Isaiah 42:1-9
The Spirit-anointed Servant brings faithful justice.
1 “Behold, my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights: I have put my Spirit on him. He will bring justice to the nations.
2 He will not shout, nor raise his voice, nor cause it to be heard in the street.
3 He won’t break a bruised reed. He won’t quench a dimly burning wick. He will faithfully bring justice.
4 He will not fail nor be discouraged, until he has set justice in the earth, and the islands wait for his law.”
5 God Yahweh, he who created the heavens and stretched them out, he who spread out the earth and that which comes out of it, he who gives breath to its people and spirit to those who walk in it, says:
6 “I, Yahweh, have called you in righteousness. I will hold your hand. I will keep you, and make you a covenant for the people, as a light for the nations,
7 to open the blind eyes, to bring the prisoners out of the dungeon, and those who sit in darkness out of the prison.
8 “I am Yahweh. That is my name. I will not give my glory to another, nor my praise to engraved images.
9 Behold, the former things have happened and I declare new things. I tell you about them before they come up.”
The Spirit-anointed Servant brings faithful justice.
To introduce the LORD’s chosen Servant who will establish justice gently and faithfully among the nations.
Spoken in the context of Israel’s need for restoration, the passage anticipates a servant who will fulfill what the nation has failed to accomplish.
The Chosen Servant, New Song, and the Blindness of the LORD’s People
The LORD presents His chosen, Spirit-filled Servant to bring justice, covenant light, and liberation to the nations, while exposing Israel’s blindness and showing that only the LORD’s faithful Servant can accomplish the mission His servant people failed to fulfill.