Isaiah 49 begins with one of the servant songs in the book Isaiah. They plainly relate to the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ as the servant of God. In verse 1, the servant gives a universal appeal to men: “Listen to me, O coastlands, and give attention, you peoples from afar.” The coastlands represent the ends of the earth; none are excluded from the servant’s address.
Also in verse 1, the servant offers his credentials: “The Lord called me from the womb, from the body of my mother he named my name.” Mary’s child in Luke 1 is given names before he is born: “Jesus” (Savior), the “Son of the Most High”, and the “Son of God.” What he will speak to men carries with it the authority of God.
The weightiness of the servant’s words is made clear in verse 2: “He has made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand he has hid me; he made me a polished arrow; in his quiver he hid me away.” The sword and arrow are metaphors for powerful words, bad or good.
In Psalm 64, David says, “The wicked have tongues like swords—bitter words like arrows.” In Jeremiah 9, the prophet says the people of Judah “have taught their tongues to speak lies… their tongue is a deadly arrow, it speaks deceitfully.”
But the servant of God has been hidden away by God, prepared by God to come into the world with the true words of God that lead to life. Paul says that “in the fullness of time, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law” (Galatians 4).
His word will cut like a sword and find its mark like an arrow polished by God. When Peter preached of Christ at Pentecost, men were “cut to the heart.” The Lord first cuts the soul under a sense of sin, then heals it by promise of forgiveness of sin. When a sinner is convinced to flee the wrath to come, Christ says to come unto him, and you will be protected from the storm. If you know Christ, it is because his gracious arrow found its mark in your soul.
In Isaiah 49:3 we read, “You are my servant Israel, in whom I will be glorified.” There is a reason that the servant is introduced at this time by the Lord. When God created the world, he appropriated everything he made for his own glory. When God created man, he created him to glorify God in his service to God.
When Adam sinned, man’s service to God was lost. Under sin, man appropriated everything for himself and resisted serving God. God later set Israel apart to be his people. Israel was to serve God and honor God’s name. God called the nation of Israel his servant, but they also appropriated everything for themselves and turned from the Lord.
But the servant of the Lord will be different. He will glorify God in his obedience, which anticipates the work of the Lord Jesus. In verse 4, even though he “spent his strength,” it seems that he had “labored in vain.” Jesus, though he did great things and spoke the truth of God, was rejected by men.
Nevertheless, he trusted in the Lord. He humbled himself and was obedient even to death on a cross in his service to God. He faced the worst and yet served God to the end, a man who truly was a servant of God, who lived to glorify God. His whole life was in subjection to God’s will. The great problem of sinful man is that he doesn’t serve God but rather resists God.
Only the appointed servant of God, Christ Jesus, can change that. In verse 5, he came into the world that “Israel might be gathered to him,” and in verse 6, to be “as a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” Simply put, Christ is the Savior of both Jew and Gentile. His light will bring many out of darkness; he is suited to all the needs of poor sinners.
He redeems men that they may glorify God’s name. The servant is our Savior, who takes away our sin and teaches us to be servants of God. Those who serve him best are those humbled by their sin. The more humble we are, the more grace we have in us, and the more we honor Christ. Jesus was lowly of heart and served his Father; he alone can make our happiness in serving God.
