Isa 43:14-21 | KingComments | STEP | With begins a new section that extends to Isaiah 44:5. In this section the LORD shows the nations that He is the Redeemer of Israel. This not only refers to His work of redemption in the past ( ), but He also announces a new work of redemption ( ). The subjects in this new section are judgment ( ), salvation ( ) and the outpouring of the Spirit ( ). The first part is about the exercise of the anger of God over the Chaldeans they have deserved because of their mistreatment of God’s people. “For your sake”, that is, for the purpose of redeeming His people, He has sent someone to Babylon as the executor of His judgment. That turns out to be Cyrus. The action of this Cyrus will have the effect that their war fleet of which they cheer and of which they are proud, will be relegated to a flight fleet. In view of their deliverance, God gives a fourfold remembrance of His people of Who He is ( ): 1. As the “LORD” He is the God of the covenant. 2. As “your Holy One” He contrasts with their unholy abandonment of Him and the unholy character of their heathen rulers. His Name is desecrated through exile, but that Name will be sanctified again through the redemption of Israel ( ). 3. As “the Creator of Israel” He created them for His glory and will never allow them to be definitively rejected. 4. As “your King” He will reign as a blessing for His people, unlike the always failing kings of Israel and Judah and the peoples of whom they have become slaves, and especially unlike the antichrist, the false king of Israel.

‏ Isaiah 43:14-21

The Instrument of Redemption

With Isa 43:14 begins a new section that extends to Isaiah 44:5. In this section the LORD shows the nations that He is the Redeemer of Israel. This not only refers to His work of redemption in the past (Isa 43:18), but He also announces a new work of redemption (Isa 43:19). The subjects in this new section are judgment (Isa 43:14-21), salvation (Isa 43:22-28) and the outpouring of the Spirit (Isa 44:1-5).

The first part is about the exercise of the anger of God over the Chaldeans they have deserved because of their mistreatment of God’s people. “For your sake”, that is, for the purpose of redeeming His people, He has sent someone to Babylon as the executor of His judgment. That turns out to be Cyrus. The action of this Cyrus will have the effect that their war fleet of which they cheer and of which they are proud, will be relegated to a flight fleet.

In view of their deliverance, God gives a fourfold remembrance of His people of Who He is (Isa 43:15):

1. As the “LORD” He is the God of the covenant.

2. As “your Holy One” He contrasts with their unholy abandonment of Him and the unholy character of their heathen rulers. His Name is desecrated through exile, but that Name will be sanctified again through the redemption of Israel (Eze 36:20-24).

3. As “the Creator of Israel” He created them for His glory and will never allow them to be definitively rejected.

4. As “your King” He will reign as a blessing for His people, unlike the always failing kings of Israel and Judah and the peoples of whom they have become slaves, and especially unlike the antichrist, the false king of Israel.

A Way for God’s People

He will make for them “a way through the sea and a path through the mighty waters” (Isa 43:16). This is how He did it before, when He made a path for them through the Red Sea (Exo 14:21-22). This is also the experience of all saints. The waters of the nations rage and go wild, enmity and persecution increase, but God has a path for His people. This path does not only relate to salvation from trouble, but also to the proclamation of the gospel that goes its way to the appointed end.

Isa 43:17 gives a reminder, also valid for the present time, of the all overthrowing power of God with regard to the armies of the nations. Whatever the rulers may think, it is the LORD Who “brings forth the chariot and the horse”. The calamities of war are His judgments. By this He wants to bring the hearts of the people to repentance. He will also fulfill His national purposes and extinguish the fire of the battle of the enemies of His earthly people. This is how it happened with Pharaoh and his horsemen (Exo 14:23-31).

Then they may forget the sad time of unfaithfulness and oppression (Isa 43:18). It may also mean that they should no longer think of the past as if God acted for His people only in that time. They may focus on the new that He is going to give (Isa 43:19). He is not only the God of the past, but He is also the God of the present and of the future.

Let us apply these promises to our own experiences and take together the four sentences that are meant to comfort us in times of trial and tribulation:

1. through the waters (Isa 43:2) – they are in themselves a means of giving us the experience of the presence of the Lord;

2. through the fire (Isa 43:2) – we are assured that He keeps us;

3. through the sea and through the mighty waters (Isa 43:16) – here God provides a way; difficult circumstances are a means to give us the awareness of His guidance;

4. in the wilderness and in the desert (Isa 43:19) – therein guidance and refreshment are our part.

The waters speak of overwhelming trials; the wilderness and the desert speak of the state of the world around us which, if we concern ourselves with it without being commissioned to do so, will cause us spiritual suffering and depression. But God has a way in the midst of such circumstances, a path of fellowship with Him, a path of joy and fertility.

In the past, God made a way through the sea during the exodus and He gave a stream, a river of water, from the rock in the wilderness (1Cor 10:4). In the future He will give something new. He will make a roadway in the wilderness and rivers (plural) in the desert. The new will be a blessing for the whole earth when God’s earthly people enjoy the blessings of His work of salvation.

When the suffering of Israel has come to an end, the suffering of creation has also come to an end (Rom 8:21). Because God gives water in the wilderness, the beasts of the field will honor Him (Isa 43:20; Isa 35:1-7). Blessings are not only granted for the welfare of people and animals. The main purpose is the honor of God Himself (Isa 43:21).