If I don't follow this thing, it'll be all right. It seems to want to be sure that I speak right into it. Let's turn together to Isaiah forty-nine, please. The forty-ninth of Isaiah. chapter of the second section of Isaiah. That's right, Mr. Hamlet. You're doing very well indeed. You passed the quiz. You can go on to the next question, though. Chapter forty-nine and verse one. It's page seven hundred and fifty-six. If it isn't you by the wrong Bible. Listen, O'Iles, unto me, 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. He hath made my mouth like a sharp sword. In the shadow of his hand, hath he hid me. He hath made me a polished shaft. In his quiver, hath he hid me. And said to me, Thou art my servant. O Israel, in whom I will be glorified. Then I said, I have labored in vain. I have spent my strength, for naught. And in vain, yet surely my judgment is with the Lord, and my work with my God. And now, saith the Lord, that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again with him. Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, and my God shall be my strength. And he said, It is a light thing that thou shalt be my servant, to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the preserve of Israel. I will also give thee for a light of the Gentile, like to the Gentile, that thou mayest be my salvation under the end of the earth. Thus saith the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him whom man despise us, to him whom the nation of Horus, to a servant of rulers, kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because the Lord that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose to. Our God will bless the rest of you. reading of these precious words together. We started looking yesterday at these three servant songs, or at least these four servant songs in Isaiah. Four passages that have particularly to do with the Lord Jesus Christ as the servant. You may well be aware that Isaiah speaks of the servant in three different ways. Very often in Isaiah, the servant is spoken of, as Israel. Israel, my servant. Jacob, my servant. Common phrases in the Book of Isaiah. Because the nation Israel was chosen to do the work of Jehovah, to accomplish his path. Through Israel was to come the Redeemer. Israel was to be the light to the nation. Israel was to be the witness. to those around. And as such, Israel, Jacob was his servant. Then in a few passages, and Isaiah forty-three, verse ten, I think it is, is one of them, the remnant, the faithful of Israel, are seen as Jehovah's special servant. The unfaithful remained in exile, the faithful were to come back, and the faithful were to be in a very special way his servant. But then even more particularly than that, in these four passages that we're looking at in these four mornings, the Lord Jesus is the perfect servant of Jehovah. And in chapter forty-two, and in chapter forty-nine, and in chapter fifty-and also in the end of fifty-two, and continuing on through fifty-three, are the four servant songs. that look at the Lord Jesus, particularly in this aspect. No, yesterday we looked at the servant's character in chapter forty-two, and that was to delight the whole of God. We should have a character of a servant like that, to please him, to be ever his delight in the things we say, the things we do, and the way of the places we go to bring delight to the heart of the Lord himself. The Lord Jesus did that in all his life. Now here in chapter forty-nine, the second of the songs, and we've entitled this one, the Servant's Mission to Display Jehovah's Glory. First, the Servant's Character, to Delight the Holy Heart, that was yesterday. And then today, the servant's mission is to display Jehovah's glory. Chapter forty-nine, as Alston has reminded us, introduces the second of the three divisions in Isaiah. If you'll notice, verse twenty-two of chapter forty-eight, there is no peace, set the Lord under the wicked. That's the dividing phrase between me. three nine chapter sections of the second part of Isaiah. And now he starts with the second great section, the second or the middle nine chapters. And by the way, the middle chapter of that nine chapters is chapter fifty-three. And the middle verse of chapter fifty-three has to do with the Lord Jesus wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our disease. And Ned is a lamb to the slaughter. This is a very central part of what Isaiah has to say. But we're looking now at the servant's mission from chapter forty-nine. And these nine chapters beginning here have to do with the Redeemer and particularly the suffering servant as the Redeemer. And his suffering will begin to be seen in this chapter. and increases until it reaches its climax in chapters fifty-two and fifty-three. Many of us have often wished we were walking on the road to a man, the Lord Jesus. And when he began to explain the scriptures to those two disciples, and I rather think they were clear to us in his life, but at any rate, when the Lord Jesus began to explain the Scripture to them, O fools, he says, and blow apart to believe all of the prophets, ought not haste to have suffered these things. And beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning themselves. And I am as sure as I can be that chapter forty-nine was among those passages of the Lord Jesus quoted. and explain to those Emmaus disciples on that morning. Well, I wouldn't be surprised if that's true. All right, now let's start looking at some of the passages in this thing. For the first two verses have a tone very similar to that we saw in the first part of chapter one, two. There are distant lands. There's the call. There's a setting apart. There's divine protection. There's divine preparation. But notice now when we come to this chapter, it is almost like a conversation between the servant and Jehovah. When the servant speaks, he declares the part that Jehovah is going to play. And when Jehovah speaks, He reminds the servant of his great purposes to be accomplished through that work. And it's almost like a dialogue, a conversation between a servant and Jehovah itself. Listen, O isle, unto me, hearken ye people from afar. The Lord has called me to see the servant is speaking, and so on. And then in verse three, and