Isaiah 42:18
ESV
Hear, you deaf, and look, you blind, that you may see!
NIV
"Hear, you deaf; look, you blind, and see!
NASB
Hear, you who are deaf! And look, you who are blind, so that you may see.
CSB
"Listen, you deaf! Look, you blind, so that you may see.
NLT
'Listen, you who are deaf! Look and see, you blind!
KJV
Hear, ye deaf; and look, ye blind, that ye may see.
NKJV
“Hear, you deaf; And look, you blind, that you may see.
What does Isaiah 42:18 mean?
In this chapter, Isaiah discusses two different "servants." The first one was described (Isaiah 42:1–7) in language clearly identifying Him as the Savior, the Messiah. This is the one who, long after Isaiah, will come in the person of Jesus Christ. The Gospel writers quote the beginning of Isaiah 42 to explicitly connect Jesus to the promised Servant/Savior of those verses (Matthew 12:18–21).Now Isaiah begins to describe another servant: the nation of Israel, also known as Jacob (Genesis 32:28; Isaiah 42:24). God intended this servant to illustrate His power and glory to the world through His blessings on them. But this servant repeatedly refused to acknowledge and obey the Lord. This led to repeated defeat by other nations (Judges 2:16–19). In this context, that disobedience will lead to their captivity in Babylon.
Now Isaiah calls to the Israelites in the future, those trapped in exile (Isaiah 42:19). The passage uses metaphors of deafness and blindness to describe spiritual ignorance. While it would be cruel to tell a blind person to see and a deaf person to hear, the spiritual versions are voluntary. In times before Isaiah, Israel refused to see and to hear the commands of the Lord. They had closed their ears and their eyes. The time has come to choose obedience.
