Isaiah 53-56 This is the furth and mst imprtant f the Servant passages within Secnd Isaiah The first sectin was Isaiah 42:1-4 - missin f the Messiah The secnd was Isaiah 49:1-13 - the trials f that missin The third was Isaiah 50:4-9 - the suffering f the Servant The furth began at the end f 52:13 and cntinues int chapter 53 "The prfundest thughts in the Old Testament revelatin are t be fund in this sectin. It is a vindicatin f the Servant, s clear and s true, and wrught ut with such a paths and ptency, that it hlds first place in Messianic prphecy." - Gerge Rbinsn Als, remember that we saw in Isaiah 51 the reference t the arm f Jehvah If yu remember this was a reference t Christ, Wh is the arm f the Lrd The arm and Jehvah are tw different entities in the text Remember frm last time that when the Gentiles peple lk upn arm f the Lrd, they see salvatin (Yeshua) Finally, we saw Isaiah prclaim that Gd s peple wuldn t be redeemed with mney But the statement suggests they will be redeemed but in a different way This chapter describes hw that redemptin takes place T get the full sense f the death as it s prtrayed in the text, let s read the entire Servant sng, beginning with the end f 52 Is. 52:13 Behld, My servant will prsper, He will be high and lifted up and greatly exalted. Is. 52:14 Just as many were astnished at yu, My peple, S His appearance was marred mre than any man And His frm mre than the sns f men. 2010 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Isaiah 53-56! 2 Is. 52:15 Thus He will sprinkle many natins, Kings will shut their muths n accunt f Him; Fr what had nt been tld them they will see, And what they had nt heard they will understand. Lking at the passage, we read the final three verses f Chapter 52 last week, and they are a mini utline f the chapter t fllw Christ will be exalted (thugh at first He seems t fail) But nt befre His appearance is marred mre than any ther man In the end, He will rule ver the natins Nw chapter 53 There are 80 references t Isaiah in the NT...mst cme frm this single chapter Is. 53:1 Wh has believed ur message? And t whm has the arm f the LORD been revealed? Is. 53:2 Fr He grew up befre Him like a tender sht, And like a rt ut f parched grund; He has n stately frm r majesty That we shuld lk upn Him, Nr appearance that we shuld be attracted t Him. Is. 53:3 He was despised and frsaken f men, A man f srrws and acquainted with grief; And like ne frm whm men hide their face He was despised, and we did nt esteem Him. Is. 53:4 Surely ur griefs He Himself bre, And ur srrws He carried; Yet we urselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten f Gd, and afflicted. Is. 53:5 But He was pierced thrugh fr ur transgressins, He was crushed fr ur iniquities; The chastening fr ur well-being fell upn Him, And by His scurging we are healed. Is. 53:6 All f us like sheep have gne astray, Each f us has turned t his wn way; But the LORD has caused the iniquity f us all T fall n Him. 2010 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Isaiah 53-56! 3 Is. 53:7 He was ppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He did nt pen His muth; Like a lamb that is led t slaughter, And like a sheep that is silent befre its shearers, S He did nt pen His muth. Is. 53:8 By ppressin and judgment He was taken away; And as fr His generatin, wh cnsidered That He was cut ff ut f the land f the living Fr the transgressin f my peple, t whm the strke was due? Is. 53:9 His grave was assigned with wicked men, Yet He was with a rich man in His death, Because He had dne n vilence, Nr was there any deceit in His muth. Is. 53:10 But the LORD was pleased T crush Him, putting Him t grief; If He wuld render Himself as a guilt ffering, He will see His ffspring, He will prlng His days, And the gd pleasure f the LORD will prsper in His hand. Keeping in mind all that was written here was prepared centuries befre Christ s arrival Irnically, sme Bible critics have tried t discunt the pssibility that this bk was actually written by Isaiah because f its accuracy They say that because the bk was s accurate in fretelling future events, it must have been written afterward The next thing t nte is that chapter 53 describes bth a near term fulfillment and a lng term fulfillment The near term is Christ s crucifixin and death The lng term view is the end f Tribulatin when the Jewish natin cmes t knw Christ as Messiah and turns t Him in faith In vs.1-10 we have the near term fulfillment Fr example, Isaiah gives a vivid descriptin f Jesus in His human frm A rt frm parched grund, a reference back t Isaiah 11 and the rt f Jesse Nt frm David, the King, but frm Jesse the unremarkable ne 2010 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Isaiah 53-56! 