Reflections on Isaiah 53
Last night I did make it to the fitness center for a workout. I had a doctor’s appointment this morning. Nothing wrong just a routine check up and update on my progress. It was good to touch base share an update on my progress and some questions related to my health. I will look forward to the results of some of the lab work to see how it compares to a few months ago.
After the doctor’s appointment, I ran a few errands. One which included a stop at the Post Office. That proved to be a test of strength and endurance. I returned home and took time to attempt some repair on my patio concrete. After lunch some fatigue set in so I needed to take a nap and will end my day with a massage appointment and our Monday evening men’s meeting.
BIBLE VERSE FOR TODAY… “All of us were like sheep that were lost, each of us going his own way.But the Lord made the punishment fall on him, the punishment all of us deserved.” Isaiah 53:6
It is often said that the Old Testament is the New Testament concealed and the New Testament is the Old Testament revealed. Perhaps that is none clearer than the prophetic words of Isaiah 53. This is the passage of scripture the Ethiopian eunuch was reading when the early church leader Philip told him about Christ. (Acts 8:26-40) I am sure this is one of the passages Jesus had on his mind when he chided the disciples on the road to Emmaus about, “…how slow you are to believe everything the prophets said! Was it not necessary for the Messiah to suffer these things and then to enter his glory?” (Luke 24:25,26)
As Isaiah said 700 years before Christ, “…Who could have seen the Lord‘s hand in this?” (Isaiah 53:1) Sometimes we need to be still and stand in awe of the Lord’s patience and plan that has unfolded through the ages to bring salvation to the world. Then we need to remember that same God is patiently, yet actively working to bring His entire plan of redemption to fulfillment through the “second coming of Christ.’
The prophet addresses the impact of Jesus suffering and how the brutality of what He endured made people “turn their faces” if not run away.
“We despised him and rejected him; he endured suffering and pain. No one would even look at him— we ignored him as if he were nothing.” (Isaiah 53:3)
The most striking aspect of looking to the sacrifice of Christ on the cross is that Jesus suffered unjustly, having not sinned, but bore punishment that was due mankind for turning away from God. He suffered, so we don’t have to. Isaiah even points to what would happen on the cross being viewed differently that what is was. I believe it is important to take note of the “we” “our” pronouns in the verses below.
“But he endured the suffering that should have been ours, the pain that we should have borne. All the while we thought that his suffering was punishment sent by God. But because of our sins he was wounded, beaten because of the evil we did. We are healed by the punishment he suffered, made whole by the blows he received.” (Isaiah 53:4,5)
Isaiah reveals Jesus as the, “Lamb of God” so that when John the Baptist used that term, people familiar with the words of the Prophet would sit up and take notice. Unfortunately those who should have noticed, didn’t.
“He was treated harshly, but endured it humbly; he never said a word. Like a lamb about to be slaughtered, like a sheep about to be sheared, he never said a word.” (Isaiah 53:7)
The prophet even foretold of Christ’s burial with striking accuracy.
“He was placed in a grave with those who are evil, he was buried with the rich, even though he had never committed a crime or ever told a lie.” (Isaiah 53:9)
Isaiah closes his messianic prophecy with speaking of the glory of Christ’s obedience and the sacrifice He made.
“…so I will give him a place of honor, a place among the great and powerful. He willingly gave his life and shared the fate of evil men. He took the place of many sinners and prayed that they might be forgiven.” (Isaiah 53:12)
This reminds me of the words of Paul the Apostle written about Christ’s incarnation and ultimate sacrifice for us,
“For this reason God raised him to the highest place above and gave him the name that is greater than any other name. And so, in honor of the name of Jesus all beings in heaven, on earth, and in the world below will fall on their knees, and all will openly proclaim that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.“ (Philippians 2:9-11)
Some times instead of a “quick read” through a familiar passage, it is good for us to slow down, reflect, contemplate, consider and make sure that we have personally embraced through faith in Christ, the wonder and glory of God’s plan.