Isaiah 49:1-18

Listen [Qal Impv MP shama] coastlands to me, and hearken [Hiph Impv MP shaqab + waw conj], O peoples from distant places: YHWH from the womb called me [Qal Perf 3MS qara + 1CS suff]. From the bowels of my mother he has mentioned [Hiph Perf 3MS zakar] my name. 2 And he has made [Qal Pret 3MS sum + waw cons] my mouth as a sharp sword, in the shadow of his hand he has hidden me [Hiph Perf 3MS chaba + 1CS suff]. And he has made me [Qal Pret 3MS sum + waw cons + 1CS suff] unto an arrow polished, in his quiver he has hidden me [Hiph Perf 3MS satar + 1CS suff]. And he said [Qal Pret 3MS amar + waw cons] to me, My servant you are^ Israel, which by you I will be glorified [Hithpael Perf 1CS paar]. 4But I said [Qal Perf 1CS amar], In vain I have grown weary [Qal Perf 1CS yaga]; toward emptiness [tohu]1 and vanity [hebel]2 my strength I have exhausted [Piel Perf 1CS kalah]. Surely my justice is with YHWH, and my reward/recompense/wages with my God. And now, says [Qal Perf 3MS amar] YHWH, the forming-me-one [Qal Part MS yatsar + 1CS suff] from the womb to be servant to him, to bring back [Hiph Inf Cons shub + L prep] Jacob to me, though Israel is not gathered [Niphal Impf 3MS asaph]yet I shall be glorious [Niphal Impf 1CS cabed] in the eyes of YHWH, and my God is [Qal Perf 3MS hayah] my strength6he says [Qal Pret 3MS amar + waw cons], It is too (?) insignificant [Niphal Perf 3MS qalal] for you to be [Qal Inf Const hayah + min prefix + 1CS suffix] to me a servant to raise up [Hiphil Inf Cons qum + L prep] the tribes of Jacob, and the preserved [Qal Pass Part MS natsar] of Israel to bring them back [Hiph Inf Cons shub + L prep], but I am giving you [Qal Perf 1CS natan + 2MS suff] as a light to the nations, to be [Qal Inf Cons hayah + L prep] my salvation up to the end of the earth.
7 5 3

Therefore, says [Qal Perf 3MS amar] YHWH, the Redeemer [Qal Part MS gaal] of Israel, his Holy One, to one despised by men, to him whom the nation abhors [Piel Part MS taab], to a servant of ruling-ones [Qal Part MP mashal], Kings shall see [Qal Impf 3MP raah] and they shall arise [Qal Perf 3MP qum + waw cons], princes, and they shall prostrate themselves [Hishtaphel Impf 3MP shakah], because of YHWH, who is faithful [Niphal Perf 3MS aman], the Holy One of Israel, and he has chosen you [Qal Impf 3MS bachar + 2MS suff].
8

Thus says [Qal Perf 3MS amar] YHWH, In a time of favor I have heard you [Qal Perf 1CS anah + 2MS suff], and in a day of salvation I have helped you [Qal Perf 1CS azar + 2MS suff], and I will preserve you [Qal Impf 1CS natsar + 2MS suff], and I will give you [Qal Impf 1CS natan + 2MS suff] for a covenant of the people, to establish [Hiph Inf Cons qum + L prep] the land, to apportion [Hiph Inf Cons nachal + L prep] the horror-causing [Polel Part FP shamam] inheritance. 9saying [Qal Inf Cons amar + L prep] to the prisoners, Go forth [Qal Impv MP natsa], to those who are in darkness, Show [Hiph Impv MP galah]! On the ways they shall feed [Qal Impf 3MP raah], and in all bare heights shall be their pasture. 10They shall not hunger [Qal Impf 3MP raab], and they shall not thirst [Qal Impf 3MP tsama], and neither the heat nor the sun shall smite them [Hiph Impf 3MS nakah + 3MP suff], for the one comforting them [Piel
1 2

Cf. Gen. 1:2. Cf. the vanity of Ecclesiastes.

