Isaiah 41:14

What is the meaning of Isaiah 41:14?

• “Fear not, you worm Jacob, You men of Israel! I will help you,” says the LORD And your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel. (New King James Version)

Historical context

In the seventh century before Christ (the 600’s), Babylon had conquered Israel’s northern kingdom (which was called Israel). Babylon’s king had killed or carried away the prominent people into captivity and left the common people to tend the land and pay taxes to Babylon.

Isaiah 41 addresses the captives in Babylon, giving them hope of a return and self-rule. Moreover, it gave them hope for a just and holy society that honored God.

The prophet Isaiah lived in the eighth century, so the book of Isaiah gives the impression of predicting the captivity and the promised return. Analysis of language and other factors, however, leads to belief that Isaiah merges three books into one. Chapter 41 is in the second book, which was allegedly written by a priest or prophet who lived during the Babylonian captivity.

Regardless of whether God revealed the second section predictively through the prophet Isaiah or contemporaneously through a priest living in Babylon, chapter 41 is part of a message to those living in captivity.

Before Babylon’s attack, Israel had suffered due to apostate leaders and a decaying society. Instead of driving out the people of the land, Israel had allowed them to stay, intermarried with them, and first tolerated, then embraced their religions. Political correctness was their downfall as they embraced cultures and religions that respected violence, sexual perversions, and even child sacrifice. The corruption saturated Israel from the masses to the kings and priests.

Finally, God had enough with this nation that had failed to represent Him. He removed His protection and allowed Egypt from the south and Babylon from the north to destroy the nation. Earlier, Israel had split into a northern kingdom, “Israel,” and a southern kingdom, “Judea.” Judea followed Israel into corruption and, just a few generations later, was also conquered by Babylon.

Chapter 41 addresses the time during exile in Babylon. It predicts a restoration of God’s favor and a return to the land of Israel led by the people of Judea.

Interpreting

The rule, “Never read a Bible verse,” demands reading passages in their context. We could go back a couple of chapters, but I’ll start with verse 9.

Hebrew poetry employs a lot of repetition, parallelism, and symbolism. Jacob was the ancestor whom God renamed Israel, so “worm Jacob” symbolizes the collective, “men of Israel.”

When someone is called a worm or calls himself a worm, it describes being pathetically weak, worthless, and vulnerable. David expressed such in Psalm 22:6: “But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by men and despised by the people.” That is how the people of Israel felt in captivity. And when we catch a vision of how great and holy God is, we see ourselves the same way. There is no room in God’s economy for pride of ancestry, of membership in organizations, or of accomplishment. If we become or do something good, it is to God’s credit, not ours.

God reminds Israel, “You are My servant. I have chosen you and not rejected you.” Some among Jews believe they are “God’s chosen” for salvation, but actually, they were God’s chosen to represent Him. (That changed, at least temporarily, after they rejected Jesus, but that’s another topic.) Imputed righteousness has always come as it came to Abraham, through faith, and not through inheritance of righteousness.

“Do not fear, for I am with you;” verse 10 reassures. “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.” God promises His strength and protection. Note that this happens in connection with His holiness, not with theirs.

Furthermore, in verses 11–12, God promises victory over the people and nations that opposed Israel. “Behold, all those who are angered at you will be shamed and dishonored…. Those who war with you will be as nothing and non-existent..” Retribution was promised not only against the distant empires of Egypt and Babylon, but also against Israel’s immediate neighbors, and even enemies within.

The first part of verse 14 continues the idea from verse 13.

“For I am the LORD your God, who upholds your right hand,
Who says to you, ‘Do not fear, I will help you.’
Do not fear, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel;”

The end of verse 14 may be a bit trickier, depending on which translation you use.
Literal translation

• “… I will help you says Yahweh and your Redeemer the Holy One of Israel.”

New International Version

• “…I will help you. I am the LORD, your Redeemer. I am the Holy One of Israel.”

New King James Version

• “…I will help you,” says the LORD And your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.

New American Standard Version

• “…I will help you," declares the LORD, "and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.

Notice how the NIV breaks the flow by turning one sentence into three. The NKJV and NASV translations are equally acceptable. The NKJV is more literal, but the NASV insertion of the verb “is” agrees with many instances where even the KJV inserts the verb because the Hebrew text omits that verb.

In all cases, the Lord assigns to Himself the titles of Redeemer and the Holy One of Israel. This is consistent with Isaiah 43:3 For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior…, Isaiah 44:24, Isaiah 48:17, Isaiah 49:26, and Isaiah 60:16, among many others.

Note another rule: Define terms by comparison with similar expressions used in the same context or by the same author.

Verse 15 makes the cause of Israel’s enemies’ disappearance more explicit: “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.” God declares in figurative language a promise to give victory to Israel, but Israel must go out and claim it in battle.

Conclusion

The plain sense of the verse is a promise by God to give victory to the defeated, miserable captives in Babylon, and God describes Himself as Redeemer and Holy One of Israel. Those titles also describe the promised Messiah, but that is not the meaning in this verse.

