Isaiah 49:3-5

Amplified Bible, Classic Edition

³And [the Lord] said to me, You are My ^[a]servant, Israel [you who strive with God and with men and prevail], in whom I will be glorified.^(A)

⁴Then I said, I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for nothing and in empty futility; yet surely my right is with the Lord, and my recompense is with my God.

⁵And now, says the Lord—Who formed me from the womb to be His servant to bring Jacob back to Him and that Israel might be gathered to Him and not be swept away, for I am honorable in the eyes of the Lord and my God has become my strength—

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Footnotes

Isaiah 49:3 It is difficult to know positively to whom the Lord is speaking in these next verses—whether (1) to the Messiah, (2) to Israel, or (3) to Isaiah. The large majority of early authorities favored interpretation (1); later scholars incline toward interpretation (2). See also footnote on Isa. 42:1.