Part MP nacham + 3MP suff] shall lead them [Piel Impf 3MP nahag + 3MP suff]. And on the springs of water he shall guide them [Piel Impf 3MP nahal + 3MP suff]. 11And I will make [Qal Perf 1CS sim + waw cons] all my mountains as a road, and my highways shall be exalted [Qal Impf 3MP rum]. 12Behold these from far, they shall come [Qal Impf 3MP bo]. And behold these from the north and west, and these from the land of Sinim. 13Cry aloud [Qal Impv MP ranan], O heavens, and be joyful [Qal Impv FS gil], O earth! Break forth [Qal Impv MP patsach], O mountains, in song. For YHWH has comforted [Piel Perf 3MS nacham] his people, and on his afflicted he has had mercy [Piel Perf MS racham].
14

And Zion has spoken [Qal Pret 3FS amar + waw cons], YHWH has forsaken me [Qal Perf 3MS azab + 1CS suff], and my Lord has forgotten me [Qal Perf 3MS shakach + 1CS suff].

15

Can a mother forget [Qal Impf 3FS shakach] her nursing child, to keep her from having compassion [Piel Inf Cons racham + min prep] on the son of her womb? Even these may forget [Qal Impf 3FP shakach], but I [anoki] will not forget you [Qal Impf 1CS shakach + 2FS suff]. 16 Behold, on the palms of my hands I have graven you [Qal Perf 1CS chaqaq + 2FS suff], your walls are before me continually. 17Your sons make haste [Qal Perf 3MP mahar]; your destroyers [Piel Part MP charas + 2FS suff] and your lay-wasters [Hiph Part MP charab + 2FS suff], from you they go out [Qal Perf 3MP yatsa]. 18Lift up [Qal Impv FS nasa] around your eyes and see [Qal Impv FS raah]: all these who are gathered [Niphal Perf 3MP qabats], they come [Qal Perf 3MP bo] to you. As I live, saith [Qal Pass Part MP naam] YHWH, for all these like an ornament, you shall clothe [Qal Impf 3FS labash], and you shall bind them [Piel Impf 3FS qashar + 3MP suff] as a bride does.

Comment: V. 1-3: The Calling of the Servant The Servant in Isaiah 49 opens this passage in v. 1a by addressing the coastlands and you peoples from afar, since YHWH has made him as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth (49:6). Yet, the mission of this servant is primarily to bring Jacob back to [YHWH]; and that Israel might be gathered to him (49:5). This passage, then, echoes Pauls words in Eph. 2:17: And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. In v. 1b-3 we see the nature of the calling of this Servant:
1a 2

YHWH called me from the womb, from the body of my mother he named my name. He made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me a polished arrow; in his quiver he hid me away. 3And he said to me, You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified.

First, there is a peculiar emphasis on the prenatal calling of the Servant. Neither Moses, nor Samuel, nor David, nor even Isaiah was called from the womb to their service to YHWH.3 This emphasis on the prenatal calling of the Servant is repeated in v. 5: And now YHWH says, he who formed me from the womb to be his servant The only other mention of womb comes in v. 15, when YHWH rhetorically asks, Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb? What kind of Servant is this, whom God has called to service from the womb? At the very least, we know that he will be fully human, born from the womb and body of his mother. Second, the Servant is not only called to service, but he is equipped for service to YHWH. He is given a mouth like a sharp sword hidden in the hand of YHWH, and is made to be a polished arrow hidden in YHWHs quiver. These are intriguing descriptions. The Servant is said to be two different deadly weaponsa sharp sword and a polished arrowbut in both cases, those weapons are hidden away in YHWHs arsenal (his hand and his quiver). Calvin observes that the sword is used for close-up fighting, while the arrow can strike people from afar.4 Why would YHWH fully equip his Servant for service, yet nevertheless hide away every aspect of his equipping? What kind of mission is this Servant sent for? Third, YHWH is fully invested in the mission of his Servant: And he said to me, You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified. The return YHWH expects on his investment in this Servant is his own glory, which is a risky venture. YHWH expects to get glory from Israel?
3

David states that he has had a relationship with God from the womb in Psalm 22; however, his calling as the anointed King does not happen until 1 Samuel 16, when he is a young man. Even John the Baptist, who is filled with the Holy Spirit even from Elizabeths womb (Luke 1:15) is not directly calledthe angel speaks to Elizabeth. This Servant is unique indeed. 4 Calvin, Commentary on Isaiah, vol. 4 <http://www.ccel.org/ccel/calvin/calcom16.ii.i.html>.

