Isaiah now
turns to some of the most significant prophecies in the Old Testament,
prophecies of incomparable magnitude. No doubt, they are among the most quoted.
The subject is the Savior, the coming Messiah, who would come to earth as the
humble Servant of God and give His life for the sins of the world.
The Savior’s
mission is to save; His call to every person in the world is to be saved. No
matter how wicked or wretched a person is, Isaiah proclaims the hope of
deliverance and of a glorious future to all who will repent and turn back to
God. The great invitation of the Savior is not only to the Jew, but to every
person on the face of the earth. All may come and drink freely of the living
water offered by Him, for the price of their redemption has already been paid.
No greater messages have ever been preached than those of Isaiah’s prophecies—the good news of the Suffering Servant of God dying for the sins of the world. The Messiah can save, and He will save. He will save all who truly trust in Him, repent of their sins, and follow in His steps of righteousness. This is the glorious message preached by Isaiah, the prophecies of the great Deliverer, the Suffering Servant of God, the Savior of the world.
The Savior’s Mission
to the World:
Being Eternally Called to Reach the World for God, Isaiah 49:1–50:11
Isaiah 49:1-26 Listen to me, all of you in far-off lands: The Lord
called me before my birth. From within the womb, he called me by my name. 2God
will make my words of judgment sharp as swords. He has hidden me in the shadow
of his hand; I am like a sharp arrow in his quiver.
3He
said to me: “You are my servant, a prince of power a with God, and you
shall bring me glory.”
4I
replied, “But my work for them seems all in vain; I have spent my strength
for them without response. Yet I leave it all with God for my reward.”
5“And
now,” said the Lord—the Lord who formed me from my mother’s womb to serve him
who commissioned me to restore to him his people Israel, who has given me the
strength to perform this task and honored me for doing it!—6“you
shall do more than restore Israel to me. I will make you a Light to the nations
of the world to bring my salvation to them too.”
7The
Lord, the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel, says to the One who is despised,
rejected by mankind, and kept beneath the heel of the world’s rulers: “Kings
shall stand at attention when you pass by; princes shall bow low because the
Lord has chosen you; he, the faithful Lord, the Holy One of Israel, chooses
you.”
8-9The
Lord says, “Your request has come at a favorable time. I will keep you from
harm and give you as a token and pledge to Israel, proof that I will
reestablish the land of Israel and reassign it to its own people again. Through
you, I am saying to the prisoners of darkness, ‘Come out! I am giving you your
freedom!’ They will be my sheep, grazing in green pastures and on the grassy
hills. 10They shall neither hunger nor thirst; the searing sun and
scorching desert winds will not reach them anymore. For the Lord in his mercy
will lead them beside the cool waters. 11And I will make my
mountains into level paths for them; the highways shall be raised above the
valleys. 12See, my people shall return from far away, from north,
west, and south.”
13Sing
for joy, O heavens; shout, O earth. Break forth with song, O mountains, for the
Lord has comforted his people and will have compassion upon them in their
sorrow.
14Yet
they say, “My Lord deserted us; he has forgotten us.”
15“Never!
Can a mother forget her little child and not have love for her own son? Yet
even if that should be, I will not forget you. 16See, I have
tattooed your name upon my palm, and ever before me is a picture of Jerusalem’s
walls in ruins. 17Soon your rebuilders shall come and chase away all
those destroying you. 18Look and see, for the Lord has vowed that
all your enemies shall come and be your slaves. They will be as jewels to
display, as bridal ornaments.
19“Even
the most desolate parts of your abandoned land shall soon be crowded with your
people, and your enemies who enslaved you shall be far away. 20The
generations born in exile shall return and say, ‘We need more room! It’s
crowded here!’ 21Then you will think to yourself, ‘Who has given me
all these? For most of my children were killed, and the rest were carried away
into exile, leaving me here alone. Who bore these? Who raised them for me?’”
