Isaiah 42. CJB emphasis in blue and green, NIV in magenta or separate, Nomads* comments in yellow, my comments in gray. *Participative Sunday-school-class at UBC
[I
read the Bible to consider a perhaps 5500 year old Sumerian political philosophy.
It’s primitively expressed by Semite scholars of 3900 years ago in Genesis
1:26-28, in my paraphrase: Female-and-male-human-being
may and can, independent of other entities, choose to constrain political
democracy on earth: on earth, humankind has the power to pursue the
good and constrain the bad. Rule of law may develop justice. Jesus affirmed these ideas in each Matthew
19:3-8, in Matthew 5:48, and in other direct dialogue. I think the next Bible
canon should include the law codes of Sumer and competing civilizations.
Resulting insights would take the heat off Judeo-Christianity, a Christ vs
Messiahs* competition** that egregiously deludes Jesus’ civic influence. The
resulting comprehensive view could accelerate collaborative pursuit of human
being (verb) and lessen baby killings, like those happening in Israel, in
Ukraine, and in the U.S.
*Cyrus,
600 BC, is called a messiah in Isaiah 45:1.
**Competitive monotheism survives on war.]
42:1 “Here is
my servant, whom I support,
my chosen one, in whom I take pleasure.
I have put my Spirit on him;
he will bring justice to the Goyim.
2 He will not cry or shout;
no one will hear his voice in the streets.
3 He will not snap off a broken reed
or snuff out a smoldering wick.
He will bring forth justice according to truth;
4 he will not weaken or be crushed
until he has established justice on the earth,
and the coastlands wait for his Torah.”
5 Thus
says God, Adonai,
who created the heavens and spread them out,
who stretched out the earth and all that grows from it,
who gives breath to the people on it
and spirit to those who walk on it:
6 “I, Adonai, called you righteously,
I took hold of you by the hand,
I shaped you and made you a covenant for the people,
to be a light
for the Goyim,
7 so that you can open blind eyes,
free the prisoners from confinement,
those living in darkness from the dungeon.
8 I am Adonai; that
is my name.
I yield my glory to no one else,
nor my praise to any idol.
9 See how the former predictions come
true;
and now new things do I declare —
before they sprout I tell you about them.”
10 Sing
to Adonai a new song!
Let his praise be sung from the ends of the earth
by those sailing the sea and by everything in it,
by the coastlands and those living there.
11 Let the desert and its cities raise
their voices,
the villages where Kedar lives;
let those living in Sela shout for joy;
let them cry out from the mountaintops!
12 Let them give glory to Adonai
and proclaim his praise in the coastlands.
13 Adonai will
go out like a soldier,
like a soldier roused to the fury of battle;
he will shout, yes, he raises the battle cry;
as he triumphs over his foes.
14 “For a
long time I have held my peace,
I have been silent, restrained myself.
Now I will shriek like a woman in labor,
panting and gasping for air.
15 I will devastate mountains and
hills,
wither all their vegetation,
turn the rivers into islands
and dry up the lakes.
16 The blind I will lead on a road they
don’t know,
on roads they don’t know I will lead them;
I will turn darkness to light before them,
and straighten their twisted paths.
These are things I will do without fail.
17 Those who trust in idols,
who say to statues, ‘You are our gods,’
will be repulsed in utter shame.
18 Listen, you deaf! Look, you blind! —
so that you will see!
19 Who is as blind as my servant,
or as deaf as the messenger I send?
Who is as blind as the one I rewarded,
as blind as the servant of Adonai?”
20 You see
much but don’t pay attention;
you open your ears, but you don’t listen.
21 Adonai was
pleased, for his righteousness’ sake,
to make the Torah great and glorious.
22 But this is a people pillaged and
plundered,
all trapped in holes and sequestered in prisons.
They are there to be plundered, with no one to rescue them;
there to be pillaged, and no one says, “Return them!”
23 Which of you will listen to this?
Who will hear and give heed in the times to come?
