The Gentle Servant-King
Isaiah 42:1-9
Main Idea: Jesus is the promised servant of God who brings world-wide justice by dealing gently with the weak.
I. The Mission of The Servant (42:1, 5-7)
Though Israel was called to be the “servant” of God, they have failed to uphold their covenantal responsibilities, turned to idols, and are in exile (cf. 42:18-20). Isaiah 42 is the first of four “servant songs” (Isa 42, 49, 50, 52-53) that set an expectation for an individual messianic figure who will carry out God’s will & fulfill his mission.
This servant is beloved by God & empowered by the Spirit, the very language used of Jesus at his baptism & his transfiguration (cf. Mt. 3:13-17, Mt. 17:5, Ps. 2:7-8). The expectations & hopes of the strong messianic King & the servant of the Lord are brought together in Jesus Christ.
The mission of this servant is:
1. Justice to the Nations (42:1)
‘Justice’ is the key word in this passage, used 3x to describe the aim of this servant. This ‘justice’ (Heb: mishpat) is more than a legal category or retributive justice; it is a wholeness, the setting right of all that has gone wrong.
2. Salvation to the Nations (42:5-7)
The servant will be a living “personification” of God’s covenant with his people. He will bring light to the darkness, open the eyes of the blind, and free those enslaved & in bondage.
“The Servant will undo all the horrendous and degrading effects that sin has had on the human race and restore to people their true freedom and dignity as sons and daughters of God.” ~ Barry Webb
II. The Method of the Servant (42:2-3)
The surprise of Isaiah 42 is that this servant will produce the results of a king without the using the typical methods of a king. This servant will not “cry aloud” (shout, yell) or raise his voice in an attempt to dominate all other voices or shout others down in self-aggrandizing fashion.
He will deal gently with:
A ‘bruised’ reed: a stalk of grain or stick that has been badly bent, about to snap in half
A faintly burning wick: a flame that is barely flickering & about to go out
These two images are metaphors for those who are lowly, broken, crushed, and discarded by society; Rather than breaking the “bruised reed,” this servant will mend it back to health; rather than snuffing out the barely flickering flame, he will fan it back to life.
“He won’t call attention to what he does with loud speeches or gaudy parades. He won’t brush aside the bruised & the hurt and he won’t disregard the small & insignificant.” (Isa. 42:2-3, The Message)
The gentleness of the Servant-King is set in contrast to the methods of earthly kings & rulers (cf. Cyrus in 41:25). The longest OT quotation in the gospel of Matthew is this section of Isaiah (Mt. 12:15-21), in reference to Jesus healing a man who is a “bruised reed” while not drawing attention to himself.
“Big hearts never get Christ inside of them; Christ lives not in great hearts, but in little ones. Mighty and proud spirits never have Jesus Christ, for he comes in at low doors, but he will not come in at high ones. He who has a broken heart, and a low spirit, shall have the Savior, but none else.” ~ Charles Spurgeon
III. The Success of the Servant (42:4, 8-9)
The gentleness of the servant-king cannot be mistaken for weakness or inability in himself; this servant-king will succeed in this mission despite opposition and pushback. Though he will share the suffering of his people in some capacity, he will faithfully fulfill his mission to bring God’s Kingdom of justice to the ends of the earth.
Where Israel failed as God’s servant, Jesus succeeded. His glory is seen profoundly in his servanthood and we are invited to participate in this coming Kingdom of justice by taking up the same posture.
Philippians 2:5–11: Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
