Isa 42:6 | NETfull | STEP | “I, the Lord , officially commission you; I take hold of your hand. I protect you and make you a covenant mediator for people, and a light to the nations,

Isaiah 42:6

6 “I, the Lord, officially commission you; ^{▼▼ Heb “call you in righteousness.” The pronoun “you” is masculine singular, referring to the servant. See the note at 41:2.}
I take hold of your hand.
I protect you ^{▼▼ The translation assumes the verb is derived from the root נָצַר (natsar, “protect”). Some prefer to derive it from the root יָצַר (yatsar, “form”).} and make you a covenant mediator for people, ^{▼▼ Heb “a covenant of people.” A person cannot literally be a covenant; בְּרִית (b^erit) 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.}
and a light ^{▼▼ Light here symbolizes deliverance from bondage and oppression; note the parallelism in 49:6b and in 51:4–6.} to the nations, ^{▼▼ Or “the Gentiles” (so KJV, ASV, NIV); the same Hebrew word can be translated “nations” or “Gentiles” depending on the context.}