Isaiah 42:6

“I, the Lord, officially commission you; ¹  I take hold of your hand. I protect you ²  and make you a covenant mediator for people, ³  and a light ⁴  to the nations, ⁵ 

Ps 45:6,7; Isa 32:1; Isa 41:13; Isa 42:1; Isa 43:1; Isa 45:13; Isa 49:1-3; Isa 49:6; Isa 49:8; Isa 51:4,5; Isa 60:1-3; Jer 23:5,6; Jer 33:15,16; Mt 26:28; Lu 1:69-72; Lu 2:32; Joh 8:12; Ac 13:47; Ac 26:23; Ro 3:25,26; Ro 15:8,9; 2Co 1:20; Ga 3:15-17; Heb 1:8,9; Heb 7:2,26; Heb 8:6; Heb 9:15; Heb 12:24; Heb 13:20; 1Pe 2:9

¹ tn Heb “call you in righteousness.” The pronoun “you” is masculine singular, referring to the servant. See the note at 41:2.

² tn The translation assumes the verb is derived from the root נָצַר (natsar, “protect”). Some prefer to derive it from the root יָצַר (yatsar, “form”).

³ tn Heb “a covenant of people.” A person cannot literally be a covenant; בְּרִית (bÿrit) is probably metonymic here, indicating a covenant mediator. The precise identity of עָם (’am, “people”) is uncertain. In v. 5 עָם refers to mankind, and the following reference to “nations” also favors this. But in 49:8, where the phrase בְּרִית עָם occurs again, Israel seems to be in view.

⁴ sn Light here symbolizes deliverance from bondage and oppression; note the parallelism in 49:6b and in 51:4-6.

⁵ tn Or “the Gentiles” (so KJV, ASV, NIV); the same Hebrew word can be translated “nations” or “Gentiles” depending on the context.