The contents of the expression běrît
‘ām, which is parallel to ‘ôr gôyim are unclear. Elliger is probably
correct in assuming ‘am to signify “humanity”, as in v 5, and in taking běrît
to mean “obligation”, so that Cyrus serves as guarantor of the impending
liberation.
Thus the context of 42,6 leaves no
doubt that the term ‘ôr in this verse is a metaphor for the political
liberation of Israel and other nations suffering from the Babylonian yoke by
means of Cyrus.
And I will lead the blind in a way
that the know now, in paths that
they have not known I will guide them.
I will turn the darkness /maḥšāk/ before them into light /lā’ôr/,
the
rough places into level ground . . . (42,16, RSV)
As in the previous section (42,6f.),
“light” is here again contrasted with a word formed from the root ḥšk.
The term in question, being constructed with the aid of preformative ma-,
is probably to be rendered “dark place”. What does this mean? The following
line, “the rough places into level ground”, recalls the description of the new
Exodus in 40,4b, and in the preceding verse 942,15) we are told that the
fertile land will be transformed into desert. Thus it is likely that 42,15f.
refers to the new Exodus, that is, to the liberation of exiled Israel. The
“dark place” will accordingly refer to the desert (cf. Jer 2,6), while “light”
presumably has to do with the pillar of fire which guided Israel during the
first Exodus (Exo 13,21; Ps 78,14). The latter assumption accords well with the
fact that HWH is to lead the people (v 16a; cf. 52,12). Thus it appears that
the word “light” serves in this context as a metaphor for the presence of YHWH
during Israel’s liberation from the Babylonian captivity.
It is too slight a task for you, as my
servant, to restore the tribes
of Jacob,
to bring back the preserved of Israel; I hereby appoint you to be a
light to the nations /lě’ôr gôyim/
that my vindication /yěšû’ātî/ may reach to the ends of the earth.
(49,6)
Like Cyrus in 42,6, the person who is
here entitled “my servant” is appointed by YHWH to be a light to the nations.
The contents of this phrase are clarified by the subsequent statement that
YHWH’s vindication will be known throughout the world. The term yěšû’ā
is elsewhere employed by the prophet to designate the impending victory of YHWH
over the Babylonian empire. Indeed, this event is ultimately witnessed by all
the peoples: “The Lord has bared his holy arm in the sight of all nations, and
the whole world from end to end shall see the deliverance of our God” (52,10,
NEB). Since the account of the calling of the “servant” in 49,1-2 is
reminiscent of a prophetic call narrative, it is probable that the task of the
“servant” is to proclaim YHWH’s imminent victory to the foreign nations. It is
by means of his proclamation of the new world order represented by Cyrus’
victorious advance that the “servant” emerges as a “light” for those dwelling
in the shadow of the Babylonian oppressor. Accordingly, as in 42,6, the term ‘ôr
in 49,6 is a metaphor for the political liberation which is expected in
conjunction with the destruction of the Babylonian empire.
This study of the use by Deutero-Isaiah
of the term ‘ôr concludes with 53,11aα:
“Out of the travail of his soul he sees light /yirʾe/, he is
satisfied . . . “
Once again examination of the use of the term indicates that here, too,
it is a metaphor for “liberation”. It is only very recently that T. Mettinger
has driven the last nail into the coffin of Duhm’s ancient hypothesis
concerning the hypothetical existence of a special group of “Servant Songs” in Isa 40-55; in the process he has presented very good arguments to the effect
that the “Man of Sorrows” (52:13-53,12) is in reality Israel (cf. Lam 3). Seen
from this perspective it appears that here, too, the light metaphor is employed
by the prophet to proclaim the proximate liberation of his people from their
Babylonian captivity.
By way of summary it may be said that the term ‘ôr is
nowhere employed in Isa 40-55 to describe a cosmic enormity or event. Instead,
the term is utilized in three out of the four cases (besides in 45,7) as a
metaphor for “liberation”, that is, for the impending liberation of Israel and
the other captive states from the power of their Babylonian oppressor (42,6;
49,6; 53,11).
We accordingly turn to the expression ḥōšek which figures in
42,7; 45,3.19; 47,5; 49,9. It was shown above that 42,7 is part of a
passage which refers to Cyrus and his role in the impending upheaval of world
order. Accordingly, it is very likely that “those who sit in darkness” refers
to the nations which are subjected to the Babylonian dominion; in this connexion
ḥōšek is a metaphor for captivity and misfortune.
The term in question figures in 45,3a and 45,19aα in parallelism with
words formed from the root str which signify something obscure and
concealed: “treasures” and “land”. In 45,5a, the introduction to the
second strophe of the poem on the fall of Babylon (ch. 47) reads “sit in
silence and go into darkness, daughter of the Chaldaeans”; here the poet again
employs ḥōšek as a metaphor for captivity or for misfortune in general.
Finally, yet another metaphorical use of ḥōšek occurs in 49,9a: “to
say to the prisoners, ‘Come forth’, to those who are in darkness, ‘Appear’”.
This line is part of the unit consisting of 49,7-12, which is a proclamation of
salvation addressed to Israel; it therefore refers to Israel’s captivity.
In conclusion, it may be said that the word ḥōšek never
refers to a cosmic event or perspective in Deutero-Isaiah. Moreover, it is of
some importance to the interpretation of 45,7a that in three out of five cases
the term serves as a metaphor for misfortune and captivity (42,7; 47,5; 49,9).
Additionally, the metaphorical use of “light” and “darkness” to designate liberation
and captivity, respectively, is otherwise well attested in the prophetic and
poetic writings of the Old Testament, as the following two examples will show:
The people who walked in darkness /baḥōšek/ have seen a great
light
/’ôr/
those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness /ṣalmāwet/, on them has light
/ôr/ shined. (Isa 9,1, RSV)
he has driven and brought me into darkness /ḥōšek/ without any
light
/’ôr/ (Lam 3,2, RSV)
The semantic observations offered above allow us to formulate the
following three theses concerning the contents of 45,7aα: (a) the
phrases describe YHWH’s activity on the plane of history, (b) the term “light”
and “darkness” are metaphors for liberation and disaster – captivity, respectively.
(c) The positive divine activity refers to all the liberation of
Israel and possibly other nations from Babylonian oppression. When we consider
that from a formal point of view the two following phrases (45,7aβ) seem to be
equivalent in terms of contents to those of 47,7aα, it would appear that
these three theses also apply to 47,7aβ. (Fredrik
Lindström, God and the Origin of Evil: A Contextual Analysis of Alleged
Monistic Evidence in the Old Testament [Coniectanea Biblica Old Testament
Series 21; Lund, Sweden: CWK Gleerup, 1983], 183-87)