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| 1 Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name. |
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Isles – Islands, Republics.
Called me from the womb – The womb of the (Sarah feature of the) Abrahamic covenant. The LORD has called the New Creation.
My mother – Gal. 4:26. |
| 2 And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me; |
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He has made my mouth like a sharp sword – Speaking of our Lord and by extension the church - spiritual Israel. Rev. 1:16; 19:15, 21
A polished shaft – A special arrow.
In his quiver – A quiver is the container for arrows. |
| 3 And said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified. |
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Thou art my servant – "My servants" are those for whom the book of Revelation is intended, i.e., the true church. Rev. 1:1.
Israel – Spiritual Israel.
In whom I will be glorified – John 17:11-23. |
| 4 Then I said, I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nought, and in vain: yet surely my judgment is with the LORD, and my work with my God.
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| 5 And now, saith the LORD that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and my God shall be my strength. |
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| 6 And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth. |
It is a light thing – The raising up of Israel is a "light thing," only a small part of the entire restitution work. R542:1*, R353:4*
For a light – The hope of a resurrection. R751:2*
Not yet dawned, but waiting for the completion of the resurrection of The Christ. R751:2*
To the Gentiles – As well as to the Jews. A59
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For a light to the Gentiles – Spoken of our Lord in Luke 2:32. |
| 7 Thus saith the LORD, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nation abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the LORD that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose thee. |
Whom man despiseth – "He was despised and rejected of men." (Isa. 53:3) E156
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| 8 Thus saith the LORD, In an acceptable time have I heard thee, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee: and I will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages; |
An acceptable time – Throughout the Gospel age. R858:6
Interpreted by the Apostle Paul: "Now is the accepted time ... now is the day of salvation" (See comments on 2 Cor. 6:2). R5536:5
Have I heard thee – Christ Jesus and the Church, his Body. R536:5, R858:3, R4542:2, R5536:5
Day of salvation – The great salvation to the divine nature. R4542:2, R859:1
Have I helped thee – The Body of Christ is helped or succored in its day of salvation in order that it may be the instrument of God for the blessing and releasing of those who are in the prison-house of death. HG337:1
Give thee – The entire Christ, Head and Body. R4542:2
For a covenant – As soon as the last member of the Church shall have died the New (Law) covenant with Israel will be sealed. R4453:3
By which God will bring the whole world anew into covenant relationship with himself. R4542:3
All God's people during this Gospel age serve that New covenant by getting themselves and each other ready for the future work of glory. R4542:2, R4453:2
Messiah, as a living sacrifice for sinners. R4715:1
Of the people – The world of mankind, not the Church. R4542:1
Establish the earth – Order, or rule, the earth. R536:5
Institute general Times of Restitution of all things. R4542:2
Cause to inherit – Our Lord has not yet received the heathen for an inheritance. R4542:1; SM435:2
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In an acceptable time .. helped thee – This is quoted by the Apostle Paul in 2 Cor. 6:2. Note there how he applies it. |
| 9 That thou mayest say to the prisoners, Go forth; to them that are in darkness, Show yourselves. They shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall be in all high places. |
Thou – The Christ, Head and Body. R858:3
To the prisoners – Death's captives. R4793:2, R536:5, R858:6; SM30:1; A112
To all the world, locked up in the prison-house of death. SM30:1; R4793:2
Go forth – The great prison-house will give up the prisoners; He who died on Calvary obtained the key of hades. OV363:5; Q329:3
"The dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God ... and shall come forth." (John 5:25,2 9) R4793:2
That – The Church class is chosen for the special work of accomplishing the salvation of the world in the next age--that will also be a day of salvation, for all the world. R859:2
In darkness – In the tomb. R858:6; SM31:T
Shew yourselves – A pictorial way of stating the resurrection of the dead. HG137:1
Their coming forth will be that they may manifest their real sentiments, either for righteousness or for unrighteousness. SM31:T
Come to the light, the truth. R536:5
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Thou mayest say – "Thou" in this context is the church class.
The prisoners – In the prison-house of death.
Go forth – In the resurrection. Note here that it is the privilege of the Lord's people to say this. It will be at their command that these prisoners of death will "go forth." This is the privilege of the little flock in the next age.
Them that are in darkness – Those who are in the dying condition but not yet in the grave. "Let the dead bury their dead." Matt. 8:22 - see R858:13
Show yourselves – Come into the light.
They shall feed.. – Note the change here. Now the prophet is no longer speaking of the church ("Thou"), the ones giving the blessings, but of those who receive the blessings ("They").
Isaiah 50:7
I have set my face like a flint – This was prophetically said of Pastor Russell. Compare Eze. 3:8-9.
This is also true of the Lord's people today. Our face (forehead, intellect) is set like flint. Because the Lord has graced us with an understanding of Present Truth and we know that it is indeed THE TRUTH, we are determined to be faithful to His Word, and to Him. |
| 10 They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall the heat nor sun smite them: for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide them. |
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| 11 And I will make all my mountains a way, and my highways shall be exalted. |
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| 12 Behold, these shall come from far: and, lo, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim. |
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| 13 Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains: for the LORD hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted. |
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| 14 But Zion said, The LORD hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me. |
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| 15 Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. |
Can a woman forget – From the standpoint of the divine nature, know that parental affection will have its widest scope as well as its greatest power to bless. R1211:5*
Sooner can a woman forget her infant child. R957:5
Will I not forget thee – Zion, the Church. R957:4
An assurance of tenderest love on the part of our Heavenly Father. R957:1
Service to the saints in any way the Lord will not forget. R957:4
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| 16 Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me. |
Palms of my hands – "Before the throne my surety stands; My name is written on his hands." R1829:5
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| 17 Thy children shall make haste; thy destroyers and they that made thee waste shall go forth of thee. |
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| 18 Lift up thine eyes round about, and behold: all these gather themselves together, and come to thee. As I live, saith the LORD, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all, as with an ornament, and bind them on thee, as a bride doeth. |
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| 19 For thy waste and thy desolate places, and the land of thy destruction, shall even now be too narrow by reason of the inhabitants, and they that swallowed thee up shall be far away. |
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| 20 The children which thou shalt have, after thou hast lost the other, shall say again in thine ears, The place is too strait for me: give place to me that I may dwell. |
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| 21 Then shalt thou say in thine heart, Who hath begotten me these, seeing I have lost my children, and am desolate, a captive, and removing to and fro? and who hath brought up these? Behold, I was left alone; these, where had they been? |
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| 22 Thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles, and set up my standard to the people: and they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders. |
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| 23 And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me. |
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| 24 Shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the lawful captive delivered? |
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| 25 But thus saith the LORD, Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered: for I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children. |
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| 26 And I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh; and they shall be drunken with their own blood, as with sweet wine: and all flesh shall know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob. |
And thy Redeemer – Jehovah is the center of the entire plan of salvation, and of its every feature. F397
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