The LORD Will Help His Servant:

An Exegesis of Isaiah 44:1-4

James Wood
Fall 2013
Translation
1 Now listen, O Jacob, my servant
Israel, whom I have chosen.
2 Thus says the LORD, who made you,
and who formed you in the womb
-- He will help you --,
“Fear not, O my servant Jacob,
and Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
3 For I will pour out water on thirsty land,
and streams upon dry ground;
I will pour out my Spirit upon your seed,
and my blessing upon your descendants.
4 They will sprout up like a green tamarisk,
like poplars near streams of flowing water.
5 This one will say, ‘I am the LORD’s’,
and another will be called by the name Jacob;
and another will write on his hand, ‘the LORD’s’,
and he will be titled with the name Israel.”

I. Boundaries of the Passage

The boundary of this passage is most evidenced by the introductory clause, “Now listen.” This

phrase often marks off a new pericope in Hebrew poetry. The repetition of the pair of names for

Israel as “Jacob” and “Israel” in the first and fifth verse do mark off potential boundaries for the

pericope,1 but also situates it as part of a much larger inclusio that begins with 43:1 and concludes at

the end of ch. 44.2 Also the Masoretic Text (MT) marks v. 5 as the end of a section with the p
paragraph break, indicating what the Masoretes read as the end of the paragraph. This break is also

represented in 1QIsaa.

II. Setting of the Passage within Isaiah 40-55 and Isaiah as a Whole

In the previous section, comprised of chs. 1-39, it is evident that one of the central themes of the

book is servanthood, specifically the servanthood of YHWH’s people as the revelatory source (i.e.

1 These titles also repeat the titles given in the prior verse (43:28), hinting at a new pericope. This text has a very
different tone than the prior one, and the repetition of names might hint at an intentional contrast.
2 See Shalom Paul, Isaiah 40-66 (ECC; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2012), 225.

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witnesses) of His salvation to the nations.3 Though YHWH was supremely trustworthy, in contrast

to the uselessness of all other idols (the display of which was effectively climaxed in chs. 36-39

when He delivered His people from the Assyrian conquest4), Israel lacked trust in YHWH and was

unfaithful as His witness, therefore incurred curses upon herself. 5 But this passage is included in a

section that is abundant with promises of agents of deliverance of God’s people and judgment on

her enemies.6 These passages connect with a theme that is pervasive in chs. 1-39, which is that of

the “remnant.”7 This theme presupposes and predicts trials and threats upon Israel, therefore

anticipating the threat from Babylon. It also assumes the faithlessness of many within Israel, but

ultimately emphasizes the tension between God’s holy character and His relationship as savior and

redeemer of His people. Many of God’s people will fall away, but YHWH will preserve and restore

a “remnant.” God would restore His unfaithful people to be His faithful servant-witness.8 A new

figure is introduced in chs. 40-55: the “Servant of the LORD.” 9 He is described in the so-called

“Servant Songs.” In these passages it is unclear whether the Servant refers to a collective group or

an individual person,10 and the referent often fluctuates back-and-forth. The faithful Servant would

be the agent of rescue and renewal of the collective servant-witness Israel.

3 See John Oswalt, The Book of Isaiah, chapters 40-66 (NICOT; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998) 7.
4 ibid., 7.
5 See John D. W. Watts, Isaiah 34-66 (WBC 25; Waco, 1987) 72.
6 See Longman and Dillard, An Introduction to the OT, 317. They discuss its place in volume 2, section 3 in the “bifid”
approach coined by Brownlee. They also see depictions of an ideal king and second exodus in section 3 of each volume.
A general, simplistic overview of the movement in the book is a transition from oracles of judgment pronounced on
Israel (chs. 1-12), to oracles of judgment announced against the foreign nations (chs. 13-35), finally to the remainder of
the book which focuses on the gracious promises of comfort and future blessing for the people of God. See also Watts,
Isaiah 34-66, 72.
7 ibid., 310, 313-14.
8See John E. Goldingay and David F. Payne, Isaiah 40-55 (vol. 1 of ICC; ed. by G. I. Davies, J. A. Merton, C.E.B.
Cranfield, and G. N. Stanton; New York: T & T Clark, 2006), 227.
9See Tremper Longman III and Raymond B. Dillard, An Introduction to the Old Testament (2d ed.; Grand Rapids:
Zondervan, 2006), 304. They say this figure is not mentioned in chs. 1-39.
10 See Longman and Dillard, An Introduction to the OT, 314-15.

