Isaiah Chapter 49
Isaiah 49, The Messiah’s Mission
Isaiah 49 begins the next major movement in Isaiah. Cyrus now fades from view, and the focus turns more directly to the ultimate Deliverer, the Servant of the Lord, the Messiah. The chapter is full of Christ. The Servant speaks of His calling from the womb, His preparation by the Father, His mission to restore Israel, His light to the Gentiles, His rejection by men, and His future glory before kings and princes. The chapter then turns to Zion’s fear that the Lord has forgotten her, and the Lord answers with one of the most tender promises in Scripture, “Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands.” The notes provided cover Isaiah 49:1-26, including the Messiah’s call, His mission to Israel and the nations, His covenant work, the restoration of captives, Zion’s complaint, God’s faithful love, and the promise that the Lord will contend with those who contend with His people.
Isaiah 49:1-2
Isaiah 49:1-2, KJV, “Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The LORD hath called me from womb; from bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name. And he hath made my mouth like sharp sword; in shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me;”
The speaker is the Servant of the Lord, the Messiah. He calls the “isles” and the peoples from far away to listen. This immediately shows that His mission reaches beyond Israel. The Servant speaks to the distant Gentile nations because He has authority and saving purpose for them also.
The Messiah says, “The LORD hath called me from the womb.” This was fulfilled in the incarnation of Christ. The Son is eternal, but in His humanity He was called and appointed from the womb. His mission did not begin by accident. He came by divine appointment.
Micah 5:2, KJV, “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou little among thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from old, from everlasting.”
Christ’s earthly birth took place in Bethlehem, but His goings forth are from everlasting. He is the eternal Son who entered the womb in time.
The phrase “from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name” points to the naming of Jesus before His birth.
Luke 1:30-31, KJV, “And angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth son, and shalt call his name JESUS.”
The name Jesus was not chosen by Mary or Joseph according to human preference. It was announced from heaven because He came to save His people from their sins.
Matthew 1:21, KJV, “And she shall bring forth son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.”
The Servant says, “he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword.” The Messiah conquers by His Word. His speech carries divine authority. Men use swords to enforce authority, but Christ’s mouth is like a sharp sword because His Word exposes, judges, saves, commands, and conquers.
Hebrews 4:12, KJV, “For word of God quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and discerner of thoughts and intents of heart.”
Christ’s Word pierces the heart and discerns the inner man.
Revelation 19:15, KJV, “And out of his mouth goeth sharp sword, that with it he should smite nations: and he shall rule them with rod of iron: and he treadeth winepress of fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.”
The same Servant who comes in humility will rule in power, and the sword from His mouth will smite the nations.
The Servant also says He was hidden in the shadow of the Lord’s hand and made a polished shaft hidden in His quiver. This pictures preparation, protection, and timing. An arrow is shaped, polished, concealed, and released at the appointed moment. Christ’s years of obscurity before His public ministry were not wasted. He was hidden in the Father’s hand until the appointed time.
Galatians 4:4-5, KJV, “But when fulness of time come, God sent forth his Son, made of woman, made under law, To redeem them that were under law, that we might receive adoption of sons.”
The Father sent the Son in the fullness of time. The polished shaft was released at the perfect moment.
Isaiah 49:3-4
Isaiah 49:3-4, KJV, “And said unto me, Thou my servant, O Israel, in whom I will glorified. Then I said, I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nought, and in vain: yet surely my judgment with LORD, and my work with my God.”
The Lord says to the Servant, “Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.” This does not mean the Servant is merely the nation Israel, because the following verses say the Servant’s mission is to restore Israel. The Servant is called Israel because He represents Israel, comes from Israel, and fulfills what Israel failed to be. He is the true Israel, perfectly governed by God.
Israel as a nation was called to be God’s servant, but she was often blind, deaf, disobedient, and idolatrous. Christ, the Servant, is faithful where Israel failed. He fulfills Israel’s calling perfectly.
