the Lord’s displeasure will ultimately reverse it (vv. 15b-16). God was displeased that Israel’s sin required a mediator but there was no one capable. Therefore God determined to bring Israel’s salvation by His own strength (His own arm) (v. 16). God alone can initiate redemption for His people. The description of the body armor, helmet, and garments represents the girding up of God for battle against all that plagues Israel (v. 17). God will repay … His adversaries and punish His enemies (v. 18). This punishment extends beyond the sin of Israel as the mention of coastlands suggests. As a result of the Lord’s coming, even the Gentile nations, from the west and east, will fear the name of the Lord (v. 19). God will come with an unstoppable ferocity that cannot be stopped.
59:20-21. God declares that He will be the Redeemer who will come to Zion. Therefore, those who turn from transgression in Jacob will experience God’s salvation (v. 20). Paul the apostle quotes this verse in Rm 11:26, depicting the day when Israel turns to the Lord Jesus for deliverance prior to the second coming of Christ. When the entire nation repents, then all Israel will be saved (see comments on Zch 12:10; Mt 23:37-39; and Rm 11:26-27). At that time, God will enact the new covenant (cf. Jr 31:31-34) with Israel that will guarantee God’s presence with the nation throughout her generations (Is 59:21). The permanence of the Spirit and the Word among the people speaks to the promise of ongoing faithfulness and of the removal of sin.
(4) God Will Redeem Israel for His Glory (60:1-22)
When Israel recognizes her own sinfulness, the nation will turn to the Lord in repentance (59:9-15a). At that time, the Lord will initiate Israel’s final redemption (59:15b-21). What follows is the glory that God will share with Israel when He brings about Israel’s redemption.
60:1-3. When God redeems Israel, He will bring His light (a metaphor for Messiah, cf. 9:2) to the nation in darkness. Zion will be so illumined that the nations will come to your light (v. 3). Not only will Israel know the Lord in the messianic kingdom, but so will the Gentile nations.
60:4-14. When God redeems Israel, He will bring the Gentile nations to His people. Zion will find itself in a privileged position as the powers of the world will bring Israel’s children back to Zion along with the wealth of the nations (60:4-7). The Lord will use the wealth that the nations bring to establish God’s millennial temple (vv. 6-7, 13; see comments under “A New Temple” introducing the comments on Ezk 40–43). Surrounding nations will bring precious gifts to Zion, including gold and frankincense (v. 6; this is not likely a prediction of the visit of the magi in Mt 2:1-12) because God has glorified His people (v. 9). Jerusalem will be a restored city as the nations will work to restore it and bring their wealth to it (vv. 10-11). This is not Israel’s doing but a result of the Lord having had compassion on His people. Those nations that opposed Zion will have been judged and destroyed—they will perish and be utterly ruined (vv. 11-12; see comments on the judgment of the nations, Mt 25:31-46). God promises Israel the ultimate reversal. The sons of those who afflicted you will come bowing to you and recognize that it was the Lord who accomplished this. They will call Jerusalem the city of the LORD (v. 14).
60:15-22. When God redeems Israel, He will bring millennial blessings to the nation. The once forsaken and hated people and land of Israel will be a perpetual joy from generation to generation (v. 15). The hope of Zion does not come through the prerogative of the nations, but through the restoring presence of the Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob (v. 16). God will grant peace and prosperity to His people instead of warfare and suffering (vv. 17-20). He will give His people wealth (60:17), peace (60:18), God’s light (vv. 19-20), and righteousness, even as He enlarges the nation (v. 21). The permanence of this peace and prosperity is secured through the continued righteousness of the people who are depicted as the special branch of God’s hands planted to reveal God’s splendor (vv. 20-21).
b. God’s Messiah Delivers Israel (61:1–63:6)
The final unit of Isaiah, which is about God’s deliverance in the end (chaps. 58–66), began by demonstrating that God’s initiative will produce the end-of-days deliverance He will provide (58:1–60:22). Not only will He initiate but He will accomplish His purposes for Israel through His messianic King (61:1–63:6).