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 God’s control over history is another major theme of Isaiah, and at this point in the text and

the events in Israel’s history, God had convincingly displayed this through his announcements and

activity during the Assyrian crisis. 11 This section of Isaiah transitions to the concerns and affairs of

the Judeans under the threat from, and exile in, Babylon.12 This transition is evident in the allusion

to Babylon in ch. 39.13 Hezekiah thought only of himself (39:8) and succumbed to the flattery of the

Babylonians (39:1-4) who would later destroy Jerusalem (in 587 BC) and send the Judeans into

exile.14 Chapters 40-55 as a whole focus on the theme of the possibility of restoration.15 God’s

people would have had many questions about the LORD’s power over the Babylonians, but also

about His care for them. If He had shown that He could defeat Israel’s enemies and was more

powerful than their gods, why would He allow another exile? Was He incapable, uncaring, or had

He changed His loyalties? This section (particularly chs. 40-48) affirms that “the threat of Babylon

will be surmounted, though only after the destruction of Judah and Jerusalem.”16 God would first

use the agent of Nebuchadnezzar and his Babylonian empire to punish Judah, and then He would

use his agent Cyrus and his Persian empire to punish Babylon and allow the exiles to return to

Judah and begin reconstruction of the temple.17

III. Discussion of Poetic Features

This section (chs. 40-55) contains some of the “most glorious poetry in Hebrew literature, or,

indeed, in any literature”18 as God’s word to His threatened people through the prophet Isaiah.

11 Longman and Dillard, An Introduction to the OT, 316.

12 ibid., 304, 312. See also Watts, Isaiah 34-66, 72.
13 See David L. Peterson, The Prophetic Literature: An Introduction (Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2002), 57.
14 ibid., 56-57. See also Oswalt, Isaiah 40-66, 7-8.
15 ibid., 7-8. Specifically regarding YHWH’s ability and desire to restore Israel.
16 Petersen, The Prophetic Literature, 58.
17 ibid., 58-60.
18 Oswalt, Isaiah 40-66, 8.

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v. 1
This verse is comprised of a bicola (i.e., a pair of cola). It begins with a particle h¶D;tAo/“Now,” and
the first verb is an imperative, o™AmVv/“listen.” The reader/hearer would assume this verb in the

second colon, which is absent a verb, implying verb gapping, which is a very common feature of

Hebrew poetry. The second colon also exhibits a relationship of unmarked dependency between the

vocative and the appositional content. In prose there would be some relative pronoun or other

relativizer, most likely rRvSa/“whom” in this context. The two cola are parallel in syntax (A-verb, B-

vocative, C-appositional constituent), assuming the gapped verb, with the slight variation of

appositional constituent: “my servant” in the first, and “whom I have chosen” in the second. This is

a semantic substitution that is not exact (i.e., a noun to a verb with a prepositional object), and the

fact that it is lengthened (i.e., one word to two words in this constituent slot) is typical of Hebrew

poetic parallelism in the latter colon.

v. 2
This verse is difficult to break up into cola. One reason is the lead-in at the beginning of the verse:

h¶Dwh◊y r°AmDa_hO;k/“Thus says the LORD.” I include that as part of the first colon, therefore making
this verse comprised of two pairs of cola. That would balance this first pair of cola somewhat (8:10

for syllables; 3:3 for constituents). There is evidence of the poetic trope of inflectional morphology

with the verbs here. There is build-up with the two participles, and then there is an element of

surprise with the imperfect verb D;Kó®r◊zVoÅy/“He will help you.” This parenthetical insertion

“emphasizes the consequences of the relationship that the previous participles establish: since God

is their maker and shaper, they may be confident that he will help them.”19 This is furthered by the

negated jussive verb in the first colon of the second pair ‹a∂ryI;t_lAa/“Fear not.” The second name for

19 Oswalt, Isaiah 40-66, 165. See also Paul, Isaiah 40-66, 226. Paul argues that the imperfect tense implies frequency, as
if YHWH is saying, “I have aided you many times in the past and will continue to do so in the present and future.”

