Isaiah 50: the servant of the Lord is mistreated.

 In Isaiah 50:1-9, we read the servant saying:

1-3 God says:

“Can you produce your mother’s divorce papers
    proving I got rid of her?
Can you produce a receipt
    proving I sold you?
Of course you can’t.


for people in Judah, the Lord has forsaken them; but the Lord is asking if they can prove it.

Of course you can’t.
    It’s your sins that put you here,
    your wrongs that got you shipped out.
(...)
Do you think I’ve forgotten how to help?
    Am I so decrepit that I can’t deliver?
I’m as powerful as ever,

I sometimes may think that the Lord is far way from me. Is it really true?

Then, the servant says:

4-9
The Master, God, has given me
    a well-taught tongue,
So I know how to encourage tired people.
    He wakes me up in the morning,
Wakes me up, opens my ears
    to listen as one ready to take orders.
The Master, God, opened my ears,
    and I didn’t go back to sleep,
    didn’t pull the covers back over my head.
I followed orders,
    stood there and took it while they beat me,
    held steady while they pulled out my beard,
Didn’t dodge their insults,
    faced them as they spit in my face.
And the Master, God, stays right there and helps me,
    so I’m not disgraced.

The servant was ill treated, but he trusts in the Lord; that is why he is not disgraced.

Therefore I set my face like flint,
    confident that I’ll never regret this.
My champion is right here.
    Let’s take our stand together!
Who dares bring suit against me?
    Let him try!
Look! the Master, God, is right here.
    Who would dare call me guilty?
Look! My accusers are a clothes bin of threadbare
    socks and shirts, fodder for moths!

As in a judgement, the servant is confident that his accusers have no reason to accuse him.

In verses 10-11, the prophet (writer) calls Judah (in captivity) to trust in the Lord.  

Isaiah 49: the Servant of the Lord that has joined me to Israel

 Isaiah 49 refers to the Lord’s Servant. Christians think of Him as Jesus. Jews think of Him as Israel.

The Servant was chosen by the Lord.

1 Listen to me, you islands.
    Pay attention, you people far away.
    Before I was born, Yahweh chose me.
    While I was in my mother’s womb, he recorded my name.

In verse 3, the Servant is called Israel:

3
He said to me,
    “You are my servant Israel.
        I will display my glory through you.”

But we see Matthew mixing Israel and Jesus when he applies that Jesus returned from Egypt as a fuffilment of a prophecy that refers to Israel (Israel was called from Egypt). In a way, Jesus mission is to fufil the mission of Israel.

In the first person the Servant says:

4
But I said,
    “I have worked hard for nothing.
    I have used my strength, but I didn’t accomplish anything.
        Yet, certainly my case is in Yahweh’s hands,
            and my reward is with my Elohim.”

5
Yahweh formed me in the womb to be his servant
    in order to bring Jacob back to him
        and gather Israel to him.
            (Yahweh honors me,
                and my Elohim has become my strength.)

Verse 5 is really difficult to read in face of verse 3: the Servant will bring Jacob/Israel to the Lord. Thus, is the servant, Israel?

6 Now, Yahweh says,

“You are not just my servant
    who restores the tribes of Jacob
        and brings back those in Israel whom I have preserved.
    I have also made you a light for the nations
    so that you would save people all over the world.”

 The Servant will save people all over the world; his mission goes beyond gathering the tribes of Jacob. It is much easier to think of the Servant as Jesus.

 7
Yahweh is the Go’el of Israel, its Holy One.

This is what Yahweh says to the despised one, to the one scorned by the nation, to the slave of rulers:

Kings will see you and stand.
    Princes will see you and bow.
        Yahweh is faithful.
            Qedosh Yisrael has chosen you.

The Lord will exalt Jesus who was despised.

8 This is what Yahweh says:

In the time of favor I will answer you.
    In the day of salvation I will help you.
    I will protect you.
    I will appoint you as my promise[a] to the people.
    You will restore the land.
    You will make them inherit the desolate inheritance.
9
You will say to the prisoners, “Come out,”
    and to those who are in darkness, “Show yourselves.”

They will graze along every path,
    and they will find pastures on every bare hill.
10
They will never be hungry or thirsty,
    nor will the sun or the burning, hot wind strike them.
        The one who has compassion on them will lead them
            and guide them to springs.
        