(1) The Messiah’s Ministry to Israel (61:1-11)
61:1-3. As a whole, Is 61 describes the coming deliverance of God’s people and the subsequent worship of God amongst the nations. This passage is the address of God’s messianic Servant (42:1-9; 49:1-13; 50:4-11; 52:13–53:12) who proclaims His own role in God’s redemption of Israel. Jesus began His ministry by quoting this passage to identify Himself as the Servant Messiah (cf. Lk 4:18-21, identifying Jesus of Nazareth as the passage’s referent). This passage will be fulfilled by Jesus in His two advents. This is evident in that Jesus’ quotations of these verses do not mention the day of vengeance (v. 2; Lk 4:18-21). Jesus inaugurated this messianic ministry but it will not be fulfilled in its entirety until His return. The passage addresses the release of Israel from captivity, not just from Babylon but from around the world (vv. 1-2). This will be possible because the Spirit of the Lord will anoint the Servant to make it happen. The word anointed is the same as the Hebrew word for “Messiah” and refers to the consecration of someone or something to a specialized task. Note that the triune God is hinted at in this verse (the Spirit, The Lord GOD, and the Servant [Me]). The Messianic Servant will comfort all the mourners of Zion (v. 3) by His restoration of Israel.
61:4-11. The Servant Messiah’s ministry will also include the rebuilding of the ancient ruins of Israel, the elevation of Israel above the nations, and the renewal of Israel to her proper place as a nation of priests (cf. Ex 19:5) mediating the knowledge of God to the nations (Is 61:6; see Zch 8:23 and the comments there). Israel will receive a double portion of inheritance (v. 7) as the first born of the Lord (cf. Ex 4:22; Dt 21:17). This is fair and just since Israel has also received “double for all her sins” (Is 40:2). God will make an everlasting covenant (v. 8) with Israel, a reference to the new covenant (Jr 31:31-34). The reason for this turn of events rests in God’s faithfulness to His covenant, which will bring blessing to God’s people across their generations (vv. 8-9). The Lord’s Servant will give praise to God for His luxurious garments of salvation and His robe of righteousness (v. 10). Endowed with these, the Servant will accomplish God’s purposes for Israel and the world. Therefore, God will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations (v. 11).
(2) The Messiah’s Restoration of Israel (62:1-12)
62:1-9. The deliverance of Israel by the Messiah sent by God continues. Not only will the Messiah minister to Israel (61:1-11) but He will also provide full restoration of Israel (62:1-12), emphasizing God’s commitment to the vindication of Jerusalem. When Messiah Jesus returns to Israel, He will transform Jerusalem. He will change her from darkness to light so that her salvation will be like a torch that is burning (v. 1). From sin and humiliation, the Messiah will change Jerusalem to embody righteousness and glory (vv. 2-3). Other alterations will include changed names, from Forsaken and Desolate to My delight is in her and Married (v. 4). The Lord’s delight in Jerusalem will be comparable to the love of a bridegroom for his bride (v. 5). Israel’s depiction as the wife of the Lord does not imply that Israel and the Church (the Bride of Christ) are one and the same. This is merely a metaphor that depicts the covenantal relationship between God and Israel just as the metaphor applies to Christ and the Church. That is not to say that God is a bigamist, married to both Israel and the Church, just that the metaphor is used distinctively of both Israel and the Church. Ultimately, God will make all people, with all their distinct ethnicities, part of His family (note that God promises that one day even Egypt will be called His people, Is 19:25). At that time, God will not dissolve His special relationship with Israel, but will always keep Israel as a distinct and beloved people, in whom He delights (62:4-5). Though God’s commitment to Jerusalem is sure, God’s people must continue to pray for Him to fulfill these promises for Israel and make Jerusalem the praise in the earth (vv. 6-7). God’s people today would do well to become the watchmen on the walls of Jerusalem, praying for the Lord to bring Israel to know their Messiah and fulfill all these good promises. God’s promise to care for Jerusalem will be accomplished by God’s might (His right hand and by His strong arm). He will provide for Israel and not give their produce to foreigners again (vv. 8-9).
62:10-12. The last section of this Song of Messiah’s transformation of Israel is a call to respond. The faithful of the nations should first remove the obstacles to Israel’s restoration (v. 10). This is a figurative depiction of the nations making it possible for Israel to return to their God. Some of these obstacles include the sad history of Christian anti-Semitism or the common Christian denial of Israel’s distinctive place in the plan of God. Second, the faithful should proclaim the message of the Lord’s salvation to Israel (v. 11). The reward noted could refer to a reward for Jerusalem’s faithfulness, but more likely refers to the dispersed of Israel who will accompany the Lord back to Jerusalem—they are the Lord’s reward. Third, the faithful are to remind Israel of their future destiny as The holy people, the redeemed of the LORD, and a city not forsaken (v. 12).