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God’s people in this pair of cola, N…wërUvy/“Jeshurun,” stands out as unique to Hebrew poetry.20 Here
is again evidence of verb gapping, as the reader/hearer would assume the verb “fear not” to apply to

this second colon in connection with the first. There is another case of the poetic syntax of

unmarked dependency here, to which the reader/hearer would imply the relativizer, rRvSa/ “whom.”

! In vv. 1-2 one thing we see is the poetic trope of intensification in the semantic parallels for

the titles of Israel. There is paradigmatic substitution of the titles “Jacob” and “Israel,” and “Jacob”

and “Jeshurun.” These two pairs are similar in relation to each other, making a strong case for the

connection between these verses. If that is the case, then this is furthered by the connection and

intensification of the designation of Israel as God’s “servant” in the first colon of v. 1, to “chosen”

in the second colon of that verse, repeated in the final colon of the second bicola in the next verse.

Here we see that not only is Israel God’s servant, but she is chosen/elected by God. And Israel is

not just chosen, but loved and esteemed positively (see discussion of “Jeshurun” below).

v. 3
This verse is comprised of two pairs of cola. The first bicola exhibits verb gapping again. The

reader would assume the verb qD…xRa/“pour out” in this second clause. These two cola exhibit parallel

syntax and mirroring in constituents, assuming the gapped verb. There is distinct poetic diction used

throughout the verse, particularly the word used for “streams”: My™Il◊zOn◊w. This word is used mostly in

prophetic and wisdom literature (though it is used a few times in the Pentateuch). Another example

of poetic diction is the word used for “descendants” in the second pair of cola: Ky`RaDxTaRx. This word

is used only in Isaiah and Job, whereas the more common words used for descendants in the

Hebrew Old Testament are variations of oår‰z and NE;b. Both of these bicola exhibit increased

markedness in moving from singular in the first colon to plural in the second: “water” to “streams,”

20 The only other places it is used in the MT are Deut. 32:15; 33:5, 26.

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then “seed” to “descendants” (though both water and seed are collective terms). One of the

especially interesting (possible) poetic devices is the phonological alliteration in the first and last

word of the verse. The combination of consonants and vowels in the first word qD…xRa sound very

similar to the final word Ky`RaDxTaRx. This is a somewhat common Hebrew poetic trope.

v. 4
…
This verse is comprised of a pair of cola. The first word is a converted perfect verb: wäjVmDx◊w/“sprout

up.” Again this verse exhibits verb gapping in the second colon. The reader/hearer would assume

“sprout up” in the second colon. These cola also parallel in syntax/constituent ordering, but there is

an expansion in the second colon with the additional prepositional phrase “near streams of flowing

water.” There is also another case of poetic diction with the word yElVbˆy/“streams,” which is used
only in Isaiah. There is another example of increased markedness between cola as singular “green

tamarisk” in the first colon is parallel to plural “poplars” in the second.

Verses 3 and 4 display profound density of imagery. There is the personification of

inanimate elements in v. 3. The land is portrayed as thirsty, which is then assumed regarding the dry

ground. The same language for the pouring out of water is used for the distribution of God’s Spirit.

