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Lesson Five

Isaiah 52:13-15

Isaiah 52:13-1513 Behold, my servant shall deal prudently, he shall be exalted and extolled, and be very high.14 As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men:15 So shall he sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at him: for that which had not been told them shall they see; and that which they had not heard shall they consider.

Isaiah 53:1-3

Isaiah 53:1-31 Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?2 For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Isaiah 53:4-6

Isaiah 53:4-64 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

Isaiah 53:7-9

Isaiah 53:7-97 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.9 And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.

Isaiah 53:10-11

Isaiah 53:10-1110 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.

Isaiah 53:12

Isaiah 53:1212 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

Focus Verse

Isaiah 53:5But he was wounded for our transgressions,

he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and

with his stripes we are healed.

Focus Thought

The price for healing, redemption, and peace was paid by the precious blood and

sufferings of the sinless One.

IntroductionIntroductionThe text for our lesson today is a prophetic utterance that described the future suffering of our Savior, which was fulfilled on the cross.

IntroductionAccording to Matthew Henry, the ancient Jews understood this prophecy to be a description of the Messiah, though modern Jews go to great lengths to deny the connection between this prophecy and Jesus Christ. However, Luke laid to rest any doubt concerning the subject of the prophecy in his account of Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch. (See Acts 8:26-35.)

IntroductionAs with much of the prophecy of the Old Testament, Isaiah 53 was written in the form of poetry. There are five stanzas to this gruesome, yet beautiful, piece of inspired poetry. For the purpose of this lesson, we will consider the divisions as presented in the poem—the first as the introduction, the next three as the body of the lesson, and the final stanza as a conclusion.

IntroductionJesus entered this world as a servant—born in a manger in Bethlehem. Jesus possibly was mocked by His contemporaries as an illegitimate child, and He was raised in obscurity until the time was right for His brief ministry. God’s plan for a Savior required that He come as a servant. Jesus fulfilled the plan perfectly. (See Philippians 2:6-8.)

IntroductionThere was a supreme purpose in the birth of Jesus Christ, His role as a servant, and His suffering and agonizing death. Nothing else would suffice for the redemption of mankind from sin; nothing else would benefit the potential beneficiaries. Every negative experience in His human life was to provide an equal and opposite benefit to those of us who live on this side of the Cross.

IntroductionThere is nothing more descriptive written about our suffering Savior than the verses of our text. The prophet predicted in Isaiah 52:14, “As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men.”

IntroductionConsider the expression of this verse in the New International Version: “Just as there were many who were appalled at him—his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any man and his form marred beyond human likeness.”

IntroductionBy the time Jesus made His way to the cross, He had been beaten and bruised beyond recognition. Cruelty in punishment was common during the time that Jesus walked on this earth, and beatings were frequent occurrences. However, it appears that those who had access to Him went the extra mile to make sure that He experienced all the suffering and pain the human body could endure.

IntroductionIn the midst of our Sunday services with beautiful buildings, well-trained choirs, comfortable pews, and articulately crafted sermons, we must never lose sight of the fact that what occurred that night and day in Jerusalem was a sacrifice. He became “us,” bearing our sins on the cross.

IntroductionThe extent of the punishment He suffered represented how God views sin. We should never mitigate the definition of sin to a mere “mistake” or “problem.” Sin is to err or to miss the mark of God’s intentions for us, and it results from willful disobedience.

IntroductionOnly the most gruesome and cruel penalty could appease the wrath of God for His anger against sin. The writer of Hebrews observed, “For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries” (Hebrews 10:26-27).

IntroductionThe prophet Isaiah declared that Jesus would be “despised and abhorred by the nation (Isaiah 49:7, NIV). Yet in the same breath he stated, “Kings will see you and rise up, princes will see and bow down.” This is the paradox of the great plan of salvation.

IntroductionJesus’ method of success and conquering is contrary to the methods of the world. His method begins with humility and submission to the will of God. Jesus’ method of overcoming speaks of dying: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit” (John 12:24).

IntroductionMoreover, His method speaks of becoming the salt of the earth and the light of the world, but only after humbling ourselves and blessing others along the way.

IntroductionOur text reveals the relationship between the suffering and the exaltation of Jesus Christ. In proportion to the depth of His suffering is the height of His victory.  

I. The Necessity of BelievingThe Necessity of Believing

Spiritual revelation comes to those who exercise faith; hardness of heart comes to those who continually resist the beckoning of the Spirit. George Adam Smith observed that “God never speaks but in man He wakens conscience . . .” (The Expositor’s Bible, The Book of Isaiah: XL-LXVI, 348).

