Isaiah 42:2

לֹא יִצְעַק וְלֹא יִשָּׂא וְלֹא־יַשְׁמִיעַ בַּחוּץ קוֹלוֹ׃

2 He will not shout, he will not raise [his voice], or make his voice heard in the streets.

לֹא יִצְעַק He will not shout, יִצְעַק is a qal imperfect from צָעַק, "cry out, shout." This presents a paradox: a proclaimer who won't shout; Isaiah will explain this as we go along. The Mp note says that there are 34 verses beginning with לֹא in which וְלֹא and then another וְלֹא follow later in the verse. Since the list (Mm 771) includes several Isaiah passages, I will include it at at the end of the comments on this verse.

וְלֹא יִשָּׂא וְלֹא־יַשְׁמִיעַ בַּחוּץ קוֹלוֹ he will not raise [his voice], or make his voice heard in the streets. The parallel thought to "he will not shout" is "he will not raise," with no object to the qal imperfect יִשָּׂא. The subject is provided at the end of the verse. Paul Raabe (quoting O'Connor) describes this as "leftward gapping." In two parallel cola, the subject of the first colon is absent (gapped), and brought forward from the second colon. Raabe (Obadiah p. 132) shows this to be the case with "nest" in Obadiah 4 and other passages (cf. Habakkuk 3:2). The phrase וְלֹא יִשָּׂא occurs twice (2 Sam 14:14; Isa. 42:2). The form יִשָּׂא (qal imperfect) occurs 37 times (see Mm list 289, below).

יַשְׁמִיעַ is a hifil imperfect from שָׁמַע, "hear." The causative hifil stem makes this "cause to be heard." A חוּץ is both "the outside" and "the street." When Ham saw his father's nakedness, he went out into the חוּץ "outside (the tent) to tell his brothers, but here the idea of "street" seems appropriate.

The Chosen One has authority and power, but will not force his message. We will see in verse 3 that he will not bruise or break what it weak. He is not only gentle, he comes to build up. He comes to seek and to save; primarily to heal mankind of our sins. Notice that even as he condemned the Pharisees, he was patient with his disciples. Contrast this with Cyrus, who was not a conqueror, but a savior for God's people, and even with John the Baptist, a good old fashioned fire and brimstone preacher.

[Mm 771: Ex. 23:24; Lev. 19:11; 25:11; Nu. 23:19; Dt. 1:42; 4:31; 26:14; 29:22; Josh 6:10; 1 Sa 12:4; 13:8; 13:9; 13:16; 18:12; Isaiah 1:6; 23:4; 42:2; 49:10; 53:2; Jer 13:14; 14:14; 19:5; 20:9; 21:7; 25:33; 44:10; Ezek 8:18; 24:14; 31:14; Zeph 3:13; Ps 22:25; 131:1; Job 3:26 and 15:29]

[Mm 289: Gen 32:21; 40:13; 40:19; Ex 20:7; 23:21; Lev 19:8; 20:17; Num 6:26; 9:13; 11:12; Dt 1:31; 5:11; 10:17; 28:49; 28:50; 33:3; 24:19; 2 Sam 14:14; Job 7:13; Psa 24:5; Prov 6:35; Eccl 5:14; Isa 2:4; 3:7; 8:4; 10:24; 40:11; 42:2; 57:13; Lam 3:27; Ezek 12:12; 18:20 (twice); Mic 2:4; Hab 1:3; Hag 2:12; Zech 6:13]