Isaiah 49:1-6
Chapter 49
The Second Song of the Servant: The Mission
Listen to me, O islands,pay attention, people from distant lands. The Lord called me from my mother’s womb; he pronounced my name before I was born.He made my mouth like a sharpened sword. He hid me in the shadow of his hand. He made me into a polished arrow set apart in his quiver.
He said to me: “You are Israel, my servant, Through you, I will be known.”
“I have labored in vain,” I thought, “and spent my strength for nothing.” Yet what is due me was in the hand of the Lord, and my reward was with my God. I am important in the sight of the Lord, and my God is my strength.
And now the Lord has spoken, he who formed me in the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him, to gather Israel to him.
He said: “It is not enough that you be my servant, to restore the tribes of Jacob, to bring back the remnant of Israel. I will make you the light of the nations, that my salvation will reach to the ends of the earth.”
Commentaries
Second Song of the Servant: The Mission.
The servant of the Lord has the characteristics of the Messiah: he is chosen before he is born and remains hidden until his revelation (cf. Is 30:20). He is the man hidden for generations (2), revealed by John the Baptist, who will come to free all creation (Jn 1:26-34). The title “Servant of Yahweh” is sometimes used for Israel as a whole (Is 41:8-9; 43:10). However, repeatedly in Isaiah, as well as in other prophets and the book of Exodus (Ex 17:3-4; 32:9), the people are shown as rebellious and stubborn. The servant here, on the other hand, is a person whom the Lord is proud of (3) and who will redeem Israel (7). Also, in verses 5-7, the people and the servant are described as two separate entities: a) the servant, who is tasked with gathering, restoring, and redeeming; b) Israel, which benefits from the servant’s actions.