said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel. Then I said, verse three. for I have labored in vain verse five and now saith the Lord that is Jehovah he speaks and then verse fifth and he said so there is conversation back and forth between the servant and Jehovah one of the keys to this section is to look at those we're not going to emphasize them anymore this morning but if you study this on your own you may find that very profitable study now first of all in the first two verses There is a servant's readiness for Jehovah's work, and the servant is seeking. He calls on the nations to listen to him. You see, they need him too. They need his salvation, not only to Jews, but the Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost. And of course all the nations were lost. And so the verse here calls on all the nations to listen to him. And notice the call of the servant writing in the first verse, Listen to the wiles unto me, Harkin you people from far, the Lord hath called me from the womb. Isn't it interesting that the Old Testament says nothing of the father of the Lord Jesus. For the mother is often spoken of, or in terms that imply the mother as the word womb would, in Psalms, in Micah, in Isaiah, even in Genesis. He is the seed of the woman and so on. Often the mother of the Lord Jesus is spoken of and never the father. Of course, that's perfectly consistent with the virgin birth. He is called from his mother's womb. And then his name is mentioned. And I'm not going to spend too much time here for our time in the morning. It's very one of his. But his name is mentioned here. And what he says is, from the vowels of my mother, hath he made mention of my name. Now the name Jesus, as we know it, is not in Old Testament prophecy. But when was it revealed? Well, it was revealed when Mary was expecting the Lord Jesus. And that's exactly what Isaiah tells us, that from the vowels of my mother, he hath made mention of my name, and both to Mary and to Joseph, the name Jesus was revealed to them. I can be fitting that Isaiah, whose own name means, salvation of Jehovah, should reveal the importance of the Savior's name, who is Jeshua, or Jehovah is salvation, and that exactly at the right time. But notice something else here in the second verse. Notice the servant's speech. It was the servant's call and the servant's name. And now there's the servant's speech. What does he say in verse two? And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword. In the shadow of his hand hath he hid me. My mouth like a sharp sword. And it refers to the clear incited reach of the Lord Jesus. You see, He is the Word, and He's called the Word because He is an expression of the infinite God, one of the great terms of the Lord Jesus, His low gospel, Word. He expresses what God is to man, as much as man can understand. And as the Word is mounted as a sharp sword. It's incisive, it is clear, it divides asunder, and how often men talk to him until no man dared ask him any more questions. And they wondered at the gracious words that proceeded out of his mouth, and yet to those who were not prepared to follow him or commit themselves unto him, they were sharp words. judgmental word. The Pharisees did not like to listen to him. They were words as a sharp sword. Remember when John saw him in Revelation chapter one, with a sharp sword proceeding out of his mouth, a sword of judgment? Well, here is the speech of the servant, always clear, always dividing at the right place. as a sharp sword. And so he comes as the living word. And we also see that he is hidden in the shadow of his hands. And the imagery, of course, is the hilt of the sword within the hand of Jehovah, so that it could be steadily and accurately used to accomplish the purposes of him who holds the sword. As Jehovah would hold that sword, and as the Lord Jesus speaking those things which the Father has given him to speak, and revealing those truths which the Father has given him to reveal, and so it is that he is hidden in the shadow of his hand here. There are other things you could see in this, that the Lord Jesus was secluded for a time, in order that at the right time he might be brought forth. Some of us, you know, we sing that little song, hidden in the hollow of his blessed hand. Never foe can follow. Never traitor stands. And why is it? Because hidden in the hollow of his hand is protection. The Father kept the perfect servant in his hand. But the Lord also keeps his underservant like you and I in his hand as well. And we are protected. And we are to be used as... a sword as well. We have the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. It divides between souls and spirits. And so the servant's speech is here. And then there's the servant's readiness. He's a polished arrow. In the end of verse two, a polished arrow. Straight, clean, ready to be used, and kept in the quiver. until the time comes when it is to be sent forth. And there is the readiness of the Lord Jesus as servant, at the will of the Father to do his will, and are we not to be ready to be used by him? Sometimes, you know, the Lord puts us in his quiver for a time, and we feel were not being used, as much as we would like to be used. We feel that if we are a straight, clean arrow, we ought to be winging on our way somewhere. We have young people at Emmaus that are so anxious to get to the other end of the world that they don't seem to worry about preparation. You notice the balance in these verses between preparation. Then the timing of Jehovah in sending them forth to accomplish his purpose. The servant's great purpose was, of course, the target of the arrow that is the servant of Jehovah here was the cross of Calvary. And when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth his son specifically for that purpose. But then all of us as God's servants are hidden. in his quiver. And we ought to be ready to be saved. I cut out a clipping from the book Shadow of the Almighty, and it's part of a conversation that Jim Elliott had with his parents when he had decided to go to Ecuador, and they were digging in their heels somewhat. They were very godly people, and they knew Jim was impetuous, which he certainly was. And so he writes them. I do not wonder that you