24 Who gave Ya‘akov to be pillaged,
Isra’el to the plunderers?
Didn’t Adonai,
against whom we have sinned,
in whose ways they refused to walk,
he whose Torah they did not obey?
25 This is why he poured on him his
blazing anger
as well as the fury of battle —
it wrapped him in flames, yet he learned nothing;
it burned him, yet he did not take it to heart.
[The discussion was cut short by the
clock but seemed to set the stage for something to become.]
[To
me, the report on Cyrus the Great in Isaiah 45 as the servant in Isaiah 42 cuts
short interest in Isaiah 42 as more than another illustration of the chaos that
results from humankind’s negligence of the Genesis 1:26-28 intentions: Each human infant has the opportunity to
choose to rule their life to the good on earth. This message is in fact
repeated in Isaiah 45:18. These considerations appeared in studies I conducted
today, March 3, 2024, recorded in the following pages. Yaakov Brown seems to
count Elohim as judge and Adonai as mercy.]
NIV: The Servant of the Lord
42 “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 teaching the islands will put
their hope.”
5 This is what God the Lord says—
the Creator of the heavens, who stretches them out,
who spreads out the earth with all that
springs from 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 yield 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.”
Song of Praise to the Lord
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 wilderness 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 champion,
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.
Israel Blind and Deaf
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 in
covenant with me,
blind like the servant of
the Lord?
20 You have seen many things, but you pay no attention;
your ears are open, but you do not listen.”
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.” [The covenant people depicted as
victims seems to affirm rescue from Babylon more than from erroneous living.]
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.
Opinions of a Messianic Jew: Yaakaov Brown
Founder of the Beth
Melekh International Messiah Following Jewish Community
https://www.bethmelekh.com/yaakovs-commentary/isaiah-42-behold-now-my-chosen-one
Isaiah 42: Behold Now My Chosen One
Jaakav Brown,
28/10/2018, for MESSIAH YESHUA
Miracles have no value if they achieve
only temporal change (healing). The goal of a true miracle is an eternal one:
to reconcile humanity to God through Messiah. Any miracle that doesn’t bear the
fruit of eternal redemption is not of God. There are times when sickness is a
greater miracle than healing.
Introduction:
In this short chapter the Holy Name YHVH (Mercy) is used nine times. The
Servant (Yeshua)
of Mercy is introduced in the first seven verses of this section of Isaiah,
preceding the disobedient servant (Israel) from whom He comes.
Isaiah introduces us to the servant Israel (Isa. 41:8) as a people chosen to
represent God’s redemptive purpose for all peoples, however, the Servant
of Hashem who
is presented in the beginning of this chapter is clearly distinct from Israel
the people, while also being born of her. In fact, the Servant described in
42:1-7 has such a strong individuality and distinct personal features, that the
title “Servant” cannot be understood of the collective entity Israel (ethnic,
religious, empirical).
From verse 19 onwards we see a different servant, one who is blind, disobedient
and in need of the deliverance offered through the first Servant (v.1-7).
We further note that Hashem has previously alluded to the Servant Who will
bring good news to Israel:
“Rishon The
first Le’Tziyon to
Zion, Hineih Behold,
now, hineih behold,
now, them: and I will give to Yerushalayim Jerusalem one that
brings good news.”
– Isaiah 41:27
With these things in mind we are able to better understand the transition that
takes place over the next 25 verses, where the Servant Messiah, born of the
servant nation, is sent to redeem the disobedient nation and establish justice
in the land.
Isa 42:1 Hein Behold av’di My Servant, etmoch-bo whom I uphold (hold fast); be’chiyriy My chosen one (elect), in Whom ratzetah delights nafshiy My soul (core being); natatiy I have put (given, bestowed,
extended, yielded produce) ruachiy My Spirit alav upon (together with) Him: He will
bring mishpat judgment la-goyim to the Gentiles (nations).