Then there is language that is commonly used for vegetation used for humanity: they will “sprout

up,” and are compared to trees.

v. 5
This verse is comprised of two pairs of cola. In the first pair there is a semantic parallel in name

which the person gives himself: “the LORD’s” to “Jacob.” In the second bicola there is an issue

with the writing on the hand. The content of the inscription (i.e., “the LORD’s”) is comparable to a

formula that is found in inscriptions on pitcher handles indicating that the contents belong to the

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king.21 The writing on the hand could therefore refer to a slave marker, which was a common

practice throughout the ancient world,22 or it could just be an idiomatic expression to convey

ownership over a person.23 There is another example of semantic parallelism in switching the

constituent “Jacob” in colon 1B with “Israel” in colon 2B. This implies a very close connection

between these two pairs of cola, but it also shows that there is significant overlap between the

names/titles “the LORD’s,” “Jacob,” and “Israel.” Those three titles apparently exist in somewhat of

a paradigmatic relationship and mutually interpret each other. If you repoint the verbs in the second

colon of each pair to become passive (Qal to Niphal in first bicola, and Piel to Pual in second; see

section below), which makes more semantic sense in context, then you could argue for the poetic

trope of derivational morphology here as the verbs in the first cola are in the less-marked Qal stem,

and the those in the second are more marked.

IV. Interpretation Difficulties

The greatest problems in interpretation have to do with A.) the unique title “Jeshurun;” B.) the

simile in the first colon of v. 4; C.) the writing on the hand of v. 5; and D.) the tense of the verbs in

v. 5. Regarding the first issue, the title “Jeshurun” is a very uncommon designation for Israel. In fact

the LXX of this text even replaces this title with oJ hjgaphme÷noß Israhl/“beloved Israel.” Since

the name is rare it is possible that the LXX translator might have accidentally replaced it with the

more familiar title “Israel,” or even intentionally tried to represent the meaning behind the name

21See Klaus Baltzer, Deutero-Isaiah. A Commentary on Isaiah 40-55 (Hermeneia; Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress,
2001), 187.
22 See Paul, Isaiah 40-66, 228.
23 ibid., 187. See Oswalt, Isaiah 40-66, 168. Oswalt acknowledges this argument and possibility, yet finds it
unconvincing. Baltzer also acknowledges the dispute, especially in light of the fact that tattoos were forbidden by Lev
19:28. But he also sees biblical allowance for some kind of bodily identifying marks from Ezek 9:4; Exod 13:16; Deut
6:8; Prov 7:3.

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“Jeshurun” in the label “beloved Israel.”24 The MT representation is lectio difficilior, and better

explains the existence of the variant, therefore I believe it is the most probable original rendering.

The second issue regards the simile in the first colon of v. 4, which is represented in the MT as

ry¡IxDj Ny∞EbV;b/“among the grass.” This does not make much sense in light of the rest of Isaiah where
grass is used with a negative connotation25 (i.e., that which will wither away; cf. Isa 40:6-7).

Looking at 1QIsaa one could make a case that the original text read, “like a green tamarisk.”26 This

connects well with the imagery of the remnant coming from a stump of a tree (cf. Isa 6:13), and tree

imagery is more consistently used to portray flourishing (e.g., Jer 17:5-8; Ps 1). This section of

Isaiah also “has more references to different types of trees than anywhere in the Bible,”27 so a

reference to a specific type of tree fits in well with the diction and style of the book. The third issue

regarding the reference to the writing on his hand is difficult since the the MT does not include the

V;
preposition b. But there is evidence of a variant rendering in other manuscripts which attaches the

preposition,28 therefore reading wødÎyV;b/“on his hand.” This makes the most sense in context, and
agrees with common practices in surrounding cultures. The final interpretative difficulty lies with

the MT rendering of the verbs in the second cola of the cola pairs in v. 5. The active meaning for

“call” and “title” do not seem to make as much sense as a passive/reflexive here. All that would

require is a different pointing of the verbs, with no change to the radicals, to change the Qal to a

24 See Oswalt, Isaiah 40-66, 165-66. Oswalt argues that the usages in Deuteronomy indicate a very personal name for
Israel, which possibly has connotations of uprightness from the root rxy. See also Watts, Isaiah 34-66, 144.

25 See Goldingay and Payne, Isaiah 40-55, 231. They state that “grass” in Isaiah generally connotes the dryness of hay
rather than the greenness of grass.
26 This is the rendering preferred by Peterson, The Prophetic Literature, 73, and Paul, Isaiah 40-66, 227-228. For an
opposite conclusion see Oswalt, Isaiah 40-66, 163. Oswalt acknowledges this interpretative possibility, but ultimately
rejects it in preference for the reading of the MT.
27 Paul, Isaiah 40-66, 228.
28 See Baltzer, Deutero-Isaiah, 184.

