Isaiah49
New American Standard
1Listen to Me, you islands, And pay attention, you peoples from afar. The Lord called Me from the womb; From the body of My mother He named Me.
2He has made My mouth like a sharp sword, In the shadow of His hand He has concealed Me; And He has also made Me a sharpened arrow, He has hidden Me in His quiver.
3He said to Me, “You are My Servant, Israel, In whom I will show My glory.”
4But I said, “I have labored in vain, I have spent My strength for nothing and futility; Nevertheless, the justice due to Me is with the Lord, And My reward is with My God.”
5And now says the Lord, who formed Me from the womb to be His Servant, To bring Jacob back to Him, so that Israel might be gathered to Him (For I am honored in the sight of the Lord, And My God is My strength),
6He says, “It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant To raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the protected ones of Israel; I will also make You a light of the nations So that My salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”
7This is what the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel and its Holy One, Says to the despised One, To the One abhorred by the nation, To the Servant of rulers: “Kings will see and arise, Princes will also bow down, Because of the Lord who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel who has chosen You.”
8This is what the Lord says: “At a favorable time I answered You, And on a day of salvation I helped You; And I will watch over You and make You a covenant of the people, To restore the land, to give as inheritances the deserted hereditary lands;
9Saying to those who are bound, ‘Go free,’ To those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves.’ They will feed along the roads, And their pasture will be on all bare heights.
10They will not hunger or thirst, Nor will the scorching heat or sun strike them down; For He who has compassion on them will lead them, And He will guide them to springs of water.
11I will make all My mountains a road, And My highways will be raised up.
12Behold, these will come from afar; And behold, these will come from the north and from the west, And these from the land of Aswan.”
13Shout for joy, you heavens! And rejoice, you earth! Break forth into joyful shouting, mountains! For the Lord has comforted His people And will have compassion on His afflicted.
14But Zion said, “The Lord has abandoned me, And the Lord has forgotten me.”
15“Can a woman forget her nursing child And have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, but I will not forget you.
16Behold, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; Your walls are continually before Me.
17Your builders hurry; Your destroyers and devastators Will leave you.
18Raise your eyes and look around; All of them gather together, they come to you. As I live,” declares the Lord, “You will certainly put them all on as jewelry and bind them on as a bride.
19For your ruins and deserted places and your destroyed land— Now you will certainly be too cramped for the inhabitants, And those who swallowed you will be far away.
20The children you lost will yet say in your ears, ‘The place is too cramped for me; Make room for me that I may live here.’
21Then you will say in your heart, ‘Who has fathered these for me, Since I have been bereaved of my children And cannot conceive, and I am an exile, and a wanderer? And who has raised these? Behold, I was left alone; Where are these from?’”
22This is what the Lord God says: “Behold, I will lift up My hand to the nations And set up My flag to the peoples; And they will bring your sons in their arms, And your daughters will be carried on their shoulders.
23Kings will be your guardians, And their princesses your nurses. They will bow down to you with their faces to the ground And lick the dust from your feet; And you will know that I am the Lord; Those who hopefully wait for Me will not be put to shame.
24“Can the prey be taken from a mighty man, Or the captives of a tyrant be rescued?”
25Indeed, this is what the Lord says: “Even the captives of the mighty man will be taken away, And the prey of a tyrant will be rescued; For I will contend with the one who contends with you, And I will save your sons.
26I will feed your oppressors with their own flesh, And they will become drunk with their own blood as with sweet wine; And humanity will know that I, the Lord, am your Savior And your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.”
Study Guide
Public-domain commentary and original-language notes for Isaiah 49.
