Isaiah49
New King James Version
1“Listen, O coastlands, to Me, And take heed, you peoples from afar! The Lord has called Me from the womb; From the matrix of My mother He has made mention of My name.
2And He has made My mouth like a sharp sword; In the shadow of His hand He has hidden Me, And made Me a polished shaft; In His quiver He has hidden Me.”
3“And He said to me, ‘You are My servant, O Israel, In whom I will be glorified.’
4Then I said, ‘I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for nothing and in vain; Yet surely my just reward is with the Lord, And my work with my God.’ ”
5“And now the Lord says, Who formed Me from the womb to be His Servant, To bring Jacob back to Him, So that Israel is gathered to Him (For I shall be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, And My God shall be My strength),
6Indeed He says, ‘It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant To raise up the tribes of Jacob, And to restore the preserved ones of Israel; I will also give You as a light to the Gentiles, That You should be My salvation to the ends of the earth.’ ”
7Thus says the Lord, The Redeemer of Israel, their Holy One, To Him whom man despises, To Him whom the nation abhors, To the Servant of rulers: “Kings shall see and arise, Princes also shall worship, Because of the Lord who is faithful, The Holy One of Israel; And He has chosen You.”
8Thus says the Lord: “In an acceptable time I have heard You, And in the day of salvation I have helped You; I will preserve You and give You As a covenant to the people, To restore the earth, To cause them to inherit the desolate heritages;
9That You may say to the prisoners, ‘Go forth,’ To those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves.’ “They shall feed along the roads, And their pastures shall be on all desolate heights.
10They shall neither hunger nor thirst, Neither heat nor sun shall strike them; For He who has mercy on them will lead them, Even by the springs of water He will guide them.
11I will make each of My mountains a road, And My highways shall be elevated.
12Surely these shall come from afar; Look! Those from the north and the west, And these from the land of Sinim.”
13Sing, O heavens! Be joyful, O earth! And break out in singing, O mountains! For the Lord has comforted His people, And will have mercy on His afflicted.
14But Zion said, “The Lord has forsaken me, And my Lord has forgotten me.”
15“Can a woman forget her nursing child, And not have compassion on the son of her womb? Surely they may forget, Yet I will not forget you.
16See, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; Your walls are continually before Me.
17Your sons shall make haste; Your destroyers and those who laid you waste Shall go away from you.
18Lift up your eyes, look around and see; All these gather together and come to you. As I live,” says the Lord, “You shall surely clothe yourselves with them all as an ornament, And bind them on you as a bride does.
19“For your waste and desolate places, And the land of your destruction, Will even now be too small for the inhabitants; And those who swallowed you up will be far away.
20The children you will have, After you have lost the others, Will say again in your ears, ‘The place is too small for me; Give me a place where I may dwell.’
21Then you will say in your heart, ‘Who has begotten these for me, Since I have lost my children and am desolate, A captive, and wandering to and fro? And who has brought these up? There I was, left alone; But these, where were they?’ ”
22Thus says the Lord God: “Behold, I will lift My hand in an oath to the nations, And set up My standard for the peoples; They shall bring your sons in their arms, And your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders;
23Kings shall be your foster fathers, And their queens your nursing mothers; They shall bow down to you with their faces to the earth, And lick up the dust of your feet. Then you will know that I am the Lord, For they shall not be ashamed who wait for Me.”
24Shall the prey be taken from the mighty, Or the captives of the righteous be delivered?
25But thus says the Lord: “Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, And the prey of the terrible be delivered; For I will contend with him who contends with you, And I will save your children.
26I will feed those who oppress you with their own flesh, And they shall be drunk with their own blood as with sweet wine. All flesh shall 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