Jesus is the Redeemer, the One who bought prisioners and opened the eyes of the blind.

If we were in the captivity of Babylon, we would think about the Lord's abandonement:

14
But Zion said, “Yahweh has abandoned me.
    My Adonay has forgotten me.”

15
Can a woman forget her nursing child?
    Will she have no compassion on the child from her womb?
    Although mothers may forget,
    I will not forget you.


Christians see themselves as a branch of Israel. In a way, although I am gentile, I am a son of Israel, due to the Servant of the Lord that has joined me to Israel:

19
Though you are destroyed and demolished and your land is in ruins,
    you will be too crowded for your people now.
        Those who devoured you will be long gone.
20
The children taken from you will say to you,
    “This place is too crowded for me.
    Make room for me to live here.”
21
Then you will ask yourself,
    “Who has fathered these children for me?
        I was childless and unable to have children.
        I was exiled and rejected.
    Who raised these children for me?
        I was left alone.
    Where have they come from?”

Isaiah 48, Isaiah, Babylon, repentance.

 Isaiah 48, Isaiah, Babylon, repentance.

Imagine the people of the Lord in Babylon. They are always tempted to think that other gods are more powerful than the Lord. However this chapter explains why Judah is in Babylon. Although they claim to worship the Lord, it is not true:

1,2 “And now listen to this, family of Jacob,
    you who are called by the name Israel:
Who got you started in the loins of Judah,
    you who use God’s name to back up your promises
    and pray to the God of Israel?
But do you mean it?
    Do you live like it?
You claim to be citizens of the Holy City;
    you act as though you lean on the God of Israel,
    named God-of-the-Angel-Armies.

8  (...)
    I know that you’ve acted very treacherously
    and that you have been called a rebel since you were born.    

Although Judah worship the Lord, they also worship other gods; that is why the Lord reveal future things - Judah should have no execuse that the Lord spoke:

5
That is why I revealed to you what would happen long ago.
    I told you about them before they happened.
    I did this so you couldn’t say,
    “My gods have done these things.
    My carved idols and my metal idols
        have commanded them to happen.”

The Lord has shown many signs to Israel:

3
From the beginning I revealed to you what would happen.
    These words came out of my mouth,
        and I made them known.
    Suddenly, I acted, and they happened.

but Israel is stuborn:

4
I know that you are stubborn.
    Like iron, you are hardheaded.
    Like bronze, nothing gets through your thick skull.
5
That is why I revealed to you what would happen long ago.
    I told you about them before they happened.
    I did this so you couldn’t say,
    “My gods have done these things.
    My carved idols and my metal idols
        have commanded them to happen.”
6
You’ve heard these words.
    Now look at all this.
        Won’t you admit it?

The Lord still wants Judah, Israel by his side.

9
For my name’s sake I’ll be patient.
    For my glory’s sake I’ll hold my anger back from you,
    rather than destroy you.
10
I have refined you,
    but not like silver.
    I have tested you in the furnace of suffering.
11
I am doing this for myself, only for myself.
    Why should my name be dishonored?
    I will not give my glory to anyone else.
12
Listen to me, Jacob,
    Israel, whom I have called.
        I am the one.
            I am the first and the last.
13
My hand laid the foundation of the earth.
    My right hand stretched out the heavens.
    When I call for them, they both stand.

One more sign, a prophecy:

14
Gather together, all of you, and listen.
    What idol has revealed such things?
    Yahweh loves Cyrus.
    He will carry out Yahweh’s plan against Babylon.
    He will use his strength against the Babylonians.
15
I alone have spoken.
    I have called him.
        I will bring him here, and he will succeed.

The Lord calls his people to repent:

17 This is what Yahweh, your Go’el, Qedosh Yisrael, says:

I am Yahweh your Elohim.
    I teach you what is best for you.
    I lead you where you should go.
18
If only you had listened to my commands!
    Your peace would be like a river that never runs dry.
    Your righteousness would be like waves on the sea.
19
Your descendants would be like sand.
    Your children would be like its grains.
        Their names would not be cut off or wiped out in my presence.

