The Servant of Yahweh comes quietly and gently, no breaking off a bent stick or snuffing out a smoldering wick (42:2; Heb. upishtah kechah lo yekabenah ). Ain’t he nice?
But Yahweh does what the Servant does not do – He quenches and extinguishes wicks (43:17; Heb. kapishtah kavu ). Not so nice.
The difference is not between the gentle Servant and mean Yahweh. The difference is the object of their action: Faced with the smoldering wick of Israel, the light of the world, the Servant brings the lamp back to flame. Faced with chariot and horse, arrogant strength and power [like Pharaoh’s], Yahweh puts out whatever light remains. He puts the violent down so they cannot rise.
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE
Moral Certitude and the Iran War
The current military engagement with Iran calls renewed attention to just war theory in the Catholic tradition.…
The Slow Death of England: New and Notable Books
The fate of England is much in the news as popular resistance to mass immigration grows, limits…
Ethics of Rhetoric in Times of War
What we say matters. And the way we say it matters. This is especially true in times…