“Behold my servant the
Messiah…I have put My Holy Spirit upon him…” -Targum Yonatan
In spite of the scholarship debate over the application of the title “Servant”
in the opening verses of Isaiah 42, the majority of ancient Jewish commentators
have interpreted Isaiah 42:1-4 to refer to the King Messiah.
In the second part of scroll of Isaiah there are four distinct Messianic
servant prophecies (Isaiah 42:1-7; 49:1-7; 50:4-11; 52:13-53:12).
It’s important to understand and distinguish between the two types of servant
prophecies. The Brit
Ha-Chadashah (NT) applies the Messianic Servant passages of
Isaiah to Yeshua (Jesus)
the King Messiah (Matt. 12:17-20, Luke 2:32; 4:16-18, Acts 8:30-35).
In Isaiah 42:1-4 it is clear that the servant is an individual who has been
given the Ruach Ha-Kodesh (Holy
Spirit) and called to establish justice in the land (earth).
Isa 42:2 He will not cry out, lo-yisa nor exalt Himself (endure, resist,
lift up), nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.
“He will not strive, nor cry;
neither will any man hear his voice in the streets.” -Matthew 12:19
“He will not lift up his
voice…” - Yarchi, Kimchi, & Ben Melech
To put it concisely, He will not seek glory for Himself or cry out in defence
of Himself.
Isa 42:3 Kaneh A reed ratzutz crushed, (bruised,
oppressed) lo He will not break, and the smoking
flax (a dying flame) He will not quench: le-emet for truth He will bring forth
judgment.
“A bruised reed He will not
break, and dying flame He will not put out, until He sends forth judgment to
victory.” -Matthew 12:20
Notice that the Septuagint (Greek OT) version quoted by Matthew (Levi) further illuminates
the form that the judgement Messiah brings will take. His judgement will bring
about the immutable truth of all things and victory over judgement that
condemns, for those who receive Him.
"The meek, who are like a
bruised reed, shall not be broken; and the poor, who are as obscure as flax (or
a lamp ready to go out), shall not be extinct:'' -Targum Yonatan
“Ratzutz” describes
something cracked, that is, half broken. Thus, it is inferred that not only
will He not break it, He will also restore it.
Isa 42:4 He will not yichheh grow weak (fail, be faint, be
restrained) nor be yarutz discouraged (crushed, oppressed), until
He has yasiym set (appointed) mishpat judgment ba-aretz in the land (earth): u’torato and His Torah will be awaited by the iyiym islands (coastlands,
Mediterranean).
The Servant (Yeshua)
is now identified alongside the figures of the previous verse. He will both
ensure the restoration of the broken (v.3) and remain in strength to bring
about justice in the land of Israel (v.4). Thus, the Torah (Instruction) He
imparts will bear fruit among the nations. Notice that the Torah is His. Both the
literal Torah of
Moses and the living Torah (Instruction)
of the Messiah are born of His authorship. Messiah is the author and goal of
the Torah (Romans
10:4).
“Looking to Yeshua the author
and perfecter of our trust; who for the joy that was set before Him
endured the cross, thinking the shame small, and is seated down at the right
hand of the throne of Elohim (God: Judge).” -Hebrews 12:2
Isa 42:5 Thus, says Elohim (God: Judge) Hashem (YHVH: Mercy), Who borei (from bara) created ha-shamayim the heavens, and stretched them
out; He that roka beat out (stamped, spread
forth) ha-aretz the land (earth), and that which
comes out of it; He that notein gives neshamah life breath (convergence of soul
and spirit directly issuing from God) la’am to the people (singular: Israel)
on it, and ruach spirit la-holechiym to them that walk there:
“Created the heavens and
stretched them out” connects the present chapter to Isaiah
40:22.
“To the people” is
singular and refers to the ethnic people of Israel whom the Lord is addressing
through the prophet. In principal it may be applied to all people but the p’shat (plain meaning)
denotes the people of Israel (ethnic, religious).
