OUTLINE

1. Despised and Rejected (Isaiah 52:13—53:3) 

2. Wounded for Our Transgressions (Isaiah 53:4-9) 

3. Bruised and Exalted by God (Isaiah 53:10-12) 

Central Truth: God the Father’s exaltation of Jesus showed His approval of Jesus’ substitutionary death. 

Focus: Reflect on the suffering Jesus endured to redeem sinners and praise God for Him. 

Evangelism Emphasis: Jesus paid the ultimate price for our sin against God. 

Text: “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” (Isaiah 53:5). 

INTRODUCTION 

Old Testament prophecies revealed the coming Messiah would be a suffering Servant providing salvation. The apostle Peter wrote: “Of which salvation the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow” (1 Peter 1:10-11). 

These prophets also understood Christ’s suffering would come at the hands of those whom He was seeking to save. Jeremiah expressed the anguish of his heart when he considered the sin of the people whom God was seeking to help. He said: “Oh that my head were waters, and my eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people! Oh that I had in the desert a travelers' lodging place, that I might leave my people and go away from them! For they are all adulterers, a company of treacherous men” (Jer. 9:1-2 ESV). 

A search of the four Gospels reveals that Jesus had much to say about His suffering and death. Consider Luke 9:22: “The Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be slain, and be raised the third day.” Early in His earthly ministry, Jesus began to prepare His disciples to expect the suffering that would befall Him. He also made it clear His suffering was in keeping with the will of God and that He himself freely volunteered to suffer and die for His people’s sake. 

Through the shedding of His blood, Jesus made eternal salvation available to all people. He gave His life as a ransom to make remission of sin possible. Eternal blessings await all who repent of their sin and believe on this suffering Servant. Since Jesus bore our sins, He bestows His righteousness on us when we believe in Him. 

1.  DESPISED AND REJECTED 

We now begin to study a couple of the best-known chapters in the Book of Isaiah. They contain several passages that are quoted in the New Testament. The Bible Knowledge Commentary lists the following verses referenced in the New Testament: “Isaiah 52:15 in Romans 15:21; Isaiah 53:1 in John 12:38 and Romans 10:16; Isaiah 53:4 in Matthew 8:17; Isaiah 53:7-8 in Acts 8:32-33; Isaiah 53:9 in 1 Peter 2:22; and Isaiah 53:12 in Luke 22:37.” 

These chapters deal with the suffering, humiliation, and exaltation of the Servant, meaning Jesus Christ, underscoring that He willingly fulfilled the will of God through His life, death, and resurrection. Ancient historians say Johannes Isaac, a Jew, was converted by reading these chapters. He confessed that they “brought me to the faith of Jesus Christ.” May we see Christ in them as well. 

A.  Disfigured Appearance (Isaiah 52:13-15) 

13 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.  

The Servant lived wisely, fulfilling the mission the Father sent Him to accomplish. A life lived for the glory of God is a successful life. He not only laid down His life as a ransom for humankind; He also arose from the dead and ascended back to the Father to be seated at His right hand, a seat of authority. There He is “exalted and extolled” (Isa. 52:13), and “lives to make intercession” for believers (Heb. 7:25 NKJV). 

All of His sufferings—buffeting, crowned with thorns, scourging, nailed to the cross, plus the burden of the world’s sins—had a terrible effect on His body. “His appearance was so disfigured that He did not look like a man” (Isa. 52:14 HCSB). 

Not only were people “astonished at [His appearance]” (v. 14 NKJV), they were also awestruck by His message. The “sprinkling” of the nations has to do with the forgiveness of the sins of those who repented (see v. 15) Kings were silenced when they heard the message the Servant brought—something they had never heard before—the doctrine of the salvation of the Gentiles. When people’s eyes are opened to understand Christ came to save the whole world, they should be awed by His amazing grace. 

—How should we be “astonished” by Jesus Christ? 

B.  Unattractive Form (Isaiah 53:1-2) 

1 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.   

