THE SUFFERING MESSIAH AND HIS FUTURE GLORY

ISAIAH CHAPTERS 52:13 TO 53:12

Isaiah, the prophet in this his fourth servant song brings us to the very summit of Messianic Prophecy.  Isaiah describes the servant Messiah as we view the truth concerning His suffering for the 9sins of His people and the fact of future glory, and that He will be highly exalted.)  Let me just briefly acknowledge that for 1700 years or until 1096 A.D., most Jewish commentators accepted this portion of Isaiah as a portrait of God’s suffering servant, the Messiah.  Because of persecution and the Crusades in the 11^th century A.D., a change took place as Jewish thought began to assert that Isaiah spoke of Israel, who suffered innocently for the sins of all nations.  Most Christians and Orthodox Jews still believe this refers to Messiah.  As a Christian I accept Paul’s writing to the Philippians 2:9-11, in which Christ as Messiah will be “exalted and extolled and be very high.”

In Isaiah, 52:13-15 we see Jehovah introducing His Servant.  As we view this prophecy with the life of Jesus of Nazareth, the prophecy springs to life as we see the reality of a historical personality.  The Greek New Testament gives at least 41 different quotes or alluded to citations between the prophecies and the life of Christ.  As we make our way into the very heart of the gospel the end result should ever be before us and that is of final victory as recorded in Revelation 19:6, “Alleluia, for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth”. 

The suffering Messiah is brought before us, and bewildered amazement is expressed as we view the intense suffering of Christ on His journey to the Cross.  In verse 15 of Isaiah 52, we see the Messiah bringing cleansing to the nations, not through the blood of animals, but by His own blood.  The prediction is made that great men will stand before Him in mute awe and respect because of what they hear from His lips that was never heard before, “Father forgive them.”

As Isaiah 53:1-3 opens, we have the confession of a penitent people.  Who has believed our message is the witness of the prophets who for many years have prophesied about the coming of a divinely appointed Savior to deliver His people from their sins.  In the, “Arm of the Lord,” we see power and might as in creation or the deliverance of Israel from Egypt.  In the “Root out of dry ground,” we have reference to Messiah’s Davidic descent with its claimant’s potential to the throne of David.  There was nothing in the outward appearance to make Him attractive to His people or to the world.  Most, while looking for the Messiah looked for His glorious Kingdom; not as a Messiah who must first suffer, die and rise again for the dead.  This type of a Messiah remains offensive to Jewish thinking to this day.

The vicarious suffering of Messiah for the sin of mankind is seen in Isaiah 53:4-6.  It is made very clear in this section that He suffered for the transgression of His people and not for His own sins.  The word wounded, literally means, “He was pierced.”  Only a prophet of God could write 700 years before it happened so correctly what had happened to Jesus that day on the Cross.  The Messiah Jesus was crushed for our iniquities, showing fully the vicarious character of the suffering of the innocent for the guilty which occurred at Calvary.  Forgiveness to be real must be obtained at a price.  So, the Lord Jesus, the Messiah of Israel, took upon Himself the chastisement or the punishment of our sins, which secures our peace with God (Romans 5:11).  All men, without exception, have strayed away from the path of righteousness and turned to his own way, not God’s way.  God in His mercy appointed His righteous Servant to guide us back to the pathway of life.

In Isaiah 53:7-9, we have the quiet submission of the humble and voluntary death of the Messiah to His tormentors.  He opened not His mouth is in harmony with the trial of Jesus as recorded in Matthew 26: 62,63.  To those who say this refers to Israel and not to Jesus must face the fact that Jews never considered suffering in silence a virtue.  The earthly career of Jesus was only 33 years and relates to being, “cut off from the land of the living.”  In this prophecy, the grave of Jesus was provided by a rich man, and this shows a remarkable display of divine intervention.  In Matthew 27:57, Joseph of Arimathea intervened with Roman authorities and had Jesus buried in a private grave in his garden.

In Isaiah, 53:10-12 we have set before us the future glory of the Servant of Jehovah.  In the phrase, “prolong His days,” we see the resurrection and the life, which only began after His crucifixion.  In the quote, “The purpose of the Lord shall prosper in His hand”  reference is made to restoring Israel so that they might in the end become a light to the nations and carry the salvation of God to the ends of the earth.  In no small part will Revelation 7:4-12 be carried out by the 144,000 Jewish preachers preaching the gospel of the Kingdom during the coming tribulation period.