Unitarians such as the Jewish, Jehovah Witnesses, and “modernist” Christians, and polytheists such as Latter Day Saints (Mormons) have a problem. Those who recognize that the Tri-une model (the Trinity) best fits all the evidence in the scriptures can take the shared title in stride.


I posted this answer on Quora, so I cannot copyright it. However, I'd appreciate credit where credit is due. -- Richard Wheeler

Isaiah 12:4

What is the background to, and meaning of, Isaiah 12:4?

I first published this commentary on Quora on 25 January 2019. This version may have minor edits.

Quotes below are from the New American Standard translation.

Short Answer

4 And in that day you will say,

“Give thanks to the LORD, call on His name.
 Make known His deeds among the peoples;
 Make them remember that His name is exalted.”

The verse promises complete security to people of a future age who will have placed their trust entirely in God and His works. Although the verse does not apply to this age, the principle behind it is universal. In this age, those who place their trust entirely in God and His works are promised emotional peace, but not the physical victories indicated by the context of Isaiah 26:3. To teach the promise of peace to people of our times, careful teachers will use other verses.

Background

During Isaiah’s time, Israel had been split in two. The northern segment, “Israel,” had been conquered, and its survivors had been carried off to other lands. The southern segment, “Judah,” remained but was overtaken with other religions and corruption. Followers of God not only received mistreatment from their own neighbors, but also saw the same thing that had happened to Israel threatening to happen to Judah.

Those who listened to the prophets knew that God’s punishment was coming. At this time, prophets such as Isaiah not only foretold about the punishment, but also foretold that God would restore their people to Judea. Such promises were accompanied by other details. Such details described a savior who would save not only their people, but all who would turn to Him.

So the prophesies not only warned of judgment, but also promised hope.

These prophesied events came like twin mountain tops lined up in the distance. The hearers could not tell them apart. That is one reason the Jews rejected Christ. They wanted the Second Coming to establish their national independence and dominance.

But from our position between the two peaks, it’s easy to see the difference. One mountain top was the incarnation of God the Son. The other was a Second Coming. During the first coming, Messiah would provide redemption through faith in His suffering; whereas during the second coming, He would assert His authority, judge the wicked, and establish peace on earth.

Isaiah 12:1 and 4 go together, but to appreciate their meaning, we have to place them in context. Verse 1 begins, Then you will say on that day… and verse 4 begins And in that day you will say…. So we need to turn to the previous chapter to determine when “that day” is.

Chapter 10 describes judgement and destruction of Judea. Chapter 11 describes Messiah as a descendant of Jesse, King David’s father. The chapter opens by describing His character and segues into describing His work during His Second Coming. It is here that we find beautiful images such as

And the wolf will dwell with the lamb,
And the leopard will lie down with the young goat,
And the calf and the young lion and the fatling together;
And a little boy will lead them. (verse 6)

In that time, the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD… The nations will resort to [Messiah] (verses 9 and 10). In other words, faith in God would no longer be a parochial religion of the Jews, but a faith among all peoples.

The remainder of the chapter describes the final restoration of Israel and judgement of its enemies.

Meaning

In this context, now we can appreciate chapter 12.

Then you [the believer] will say on that day,
“I will give thanks to You, O LORD;
For although You were angry with me,
Your anger is turned away,
And You comfort me.

“Behold, God is my salvation,
I will trust and not be afraid;
For the LORD GOD
is my strength and song,
And He has become my salvation.” (verses 1–2)

This could be interpreted either of two ways. The obvious application is that, in the time of Messiah’s Second Coming, God will have forgiven Israel for its blasphemies and crimes. A second meaning comes from the principle described, namely, that there is a relationship between trusting God for salvation and having His justice satisfied. The personal language indicates that the quotations are spoken by individuals and not as a collective nation.

This relationship of redemption and trust allows verse 3: Therefore you [the believer] will joyously draw water from the springs of salvation.. Water represents the cleansing and strength provided by God through this new relationship with Him.

In verse 4,

And in that day you [the redeemed] will say,
“Give thanks to the LORD, call on His name.
Make known His deeds among the peoples;
Make them remember that His name is exalted.”

So in verses 1–2, we have believers rejoicing and praising God, and in verse 4, they encourage each other to praise God and share the good news. They will do so, motivated by thankful hearts described in verses 1–2.

If we apply verses 1–4 to ourselves, it is about the attitude that we should have toward God; and it should have such a magnitude and outworking that we want everybody to share in the same joy. There is no room for “practicing your religion at home” or “freedom from religion.” There should be great joy in salvation, and you should want to shout it from the housetops! (Alas, we are not in the age of the Second Coming yet, and our bodies do not always allow our experience to match up with theory.)

There is one more important implication in this passage. In order for “you,” a believer over 700 years before Messiah’s first coming, to give thanks to God when Messiah returns in 2019+ AD, “you” must be alive and present. This is not an unusual inference. See Mark 12:18–27. Resurrection is implied in the Old Testament and explicitly promised in the New Testament.

