Isaiah 47:7-13 continue to discuss the subject of the Servant of the
Lord. We have seen earlier that His ministry would not be a smooth sailing one and
He would face obstacles. Now referring to Him as the despised one in verse 7,
we will see that this Servant would be despised of men and be loathed by the
nation. This was true of the Lord Jesus’ ministry. His own creatures, whom He
had made, rejected Him. Here, this verse also referred to Him as
Servant of rulers, suggesting that kings and princes would deem Him inferior to
them and would frown upon Him. Yet these rulers would eventually arise and come
to honor Him. This would be a certainty because the Holy One of Israel, the
faithful One who had chosen Him, would ensure that it would happen.
Verse 8 makes a reference to the age of
the Gospel calling it a favorable time and the day of salvation. The was also
what the Apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 6:2 quoted, arguing for the arrival of
the age of the Gospel. At the first coming of Christ, we saw the inception of
the period where the redemption of fallen mankind had begun. This Servant with
the enablement of God went about the streets of Palestine bringing the message
of salvation, delivering the oppressed, and healing the afflicted and became
the mediator of the New Covenant. He would restore the land and establish the
Messianic Kingdom. His ministry would continue to set captives free and bring
light to the nation. And to those who would follow Him, He would
compassionately guide, protect, sustain, and provide for all their needs. Today,
Christ through the church is still delivering and saving those who are in
darkness. We are still living in the age of the Gospel and we must collaborate
with God to advance this message of the Gospel to establish God’s Kingdom.
According to Matthew 6:33, we must continue to seek first God’s Kingdom as well
as His righteousness.
In verses 11-13, God declared that He would level the path, remove obstacles, and pave the way for the message of the Servant to go forth unimpeded. People would stream into this Kingdom. They would come from the north and the west and even from the land of Aswan. That has been considerable discussion to ascertain where Aswan was. Some had concluded that Egypt in the south is being referred to. However, the crux of the matter is this: that people from all over, the north, the west, and the south would embrace the work of this Servant and positively benefit from His ministry. What the Lord has brought about through the ministry of the Servant gives cause for the afflicted and the world to rejoice and celebrate. Hence the call to:
Shout for joy, you heavens! And rejoice, you earth!
Break forth into joyful shouting, mountains!
For the Lord has
comforted His people
And will have compassion on His afflicted.
No matter how tough sharing the Gospel may seem, we take heart because the success of the work is ensured. Jesus guaranteed that this Gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached to all the world for a witness and then shall the end come. We must make time to share this treasure with the world. We are to share it in and out of season. We need only to do our part to share and God will do His part to save. We must do what we can and leave God to do what we cannot. Let us be committed to sharing the Gospel!
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