42:1 "Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen one in whom My soul delights. I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations.

50:4 The Lord God has given Me the tongue of disciples, That I may know how to sustain the weary one with a word. He awakens Me morning by morning, He awakens My ear to listen as a disciple.5The Lord God has opened My ear; And I was not disobedient, Nor did I turn back.

Introduction: The former governor of New York, Mario Cuomo, once said, "I talk and talk and talk, and I haven't taught people in fifty years what my father taught by example in one week" (Stories, Illustrations & Quotes). Father and son relationships are quite important, because of what is passed down to the next generation by example - whether good or bad. This is why we have the saying, "like father, like son." In today's lesson, we also see a Father and Son relationship between our heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. The prophet Isaiah reveals to us some of Christ's qualities that He received from His father and how those qualities affected His ministry to the world. These Scripture passages that we will look at today, will also help us to understand not only God's relationship with His Son, but also the qualities that we can exhibit as Christians that are pleasing to our heavenly Father also.

Transition: The first thing that Isaiah reveals about God's relationship with His Son is. . .

I. He Is The Favored Son (Isa.42:1).
1. God's Servant (v.1a).

A. Isaiah starts out in this verse by proclaiming, "Behold" in which J. Vernon McGee states that this is God's bugle call for us to consider the Lord Jesus (McGee).

B. While there are several views about who this passage is referring to the title "my servant" is clearly identified with Jesus Christ in the New Testament (NIBC).

1) Matthew 12:15-21, "But Jesus, aware of this, withdrew from there. And many followed Him, and He healed them all, and warned them not to make Him known, in order that what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet, might be fulfilled, saying, 'Behold, My Servant whom I have chosen; My Beloved in whom My soul is well-pleased; I will put My Spirit upon Him, And He shall proclaim justice to the Gentiles. He will not quarrel, nor cry out; Nor will anyone hear His voice in the streets. A battered reed He will not break off, And a smoldering wick He will not put out, Until He leads justice to victory. And in His name the Gentiles will hope.'" - did you notice the parallel with Isaiah 42:1?

2) It speaks of Christ's loyalty and commitment to His heavenly father.

A) "my servant," ("'ebed" {eh'-bed}); slave, servant, bond servant.

B) Philippians 2:8, "And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross."

C. Not only is Christ God's loyal and faithful servant, but God Himself has promised His Son that He would sustain and protect Christ (Barnes).

1) "whom I uphold," ("tamak" {taw-mak': Qal impf}); to grasp, to hold up, support.

2) Christ, is the object of God's affection and care.

- Matthew 3:17, "and behold, a voice out of the heavens, saying, 'This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.'"

Transition: Not only is Christ God's Favored Son and faithful servant, but He is also. . .

2. God's Chosen (v.1b).

A. "my chosen one," ("bachiyr" {baw-kheer'}); chosen, choice, chosen one, elect of God.

B. The one whom God selected to accomplish His great purposes (Barnes).

1) It implies that God had designated or appointed him for the purpose of performing the work of a Messiah.

2) Luke 9:35, "And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, 'This is My Son, My Chosen One; listen to Him!'"

Transition: Not only is Christ God's Favored Son, faithful servant, and chosen One, but He is also. . .

3. God's Delight (v.1c).

A. "My soul delights"

1) "my soul," ("nephesh" {neh'-fesh}); soul, self, the inner being, mind.

- The word 'soul' here, is equivalent to I myself (Barnes).

2) "delights," ("ratsah" {raw-tsaw': Qal pf}); to be pleased with, be favorable to, acceptable, satisfied.

B. This language is applied the Lord Jesus as we saw earlier in Matthew 3:17 and 12:18 (Barnes).

1) God regarded Christ as qualified for his work.

2) He approved of what Christ did.

3) He was well pleased with all Christ's words, and thoughts, and plans.

- Mark 1:11, "and a voice came out of the heavens: 'Thou art My beloved Son, in Thee I am well-pleased.'"

Transition: Our heavenly Father's Son is also. . .

4. God's Gifted (v.1d).

A. God's Servant, that is, Jesus Christ was empowered by the Holy Spirit to accomplish His father's will.

- "I have put My Spirit upon Him"

B. In Isaiah 61:1, the Messiah says of Himself, "The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, Because the LORD has anointed me To bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to captives, And freedom to prisoners;"

- Before Christ entered upon His public ministry, the Spirit of God descended on him at His baptism Matthew 3:17, and in all His work He showed that He was endowed abundantly with that Spirit (Barnes).

