Both as a prophet and as a statesman, Isaiah took an active part in the affairs of Judah during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. He was contemporary also with the prophets, Hosea and Micah. At the lowest estimate his public career extended over a period of forty years. According to tradition he was executed, by being sawn asunder, during the reign of Manasseh, to which there may be reference in Hebrews 11: 37.

Much controversy has gathered around the authorship of the book which bears him name. While there are difficulties in the way of attributing the entire book to a single writer, much more serious problems have been created by every attempt to divide the authorship among different writers.

Isaiah is called the ‘‘ Evangelical Prophet,’’ as a large part of his book is indissolubly bound with the life and work of the Messiah. Philip, finding the Ethiopian eunuch reading from this prophecy, ‘‘began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.’’ The book contains also a wide variety of materials: prophetic oracles concerning the nations, sermons, hymns, apocalypses, narratives, and autobiography. It is commonly regarded as the greatest of the prophecies and its influence upon the development of Christian thought can hardly be overestimated.

The second section of the book, chapters 40-66, is ‘‘one of the finest poems existing in any language.’’ The author’s aim in this part is to encourage the Israelites in their exile by showing that Jehovah is supreme and that, therefore, no obstacle will be able to prevent the restoration of Israel and the overthrow of their enemies. In accomplishing his purpose, God uses the following agents:

2. The ‘‘Servant of Jehovah.’’ In several passages, 41:8; 44:1, 2, and 21, the nation of Israel is the ‘‘ Servant of Jehovah,’’ to accomplish his purposes with reference to all peoples, but, in many others, the personal, suffering “*Servant of Jehovah’’ is beautifully pictured as God’s instrument in the redemption of Israel and in the ingathering of the Gentiles. Through Christ, the Messiah, is to be fulfilled God’s promise to Abraham, culminating in an endless Kingdom of peace and righteousness.