Presumably you are continuing your studies on from chapters 40 to 43 and then 44 to 48 and therefore you should have read the Introductions and notes that set up this set of studies and put them in context.

Where these studies fit

In chapters 40-48 we saw the call to get ready for the coming of the Lord and the folly of idol worship. Chapter 40 spoke of God coming. In the following chapters the Lord warned of judgement, and derided idol worship but sowed seeds of hope with the talk of one who was to come as His Servant to bring justice, hope and freedom. He also spoke of restoration after an obvious exile, enabled by the use of a Gentile king called Cyrus. He followed this by warning that Babylon would fall and that Israel should return to their land in an attitude of righteousness. That brought us to the end of chapter 48.

Chapters 49 to 54 are full of talk of restoration and includes 3 “Songs” about the coming servant. In this respect, these chapters are more full of hope for the future than any of the preceding ones, in fact they are flooded with fuel for hope!

What we will find in these studies

In these chapters we will see:

• 2nd Servant Song & promise of restoration (Ch.49)

• Reason for the Exile & 3 rd Servant Song (Ch.50)

• Ongoing hope of restoration and salvation (Ch.51 & 52)

• The 4 th Servant Song – the Suffering Servant (Ch.52,53)

• The future glory of the people of God (Ch.54)

Part 1: “The Bigger Picture”

In this first chapter, chapter 49, we will see the second Servant Song and then the Lord promising restoration. Both of these themes, which are repeated in the following chapters, make us look far beyond the immediate circumstances and help us see something of God's bigger plans for both Israel and the whole world. When the crisis of the Exile comes, we are to know that it was not an accident but part of the whole plan of God – and restoration, and world salvation will follow!

Chapter: Isaiah 49

Passage: Isaiah 49:1-4

A. Find Out:

1. What does the speaker say about his destiny? v.1

2. What weapons has the lord make him like? v.2a,c

3. Yet what had the Lord done with him? v.2b,d

4. How did the Lord address him? v.3

5. What did he feel? v.4a,b

6. But how did he encourage himself? v.4c,d

B. Think:

1. What indications are there that this could be national Israel ?

2. Yet what is against that?

3. How could these verses be applied to Jesus?

C. Comment:

This is the second ‘song' of God's servant. The first one was in 42:1-7. There have been other references to Israel as God's servant (e.g. 43:10, 44:1 etc.) but this is only the second passage where the ‘servant' is described.

His origins were long back in God's mind. His coming was not a second thought, but he was part of God's long-term plan. Much of his activity will be with the word of God (sword-mouth) and he will be direct and all-out in fulfilling God's purposes directly (polished arrow).

Yet, it will be as if he is hidden and not clearly revealed. It is at this point that any doubts that we might have had about this being Israel, really surface. Although this figure is referred to as Israel, Israel did not come with the word of God with such directness as is referred to here, and they were certainly not hidden, unless you refer to their time in Egypt as a hidden time (which it was). This person will reveal God's glory.

But then the servant sounds very weary and almost defeated, so much so that he has to simply declare his trust in God as an act of faith. There is surely going to come a time in his life and ministry that will be very difficult, where he almost fears failure.

Surely all these descriptions fit the life and ministry of Jesus. A direct word ministry, hidden for 30 years, hidden from the eyes of the ungodly, ending in apparent defeat (that was yet utter victory!). This surely is a proclamation of the coming Messiah, Jesus Christ.

D. Application:

1. Jesus was part of God's eternal plan for this world.

2. Jesus came with God's word and God's salvation. Hallelujah!

Chapter: Isaiah 49

Passage: Isaiah 49:5-7

A. Find Out:

1. What general and specific task is given to the speaker? v.5a,b

2. How is he vied by God? v.5c,d

3. What does the Lord ask him? v.6a-c

4. What also does He say He will do and why? v.6d.e

5. How does the Lord also refer to him? v.7b

6. What does He say will happen and why? v.7c-f

B. Think:

1. What great task is spoken about in these verses?

2. Yet how will he be seen by many?

3. Yet what will God do for him in the end?

C. Comment:

The ‘servant' continues to speak prophetically. First he speaks of the task he has been given. First it is to bring Israel back to God. This is the initial calling of the Messiah. When Jesus came he was careful to go first and foremost to the Jews. But then the Lord reveals something far bigger: this servant is to be a light for the entire rest of the world. God's heart is not just for one small nation, it is for the entire world. This was a truth that the Jews found difficult to handle. Even when Jesus told his Jewish followers that they would go to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8), they still thought it would be to Jews scattered across the earth. Peter had a real struggle to cope with this truth (Acts 10:14,28).

Then we are told how this servant will be regarded. There is an indication first (v.7) that he will be despised by many. Today Jesus is written off by many as merely a prophet, or even less! Yet the prophecy then reveals that he will be one before whom even great rulers will bow. This one will be exalted above all else. Why? Simply because the Lord has decreed it; this is His plan for His world.

The purpose of this servant is to bring Israel back to God (hence the servant cannot just be Israel itself), and then to bring the light of God's presence and revelation to the entire world! Wow! How incredible is this!

