First Upload: Wednesday March 13, 2019
Last Modified: Wednesday June 24, 2020
Author: Eduardo Freire Canosa
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1 "Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him and he will bring justice to the nations.
2 He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets.
3 A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice;
4 he will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth. In his law the islands will put their hope."
5 This is what God the Lord says—he who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it, who gives breath to its people, and life to those who walk on it:
6 "I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles,
7 to open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.
8 "I am the Lord; that is my name! I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols.
9 See, the former things have taken place, and new things I declare; before they spring into being I announce them to you."
10 Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise from the ends of the earth, you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it, you islands, and all who live in them.
11 Let the desert and its towns raise their voices; let the settlements where Kedar lives rejoice. Let the people of Sela sing for joy; let them shout from the mountaintops.
12 Let them give glory to the Lord and proclaim his praise in the islands.
13 The Lord will march out like a mighty man, like a warrior he will stir up his zeal; with a shout he will raise the battle cry and will triumph over his enemies.
14 "For a long time I have kept silent, I have been quiet and held myself back. But now, like a woman in childbirth, I cry out, I gasp and pant.
15 I will lay waste the mountains and hills and dry up all their vegetation; I will turn rivers into islands and dry up the pools.
16 I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.
17 But those who trust in idols, who say to images, 'You are our gods,' will be turned back in utter shame.
18 "Hear, you deaf; look, you blind, and see!
19 Who is blind but my servant, and deaf like the messenger I send? Who is blind like the one committed to me, blind like the servant of the Lord?
20 You have seen many things, but have paid no attention; your ears are open, but you hear nothing."
21 It pleased the Lord for the sake of his righteousness to make his law great and glorious.
22 But this is a people plundered and looted, all of them trapped in pits or hidden away in prisons. They have become plunder, with no one to rescue them; they have been made loot, with no one to say, "Send them back."
23 Which of you will listen to this or pay close attention in time to come?
24 Who handed Jacob over to become loot, and Israel to the plunderers? Was it not the Lord, against whom we have sinned? For they would not follow his ways; they did not obey his law.
25 So he poured out on them his burning anger, the violence of war. It enveloped them in flames, yet they did not understand; it consumed them, but they did not take it to heart.
Eight canonical verses lay a hard foundation for a new revised chapter centering on a servant of the Lord whom he upholds, his chosen one in whom he delights (v 1). The remaining seventeen verses are exported to nine separate revisions, mirroring once more the tremendous disarray that ails much of the Book of Isaiah.
Revised Chapter 42 enlists eight verses of the canonical chapter, imports five and a half more verses from two chapters and takes up the title, "The Servant In Whom The Lord Delights."
8. "I am the Lord; that is my name! I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols."
Reason: This verse is a stern affirmation that is uncalled for by the first seven verses. Verse 8 appertains to a confrontation with idolaters.
Destination: Revised Chapter 41, "The Lord Versus The Idols,"
40:25 "To whom will you compare me? Or who is my equal?" says the Holy One. 8 "I am the Lord; that is my name! I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols. 43:15 I am the Lord, your Holy One, Israel's Creator, your King."
10-12. Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise from the ends of the earth, you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it, you islands, and all who live in them. 11 Let the desert and its towns raise their voices; let the settlements where Kedar lives rejoice. Let the people of Sela sing for joy; let them shout from the mountaintops. 12 Let them give glory to the Lord and proclaim his praise in the islands.
Destination: Obviously Revised Chapter 25, "Psalms of Praise To God."
13. The Lord will march out like a mighty man, like a warrior he will stir up his zeal; with a shout he will raise the battle cry and will triumph over his enemies.
Analysis: This verse requires a backdrop of military confrontation either between the house of Jacob and its enemies during the monarchies of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah or between the Lord and the nations in the Day of the Lord.
Picked Destination: Revised Chapter 10, "Assyria."
Another Feasible Destination: Revised Chapter 24, "The Day of the Lord,"
13 The Lord will march out like a mighty man, like a warrior he will stir up his zeal; with a shout he will raise the battle cry and will triumph over his enemies. 52:10 The Lord will lay bare his holy arm in the sight of all the nations, and all the ends of the earth will see the salvation of our God. 59:19 From the west, men will fear the name of the Lord, and from the rising of the sun, they will revere his glory. For he will come like a pent-up flood that the breath of the Lord drives along.
14-15. "For a long time I have kept silent, I have been quiet and held myself back. But now, like a woman in childbirth, I cry out, I gasp and pant. 15 I will lay waste the mountains and hills and dry up all their vegetation; I will turn rivers into islands and dry up the pools."
Analysis: These two verses hold forth a setting of worldwide devastation (v 15).
Destination: Revised Chapter 24, "The Day of The Lord,"
33:10 "Now will I arise," says the Lord. "Now will I be exalted; now will I be lifted up. 14 For a long time I have kept silent, I have been quiet and held myself back. But now, like a woman in childbirth, I cry out, I gasp and pant. 13:11 I will punish the world for its evil, the wicked for their sins. I will put an end to the arrogance of the haughty and will humble the pride of the ruthless. First Half of 13:13 Therefore I will make the heavens tremble; 13:10 the stars of heaven and their constellations will not show their light. The rising sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light. 15 I will lay waste the mountains and hills and dry up all their vegetation; I will turn rivers into islands and dry up the pools. 13:12 I will make man scarcer than pure gold, more rare than the gold of Ophir."