The Lord says He will be glorified in this Servant. The Father is glorified in the Son’s obedience, teaching, miracles, death, resurrection, and kingdom.
John 17:4-5, KJV, “I have glorified thee on earth: I have finished work which thou gavest me to do. And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with glory which I had with thee before world was.”
Christ glorified the Father by finishing the work He was given.
Verse 4 speaks of apparent discouragement, “I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nought, and in vain.” These words can be understood prophetically in the mouth of the Messiah, not as sinful despair, but as the real human experience of ministering among hard hearted people. Jesus came unto His own, and His own received Him not. He preached truth, healed the sick, raised the dead, fulfilled prophecy, and yet was rejected.
John 1:11, KJV, “He came unto his own, and his own received him not.”
From a human standpoint, Christ’s ministry could appear unsuccessful. Many rejected Him. The leaders plotted against Him. The crowds misunderstood Him. His disciples were slow to believe. Yet the Servant does not surrender to discouragement. He says, “yet surely my judgment is with the LORD, and my work with my God.”
Christ entrusted the outcome to the Father. He did not measure faithfulness by immediate visible results. He trusted the Father’s judgment, reward, and purpose.
1 Peter 2:23, KJV, “Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously.”
The Servant committed Himself to the righteous Judge.
Isaiah 49:5-6
Isaiah 49:5-6, KJV, “And now, saith LORD that formed me from womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I glorious in eyes of LORD, and my God shall my strength. And he said, It is light thing that thou shouldest my servant to raise up tribes of Jacob, and to restore preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for light to Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto end of earth.”
The Servant again speaks of the Lord forming Him from the womb to be His Servant. His mission includes “to bring Jacob again to him.” This means the Messiah’s work includes the restoration of Israel. Israel’s national and spiritual future remains in God’s plan. The Messiah does not replace Israel in a way that cancels the promises. He restores Israel and fulfills the covenant purposes of God.
Romans 11:26-27, KJV, “And so all Israel shall saved: as written, There shall come out of Sion Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: For this my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.”
The Deliverer will turn ungodliness from Jacob. Israel’s restoration is tied to Messiah.
The phrase “Though Israel be not gathered” acknowledges the reality of rejection and delay. Israel would not immediately be fully gathered to the Messiah. Yet the Servant says, “yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and my God shall be my strength.” Christ’s glory does not depend on Israel’s immediate response. He is glorious in the Father’s eyes, and the Father is His strength.
Then the Lord says, “It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel.” Restoring Israel is not too hard for God. It is not too large a mission for the Messiah. In fact, the Lord says that would be too small by itself. The Servant will also be given “for a light to the Gentiles.”
This is a massive statement. The Messiah’s mission is both Jewish and global. He restores Israel and brings salvation to the ends of the earth.
Luke 2:30-32, KJV, “For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, Which thou hast prepared before face of all people; A light to lighten Gentiles, and glory of thy people Israel.”
Christ is the light of the Gentiles and the glory of Israel.
Paul and Barnabas apply Isaiah 49:6 to the mission of the gospel among the Gentiles.
Acts 13:46-48, KJV, “Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It necessary that word of God should first have spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to Gentiles. For so hath Lord commanded us, saying, I have set thee to light of Gentiles, that thou shouldest be for salvation unto ends of earth. And when Gentiles heard this, they glad, and glorified word of Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed.”
The gospel goes to the Gentiles because the Servant Himself is salvation to the ends of the earth.
Isaiah 49:7
Isaiah 49:7, KJV, “Thus saith LORD, Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom nation abhorreth, to servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of LORD that faithful, and Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose thee.”
The Lord speaks to the Servant as One despised by man and abhorred by the nation. This is a prophecy of the rejection of Christ. The Messiah would not be naturally received by mankind or by Israel’s leaders. He would be despised.
Isaiah 53:3, KJV, “He despised and rejected of men; man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he despised, and we esteemed him not.”
The nation’s rejection of Christ is seen clearly in the Gospels.
