Isaiah’s message was unusual not because he promised God would send a “Savior and a Champion.” That God would “deliver” was no great surprise to Israel. It was who He would deliver that shocked the prophet’s audience. Isaiah prophesied that enemies like Egypt and Assyria “will return to the Lord, and He will respond to them and heal them” (Isaiah 19.22). How could this be? When Isaiah first uttered these words, Egypt and Assyria were considered historic enemies of Israel. How could God do accept the heathen? Egypt did not deserve the mercy of God.
