Isaiah 41:27

27 The first time I said to Zion, 'Look, there they are!' And I will give to Jerusalem one who brings good tidings.

Isaiah 41:27 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 41:27

The first shall say to Zion, behold, behold them
Or, "I the first say to Zion"; I who am the first and the last, ( Isaiah 41:4 ) which some ancient Jewish writers ^F4 observe is the name of the Messiah, and apply the passage to him; or, I am the "first" that say these things to Zion ^F5, behold, behold them;
behold such and such things shall come to pass, and accordingly they have come to pass; or, "behold", the promised Messiah, whom I have long spoken of, behold, he is come; see ( Isaiah 42:1 ) , and behold them, his apostles and ministers, publishing the good tidings of salvation, as follows. The Targum is,

``the words of consolation which the prophets prophesied from the beginning concerning Sion, behold they come;''

they come to pass; which is such a proof of deity the idols and their worshippers cannot give: and I will give to Jerusalem one that bringeth good tidings;
which some interpret of Isaiah; others of Cyrus; others of Christ; and others of John the Baptist. I suppose the singular put for the plural, "one that bringeth good tidings", or, "an evangelist for evangelists"; and may be understood of Gospel teachers, whom the Lord gave to his church and people, and by means of whom he spread his Gospel, not only in Judea, but in the Gentile world, to the overthrow of Paganism.

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FOOTNOTES:

F4 T. Bab. Pesach. fol. 5. 1. Bereshit Rabba, sect. 63. fol. 55. 3. and Vajikra Rabba, sect. 30. fol. 171. 2.
F5 (Nwyul Nwvar) "ego primus sum qui dico haec Sioni", Tigurine version.

Isaiah 41:27 In-Context

25 "I have raised up one from the north, And he shall come; From the rising of the sun he shall call on My name; And he shall come against princes as though mortar, As the potter treads clay.

26 Who has declared from the beginning, that we may know? And former times, that we may say, 'He is righteous'? Surely there is no one who shows, Surely there is no one who declares, Surely there is no one who hears your words.

27 The first time I said to Zion, 'Look, there they are!' And I will give to Jerusalem one who brings good tidings.

28 For I looked, and there was no man; I looked among them, but there was no counselor, Who, when I asked of them, could answer a word.

29 Indeed they are all worthless; Their works are nothing; Their molded images are wind and confusion.