Chapter Summary
In this chapter: The unbelief and rejection of the Jews. (1-6). Gracious promise to the Gentiles. (7-12). God's love to the church. (13-17). Its increase. (18-23). And deliverance. (24-26).
vv1-6
The great Author of redemption shows the authority for his work. The sword of his word slays the lusts of his people, and all at enmity with them. His sharp arrows wound the conscience; but all these wounds will be healed, when the sinner prays to him for mercy. But even the Redeemer, who spake as never man spake in his personal ministry, often seemed to labour in vain. And if Jacob will not be brought back to God, and Israel will not be gathered, still Christ will be glorious. This promise is in part fulfilled in the calling of the Gentiles. Men perish in darkness. But Christ enlightens men, and so makes them holy and happy.
vv7-12
The Father is the Lord, the Redeemer, and Holy One of Israel, as sending the Son to be the Redeemer. Man, whom he came to save, put contempt upon him. To this he submitted for our salvation. He is a pledge for all the blessings of the covenant; in him God was reconciling the world to himself. Pardoning mercy is a release from the curse of the law; renewing grace is a release from the dominion of sin: both are from Christ. He saith to those in darkness, Show yourselves. Not only see, but be seen, to the glory of God, and your own comforts. Though there are difficulties in the way to heaven, yet the grace of God will carry us over them, and make even the mountains a way. This denotes the free invitations and the encouraging promises of the gospel, and the outpouring of the Spirit.
vv13-17
Let there be universal joy, for God will have mercy upon the afflicted, because of his compassion; upon his afflicted, because of his covenant. We have no more reason to question his promise and grace, than we have to question his providence and justice. Be assured that God has a tender affection for his church and people; he would not have them to be discouraged. Some mothers do neglect their children; but God's compassions to his people, infinitely exceed those of the tenderest parents toward their children. His setting them as a mark on his hand, or a seal upon his arm, denotes his being ever mindful of them. As far as we have scriptural evidence that we belong to his ransomed flock, we may be sure that he will never forsake us. Let us then give diligence to make our calling and election sure, and rejoice in the hope and glory of God.
Key Words
שָׁמַע: to hear intelligently (often with implication of attention, obedience, etc.; causatively, to tell, etc.)
אִי: properly, a habitable spot (as desirable); dry land, a coast, an island
קָשַׁב: to prick up the ears, i.e. hearken
לְאֹם: a community
מִן: properly, a part of; hence (prepositionally), from or out of in many senses
רָחוֹק: remote, literally or figuratively, of place or time; specifically, precious; often used adverbially (with preposition)
קָרָא: to call out to (i.e. properly, address by name, but used in a wide variety of applications)
בֶּטֶן: the belly, especially the womb; also the bosom or body of anything
מֵעֶה: used only in plural the intestines, or (collectively) the abdomen, figuratively, sympathy; by implication, a vest; by extension the stomach, the uterus (or of men, the seat of generation), the heart (figuratively)
אֵם: a mother (as the bond of the family); in a wide sense (both literally and figuratively (like father))
Cross References
Isaiah 49Explicitly quotes Isaiah 49:6 as the divine commission to preach salvation to the Gentiles.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
The sword-like mouth of the Servant corresponds to the piercing, two-edged Word of God.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Parallel description of the Messiah as despised, abhorred, and rejected of men.
Supported by JFB
Direct textual fulfillment: the redeemed in heaven shall neither hunger, thirst, nor have heat smite them.
Supported by JFB
Fulfills the calling from the womb and the naming of Jesus before his birth.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Paul uses identical womb-calling terminology, showing the apostolic continuation of the Servant's mission.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Simeon echoes the language of the Servant as a light to lighten the Gentiles.
Supported by JFB
Messianic parallel detailing the deep contempt, mocking, and abhorrence the Servant endures from men.
Supported by JFB
Verbal echo of being covered in the shadow of God's hand.
Supported by JFB
Depicts Christ returning with a sharp sword proceeding from his mouth to smite the nations.
Supported by JFB
Jesus declares on earth that He has glorified the Father, fulfilling the Servant's mandate.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Illustrates Christ's initial personal ministry directed specifically to gather the lost sheep of Israel.
Supported by JFB
Matches the exact phrasing of the Servant being given for a covenant of the people.
Supported by JFB
Zion's complaint of being forgotten matches Jacob's identical despairing claim in Isaiah 40.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
The custom of signs upon the hand as a perpetual memorial of God's covenant loyalty.
Supported by Matthew Poole