Yesaya 42:1-6

The Lord Commissions His Special Servant

42:1 ¹ “Here is my servant whom I support,

my chosen one in whom I take pleasure.

I have placed my spirit on him;

he will make just decrees ²  for the nations. ³ 

42:2 He will not cry out or shout;

he will not publicize himself in the streets. ⁴ 

42:3 A crushed reed he will not break,

a dim wick he will not extinguish; ⁵ 

he will faithfully make just decrees. ⁶ 

42:4 He will not grow dim or be crushed ⁷ 

before establishing justice on the earth;

the coastlands ⁸  will wait in anticipation for his decrees.” ⁹ 

42:5 This is what the true God, ¹⁰  the Lord, says –

the one who created the sky and stretched it out,

the one who fashioned the earth and everything that lives on it, ¹¹ 

the one who gives breath to the people on it,

and life to those who live on it: ¹² 

42:6 “I, the Lord, officially commission you; ¹³ 

I take hold of your hand.

I protect you ¹⁴  and make you a covenant mediator for people, ¹⁵ 

and a light ¹⁶  to the nations, ¹⁷ 

Yesaya 49:6

49:6 he says, “Is it too insignificant a task for you to be my servant,

to reestablish the tribes of Jacob,

and restore the remnant ¹⁸  of Israel? ¹⁹ 

I will make you a light to the nations, ²⁰ 

so you can bring ²¹  my deliverance to the remote regions of the earth.”

Yesaya 53:11-12

53:11 Having suffered, he will reflect on his work,

he will be satisfied when he understands what he has done. ²² 

“My servant ²³  will acquit many, ²⁴ 

for he carried their sins. ²⁵ 

53:12 So I will assign him a portion with the multitudes, ²⁶ 

he will divide the spoils of victory with the powerful, ²⁷ 

because he willingly submitted ²⁸  to death

and was numbered with the rebels,

when he lifted up the sin of many

and intervened ²⁹  on behalf of the rebels.”

[42:1]  ¹ sn Verses 1-7 contain the first of Isaiah’s “servant songs,” which describe the ministry of a special, ideal servant who accomplishes God’s purposes for Israel and the nations. This song depicts the servant as a just king who brings justice to the earth and relief for the oppressed. The other songs appear in 49:1-13; 50:4-11; and 52:13-53:12.

[42:1]  ² tn Heb “he will bring out justice” (cf. ASV, NASB, NRSV).

[42:1]  ³ sn Like the ideal king portrayed in Isa 11:1-9, the servant is energized by the divine spirit and establishes justice on the earth.

[42:2]  ⁴ tn Heb “he will not cause his voice to be heard in the street.”

[42:3]  ⁵ sn The “crushed reed” and “dim wick” symbolize the weak and oppressed who are on the verge of extinction.

[42:3]  ⁶ tn Heb “faithfully he will bring out justice” (cf. NASB, NRSV).

[42:4]  ⁷ tn For rhetorical effect the terms used to describe the “crushed (רָצַץ, ratsats) reed” and “dim (כָּהָה, kahah) wick” in v. 3 are repeated here.

[42:4]  ⁸ tn Or “islands” (NIV); NLT “distant lands beyond the sea.”

[42:4]  ⁹ tn Or “his law” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NIV) or “his instruction” (NLT).

[42:5]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the God.” The definite article here indicates distinctiveness or uniqueness.

[42:5]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and its offspring” (so NASB); NIV “all that comes out of it.”

[42:5]  ¹² tn Heb “and spirit [i.e., “breath”] to the ones walking in it” (NAB, NASB, and NRSV all similar).

[42:6]  ¹³ tn Heb “call you in righteousness.” The pronoun “you” is masculine singular, referring to the servant. See the note at 41:2.

[42:6]  ¹⁴ tn The translation assumes the verb is derived from the root נָצַר (natsar, “protect”). Some prefer to derive it from the root יָצַר (yatsar, “form”).

[42:6]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “a covenant of people.” A person cannot literally be a covenant; בְּרִית (bÿrit) is probably metonymic here, indicating a covenant mediator. The precise identity of עָם (’am, “people”) is uncertain. In v. 5 עָם refers to mankind, and the following reference to “nations” also favors this. But in 49:8, where the phrase בְּרִית עָם occurs again, Israel seems to be in view.

[42:6]  ¹⁶ sn Light here symbolizes deliverance from bondage and oppression; note the parallelism in 49:6b and in 51:4-6.

[42:6]  ¹⁷ tn Or “the Gentiles” (so KJV, ASV, NIV); the same Hebrew word can be translated “nations” or “Gentiles” depending on the context.

[49:6]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “the protected [or “preserved”] ones.”

