August 19 / Isaiah 42-43

Isaiah 42-43

Isaiah 42:1-9 is the first of four poems in Isaiah that have come to be known as the “Servant Songs”. (The others are found in Isaiah 49:1–13; 50:4–9; 52:13–53:12.) We know from New Testament references that these Servant Songs speak of Jesus Christ. (For example, see Matthew 12:15-18, which quotes Isaiah 42:1-4.) But that does not mean that every use of the term “servant” in Isaiah points to Jesus. Sometimes, like in Isaiah 41:8-9, the servant is explicitly named as Israel or Jacob, meaning the nation of Israel as a whole. Sometimes, like in Isaiah 42:19 or Isaiah 43:10, it is only implied (but still quite clear) that the nation is the servant. Sometimes the servant may well be Jesus, or the nation of Israel, or both. So as we go through these chapters of Isaiah, pay attention to how the word “servant” is used and see what it might tell you about Jesus or about Israel — or about yourself. (By the way, the ESV translation always leaves “servant” uncapitalized — as in the original text — which forces us to think a bit on our own. The NKJV tries to make it easier and capitalizes “Servant” when the term refers to Christ. Although that may be helpful, such capitalization also imposes an interpretation that may or may not be correct, so I encourage you not to depend too heavily on it.)

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Behold My servant, whom I uphold,
My chosen, in whom My soul delights;
I have put My Spirit upon him;
he will bring forth justice to the nations.
He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice,
or make it heard in the street;
a bruised reed he will not break,
and a faintly burning wick he will not quench;
he will faithfully bring forth justice.
He will not grow faint or be discouraged
till he has established justice in the earth;
and the coastlands wait for his law.

Isaiah 42:1-4

So what about this first Servant Song? Without the capitalizations and without Matthew’s telling us explicitly that Jesus fulfills these words, what might we think? If we were in exile and managed to perceive that this song points to the coming Messiah (which is a big “if”), what would we think of that Messiah? How would we hear these words? Of course, we have the advantage of knowing that Jesus does indeed fulfill this role. But is this how we think of Him? Three times we see the word “justice” here. What does that mean? (Hint: It’s not just talking about the court system.) What does it mean to say that a bruised reed He will not break, and a faintly burning wick He will not quench?

Spend some time today with our Lord meditating on this Servant Song, and let Him speak into your heart about Who He really is.