November 08, 2023 – Wednesday
Isaiah 49:6 & 8-9 AKJV
6 Indeed He says, ‘It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant
To raise up the tribes of Jacob, And to restore the preserved ones of Israel;
I will also give You as a light to the Gentiles,
That You should be My salvation to the ends of the earth.’”8 Thus says the Lord: “In an acceptable time I have heard You, and in the day of salvation I have helped You;
I will preserve You and give You as a covenant to the people, to restore the earth, To cause them to inherit the desolate heritages; 9 That You may say to the prisoners, ‘Go forth,’ to those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves.’ “They shall feed along the roads, and their pastures shall be on all desolate heights.
Comments
I first wrote on this November 14, 2014 – a Friday. What fascinates me about this is how God speaks in the present tense about something that in our time occurred seven (!) centuries later.
Looking at verse six, the light spoken of is Jesus corresponding with or pointing to John 3:19-21, 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God. Jesus is the Light and He is salvation to the ends of the earth.
If we look at verse 8 next, it is the Father, Jehovah, addressing His Son Yeshua and let us remember salvation is one of the primary definitions of the Hebrew word from Strong’s H3444, yĕshuw`ah יְשׁוּעָה, with a pronunciation of yesh-u-a. So there we have, 8 Thus says the Lord: “In an acceptable time I have heard You, and in the day of salvation I have helped You; I will preserve You and give You as a covenant to the people, to restore the earth, To cause them to inherit the desolate heritages.
Then verse 9 on the “light” in verse 6 and points once again to John 3:19-21 as given above. Here is verse 9, 9 That You may say to the prisoners, ‘Go forth,’ to those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves.’ “They shall feed along the roads, and their pastures shall be on all desolate heights. Prisoners of sin may be freed if they will but show themselves.
Returning to verse 8, below is an abridged version of John Gill’s Exposition of the verse, Thus saith the Lord These are the words of God the Father to his Son continued; the Jews themselves interpret them of the Messiah; in an acceptable time have I heard thee: this was the time when Christ was here on earth, when he became incarnate, and suffered and died for his people: this was an acceptable time to God the Father; …; and in a day of salvation have I helped thee; at the time when he wrought out the salvation of his people, then he helped him in it, and through it, as he promised him, and as Christ believed he would. This is to be understood of him as man and Mediator, and to show the greatness of the work of salvation, and the concern of God in it; otherwise, as Christ is the mighty God, he needed no help, and his own arm brought salvation to him; and I will preserve thee; as he did from his enemies in life, in his infancy, and when grown up, that his life might not be taken away before his time; …; and give thee for a covenant of the people; Jews and Gentiles, all that are given to him, and whom he redeems by his blood, whom the Spirit sanctifies, and applies the blessings and promises of the covenant to; which is to be understood of the covenant of grace …; and the end of all this is to establish the earth; not the land of Judea, but the whole earth. Powerful words about Jesus 700 years before He humbled Himself to become a man.
Bottom Line: God’s word can be trusted as He gives us glimpses of the coming of Christ.
Prayer: Almighty God, You gave us the promise of the Messiah seven centuries before He came. From this we should learn to wait on You to do what You will to do in Your own time. – In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
RileyD, nwJ
Riley D. Driver – Pastor
Still writing and working for the Glory of God