Discipline of the Servant

Isaiah 42:10–25
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The prophet gives a new song of praise to the Lord (v. 10). People everywhere should sing and shout to the Lord as a result of the world-wide message of salvation which the Servant of the Lord shall proclaim. This passage can be interpreted as the Gentiles singing praise for their deliverance and conversion (vv. 10-13).

In contrast to the quiet and submissive ministry of the Servant, the Lord shall go forth as a mighty man of war (v. 13). In his first coming he was a meek and lowly Servant, but in His second coming He will be as a Man of War in judgment upon the world. The devastation described here (vv. 14-16) may well refer to the Millennium, when the mountains and hills will be destroyed and the rivers dried up (Rev. 8:7-9:21). God, seemingly silent for a long time, will act in judgment, though humanly speaking, it will be painful for Him (v. 14), as He desires to help them (v. 15).

The prophet contrasts the faith of those who believe in God to the idolatry of those who trust in graven images (vv. 17-25). The Mosaic Law had made it plain that if the Israelites lived according to God’s righteous standards, He would bless them. However, in Babylonian exile they were being punished because spiritually they had been deaf and blind (v. 16). He had told them in (Deut. 28:49-53) that if they did not keep His law, He would drive them from the land. No one could rescue them except the Lord.

Application

We might ask how Israel and Judah could be so blind, yet we often fail in the same way. Knowing what is right and not doing it can be worse than not seeing at all. I can know what is right because I have His word to go by and yet I often don’t obey. Can I think of any way I have failed to obey Him today?