Isaiah · chapter 42 of 66
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Isaiah 42 presents the Lord's chosen servant, on whom his Spirit rests and who will bring justice to the nations gently, without breaking a bruised reed or quenching a smoldering wick. The Lord makes him a covenant for the people and a light for the nations, to open blind eyes and bring out prisoners. The chapter calls for a new song and ends by lamenting the blindness and deafness of Israel.
Isaiah 42 contains the first of the four servant songs of the Lord, which run through chapters 42-53. This song, in vv. 1-9, presents a figure of universal mission and gentle character. Matthew 12:18-21 quotes these words to describe the ministry of Jesus, and many Christians read it as an advance portrait of the Messiah.
The chapter begins with a solemn introduction: behold my servant, whom I uphold; my chosen, in whom my soul delights. I have put my Spirit on him, and he will bring justice to the nations. He will not cry out or lift up his voice in the street. A bruised reed he will not break and a smoldering wick he will not quench, but he will faithfully bring forth justice. He will not grow faint or be discouraged until he has established justice in the earth, and the coastlands wait for his law.
Then the Lord speaks, the creator of the heavens and the earth, who gives breath to the people on it. He says to the servant: I have called you in righteousness, I will take you by the hand and keep you, and give you as a covenant for the people, a light for the nations, to open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from the dungeon and those who sit in darkness from the prison. He is the Lord; his glory he will not give to another, nor his praise to idols.
Then a call goes out to sing to the Lord a new song from the ends of the earth: those who go down to the sea, the coastlands, the wilderness and its cities, Kedar, the inhabitants of Sela. The Lord will go out like a mighty man, like a man of war he will stir up his zeal. He has kept silent a long time, but now he will cry out like a woman in labor. He will lay waste mountains and hills, and lead the blind by a way they do not know.
The last part addresses the deaf and the blind. Who is blind but my servant? Who is deaf like my messenger? He sees many things but does not observe them; his ears are open but he does not hear. This people is plundered and robbed, and the Lord himself gave them up, because they sinned against him and would not walk in his ways. He poured out on them the heat of his anger, and though it set them on fire, they did not take it to heart.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
The Lord presents his chosen servant, in whom he delights, with his Spirit upon him, who will bring justice to the nations. This mission is not limited to Israel: its reach is universal.
The servant will not break a bruised reed or quench a smoldering wick, but will faithfully bring forth justice. It is an image of tenderness toward the fragile; Matthew quotes it about Jesus.
The Lord calls his servant in righteousness, takes him by the hand and gives him as a covenant for the people and a light for the nations, to open blind eyes and bring out prisoners. The mission includes healing and liberation.
A call goes out to sing a new song to the Lord from the ends of the earth. Praise for God's work crosses the borders of Israel and gathers the nations.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: His Spirit. — Isaiah 42:1
Answer: He will not break the bruised reed or quench the smoldering wick. — Isaiah 42:3
Answer: He will not grow faint or be discouraged until he has established justice in the earth. — Isaiah 42:4
Answer: A covenant for the people and a light for the nations. — Isaiah 42:6
Answer: Open the eyes of the blind and bring prisoners out of the dungeon. — Isaiah 42:7
Answer: His servant Israel, who sees many things but does not observe them. — Isaiah 42:19-20
The servant of Isaiah 42 models a style of leadership and service that contrasts with noise and force. He does not shout, does not break the weak, does not give out. In a Sunday school class you can reflect on how we treat fragile people: the bruised reed and smoldering wick may be a weary brother, a doubting young person or someone who is sick. Following Jesus means learning to care without crushing.
The second part of the chapter calls for honesty. Israel, the servant, is blind and deaf. In a small group you can ask where we see much and obey little, and ask the Lord to open our eyes. The same servant who opens blind eyes can also heal our lack of attention to God.
Isaiah 42 presents the servant who brings justice and light to the nations and rebukes the people's blindness. Chapter 43 will continue with a word of comfort and redemption for Israel: fear not, for I have redeemed you, I have called you by name.
Interpreters have read him in several ways: as Israel, as a prophet or as an individual figure. Matthew 12:18-21 quotes this passage and applies it to Jesus, and most Christians see in it an advance portrait of the Messiah, though from verse 19 on the blind servant is Israel.
They are images of what is fragile and about to go out. The servant does not take advantage of people's weakness to crush them but cares for them patiently while continuing to work for justice.
In this chapter the title servant is used in two ways. In vv. 1-9 it describes an ideal servant, faithful and gentle; in vv. 18-25 it refers to Israel as a people, who has not fulfilled its mission. That tension is resolved in the following chapters, where the faithful servant bears the people's guilt.