Transition: Our heavenly Father's Son is also. . .

5. God's Ruler (v.1e)

A. "He will bring forth justice to the nations."

B. The word "justice" is used in a great variety of ways.

1) "justice," ("mishpat" {mish-pawt'}); judgment, justice, the act of deciding a case.

2) In relationship to the Messiah, it is probably used in the sense of order or institution that would be introduced under the Messiah's rule in the millennial kingdom (Barnes).

Transition: The next area of relationship that we are given between our heavenly Father and His Son is. . .

II. He Is The Obedient Son (Isa.50:4-5).
1. He was trained to comfort the weary (v.4).

A. Note that four times in Isaiah chapter 50 the Servant uses the name "Lord God" (BC).

1) "Jehovah Adonai" can be translated "Sovereign Lord."

- According to Robert B. Girdlestone, the name "Jehovah Adonai" means that "God is the owner of each member of the human family, and that He consequently claims the unrestricted obedience of all" (Synonyms of the Old Testament; Eerdmans, 1951; p. 34).

2) So the emphasis here is on the Servant's submission to the Lord God in every area of His life and service (BC).

A) His mind was submitted to the Lord God so that He could learn His Word and His will (50:4).

B) Everything Jesus said and did was taught to Him by His Father (John 5:19, 30; 6:38; 8:28).

C) He prayed to the Father for guidance (John 11:42; Mark 1:35) and meditated on the Word.

B. What God taught the Servant, He shared with those who needed encouragement and help (BC).

1) "the tongue of disciples"

A) "tongue," ("lashown" {law-shone'}); tongue, language.

B) "disciples," ("limmuwd" {lim-mood'}); taught, learned, discipled.

C) That is, God has qualified Christ to instruct others (Barnes).

2) "That I may know how to sustain the weary one with a word"

A) "sustain," ("'uwth" {ooth: prep, Qal inf}); to hasten, help, sustain.

B) "weary one," ("ya'eph" {yaw-afe'}); faint, weary, fatigued.

- The weary here are those who are burdened with a sense of guilt; who feel that they have no strength to bear up under the mighty load, and who therefore seek relief (Barnes).

C) "word," ("dabar" {daw-baw'}); speech, word, speaking.

D) That Christ might help to comfort, and refresh the weary by his promises and his teachings (Barnes).

Transition: Unlike the sons' of man who rebel against their fathers. . .

2. God's Son did not rebel against His Father's instructions (v.5).

A. The idea here of the "opened ear" the idea is the same as that in Psalm.40:6 - the opening of the ear canal is a symbol for hearing and obeying, thus He was not rebellious (NIBC).

1) This is in contrast to man's response to God.

2) Isaiah 1:2, "Listen, O heavens, and hear, O earth; For the LORD speaks, 'Sons I have reared and brought up, But they have revolted against Me.'"

3) This is another expression denoting that Christ was attentive to the divine commission (Barnes).

B. This was not easy, for it meant yielding His body to wicked men who mocked Him, whipped Him, spat on Him, and then nailed Him to a cross (Matt. 26:67; 27:26, 30: BC).

- Christ did all of this by faith in the Lord God (Isa. 50:7-11).

Truths To Ponder:
1. There was and still is only one person who is capable of saving the world, and that is Jesus Christ - God's Servant, God's
     Chosen, God's Delight, God's Gifted, and God's Ruler.

- Acts 4:12, "And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men, by which we must be saved."

- We are more than just an afterthought to God, but we are an eternal forethought.

Barnes - Barnes' Notes on the Old Testament, Albert Barnes, Parsons Technology, Inc.
BC - Be Comforted, Warren W. Wierbe, Victor Books
McGee - Isaiah, J. Vernon McGee, Thru The Bible
NIBC - New Illustrated Bible Commentary, Radmacher, Allen & House, Thomas Nelson Inc.
 