John 19:14-15, KJV, “And it was preparation of passover, and about sixth hour: and he saith unto Jews, Behold your King! But they cried out, Away with him, away with him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Shall I crucify your King? Chief priests answered, We have no king but Caesar.”
The true King was rejected by His own nation.
Yet rejection is not the final word. The verse says, “Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship.” The One despised will be honored. The One abhorred will be worshipped. The Servant who was humiliated will be exalted before rulers.
Philippians 2:9-11, KJV, “Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him name which above every name: That at name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under earth; And every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ Lord, to glory of God Father.”
The exaltation of Christ is certain because the Lord is faithful and has chosen Him.
Isaiah 49:8-12
Isaiah 49:8-12, KJV, “Thus saith LORD, In acceptable time have I heard thee, and in day of salvation have I helped thee: and I will preserve thee, and give thee for covenant of people, to establish earth, to cause to inherit desolate heritages; That thou mayest say to prisoners, Go forth; to them that in darkness, Shew yourselves. They shall feed in ways, and their pastures shall in all high places. They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall heat nor sun smite them: for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by springs of water shall he guide them. And I will make all my mountains way, and my highways shall exalted. Behold, these shall come from far: and, lo, these from north and from west; and these from land of Sinim.”
The Lord says to the Servant, “In an acceptable time have I heard thee, and in the day of salvation have I helped thee.” This speaks first to the Father’s sustaining of the Messiah. The Father heard, helped, preserved, and vindicated the Son, especially through the cross and resurrection.
Paul quotes this verse and applies it to the present gospel call.
2 Corinthians 6:1-2, KJV, “We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not grace of God in vain. For he saith, I have heard thee in time accepted, and in day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now accepted time; behold, now day of salvation.”
The acceptable time has arrived in Christ. The day of salvation is now proclaimed through the gospel.
The Lord says He will give the Servant “for a covenant of the people.” Christ does not merely bring covenant benefits. He Himself is the covenant Mediator and substance. The promises of God are secured in Him.
Hebrews 9:15, KJV, “And for this cause he mediator of new testament, that by means of death, for redemption of transgressions that under first testament, they which called might receive promise of eternal inheritance.”
Christ is the Mediator of the New Covenant.
The Servant’s work includes restoring the earth, causing His people to inherit desolate heritages, and saying to prisoners, “Go forth,” and to those in darkness, “Shew yourselves.” Christ frees captives. This includes release from exile in the near context, but the greater fulfillment is release from sin, Satan, death, and darkness.
John 8:34-36, KJV, “Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin servant of sin. And servant abideth not in house for ever: but Son abideth ever. If Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall free indeed.”
The Son makes prisoners truly free.
The Lord then describes His shepherd care. His people will feed along the ways, find pasture in high places, neither hunger nor thirst, and be protected from heat and sun. The One who has mercy on them will lead them by springs of water.
This language is picked up in Revelation.
Revelation 7:16-17, KJV, “They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall sun light on them, nor any heat. For Lamb which in midst of throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.”
The Lamb is the Shepherd who leads His people to living fountains of waters.
The Lord says, “I will make all my mountains a way.” The mountains are not outside God’s possession. He calls them “my mountains.” Obstacles in the path of God’s people are still under God’s rule. He can turn the mountain into a road and the barrier into the way of deliverance.
This is a powerful truth. The Lord does not merely remove every mountain. Sometimes He makes the mountain itself the way. What seemed to block the path becomes part of the path under God’s wisdom.
The returning people come from far, from north, west, and the land of Sinim. The exact location of Sinim is debated, but the point is clear. God can gather His people from every far place, even places obscure to man. No distance is too far for the Lord’s saving reach.
Isaiah 49:13-14
Isaiah 49:13-14, KJV, “Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains: for LORD hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted. But Zion said, LORD hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me.”
Creation is called to praise. The heavens sing, the earth rejoices, and the mountains break forth into singing because the Lord has comforted His people and will have mercy upon His afflicted. Redemption is so great that creation itself is summoned to rejoice.