Israel has systematically rebelled against YHWH, and now YHWH expects to get glory from them? What will be different about Israel this time around? Calvin wisely writes this: It is of great importance to connect this verse with the preceding, because this shews that the Prophet now speaks not only of a single man, but of the whole nation; which has not been duly considered by commentators. This passage must not be limited to the person of Christ, and ought not to be referred to Israel alone; but on the present occasion we should attend to the customary language of Scripture. When the whole body of the Church is spoken of, Christ is brought forward conspicuously so as to include all the children of God. We hear what Paul says: The promises were given to Abraham and to his seed. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many, but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ. (Galatians 3:16.) He does not include the whole multitude of children who were descended from Abraham himself according to the flesh, seeing that all were not partakers of the blessing. Ishmael was rejected, Esau was a reprobate, and many others were cut off. When the people were rescued from Babylon, but a small renmant came out; for the greater part rejected Gods astonishing kindness. Where then was the seed? In Christ, who is the Head, and contains in himself the rest of the members; for in him is joined and bound by an indisoluble bond all the seed. In like manner, under the name Israel, by which he means Christ, Isaiah includes the whole body of the people, as members under the Head. Nor ought this to be thought strange; for Paul also, when he speaks of the union, employs the metaphor of the human body, and then adds: So also is Christ. (1 Corinthians 12:12.) In that passage the name of Christ is given to Israel, that is, to the whole body of believers, who are joined to Christ, as members to the Head. In a word, the Lord honors by this name the Church, which is the spouse of Christ, just as the wife is honored by bearing the name and title of her husband. He calls Israel his servant, that is, he calls the Church his handmaid, because she is the pillar and foundation of truth, (1 Timothy 3:15;) for he hath committed his word to the care of the Church, that by her ministrations it may be published throughout the whole world.5 Christ is the Head of Israel, as he is the Head of the Church; therefore, you cannot separate Christ from Israel any more than you can separate Christ from his Church. The one is always connected to the other. Put another way, Christ is True Israel, who has accomplished all that Israel failed to do. Wherever Israel did not glorify God, Christ did. Wherever Israel failed, Christ succeeded.

Calvin, Commentary on Isaiah, vol. 4 <http://www.ccel.org/ccel/calvin/calcom16.ii.i.html>.

Oswalt makes this point clearly: First, it is important to note that the term Israel is used not so much as a name as it is a parallel term to servant. It is as though the Lord had said, You are my Israel, in whom I will be glorified. Thus it is the function, not the identity, of Israel that is emphasized. This Servant is going to function as Israel. What was Israels task, as indicated throughout the entire book, from ch. 2 onward? To be the means whereby the nations could come to God. But how could a nation that could not find its own way to God, a blind, deaf, rebellious nation, show anyone else the way? This is the dilemma that the Servant has come to solve. He will be for Israel, and the world, what Israel could not be. Faced with Israels failure, God does not wipe out the nation; he simply devises another way in which Israels servanthood could be worked out: through the ideal Israel. Thus the terms presence here is important to the overall theology of the passage.6 With all of these factors working in favor of the Servant, how could he possibly fail at his mission? V. 4: The Futility of the Servant Despite the YHWHs calling, equipping, and investing into the Servant, the Servant tells us about his failure: But I said, I have labored in vain; I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity; yet surely my right is with YHWH, and my recompense with my God (v. 4). All the work the Servant has done has been in vain. Moreover, he says that he has spent his strength for nothing (tohu) and vanity (hebel), and in the Bible, these are profoundly important words. In Genesis 1:2, we read that in the beginning, The earth was tohu and void. Thus, tohu suggests the chaos and incompleteness present in the earth before YHWH gave it order and shape. In Ecclesiastes, Qohlelet preaches about the vanity (hebel) that is ubiquitous under the sun. Taken together, these two words paint a picture of extreme calamity as the outcome of his mission. Calvin applies this to those who, as members of our Head, feel keenly the own apparent futility of our labor: It was highly necessary that the Prophet should add this; first, that we may know that the fruit which he mentioned is not always visible to the eyes of men; for otherwise we might call in question the truth of the word, and might entertain doubts if that which is so obstinately rejected by many was the word of God. Secondly, it was necessary, that we may advance with unshaken firmness, and may commit our labor to the Lord, who will not permit it to be ultimately unproductive. The Prophet therefore intended to guard against a dangerous temptation, that we may not, on account of the obstinacy of men, lose courage in the middle of our course. And indeed Christ begins with the complaint, for the purpose of affirming that nothing shall hinder him from executing his office.7