There is an important distinction made here between the neshamah (life breath)
of humanity and the ruach (spirit,
breath, wind) of both humanity and the various species of creatures that
inhabit the land. The neshamah is
distinct in that it is not merely spirit but is rather the convergence of
spirit and soul (nefesh),
which is imparted to human beings from the Creator from the beginning. Animals
on the other hand are devoid of neshamah (conscious-convergence)
but are endowed with ruach (spirit,
breath). This is why it is said that He created human beings in His own image,
the image being the nature of soul and spirit made echad (one),
inseparable.
Isa 42:6 Ani I Hashem (YHVH: Mercy) have called
you be’tzedek in righteousness, and will hold
your hand, ve’etzarecha and will keep (guard) you, and
give you livriyt for a covenant (cutting) of
(for) am the (a) people, le’or for a light to the goyim Gentiles (nations);
Notice that the Servant will be a “cutting” or a “covenant” for “a people”. The
servant of verses 1 to 7 cannot possibly be Israel because He will be a
covenant for “am”
a single people (Israel). This is why the singular “am” people, is used first and the plural “goyim” nations,
follows. “The Gospel is
first and always for the Jews and also always for the nations” (Romans
1:16).
The “Or” (original
light) spoken of here pre-existed the created lights. God said, “There has been
light (Or), and
there was light (Or)”
[Genesis 1:3]. This correlates to John’s Gospel which says, “In the beginning was the Word-essence
and the Word-essence was with God and the Word-essence was God, He was with God
in the beginning” (John 1:1).
Notice also, that the Servant of Hashem is
given by Hashem as
a covenant. The Servant does not make a covenant (cutting), He is the covenant. This
clearly refers to the King Messiah Yeshua Who
says, “This cup that is
poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood” (Luke
22:20). Yeshua is
the covenant that is both of and for the people of
Israel and because of this He is also the light to the nations. When we fail to
understand this order of redemptive purpose we do harm to the Gospel message,
which is perpetuated in truth only according to the order outlined in
Scripture.
The covenant mentioned here, referring to the Servant Himself (Yeshua) is also alluded to
in Isaiah 54:10 following the essential Messianic passage of Isaiah 53. It is
also the “Eternal covenant” of Isaiah 61:8, and the promised “New covenant” of
Jeremiah 31:31-34 and Ezekiel 16:60.
Isa 42:7 To open the eiynyim eyes of the ivrot blind ones, to bring out from
prison the prisoners, and mi’beiyt from the house of bondage those who sit in choshekh darkness.
The Servant will open the eyes of the blind both physically and spiritually.
This correlates to the smouldering flame that He will not allow to go out
(v.3). He will also set captives free both physically and spiritually. This
correlates to the bruised reed that He will not break or allow to be broken
(v.3). In each case the physical manifestation of a miraculous event is
intended to illuminate the spiritual and eternal truth of salvation through the
Servant (Yeshua).
Miracles have no value if they achieve only temporal change (healing). The goal
of a true miracle is an eternal one: to reconcile humanity to God through
Messiah. Any miracle that doesn’t bear the fruit of eternal redemption is not
of God. There are times when sickness is a greater miracle than healing.
“Choshekh”
darkness, the opposite of Or light
in the Genesis account. Therefore, the light of verse 6 delivers from the
darkness of verse 7.
Isa 42:8 I am Hashem (YHVH: Mercy): that is shemiy My name: u’chevodiy and My glory I will not give to
another, u’tehilatiy nor My praise la’pesiyliym to idols.
“I Mercy, that is My Name, and My glory I will not give to anyone or anything
nor the praise due Me to worthless idols!” He is the very essence of Mercy,
none the less, in mercy He is fierce for His people and will not allow evil to
steal their attention away from Him.
Isa 42:9 Ha-rishonot the first things, hineih now are come to pass, va-chadashot and new things I make known: before
they spring forth I tell you of them.
All this is being said to Israel through the prophet in advance. God is making
the Gospel known first and always to Israel (ethnic, religious), and “Salvation
(Yeshua) comes
from the Jews”.
