Isaiah doubles the first words of our haftarah, “I, I” am the
One who comforts you, says God. The prophet does this elsewhere
as well, such as in “be comforted, be comforted” or “awake,
awake” later in this haftarah. Leviticus Rabbah points to this
as an example of his greatness, a reward he got for seeing the
positive side of the Jewish people and arguing for them. The
Midrash does not explain how the doubling of a word shows a
higher level of prophecy, but I would guess that it is because
the doubling emphasizes his greater than ordinary certainty that
his visions would come to fruition. That would explain the
connection between his reward and his having argued on behalf of
the Jewish people—Isaiah plumbed reality to see the good in the
people (sometimes a challenge), in contrast to most others, so
God allowed him to see the future more clearly than most. A Cold
Comfort Nonetheless When we move from that first set of words to
the actual promises, we find little to celebrate. The prophet
upbraids us for fear