Yet immediately after this great call to praise, Zion objects, “The LORD hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me.” This is the cry of an afflicted people. From the perspective of exile, ruin, delay, and suffering, Zion feels abandoned.
This is spiritually honest. God’s people may know promises and still feel forgotten. They may hear comfort and still struggle under sorrow. The Lord does not ignore Zion’s complaint. He answers it.
Psalm 13:1, KJV, “How long wilt thou forget me, O LORD? for ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from me?”
God’s people have often cried this way. Isaiah 49 shows the Lord’s answer to such fear.
Isaiah 49:15-18
Isaiah 49:15-18, KJV, “Can woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon palms of my hands; thy walls continually before me. Thy children shall make haste; thy destroyers and they that made thee waste shall go forth of thee. Lift up thine eyes round about, and behold: all these gather themselves together, and come to thee. As I live, saith LORD, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all, as ornament, and bind them on thee, as bride doeth.”
The Lord answers Zion with the image of a mother and her nursing child. “Can a woman forget her sucking child?” Normally, such a thing would seem impossible. A mother’s compassion for the child of her womb is one of the strongest natural affections. Yet the Lord says, “yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.”
Even if the impossible happened and a mother forgot her nursing child, God would not forget Zion. His covenant love is stronger than the strongest human affection.
Then comes the beautiful promise, “Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands.” Zion is not written in fading ink. She is engraved. The image is permanent remembrance. God’s people are always before Him.
This finds a powerful fulfillment in the nail scarred hands of Christ. The risen Lord showed His hands to Thomas.
John 20:27, KJV, “Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust into my side: and not faithless, but believing.”
The wounds of Christ are the eternal testimony that He has not forgotten His people. The cross proves divine remembrance.
The Lord says, “thy walls are continually before me.” Jerusalem’s walls represent her security, health, and restoration. Even when the walls are broken down, they are before God. He sees the ruined condition of His people and has not forgotten the work of restoration.
Nehemiah 1:3-4, KJV, “And they said unto me, remnant that are left of captivity there in province are in great affliction and reproach: wall of Jerusalem also broken down, and gates thereof burned with fire. And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned days, and fasted, and prayed before God of heaven.”
Broken walls matter to God. He remembers and restores.
The Lord promises that Zion’s children will return quickly, and those who destroyed and wasted her will depart. Zion is told to lift up her eyes and see her children gathering. They will become like ornaments, and Zion will bind them on like a bride. The returning people will be her adornment. What looked like abandonment will become restoration.
Isaiah 49:19-21
Isaiah 49:19-21, KJV, “For thy waste and thy desolate places, and land of thy destruction, shall even now too narrow by reason of inhabitants, and they that swallowed thee up shall far away. Children which thou shalt have, after thou hast lost other, shall say again in thine ears, Place too strait for me: give place to me that I may dwell. Then shalt thou say in thine heart, Who hath begotten me these, seeing I have lost my children, and am desolate, captive, and removing to and fro? and who hath brought up these? Behold, I left alone; these, where had they been?”
The Lord promises that Zion’s waste and desolate places will become too small for the returning inhabitants. This is reversal. The land of destruction will become crowded with restored life. The enemies who swallowed her up will be far away.
The children who come after loss will say, “The place is too strait for me.” In other words, the place is too narrow. They will need more room. This is astonishing because Zion thought herself bereaved, desolate, captive, and wandering. She felt abandoned and emptied. Yet God promises multiplication.
Zion will ask in amazement, “Who hath begotten me these?” The restoration will be so surprising that Zion will wonder where all these children came from. God’s blessing will exceed expectation.
This promise had a near fulfillment in the return from Babylon, but it also looks ahead to the final restoration and regathering of Israel.
Isaiah 54:1-3, KJV, “Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more children of desolate than children of married wife, saith LORD. Enlarge place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes; For thou shalt break forth on right hand and on left; and thy seed shall inherit Gentiles, and make desolate cities to inhabited.”