6 7

John Oswalt, The Book of Isaiah: Chapters 40-66. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998), p. 291. Calvin, Commentary on Isaiah, vol. 4 <http://www.ccel.org/ccel/calvin/calcom16.ii.i.html>.

There is, however, a measure of hope: Yet surely my right (or my judgment mishpati) is with YHWH, and my recompense (or my wages peullati) with my God. The Servant cannot see any benefit to his work, so he appeals to the judgment of God for his evaluation. The slim hope is thisthat YHWH would somehow vindicate the Servant and his labor, despite the fact that the Servant cannot himself see any success. Oswalt explains this magnificently: If the Servant described in this passage is more than human, he is not less than human. Frustration and feelings of futility, all too familiar to everyone who inhabits flesh, were part of the burden he came to bear. To become powerless is to experience what the powerless experience (see also 50:6; 53:3), and that is the reality of what the Servants blunt retort conveys. No Christian can read these words without relating them to the ministry of Jesus Christ. When he died, what had he accomplished? To all appearances, nothing. By every measure of the world, his life had been futile. Well could he cry, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? (Matt 27:46). But that reality cannot blot out another reality, and here is where the Servants certainty of calling and identity came into play. If it was true that the Servant would enter into the experience of humanity to the fullest extent, it was also true that he knew who he was and whose he was, and that he trusted God.Too often we miss the two-sidedness of what is being said here. On the one hand, we think that to admit feelings of futility is not to trust God. On the other hand, we often believe that if we really trusted God, we would never have feelings of futility. The Servant shows us that neither reality is incompatible with the other. Trust has to do with the final outcome, and of this the Servant is fully confident.8 And Calvin again applies this passage ably, with a special view toward encouraging pastors: Godly ministers, who bitterly lament that men perish so miserably by their own fault, and who sometimes devour and waste themselves through grief, when they experience so great perversity, ought to encourage their hearts by this consolation, and not to be alarmed so as to throw away the shield and spear, though sometimes they imagine that it would be better for them to do so. Let them consider that they share with Christ in this cause; for Christ does not speak of himself alone, as we formerly mentioned, but undertakes the cause of all who faithfully serve him, and, as their advocate, brings forward an accusation in the name of all. Let them therefore rely on his protection, and allow him to defend their cause. Let them appeal, as Paul does, to the day of the Lord, (1 Corinthians 4:4,) and let them not heed the calumnies, reproaches, or slanders of their enemies; for their judgment is with the Lord, and although they be a hundred times slandered by the world, yet a faithful God will approve and vindicate the service which they render to him.9 What will YHWHs response be?

8 9

John Oswalt, The Book of Isaiah: Chapters 40-66. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998), p. 292. Calvin, Commentary on Isaiah, vol. 4 <http://www.ccel.org/ccel/calvin/calcom16.ii.i.html>.