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Niphal (cf. Isa 43:7; 48:1), and the Piel to a Pual.29 Interestingly the passive sense of the Pual is

represented in all the ancient translations except for the LXX.30

V. Meaning in Original Context

This passage comes on the heels of and in contrast to prior texts comprised of oracles of judgment.

One of the complaints that YHWH makes against His people in ch. 43 is that they failed to live up

to their calling as His servants. They neither called upon Him (43:22) nor brought Him the

appropriate sacrifices (43:23). The language used even hints at the fact that instead of serving God,

they had made Him their servant (in 43:24 “you have burdened me” is ‹yˆn‹A;t√dAbToRh, which comes
from the root dAbDo, meaning “to serve”). Then, in the verse immediately prior to our text (43:28),
Israel/Jacob is profaned and given up.31 But here Israel/Jacob is reaffirmed by an oracle of

salvation.32 The promises in 44:1-5 reverse the trajectory of themes in ch. 43. YHWH directly

addresses His servant, which here could be either Israel as a whole, or an individual. But either way

the effects would be for many (i.e., “descendants” in v. 3). He reiterates His call to Israel as His

servant (repeated twice in vv. 1-2), and then, as a result of the blessing poured out upon His servant,

people will call upon the name of the Lord and publicly identity with God’s people.

The original audience would have heard this passage as one of comfort and hope. The one

who created, formed, and owns them is doing a new thing: He will help them.33 These two ideas of

God as helper and Israel as Jeshurun are connected in Deut 33:26, hinting at a theme of God’s

29 This is the opinion of Paul, Isaiah 40-66, 228-229, Baltzer, Deutero-Isaiah, 184, and Oswalt, Isaiah 40-66, 163-64.
30 See Paul, Isaiah 40-66, 229.
31 See Goldingay and Payne, Isaiah 40-55, 228.
32See Peterson, The Prophetic Literature, 72-73. Peterson distinguishes “Oracles of Salvation” from passages which he
labels as “Promises of Salvation”. The latter focus “less on the one addressed and more on what Yahweh will be doing.”
In these texts the admonition “Do not fear” is common, and probably echoed the utterances by priests at the temple in
response to someone who had read/sung a psalm of lament. Though they are addressed to individuals, “they are truly
words to all Israelites.” See also Baltzer, Deutero-Isaiah, 184. See also Westermann, Isaiah 40-66, 134. Westermann
says that the central point is the assurance of salvation.
33 See Peterson, The Prophetic Literature, 63. See also Oswalt, Isaiah 40-66, 9.

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beloved people sustained by His ongoing help. He reminds them that He had created and called

them, and in light of His deliverance from the previous crisis under the Assyrians, it should be

evident that He could be trusted under the reign of the Babylonians. Because of His faithfulness and

power evidenced in the past, Israel can trust YHWH’s promises for future deliverance and blessing.

He is not only able to deliver and bless Israel, but also longs to do so.34

We see in our text language that hints at new creation. There are echoes of creation language

of making and shaping, water and Spirit, as well as blessing and descendants.35 Then in v. 4 there is

rich vegetative and “sprout up” language which echoes the creation account in Gen 1. These also

allude to the promises given to Abraham in Gen 12:1-3; 15:5; 17:5-8. God is promising loyalty to

Israel based upon His faithfulness to His promises to Abraham. This new thing, these new creation

promises, is connected to the covenant name of God’s people: Israel (intensifying from the prior

cola where the patriarch’s birth-name Jacob is reiterated). He reminds them of their chosen

specialness through their titles (“my servant,” “Jacob,” “Israel”), climaxing with the uncommon

title, “Jeshurun.” This name may derive from the word rAvÎy/“upright,” and could therefore be an
honorific title for Israel that has connotations of uprightness,36 possibly understood as “the upright

one.”37 This designation would be of great comfort to a threatened and punished people. Though

they had merited the many oracles (and realizations) of judgment by their unfaithfulness, the LORD

still considers them His special people, even regarding them, in some sense, as “upright.” This

might allude to a future renewal unto faithfulness that Israel would display. YHWH reinforces His

covenant fidelity to His people, elaborating on their special place in His new creational plan.

