Yesaya 42:1

The Lord Commissions His Special Servant

42:1 ¹ “Here is my servant whom I support,

my chosen one in whom I take pleasure.

I have placed my spirit on him;

he will make just decrees ²  for the nations. ³ 

Yesaya 42:4

42:4 He will not grow dim or be crushed ⁴ 

before establishing justice on the earth;

the coastlands ⁵  will wait in anticipation for his decrees.” ⁶ 

Yesaya 42:6

42:6 “I, the Lord, officially commission you; ⁷ 

I take hold of your hand.

I protect you ⁸  and make you a covenant mediator for people, ⁹ 

and a light ¹⁰  to the nations, ¹¹ 

Yesaya 42:10-12

42:10 Sing to the Lord a brand new song!

Praise him ¹²  from the horizon of the earth,

you who go down to the sea, and everything that lives in it, ¹³ 

you coastlands ¹⁴  and those who live there!

42:11 Let the desert and its cities shout out,

the towns where the nomads of Kedar live!

Let the residents of Sela shout joyfully;

let them shout loudly from the mountaintops.

42:12 Let them give the Lord the honor he deserves; ¹⁵ 

let them praise his deeds in the coastlands. ¹⁶ 

[42:1]  ¹ sn Verses 1-7 contain the first of Isaiah’s “servant songs,” which describe the ministry of a special, ideal servant who accomplishes God’s purposes for Israel and the nations. This song depicts the servant as a just king who brings justice to the earth and relief for the oppressed. The other songs appear in 49:1-13; 50:4-11; and 52:13-53:12.

[42:1]  ² tn Heb “he will bring out justice” (cf. ASV, NASB, NRSV).

[42:1]  ³ sn Like the ideal king portrayed in Isa 11:1-9, the servant is energized by the divine spirit and establishes justice on the earth.

[42:4]  ⁴ tn For rhetorical effect the terms used to describe the “crushed (רָצַץ, ratsats) reed” and “dim (כָּהָה, kahah) wick” in v. 3 are repeated here.

[42:4]  ⁵ tn Or “islands” (NIV); NLT “distant lands beyond the sea.”

[42:4]  ⁶ tn Or “his law” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NIV) or “his instruction” (NLT).

[42:6]  ⁷ tn Heb “call you in righteousness.” The pronoun “you” is masculine singular, referring to the servant. See the note at 41:2.

[42:6]  ⁸ tn The translation assumes the verb is derived from the root נָצַר (natsar, “protect”). Some prefer to derive it from the root יָצַר (yatsar, “form”).

[42:6]  ⁹ tn Heb “a covenant of people.” A person cannot literally be a covenant; בְּרִית (bÿrit) is probably metonymic here, indicating a covenant mediator. The precise identity of עָם (’am, “people”) is uncertain. In v. 5 עָם refers to mankind, and the following reference to “nations” also favors this. But in 49:8, where the phrase בְּרִית עָם occurs again, Israel seems to be in view.

[42:6]  ¹⁰ sn Light here symbolizes deliverance from bondage and oppression; note the parallelism in 49:6b and in 51:4-6.

[42:6]  ¹¹ tn Or “the Gentiles” (so KJV, ASV, NIV); the same Hebrew word can be translated “nations” or “Gentiles” depending on the context.

[42:10]  ¹² tn Heb “his praise.” The phrase stands parallel to “new song” in the previous line.

[42:10]  ¹³ tn Heb “and its fullness”; NASB, NIV “and all that is in it.”

[42:10]  ¹⁴ tn Or “islands” (NASB, NIV); NLT “distant coastlands.”

[42:12]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “Let them ascribe to the Lord glory.”

[42:12]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “and his praise in the coastlands [or “islands”] let them declare.”