I. The Necessity of BelievingMuch like an alarm clock, the alarm sounds and some choose to arise, but others push the snooze button. Both are awakened, but only those who exercise faith arise to the call of God.

I. The Necessity of BelievingThrough the centuries our heavenly Father sent messengers to His people, encouraging them, wooing them, admonishing them, and even punishing them like a father to a child, but to no lasting avail.

I. The Necessity of BelievingPaul the apostle wrote of their condition in his day in his second epistle to the believers at Corinth: “But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ” (II Corinthians 3:14).

I. The Necessity of BelievingBecause of their continual resistance to the voice of the prophets, and because of their unbelief, dullness or sleepiness resulted. It is a dangerous thing to resist repeatedly the beckoning voice of God. The apostle John noted the cold and estranged condition of the people of Israel at the time that Jesus walked on this earth. (See John 12:37-38.)

I. The Necessity of Believing (A-C)

A. Revelation to Believers

Some theologians have struggled over whom the prophet was addressing in Isaiah 53:1, the heathen or Israel. Clearly, however, the lack of God’s own people’s acceptance was what the prophet saw. Still, the truth is that it matters little.

I. The Necessity of Believing (A-C)Through Jesus Christ, the wall of partition between

Israel and the heathen world was torn down. (See Ephesians 2:11-14.) Although the Israelites did not understand that God intended to make salvation available to all nations—and maybe even resisted the thought of it—the arm of the Lord is revealed to those who believe.

I. The Necessity of Believing (A-C)In order to believe, however, the “alarm” must ring.

People must hear the Word of the Lord. (See Romans 10:16-17.) There are souls all over the world who would be willing to exercise faith if only the “alarm” would ring—if only they could hear the gospel. We must take the gospel to every nation, every tribe, and every tongue. He has no other plan!

I. The Necessity of Believing (A-C)

B. No Physical Attraction

The Messiah sprang forth as a root out of dry ground. He sprang upon the Jewish nation and culture from a direction they were not looking. He failed to meet their human and carnal expectations. They read the Book of Isaiah, but they still looked for a conquering king rather than a suffering Savior.

I. The Necessity of Believing (A-C)For the less than beautiful, Jesus offers

understanding. For every person who has suffered negative experiences in the flesh, to the believer He offers a positive opposite. Jesus’ life conveys understanding: “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities” (Hebrews 4:15).

I. The Necessity of Believing (A-C)We live in a world that worships beauty and

physique. The problem is that very few individuals have been endowed with either. For every person who looks in the mirror and recognizes the reality of his or her exterior, he or she only has to look to Jesus for understanding and strength. He knows how we feel and He is the source of true beauty. (See Isaiah 61:3.)

I. The Necessity of Believing (A-C)

C. Despised and Rejected

At the time of the Crucifixion, what Jesus had to offer the world was not yet appreciated. There was a complete lack of understanding, even among His followers as to what He was doing for mankind.

I. The Necessity of Believing (A-C)He was rejected so that God would not have to

reject us. He was despised and treated as a common criminal so that we, the criminals, could be elevated to the status of children of God.

I. The Necessity of Believing (A-C)Those living at the time that Christ walked upon the

earth, including most of the apostles, turned from Him and allowed Him to suffer alone. Although many later turned to Him, including the apostle Peter and members of the priesthood (Acts 6:7), at the moment of the Crucifixion all of them seemed to hide their faces from Him.

II. Benefits to Us (A)Benefits to Us

If only we could grasp the benefits that were purchased for us on Calvary. In this stanza, the prophet began to reveal some of our benefits.

II. Benefits to Us (A)A. He Bore Our Grief

and Sorrow

The New International Version renders the word translated griefs in Isaiah 53:4 as infirmities. A literal translation by George Adam Smith rendered the same word as ailments.

II. Benefits to Us (A)According to Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance, the original Hebrew word choliy may be translated as disease, grief, or sickness and means “malady, anxiety, or calamity.” Thus, the word infirmity might better define the meaning of the word in this passage. This is consistent with the writing of Matthew in his gospel in Matthew 8:16-17.

II. Benefits to Us (A)It also is important for us to note that He carried our infirmities and sorrows. He did not just share in these experiences, but he carried them for us and away from us. Just as the scapegoat carried Israel’s sins away from them and into the wilderness, Jesus carried our depression, anxiety, sorrow, anguish, and other mental infirmities away from us.