(3) The Messiah’s Judgment of Edom (63:1-6)
63:1-6. The Messiah will deliver Israel, not only by restoration of the nation but by judgment of the enemies of Israel. The backdrop is the future tribulation, when Israel will flee to the wilderness to escape the attack of the future world ruler, also known as the Antichrist (see Ezk 20:34-36; Rv 12:6). Likely, the place in the wilderness is in Edom (modern Jordan) in the city of Bozrah (Petra; see Is 34:5-17 for evidence to support this). The nations will pursue Israel there leading to a bloody war (previously depicted in 34:1-7). God is once again depicted as a conquering hero covered in the blood of those He has trampled in the winepress of His wrath (63:1-3). Not only did Isaiah previously draw this picture in Is 34, but the book of Revelation draws it as well (cf. Rv 14:19-20; 19:13-15). These passages identify Jesus the Messiah as the One coming in judgment of the enemies of Israel. From the above passages, it appears that Jesus returns to Bozrah at the end of the tribulation to deliver Israel. Having defeated the nations that attacked Israel in the wilderness, the Messiah will then lead them to Jerusalem (Mc 2:12-13), where His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, and deliver besieged Jerusalem (Zch 14:3-4). God has acted alone because no one else was willing to take up the cause of beleaguered Israel (Is 63:4-5). The destruction of the nations will come through the singular activity of the Son of God (vv. 5-6; cf. Ps 110:5-7).
c. God’s Covenant Faithfulness Delivers Israel (63:7–66:24)
The final unit of Isaiah that describes God’s deliverance in the end (58-66) begins by demonstrating that Israel’s deliverance at the end of days would come as a result of God’s initiative, not Israel’s (58:1–60:22). The emphasis on the next part was on the way God would bring Israel deliverance in the end, specifically through His messianic King (61:1-63:6). Now in the third and last section, the prophetic message emphasizes the basis of God’s final deliverance: God’s covenant faithfulness.
(1) God’s Faithfulness Remembered (63:7-14)
63:7-14. This section remembers the Lord’s deeds on behalf of Israel in the past, in Egypt and the wilderness wanderings (vv. 7-8). It recalls God’s participation with them in their suffering while they were slaves in Egypt. At that time, the angel of His presence saved them (v. 9; also see Ex 23:20-26 and comments there), likely a preincarnate appearance of the Messiah. In response, Israel rebelled in the wilderness (cf. Nm 20:10), grieving God’s Spirit deeply (Ps 106:32-33) and causing Him to turn them over to their foes (v. 10; cf. Ps 106:40-41). The rebellion of Israel placed the nation in opposition to God. Yet the nation remembered the care and deliverance of God in the past, from the parting of the Red Sea (vv. 11-12) to the provision in the wilderness (v. 13) and ultimately to giving them rest in the promised land (v. 14). The recital of God’s acts on behalf of the nation ends with the declaration that God has made a glorious name (v. 14).
(2) God’s Forgiveness Requested (63:15–64:12)
63:15-19. In light of God’s past faithfulness, the prophet pleads for God to take note of His people and act on their behalf again (v. 15) because the Lord was their Father and Redeemer. He questions God’s purpose for making His people stubborn and disobedient (v. 17; cf. 6:9-10). God is indeed sovereign over hearts, and just as Pharaoh was both hardhearted toward God and also hardened by God, so Israel was as well (see comments on Ex 7:3). Yet God is never held culpable for Israel’s rebellion, even though He ordained and governed it—one of the most profound mysteries in all of Scripture. Israel’s sin would make their control over God’s sanctuary only short-lived (v. 18). While Israel has been God’s possession, God occasionally treated Israel as if it were simply another Gentile nation because of its sin (v. 19). This final statement appears to continue the tone of the questioning in v. 17 as it seems that God has abandoned His people to ruin while the nations prosper.
64:1-12. The prophet calls God to come down as He did in the past (vv. 1-4). Just as God revealed Himself on Mount Sinai (v. 3; Ex 19:16-18) and delivered Israel and made His name known in the days of Deborah (Jdg 4:15) and Gideon (Jdg 7:20-21), Isaiah pleads for God to act again. God always has acted on behalf of those who wait for the Lord and obey Him with a joyful heart, whereas those who sin against the Lord have no reason to believe that God will save them (vv. 4-5). Yet the prophet acknowledges that God hides His face from those who refuse to walk in His way or call on His name (v. 6). The fundamental dynamic expressed here reflects the need for God’s people to trust in Him rather than attempt to secure their own future when doing so leads them to ignore God’s laws.
