That follows what Isaiah had written earlier: "Behold, I have refined you, but not with silver; I have chosen you in the furnace of affliction. For my own sake will I do it" ... "and I will not give my glory to another." (Isaiah 48:10-11)
Then later Isaiah wrote: "For thus says the high and lofty One that inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: I dwell in the high and holy place, with him that is of a contrite and humbled spirit; to revive the spirit of the humble (and meek), and to revive the heart of the contrite ones. For I will not contend for ever, neither will I be always angry. For the iniquity of his covetousness was I angry, and struck him. I hid me, and was angry, and he went on willfully in the ways of his heart. (But) I have seen his ways, and I will lead him..." (Isaiah 57:15-17)
That is why the current messenger of God is a prodigal son of man, and he makes it very clear that he is God's servant, and that he is not the Savior but only a messenger for the Lord God, the true Savior.
That is why Jesus said that "even though I have many things more to say, humanity is not yet ready to hear or bear them." It is why Jesus said he "must go away and be seen no more," and there would be one to come at the end of the age who would first suffer many things and be rejected, but would guide humanity unto all truth, issue judgment, show us things to come, glorify the Christ Jesus for what he really was, and declare and deliver the true testimony of the Christ.
Jesus further confirmed that when he said he would "not judge the world," but his "words" and "testimony" ultimately will issue judgment at the end of the age. (John 12:47-48 and Revelation 19:10)
"For the writer (scribe) who is instructed into the kingdom of heaven is like the man who is a householder, and he brings forth out of his treasure things old and new." (Jesus, in Matthew 13:52)
And after long being rejected by his generation, the scribe-messenger says: "I have labored in vain; I have spent my strength for nought, and in vain. And yet surely my work is with my God." (Isaiah 49:4)
When you know the real story, it becomes clear what is actually foretold in the Bible. But of course, some right-wing Christian fundamentalists who regard themselves as expert Bible scholars will claim that such quotes are out of context and do not refer to the person who will fulfill Christian prophecy. For example, they will say the part about "working in vain and for nought" (Isaiah 49:4) was literally about Jacob and God’s "servant Israel," and not about the son of man who fulfills Judeo-Christian prophecy. But let’s consider the facts and the context. In Isaiah 49:2_5 the "speaker," the servant of God, states:
"(God) has made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand has he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver has he hid me; And said unto me, You are my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified. Then I said, I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for nought, and in vain: yet surely my judgment is with the Lord, and my work with my God. And now, says the Lord that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, and my God shall be my strength." (Isaiah 49:2-5)
Contrary to what some believe, that passage does not speak literally of a person named Israel, nor of the Jewish people of Israel collectively. It speaks of a servant of God whose mouth (pen) is like a sharp sword. For as David wrote, God’s "tongue is the pen of a ready writer," and, as Paul wrote, the "weapons of the Lord are not carnal (or lethal) but mighty through God for pulling down strongholds." So, he is a writer-messenger, who is hidden in the "shadow of God’s hand," who tries to deliver the message to humanity but feels he has labored in vain because he is rejected.
Nor does that passage (Isaiah 49:2-5) speak literally of Jacob. The book of Isaiah does not tell of the life of the original, historical Jacob. That is told mostly in Genesis, the first book in the Bible. Isaiah 49:2_5 merely refers to the historical Jacob by speaking of "bringing Jacob again" to God. This is much like many other references, in both the Old and New Testaments, when historical persons were spoken of as being present in some sense, or when present persons were spoken of as having existed before, such as when Jesus said, "Before Abraham was, I am," or as when it was believed that John the Baptist was "Elias come again."
Neither does Isaiah 49:2_5 literally speak of the nation or people of Israel collectively. It states that even though the nation of "Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, and my God shall be my strength."
God is my strength, my only strength, and I think it’s pretty clear that the reference in Isaiah 49:2-5 is to the current son of man, the servant of God who fulfills prophecy, who is afflicted, who is rejected, who is "hidden," and whose pen is like a "sharp sword." In other words, the weapons of the Lord are written words of truth. That also fits with what Jesus said about his words or testimony bringing judgment. And it fits with the following:
"Behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him." ... and he "shall be called, Sought out, a city not forsaken." (Isaiah 62:11-12)
That is important also because it mentions that the servant of God will be sought out, and will be as a "city" not forsaken, because that is consistent with the following:
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