Isaiah 42:10-43:7 Click here for Bible Verses
Hi GAMErs!
Today’s passage is Isaiah 42:10-43:7. Let’s go!
Isaiah 42:10-25 (NIV)
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.
Isaiah 43:1-7 (NIV)
1 But now, this is what the LORD says– he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.
2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.
3 For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead.
4 Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give men in exchange for you, and people in exchange for your life.
5 Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west.
6 I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’ and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’ Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth–
7 everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.”
On 42:10 to 43:7: God’s people had persistently turned a deaf ear and a blind eye (42:18-19) to God’s great and glorious laws (42:21). As a result they were captured and taken away like loot (42:22-25). Now they were exiles in Babylon. So the LORD says to the Jewish exiles in Babylon that He is coming to the rescue. Despite all the ways that His people have been stubborn and rebellious toward Him, God is committed to rescuing them (43:1-7).
43:1-7 shows us that God treasures His people and loves them, so much so that He is willing to exchange someone else for them (“I will give men in exchange for you, and people in exchange for your life” v4). He wants to have a personal relationship with them. Because of this, the only fitting response from His people is to “sing to the LORD a new song, His praise to the ends of the earth” (42:10).
This is a picture of how God treats us today as well. Despite all the ways we turn a deaf ear and a blind eye to God’s laws, God does not stop loving us. God sent Jesus Christ in exchange for us. Jesus died the death we were supposed to die, paying for our sins on the cross. He did this to rescue us from an eternity of being separated from a holy God. It’s because God treasures you, loves you and wants a personal relationship with you, despite all the ways you and I have turned our backs on Him in the past. That is the amazing love of God.
So today’s verses can be structured this way:
42:10-13 describes the end result of God rescuing His people, which is that the people praise, sing and give glory to God.
42:14-17 describes the Lord’s promise to do a rescuing work for His people.
42:18-25 describe the problem that made God’s rescuing work necessary, which was the people’s stubbornness and sinfulness.
43:1-7 is God’s personal promise to His people that He will rescue them.
By the way, 43:1-7 contains some of the most beautiful promises in the Old Testament, ones which have comforted me greatly when I have gone through tough trials. I encourage you to commit verses 1-2 to memory. You won’t regret it.
Father, thank You for Your amazing, unconditional love You show us. Thank You that despite all the times I have turned my back on You, You still come to my rescue time and time again. Because of that may I always sing of Your amazing love and give You glory with my life. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