Despite their shortcomings and rebellion, God is called upon to show mercy upon those whom He has created by forgetting (i.e., forgiving) their sins (vv. 8-9). The plea is based on God’s covenant faithfulness, because Israel is His people. When the Babylonians conquer, they will bring desolation and destruction on Israel, Jerusalem, and the temple (the holy and beautiful house; vv. 10-11). This is written in a “prophetic perfect,” describing a future event that is so certain it is described by the prophet as a completed action. The chapter ends on a note of confusion as God is asked whether or not He will act. Have the sins of the people alienated them from God to the point of destruction? Will God not act on behalf of that which He has formed (vv. 8, 12)?
(3) God’s Deliverance Described (65:1-25)
65:1-7. God responds to the prophet’s plea by explaining that He would judge Israel’s idolaters. The passage begins with a declaration that God always was available to the nation of Israel (v. 1). He has made Himself known to them even though the nation has rejected Him through their idolatry, which included their obstinacy, false worship, unclean practices, and hubris (vv. 2-5). Their unfaithful deeds cannot go unpunished, but must be repaid (vv. 6-7).
65:8-10. Despite the coming judgment of the Lord, God will not destroy His people completely—a remnant will be saved. God always works this way, preserving Israel for the remnant in the past (1Kg 19:18) and in the present Church (Rm 11:1-6; see the comments there). Instead, God, who preserved the faithful remnant in Isaiah’s day (My servants) also promises not to destroy all of them (the as-yet unbelieving majority; vv. 8-9). Similarly, the apostle Paul wrote that God had preserved a remnant in his day, similar to Isaiah’s, but that eventually “all Israel will be saved” (see the comments on Rm 11:1-6, 25-28). God’s promise of preservation extends to the land of Israel. Sharon (v. 10) refers to a plain along the Mediterranean coast between Joppa in the north and Carmel in the south, while the valley of Achor, which may be translated “Valley of Trouble,” was the site of Achan’s execution (Jos 7) near Jericho in the east. The locations of Sharon and the valley of Achor in the west and the east of the nation respectively suggest that the whole nation is in view. The contrast between Sharon, which was a fertile area, and the valley of Achor, which was barren, may also suggest that regardless of the state of the land previously, God will transform it so that life can thrive there.
65:11-16. God assures that He will both judge and deliver Israel. Those who have rejected the Lord (vv. 11-12) form a sharp contrast to “My people who seek Me” and dwell in Sharon and the valley of Achor in v. 10. Those who neglect the Lord and worship other gods will be destroyed. The reason for their destruction is directly related to their disobedience to the Lord. They have not responded to God’s call or obeyed His word but have chosen to live according to their own wisdom and to displease God. This judgment will take place at the end of days. Jeremiah calls this “the time of Jacob’s distress” (Jr 30:7), and Ezekiel describes it as the time when God will enter into judgment with Israel and make the nation pass “under the rod” (Ezk 20:33-38). Zechariah depicts this time as the time of purging for Israel, when the remnant of Israel is refined and will call on the name of the Lord (Zch 13:8-9).
In contrast to those who will be judged, the Lord proclaims that His servants, or those loyal to Him, will have all that they need to sustain themselves (v. 13). They will worship the Lord and He will give them a special name (vv. 14-15). In contrast, those who disobey the Lord will go without sustenance. Instead of worship, those who reject God will be in anguish. Their situation will be so desperate that they will be the perfect picture of what it means to be cursed (v. 15). In the messianic kingdom, the remnant will be redeemed. At that time, every good thing in the land will be recognized as God’s work. No other god will be addressed or invoked, and God will forgive the violations of the past (v. 16).
(4) God’s Glory Descends (65:17–66:24)
The final section of the book depicts the end of days when God recreates the world as “new heavens and a new earth” (65:17). These descriptions frequently fuse together the earthly millennium, the literal thousand-year reign of Christ on the earth following His second coming (see the comments on Rv 20:1-6), and the eternal state (“a new heaven and a new earth”; see the comments on Rv 21:1–22:9). Also, the depictions of the descent of God’s glory combine the descent of renewal for the redeemed versus the descent of judgment for the wicked.