The Lord ordains his people to leave Babylon:

20
Leave Babylon; flee from the Babylonians!
    Shout for joy as you tell it and announce it.
        Shout it out to the ends of the earth.
            Say that Yahweh has reclaimed his servant Jacob.
21
They weren’t thirsty when he led them through the deserts.
    He made water flow from a rock for them.
    He split a rock, and water gushed out.

22
“There is no peace for the wicked,” says Yahweh.

It is difficult to think that this text was written by Isaiah because he lived before the Babylonian captivity; how woud he say:"Leave Babylon; flee from the Babylonians!"

Isaiah 47 - Babylon will fall despite her wisdom and knowledge

 
Isaiah 47 is message against Babylon. The Lord says "she" was his instrument to punish the sins of his people:

6
I was angry with my people.
    I dishonored those who belong to me.
    I put them under your control.
    You showed them no mercy.
    You placed a heavy burden on old people.
7
You said, “I will always be a queen.”
    You didn’t carefully consider these things
        or keep in mind how they would end.

Although Babylon receive power from the Lord against his people, she is guilty of showing "no mercy". Jesus says that his disciples should be merciful.
Babylon is secure in herself; she trusts its power:

8
Now then, listen to this, you lover of pleasure.
    You live securely and say to yourself,
        “I’m the only one, and there’s no one else.
            I won’t live as a widow.
            I won’t suffer the loss of children.”
10
You feel safe in your wickedness
    and say, “No one can see me.”
    Your wisdom and knowledge have led you astray,
    so you say to yourself,
        “I’m the only one, and there’s no one else.”

If we were living in Babylon at that time, we were very prone to think like that: no one can destroy Babylon. Babylon had worldly wisdom and knowlege. It was similar to some bi tech company of today. However:

11
But evil will happen to you.
    You won’t know how to keep it away.
    Disaster will strike you.
    You won’t be able to stop it.
    Destruction will overtake you suddenly.
    You won’t expect it.

despite its scientists, economists, etc.:

13
You are worn out by your many plans.
    Let your astrologers and your stargazers,
    who foretell the future month by month,
        come to you, rise up, and save you.
14
They are like straw.
    Fire burns them.
    They can’t rescue themselves from the flames.
    There are no glowing coals to keep them warm
    and no fire for them to sit by.
15
This is how it will be for those who have worked with you,
    for those who have been with you ever since you were young.
        They will go their own ways,
            and there will be no one to save you.

Isaiah 46: Bel and Nebo are man-made gods.

 Was Isaiah 46 written by the prophet Isaiah indeed? Isaiah can be divided in two books: 1-39; and  40-55. The second part deals with the Babylonian captivity and points to Cyrus as the one who will deliver Jerusalem. Let us suppose that Isaiah 46 was written by a jew in Babilonia captivity. All Babylonias veneer Marduk (Bel) and other gods: they are the source of wisdom, the power, etc. We read:

1-2 The god Bel falls down, god Nebo slumps.
    The no-god hunks of wood are loaded on mules
And have to be hauled off,
    wearing out the poor mules—
Dead weight, burdens who can’t bear burdens,
    hauled off to captivity.

The author of these verses could be put to death by the Babylonians! Here, it is evident that Bel and Nebo are man-made gods. In contrast we read:

3-4
“Listen to me, family of Jacob,
    everyone that’s left of the family of Israel.
I’ve been carrying you on my back
    from the day you were born,
And I’ll keep on carrying you when you’re old.
    I’ll be there, bearing you when you’re old and gray.
I’ve done it and will keep on doing it,
    carrying you on my back, saving you.

The Lord carries the family of Israel instead of Babylonian gods being carried.
It is very likely that many Jews were considering to adore the Babylnian gods, but the Lord says:

5-7  “So to whom will you compare me, the Incomparable?
    Can you picture me without reducing me?
People with a lot of money
    hire craftsmen to make them gods.
The artisan delivers the god,
    and they kneel and worship it!
They carry it around in holy parades,
    then take it home and put it on a shelf.
And there it sits, day in and day out,
    a dependable god, always right where you put it.
Say anything you want to it, it never talks back.
    Of course, it never does anything either!