Most people refused to accept the message of the prophets, of John the Baptist, and of Jesus himself concerning the blessed Messiah. The apostle John wrote: “He [Jesus] was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name” (John 1:10-12). 

Jesus’ entry into this world as a human being was in the most humble circumstances. While the Father was well-pleased with Him, most people failed to see anything about Him that immediately appealed to them. He was not what they were looking for or hoping for. They were expecting someone who would set up an earthly kingdom, but His kingdom was spiritual. Not only that, His physical appearance was not winsome, and He suffered by His self-giving. We are often guilty of judging others by their outward appearance, failing to see their inner qualities that reveal the real person.   

It was necessary that Jesus came into this world clothed in human flesh. He had to become like us for us to become like Him. The apostle Paul wrote, “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him” (2 Cor. 5:21). The Lord offers us the only remedy for the sin that separates us from Him. Out of love, He shed His blood that we might be reconciled to God. 

—In what sense is Jesus Christ unattractive? 

C.  Hateful Rejection (Isaiah 53:3) 

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. 

When you read the words of the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and the Romans found in the New Testament—with the exception of a few individuals—you realize they all despised Jesus. Each group had their own reason for holding Him in contempt and scorn. In His life and death, He was mocked and ridiculed. Sadly, this attitude prevails in much of society today. This is true not only in pagan nations, but in our own country as well. Many people despise those who identify with Jesus. 

When a crowd was given a choice as to who should be released—a murderous rebel or Jesus—the crowd chose wicked Barabbas. The Romans nailed Jesus to a cross between two thieves, and many considered Him the worst of the three. He was the One they mocked as they passed by. 

Some time before Jesus’ trial and crucifixion, His disciples asked Him about the prophecy that Elijah would come before the Messiah (Mark 9:11). He told them that Elijah had “indeed come” (v. 13), meaning John the Baptist; and then He affirmed the assessment Isaiah had written concerning how Jesus would be mistreated. He said, “It is written of the Son of man, that He must suffer many things” (v. 12). 

Christ, a “man of sorrows,” carried the weight of the sin of the world on His shoulders. Paul wrote: “For he [God] hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him” (2 Cor. 5:21). The writer of Hebrews affirmed Christ’s acquaintance with grief: “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need” (4:15-16). 

Can you imagine people thought Jesus was so insignificant that they did not consider Him worthy to be looked upon? They so despised Him that they turned their eyes away from Him as if from something detestable. How could God’s Son be so despised? 

Wondrous Cross 

Ultimately, we cannot understand the full meaning of the cross of Christ. We can only stand in silence before it, acknowledge its wonder, and submit to its power.—Stanley Grenz 

2. WOUNDED FOR OUR TRANSGRESSIONS 

A.  Taking Our Place (Isaiah 53:4-5) 

4 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. 

Out of His incomparable love for us, and because we did not have the strength to bear our own sins and griefs, Jesus bore them for us. What a weight He lifted from our shoulders! Idol gods could not rescue the people from the weight of their grief. But our God is able to bear our sins and sorrows through the Lord Jesus Christ (see Matt. 8:17). Sinful people regarded Him who bore our sins and griefs as a deceiver, a drunkard, a blasphemer, and a friend of godless people (see 11:19); therefore, they crucified Him. They gave to Him the glory and praise He deserved, they “thought his troubles were a punishment from God . . . for his own sins” (Isa. 53:4 NLT). 

Jesus was wounded for the wrong we did. All the pain and punishment He endured was because of our evil deeds. He did not suffer for His own sins, because He had none. Peter described Jesus as the One “who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth” (1 Peter 2:22). The chastisement by which our peace is secured was laid upon Him, which He willingly bore that we might be reconciled to God and obtain eternal salvation. 

