John Calvin Commentary Isaiah 49:5

"And now saith Jehovah that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, and that Israel be gathered unto him (for I am honorable in the eyes of Jehovah, and my God is become my strength);" — Isaiah 49:5 (ASV)

And now saith Jehovah. By this verse He confirms the former statement and offers more abundant consolation by repeating that calling. This includes the testimony of conscience, which we ought to regard as a fortress. For there is nothing that gives us greater distress and anxiety than to entertain doubts about whose authority or direction guides everything we undertake. For this reason Isaiah reminds us of the certainty of our calling.

Who formed me from the womb to be his servant. In the first place, godly teachers, along with Christ who is their Prince, say that they have been formed by a divine hand. God always enriches and adorns with necessary gifts those whom He calls to the office of teaching. These teachers derive from the one fountain of the Spirit all the gifts in which they excel.

Thus the Father hath sealed (John 6:27) His Only-begotten Son, and next prepares others, according to their degree, to be fit for discharging their office. At the same time, He points out the end of the calling; for to this end have Apostles and teachers of the Church been appointed, to gather the Lord’s scattered flock, that under Christ we may all be united in the same body (Ephesians 4:11, 13).

In the world there is miserable dispersion, but in Christ there is ἀνακεφαλαίωσις, a gathering together of all (Ephesians 1:10), as the Apostle speaks; for there can be no other bond of union. As to the word create, or form, it is pointless for some people to speculate about it as relating to Christ’s human existence, which was created; for it is clearer than noonday that the forming must be viewed as relating to office.

And though Israel be not gathered. The Jews read these words as a question: “Shall I not bring back Jacob? and shall Israel not be gathered?” and supply the particle ה (ha). But that reading is excessively unnatural, and the Jews do not consider what the Prophet’s meaning was, but, as far as lies in their power, corrupt the text to conceal the disgrace of their nation.

Some explain it, “Shall not be lost,” or, “Shall not perish,” because the verb אספ (asaph) sometimes denotes what we commonly call (trousser) to truss. Those things which are intended to be preserved are gathered, and likewise those things which are intended to be consumed. Accordingly, when we mean that any person has been removed from the world, we frequently use the common phrase, “he is trussed,” or, “he is dispatched.”

Yet I shall be glorious. To suppose the meaning to be, “I have been sent, so that Israel may not perish,” would not be unsuitable; but I prefer to follow a different interpretation, namely, “Though Israel be not gathered, yet I shall be glorious;” for it is probable that opposite things are contrasted with each other in this passage.

If ministers have been set apart for the salvation of men, it is glorious to them when many are brought to salvation; and when the contrary happens, it tends to their shame and disgrace. Paul calls those whom he had gained to Christ his glory and crown (Philippians 4:1; 1 Thessalonians 2:19). On the other hand, when men perish, we receive from it nothing but shame and disgrace; for God appears to curse our labors, and not to condescend to bestow on us the high honor of advancing His kingdom by our agency.

But the Prophet declares that those who have served Christ shall nevertheless be glorious; for he speaks both of the head and of the members, as we have formerly remarked. Although therefore Israel refuse to be gathered, yet the ministry of Christ shall retain its glory unimpaired; for it will be ascribed to the baseness and wickedness of men that they have not been gathered.

In like manner, although the preachers of the Gospel are the savor of death unto death to the reprobate, yet Paul declares that they have a sweet and delightful fragrance before God, who determines that wicked men shall thus be rendered more inexcusable. God is indeed doubly glorified if success corresponds to their wishes. But when the ministers of the word have left nothing undone, even though they have good reason to lament that their labor is unprofitable, they still must not regret having pleased God. His approbation is here contrasted with the perverse judgments of the whole world. It is as if the Prophet had said, “Though men vehemently slander and load them with many reproaches, yet they ought to calmly and patiently endure this; because God judges differently and bestows a crown of honor on their patience, which wicked men insolently slander.”

And my God shall be my strength. When he says that it is enough that God is their strength, the meaning corresponds to what went before: they ought not to be terrified by the multitude or power of their enemies, since they are persuaded that their strength lies in God.