65:17-25. At the outset, God’s glory descends with a new creation for His people, a reference to what He does at the conclusion of the millennial kingdom and the start of the eternal state. God announces that there will be a final judgment that will destroy all that was and remake the heavens and the earth into a place of peace, harmony, and order. Jerusalem will be remade so that it becomes God’s delight (vv. 19-20). Although it is possible for people to die in the messianic age (the millennial kingdom), people will live much longer and premature death will be banished (v. 20). This is possible because at the return of Jesus the Messiah, when He judges the nations, compared to separating sheep and goats, the redeemed nations will enter the kingdom without yet having been glorified (Mt 25:34). In the same way, when Israel calls for the Lord Jesus to save them at the end of the future tribulation, they will be redeemed and enter the kingdom without glorified or resurrected bodies (cf. Zch 12:10; Rm 11:25-27). Thus, these peoples will all be able to reproduce and, as Is 65:20 indicates, even die. Even so, they will live much longer in kingdom conditions.
At that time, the land will be secure from enemies, free from fears of having another inhabit or bearing children for calamity (vv. 21-23). The people will experience the closeness of God who will answer and will hear (v. 24), and all creation will exhibit an unprecedented peace, free from evil or harm (v. 25). Even the animal kingdom will change, removing the curse on it, so that predators will become herbivores. One aspect of the animal world will remain—serpents will still eat dust. This will be a perpetual reminder of the curse on the serpent (Gn 3:14), fulfilling the promise that the serpent would be “more cursed” than the rest of the animal kingdom. The picture of the new creation is a powerful statement of the restoration of God’s order. In the first creation, God made an idyllic environment in which the entire world worked together to achieve harmony in accordance with God’s wisdom and will. The second creation represents a return to this state that will allow all God’s people to glorify Him forever.
66:1-6. God’s glory will also descend with judgment for the wicked. This section begins with two rhetorical questions designed to emphasize God’s position above humanity. The seeming critique of temple-building (i.e., a house you could build for Me) should not be taken as a prohibition against building a holy temple. Instead, God is calling humanity to remember that His favor cannot be obtained through the construction of a house for the Lord. God is the maker of the heavens and the earth, so a temple made with human hands will not impress Him. Rather, God will show His favor to the one who recognizes God’s sovereignty over the heavens and the earth and is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at God’s word (v. 2). Using slightly different Hebrew words, Isaiah has previously made this point (57:15). Religious ritual that is not matched by respect for life and for the law of God will bring about God’s punishment (vv. 3-4). In fact, the offerings of those who rebel against God will make Him view them as if they were unacceptable and unclean (v. 3). Even a lamb sacrifice will be like the one who breaks a dog’s neck. Thus, a clean sacrifice (lamb) will be viewed as unclean (dog). Even the ritual acts that were in alignment with God’s requirements were tainted and viewed as an affront by God because of the people’s disobedience.
It is not clear when the judgment described here will take place. It likely is describing the final judgment before the “great white throne” (Rv 20:11). We conclude this because Scripture indicates that redeemed but unglorified people will enter the millennium. They will be able to reproduce and, therefore, their offspring will also need to trust in Jesus the Messiah. Those who do not become genuine followers of Messiah Jesus will be those who will not offer acceptable sacrifices. They will face the white throne judgment after the millennial kingdom, as described in Rv 20:11-15.
The critique against dichotomous practice is reaffirmed (Is 66:5) with the condemnation of exclusionary practices performed while proclaiming allegiance to the Lord. The declaration of those who exclude the faithful (v. 5b) refers to some in the community who were neglecting the needs of others. Instead of helping, they simply continued to worship the Lord, telling those in need to wait for God’s glorious return in order to find their joy. God will not stand by, however, and allow displeasing practices to infect His temple. His glory will descend and He will judge those who oppose Him even though they hide in His temple (v. 6).
66:7-13. God’s glory will descend with a rebirth for Zion. The metaphor used in v. 7 in which a birth occurs with no pain symbolizes the coming restoration of Jerusalem that will require no effort by the people (v. 8). Interestingly, the Targum (ancient rabbinic paraphrase) renders the final line of this verse as “her king will be revealed,” which suggests a messianic reading referring to what happens immediately following the second coming of Christ. The series of rhetorical questions in vv. 8-9 underscore the uniqueness of the events that will occur, so that it is clear that only God could bring them (v. 8) and that God is certain to restore Zion (v. 9). Moreover, those who love Jerusalem are called to rejoice with the city (v. 10a). Jerusalem’s restoration and prosperity will benefit those who have loved the city and mourned her destruction (vv. 10b-12). God’s consolation of Jerusalem will be like that of a mother providing comfort for a child (vv. 12b-13). This metaphor emphasizes God’s great compassion and connection to His people.
