Isaiah 42:10-17, Praising YAHWEH for His Deliverance
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ISAIAH ISAIAH 42:10-17, PRAISING YAHWEH FOR DELIVERANCE Following the revelation of the Messiah Servant, a song of praise to Yahweh for His deliverance is penned by the prophet in verses 10-12. “Rounding off this section on the hopelessness and hope of the Gentile world which began at 41:21, the ends of the earth, the islands (10), and the Gentile towns of Kedar and Sela (11), combine in praise to the Lord who marches against his enemies (12-13). The lord himself then (14-17) elaborates this cause for praise. His age-long silence is broken (14), he plans a world transformation (15), the world’s needy are cared for (16) and idolaters exposed to their proper shame (17)” [J. Alec Motyer, Isaiah: An Introduction & Commentary, 262]. These verses are looking at the results of God’s promise to have His Servant bring justice to the world. The world will be covered in thanksgiving and praise when the Servant accomplishes His mission. The upcoming salvation verses concern Israel, but Gentile salvation is also an Old Testament promise; God will be faithful to fulfill His promises to both groups. God is about to intervene in history on Israel’s behalf and when He does, the world is going to take notice. Metaphors are used to describe God as a mighty warrior and a woman experiencing the pain of childbirth. He will ultimately triumph over those who put their trust in idols and who proclaim them to be their gods. Songs play a prominent role in the Scriptures, particularly in the Old Testament, but they are part of the books of Luke, Mary’s song, the Magnificat, in Luke 1:46-55, and Revelation (Rev. 5:9, 14:3, 15:3). Notable Old Testament songs, among others, include a song of Moses after Israel’s deliverance from Pharaoh (Ex. 15:1-21), the song of Israel at the well of Beer (Num. 21:17-18), another song of Moses in Deuteronomy 32:1-43, the song of Deborah (Judges 5:12), the songs of David and the people of Jerusalem on the occasion of bringing the Ark to Jerusalem (1 Chron. 13:8), and Hannah’s song of thanksgiving (1 Sam. 2:1-10). “Songs were used on occasions of thanksgiving and triumph … Songs were indications of joy, and their absence of sorrow” [Merrill F. Unger, s.v. “song,” The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary, 1209]. “A new song arises in Scripture when someone has learned of something powerful and good that God has done or will do” [Thomas L. Constable, Thomas Constable’s Notes on the Bible, Volume IV, Isaiah-David, 4:119]. [קָצֶה] from the end [תְּהִ לָה] song, Sing His praise [חָדָ ׁש] Isaiah 42:10-12 10Sing to the LORD a new and those [אִ יִים] ,of the earth! You who go down to the sea, and all that is in it. You islands who dwell on them. 11Let 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. 12Let them give glory to the LORD And declare His praise in the coastlands. means new or fresh, not old, referring to having relatively and recently come ,חָדָׁשׁ ,New into being or been made, acquired, or discovered. It may refer to something unheard of. “[T]he whole world unites in a new song, that is, a song responding to a new display of 1 the goodness of God, a new song prompted by the ‘new things’ and, as always, the motif of entering with joy into a freely given benefit” [J. Alec Motyer, Isaiah: An Introduction & Commentary, 263]. This song is a celebration song of praise for God who is going to fulfill His plan for history. “Sing” is an imperative verb which is a command or, at the least, a request, to do something. This will be a new thing the world has never before seen. People will be singing God’s praise from all over the world. “This new singing of praise to God is a special celebration of God’s new work in the lives of these singers. Once God acts to bring justice to all the earth through the work of his servant, there will be a new reason for these new believers to rejoice and sing God’s praise” [Gary V. Smith, The New American Commentary: An Exegetical and Theological Exposition of Holy Scripture: Isaiah 40-66, 171]. Everything about this situation will be new. The people singing this song will be people who were formerly idol worshiping pagans operating within the parameters of Satan’s world system, but who are saved by this point making them new believers. They have changed their minds about God which has brought about a new attitude towards God and life. God will be doing a new thing to inaugurate His Kingdom which is obviously something He has never done before, at least since the Fall. The time immediately preceding the Kingdom will be a time such that the world has never seen. When the situation is finally, completely resolved, the world will be singing the praises of God. ,means the end, the extremity ,קָצֶה ,This is a prophecy concerning the entire earth. End has the [מִ קְּצֵהׁהָאָרֶ ץ] ”the edge, or the whole. The expression “from the end of the earth sense of from everywhere. A worldwide song of praise is going to rise up in worship of Yahweh. means an island or a coastland, but it can also include habitable or inhabited ,אִ יִיםׁ ,Islands land. This is the same word translated “coastlands” in Isaiah 42:4. It is a reference to the land areas of the world. Its primary meaning refers to the islands and coastlands of the Mediterranean Sea, but the context of Isaiah 42 broadens the meaning to distant islands and coastlands. All men in all places are commanded to sing praises to God. Those who go down to the sea refers to mariners and this is also a worldwide reference; it is not restricted to the confines of the Mediterranean Sea. The whole world will one day praise God, but until then, the world is not only indifferent to Him, it is actively hostile to Him. We cannot imagine the extent of this kind of worldwide means praise, songs of praise referring to ,תְּהִ לָהׁ ,change in attitude about God. Praise speaking positive words about the excellence of another. “This word is derived from the verb halal, which connotes genuine appreciation for the great actions or the character of its object. It is used especially of the adoration and thanksgiving that humanity renders to God. By extension, it also represents the character of God that deserves praise; and the specific divine acts that elicit human veneration” [Warren Baker and Eugene .[The Complete Word Study Dictionary: Old Testament, 1214 ”,תְּהִ לָהׁ“ .Carpenter, s.v The point to all this is that the Gentile world is praising and worshiping God in singing this song, and this situation is the kind of thing that won’t happen until the eschatological 2 end. Even an amillennialist recognizes this fact, although, he does not believe in a literal Kingdom. His theology is that the Lord returns to judge everyone and then eternity begins. Nevertheless, his point that this is an eschatological occurrence is sound. “… [B]ecause these are songs of the new economy they are songs of excellence.… [T]hese are songs that are fitting to celebrate the wonders of the new age when the Servant of the Lord performs his matchless work of redemption. They are the songs of the redeemed, the songs of Zion, the songs of those who have been washed in the blood of the Lamb” [Edward J. Young, The Book of Isaiah: A Commentary, vol. 3, 3:125]. “In this brief subparagraph the prophet is trying to persuade his audience to put behind them the pessimism of their present situation and all its problems and to be inspired by what God will do in the future. In the future God’s covenant nation and the people from the ends of the earth and the islands of the seas will sing God’s glory when God sets up his kingdom” [Gary V. Smith, The New American Commentary: An Exegetical and Theological Exposition of Holy Scripture: Isaiah 40-66, 171]. Nomads and the people in small villages in the wilderness will all be praising God, typified here by Kedar and Sela. Kedar was a son of Ishmael and the father of a nomadic tribe in the Arabian desert area. Sela was possibly the capital city of Edom at one time, and some think it is possibly an earlier name for the place we now call Petra. All these groups of people together represent the people of the world. No corner of the earth, regardless of how remote it is, will be unaware of the work God has done, and they will all be praising Him for it. The whole world will be giving glory to Yahweh and praising Him for the work He has done. The phrase “all that is in it,” meaning all that is in the sea, and “the wilderness” are references to the praise that will emanate from the entire creation once it is liberated from the curse imposed on it since the Fall (Rom. 8:19-22). The cause for all this joy will be the triumph of the warrior Yahweh who will be victorious over His enemies.