II. Benefits to Us (A)Many individuals tend to look on the afflicted, question their integrity, and attempt to judge what they may have done wrong to deserve their plight. For example, this was the experience of Job. (See Job 4:7-8.) Moreover, Isaiah prophesied that Jesus would experience the same condescension: “We did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted” (Isaiah 53:4).

II. Benefits to Us (A)Many people of His day who were religious and who believed in divine retribution probably were convinced wrongly that Jesus had received His due reward for unconfessed sin—smitten by God.

II. Benefits to Us (A)It is true that disease and mental anguish came into this world as the result of the sin of our first parents, but it is not true that physical disease and mental illness are necessarily the result of unconfessed sin. Infirmities and sorrow are a part of the human experience. It is true that one should always search his or her heart, but it is not true that we should suspect someone has sinned because he or she experiences such infirmities.

II. Benefits to Us (B)B. He Was Wounded for Our

Transgressions and Iniquities

In the original Hebrew language, the possessive pronoun was at the end of each line in verse five, and a literal translation by George Adam Smith emphasizes the great benefit to us:

II. Benefits to Us (B)“Yet he—he was pierced for crimes that were ours, He was crushed for guilt that was ours, The chastisement of our peace was upon him, By his stripes healing is ours” (The Expositor’s Bible, The Book of Isaiah: XL-LXVI, 344).

II. Benefits to Us (B)Jesus was pierced for our transgressions through both hands, both feet, and His side. The word translated transgressions means “a moral or religious revolt”—rebellion on a greater scale than that of only one individual. This is the kind of revolt that occurred when Lucifer transgressed against the God of heaven. It was a rebellion on the scale of an international revolt.

II. Benefits to Us (B)Adam and Eve manifested that same spirit in the Garden of Eden when they—the entire human community—rebelled against the command of God. From that day until now, mankind has possessed a sinful nature, and that nature has been in rebellion against God. (See Galatians 5:17.)

II. Benefits to Us (B)To the church at Rome, Paul warned, “The sinful mind is hostile to God” (Romans 8:7, NIV). The unregenerate human nature is in constant revolt or transgression against God.

II. Benefits to Us (B)The Crucifixion—the piercing of our sinless Lord’s body—made a way for mankind to crucify the flesh and put down the rebellion against God. In His body, He paid the price for our rebellion and offered us peace in return. (See Romans 8:3-6.)

II. Benefits to Us (B)Jesus was crushed (beaten to pieces) for our iniquities (moral evil, fault, or sin). Try as hard as we may, at some point we all fall short of the perfection of God (I John 1:8).

II. Benefits to Us (B)Mankind is not a sinner because he sins, but mankind sins because he is a sinner. In his repentant prayer, David acknowledged that he was a sinner from the moment of his conception (Psalm 51:5). The apostle Paul also reiterated the plight of sinful mankind: “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).

II. Benefits to Us (B)As a result, mankind was in a desperate situation, and the sentence passed upon him was death. Mankind could not die for his own sins and yet live; he needed a sacrifice that would satisfy the demands of the law.

II. Benefits to Us (B)Jesus did not come into the world as a reformer or just a messenger of truth. He came to do what no other person could do for himself. He came for the express purpose of suffering and dying the death required of every sinner.

II. Benefits to Us (B)Jesus came that the world might have the opportunity to be saved. The transgressions and iniquities of all people from all generations were laid upon Him. (See I Peter 2:24.)

John 15:13

“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his

friends” (John 15:13).

II. Benefits to Us (C)C. He Provided Healing with

His Stripes

Isaiah continued his prophecy, “And with his stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5). Thirty-nine stripes were laid across His innocent back so that when we are sick and hurting, the oil of healing may be poured into our wounds and we can be made whole. (See James 5:14; I Peter 2:24.)

III. The Savior’s Reception (A-C)

The Savior’s Reception

A. Led as a Lamb to the Slaughter

Although we deserved punishment for our transgressions and iniquities, Jesus willingly took it for us. As a lamb led to the slaughter, He opened not his mouth.

III. The Savior’s Reception (A-C)

If He had opened His mouth and answered the question regarding who was striking Him, perhaps every one of our names would have been in His answer. It was our sins, individually and corporately, that necessitated the beating and bruising that He experienced.

III. The Savior’s Reception (A-C)

He was the Lamb that provided a covering for Adam and Eve. He was the Lamb that brought deliverance to the Israelites in Egypt. He is the Lamb that provides a blood covering of righteousness for you and me. He is the innocent for the guilty, the pure for the tarnished, and the worthy for the unworthy.

