My Servant Whom I Uphold – Isaiah 42:1-9

A text – Isaiah 42:1-9

42 Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations.
² He will not cry out or lift up his voice or make it heard in the street;
³ a bruised reed he will not break, and a dimly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice.
⁴ He will not grow faint or be crushed until he has established justice in the earth, and the coastlands wait for his teaching.

⁵ Thus says God, the Lord, who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people upon it and spirit to those who walk in it:
⁶ I am the Lord; I have called you in righteousness; I have taken you by the hand and kept you; I have given you as a covenant to the people, a light to the nations,
⁷ to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness.
⁸ I am the Lord; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to idols.
⁹ See, the former things have come to pass, and new things I now declare; before they spring forth, I tell you of them.

A reflection:

Remember Monday’s gospel lesson about the baptism of Jesus? Remember when the heavens opened to him and the Holy Spirit came down in the form of a dove and alit upon him? Remember when a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, the Beloved, in whom I am well pleased”? Many of the people present that day watching Jesus and John in the river would have known our text for today from Isaiah, especially the first verse, which sounds much the same as the words that rang out from heaven. If those gathered that day heard the heavenly voice and understood it, they may easily have taken this meaning: “This is the man I promised to send you – I support him and I delight in him!” In other words, you should delight in him, too. He has come to you on my behalf and what he will do will be out of love for you.

This servant, this son of God will be quiet and will not break a bruised reed, yet he will bring forth justice in the whole earth, open blind eyes and bring out prisoners from the dungeon. He will not force himself on others, this servant son, but through love and compassion he will live out God’s love to all people.

When this passage was written and first shared in the Temple and synagogues, the servant was understood to be Israel, giving Israel the mission to live out God’s love and wisdom to the world. But because of what Matthew says happened at Jesus’s baptism, on that day this role can then be seen to be embodied by Jesus. Of course, there were devout Jewish church leaders who were curious enough to come out to see John the Baptist. Those well-read Pharisees and priests might have bristled at Isaiah’s prophesy being applied to Jesus. Indeed, at this first moment of Jesus’s public ministry, he instantly gained both followers and foes. But we can see why, in this week when we honor the baptism of our Lord, it is right that we begin to see the whole story of Jesus’s identity, ministry, and people’s opposition to it.

It is comforting to know that Jesus himself heard the words of God spoken from heaven at that moment, that he knew the book of Isaiah, and that he knew that he was supported and commissioned by God for his ministry. It’s no wonder he went off by himself many times to pray – because he was not all by himself. He was with God and took time to linger in God’s presence to comfort and strengthen him for his called work. May the same be said of us all.

A prayer:

Lord God, thank you for loving us. Thank you for giving us work to do in your kingdom. Help us to feel your call to establish justice and relieve suffering and even free those imprisoned by whatever forces hold them back. Help us always to be comforted and strengthened by you. Amen.