are saddened at the word of my going to South America, he replied on August eight. This is nothing else than what the Lord Jesus warned us of when he told the disciples that they must become so infatuated with the kingdom and following him that all other allegiances must become as though they were not. And he never excludes the family ties. In fact, those loves which we regard as closest, he told us must become a hate in comparison with our desires to uphold his cause. Grieve not, then, if your sons seem to desert you. One of them, first had already gone to Peru. Now Jim would want to go to Ecuador. So he says, grieve not, if then, if your sons seem to desert you. But rejoice rather, seeing the will of God done gladly. Remember how the psalmist described children. He said that they were as an heritage from the Lord, and that every man should be happy who had his quiver full of them. Now he says, And what is a quiver full of? For arrows. And what are arrows for? But shoot. So with the strong arms of prayer, draw the bowstring back, and let the arrows fly. All of them, straight to the enemy host. Give of thy sons to bear the message glorious. Give of thy wealth to feed them on their way. Pour out thy soul for them in prayer victorious. And all our spendeth, Jesus will repay. Well, he goes on from there, but so much for that. We are arrows, and the Lord Jesus, of course, was the original arrow. Now, in verse three, if in verses one and two you have the servant's readiness for Jehovah's work, In verse three, you have Jehovah's Purpose in his servant. You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified. I know some of you Bible students are going to jump on me immediately and say, See, this isn't Christ at all. It's Israel. It says so right there. I would ask you to just read on, dear brother, and see what you think. For instance, down in verse five, and now sets the Lord that formed me from the womb to be his servant. Who's that speaking of? Ah, yes. We're back to the servant of Jehovah. And Israel, you see, was the prince with God. And the embodiment of the prince with God was the servant of Jehovah himself. All that Jacob pictured the Lord Jesus fulfilled. And certainly this passage refers directly to the Lord Jesus' servant. But what's he doing? In whom I will be glorified. That's the purpose of Jehovah in his servant. That he might glorify Jehovah in all that he does. Isn't that what the Lord Jesus came to do? We beheld his glory, said John. glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. They saw the word Jesus, and they knew he displayed the glory of the Father. Now that was what they saw in him, and the servant's glory was to manifest glory of the Father. That was his great purpose, and that's our purpose as well. And that's The servant here is encouraged with the great purpose of Jehovah. Ultimately, the greatest glory came to the Father when the Lord Jesus hung on the cross between heaven and earth for sins of lost mankind. And what does the Lord say in the midst of that? It is complete. Keterosai is finished. the great purpose, and God ultimately glorified in the one sacrifice for sins forever. Glorifying the Father, the sacrificial death on the cross at Calvary. Well, my time is getting away from this. Look at verse four. There's not only the servant's purpose to display Jehovah's glory, but the servant's trust in the control of Jehovah there. Then I said, I have labored in vain. I have spent my strength for naught, and in vain. There's a kind of discouraged attitude here. You know, sometimes even the Lord Jesus displays some human discouragement. He came unto his own. His own received him not. He cries over Jerusalem. How often would I? And he would not. There is discouragement there. He says to his disciples, As one by one they turn back and go away. Would ye also go away? It seems as if I've labored in vain. That's seemingly what it's like. But the end of it is trust in Jehovah. Surely my judgment is with the Lord and my work is with my God. And I would like to encourage you, my friends, this morning, that when things being discouraging to you, remember that even he was discouraged. But that in the end his trust in Jehovah was such a great thing. And that when we believe that God is in control, then these setbacks, these discouragement that come our way, are simply things that hasten us on toward glory, and our trust can grow ever more in himself. Now, the servant knows that Jehovah is going to use him to complete his path. Even though there's apparent personal failure, and you could go on in that, Verse five, there's obvious national sin. And in verse six, there's worldwide darkness. And even in the light of all this, God is going to accomplish His purpose through His service. And so He is to go on. I remember once when I was a young missionary, I was an old English missionary in South Africa, working a little place called Thermalo, the same with George Sellingham. And... He never had a very exciting work, he had a little printing work, and there were a few little assemblers there, but nothing sort of outstanding was happening. And he said to me, he says, you know, Ken, he says, I've often been encouraged by that version in Luke twenty-two, where the Lord says to his disciples, Blessed are ye that have continued with me in all my trials. He says, that's what I have tried to do all my life, is just be faithful to my God. And I am blessed as a result of that. We may not look for what the world calls success. But you see, it isn't the world that's our God. It's the Lord himself. And he looks at the heart. He looks at that heart that is laid upon Jehovah where hearts are fully blessed. My time has gone and I didn't finish. I'm sorry, but we'll just have to leave that right there. There's plenty more for you just to have. Shall we close and pray? Father, we just thank you for the perfect servant. Help us to at least be good servants. Help us to be faithful. Help us in our daily walk. even though sometimes there are discouragement in the way, to live for him, to work for him, to love him, and to seek to serve him as we serve each other. And so we ask that, by blessing may be upon each one's day, may we know much of the sense of thy presence. We pray in Jesus' name.