Matthew's Gospel quotes Isaiah 42:1-4 more extensively than any other Old Testament passage, using 85 words to identify Jesus as the gentle servant who brings justice without breaking bruised reeds.
Isaiah 42
The Servant of the Lord
1“Behold, my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights: I have put my Spirit on him. He will bring justice to the nations.
2He will not shout, nor raise his voice, nor cause it to be heard in the street.
3He won’t break a bruised reed. He won’t quench a dimly burning wick. He will faithfully bring justice.
4He will not fail nor be discouraged, until he has set justice in the earth, and the islands wait for his law.”
5God the LORD, he who created the heavens and stretched them out, he who spread out the earth and that which comes out of it, he who gives breath to its people and spirit to those who walk in it, says:
6“I, the LORD, have called you in righteousness. I will hold your hand. I will keep you, and make you a covenant for the people, as a light for the nations,
7to open the blind eyes, to bring the prisoners out of the dungeon, and those who sit in darkness out of the prison.
8“I am the LORD. That is my name. I will not give my glory to another, nor my praise to engraved images.
9Behold, the former things have happened and I declare new things. I tell you about them before they come up.”
A Song of Praise
10Sing to the LORD a new song, and his praise from the end of the earth, you who go down to the sea, and all that is therein, the islands and their inhabitants.
11Let the wilderness and its cities raise their voices, with the villages that Kedar inhabits. Let the inhabitants of Sela sing. Let them shout from the top of the mountains!
12Let them give glory to the LORD, and declare his praise in the islands.
13The LORD will go out like a mighty man. He will stir up zeal like a man of war. He will raise a war cry. Yes, he will shout aloud. He will triumph over his enemies.
14“I have been silent a long time. I have been quiet and restrained myself. Now I will cry out like a travailing woman. I will both gasp and pant.
15I will destroy mountains and hills, and dry up all their herbs. I will make the rivers islands, and will dry up the pools.
16I will bring the blind by a way that they don’t know. I will lead them in paths that they don’t know. I will make darkness light before them, and crooked places straight. I will do these things, and I will not forsake them.
17“Those who trust in engraved images, who tell molten images, ‘You are our gods,’ will be turned back. They will be utterly disappointed.
Israel's Blindness and Punishment
18“Hear, you deaf, and look, you blind, that you may see.
19Who is blind, but my servant? Or who is as deaf as my messenger whom I send? Who is as blind as he who is at peace, and as blind as the LORD’s servant?
20You see many things, but don’t observe. His ears are open, but he doesn’t listen.
21It pleased the LORD, for his righteousness’ sake, to magnify the law and make it honorable.
22But this is a robbed and plundered people. All of them are snared in holes, and they are hidden in prisons. They have become captives, and no one delivers, and a plunder, and no one says, ‘Restore them!’
23Who is there among you who will give ear to this? Who will listen and hear for the time to come?
24Who gave Jacob as plunder, and Israel to the robbers? Didn’t the LORD, he against whom we have sinned? For they would not walk in his ways, and they disobeyed his law.
25Therefore he poured the fierceness of his anger on him, and the strength of battle. It set him on fire all around, but he didn’t know. It burned him, but he didn’t take it to heart.”
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Theme
Isaiah 42 introduces the first of the Servant Songs, presenting God's chosen servant who will bring justice to the nations through gentle yet persistent ministry. The chapter transitions from this messianic prophecy to a triumphant call for universal praise, celebrating God's coming victory and deliverance. It concludes with a sobering indictment of Israel's spiritual blindness and disobedience, contrasting their failure as God's servant with the faithful servant described earlier.
Context
This chapter begins the second major section of Isaiah, shifting from judgment oracles to themes of comfort and restoration that will culminate in the suffering servant passage of chapter 53.
Key Themes
Outline
- 1-9 The Servant of the Lord God presents His chosen servant who will bring justice to the nations with gentleness and establish a new covenant as light to the Gentiles
- 10-13 A New Song of Praise A call for universal worship and celebration as the Lord prepares to go forth as a mighty warrior to triumph over His enemies
- 14-17 God's Coming Action The Lord declares He will break His long silence, acting powerfully to deliver the blind and destroy those who trust in idols
- 18-25 Israel's Blindness and Judgment God rebukes His servant Israel for their spiritual deafness and blindness, explaining their captivity as punishment for disobedience to His law
The Servant of the Lord
42:1–42:9 prophecy solemn
God presents His chosen servant who will bring justice to the nations with gentleness and faithfulness. The servant is called to be a covenant for the people and a light to the nations, bringing liberation to the oppressed.
quotation_chain
Matthew's Gospel quotes Isaiah 42:1-4 more extensively than any other Old Testament passage, using 85 words to identify Jesus as the gentle servant who brings justice without breaking bruised reeds.
A Song of Praise
42:10–42:17 prophecy song triumphant
A prophetic hymn calling all creation to praise the LORD as a mighty warrior who will triumph over enemies and lead the blind, while condemning those who trust in idols.
theme_rarity
Isaiah's "new song" uniquely juxtaposes cosmic praise from "the end of the earth" with divine judgment against idol-worshippers, creating one of only two biblical passages where universal worship and idolatry condemnation directly intersect.
