Q: A classmate sent me an online poster titled “You Will Command Me” (Tetzavuni) and said we can command Jesus to do healing, not ask! The poster has different translations of Isa. 45:11, including the original Hebrew. Is this true? How to explain the Hebrew here? –Ruth C.
NOTE: The poster includes an English translation
from the Darby Bible: “Thus saith Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel,
and his Maker: Ask me of the things to come; concerning my sons, and concerning
the work of my hands, command ye me” (Isa. 45:11)
A: It’s certainly true that many translations render the end of this verse as “you command me concerning the works of my hands.” But meaning is derived from context, and so we need to look at the context to figure out what this means.
The chapter begins with an amazing prophecy about Cyrus, the Persian ruler who defeated the Babylonians: God will “subdue nations” before him (Isa. 45:1). And why will God do these great things? “For the sake of my servant Jacob” (Isa. 45:4). Not only does the prophecy mention Cyrus by name, it also mentions that he will rebuild Jerusalem and let the Jewish exiles go free, all of which actually happened (Isa. 45:13). And what is the purpose of all these things? To let the world know, God says, that “I am the LORD, and there is no other; besides me there is no God” (Isa. 45:5).