22The
Lord God says, “See, I will give a signal to the Gentiles, and they shall carry
your little sons back to you in their arms, and your daughters on their
shoulders. 23Kings and queens shall serve you; they shall care for
all your needs. They shall bow to the earth before you and lick the dust from off
your feet; then you shall know I am the Lord. Those who wait for me shall never
be ashamed.”
24Who
can snatch the prey from the hands of a mighty man? Who can demand that a
tyrant let his captives go? 25But the Lord says, “Even the captives
of the most mighty and most terrible shall all be freed; for I will fight those
who fight you, and I will save your children. 26I will feed your
enemies with their own flesh, and they shall be drunk with rivers of their own
blood. All the world shall know that I, the Lord, am your Savior and Redeemer,
the Mighty One of Israel.”
Isaiah 50:1-11 The Lord asks, Did I
sell you to my creditors? Is that why you aren’t here? Is your mother gone
because I divorced her and sent her away? No, you went away as captives because
of your sins. And your mother, too, was taken in payment for your sins. 2Was
I too weak to save you? Is that why the house is silent and empty when I come
home? Have I no longer power to deliver? No, that is not the reason! For I can
rebuke the sea and make it dry! I can turn the rivers into deserts, covered
with dying fish. 3I am the one who sends the darkness out across the
skies.
4The
Lord God has given me his words of wisdom so that I may know what I should say
to all these weary ones. Morning by morning he wakens me and opens my
understanding to his will. 5The Lord God has spoken to me, and I
have listened; I do not rebel nor turn away. 6I give my back to the
whip, and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard. I do not hide from
shame—they spit in my face.
7Because
the Lord God helps me, I will not be dismayed; therefore, I have set my face
like flint to do his will, and I know that I will triumph. 8He who
gives me justice is near. Who will dare to fight against me now? Where are my
enemies? Let them appear! 9See, the Lord God is for me! Who shall
declare me guilty? All my enemies shall be destroyed like old clothes eaten up
by moths!
10Who among you fears the Lord and obeys his Servant? If such men walk in darkness, without one ray of light, let them trust the Lord, let them rely upon their God. 11But see here, you who live in your own light and warm yourselves from your own fires and not from God’s; you will live among sorrows.[1] (Isaiah49:1–50:11)
The Savior’s Mission
to the World:
Being Eternally Called to Reach the World for God, Isaiah
Jesus suffers long, Jesus is kind; Jesus does not envy; Jesus does not parade Himself, Jesus is not puffed up; Jesus does not behave rudely, Jesus does not seek His own, Jesus is not provoked, Jesus thinks no evil; Jesus does not rejoice in iniquity, Jesus rejoices in the truth; Jesus bears all things, Jesus believes all things, Jesus hopes all things, Jesus endures all things. (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)[2]
Introduction: God loves the world. He
loves every single person in the world, including murderers, abusers,
oppressors, liars, thieves, wife-beaters, naggers, complainers, agnostics, and atheists.
Even when people curse, reject, and defy Him, God loves them. No matter how
people treat God, He still loves them. He wants to save all people from the
terrifying judgment that is coming against all their ungodliness and
unrighteousness. Because of His love for the world, God sent His Son, the Lord
Jesus Christ, to deliver the human race from the coming judgment (1 Corinthians
13:4-7).
This present
Scripture proclaims the Savior’s mission to the world. God sent Christ into the
world to save and help people: the unbelievers; the discouraged who feel
deserted, alienated, forsaken, forgotten; the weary and heavily burdened; and
the whole human race. This is, The
Savior’s Mission to the World: Being Eternally Called to Reach the World for God, 49:1–50:11.
a 49:3
a prince of power, or
“Israel.”
[1] Taylor, Kenneth Nathaniel. 1997. The
Living Bible, Paraphrased.
Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House.
[2] The New King James
Version. 1982. Nashville: Thomas Nelson.
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