Note the colon that is implied at the end of this verse. The Hebrew is simple, although it is a run-on sentence. The prophet is referring to himself:Īnd now, God, (who from the womb made me to be His servant, in order to return Jacob to Him and to gather Israel, my God and strength): This is a preface to the following verse, 6. Isaiah 49:5-6 in the MT are a stand-alone parasha (paragraph) that should be punctuated as such in translations. There is no room to interpolate the proposition "to" before "Israel". The Hebrew is unambiguous, even without the readers marks and diacritics. The NIV translation for this verse is accurate. The Hebrew word for messiah does not appear in this chapter. There is no imagery of messiah in this chapter. The rest of the chapter is a continuing dialogue between Israel and God. It is not the prophet referring to himself. Isaiah 49:1-2 is written in first person, as if spoken by the nation of Israel as a collective individual, addressed to the nations of the world. Is it possible to read verse 3 as "You are my servant TO Israel"? The Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.” Princes will see and bow down, because of the Lord, who is faithful, Nation, to the servant of rulers: “Kings will see you and stand up, The ends of the earth.” 7This is what the Lord says- the RedeemerĪnd Holy One of Israel- to him who was despised and abhorred by the I willĪlso make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to The tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. Yet what is due me is in the Lord’s hand,ĥAnd now the Lord says- he who formed me in the womb to be his servant to bring Jacob back to him and gather Israel to himself, for IĪma honored in the eyes of the Lord and my God has been my strength-Ħhe says: “It is too small a thing for you to be my servant to restore The shadow of his hand he hid me he made me into a polished arrow andģHe said to me, “You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will display my splendor.” 4But I said, “I have labored in vain I have spent my 2He made my mouth like a sharpened sword, in Nations: Before I was born the Lord called me from my mother’s womb NIV Isaiah 49: 1Listen to me, you islands hear this, you distant Believers do good for others to point towards truth (John 14:6), and to bring glory to God.On the one hand he seems to be speaking of Israel but in the next breath it seems that the servant is the messiah who gathers in the remnant of Israel: However, in situations where the world is likely to merely praise the Christian, it's better for the act to be done "in secret" to avoid arrogance and pride (Matthew 6:2–4).Ĭhrist is the only spiritual light in the world, and that truth is distributed through His people: His disciples, meaning born-again Christians. The light of Christian goodness is meant to shine out "so that" God will be glorified. Good works done for God's sake, in ways that bring glory to God, ought to be done so that they can be seen. An important point He makes later in the Sermon on the Mount involves proper motivation (Matthew 6:1). In other lessons, Jesus expands on the meaning of doing good works. Even if acting in a Christlike way earns persecution from the world (Matthew 5:11–12), believers are meant to shine that light into a dark world. This verse provides the practical application of Jesus' teaching about being "the light of the world." Disciples display the light of Jesus by doing the good works which God intends for them. It has no value if covered up and hidden. Light is meant to be seen by those in the darkness. Salt is meant it be salty and becomes worthless if it loses that quality. Jesus has described His disciples as first the salt of the earth and then as the light of the world (Matthew 5:13–15).
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