4 A man withut remarkable frm r appearance An rdinary Je It s easy fr us t imagine Jesus in a frm s naturally attractive that we assume we wuld have seen His divinity with ur eyes Isaiah says Gd chse a plain appearance fr Christ He was prbably a little shrter than yu assume And mre than plain, He repelled men In Israel tday, rthdx Jews hld the name f Jesus in cntempt. His true name is Yeshua, but rthdx Jews have taken t calling Him Yeshu, which is a wrd made up f the first three Hebrew initials in a line f Hebrew, which reads May His Name and Memry Be Bltted Out. - Fruchtenbaum Why did Gd chse such a humble appearance Because n flesh will be glrified This has always been His pattern Remember, the natin chse a king in Saul wh lked the part Meanwhile, the right king fr Israel was a yung shepherd by N dubt Jesus appearance challenged the faith f Israel all the mre in that they didn t see a mighty figure Lk at the remaining details f His life Remember Gd will ften call the unlikely man r wman t serve Him...dn t judge n appearances Despised and frsaken (v.3) Nt merely n the crss, but in His ministry and prbably befre, as a man frm Nazareth Man f srrws and acquainted with grief The Hebrew wrd fr srrws is pains and the Hebrew fr grief is disease 2010 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Isaiah 53-56! 5 He was acquainted with pain and disease Whether in Himself r thers He grieved ver the lss f friends, including Lazarus He grieved ver Jseph s death at sme pint He grieved in His wn death f curse In vs.4-6, yu have a mini versin f Rmans If yu ve ever heard it suggested, as I have, that the dctrine f substitutinary atnement is nly a New Testament inventin f Paul Then cnsider vs.4-6 f this chapter He bre ur grief, ur iniquity fell n Him and we are healed Then in vs.7-10, the death f Christ is described But mre than the prcess, Isaiah als describes the purpse Christ was silent and like a sheep, predicting the Messiah s willingness t g t death His life was taken by ppressin and judgment And His wn generatin has n idea what s happening (v.8) His grave was with criminals (hanging n a crss with the thieves) But Jesus was ultimately buried in a rich man s tmb (Jseph f Arimathia) And Jesus was inncent (v.9) Wh brught the Messiah t this end? The Father But the Lrd will bring Christ t see His ffspring and prlng His days That was the near term prphecy, in all it s perfect accuracy Nw the lng term prphecy is clearly seen in v.12 2010 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Isaiah 53-56! 6 Is. 53:11 As a result f the anguish f His sul, He will see it and be satisfied; By His knwledge the Righteus One, My Servant, will justify the many, As He will bear their iniquities. Is. 53:12 Therefre, I will allt Him a prtin with the great, And He will divide the bty with the strng; Because He pured ut Himself t death, And was numbered with the transgressrs; Yet He Himself bre the sin f many, And interceded fr the transgressrs. Ultimately, Jesus is victrius ver death and receives His reward and divides it with the strng, thse He has redeemed Lking back ver the entire passage, we can see further evidence that this passage lks int the distant future Specifically t the mment Israel turns t Christ and calls ut fr Jesus Zech. 12:9 And in that day I will set abut t destry all the natins that cme against Jerusalem. Zech. 12:10 I will pur ut n the huse f David and n the inhabitants f Jerusalem, the Spirit f grace and f supplicatin, s that they will lk n Me whm they have pierced; and they will murn fr Him, as ne murns fr an nly sn, and they will weep bitterly ver Him like the bitter weeping ver a firstbrn. Remember that prphecy...nw cmpare it t the first persn statements n Isaiah 53 starting in v.2 Lk at all the first persn prnuns This is Israel speaking frm the first persn during the last mments f Tribulatin And what happens in respnse t Israel s cry ut t the Lrd at that mment? Is. 54:1 Shut fr jy, O barren ne, yu wh have brne n child; Break frth int jyful shuting and cry alud, yu wh have nt travailed; Fr the sns f the deslate ne will be mre numerus Than the sns f the married wman, says the LORD. 2010 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Isaiah 53-56! 