Isaiah-Chapter-49

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Please Note: Some alterations or (additions) have been made relating to ‘Names’ and ‘Attributes’ of אֱלֹהִים - Elohim, having been corrected like it once was pre the “Masoretic Text”.

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Remember the following truth from our beloved Torah!

Ye shall NOT ADD TO THE WORD which I command you, NEITHER SHALL YE DIMINISH FROM IT, that ye may keep the commandments of יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם - the LORD your Eloleichem, which I command you”. Davarim - Deuteronomy 4:2. (JPS-1917).

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“Isaiah Chapter 49”

With Rabbi, Dr. Reuven Ben Avraham-Goossens, PhD.

Introduction:
Isaiah Chapter 49 marks a pivotal shift in the prophecy, moving from the general message of comfort to the specific mission of the “Servant." In this context, the Servant is identified as Israel, the collective soul of the Hebraic people. This chapter explores the tension between Israel’s feelings of abandonment and the Divine promise of restoration. It highlights that the Jewish people’s endurance serves as a "light" to the world, proving that justice and truth eventually overcome displacement and suffering.

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Let us read Isaiah Chapter 49, verses 1-26: Below the verses are the Explanation’s. (The Chapter is from JPS-1917 version of the Torah).

Verse 1: Listen, O isles, unto me, and hearken, ye peoples, from far: יְהוָה - the LORD hath called me from the womb, from the bowels of my mother hath He made mention of my name;

Explanation Verse 1: The call to the “isles” and “peoples from afar” establishes that the message of Israel’s mission is universal. The mention of being called from the “womb” signifies that Israel’s identity and purpose were established at the very inception of the nation, rather than by chance or later historical development. Praise be to אֱלֹהִים - Elohim (God)!

Verse 2: And He hath made my mouth like a sharp sword, in the shadow of His hand hath He hid me; and He hath made me a polished shaft, in His quiver hath He concealed me;

Explanation Verse 2: The “sharp sword” and “polished shaft” represent the power of the word and the truth. By being “hid in the shadow of His hand”, the nation is preserved through periods of obscurity and persecution, kept ready until the moment the Divine truth is meant to be revealed to the world.

Verse 3: And He said unto me: ‘Thou art My servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified’.

Explanation Verse 3: This verse explicitly identifies the Servant: “Thou art My servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified”. It reinforces that the struggles and eventual triumph of the Jewish people are the primary vehicle through which the Creator’s presence is made manifest in human history.

Verse 4: But I said: ‘I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nought and vanity; yet surely my right is with יְהוָה - the LORD, and my recompense with my אֱלֹהִים - Elohim’.

Explanation Verse 4: Here, the prophet voices the human experience of the exile, the feeling that effort has been spent “in vain” and for “nought”. Yet, the resolution remains with אֱלֹהִים - Elohim, suggesting that even when the national path seems fruitless, the ultimate judgment and reward are secure.

Verse 5: And now saith יְהוָה - the LORD that formed me from the womb to be His servant, to bring Jacob back to Him, and that Israel be gathered unto Him for I am honourable in the eyes of יְהוָה - the LORD, and my אֱלֹהִים - Elohim is become my strength,

Explanation Verse 5: The mission is twofold: first, to bring the Hebrew people back to their spiritual source, and second, to be “honourable in the eyes of יְהוָה - the LORD”. This emphasizes that internal national unity and spiritual integrity are prerequisites for the broader mission.

Verse 6: Yea, He saith: ‘It is too light a thing that thou shouldest be My servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the offspring of Israel; I will also give thee for a light of the nations, that My salvation may be unto the end of the earth’.

Explanation Verse 6: It is stated that being a “servant” to just restore the tribes of Jacob is “too light a thing”. The grander vision is for Israel to be a “light of the Gentiles”, meaning the ethical and monotheistic values of the Torah are meant to reach the “end of the earth”.

Verse 7: Thus saith יְהוָה - the LORD, the Redeemer of Israel, His Holy One, to him who is despised of men, to him who is abhorred of nations, to a servant of rulers: kings shall see and arise, princes, and they shall prostrate themselves; because of יְהוָה - the LORD that is faithful, even the Holy One of Israel, who hath chosen thee.

Explanation Verse 7: This verse addresses the “despised” and “abhorred” status of the nation in exile. It promises a total reversal of status where kings and princes who once looked down upon Israel will stand in respect because of the faithfulness of the “Holy One of Israel”.

