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1“Behold, my servant, whom I uphold,

my chosen, in whom my soul delights:

I have put my Spirit on him.

He will bring justice to the nations.

2He will not shout,

nor raise his voice,

nor cause it to be heard in the street.

3He won’t break a bruised reed.

He won’t quench a dimly burning wick.

He will faithfully bring justice.

4He will not fail nor be discouraged,

until he has set justice in the earth,

and the islands wait for his law.”

5God Yahweh,

he who created the heavens and stretched them out,

he who spread out the earth and that which comes out of it,

he who gives breath to its people and spirit to those who walk in it, says:

6“I, Yahweh, have called you in righteousness.

I will hold your hand.

I will keep you,

and make you a covenant for the people,

as a light for the nations,

7to open the blind eyes,

to bring the prisoners out of the dungeon,

and those who sit in darkness out of the prison.

8“I am Yahweh.

That is my name.

I will not give my glory to another,

nor my praise to engraved images.

9Behold, the former things have happened

and I declare new things.

I tell you about them before they come up.”

10Sing to Yahweh a new song,

and his praise from the end of the earth,

you who go down to the sea,

and all that is therein,

the islands and their inhabitants.

11Let the wilderness and its cities raise their voices,

with the villages that Kedar inhabits.

Let the inhabitants of Sela sing.

Let them shout from the top of the mountains!

12Let them give glory to Yahweh,

and declare his praise in the islands.

13Yahweh will go out like a mighty man.

He will stir up zeal like a man of war.

He will raise a war cry.

Yes, he will shout aloud.

He will triumph over his enemies.

14“I have been silent a long time.

I have been quiet and restrained myself.

Now I will cry out like a travailing woman. I will both gasp and pant.

15I will destroy mountains and hills,

and dry up all their herbs.

I will make the rivers islands,

and will dry up the pools.

16I will bring the blind by a way that they don’t know.

I will lead them in paths that they don’t know.

I will make darkness light before them,

and crooked places straight.

I will do these things,

and I will not forsake them.

17“Those who trust in engraved images,

who tell molten images,

‘You are our gods,’

will be turned back.

They will be utterly disappointed.

18“Hear, you deaf,

and look, you blind,

that you may see.

19Who is blind, but my servant?

Or who is as deaf as my messenger whom I send?

Who is as blind as he who is at peace,

and as blind as Yahweh’s servant?

20You see many things, but don’t observe.

His ears are open, but he doesn’t listen.

21It pleased Yahweh, for his righteousness’ sake, to magnify the law

and make it honorable.

22But this is a robbed and plundered people.

All of them are snared in holes,

and they are hidden in prisons.

They have become captives, and no one delivers,

and a plunder, and no one says, ‘Restore them!’

23Who is there among you who will give ear to this?

Who will listen and hear for the time to come?

24Who gave Jacob as plunder,

and Israel to the robbers?

Didn’t Yahweh, he against whom we have sinned?

For they would not walk in his ways,

and they disobeyed his law.

25Therefore he poured the fierceness of his anger on him,

and the strength of battle.

It set him on fire all around, but he didn’t know.

It burned him, but he didn’t take it to heart.”

Biography of Jacob

Biography of Jacob

Biography | Isa 42:25 | Hershel Wayne House

Jacob was the son of Isaac and Rebekah, born immediately after Esau, and Abraham was his grandfather. He achieved the right of the firstborn by trickery, in offering his older brother, Esau, food in exchange for the birthright, who cared little for this position. He also received the blessing of firstborn from his father Jacob before his death by cunning, and with the assistance of his mother Rebekah.

After his deception of Esau, receiving the blessing from his father, Jacob escaped to his uncle Laban, who in turn deceived Jacob into working for fourteen years for the marriage of Jacob to Leah, and then his beloved Rachel. Laban also sought to deceive Jacob of wages, but God intervened to ensure he would prosper. In a time of trial, when he feared the wrath of Esau, upon returning to the land of Canaan, Jacob had an encounter with God, and his name was changed to Israel, the one who wrestles with God. Even though his early life was characterized by deception, God worked through the situation to ensure that Jacob would be the one in the line of the patriarchs, to create a great nation and ultimately fulfill His purposes in the earth, especially through the future Messiah. The Messiah would guarantee the promise of the land to Abram and a person who would rule over Abraham's descendants, but also He would bring blessings to all the people of the earth (Gen 12:1-3).

In spite of Jacob's early failure by deception, God worked through him, and finally, Jacob became a different type of man after his struggle with God. As one has said,

"Despite Jacob’s faults, God chose him to be the leader of a great nation that still bears his name today. But for this, it is unlikely that we would know much about Jacob, who appears to be in the middle of events while the key players are those around him. There is no great wisdom or bravery in Jacob to speak of, and we are tempted to see him as little more than God’s passive instrument. If we are tempted to think that, because we aren’t in the spotlight performing great acts for God, we are unimportant to Him, then we should consider the life of Jacob and know that, in spite of our failings, God can and will still use us in His plan."

For more on Jacob, see "Who was Jacob in the Bible?", https://www.gotquestions.org/life-Jacob.html