34See Oswalt, Isaiah 40-66, 9.

35 See Goldingay and Payne, Isaiah 40-55, 230.
36 See Claus Westermann, Isaiah 40-66: A Commentary (OT Library; Philadelphia: Westminster, 1969), 135.
37See Paul, Isaiah 40-66, 226. See also Baltzer, Deutero-Isaiah, 185-86. Baltzer discusses the possibility of this
meaning from the root, and even the potential wordplay with the etymological connotation of the name Israel.

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 What YHWH will do is deliver His people from exile as a demonstration to the nations of

his exclusive deity and His care for His people. The dire circumstances under which they lived

(metaphorically depicted as “thirsty land” and “dry ground”) were the result of their judgment, but

His promises remained true. The hope here goes beyond mere return from exile, which is the

emphasis in the prior texts, to the broader issues of fulfillment of the Abrahamic promises (i.e.,

descendants and blessing),38 as well as the actualization of the wish of Moses that all of the Lord’s

people would be prophets with His Spirit upon them (Num 11:29).39 The LORD reiterates His

electing love and promises a new exodus as a renewed creation with the outpouring of His Spirit.

This language and imagery is very similar to the vision Ezek 37:1-4, which describes the raising of

dead Israel. There the emphasis includes a return to the land, but in both Ezekiel’s vision and

Isaiah’s oracle there is an emphasis on the restoration and revivification of YHWH’s people.40 This

would result in a remnant who is called by God, but who reciprocally delights in saying, “I am the

LORD’s,” even going so far as to willingly mark himself as the Lord’s slave. The life of God’s

people was to be understood as dependent upon YHWH’s provision: He will help them (v. 2); the

land needs the water of the Spirit (v. 3); and the poplars need to be near the streams of flowing

water (echoing Ps 23). Their hope was to be in Him, and their destiny would be restored to be

perpetually blessed, and therefore to extend blessing to God’s world/the nations as His servant-

witnesses. The state of judgment and exile (literal and spiritual) would not be permanent. Blessing

was their destiny.

There is a strong possibility that the final verse of this pericope includes not just the actions

and attitudes of those born Israelites, but also of Gentile converts, whether a few or many.41 The

38 See Oswalt, Isaiah 40-66, 164.

39 See Paul, Isaiah 40-66, 227.
40 Baltzer, Deutero-Isaiah, 186.
41 See Oswalt, Isaiah 40-66, 168. Oswalt argues that the “main point is that a day is coming when, because of the work
of God’s Spirit among his people, Israel will be held in honor, not contempt, and people of all sorts will seek to belong
to her God.” See also Paul, Isaiah 40-66, 228. Paul does not see this text as predicting mass conversion of the nations,
but of a select few.

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persons who respond in this way will do so willingly and gladly, and this commitment would be

displayed publicly (“on his hand”).42 This could only happen if Israel would hope in their God

beyond their circumstances, and be the faithful servant-witnesses they were called to be.

VI. Christotelic Second Reading

All of the promises in this text are fulfilled in Christ and are then extended to His new covenant

people. In His life and sacrificial death He fulfilled the call of the faithful servant-witness. He came

not to be served, but to serve and give His life as a ransom for His people (Matt 20:28; Mark 10:25).

