ISAIAH: GOD CONTROLS THE NATIONS GOD’S SPECIAL SERVANT ISAIAH CHAPTER S 49 TO 57 _NORMAN HILLYER_ CHAPTER 49 ‘MY SPECIAL SERVANT’ In the Book of Isaiah, the meaning of ‘my (that is, the *Lord’s) special Servant’ varies. Sometimes, ‘my special Servant’ identifies a person, such as Eliakim (Isa... [ Continue Reading ]
Many *Israelites lived abroad. But here the reference is to foreign nations, rather than to *Israelites. Isaiah repeats the command to listen. This is to emphasise that the message is for foreigners. • To ‘call’ does not mean to shout to gain attention. In the Bible, ‘call’ is a technical word. It... [ Continue Reading ]
‘Sword’ and ‘arrow’ are word pictures. The words show that Isaiah’s message from God will have a powerful effect on people’s lives. Like a sword or an arrow, Isaiah’s words will be sharp (clear, sudden and powerful). The *Lord has prepared Isaiah ahead of time to speak the sharp words of God’s judge... [ Continue Reading ]
When God originally called Isaiah to speak for him, he had warned Isaiah about people’s reaction. People would not listen to Isaiah (see Isaiah 6:9-12). But Isaiah wisely realised that his own duty was to obey God. What happened as a result was not Isaiah’s responsibility (see Isaiah 40:4-8). It was... [ Continue Reading ]
The first words are similar to those in Isaiah 43:1 and Isaiah 49:1. But here Isaiah adds that the *Lord provides him with the necessary help.... [ Continue Reading ]
The *Lord has an even greater task for Isaiah. He is to tell all nations that the *Lord can rescue every person from the result of an evil life. • Similar words describe God’s double purpose for his special Servant and for Cyrus. God intends them to spread his ‘light’ to the whole world (see Isaiah... [ Continue Reading ]
Much of what appears here will appear again in the 4th Servant Song (see Isaiah 52:13-53). • There is a double meaning of ‘Servant’ in this verse. The name refers to the experience of the nation called Israel. But it also refers to the experience of *Messiah. (See my note at the beginning of this c... [ Continue Reading ]
To ‘answer’ means more than ‘use words’. ‘Answer’ includes action to provide practical help.... [ Continue Reading ]
God’s people have a long journey to return to their own land. But all along the way, God will provide everything that they need (see Isaiah 41:17-20).... [ Continue Reading ]
Syene is the area up the river Nile to the south (see Jeremiah 44:1). Today Syene is called Aswan.... [ Continue Reading ]
The picture in words suggests that the people’s joy affects all that God has created (see my note on Isaiah 44:23). THE *LORD PITIES HIS PEOPLE V14 The inhabitants of *Jerusalem had been thinking, ‘The *Lord has left us. The *Lord has forgotten us.’ V15 ‘Certainly not! A mother can never forget t... [ Continue Reading ]
*Babylonian forces attacked *Jerusalem in 587 *BC. They ruined the city. They completely destroyed the Temple (see Isaiah 32:14). The *Lord’s promise to protect the city seemed to be without worth.... [ Continue Reading ]
A picture in words emphasises that the *Lord has certainly not put *Jerusalem out of his mind.... [ Continue Reading ]
To build something, normally takes much more time than to knock it down. But the *Lord declares that these busy builders will repair *Jerusalem very quickly. They will build the city even more quickly than the *Babylonians were able to destroy it. That would be most unlikely, of course. It is just a... [ Continue Reading ]
The whole situation is changing very fast. The evidence is all round the city for people to see for themselves. The *Lord has carried out the things that he promised to do. • In the original language, ‘As I live, says the *Lord’ is a special form of words. It emphasises that the promise afterwards... [ Continue Reading ]
Judah’s enemies ate all the food that happened to be growing. But they did not bother about good agricultural practice. So they did not plough or sow. Soon the fields had no more value than a desert. The land would take several years to recover after the enemies left Judah.... [ Continue Reading ]
In this verse, ‘children’ refers to *descendants of the original *exiles of the *tribe called Judah. The ‘time of despair’ means ‘when you were *exiles in the country called Babylon’.... [ Continue Reading ]
The verse gives a picture in words to describe everybody’s happy surprise. Suddenly, a huge number of *refugees are coming back to *Jerusalem. It is so wonderful, after all that the people of God have suffered far away in a foreign land.... [ Continue Reading ]
Foreign nations will now have a very different opinion about God’s people. And God’s people themselves will realise that the *Lord himself has brought it all about. Only he could have done it. THE *LORD IS ON OUR SIDE V24 Normally, nobody can take back the possessions that soldiers steal. Nobody... [ Continue Reading ]
The *Lord will take practical action to bring back the people’s original situation.... [ Continue Reading ]
These are more pictures in words. These cruel men caused so much trouble for other people. But in the end, they will cause their own deaths. And the *Lord will use the situation to rescue his people. LORD ~ God’s name in the Bible; in the original language, it means ‘head over all’ and ‘God always’.... [ Continue Reading ]