Isaiah 49:3 kjv
And said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.
Isaiah 49:3 nkjv
"And He said to me, 'You are My servant, O Israel, In whom I will be glorified.'
Isaiah 49:3 niv
He said to me, "You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will display my splendor."
Isaiah 49:3 esv
And he said to me, "You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified."
Isaiah 49:3 nlt
He said to me, "You are my servant, Israel,
and you will bring me glory."
Isaiah 49 3 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Isaiah 49:5 | "And now the LORD says, who formed me from the womb as his servant..." | Clear affirmation of divine formation |
| Genesis 1:26 | "Then God said, “Let us make man in our image..." | God's creation reflecting His image |
| Psalm 139:13 | "For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb." | Personal divine formation |
| Jeremiah 1:5 | "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you..." | Foreknowledge and pre-existence of servants |
| Matthew 1:23 | "The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son..." | Fulfillment in Christ's formation |
| John 1:14 | "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us..." | Incarnation as divine dwelling |
| Acts 2:23 | "...you killed him by nailing him to the cross." | God's foreknowledge of Jesus's mission |
| Romans 11:4 | "But what does God say? “I have reserved for myself seven thousand who have not bowed to Baal.”" | God's preserved remnant |
| 1 Peter 1:20 | "He was chosen before the creation of the world..." | Christ's preordained purpose |
| Revelation 13:8 | "...everyone whose name has not been written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the creation of the world." | Lamb slain from the foundation |
| John 17:5 | "And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory I had with you before the world was created." | Christ's eternal glory |
| Isaiah 43:1 | "But now, this is what the LORD says—he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you..." | God's ongoing formation and redemption |
| Jeremiah 31:28 | "Just as I have watched over them to uproot and tear down, to topple and destroy, so I will watch over them to build and to plant,” declares the LORD." | Divine intervention in building |
| Ephesians 2:10 | "For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life." | Believers as God's handiwork for His purposes |
| Galatians 1:15 | "But when God, who had set me apart even from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, was pleased" | Paul's divine calling and preparation |
| Philippians 2:13 | "...for it is God who works in you, both to will and to do according to his good pleasure." | God's active working within believers |
| 1 Corinthians 6:19 | "Don’t you know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, whom God has sent to live in you?" | The believer as a dwelling place of God |
| Hebrews 1:3 | "The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word." | Christ as God's glory manifested |
| Romans 8:29 | "For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son..." | Conformity to Christ's image |
| Colossians 1:27 | "...to them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory." | Christ in believers as glory and hope |
Isaiah 49 verses
Isaiah 49 3 Meaning
Isaiah 49:3 declares that God has designated and formed His Servant, Israel, in His land as a testament to His glory. The Servant is actively being created for God's purpose and presence.
Isaiah 49 3 Context
This verse is part of Isaiah's prophecies concerning the Servant of the Lord, particularly focusing on the period of the Babylonian exile and the subsequent return. Isaiah 49 presents a vivid picture of the Servant's mission to restore Israel and be a light to the nations. The immediate context of chapter 49 highlights Israel's perceived insignificance and God's overarching plan to exalt them. God's declaration of His intimate knowledge and purpose in forming His Servant serves as a strong affirmation against feelings of abandonment or failure.
Isaiah 49 3 Word Analysis
- יֹצֵר (yotzer): Potter, Former. This word emphasizes God's role as the divine artisan who shapes and crafts. It highlights deliberate and intentional design. The Hebrew root י.צ.ר (y.ts.r) relates to forming, shaping, creating. God is the potter of creation and of His people.
- לִי (li): To me. Singular possessive pronoun. Indicates that the Servant is distinct and personal to God.
- וּבְךָ (uv’ḵā): And in you. This signifies not just God's action upon the Servant, but His presence within the Servant. It implies indwelling and habitation.
- יִתְפָּאַר (yitpā’ar): Shall be glorified. The Hithpael conjugation indicates a reflexive or reciprocal action. God will be glorified through the Servant, and the Servant will manifest God's glory. The root פ.א.ר (p.’r) means to adorn, be glorious, to boast.
- יִשְׂרָאֵל (yiśrā’ēl): Israel. Referring to the nation as a corporate entity, representing the totality of God's chosen people, and by extension, a singular representative Servant.
Words Group Analysis
- "you formed me": This phrase underscores God’s sovereignty and active involvement from the very beginning, before the Servant even existed in a visible form. It speaks to predestination and a divine purpose from conception or origin.
- "in my land": Locates God’s glorious action within His specific domain, connecting the Servant’s formation and future glory to the covenantal land promised to Israel. This isn't a random creation but one grounded in God’s specific redemptive history with His people.
- "and in you shall be glorified Israel": This highlights the intimate relationship where God's glory is revealed and manifested through Israel, His chosen instrument. Israel is the medium through which God’s renown will be displayed to all.
Isaiah 49 3 Bonus Section
This verse carries a profound messianic implication, as the Servant of the Lord is strongly interpreted by Christian theology to refer to Jesus Christ. While "Israel" in verse 3 can refer to the nation, the subsequent verses in Isaiah 49, and their application in the New Testament, often point to a singular figure. The idea of God forming a servant for Himself echoes throughout scripture, particularly in Christ's unique relationship with the Father, who was "known" and "formed" by God even before His earthly conception (Jeremiah 1:5, John 1:1-14). The "glory" spoken of here relates to God’s essential attributes and character, which Christ perfectly displayed, and which He imparts to believers through His Spirit. The promise of God’s glory being manifest in "Israel" points to the redeemed community, both ethnic Israel in their faithful remnant and the church, as instruments for displaying God’s praise.
Isaiah 49 3 Commentary
Isaiah 49:3 is a pivotal declaration of divine purpose and identity for the Servant of the Lord, understood in the Old Testament as representative of Israel. God assures that He personally formed this Servant and that His glory would be manifest in the Servant and indeed in Israel as a whole. This speaks to God's absolute control and sovereign plan, ensuring that even in the midst of desolation or perceived weakness, His redemptive purposes would prevail. The emphasis on being "formed" points to a preordained design and intrinsic purpose, not a consequence of chance. The assurance that "in you shall be glorified Israel" reveals the ultimate goal: that God’s character and power would be seen through His people. This concept finds its ultimate fulfillment in Jesus Christ, the ideal Servant, who embodies and perfectly reveals the glory of God, and in whom believers are made to reflect that same glory.