I Gave My Back

The Word of the LORD continues these prophecies concerning the hidden Servant and the issues Judah and Jerusalem would be facing. ‘Where is the certificate of divorce, by which I sent your mother away?’ This refers to the exile of Israel by the Assyrians. That happened just as God stated it would because of their unrepentant idolatry. And then He asked, ‘Or to whom of My creditors did I sell you? Behold, you were sold for your iniquities, and for your transgressions your mother was sent away.’ This is a strong indictment of the idolatry and unrepentant sin of all Israel, but especially of Jerusalem. 

‘Why was there no man when I came? When I called, why was there none to answer?’ Much can be said about this question, but God had promised in the calamities outlined by the Law of Moses that He would make their men scarce if they did not repent. And He did! There was no godly men left, so He would do the saving. ‘Is My hand so short it cannot ransom? Or have I no power to deliver? Behold, I dry up the sea with My rebuke. I make the rivers a wilderness; their fish stink for lack of water, and die of thirst. I clothe the heavens with blackness and I make sackcloth their covering.’ No, God is not without power to redeem. In fact, He is the only One who can redeem Israel, Judah, and Jerusalem from their sin.

The Servant then speaks, His words an answer to the questions God presented to Jerusalem. ‘The Lord GOD has given me the tongues of disciples, that I may know how to sustain the weary one with a word. He awakens Me morning by morning, He awakens My ear to listen as a disciple. The Lord GOD has opened My ear; and I was not disobedient, nor did I turn back. I gave My back to those who strike Me, and My cheeks to those who pluck out the beard. I did not cover My face from humiliation and spitting.’ This Servant describes the lengths He was going to endure to save Israel and the world. He would sacrifice His body and His dignity to endure the most humiliating things possible, but He had a reason. Nothing would stop Him from redemption.

How would the Servant endure all of this? ‘For the Lord GOD helps Me, therefore I am not disgraced, therefore I have set My face like flint, and I know I shall not be ashamed. He who vindicates me is near; who will contend with Me? Let him draw near to Me. Behold the Lord GOD helps Me; who is he who condemns Me? Behold, they will all wear out like a garment; the moth will eat them.’ This Servant would come Himself and redeem Israel when no one else could. For the joy set before Him, He would endure the shame. He knows what is on the other side and God would help Him endure it. No one would be able to stand against Him. He would endure and He would save.

Having accomplished the task God had given to the Servant, He then turns to all, calling all to salvation. ‘Who is among you that fears the LORD, that obeys the voice of His Servant? That walks in darkness and has no light? Let him trust in the LORD and rely on his God.’ The Servant is calling, offering redemption to those who would trust Him. If they but call out to Him, they would be saved. But to those who reject Him, He says this, ‘Behold, all you who kindle a fire, who encircle yourselves with firebrands, walk in the light of your fire and among the brands you have set ablaze. This you will have from My hand; and you will lie down in torment.’ For those who would not listen to God or to His Servant, who walked in their own ‘light’, the Servant would let them do that and they would die in torment. 

The Servant would do mighty things and go to great lengths to provide salvation. That salvation would be for all who call on His Name. He also recognized that not everyone would repent and trust Him, so eternal torment was there for them to enjoy. No man can save, but the Servant, who is Jesus, is the only One who can.