 

- "Behold," ("hen" {hen: interj}); lo!, behold!, look!
- "my servant," ("'ebed" {eh'-bed: n, m, sg}); slave, servant, bondservant.
- "whom I uphold," ("tamak" {taw-mak': Qal impf}); to grasp, to hold up, support.
- "my chosen one," ("bachiyr" {baw-kheer': n, m, sg}); chosen, choice, chosen one, elect of God. (KJV = mine elect)
- "my soul," ("nephesh" {neh'-fesh: n, f, sg}); soul, self, the inner being, mind.
- "delights," ("ratsah" {raw-tsaw': Qal pf, f, sg}); to be pleased with, be favorable to, acceptable, satisfied.
    (KJV = delighteth)
- "I have put," ("nathan" {naw-than': Qal pf}); to give, bestow, grant, dedicate, entrust, give over, to put, set, appoint, assign.
- "spirit," ("ruwach" {roo'-akh: n, f, sg}); wind, breath, mind, spirit (used here of the Holy Spirit).
- "He will bring," ("yatsa" {yaw-tsaw': Hi impf, m, sg}); to cause to go or come out, bring out, lead out, to bring
    out of, to deliver. (KJV = he shall bring forth)
- "justice," ("mishpat" {mish-pawt': n, m, sg}); judgment, justice, the act of deciding a case. (KJV = judgment)
- "to the nations," ("gowy" {go'-ee: prep, def art, n, m, pl}); nations, peoples, usually used to mean non-Hebrew
    people (i.e., Gentiles). (KJV = to the Gentiles)
 

V.4.
- "The Lord," ("'Adonay" {ad-o-noy': n, m, pl}); my lord, lord, the title spoken in place of Yahweh in Jewish
    display of reverence.
- "God," ("Yehovih" {yeh-ho-vee': pr, n}); Jehovah - used primarily in the combination 'Lord Jehovah."
- "has given," ("nathan" {naw-than': Qal pf, m, sg}); to give, bestow, grant, dedicate, entrust, give over, to put, set,
    appoint, assign. (KJV = hath given)
- "tongue," ("lashown" {law-shone': n, m, sg}); tongue, language.
- "disciples," ("limmuwd" {lim-mood': adj, m, pl}); taught, learned, discipled. (KJV = learned)
- "know how," ("yada'" {yaw-dah': prep, Qal inf}); to know, learn to know, to find out and discern, to perceive.
- "sustain," ("'uwth" {ooth: prep, Qal inf}); to hasten, help, sustain. (KJV = speak)
- "weary one," ("ya'eph" {yaw-afe': dir, obj, adj}); faint, weary, fatigued. (KJV = weary)
- "word," ("dabar" {daw-baw': n, m, sg}); speech, word, speaking.
- "awakens," ("'uwr" {oor: Hi impf, m, sg}); to rouse, stir up, awake. (KJV = wakeneth)
- "morning by morning," ("boqer" {bo'-ker: prep, def art, n, m, sg}); morning, break of day, the coming of
    daylight, sunrise, the bright joy after night of distress.
- "awakens," ("'uwr" {oor: v supra}); to rouse, stir up, awake. (KJV = wakeneth)
- "my ear," ("'ozen" {o'-zen: prep, n, f, sg}); ear, used here of the act of hearing or listening, the receiver of
    divine revelation. (KJV = mine ear)
- "to listen," ("shama" {shaw-mah': prep, Qal inf}); to hear, listen to, obey, to hear with attention or interest, give
    heed to, to obey, to be obedient. (KJV = to hear)
- "as a disciple," ("limmuwd" {lim-mood': prep, def art, adj, m, pl}); as those who are taught, disciple, learned.
    (KJV = as the learned)

V.5.
- "The Lord," ("'Adonay" {ad-o-noy': n, m, pl}); my lord, lord, the title spoken in place of Yahweh in Jewish
    display of reverence.
- "God," ("Yehovih" {yeh-ho-vee': pr, n}); Jehovah - used primarily in the combination 'Lord Jehovah."
- "has opened," ("pathach" {paw-thakh': Qal pf, m, sg}); to open. (KJV = hath opened)
- "my ear," ("'ozen" {o'-zen: prep, n, f, sg}); ear, used here of the act of hearing or listening, the receiver of divine
    revelation. (KJV = mine ear)
- "I was not disobedient," ("marah" {maw-raw': neg, Qal pf}); was not rebellious, not contentious, not disobedient
    towards, to be rebellious against. (KJV = I was not rebellious)
- "turn," ("cuwg" {soog: neg, Ni pf}): backward, move away, backslide, turn back, turned not. (KJV = turned away)
- "back," ("'achowr" {as-khore': adv}); backwards, back.