God turns barrenness into fruitfulness and desolation into enlargement.
Isaiah 49:22-23
Isaiah 49:22-23, KJV, “Thus saith Lord GOD, Behold, I will lift up mine hand to Gentiles, and set up my standard to people: and they shall bring thy sons in arms, and thy daughters shall carried upon shoulders. And kings shall thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with face toward earth, and lick up dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I LORD: for they shall not ashamed that wait for me.”
The Lord now declares that He will lift up His hand to the Gentiles and set up His standard to the people. The nations will become involved in the restoration of Zion. They will bring Israel’s sons in their arms and carry her daughters on their shoulders. This shows honor, assistance, and reversal. The nations that once oppressed or ignored Zion will one day serve God’s purpose in restoring her.
Kings will become nursing fathers, and queens nursing mothers. This does not mean the church should seek worldly domination through the state. The context is Zion and Israel’s future restoration. The point is that even rulers of the nations will be brought under God’s purpose and will honor what God honors.
They will bow with faces toward the earth and lick the dust of Zion’s feet. This is poetic language of deep submission and honor. The nations will recognize that the Lord is with Zion.
The result is knowledge, “and thou shalt know that I am the LORD.” God’s restoration will prove His identity and faithfulness.
The final phrase is precious, “for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.” Waiting on the Lord is never wasted. Those who wait for Him may suffer delay, misunderstanding, affliction, and shame in the eyes of the world, but they will not be finally ashamed.
Psalm 25:3, KJV, “Yea, let none that wait on thee be ashamed: let them be ashamed which transgress without cause.”
Romans 10:11, KJV, “For scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not ashamed.”
Faith may wait, but it will not be put to final shame.
Isaiah 49:24-26
Isaiah 49:24-26, KJV, “Shall prey taken from mighty, or lawful captive delivered? But thus saith LORD, Even captives of mighty shall taken away, and prey of terrible shall delivered: for 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 drunken with their own blood, as with sweet wine: and all flesh shall know that I LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, mighty One of Jacob.”
The question is raised, “Shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the lawful captive delivered?” Humanly speaking, the answer seems to be no. Babylon was mighty. Captives were helpless. Once a powerful empire had seized the prey, who could take it away?
But the Lord answers, “Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered.” No captor is too strong for God. No bondage is too secure for His deliverance. Babylon cannot hold what the Lord chooses to release.
This applies first to Israel’s deliverance from Babylon. It also points beyond that to the greater deliverance from Satan’s bondage. Jesus described His work as binding the strong man and spoiling his goods.
Luke 11:21-22, KJV, “When strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace: But when stronger than he shall come upon him, and overcome him, he taketh from him all his armour wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils.”
Christ is stronger than the strong man. He delivers captives from Satan’s dominion.
The Lord says, “I will contend with him that contendeth with thee.” God personally takes up the cause of His people. Those who contend against Zion contend against the Lord’s purpose. The Lord also says, “I will save thy children.” This is covenant mercy extending to future generations.
Then comes severe judgment imagery, “I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh; and they shall be drunken with their own blood, as with sweet wine.” This pictures the self destructive nature of God’s judgment upon oppressors. Those who devour God’s people will be consumed. Their violence turns back on their own heads.
Galatians 6:7, KJV, “Be not deceived; God not mocked: for whatsoever man soweth, that shall he also reap.”
The oppressor reaps what he sows.
The purpose is universal recognition, “and all flesh shall know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.” God’s deliverance and judgment reveal who He is. He is Savior, Redeemer, and the Mighty One of Jacob.
This brings the chapter full circle. The Messiah is called from the womb, rejected by men, sent to restore Israel, given as light to the Gentiles, made salvation to the ends of the earth, and appointed to free prisoners. Zion fears she is forgotten, but the Lord has engraved her on His hands. The nations will bring her children home, and the mighty captors will lose their prey because the Lord Himself contends for His people.