7 Is. 54:2 Enlarge the place f yur tent; Stretch ut the curtains f yur dwellings, spare nt; Lengthen yur crds And strengthen yur pegs. Is. 54:3 Fr yu will spread abrad t the right and t the left. And yur descendants will pssess natins And will resettle the deslate cities. Is. 54:4 Fear nt, fr yu will nt be put t shame; And d nt feel humiliated, fr yu will nt be disgraced; But yu will frget the shame f yur yuth, And the reprach f yur widwhd yu will remember n mre. Is. 54:5 Fr yur husband is yur Maker, Whse name is the LORD f hsts; And yur Redeemer is the Hly One f Israel, Wh is called the Gd f all the earth. Is. 54:6 Fr the LORD has called yu, Like a wife frsaken and grieved in spirit, Even like a wife f ne s yuth when she is rejected, Says yur Gd. Is. 54:7 Fr a brief mment I frsk yu, But with great cmpassin I will gather yu. Is. 54:8 In an utburst f anger I hid My face frm yu fr a mment, But with everlasting lvingkindness I will have cmpassin n yu, Says the LORD yur Redeemer. Is. 54:9 Fr this is like the days f Nah t Me, When I swre that the waters f Nah Wuld nt fld the earth again; S I have swrn that I will nt be angry with yu Nr will I rebuke yu. Is. 54:10 Fr the muntains may be remved and the hills may shake, But My lvingkindness will nt be remved frm yu, And My cvenant f peace will nt be shaken, Says the LORD wh has cmpassin n yu. Is. 54:11 O afflicted ne, strm-tssed, and nt cmfrted, Behld, I will set yur stnes in antimny, And yur fundatins I will lay in sapphires. Is. 54:12 Mrever, I will make yur battlements f rubies, And yur gates f crystal, And yur entire wall f precius stnes. Is. 54:13 All yur sns will be taught f the LORD; And the well-being f yur sns will be great. Is. 54:14 In righteusness yu will be established; Yu will be far frm ppressin, fr yu will nt fear; And frm terrr, fr it will nt cme near yu. 2010 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Isaiah 53-56! 8 Is. 54:15 If anyne fiercely assails yu it will nt be frm Me. Whever assails yu will fall because f yu. Is. 54:16 Behld, I Myself have created the smith wh blws the fire f cals And brings ut a weapn fr its wrk; And I have created the destryer t ruin. Is. 54:17 N weapn that is frmed against yu will prsper; And every tngue that accuses yu in judgment yu will cndemn. This is the heritage f the servants f the LORD, And their vindicatin is frm Me, declares the LORD. What a beautiful sng sung by the Lrd t Israel in respnse t their srrw ver piercing their Messiah The Lrd is truly full f mercy, even t Israel wh rejected His Sn One nte wrth making f that passage is in v.17 Have yu heard v.17 quted in ther cntexts befre? Perhaps in cnjunctin with a Christian r the Church? Cnsidering hw it appears in Isaiah, we shuld be very careful t apply this passage bradly t anyne ther than Israel While it may be true that thse in faith expect a similar vindicatin upn ur resurrectin Prper Biblical schlarship must separate interpretatin frm applicatin The prper interpretatin f this verse is that Gd is speaking t Israel and abut Israel alne But a reasnable applicatin f this verse wuld be that Gd makes similar assurances t Gentiles believers Isaiah s next tw chapters recrd anther beautiful snnet frm Gd This time t audience is bth Jew and Gentile, all men It s His invitatin t salvatin, first t the Jew in chapter 55 and then t the Gentile in 56 2010 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Isaiah 53-56! 