Ye Are My Witnesses Is. 43:8-13 CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO
In this passage, the Lord reminds Israel that Ye are my witnesses that he is the LORD and that there is none else [Is 43:10]. Keep in mind, as we study this passage, that the Lord is showing you through the witness of Israel and any other nation that will confirm the witness that there is only one true God.
Is 43:8 – “bring forth the blind… and the deaf” – these are the nations who cannot see and hear because they have been worshipping the images of false gods [Is 42:17-18].
Is 43:9 – “who among them can declare this” – the Lord gathers the nations together and assembles the people so that among them someone will declare that Is 43:1-4 is true – Moab, Ammon and Seir can say, It is truth [2 Chr 20] – so can Egypt [Ex 5-14] and Assyria [2 Chr 32:10-23] – later Nebuchadnezzar will testify to the world that “there is no other God that can deliver after this sort,” [Dan 3:28-29]. The witness of the children of God is that “Jesus is THE Lord,” [Rom 10:9, 1 Cor 12:3].
Is 43:10 – “ye are my witnesses” – Israel certainly should know that there is no other God besides the Lord [Is 44:8] – he reminds them that they are to know, believe and understand that “I am he” – Judas knew that Jesus is he [Jn 18:5-6] but that wasn’t enough – we believe that [Rom 10:9-10] Jesus is he and that’s enough to be saved – but to know, believe AND understand [Lk 24:44-48] is what makes “witnesses.” So, no idol or god of any other religion or nation is God – Paul had to deal with this truth in Athens [Acts 17:25-31].
Is 43:11 – “beside me there is no saviour” – so, there is one God and that one God is the only Saviour – notice how Paul handles this fact in Titus 1:2-4; 2:10-13; 3:4-7 – Jesus is the Saviour because he is God, otherwise there would be two Saviours, God our Saviour and Jesus our Saviour – and that can’t be because God said, “beside me there is no saviour.” The LORD in Is 43:11 is Jehovah and in Zech 12:10 you see that Jehovah says, “… they shall look upon me whom they have pierced.”
Is 43:12 – “declared… saved… shewed, when there was no strange god among you” – in Egypt, the Lord declared that he would save Israel out of Egypt, he saved them and he shewed the world that it was he by the plagues – all this happened when there was no strange god among them – therefore, Israel could not have possibly been saved by anyone else.
Is 43:13 – “before the day was I am he” – see Ps 90:2 – therefore, when he works no one can “let” [hinder, stop] it.
This is one of the most remarkable passages in the Bible testifying to the fact that there is only one God and he is the Saviour.