Isa 41:1-20 NASB “Coastlands, listen to Me in silence, And let the peoples gain new strength; Let them come forward, then let them speak; Let us come together for judgment. (2) “Who has aroused one from the east Whom He calls in righteousness to His feet? He delivers up nations before him And subdues kings. He makes them like dust with his sword, As the wind-driven chaff with his bow. (3) “He pursues them, passing on in safety, By a way he had not been traversing with his feet. (4) “Who has performed and accomplished it, Calling forth the generations from the beginning? ‘I, the LORD, am the first, and with the last. I am He.'” (5) The coastlands have seen and are afraid; The ends of the earth tremble; They have drawn near and have come. (6) Each one helps his neighbor And says to his brother, “Be strong!” (7) So the craftsman encourages the smelter, And he who smooths metal with the hammer encourages him who beats the anvil, Saying of the soldering, “It is good”; And he fastens it with nails, So that it will not totter.

• Who is God speaking to?
• What is He asking them to do with Him?
• How does He demonstrate His authority?
• How does this authority compare to the people\’s response?

Isa 41:8-20 NASB “But you, Israel, My servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, Descendant of Abraham My friend, (9) You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, And called from its remotest parts And said to you, ‘You are My servant, I have chosen you and not rejected you. (10) ‘Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’ (11) “Behold, all those who are angered at you will be shamed and dishonored; Those who contend with you will be as nothing and will perish. (12) “You will seek those who quarrel with you, but will not find them, Those who war with you will be as nothing and non-existent. (13) “For I am the LORD your God, who upholds your right hand, Who says to you, ‘Do not fear, I will help you.’ (14) “Do not fear, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel; I will help you,” declares the LORD, “and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel. (15) “Behold, I have made you a new, sharp threshing sledge with double edges; You will thresh the mountains and pulverize them, And will make the hills like chaff. (16) “You will winnow them, and the wind will carry them away, And the storm will scatter them; But you will rejoice in the LORD, You will glory in the Holy One of Israel. (17) “The afflicted and needy are seeking water, but there is none, And their tongue is parched with thirst; I, the LORD, will answer them Myself, As the God of Israel I will not forsake them. (18) “I will open rivers on the bare heights And springs in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water And the dry land fountains of water. (19) “I will put the cedar in the wilderness, The acacia and the myrtle and the olive tree; I will place the juniper in the desert Together with the box tree and the cypress, (20) That they may see and recognize, And consider and gain insight as well, That the hand of the LORD has done this, And the Holy One of Israel has created it.

• Who is God speaking to?
• What is He asking them to do?
• How does He demonstrate His authority?
• How does God describe himself? (10, 13)
• When do you think this prophecy occurs in Israel? (particularly verses 17-19)
• What is the purpose of God’s work in this prophecy? (verse 20)
• How does God work miracles like this in our lives?

Isa 41:21-29 NASB “Present your case,” the LORD says. “Bring forward your strong arguments,” The King of Jacob says. (22) Let them bring forth and declare to us what is going to take place; As for the former events, declare what they were,That we may consider them and know their outcome. Or announce to us what is coming; (23) Declare the things that are going to come afterward, That we may know that you are gods; Indeed, do good or evil, that we may anxiously look about us and fear together. (24) Behold, you are of no account, And your work amounts to nothing; He who chooses you is an abomination. (25) “I have aroused one from the north, and he has come; From the rising of the sun he will call on My name; And he will come upon rulers as upon mortar, Even as the potter treads clay.” (26) Who has declared this from the beginning, that we might know? Or from former times, that we may say, “He is right!”? Surely there was no one who declared, Surely there was no one who proclaimed, Surely there was no one who heard your words. (27) “Formerly I said to Zion, ‘Behold, here they are.’ And to Jerusalem, ‘I will give a messenger of good news.’ (28) “But when I look, there is no one, And there is no counselor among them Who, if I ask, can give an answer. (29) “Behold, all of them are false; Their works are worthless, Their molten images are wind and emptiness.