9 Is. 55:1 H! Every ne wh thirsts, cme t the waters; And yu wh have n mney cme, buy and eat. Cme, buy wine and milk Withut mney and withut cst. Is. 55:2 Why d yu spend mney fr what is nt bread, And yur wages fr what des nt satisfy? Listen carefully t Me, and eat what is gd, And delight yurself in abundance. Is. 55:3 Incline yur ear and cme t Me. Listen, that yu may live; And I will make an everlasting cvenant with yu, Accrding t the faithful mercies shwn t David. Is. 55:4 Behld, I have made him a witness t the peples, A leader and cmmander fr the peples. Is. 55:5 Behld, yu will call a natin yu d nt knw, And a natin which knws yu nt will run t yu, Because f the LORD yur Gd, even the Hly One f Israel; Fr He has glrified yu. Is. 55:6 Seek the LORD while He may be fund; Call upn Him while He is near. Is. 55:7 Let the wicked frsake his way And the unrighteus man his thughts; And let him return t the LORD, And He will have cmpassin n him, And t ur Gd, Fr He will abundantly pardn. Is. 55:8 Fr My thughts are nt yur thughts, Nr are yur ways My ways, declares the LORD. Is. 55:9 Fr as the heavens are higher than the earth, S are My ways higher than yur ways And My thughts than yur thughts. Is. 55:10 Fr as the rain and the snw cme dwn frm heaven, And d nt return there withut watering the earth And making it bear and sprut, And furnishing seed t the swer and bread t the eater; Is. 55:11 S will My wrd be which ges frth frm My muth; It will nt return t Me empty, Withut accmplishing what I desire, And withut succeeding in the matter fr which I sent it. Is. 55:12 Fr yu will g ut with jy And be led frth with peace; The muntains and the hills will break frth int shuts f jy befre yu, And all the trees f the field will clap their hands. 2010 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Isaiah 53-56! 10 Is. 55:13 Instead f the thrn bush the cypress will cme up, And instead f the nettle the myrtle will cme up, And it will be a memrial t the LORD, Fr an everlasting sign which will nt be cut ff. This chapter makes an invitatin t Israel that they might receive this Suffering Servant The pen invitatin uses three drinks t picture the receiving f this spiritual life Water is fr refreshment, wine fr enjyment and milk fr nurishment A reflectin f three benefits f ur relatinship with the Lrd But ntice nne f this can cme thrugh a purchase Fr we have n mney t buy these things It must cme by grace, an invitatin Christ s wn wrds in Matthew 11 ech this statement Matt. 11:28 Cme t Me, all wh are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give yu rest. Matt. 11:29 Take My yke upn yu and learn frm Me, fr I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. Matt. 11:30 Fr My yke is easy and My burden is light. The answer is fund in an everlasting cvenant, the New Cvenant And this is assured by the mercies shwn t David Meaning that the same Gd wh assured David cncerning His descendant ruling n a thrne is giving a similar assurance t us In v.5 we see that this chapter is speaking t Israel As a natin they will see a freign natin run t them because f a calling This is a prphecy f hw the saved natin f Israel will attract the Gentile natins f the kingdm 2010 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Isaiah 53-56! 11 As chief natin n the earth, Israel receives streams f Gentiles cming t the temple Then befre it s t late fr each persn, call upn the Lrd and seek Him Repent, turn t the Lrd and He will have cmpassin The gspel message again Finally, cnsider vs.10-12 in their cntext N dubt we ve heard Isaiah 55:11 quted many times Gd s wrd will nt g frth frm His muth and nt return empty The cntext f the secnd part f Secnd Isaiah has been the Suffering Servant ding the Father s bidding t bring a peple back t Gd The Servant is the Wrd, accrding t Jhn 1 It wuld seem that in the cntext, the meaning f this passage is directly at the Sn Himself ging ut and nt returning withut accmplishing the Father s purpse cncerning Israel And f curse, that same principle hlds true fr Gd s wrd What Gd prclaims will cme t pass And the prf will be seen in an Israel that will blm again in new ways Is. 56:1 Thus says the LORD, Preserve justice and d righteusness, Fr My salvatin is abut t cme And My righteusness t be revealed. Is. 56:2 Hw blessed is the man wh des this, And the sn f man wh takes hld f it; Wh keeps frm prfaning the sabbath, And keeps his hand frm ding any evil. Is. 56:3 Let nt the freigner wh has jined himself t the LORD say, The LORD will surely separate me frm His peple. Nr let the eunuch say, Behld, I am a dry tree. Is. 56:4 Fr thus says the LORD, T the eunuchs wh keep My sabbaths, And chse what pleases Me, And hld fast My cvenant, 2010 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Isaiah 53-56! 