Isa 42:10 Sing to Hashem (YHVH: Mercy) shiyr chadash a new song, and His praise from the extremity
of ha-aretz the land (earth), you who go down
to ha-yam the sea (body of water, lake
etc.), and all that are there; iyiym the islands (coastlands,
Mediterranean), and the inhabitants there.
This is an instruction to Israel (ethnic, religious) to proclaim the new things
of God in song to the ends of the known world, including the islands of the
Mediterranean. This is in keeping with God’s promise that both Israel and the
Servant Messiah (A Jew) will be a light to the goyim (nations) [42:1; 49:6; 60:3; Luke
2:32; Acts 13:47, 26:23].
Isa 42:11 Let the midbar wilderness (from the Word) and the
cities thereof lift up their voice, the villages Kedar (dark, dusty skinned ones)
inhabited: let the inhabitants of sela the rock (Petra?) sing, let them
shout from the top of the mountains. Isa
42:12 Let
them give glory to Hashem (YHVH: Mercy), and make known His
praise in the iyiym the islands (coastlands,
Mediterranean).
In short, let all people, both obscure and renowned lift up their voices and
shout praise to Hashem because
of the good news of the Servant King Messiah.
Isa 42:13 Hashem (YHVH: Mercy) will go forth as a
mighty ce’iysh man, He will go to war, awakening
jealousy with a shout: He will cry, He will certainly, roar; He will prevail
against His enemies.
This fierce poetic language describes Hashem going
to war against His enemies. His enemies are the forces of darkness that oppose
His glory and His purposed redemption of humanity. His enemies are those who
oppose His chosen ethnic people Israel and His purposes for her. His enemies are
those that oppose His children who share the good news of His Servant,
regardless of their ethnicity. His enemies are those who deny the deity of His
Son Who is literally a “iysh”
man, Who has come to go to war against idolatry, sin and death, defeating the
darkness in the light of His death and resurrection. Are you an enemy or a
friend of God?
Isa 42:14 I have kept silent for a long
time; I have been still, and restrained
Myself: now I will scream like a woman in labour,
gasping; and devour at once.
In poetic language God describes His long suffering, limitless patience. In
doing so He also explains the need for that patience to come to a conclusion so
that mercy might be made known through discipline. Such is His passionate love
for Israel that He screams like a woman in labour, gasping in hopeful
expectation.
Isa 42:15 I will lay waste hariym mountains and gevaot hills, and cause all their herbs
to wither; and I will turn the rivers into islands, and the pools I will dry
up.
In poetic language Hashem’s gasping
screams for the redemption of His chosen people Israel result in the laying
waste of idolatry (mountains) and pride (hills), and the decimation of the
sinful fruit of the highly positioned gods of hubris. Consequently, in
spiritual discipline, God also affects the land in a literal way in counter
distinction to the fruiting of the land in conjunction with spiritual freedom.
Isa 42:16 And I will lead the blind be-derekh in the way they didn’t know; I
will lead them in paths that they
have not known: I will make ma-cheshakh the darkness before them la’or into light, and crooked things
straight. These things I will do, and not forsake them.
Hashem now
links Himself to the actions of the Servant of verse 7 saying, “I will lead the blind in the way”,
that way being the way of the Messiah, a way that Israel was yet to learn. This
is a promise of redemption and freedom from blindness (darkness), bringing the
blind, seeing, into the light. God affirms His promise not to forsake blind
Israel in spite of her wandering, He will “do these things… and not forsake them (Israel).”
Isa 42:17 They will be turned back, they
will be greatly ashamed, that trust in idols (images), that say to the molten
images, “You are our eloheiynu gods (judges).”
Those among Israel who have worshipped the false gods of their neighbours
will shuva repent,
turn back to Hashem through
the Servant (Yeshua)
of verses 1 - 7, and be ashamed in the sense of godly sorrow for sinful
practices because they had foolishly called idols “Our gods.” This is a
promise of the latter redemption of Israel: it comes before the sobering
conclusion of this chapter in order to remind the reader that Mercy precedes Judgement.
