Isaiah 49:4-6

49:4 But I thought, ¹  “I have worked in vain;

I have expended my energy for absolutely nothing.” ² 

But the Lord will vindicate me;

my God will reward me. ³ 

49:5 So now the Lord says,

the one who formed me from birth ⁴  to be his servant –

he did this ⁵  to restore Jacob to himself,

so that Israel might be gathered to him;

and I will be honored ⁶  in the Lord’s sight,

for my God is my source of strength ⁷  –

49:6 he says, “Is it too insignificant a task for you to be my servant,

to reestablish the tribes of Jacob,

and restore the remnant ⁸  of Israel? ⁹ 

I will make you a light to the nations, ¹⁰ 

so you can bring ¹¹  my deliverance to the remote regions of the earth.”

[49:4]  ¹ tn Or “said” (KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV); NLT “I replied.”

[49:4]  ² tn Heb “for nothing and emptiness.” Synonyms are combined to emphasize the common idea.

[49:4]  ³ tn Heb “But my justice is with the Lord, and my reward [or “wage”] with my God.”

[49:5]  ⁴ tn Heb “from the womb” (so KJV, NASB).

[49:5]  ⁵ tn The words “he did this” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the Hebrew text the infinitive construct of purpose is subordinated to the previous statement.

[49:5]  ⁶ tn The vav (ו) + imperfect is translated here as a result clause; one might interpret it as indicating purpose, “and so I might be honored.”

[49:5]  ⁷ tn Heb “and my God is [perhaps, “having been”] my strength.” The disjunctive structure (vav [ו] + subject + verb) is interpreted here as indicating a causal circumstantial clause.

[49:6]  ⁷ tn Heb “the protected [or “preserved”] ones.”

[49:6]  ⁸ sn The question is purely rhetorical; it does not imply that the servant was dissatisfied with his commission or that he minimized the restoration of Israel.

[49:6]  ⁹ tn See the note at 42:6.

[49:6]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “be” (so KJV, ASV); CEV “you must take.”