NOTES for Isa 51:1-23

It is not without reason that the author of these lines is sometimes called the “Old Testament evangelist.” Addressing the Israelites enduring the hardships of the Babylonian exile, he brings them truly “good news.”

But, as always with prophets inspired by the Holy Spirit, his message takes on a universal character. All of us experience difficult circumstances in which we lose hope that things can improve, when the signs of decay, destruction, and death are so plainly visible... The soil is exhausted, nature is dying, stars explode, entropy increases... All is lost!

At such a moment, how important it is for us to hear this ancient promise from God, which remains in force: “My salvation will be everlasting.”