[49:6]  ¹⁹ sn The question is purely rhetorical; it does not imply that the servant was dissatisfied with his commission or that he minimized the restoration of Israel.

[49:6]  ²⁰ tn See the note at 42:6.

[49:6]  ²¹ tn Heb “be” (so KJV, ASV); CEV “you must take.”

[53:11]  ²² tn Heb “he will be satisfied by his knowledge,” i.e., “when he knows.” The preposition is understood as temporal and the suffix as a subjective genitive. Some take בְּדַעְתּוֹ (bÿda’to, “by his knowledge”) with what follows and translate “by knowledge of him,” understanding the preposition as instrumental and the suffix as objective.

[53:11]  ²³ sn The song ends as it began (cf. 52:13-15), with the Lord announcing the servant’s vindication and exaltation.

[53:11]  ²⁴ tn Heb “he will acquit, a righteous one, my servant, many.” צַדִּיק (tsadiq) may refer to the servant, but more likely it is dittographic (note the preceding verb יַצְדִּיק, yatsdiq). The precise meaning of the verb (the Hiphil of צָדַק, tsadaq) is debated. Elsewhere the Hiphil is used at least six times in the sense of “make righteous” in a legal sense, i.e., “pronounce innocent, acquit” (see Exod 23:7; Deut 25:1; 1 Kgs 8:32 = 2 Chr 6:23; Prov 17:15; Isa 5:23). It can also mean “render justice” (as a royal function, see 2 Sam 15:4; Ps 82:3), “concede” (Job 27:5), “vindicate” (Isa 50:8), and “lead to righteousness” (by teaching and example, Dan 12:3). The preceding context and the next line suggest a legal sense here. Because of his willingness to carry the people’s sins, the servant is able to “acquit” them.

[53:11]  sn Some (e.g., H. M. Orlinsky, “The So-called ‘Suffering Servant’ in Isaiah 53,22,” VTSup 14 [1967]: 3-133) object to this legal interpretation of the language, arguing that it would be unjust for the righteous to suffer for the wicked and for the wicked to be declared innocent. However, such a surprising development is consistent with the ironic nature of this song. It does seem unfair for the innocent to die for the guilty. But what is God to do when all have sinned and wandered off like stray sheep (cf. v. 6)? Covenant law demands punishment, but punishment in this case would mean annihilation of what God has created. God’s justice, as demanded by the law, must be satisfied. To satisfy his justice, he does something seemingly unjust. He punishes his sinless servant, the only one who has not strayed off! In the progress of biblical revelation, we discover that the sinless servant is really God in the flesh, who offers himself because he is committed to the world he has created. If his justice can only be satisfied if he himself endures the punishment, then so be it. What appears to be an act of injustice is really love satisfying the demands of justice!

[53:11]  ²⁵ tn The circumstantial clause (note the vav [ו] + object + subject + verb pattern) is understood as causal here. The prefixed verb form is either a preterite or an imperfect used in a customary manner.

[53:12]  ²⁶ tn Scholars have debated the precise meaning of the term רַבִּים (rabbim) that occurs five times in this passage (Isa 52:14, 15; 53:11, 12 [2x]). Its two broad categories of translation are “much”/“many” and “great” (HALOT 1171-72 s.v. I רַב). Unlike other Hebrew terms for might or strength, this term is linked with numbers or abundance. In all sixteen uses outside of Isaiah 52:13-53:12 (articular and plural) it signifies an inclusive meaning: “the majority” or “the multitude” (J. Jeremias, TDNT 6:536-37). This term occurs in parallelism with עֲצוּמִים (’atsumim), which normally signifies “numerous” or “large” or “powerful” (through large numbers). Like רַבִּים (rabbim), it refers to greatness in numbers (cf. Deut 4:38; 7:1; 9:1; 11:34). It emphasizes the multitudes with whom the Servant will share the spoil of his victory. As J. Olley wrote: “Yahweh has won the victory and vindicates his Servant, giving to him many subservient people, together with their spoils. These numerous peoples in turn receive blessing, sharing in the “peace” resulting from Yahweh’s victory and the Servant’s suffering” (John W. Olley, “‘The Many’: How Is Isa 53,12a to Be Understood,” Bib 68 [1987]: 330-56).

[53:12]  ²⁷ sn The servant is compared here to a warrior who will be richly rewarded for his effort and success in battle.

[53:12]  ²⁸ tn Heb “because he laid bare his life”; traditionally, ASV “because he (+ hath KJV) poured out his soul (life NIV) unto death.”

[53:12]  ²⁹ tn The Hiphil of פָּגַע (paga’) can mean “cause to attack” (v. 6), “urge, plead verbally” (Jer 15:11; 36:25), or “intervene militarily” (Isa 59:16). Perhaps the third nuance fits best here, for military imagery is employed in the first two lines of the verse.