III. The Savior’s Reception (A-C)

B. Cut Off from the Land of the Living

Jesus Christ was stricken for the rebellion of the human race against the government of God. He paid the price that no one wants to pay—death. Jesus was cut off from the land of the living in the prime of His life.

III. The Savior’s Reception (A-C)

Jesus was tempted in all the various categories of sin that we experience, and yet He resisted yielding to those sins. (See Hebrews 4:15.) The account of His temptation in the wilderness in Matthew 4 gives us a cursory view of His many temptations.

III. The Savior’s Reception (A-C)

However, only hours before His death, another temptation occurred that concerned an even more personal, intimate matter. Jesus, the Son of Man, was in the prime of life and had just broken bread and supped from the cup with His disciples when He declared that He must die.

III. The Savior’s Reception (A-C)

Cloaked in free will, Jesus went to a place where He had been many times before and began to pray. There He experienced another cross—a crossroad in His earthly existence. (See Matthew 26:39; Luke 22:42, 44.) He made a choice—a choice that would result in His being cut off from the land of the living.

III. The Savior’s Reception (A-C)

However, He made a choice that would provide a way for a perfect sacrifice to be completed—a sacrifice that would provide salvation for every person ever born into this world.

III. The Savior’s Reception (A-C)

C. Treated as a Criminal

“And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death;

because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth”

(Isaiah 53:9).

III. The Savior’s Reception (A-C)

Having done nothing to deserve punishment, Jesus was treated as the worst criminal. The prophet assured us that the one depicted by this poem was neither violent nor deceitful.

III. The Savior’s Reception (A-C)

Reading this verse gives a person the sense that the One written about was holy and pure and, as such, unjustly punished. The ones who deserved the punishment were the millions who bore the likeness of Adam.

III. The Savior’s Reception (A-C)

He paid a debt He did not owe.I owed a debt I could not pay.I needed someone to wash my sins away.And now I sing a brand new song—Amazing Grace.Christ Jesus paid a debt that I could never pay.—Author Unknown

ReflectionsAs horrible as the suffering was, it was the will of God that Christ Jesus suffer in the stead of all mankind. Many people today have a difficult time accepting that such a gruesome act could truly be the will of God. The disciples who walked with Jesus were of the same opinion, but Jesus did what He could to prepare them for the will of God. (See Mark 8:31.)

ReflectionsJesus became the guilt offering for all mankind—the sexually immoral, the idolaters, the adulterers, the prostitutes, the homosexuals, the thieves, the greedy, the drunkards, the slanderers, the swindlers, and all other sinners. (See I Corinthians 6:9-10.)

ReflectionsThe blood of this guilt offering was poured out at the foot of the cross, and it then traveled into the heavenly Holiest of Holies, providing atonement for our sins (Hebrews 9:24).

ReflectionsThe suffering Messiah would see His offspring, and His days would be prolonged forever, but His offspring would not be of the flesh. (See I Peter 1:23.) Certainly, the truth of the suffering Savior and the new birth are inseparable.

ReflectionsIn Isaiah 53:11, the prophet stated, “He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.”

ReflectionsAn interesting word in this verse is the word translated knowledge. The meaning of this word in the original Hebrew language includes the idea of “cunning” or “wit.” In other words, the Lord outwitted the devil in this supreme chess-like match—checkmate! God had a plan from the creation of the world, and He outwitted Satan with His plan.

RefionsSeen throughout the Scriptures and evident in the world around us, Satan’s lack of wisdom—the antithesis of the wisdom of God—is depicted no more blatantly than in his attempt to destroy the Savior. (See I Corinthians 2:7-8.)

ReflectionsFinally, Isaiah described the victim as the victor (Isaiah 53:12). He pictured the One who was so ruthlessly beaten and finally murdered after having had the transgressions and iniquities of the entire world placed upon Him as dividing the spoils of the battle. As He divided the spoils, one can almost hear Him singing a victorious song that includes the following verses:

Reflections

“O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?”

(I Corinthians 15:55).

Reflections

“I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death”

(Revelation 1:18).

ReflectionsChrist’s victory was the conquest of One who had boldly declared in His ministry that all power both in heaven and on earth was His (Matthew 28:18). By defeating the enemy on his own turf, the Lord now was able to transfer the power of that victory to those who follow Him. We, too, have the power to overcome and defeat the enemy on his own turf—this world.

Reflections“Ye are of God, little children, and have

overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the

world” (I John 4:4).