Audience Involvement
Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, I will also help you, I will alsouphold you with My righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10 NASB
Also – Let’s make sure we understand the context. Isaiah 41:8 provides it. “But you, Israel, My servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, descendant of Abraham My friend.” God speaks to Israel after long years of punishment. “It’s over, “ He declares. “Comfort, O comfort My people. . . Speak to the heart of Jerusalem and call out to her, for her term of service is ended . . . for she has taken from the Lord’s hand double for all her offenses” (Isaiah 40:1-2). The reason God offers help and strength is not because of the faithfulness of Israel. Precisely the opposite is true. Israel has suffered enough. God is satisfied. He extends the olive branch because of His faithfulness, not theirs. Clearly, this verse depends entirely on the previous context. It is not a guarantee of God’s grace, certainly not universally applied. It is rather the announcement of a cease-fire—for Israel in the times of the Babylonian captivity. From God’s perspective, Israel has learned its lesson. May a renewed relationship begin.
Notice the translation “also.” Other English Bibles use the term “surely,” and perhaps these are correct but what you don’t see is the unusual construction in the Hebrew that makes these words necessary. The words “I will help you” and “I will uphold you” are first person singular verbs with the suffix indicating the direct object (“you”), but in front of both verbs is the prefixed conjunction ʾap.
The conjunction occurs over 120 times. It may denote that which is added to a preceding statement with the force of “also,” “yea.” . . . With great intensity of feeling Isaiah builds up to a crescendo in Isa 48:12–13, 15 and elsewhere in chapters 40–48. What is often in view is something unexpected, “even,” “indeed” (Job 14:3; 15:4). In both poetry and prose a previous statement is built into an a fortiori argument, “how much more” (after a positive sentence), or “how much less” (after a negative one).[1]
The point is this: Israel did not expect reprieve. Not only did it not deserve amelioration, it never anticipated God’s reversal. After a thousand years of disobedience, who could have imagined that God will remain faithful to the promise made so long ago? When we find the word ʾap, we should be shocked. It is simply beyond human understanding to find a God who is ready and willing to offer help and support. Amazing grace, indeed!
Perhaps this application of the verse isn’t so far out of context, not because the verse has anything to do with the “new Israel,” but because the verse is an expression of the character of God, not of men. God never gives up! Ah, we say that about ourselves, don’t we, but after a thousand years the commitment wears very thin. Not so with God. And that is the truly amazing part, the part that I need to hear once more—again.
Topical Index: ʾap, surely, also, unexpected, grace, Isaiah 41:10
[1] Feinberg, C. L. (1999). 142 אַף. R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer Jr., & B. K. Waltke (Eds.), Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (electronic ed., p. 63). Chicago: Moody Press.