V. 5-7: The Vindication of the Servant V. 5 is a lengthy, drama-building, cliffhanging preface to YHWHs response to the Servant. The whole world hangs in the balance as to whether or not YHWH would vindicate the labor of this Servant, and yet the answer is not immediately given! Instead, the Servant recaps his calling, his mission, and his hope: And now YHWH says, he who formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him; and that Israel might be gathered to himfor I am honored (or glorified Niphal of kabed) in the eyes of YHWH and my God has become my strength His calling is from the womb, where YHWH formed him specially to be his servant. His mission is to bring Jacob back to YHWH, and to gather Israel to him. His hope is to be glorified in the eyes of YHWH, and for his God to become his strength. The last phrase sounds hopefulso what does YHWH say in response to the Servants appeal? In fact, YHWHs response is better than the Servant could have possibly expected: he says: It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth. 7Thus says YHWH, the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One, to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nation, the servant of rulers: Kings shall see and arise; princes, and they shall prostrate themselves; because of YHWH, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you. Not only has the Servant succeeded, but the scope of his success stretches even further than the original call! For this Servant, it would be too light a thing only to restore the tribes of Jacob, so YHWH declares that he will make the Servant as a light for the nations, in order that his salvation may reach to the end of the earth. Oswalt makes an important translation note that touches even the ESVs rendering of this verse: Some modern translations (e.g., NRSV) render the final phrase of the verse as that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth. While this is not impossible, it is not the obvious sense of the grammar. The plain sense is: I have appointed youto be my salvation to the ends of the earth. The former translation obscures the point that the Servant is not merely to be the means of Gods salvation coming to the world, he is to be that salvation.10 This is a good catchthe full literal translation is, I have given you as light to the nations, in order to be my salvation up to the end of the earth. It could be in order for my salvation to be up to the end of the earth, but in the second phrase we have an infinitive construct hayah with a L preposition and then the words my salvation up to the end of the earth. Its much easier to
10

John Oswalt, The Book of Isaiah: Chapters 40-66. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998), p. 294.

connect the in order to be as a purpose clause to explain why God was giving his Servant to the nationshe gave him in order to be my salvation up to the end of the earth. V. 7 continues to list the accolades that the Servant will receive: Kings shall see and arise; princes, and they shall prostrate themselves; because of YHWH, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you. Beyond any perceived failures, and beyond any limitations, the Servant will become King of kings and Lord of lords because YHWH has chosen him. Yet v. 7 also contains a note of concern for the Servant. Even though he will be exalted beyond merely restoring Israel to be a light to the nations, and even though Kings stand in his honor, and princes shall prostrate themselves before him, even so the Servant is described as one deeply despised, abhorred by the nation, the servant of rulers. He is glorified, yet despised; he is exalted, yet abhorred; he is worshiped by kings and princes, yet he is their servant. Oswalts depiction of this passage is beautiful: Who is being spoken to? The contract could hardly be greater. The descent is from the sublime to the hideous, from the throne to the gutter. Three terse phrases convey a picture of lowliness, worthlessness, and helplessness. The sense of the first is clear, although the precise meaning is not. On the [page] basis of the parallelism, which seems to point to the Servants status in relation to others, the Servants very person (nephesh) is apparently considered worthless (see 53:3). But more than that, he is abhorred by the mass of people (as implied by the indefinite nation). He is seen not only as unworthy of attention but as positively distasteful. (For a contemporary analogue, one may think of the homeless on the streets of any large city.) He is a slave of rulers or tyrants (mashal rather than malak). It is hard to imagine a great contrast than that between this speaker and this addressee. Here we should not minimize the connections between Israel and the Servant. Israel had experienced all of this, and the Servant has come to identify himself with Israel and all the worlds outcasts, which Israel represents. But if the contrast between the Lord and the Servant is great, so is the contrast between the Servants former state and his latter one. Once again the language is similar to that in 52:13-53:12, as this worthless, stinking slave becomes the astonishment of kings, who stand up from their thrones in awed respect, and princes, who prostrate themselves before the true King. Is this Israel, the nation? No, but it is the one in whom Israel finds its true self, and through him receives the homage of the world. What will account for this dramatic change in the end? It is because of the faithfulness of the Holy One of Israel, the one who had called and chosen his Servant. It is not because the Servant himself has accomplished anything by himself; the Servant will not serve his own glory; he will always point to Another. But it will be because the Holy One does not break his word; he will keep faith with his Servant, and all the world will be awed at that kind of absolute reliability in a God. As in v. 4, to be chosen of God does not mean glory along the way, but it does mean glory at the end of the way.11 What kind of Servant could this be?
11

John Oswalt, The Book of Isaiah: Chapters 40-66. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998), p. 294-95.