Servant Theology: A Commentary on the Book of Isaiah 40-55
Top Highlights
“The divine speech begins here, following from ‘has said’ at v. 16. What Cyrus is going to do under God is something far greater than the events at the Red Sea of old. And so Act II is now about to open. To emphasize it, DI makes God forbid Israel even to think back to those mighty events of old. ‘Look at me in action now’, he says, ‘What I am about to do is something which, though new, will not be a surprise; for it will spring organically out of the old, as the butterfly develops from the caterpillar. Thus I am going to lay a route, (make a way), not this time in the sea, but over the wilderness that separates Babylonia from Palestine.’” (Page 67)
“The wilderness represented for their thinkers and prophets the concept of chaos and disorder” (Page 11)
“‘Readers’ is used deliberately, for DI’s work is a written unit. It does not appear to have been spoken piecemeal in short, memorable, prophetic utterances, as most of the prophecies of Isaiah of Jerusalem were.” (Page 2)
“The whole sixteen chapters together are in fact a poem about God’s relationship to his ‘Servant’ Israel, in whom he has determined to glorify himself.” (Page 3)
“his self-offering is not his own, but is that of God Almighty working in him” (Page 178)
Excerpt
George Knight has produced a very fluent and readable commentary on these important chapters of the book of Isaiah, which, more than any other part of the Old Testament, anticipate the Cross of Christ. By concentrating on the theological issues that are raised and by adopting a non-technical style of presentation, Knight introduces the reader to some of the leading motifs of biblical theology… In view of the complex questions which relate to the structure and unity of the book of Isaiah, I believe that all who share an evangelical faith and who have regard for the theological importance of the Old Testament will find this commentary rewarding and enriching.
—R.E. Clements, King’s College, University of London.
Product Details
- Title: Servant Theology: A Commentary on the Book of Isaiah 40-55
- Author: George Angus Fulton Knight
- Publisher: Eerdmans
- Publication Date: 1984
Reviews
1 rating
Glenn Crouch
8/7/2018
This is an easy-to-read though scholarly commentary on Isaiah 40-55. Knight does a good job of examining this block of chapters as a united block. He examines what these words would have meant to the people of Israel in Babylonian Captivity as Cyrus (and Persia) approach. Whilst in no way is he ignoring the Christian understanding of this passage, he is aiming (and I think succeeds) to see the passage in its context - without denying any Christological implications. Knight's approach is reasonably brief, and thus I think quite suitable for Preachers and those leading Bible Study on Isaiah. Whilst I accept that there are good arguments for Second Isaiah (Deutero-Isaiah) that are compatible with a high view of Scripture, I probably would've been more comfortable if the Commentator had referred to the Author as "the Prophet" rather than the shorter DI - at least the former still allows the reader some "wiggle room" :)