Verses 21-24:Verse 25 – see Ezra 1:2

• Who is God speaking to?
• What is He doing in these verses?
• What is He trying to teach and to whom?
• Verse 25: See Barnes commentary
• Verse 26-29 – who is God speaking to and what is His point?
• What is God trying to teach in these verses?

Isa 42:1-4 NASB “Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen one in whom My soul delights. I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations. (2) “He will not cry out or raise His voice, Nor make His voice heard in the street. (3) “A bruised reed He will not break And a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish; He will faithfully bring forth justice. (4) “He will not be disheartened or crushed Until He has established justice in the earth; And the coastlands will wait expectantly for His law.”

• Who is God referring to?
• How is this a contrast to chapter 41?
• What characteristics of “My Servant” is God showing us? (1:Mat 12:15-21, 2:Mat 11:29-30, 3:John 20:27, 4:John 17:4-8)
• What does God mean “and the coastlands will wait expectantly for His law.”?

Isa 42:5-25 NASB Thus says God the LORD, Who created the heavens and stretched them out, Who spread out the earth and its offspring, Who gives breath to the people on it And spirit to those who walk in it, (6) “I am the LORD, I have called You in righteousness, I will also hold You by the hand and watch over You, And I will appoint You as a covenant to the people, As a light to the nations, (7) To open blind eyes, To bring out prisoners from the dungeon And those who dwell in darkness from the prison. (8) “I am the LORD, that is My name; I will not give My glory to another, Nor My praise to graven images. (9) “Behold, the former things have come to pass, Now I declare new things; Before they spring forth I proclaim them to you.” (10) Sing to the LORD a new song, Sing His praise from the end of the earth! You who go down to the sea, and all that is in it. You islands, and those who dwell on them. (11) Let the wilderness and its cities lift up their voices, The settlements where Kedar inhabits. Let the inhabitants of Sela sing aloud, Let them shout for joy from the tops of the mountains. (12) Let them give glory to the LORD And declare His praise in the coastlands.

• Who is speaking in 42:5 and how does He introduce Himself?
• What right does He have to impart righteousness, to protect, to appoint?
• Who is God speaking to in verses 6-10?
• Verse 9: What former things? What new things? (Romans 3:19-22)
• Verse 10-12: Who is singing, what are they singing and who are they singing to? (Rev 5)

Isa 42:13-25 NASB The LORD will go forth like a warrior, He will arouse His zeal like a man of war. He will utter a shout, yes, He will raise a war cry. He will prevail against His enemies. (14) “I have kept silent for a long time, I have kept still and restrained Myself. Now like a woman in labor I will groan, I will both gasp and pant. (15) “I will lay waste the mountains and hills And wither all their vegetation; I will make the rivers into coastlands And dry up the ponds. (16) “I will lead the blind by a way they do not know, In paths they do not know I will guide them. I will make darkness into light before them And rugged places into plains. These are the things I will do, And I will not leave them undone.” (17) They will be turned back and be utterly put to shame, Who trust in idols, Who say to molten images, “You are our gods.” (18) Hear, you deaf! And look, you blind, that you may see. (19) Who is blind but My servant, Or so deaf as My messenger whom I send? Who is so blind as he that is at peace with Me, Or so blind as the servant of the LORD? (20) You have seen many things, but you do not observe them; Your ears are open, but none hears. (21) The LORD was pleased for His righteousness’ sake To make the law great and glorious. (22) But this is a people plundered and despoiled; All of them are trapped in caves, Or are hidden away in prisons; They have become a prey with none to deliver them, And a spoil, with none to say, “Give them back!” (23) Who among you will give ear to this? Who will give heed and listen hereafter? (24) Who gave Jacob up for spoil, and Israel to plunderers? Was it not the LORD, against whom we have sinned, And in whose ways they were not willing to walk, And whose law they did not obey? (25) So He poured out on him the heat of His anger And the fierceness of battle; And it set him aflame all around, Yet he did not recognize it; And it burned him, but he paid no attention.