12 Is. 56:5 T them I will give in My huse and within My walls a memrial, And a name better than that f sns and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name which will nt be cut ff. Is. 56:6 Als the freigners wh jin themselves t the LORD, T minister t Him, and t lve the name f the LORD, T be His servants, every ne wh keeps frm prfaning the sabbath And hlds fast My cvenant; Is. 56:7 Even thse I will bring t My hly muntain And make them jyful in My huse f prayer. Their burnt fferings and their sacrifices will be acceptable n My altar; Fr My huse will be called a huse f prayer fr all the peples. Is. 56:8 The Lrd GOD, wh gathers the dispersed f Israel, declares, Yet thers I will gather t them, t thse already gathered. Is. 56:9 All yu beasts f the field, All yu beasts in the frest, Cme t eat. Is. 56:10 His watchmen are blind, All f them knw nthing. All f them are mute dgs unable t bark, Dreamers lying dwn, wh lve t slumber; Is. 56:11 And the dgs are greedy, they are nt satisfied. And they are shepherds wh have n understanding; They have all turned t their wn way, Each ne t his unjust gain, t the last ne. Is. 56:12 Cme, they say, let us get wine, and let us drink heavily f strng drink; And tmrrw will be like tday, nly mre s. Nw the invitatin is extended t the Gentile In vs.1-2 the invitatin fr salvatin is repeated And in v.3 the audience fr this repeated ffer is identified Isaiah talks abut nt prfaning the sabbath Understanding that the Sabbath is Christ fr the believer We rest in Christ s wrk, s ur Sabbath is perpetual in Christ Therefre, t believe in Christ is t bserve the Sabbath tday Then Isaiah talks abut tw grups f Gentiles wh nw have hpe t attach themselves t the assembly f Israel Here s evidence f Gentiles grafted int the rt f Israel 2010 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Isaiah 53-56! 13 First the freigner in v.3 and the eunuch in v.4 Thse wh bserves the Sabbath (in Christ) can nw have entrance int the assembly f Israel Why these tw grups? There is anther time that tw grups like this are mentined tgether in the OT Deut 23: Deut. 23:1 N ne wh is emasculated r has his male rgan cut ff shall enter the assembly f the LORD. Deut. 23:2 N ne f illegitimate birth shall enter the assembly f the LORD; nne f his descendants, even t the tenth generatin, shall enter the assembly f the LORD. Deut. 23:3 N Ammnite r Mabite shall enter the assembly f the LORD; nne f their descendants, even t the tenth generatin, shall ever enter the assembly f the LORD, Deut. 23:4 because they did nt meet yu with fd and water n the way when yu came ut f Egypt, and because they hired against yu Balaam the sn f Ber frm Pethr f Mesptamia, t curse yu. In this passage, the Ammnites and Mabites, decedents f Lt are banned frm entering the assembly f the Israel The assembly specifically referred t a participatin in Temple services They might becme a faithful fllwer f YHWH but they still had t wait until the tenth generatin befre they culd participate in the Temple services Nw by faith in Christ, this prhibitin has been remved (v.7) Remember Acts 8 when Phillip meets the Ethipian eunuch n the rad? That encunter is prvided in Acts t demnstrate hw this prphecy f Isaiah was cming true Remember what the Eunuch was reading? Isaiah 53 And immediately afterward, the Eunuch asks what prevents me frm being baptized? The sense f the questin is in relatinship t the lifting f this prhibitin 2010 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Isaiah 53-56! 14 The riginal prhibitin was given under the Msaic Law, but nw that we under the Law f Christ, grace is made available t everyne Fr what Law culdn t d, grace will d Als ntice in v.7 that their attaching t Israel will allw them t cme t the Temple, which is the Temple f the Millennial reign Finally, vs.9-12 give us a transitin t the final chapter f the secnd part f Secnd Isaiah Isaiah turns his attentin back t the crrupt leadership f Israel wh leads the Jewish peple astray and against their Messiah This reminds us f the way the Pharisees cnvince the peple f Israel that Jesus is pssessed by Satan Himself And as a result, the natin is devured by Gentile natins (Rme in AD 70) called beasts And the cause fr this calamity are the crrupt Jewish leaders This is a transitin t the final chapter where Isaiah returns t cndemning the evil in Israel that stands ppsed t Gd and His Suffering Servant 2010 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.