In just this one verse we see that Jesus came to serve and sacrifice. We see in John 13 that He served

His people, and then we know from the book of Hebrews that His death as sacrifice was for the

people and offered to the Lord as once for all (Heb 10:1-18). Israel had burdened YHWH with their

sin (Isa 43:24), but Jesus was the true Jeshurun (“upright one”) in whom there was no sin (cf. 2 Cor

5:21; Heb 4:15; 1 Pet 2:22; 1 John 3:5). He was the Suffering Servant of Isa 53 (Acts 8:26ff), who

was the sacrifice, who did not open His mouth there (Isa 53:7) because He had faithfully witnessed

to the truth about God throughout His earthly life (e.g., John 3:34). But as the Servant of the LORD,

His actions have significance and implications for the many. The upright one as the solely faithful

remnant, by His “helping” sacrifice, will make many “upright” (e.g. Isa 53:11; 2 Cor 5:21).

The true fulfillment of the promises of Spirit-blessing in Isa 44:3-5 is found on the day of

Pentecost (Acts 2).43 Jesus, the one who gives the Spirit without measure (John 3:34), promised to

give Him in power to His disciples for the purpose of their becoming His faithful witnesses well

beyond the bounds of Judea/Israel (Acts 1:8). 44 The result is that people from every nation testify to

the mighty works of God (Acts 2:11), therefore fulfilling the call to be faithful witnesses, which

42 See Goldingay and Payne, Isaiah 40-55, 233-234.

43 See Oswalt, Isaiah 40-66, 167. He says, “Isaiah had in mind the event, if not the details, of Pentecost.”
44 See Baltzer, Deutero-Isaiah, 187.

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Peter does consciously and purposefully in his sermon (Acts 2:14-39). He even makes it clear that

this salvation is the fulfillment of a promise (Acts 2:39). The result was that many believed (Acts

2:41), being called to God (Acts 2:39), and receiving the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38), thus fulfilling the

promise of many “descendants” (though in a surprising way!). Their belief required a public display

of association with the Savior and His people: baptism (Acts 2:38), which corresponds with the

imagery of marking the hand as “The Lord’s” (Isa 44:5). Whether or not this referred to a slave

mark in the Old Testament, it was a public mark of identification, and we know that New Testament

believers self-consciously understood themselves as slaves of God/Christ (Rom 1:1; Jas 1:1; 2 Pet

1:1; Jude 1:1; Rev 1:1). And we should not be ashamed of a public marking, for our Savior was

marked (John 19:3), and pierced in His hands on the cross. This was His public display of both His

righteous sacrifice unto God, but also His association with His people. And those who believe in

Him will never be dry ground again, but will have water from Him which will spring up to eternal

life (John 4:13-14), describing the renewal and revivification empowered by the Holy Spirit.

The pattern of our restoration as God’s faithful servant-witnesses requires that we remain

faithful during our exile. Just as Judah/Israel lived in exile in Babylon, so we must remember that

we are not yet home, but are sent as elect exiles (1 Pet 1:1) among people who do not identify as

God’s people nor glorify God (1 Pet 2:12). Our call is to fight against the passion of our flesh (1 Pet

2:11), submit to the authorities which God has set above us (1 Pet 2:13ff), and to proclaim the

excellencies of Him who called us and formed us as His people (1 Pet 2:9-10). In this we follow in

the footsteps of our suffering savior who has helped, healed, and rescued us (1 Pet 2:21-25). Jesus

as the upright one and Suffering Servant, secured the blessing which He pours out upon those who

identify with Him, and therefore become His faithful witnesses.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Baltzer, Klaus. Deutero-Isaiah. A Commentary on Isaiah 40-55. Hermeneia. Minneapolis, Minn.:

Augsburg Fortress, 2001.

Goldingay, John E. and David F. Payne. Isaiah 40-55. Vol. 1 of The International Critical
Commentary. Edited by G. I. Davies, J. A. Merton, C.E.B. Cranfield, and G. N. Stanton.
New York, N.Y.: T & T Clark, 2006.

Longman, Tremper III and Raymond B. Dillard. An Introduction to the Old Testament. Second
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Oswalt, John. The Book of Isaiah, chapters 40-66. New International Commentary on the Old
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Knox, 2002.

Watts, John D. W. Isaiah 34-66. Word Biblical Commentary 25. Waco, Tex.: Word, 1987.

Westermann, Claus. Isaiah 40-66: A Commentary. Old Testament Library. Philadelphia, Pa.:
Westminster, 1969.

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