Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations. He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice, or make it heard in the street; a bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice.
– Isaiah 42:1–3
Oh, these verses are so encouraging. This is a picture in Isaiah 42 of Jesus. You look at Matthew 12, for example, when Jesus is healing people of their diseases and their hurts, and Matthew quotes from this passage in Isaiah 42 to say, “This is who Isaiah was talking about. The one who”, follow this language in verse three, “will not break a bruised read and he will not quench a faintly burning wick”.
Isaiah 42:1–3 teaches us how Jesus uses his power and authority to care for us.
And I want to apply these verses specifically today to any way in which you feel like you are struggling, you are tired, you’re just hanging on. That’s the language of a faintly burning wick. Maybe in your life, in this circumstance and this challenge you’re facing, or just in faith, or a bruised reed, any hurts you have, the weakness, you feel vulnerabilities, just for any struggle. You’re walking through the picture here of Jesus in Isaiah 42, and the rest of Scripture is strength and gentleness together.
I want you to imagine if Jesus was one of those and not the other. What if he had all strength, omnipotence, power, authority, on Heaven and Earth, and yet he was not gentle and caring and kind, and loving. That would be horrible if the One who is omnipotent with all power were not gentle and loving, and caring, and kind.
And yet what if he was gentle, and loving, and caring, and kind, and had no power, was totally weak. That wouldn’t be good either. The good news, part of the great news of the gospel, is that Jesus is both. He is strong and gentle. The One who has all authority on Heaven and on Earth is gentle with you, cares for you. And when your wick is faintly burning, when you feel bruised and hurting, he sees you. He loves you, and he cares for you with all authority in Heaven and on Earth.
Isaiah 42:1–3 reminds us we can come to Jesus when we are hurt or struggling.
Be encouraged with that reality today from Isaiah 40. Let me just pray this over you. God, I don’t presume to know all the different struggles that people who are listening to this are walking through right now, but it’s the beauty of Isaiah 42:1–3. That hurts, struggles, pain, ways people feel bruised in this fallen world, and faintly burning wicks.
The people who right now are struggling in their faith. Struggling in life and marriage. And relationships, and any number of different circumstances. Struggling physically, emotionally, mentally. Jesus, we praise you that you are the One with all authority in Heaven and Earth. And you see us, you see our needs, and you’re committed to caring for our deepest needs gently, and delicately, and kindly meeting us at the deepest point of our need and ministering to us with your love, mercy, and gentle care.
Oh God, I pray that over every single person listening to this right now. That they would know, no matter what they’re walking through, that the One who has all power in all the universe is with them, and for them, and loves them. And will bring ultimately healing amidst every hurt they have. And will sustain them through struggles and challenges, trials, and temptations. That you will not let their wick burn out as they keep their eyes fixed on you, as they trust in you.
This verse reminds us that Jesus will bring healing into our lives.
You will not quench a faintly burning wick. God, you will fan the flame of a faintly burning wick. You will not break a bruised reed. You’ll bring healing to our hurts. We praise you as the omnipotent, caring, powerful, kind, sovereign, gentle Savior and Lord and King that you are to each of us. And God, we pray that you’d help us to reflect your love for others in this way, who are hurting.
God, help us to be sensitive to the struggles of people around us today. Lord, help us to use strength that you entrust to us, to care for them, to encourage them, to build them up. God, we pray that you help us to be an instrument in your hand for healing and giving hope and encouragement, and just life and peace to others around us. God, we pray that you would help us to be a reflection of Jesus’s character in this way.
Prayer for the Jalia Kaibartta People
And God, we pray for people who’ve never heard this good news. God, specifically for the Jalia Kaibartta people of Bangladesh and India today. For 750 thousand plus men, women, and children who don’t know this good news about who you are. Jesus God, we pray that they would be reached. We pray for the Jalia Kaibartta people to be reached with the good news of love in Bangladesh and India. That they might experience healing from their deepest hurts, eternal everlasting healing, and life, and joy, and peace that’s found only in you. Jesus, may it be so. We pray all these things according to your Word in Isaiah 42. In the name of our gentle, strong, omnipotent, omnibenevolent King Jesus. Amen.
David Platt serves as a Lead Pastor for McLean Bible Church. He is also the Founder of Radical, an organization that makes Jesus known among the nations.
David received his B.A. from the University of Georgia and M.Div., Th.M., and Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Some of his published works include Radical, Radical Together, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Don’t Hold Back, and How to Read the Bible.
He lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area with his wife and children.
