Isaiah 42:9

Isaiah 42:9

See, the former things have taken place, and new things I declare; before they spring into being I announce them to you.’

So far, we’ve seen that the promised Servant will be gentle, just and faithful. He will bring hope and light to all the nations, by being the one who makes possible God’s covenant with his people. He will free the captives and make the blind see. Doesn’t that sound exactly like the life and ministry of Jesus, as described in the pages of the New Testament?

Even the people of Isaiah’s time had some grounds for knowing that God keeps his promises. They have already seen all the ‘former things’ that God has done for his people, from the calling of Abraham to the Exodus from Egypt and the entry into the Promised Land. Again and again, God has announced in advance his good plans for his people, and then acted mightily to make those things happen. So, when he promised ‘new things’ - that the nation will be brought safely through the coming judgment and exile, and then restored by the promised Servant - they had good reason to believe that it would happen. But they didn’t get to see the compete fulfilment for themselves. The return from exile wouldn’t happen in their lifetime. It would be hundreds of years before the Servant would set foot in their land.

How much more confident we can be of God’s faithfulness, now that we have seen this Servant for ourselves. One of the things I love most about the Bible is the way that we get to see God’s purposes developed, from Old Testament promises to real, flesh-and-blood historical New Testament events. It’s like watching an artist sketch a rough pencil outline, lightly at first, but then building up the details and filling in the colours until we see the complete masterpiece in all its glory.

So let’s praise God today for faithfully keeping his promises in the past, and ask for his help to go on trusting him completely as we wait for the completion of the promises that are yet to be fulfilled.