D. Application:

1. Jesus was rejected by many. Tough on them!

2. Jesus is Lord of all. Worship him!

Chapter: Isaiah 49

Passage: Isaiah 49:8-12

A. Find Out:

1. What are the for “I will”s the Lord says, and why? v.8

2. What will the servant say to whom? v.9a,b

3. What 4 things will the delivered do & won't do? v.9c,d,10a,b

4. What 2 things will the lord do for them? v.10c,d

5. In what ways will He prepare for them? v.11

6. From where will they come? v.12

B. Think:

1. What is the servant's role in all this? (be careful)

2. How will the Lord make it easier for the dispersed to return?

3. How will He help them in their return?

C. Comment:

Continuing this passage about the servant (because it must be about him) the Father says He will be there in close contact with the Son and will give him wisdom (help him) and protect him (keep him) and the purpose of all this is to make the servant the basis of a covenant between believers and God. Everything we are and have today depends on Jesus, on whether we receive the Lord's goodness that is released to us through the work of the Cross. Then comes the prophetic language to describe all this in detail.

He will speak to the captives, those in slavery to sin, in the darkness of lostness, “Come out!”, and we came! Today we are on a path that is taking us towards heaven. Along the way the Lord feeds us and provides sustenance even in apparently barren places. The promise is that we will not be in need, and the heat of the day (struggles against the pressures of life in 21 st century) will not wear us down, and the Lord will guide us and lead us to places of refreshment, and obstacles will be brought down and the way made easy to come to Him. Yes, we have spiritualised this passage, but that is the practical application of the prophetic outworking of the work of the servant. This did happen physically in the exile but the picture is bigger than that. It is for now! It is for the greater outworking of the work of Jesus Christ.

D. Application:

1. Are we receiving the Lord's provision, His grace for today?

2. Are we knowing His guidance, provision and protection – today?

Chapter: Isaiah 49

Passage: Isaiah 49:13-16

A. Find Out:

1. Who does the Lord tell what to do? v.13a,b

2. Why? v.13c,d

3. What had Jerusalem said? v.14

4. What does the Lord ask? v.15a,b

5. But what does the Lord say? v.15c,d

6. How has Her ensured that? v.16

B. Think:

1. Why is the Lord telling the world to rejoice?

2. Why do you think the occupants of Jerusalem feel as they do?

3. So what is the point of these verses?

C. Comment:

The Lord has just made the most wonderful of announcements – that His deliverer is coming! This is going to be wonderful, so He exhorts the whole earth to rejoice in the wonder of what is happening. We can't stop saying it – it is wonderful! The Lord is going to intervene in the affairs of men and He is going to bring His people out of darkness into the light of His love. This is something to shout about!

The only trouble is that Jerusalem, the city at the heart of Israel, is in a state of gloom. Why? Because when things have been going wrong for a while it is so easy to think that God has forgotten you and that this state is going to go on and on.

So the Lord seeks to reassure them. Look, He says, think about a relationship where there is a strong bond – say a mother and her tiny baby. Is it likely that she will forget the child at her breast or have no feelings for her little one? This is inconceivable! Well, says the Lord, if that was remotely possible, my forgetting you is not! Look, He says, it's like I've actually engraved your name on my hands so that every time I see my hands (figuratively), I see you. There is no way that I can forget you.

D. Application:

1. One of my biggest temptations is to think that the Lord has forgotten me

when things go wrong. I must resist this lie!

2. The Lord watches over me at all times (Psa 121:5). I will rejoice and

thank Him for this.

Chapter: Isaiah 49

Passage: Isaiah 49 :17-20

A. Find Out:

1. What 2 groups do what? v.17

2. What does the Lord tell them to do to see what? v.18a,b

3. What does He say about them? v.18c-e

4. What had been their state? v.19a,b

5. But what will be their state? v.19c,20

6. But what about the enemy? v.19d

B. Think:

1. What do you think the ‘ornaments' reference means?

2. What is the main thrust of these verses saying?

3. How therefore will the future be different from the recent past?

C. Comment:

The Lord has been saying that He will restore the land (v.8) to bring his people from afar (v.12). Now He reiterates this with full strength. First He declares that there are two things that will happen: the enemy in the land will be gone, and their children who are scattered will return to the land.

When they come, He continues, these returning children (future generations?) will be a clear and obvious sign to everyone else that you are blessed (ornaments) and that you are my bride.

In the past the land was laid waste by enemy invaders who swept through devastating it and destroying all the people. In the past the land was left desolate with hardly any inhabitants (and of course, this was how it was in the Exile which was yet in the future), but when the children of the present generations return, the land will almost be over populated, so great will be the return.

Children born in their bereavement? Is that a reference to children born in exile in Babylon, or even perhaps, those born through the centuries of their dispersion after AD70 and before the return in the middle of the 20th century? Or does it refer spiritually to the multitudes who will simply be saved as a result of the work of Jesus on the Cross? Eternity will tell! But it has happened and will happen for God has decreed it.

