Isaiah 49:6

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 ¹  of Israel? ² 

I will make you a light to the nations, ³ 

so you can bring ⁴  my deliverance to the remote regions of the earth.”

Isaiah 52:10

52:10 The Lord reveals ⁵  his royal power ⁶ 

in the sight of all the nations;

the entire ⁷  earth sees

our God deliver. ⁸ 

Isaiah 60:1-3

Zion’s Future Splendor

60:1 “Arise! Shine! For your light arrives!

The splendor ⁹  of the Lord shines on you!

60:2 For, look, darkness covers the earth

and deep darkness covers ¹⁰  the nations,

but the Lord shines on you;

his splendor ¹¹  appears over you.

60:3 Nations come to your light,

kings to your bright light.

Isaiah 61:9

61:9 Their descendants will be known among the nations,

their offspring among the peoples.

All who see them will recognize that

the Lord has blessed them.” ¹² 

Isaiah 66:12

66:12 For this is what the Lord says:

“Look, I am ready to extend to her prosperity that will flow like a river,

the riches of nations will flow into her like a stream that floods its banks. ¹³ 

You will nurse from her breast ¹⁴  and be carried at her side;

you will play on her knees.

Isaiah 66:19

66:19 I will perform a mighty act among them ¹⁵  and then send some of those who remain to the nations – to Tarshish, Pul, ¹⁶  Lud ¹⁷  (known for its archers ¹⁸ ), Tubal, Javan, ¹⁹  and to the distant coastlands ²⁰  that have not heard about me or seen my splendor. They will tell the nations of my splendor.

Micah 5:8

5:8 Those survivors from Jacob will live among the nations,

in the midst of many peoples.

They will be like a lion among the animals of the forest,

like a young lion among the flocks of sheep,

which attacks when it passes through;

it rips its prey ²¹  and there is no one to stop it. ²² 

Acts 9:15

9:15 But the Lord said to him, “Go, because this man is my chosen instrument ²³  to carry my name before Gentiles and kings and the people of Israel. ²⁴ 

Acts 26:23

26:23 that ²⁵  the Christ ²⁶  was to suffer and be the first to rise from the dead, to proclaim light both to our people ²⁷  and to the Gentiles.” ²⁸ 

Colossians 1:23

1:23 if indeed you remain in the faith, established and firm, ²⁹  without shifting ³⁰  from the hope of the gospel that you heard. This gospel has also been preached in all creation under heaven, and I, Paul, have become its servant.

[49:6]  ¹ tn Heb “the protected [or “preserved”] ones.”

[49:6]  ² 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]  ³ tn See the note at 42:6.

[49:6]  ⁴ tn Heb “be” (so KJV, ASV); CEV “you must take.”

[52:10]  ⁵ tn Heb “lays bare”; NLT “will demonstrate.”

[52:10]  ⁶ tn Heb “his holy arm.” This is a metonymy for his power.

[52:10]  ⁷ tn Heb “the remote regions,” which here stand for the extremities and everything in between.

[52:10]  ⁸ tn Heb “the deliverance of our God.” “God” is a subjective genitive here.

[60:1]  ⁹ tn Or “glory” (so most English versions).

[60:2]  ¹⁰ tn The verb “covers” is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

[60:2]  ¹¹ tn Or “glory” (so most English versions); TEV “the brightness of his presence.”

[61:9]  ¹² tn Heb “all who see them will recognize them, that they [are] descendants [whom] the Lord has blessed.”

[66:12]  ¹³ tn Heb “Look, I am ready to extend to her like a river prosperity [or “peace”], and like an overflowing stream, the riches of nations.”

[66:12]  ¹⁴ tn The words “from her breast” are supplied in the translation for clarification (see v. 11).

[66:19]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “and I will set a sign among them.” The precise meaning of this statement is unclear. Elsewhere “to set a sign” means “perform a mighty act” (Ps 78:43; Jer 32:20), “make [someone] an object lesson” (Ezek 14:8), and “erect a [literal] standard” (Ps 74:4).

[66:19]  ¹⁶ tn Some prefer to read “Put” (i.e., Libya).

[66:19]  ¹⁷ sn That is, Lydia (in Asia Minor).

[66:19]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “drawers of the bow” (KJV and ASV both similar).

[66:19]  ¹⁹ sn Javan is generally identified today as Greece (so NIV, NCV, NLT).

[66:19]  ²⁰ tn Or “islands” (NIV).

[5:8]  ²¹ tn The words “its prey” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[5:8]  ²² tn Heb “and there is no deliverer.”

[9:15]  ²³ tn Or “tool.”

[9:15]  ²⁴ tn Grk “the sons of Israel.” In Acts, Paul is a minister to all nations, including Israel (Rom 1:16-17).

[26:23]  ²⁵ tn BDAG 277-78 s.v. εἰ 2 has “marker of an indirect question as content, that…Sim. also (Procop. Soph., Ep. 123 χάριν ἔχειν εἰ = that) μαρτυρόμενος…εἰ παθητὸς ὁ Χριστός testifying…that the Christ was to suffer…Ac 26:23.”

[26:23]  ²⁶ tn Or “the Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[26:23]  ²⁷ tn That is, to the Jewish people. Grk “the people”; the word “our” has been supplied to clarify the meaning.

[26:23]  ²⁸ sn Note how the context of Paul’s gospel message about Jesus, resurrection, and light both to Jews and to the Gentiles is rooted in the prophetic message of the OT scriptures. Paul was guilty of following God’s call and preaching the scriptural hope.

[1:23]  ²⁹ tn BDAG 276 s.v. ἑδραῖος suggests “firm, steadfast.”

[1:23]  ³⁰ tn BDAG 639 s.v. μετακινέω suggests “without shifting from the hope” here.