Verses 8-12: Thus saith יְהוָה - the LORD: ‘In an acceptable time have I answered thee, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee; and I will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, to raise up the land, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages; Saying to the prisoners: ‘Go forth’; to them that are in darkness: ‘Show yourselves’; they shall feed in the ways, and in all high hills shall be their pasture; They shall not hunger nor thirst, neither shall the heat nor sun smite them; for He that hath compassion on them will lead them, even by the springs of water will He guide them. And I will make all My mountains a way, and My highways shall be raised on high. Behold, these shall come from far; and, lo, these from the north and from the west, and these from the land of Sinim’.

Explanation Verses 8-12: These verses describe the physical and spiritual return. The “covenant of the people” involves restoring the land and freeing those in “darkness”. The imagery of hunger, thirst, and the “springs of water” depicts a journey where the Divine removes all obstacles, leading the scattered people from the north, west, and the land of Sinim (the far reaches).

Verse 13: Sing, O heavens, and be joyful, O earth, and break forth into singing, O mountains; for יְהוָה - the LORD hath comforted His people, and hath compassion upon His afflicted.

Explanation Verse 13: Nature itself is called to sing because the “comfort” provided is not just a political shift, but a profound act of compassion for the “afflicted”.

Verses 14-16: But Zion said: ‘יְהוָה - the LORD hath forsaken me, and יְהוָה - the LORD hath forgotten me’. Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, these may forget, yet will not I forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of My hands; thy walls are continually before Me.

Explanation Verses 14-16: Zion’s fear of being “forgotten” is met with one of the most powerful metaphors in Tanakh: a mother’s love. Even if a mother could forget her child, the Creator will not forget Israel, as the nation is “graven upon the palms” of the Divine.

Verses 17-21: ‘Thy children make haste; thy destroyers and they that made thee waste shall go forth from thee. Lift up thine eyes round about, and behold: all these gather themselves together, and come to thee. As I live, saith יְהוָה - the LORD, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all as with an ornament, and gird thyself with them, like a bride. For thy waste and thy desolate places and thy land that hath been destroyed, surely now shalt thou be too strait for the inhabitants, and they that swallowed thee up shall be far away. The children of thy bereavement shall yet say in thine ears: ‘The place is too strait for me; give place to me that I may dwell’. Then shalt thou say in thy heart: ‘Who hath begotten me these, seeing I have been bereaved of my children, and am solitary, an exile, and wandering to and fro? And who hath brought up these? Behold, I was left alone; these, where were they?

Explanation Verses 17-21: The “children” (the returning exiles) will arrive so quickly that the land will seem too small to hold them. Zion, who felt “bereaved and solitary”, is astonished by the sudden abundance of her people, asking, “Who hath begotten me these?”

Verses 22-23: Thus saith אֱלֹהִים יְהוָה - the LORD Elohim: ‘Behold, I will lift up My hand to the nations, and set up Mine ensign to the peoples, and they shall bring thy sons in their bosom, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders. And kings shall be thy foster-fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers; they shall bow down to thee with their face to the earth, and lick the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am יְהוָה - the LORD, for they shall not be ashamed that wait for Me’. 

Explanation Verses 22-23: The nations of the world will eventually assist in the return, carrying the sons and daughters of Israel back to their home. This represents a global recognition of the truth of Israel’s cause, where those who waited for the Divine, will not be “ashamed”.

Verses 24-26: Shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the captives of the victorious be delivered? But thus saith יְהוָה - the LORD: ‘Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered; and I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children. And I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh; and they shall be drunken with their own blood, as with sweet wine; and all flesh shall know that I יְהוָה - the LORD am thy Saviour, and thy Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob’”.

Explanation Verses 24-26: The chapter concludes by addressing the doubt: can a captive truly be rescued from a “mighty” oppressor? The answer is a firm yes. The Divine “contends” with those who contend with Israel. The downfall of the oppressors serves as the final proof to “all flesh” that the אֱלֹהִים - Elohim of Israel is the Redeemer and the Mighty One of Jacob.

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My Closing Message:
Isaiah 49 serves as an eternal reminder that the role for the Hebraic’s in history is neither ‘accidental’ nor ‘concluded’. Despite centuries of feeling “despised” or “forgotten”, the prophecy ensures that the covenant remains active. The ultimate goal is a world where the ‘light of truth’ and ‘justice’ is preserved through the endurance of Israel, which will become visible unto all of humanity, leading to a state of universal peace and recognition of 
אֱלֹהִים יְהוָה - the LORD Elohim, בָּרוּךְ שֵׁם – “Buruch Shem” - “Blessed be His Name”!

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Return unto Me, and I will return unto you, saith צְבָאוֹת- יְהוָה- the LORD of hostsMal’a’chi - Malachi 3:7. (JPS).

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For Elohim is the One who gave us our ... Life!”

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שָׁלוֹם עֲלֵיכֶם Shalom Aleichem - Peace be with you!

Rabbi, Dr. Reuven Ben Avraham-Goossens, PhD.

 

 

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