66:14-18. God’s glory descends with wrath for the wicked, at the second coming of Jesus the Messiah (see Rv 19:11-21 and the comments there). In contrast to God’s joy giving acts of consolation, His anger and rebuke will descend with flames of fire … to execute judgment (vv. 15-16). The reasons for God’s wrath were the idolatry of the wicked, special purification rituals, eating forbidden meat and detestable things (v. 17). The disobedient will see God’s glory descend in judgment as God gathers all nations to Jerusalem (v. 18).
66:19-23. God’s glory will also descend with compassion for the nations. God proclaims that He will send a sign or act mightily against the nations (cf. Ps 78:43; Jr 32:20) but will also show compassion to them. The sign will evidently devastate but not destroy the nations as the reference to survivors (v. 19) suggests. Some of the survivors will be sent to the nations to proclaim the glory of God and to bring back Israelites from among the nations to serve the Lord as priests and Levites in the millennial temple (vv. 20-21; see the discussion under “A New Temple” that introduces the comments on Ezk 40–43). It is sometimes argued that believing Gentiles, along with believing Jews, comprise the eschatological “new Israel” based on vv. 19-21. It is maintained that Gentiles (vv. 19-20) are drafted by God to be priests and Levites (v. 21), indicating that no ethnic distinctions persist in the kingdom.
Some theologians view this as the Church Age. Such a view cancels out the prominent place of Israel in the future kingdom. Notice that when God says, I will also take some of them for priests and for Levites (v. 21), the closest antecedent for them is not the Gentiles of vv. 19-20a, but the sons of Israel in v. 20b. It is an unwarranted leap to say that Gentiles become Jews or part of the “new Israel” (priests and Levites), and that this eliminates ethnic distinctions in some sort of an amalgamated “new Israel.”
In the end, the nations will be instruments used to accomplish the restoration God will oversee for Israel and the world. This restoration will be permanent (vv. 22-23). As the new heavens and the new earth will last forever, so the people and name of Israel will endure. More importantly, the whole world will worship God forever—all mankind will come to bow down before Me (v. 23).
66:24. Finally, God’s glory will descend with eternal judgment for the rebellious. The oracles of the second half of Isaiah each conclude with a warning of judgment (48:22; 57:21; 66:24). In the previous two major sections of Isaiah (chaps. 40–48, deliverance from Babylon; chaps. 49–57, deliverance from sin), a virtually identical phrase (“there is no peace … for the wicked”) concluded each (48:22; 57:21).
Here an even stronger statement, warning about eternal judgment for the rebellious, functions as a literary marker closing both this section (on deliverance in the end, chaps. 58–66) and the entire book. The repulsive sight of those whom the Lord has defeated will be an ever-present reminder to all humanity that the Lord is not to be mocked or opposed. This reference to the lake of fire, where the fire will not be quenched and the unredeemed wicked will suffer eternally, is not merely an OT concept. In fact, Jesus the Messiah repeated this phrase from Isaiah (their worm will not die and their fire will not be quenched) as a warning of eternal judgment (cf. Mk 9:43-48; Jesus also taught elsewhere about eternal suffering separated from God; cf. Mt 13:41-43; 25:31-46; Lk 16:24; Rv 20:15).
The book of Isaiah records the message of the Holy One of Israel to Israel and Judah. It calls the people to be faithful to the Lord whose arm controls the course of world events. It reveals that the exile of Israel and Judah is not a permanent removal from the promised land, but a temporary situation from which God will deliver those who trust in the Lord. The contrast between those who trust the Lord and those who do not underscores the prophet’s basic message: trusting the Lord frees humanity from oppressive, selfish, destructive behavior and offers resources to patiently wait for the coming righteousness and justice of God. It also frees humanity from the judgment of God. The Lord will showcase His glory through Israel, the Messiah-King He will send, and the final judgment. As Israel fulfills its destiny as the witness to God’s way, the nations will turn and glorify God.
Finally, all creation will be cleansed, sin will be taken away, and God’s order will be restored as all that God has created finally recognizes that He is the Holy One of Israel.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
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