D. Application:

1. God's plan is to bring a holy people into being. We're part of it.

2. God's plan is worked out over centuries and is still working.

Chapter: Isaiah 49

Passage: Isaiah 49:21-23

A. Find Out:

1. What question will arise in their hearts? v.21a,b

2. What will provoke that question? v.21c-e

3. Who will the Lord speak to? v.22a,b

4. What will they do? v.22c,d

5. What will have a hand in all this? v.23a,b

6. What will be the result? v.23e

B. Think:

1. How does v.21 continue from the previous verses?

2. What is special about this return in these verses?

3. What questions and answers will it provide?

C. Comment:

From verse 17 the Lord has been speaking of a return to the Land that He is planning for the descendants of the present Israel. This is nothing small, this is a mighty return of many, many people. The land will be full of the returning people. In fact, He goes on now, you will look at what is happening and wonder how such a thing could be. They will look at the past and see the fact that they were exiled and apparently totally devastated, and then look at the returning people and wonder how such a thing could have happened.

The answer to that, continues the Lord, is that I am going to use the Gentile nations to bring my people back, so it will be the provision of the rest of the world than enables this to happen. World leaders (kings and queens) will have a part in this, enabling it to happen, and they will be looking after my people. They will honour you, and when all this happens, THEN you will know that I am the Lord, the eternal One who plans purposes and acts.

At the end of the Exile it was a Gentile king , Cyrus, who was instrumental in enabling Israel to return to the land again. In the mid-twentieth century it was other nations and world leaders who helped start restoring Israel to their own land. Those who had an eye to see, recognised the work of God fulfilling His purposes.

D. Application:

1. The Lord can use all nations for His purposes, both Jew and Gentile.

2. The Lord works over millennia, not simply years.

Chapter: Isaiah 49

Passage: Isaiah 49:24-26

A. Find Out:

1. What two questions does the Lord ask? v.24

2. What does He reply to His own questions? v.25b,c

3. What does He say He will do withy their enemies? v.25d,e

4. What further does He say about them? v.26a,b

5. What will be the result of all that? v.26c,d

B. Think:

1. What worry is the Lord addressing here?

2. Why do you think Israel would have that worry?

3. What is the Lord's response to it?

C. Comment:

From verse 17 on, the Lord has been talking about how He will bring back their sons (future generations) and how it will be at the hand of Gentile rulers that all this will happen. Now we find the Lord answering a question that is obviously there in the background of the minds of the Jews. It is a very natural question when you have been invaded by a more powerful nation who have devastated you and taken off thousands of your people into slavery – is it possible that they will ever be returned? In the face of the shock and horror that must come when that has happened to you, this must be a very real question.

So it is that the Lord speaks the question out in the open, and then answers it – yes, it is definitely possible and (implied) I will do it. This of course is exactly what He did at the Exile and in the mid 20th century. The Lord then expands on that: I will stand against them so that your children will be released. Indeed I will turn your enemies in on themselves and they will be destroyed, so that when anyone looks on they will know without doubt, that it is I who have done this thing.

These verses are concluding summary verses of all that have gone before: have no doubt, says the Lord, I will free your children from the nations among who they will reside and I will bring them back here. Why? Because I am the Lord, and I want all nations to see and to know that that is my work.

D. Application:

1. When the Lord speaks, He means it! Thank Him.

2. Nothing is to difficult for the Lord to change. Seek Him.

RECAP - "The Bigger Picture" - Isaiah Chapter 49

SUMMARY :

In this first group of 7 studies we have seen :

- The Second Servant Song

  - the Servant prepared by the Lord (v.1-3)

  - having a sense of futility (v.4)

  - formed to call Israel back to God (v.5)

  - also sent to be a light for the world (v.6,7)

- The Lord will draw Israel back (v.8-13)

- Q.1 Jerusalem feels forgotten (v.14)

- The Lord denying it, saying He will restore them (v.15-23)

- Q.2 They ask can attackers be overcome (v.24)

- The Lord confirms He will deal with their enemies (v.25,26)

COMMENT :

The tendency is always to focus on what is happening to you at THIS moment. In this chapter we are shown a bigger picture. First of all it is reference, a second time, to the servant that the Lord is going to raise up. This servant won't only go to Israel, but will go to the whole world. God's purposes are much bigger than just one nation!

The remainder of the chapter is all about the restoring of the people of God. Twice Israel question (v.14 & 24) and twice the Lord declares His intentions. Exile will come but restoration WILL follow, despite the power of the invading armies. This is long-term will-of-God stuff!

LESSONS?

1. There is no one outside the scope of God's plans.

2. Jesus is Saviour available for all.

3. The present is only part of the whole picture.

4. Restoration always follows judgement in God's kingdom.

5. Human forces are no match for the Lord.

PRAY :

Thank the Lord for His big plans. Ask Him to open your eyes to grasp the scope of them more fully.

PART 2 : "Sin and Salvation"

In this next Part see first Israel's sin declared, followed by the Third Servant Song bringing God's salvation.