Israel's Blindness and Punishment
42:18–42:25 prophecy rebuke mournful
God rebukes Israel as His blind and deaf servant who has been punished through captivity and plunder because of their disobedience to His law.
person_contrast
Jacob appears with "law" and "disobedience" in only 2 of his 85 biblical occurrences, making this rare portrayal of the covenant patriarch as lawbreaker particularly jarring.
Insights
Isaiah's "new song" uniquely juxtaposes cosmic praise from "the end of the earth" with divine judgment against idol-worshippers, creating one of only two biblical passages where universal worship and idolatry condemnation directly intersect.
Jacob appears with "law" and "disobedience" in only 2 of his 85 biblical occurrences, making this rare portrayal of the covenant patriarch as lawbreaker particularly jarring.
Cross-References
Connected passages across Scripture
Isaiah 42:1 1 reference
Isaiah 42:3 1 reference
Isaiah 42:5 3 references
Lexicals 3
Isaiah 44:24 Lexical
The LORD, your Redeemer, and he who formed you from the womb says: “I am the LORD, who makes all things; who alone stret…
Job 33:4 Lexical
The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.
Isaiah 45:12 Lexical
I have made the earth, and created man on it. I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens. I have commanded all the…
Isaiah 42:7 1 reference
Isaiah 42:10 5 references
Lexicals 5
Psalms 149:1 Lexical
Praise the LORD! Sing to the LORD a new song, his praise in the assembly of the saints.
Psalms 98:1 Lexical
Sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvelous things! His right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for…
Psalms 33:3 Lexical
Sing to him a new song. Play skillfully with a shout of joy!
Psalms 96:1 Lexical
Sing to the LORD a new song! Sing to the LORD, all the earth.
Psalms 144:9 Lexical
I will sing a new song to you, God. On a ten-stringed lyre, I will sing praises to you.
Isaiah 42:12 1 reference
Isaiah 42:13 1 reference
Isaiah 42:15 4 references
Lexicals 4
Nahum 1:4 Lexical
He rebukes the sea and makes it dry, and dries up all the rivers. Bashan and Carmel languish. The flower of Lebanon lang…
Job 14:11 Lexical
As the waters fail from the sea, and the river wastes and dries up,
Isaiah 19:5 Lexical
The waters will fail from the sea, and the river will be wasted and become dry.
Isaiah 44:27 Lexical
who says to the deep, ‘Be dry,’ and ‘I will dry up your rivers,’
Isaiah 42:17 3 references
Lexicals 3
Psalms 35:4 Lexical
Let those who seek after my soul be disappointed and brought to dishonor. Let those who plot my ruin be turned back and…
Psalms 129:5 Lexical
Let them be disappointed and turned backward, all those who hate Zion.
Habakkuk 2:18 Lexical
“What value does the engraved image have, that its maker has engraved it; the molten image, even the teacher of lies, th…
Isaiah 42:18 5 references
Lexicals 5
Exodus 4:11 Lexical
The LORD said to him, “Who made man’s mouth? Or who makes one mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Isn’t it I, the LORD?
Isaiah 29:18 Lexical
In that day, the deaf will hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind will see out of obscurity and out of da…
Isaiah 35:5 Lexical
Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, and the ears of the deaf will be unstopped.
Leviticus 19:14 Lexical
“‘You shall not curse the deaf, nor put a stumbling block before the blind; but you shall fear your God. I am the LORD.
Isaiah 43:8 Lexical
Bring out the blind people who have eyes, and the deaf who have ears.
Isaiah 42:19 5 references
Lexicals 5
Exodus 4:11 Lexical
The LORD said to him, “Who made man’s mouth? Or who makes one mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Isn’t it I, the LORD?
Isaiah 29:18 Lexical
In that day, the deaf will hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind will see out of obscurity and out of da…
Isaiah 35:5 Lexical
Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, and the ears of the deaf will be unstopped.
Isaiah 43:8 Lexical
Bring out the blind people who have eyes, and the deaf who have ears.
Leviticus 19:14 Lexical
“‘You shall not curse the deaf, nor put a stumbling block before the blind; but you shall fear your God. I am the LORD.
Isaiah 42:22 2 references
Isaiah 42:25 5 references
Lexicals 5
Jeremiah 44:6 Lexical
Therefore my wrath and my anger was poured out, and was kindled in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem;…
Jeremiah 7:20 Lexical
Therefore the Lord GOD says: “Behold, my anger and my wrath will be poured out on this place, on man, on animal, on the…
Ezekiel 20:8 Lexical
“‘“But they rebelled against me and wouldn’t listen to me. They didn’t all throw away the abominations of their eyes. Th…
Ezekiel 20:21 Lexical
“‘“But the children rebelled against me. They didn’t walk in my statutes, and didn’t keep my ordinances to do them, whic…
Ezekiel 7:8 Lexical
Now I will shortly pour out my wrath on you, and accomplish my anger against you, and will judge you according to your w…
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