Thus, the Lord is using logic, reason to make his people understand that it is foolish to adore the Babylonian gods. The Lord is the One who writes history and He proves it:

8-11  I am God, the only God you’ve had or ever will have—
    incomparable, irreplaceable—
From the very beginning
    telling you what the ending will be,
All along letting you in
    on what is going to happen,
Assuring you, ‘I’m in this for the long haul,
    I’ll do exactly what I set out to do,’
Calling that eagle, Cyrus, out of the east,
    from a far country the man I chose to help me.
I’ve said it, and I’ll most certainly do it.
    I’ve planned it, so it’s as good as done.

The Lord touches the heart of the people of Israel using words:

12-13  “Now listen to me:
    You’re a hardheaded bunch and hard to help.
I’m ready to help you right now.
    Deliverance is not a long-range plan.
    Salvation isn’t on hold.
I’m putting salvation to work in Zion now,
    and glory in Israel.”

It is the Lord who chose Israel and not the opposite.

Isaiah 45: Cyrus, a pagan king, is called to deliver Jerusalem

 In Isaiah 45 we read a future event: a pagan king, Cyrus, will serve the Lord. He is called "anointed" or Messiah although he is pagan. He will deliver Jerusalem. This prophecy is very specific calling Cyrus by name. If I were a Jew, it would be very clear that there are nations much more powerful than Judah or Israel (Assyria, Babylon). Perhaps, I would question how the Lord, the Creator is really powerful because Judah is not so powerful and the Yahweh is his God. Isaiah 45 calls the unbeliever to understand that Yahweh is in fact controlling the universe. He is the Creator, He made earth and heavens. This chapter finishes with a calling to trust in the Lord who is the only One who provides salvation:

22
Turn to me and be saved, all who live at the ends of the earth,
    because I am El, and there is no other.
23
I have bound myself with an oath.
    A word has gone out from my righteous mouth
    that will not be recalled,
        “Every knee will bow to me
            and every tongue will swear allegiance.”
24
It will be said of me,
    “Certainly, righteousness and strength are found in Yahweh alone.”

All who are angry with him will come to him and be ashamed.
25
All the descendants of Israel will be declared righteous,
    and they will praise Yahweh.

Isaiah 44 - Yahweh is the only Elohim

 In Isaiah 44 we read the Lord saying to Israel:

2
Yahweh made you, formed you in the womb, and will help you.

This is what Yahweh says:

Don’t be afraid, my servant Jacob,
    Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.

We read in Proverbs 9:

10
The fear of Yahweh is the beginning of wisdom.
    The knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

Although the fear of Yahweh is the beginning of wisdom, I don't need to be afraid because the Lord is the One who takes care of me.

The Spirit brings this confidence to the believer: he belongs to the Lord:

2    I will pour my Ruach on your offspring
    and my blessing on your descendants.
4
They will spring up with the grass
    as poplars spring up by streams.
5
One person will say, “I belong to Yahweh.”
    Another will call on the name of Jacob.
        Another will write on his hand, “Yahweh’s,”
            and he will adopt the name of Israel.

We are not to adhore other gods because other gods are powerless:

6 This is what Yahweh says:

I am the first and the last,
    and there is no Elohim except me.
7
If there is anyone like me, let him say so.
    Let him tell me what happened
        when I established my people long ago.
    Then let him predict what will happen to them.
8
Don’t be terrified or afraid.
    Didn’t I make this known to you long ago?
        You are my witnesses.
            Is there any Elohim except me?
                There is no other rock; I know of none.

        
The believer was created to serve the Lord:

21 Remember these things, Jacob:
    You are my servant, Israel.
        I formed you; you are my servant.
            Israel, I will not forget you.
22
I made your rebellious acts disappear like a thick cloud
    and your sins like the morning mist.
    Come back to me, because I have reclaimed you.

23
Sing with joy, you heavens, because Yahweh has done this.
    Rejoice, you deep places of the earth.
    Break into shouts of joy, you mountains,
    you forests and every tree in them.
        Yahweh has reclaimed Jacob.
            He will display his glory in Israel.

A sign that the Lord knows the future:

28
He says about Cyrus, “He is my shepherd.
    He will do everything I want him to do.”
    He says about Jerusalem, “It will be rebuilt.”
    He says about the temple, “Your foundation will be laid.”