• Why are verses 13-25 here after verses 10-12 suggest that all should praise the LORD?
• How would you summarize God’s actions in verses 13-16?
• What group of people is God leading in verse 16?
• What group of people is God leading in verses 17?
• What is God’s command to both people? (verse 18)
• What do you think is meant by verses 19 and 20? Who do you think God is speaking to?
• What do you see changing in God\’s will between verses 13-16 and verses 22-23?
• Why? (verses 24)
• Did the people respond with repentance? (verse 25)
• What of ourselves do you see in this passage?
• How is it different for us now, than it was for the Jews of Isaiah\’s time?
• How should we respond? (10-12)

THEME

ATTRIBUTES OF GOD

APPLICATIONS

In Isa_41:2, he is said to have been raised up ‘from the east.’ Both were true. Cyrus was born in Persia, in the country called in the Scriptures ‘the east,’ but he early went to Media, and came from Media under the direction of his uncle, Cyaxares, when he attacked and subdued Babylon. Media was situated on the north and northeast of Babylon. Barnes Commentary

Ezr 1:2 NASB “Thus says Cyrus king of Persia, ‘The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and He has appointed me to build Him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah.

Mat 12:15-21 NASB But Jesus, aware of this, withdrew from there. Many followed Him, and He healed them all, (16) and warned them not to tell who He was. (17) This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet: (18) “BEHOLD, MY SERVANT WHOM I HAVE CHOSEN; MY BELOVED IN WHOM MY SOUL is WELL-PLEASED; I WILL PUT MY SPIRIT UPON HIM, AND HE SHALL PROCLAIM JUSTICE TO THE GENTILES. (19) “HE WILL NOT QUARREL, NOR CRY OUT; NOR WILL ANYONE HEAR HIS VOICE IN THE STREETS. (20) “A BATTERED REED HE WILL NOT BREAK OFF, AND A SMOLDERING WICK HE WILL NOT PUT OUT, UNTIL HE LEADS JUSTICE TO VICTORY. (21) “AND IN HIS NAME THE GENTILES WILL HOPE.”

Mat 11:29-30 NASB “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. (30) “For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

Joh 20:27 NASB Then He *said to Thomas, “Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.”

Joh 17:4-8 NASB “I glorified You on the earth, having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do. (5) “Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was. (6) “I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world; they were Yours and You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word. (7) “Now they have come to know that everything You have given Me is from You; (8) for the words which You gave Me I have given to them; and they received them and truly understood that I came forth from You, and they believed that You sent Me.

Rom 3:19-22 MKJV But we know that whatever things the Law says, it says to those who are under the Law; so that every mouth may be stopped and all the world may be under judgment before God, (20) because by the works of the Law none of all flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law is the knowledge of sin. (21) But now a righteousness of God has been revealed apart from Law, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets; (22) even the righteousness of God through the faith of Jesus Christ, toward all and upon all those who believe. For there is no difference,

Rev 5:1-14 NASB I saw in the right hand of Him who sat on the throne a book written inside and on the back, sealed up with seven seals. (2) And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the book and to break its seals?” (3) And no one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the book or to look into it. (4) Then I began to weep greatly because no one was found worthy to open the book or to look into it; (5) and one of the elders *said to me, “Stop weeping; behold, the Lion that is from the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has overcome so as to open the book and its seven seals.” (6) And I saw between the throne (with the four living creatures) and the elders a Lamb standing, as if slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God, sent out into all the earth. (7) And He came and took the book out of the right hand of Him who sat on the throne. (8) When He had taken the book, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each one holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. (9) And they *sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. (10) “You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth.” (11) Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands, (12) saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.” (13) And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, “To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.” (14) And the four living creatures kept saying, “Amen.” And the elders fell down and worshiped.