Isa 42:18 Hear, you deaf; and look, you
blind, that you may see.
God admonishes Israel in her sinful state to hear, receive, understand, and to
open her spiritual eyes to see the truth of her sin and return to God through
His Servant King Messiah.
Yeshua says, “Let the one who has ears to hear,
listen, perceive, receive, understand…” (Luke 8:8).
Isa 42:19 Who is blind, but My servant? or deaf, as
My messenger that I sent? who is blind ki’m’shulam in order to bring a covenant of
peace (wholeness), and a blind servant of Hashem (YHVH: Mercy)?
The Servant of verses 1 through 7 is clearly not blind. In fact, He ministers
to the blind. Therefore, the servant of verses 19-20 is clearly Israel (ethnic,
religious), who, in spite of her calling has been blind, why? For the sake of
the “covenant of peace” that will be instigated by the Servant (Messiah)
described in verses 1 - 7.
Isa 42:20 Seeing many things, but not
observing; opening the ears, but not yishma hearing.
Speaking again of Israel His servant Hashem describes
their spiritual state using the words that Isaiah has already spoken (Isa. 6:9)
and Yeshua will
later repeat during His ministry in the land of Israel.
“Indeed, in their case the
prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says: ‘You will indeed hear but never
understand, and you will indeed see but never perceive.’ For this people's
heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes
they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears
and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them. But blessed
are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. For truly, I say to
you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not
see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.” -Matthew 13:14-17
Isa 42:21 Hashem (YHVH: Mercy) is delighted for the
sake of His righteousness'; He will yagdiyl magnify (make great) the Torah (Instruction), and reveal
(make) its yadir majesty, honour.
The righteousness of Hashem and His Torah are revealed, therefore,
Israel is without excuse, we have beheld His majesty and the Torah that proceeds
from Him. The same Torah that
the Servant of Isaiah 1-7 sends from Israel to the nations, has been among us
the Jewish people from its entry into time and space through the Patriarchs and
Moses at Sinai.
Isa 42:22 But this is a people robbed and spoiled;
snared in holes (caves), all of them are hidden in prison houses: they have
become a prey, and none delivers them; for a spoil, and none says, “Ha-shav Return, restore.”
This is both figurative and literal. At the time these words were spoken to
Israel we were being robbed, imprisoned by enemies and had become prey for the
nations. It seemed as though there was no one to deliver us. We also allowed
ourselves to be robbed of our sacred religious texts and our calling and identity as the chosen of God.
We were in prisons of our own making, bound by the idols of the nations that
surrounded us. We had become prey to every false idea, and yet we did not
return to Hashem in
order to be restored in Him.
Isa 42:23 Who among you will give ear to
this? who will hearken and hear for the time
to come?
The desperate plea of a birthing mother, the longing cry of a loving father,
and the clarion call of the prophet of salvation and the Servant King Messiah.
Isa 42:24 Who gave Yaakov (follower, Jacob) for a spoil,
and Yisrael (Yisra – overcome in El –
God: Israel) to the robbers? Wasn’t it Hashem (YHVH:
Mercy), He
against Whom we have sinned? for they would not walk in His ways, neither were
they obedient unto His Torah (Instruction).
God makes it clear to Israel His servant that her imprisonment and suffering
are not the result of chance but are part of God’s intentional work for the sake of her redemption.
The giving over of Israel as spoil is an act of discipline intended to bring
her to repentance. The prophet himself interjects to say, “Wasn’t it Hashem, He against Whom we
have sinned?” We had come to this point through sin and
wilfully disobeying His loving
Instruction (Torah).
Isa 42:25 Therefore, He has poured upon him
the fury of His anger, and the strength of battle: and it has set him on fire
round about, yet he knew not; and it burned him, yet he laid it not to leiv heart (core being).