16. I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.
Destination: Verse 16 integrates well in Revised Chapter 27, "Sing About A Fruitful Vineyard,"
First Half of 16 I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. 49:11 I will turn all my mountains into roads, and my highways will be raised up. Second Half of 16 These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.
17. But those who trust in idols, who say to images, 'You are our gods,' will be turned back in utter shame.
Analysis: The clause, "will be turned back in utter shame," expects a pilgrimage to a holy place where believers are let in but idolaters are turned away. The pertinent pilgrimage started after Sennacherib's retreat in disgrace from the land of Judah,
Many brought offerings to Jerusalem for the Lord and valuable gifts for Hezekiah king of Judah. From then on he was highly regarded by all the nations (2 Chronicles 32:21-23).At that time gifts will be brought to the Lord Almighty from a people tall and smooth-skinned, from a people feared far and wide, an aggressive nation of strange speech, whose land is divided by rivers—the gifts will be brought to Mount Zion, the place of the Name of the Lord Almighty (Isaiah 18:7).
Destination: Revised Chapter 8, "Assyria Will Invade Judah,"
27:13 And in that day a great trumpet will sound. Those who were perishing in Assyria and those who were exiled in Egypt will come and worship the Lord on the holy mountain in Jerusalem. 17 But those who trust in idols, who say to images, 'You are our gods,' will be turned back in utter shame.
18. Hear, you deaf; look, you blind, and see!
Analysis: This verse will set well in just about any upbraiding of the house of Jacob.
Picked Destination: Revised Chapter 9, "Ephraim,"
28:1 Woe to that wreath, the pride of Ephraim's drunkards, to the fading flower, his glorious beauty, set on the head of a fertile valley—to that city, the pride of those laid low by wine! 28:7 And these also stagger from wine and reel from beer: Priests and prophets stagger from beer and are befuddled with wine; they reel from beer, they stagger when seeing visions, they stumble when rendering decisions. 28:8 All the tables are covered with vomit and there is not a spot without filth. 18 Hear, you deaf; look, you blind, and see! 20 You have seen many things, but have paid no attention; your ears are open, but you hear nothing.
19. Who is blind but my servant, and deaf like the messenger I send? Who is blind like the one committed to me, blind like the servant of the Lord?
Reason: This verse stuck deliberately between verses 18 and 19 is unrelated to both. Verse 18 is Isaiah's desperate plea to most likely the misguided priests and prophets of the northern kingdom of Israel (also called Ephraim). Verse 19 is on the other hand the Lord's glowing commendation of Isaiah.
Destination: Revised Chapter 50, "Isaiah The Servant of The Lord."
20. You have seen many things, but have paid no attention; your ears are open, but you hear nothing.
Destination: Revised Chapter 9, "Ephraim." See verse 18 for the placement of verse 20.
21. It pleased the Lord for the sake of his righteousness to make his law great and glorious.
Analysis: This verse is part of a psalm (cf. Psalm 119).
Destination: Revised Chapter 25, "Psalms of Praise To God,"
21 It pleased the Lord for the sake of his righteousness to make his law great and glorious. 26:7 The path of the righteous is level; O upright One, you make the way of the righteous smooth. 26:8 Yes, Lord, walking in the way of your laws, we wait for you; your name and renown are the desire of our hearts.
22-25. But this is a people plundered and looted, all of them trapped in pits or hidden away in prisons. They have become plunder, with no one to rescue them; they have been made loot, with no one to say, "Send them back." 23 Which of you will listen to this or pay close attention in time to come? 24 Who handed Jacob over to become loot, and Israel to the plunderers? Was it not the Lord, against whom we have sinned? For they would not follow his ways; they did not obey his law. 25 So he poured out on them his burning anger, the violence of war. It enveloped them in flames, yet they did not understand; it consumed them, but they did not take it to heart.
Analysis: These four verses are part of a dissertation on the Lord's kindnesses to the former house of Jacob and his burning anger at the current one (verses 24-25).
Destination: Revised Chapter 63, "Now Our Enemies Have Trampled Down Your Sanctuary."
43:16-19. This is what the Lord says—he who made a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters, 17 who drew out the chariots and horses, the army and reinforcements together, and they lay there, never to rise again, extinguished, snuffed out like a wick: 18 "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. 19 See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.
49:8 to First Half of 49:9. This is what the Lord says: "In the time of my favor I will answer you, and in the day of salvation I will help you; I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people, to restore the land and to reassign its desolate inheritances, First Half of verse 9 to say to the captives, 'Come out,' and to those in darkness, 'Be free!'"
43:16 This is what the Lord says—he who made a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters, 43:17 who drew out the chariots and horses, the army and reinforcements together, and they lay there, never to rise again, extinguished, snuffed out like a wick: 43:18 "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. 43:19 See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.
1 "Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him and he will bring justice to the nations. 2 He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets. 3 A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice; 4 he will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth. In his law the islands will put their hope."
5 This is what God the Lord says—he who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it, who gives breath to its people, and life to those who walk on it: 6 "I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles, 7 to open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness."
49:8 This is what the Lord says: "In the time of my favor I will answer you, and in the day of salvation I will help you; I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people, to restore the land and to reassign its desolate inheritances, First Half of verse 49:9 to say to the captives, 'Come out,' and to those in darkness, 'Be free!'
9 "See, the former things have taken place, and new things I declare; before they spring into being I announce them to you."
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