I’m sure there are some who will pluck the verse and twist it into some other meaning. Remember this:

If the plain sense makes good sense,
any other sense is probably nonsense.

The Perfect Peace Promised in Isaiah 26:3

What is the background to, and meaning of, Isaiah 26:3?

I first published this commentary on Quara on 28 Janury 2019.

For my answer, I quote extensively from my answer to a similar Quora question about Isaiah 12:4. 

Quotes below are from the New American Standard translation.

Short Answer

3“The steadfast of mind You [God] will keep in perfect peace,
 Because he trusts in You.”

The verse promises complete security to people of a future age who will have placed their trust entirely in God and His works. Although the verse does not apply to this age, the principle behind it is universal. In this age, those who place their trust entirely in God and His works are promised emotional peace, but not the physical victories indicated by the context of Isaiah 26:3. To teach the promise of peace to people of our times, careful teachers will use other verses.

Background

During Isaiah’s time, Israel had been split in two. The northern segment, “Israel,” had been conquered, and its survivors had been carried off to other lands. The southern segment, “Judah,” remained but was overtaken with other religions and corruption. Followers of God not only received mistreatment from their own neighbors, but also saw the same thing that had happened to Israel threatening to happen to Judah.

Those who listened to the prophets knew that God’s punishment was coming if the kingdom did not return to God. At this time, prophets such as Isaiah not only foretold about the punishment, but also foretold that God would later restore their people to Judea. Such promises were accompanied by other details. Such details described a savior who would save not only their people, but all who would turn to Him.

So the prophesies not only warned of judgment, but also promised hope.

Since these prophesied events were future, they were like mountain tops lined up in the distance. The hearers could not tell them apart. That is one reason the Jews rejected Christ. They wanted the Second Coming to establish their national independence and dominance. They did not accept that the spiritual redemption and the political redemption could be two different events.

From our position between peaks, it’s easy to see the difference. One mountain top was the restoration of Israel as a nation that was a territory of Greece and then of Rome. The second mountain top was the incarnation of God the Son. The third was a Second Coming. During the incarnation, Messiah would provide redemption through faith in His suffering; whereas during the second coming, He would assert His authority, judge the wicked, and establish peace on earth.

Meaning

To appreciate Isaiah 26:3, we first have ask about which age the verse directly applies to. Let’s start by connecting it to the preceding verses.

1 In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah:
“We have a strong city;
He [God] sets up walls and ramparts for security.
2“Open the gates, that the righteous nation may enter,
The one that remains faithful.
3“The steadfast of mind You [God] will keep in perfect peace,
Because he trusts in You.”

The “that day” in verse 1 refers to the age resulting from second coming of Christ. We could re-read chapters 10 through 25 to point out the evidence, but I’ll go back just to verse 8 of chapter 25 to illustrate one of the characteristics of “that day.”

8 He will swallow up death for all time,
And the Lord GOD will wipe tears away from all faces….

Compare verse 8 to 1 Corinthians 15:54

But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, “DEATH IS SWALLOWED UP in victory.

Revelation 21:3-4
And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.”

1 Corinthians 15:54 refers to the beginning of the age marked by Christ’s return, and Revelation 21 refers to the end of that age, which culminates in the reward of the justified, the judgment of the unconverted, and the commencement of a re-created heaven and earth. The direct interpretation of Isaiah 26:3, then, must recognize that it applies to age which is, to us, in the future. 

That does not mean that the principle stated in the verse cannot apply in our age. The promise of both emotional and physical perfect peace applies to that future age, but the promise of emotional perfect peace applies to all times. Verse 4 continues,

4“Trust in the LORD forever, For in GOD the LORD, we have an everlasting Rock.

Compare Psalm 62, written centuries before Isaiah’s day

6 He [God] only is my rock and my salvation,
My stronghold; I shall not be shaken.7 On God my salvation and my glory rest;
The rock of my strength, my refuge is in God.8 Trust in Him at all times, O people;
Pour out your heart before Him;
God is a refuge for us. 

and in Isaiah chapter 12, concerning the age following the incarnation

2“Behold, God is my salvation,
I will trust and not be afraid;
For the LORD GOD
is my strength and song,
And He has become my salvation.”

Trust in God and having emotional peace — the opposite of fear — is a universal promise throughout the scriptures. For example, in Ephesians 2:11–22, Paul writes of a peace between Jews and non-Jews, and between man and God, that Christ established. He established this peace by providing redemption from the condemnation that the Old Testament commandments make us aware of and joining Jews and non-Jews into a single body, the church. 

Conclusion

Do not believe the lie of many highly visible, false, evangelical leaders who teach that the promise is for peaceful circumstances today. Jesus said in John 16:33, These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world. In the close to his letter, 2 Thessalonians, Paul writes

16 Now may the Lord of peace Himself continually grant you peace in every circumstance. The Lord be with you all!

For this age, the perfect peace means emotional peace in every circumstance. The promise is conditional, it is for The steadfast of mind who trusts in You [God].  To teach the promise of peace to people of our times, careful teachers will use other verses.