This chapter comes to a sobering conclusion. In spite of the pleas of Adonai and the remarks
of His prophet, Israel will not listen, hear, understand (yet). The fire of His
discipline will burn her and the hardness of her heart will (temporarily)
deceive her until, in exile, she learns to be obedient once more and return to
her loving Father, her faithful Husband, Her unchanging God of Mercy.
© 2018 Yaakov Brown
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyrus_the_Great:
Though it is generally believed that Zarathushtra's teachings maintained influence
on Cyrus's acts and policies, so far no clear evidence has been found to
indicate that Cyrus practiced a specific religion. Pierre Briant wrote that given the poor information we
have, "it seems quite reckless to try to reconstruct what the religion of
Cyrus might have been."[112]
The policies of Cyrus with respect to
treatment of minority religions are documented in many historical accounts,
particularly Babylonian texts and Jewish sources.[113] Cyrus had a general policy of religious tolerance
throughout his vast empire. Whether this was a new policy or the continuation
of policies followed by the Babylonians and Assyrians (as Lester Grabbe
maintains)[114] is disputed. He brought peace to the Babylonians and is
said to have kept his army away from the temples and restored the statues of
the Babylonian gods to their sanctuaries.[9]
His treatment of the Jews during their exile in Babylon
after Nebuchadnezzar II destroyed Jerusalem is reported in the Bible. The Jewish Bible's Ketuvim ends in Second Chronicles with the decree of Cyrus, which returned
the exiles to the Promised Land from Babylon along with a commission to
rebuild the temple.[115]
Thus saith Cyrus, king of Persia: All the
kingdoms of the earth hath the LORD, the God of heaven given me; and He hath
charged me to build Him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whosoever
there is among you of all His people – the LORD, his God, be with him – let him
go there. — (2
Chronicles 36:23)
This edict is also fully reproduced in
the Book of Ezra.
In the first year of King Cyrus, Cyrus the
king issued a decree: "Concerning the house of God at Jerusalem, let the
temple, the place where sacrifices are offered, be rebuilt and let its
foundations be retained, its height being 60 cubits and its width 60 cubits;
with three layers of huge stones and one layer of timbers. And let the cost be
paid from the royal treasury. Also let the gold and silver utensils of the
house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took from the temple in Jerusalem and
brought to Babylon, be returned and brought to their places in the temple in
Jerusalem; and you shall put them in the house of God." — (Ezra 6:3–5)
The Jews honored him as a dignified and righteous
king. In one Biblical passage, Isaiah refers to him as Messiah (lit. "His anointed
one") (Isaiah 45:1), making
him the only gentile to be
so referred. Elsewhere in Isaiah, God is described as saying, "I will raise up Cyrus in my
righteousness: I will make all his ways straight. He will rebuild my city and
set my exiles free, but not for a price or reward, says God Almighty." (Isaiah 45:13) As the text suggests, Cyrus did ultimately
release the nation of Israel from its exile without compensation or tribute.
These particular passages (Isaiah 40–55, often referred to as Deutero-Isaiah) are believed by most
modern critical scholars to have been added by another author
toward the end of the Babylonian exile (c. 536 BC).[116]
From Isaiah 45 CJB:
1Thus says Adonai to Koresh [Cyrus], his anointed,
whose right hand he has grasped,
so that he subdues nations before him
and strips kings of their robes,
so that doors open in front of him,
and no gates are barred:
2 “I will go ahead of you,
levelling the hills,
shattering the bronze gates,
smashing the iron bars.
14Here is what Adonai says:
“The earnings of Egypt, the
commerce of Ethiopia,
and men of stature from S’va
will come over to you and
become yours;
they will come in chains and follow you.
They will prostrate themselves
before you;
they will pray to you:
‘Surely God is with you; there
is no other,
other gods are nothing.’”
18 For thus says Adonai, who created the heavens,
God, who shaped and made the earth,
who
established and created it not to be chaos,
but formed it to be lived in:
“I am Adonai;
there is no other.
niv
14This is what the Lord says:
and those tall Sabeans—
they will come over to you
and will be yours;
they will trudge behind you,
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