Isaiah summarized the work accomplished on Calvary when he wrote, “By His stripes we are healed” (53:5 NKJV). The healing obtained on the cross was spiritual, physical, mental, and emotional. The black-and-blue marks on His back were caused by settling of the blood where the whip ripped His flesh, providing all types of healing to those who trust in Him. Throughout church history, there have been countless testimonies of healings that can only be explained in terms of divine intervention. 

When we read Isaiah’s words about the wounds, bruises, blows, and suffering even unto death that Jesus endured, we might wonder, What did the Son of God do to deserve this horrible treatment? The answer is, “Nothing.” He willingly did it all for us. 

—Why do we so often carry the weight of the woes which Jesus has already carried for us? 

B.  We Were Like Wandering Sheep (Isaiah 53:6-7) 

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. 7 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. 

No other animal is as prone to stray and be unable to find its way back to the fold than sheep. Isaiah draws a parallel between wandering sheep without a shepherd, and we humans who have strayed from God and are without a Savior. As such, we are subject to God’s judgment. Jeremiah said the people of his day “loved to wander, they have not refrained their feet, therefore the Lord doth not accept them; he will now remember their iniquity, and visit their sins” (14:10). John Calvin wrote: “In ourselves we were scattered; in Christ we are collected together; by nature we wander, and are driven headlong toward destruction; in Christ we find the way by which we are led to the gate of life.” 

The remedy for our dilemma came when Jesus took upon Himself the “iniquity of us all.” He became sin for us; not sins in the plural, but for the sin of the world. He became iniquity itself, vicariously as our representative and suffered the punishment that we should have borne. Paul summed up the situation in Romans 5:18-19: “Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.” It is a case of the innocent being penalized as if guilty, while the guilty is treated as if innocent. 

Isaiah 53:7 reiterates that Jesus was sorely punished for our sins, yet He did not say a word. He did not rail against God for allowing Him to suffer for sins He did not commit, nor raise His voice against men who inflicted pain and death upon Him without cause. Nor did He try to have His own life spared, but voluntarily took upon Himself the iniquity of us all. Rather than reviling anyone, Jesus prayed for those who ridiculed Him (see Luke 23:34). 

Stiff-Necked and Stubborn 

Most of us are a stiff-necked and stubborn lot. We prefer to follow our own fancies and turn to our own ways. . . . Just as sheep will blindly, habitually, stupidly follow one another along the same little trails until they become ruts that erode into gigantic gullies, so we humans cling to the same habits that we have seen ruin other lives.—Phillip Keller 

C.   He Was Punished for Our Sins (Isa. 53:8-9) 

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.  

If ever there was a miscarriage of justice, it happened in the case of Jesus. Yet, He willingly laid down His life. Nobody could have taken His life except by His consent. But this does not relieve individuals of their responsibility for such a horrific deed. Jesus was subjected to a speedy trial and hurried off to be crucified. In death, He was treated like a common criminal, hung between two thieves. In the minds of those carrying out His execution, it was just part of another day’s work. 

After His death, there seemed to be no immediate interest in what had happened to Him, except for His disciples and a few other followers. When those immediately responsible for His crucifixion witnessed the events surrounding His death, they should have been brought to tears. Zechariah wrote: “I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn” (12:10 ESV). 

Because of His being rejected and crucified, Jesus’ body might have been carelessly taken away. In His divine providence, however, God did not allow Jesus to be buried in the same grave, or in the same manner, as the two thieves were, but in a more honorable manner and place (see Matt. 27:57-60). 

Isaiah 53:9 ends with a ringing affirmation of Jesus’ innocence. Jesus had never done anything wrong; not even speaking a word that was not true. He was perfectly innocent, and that can be said of Christ alone. 

Old, Good, and New 

Once when Lord Tennyson was on vacation in a country village, he asked an elderly Methodist woman if there was any news. She replied there was only one piece of news worthy of mentioning . . . and that was that Christ died for our sins. Tennyson responded, “That is old news, and good news, and new news.”—George Sweeting, Great Quotes & Illustrations 

3.  BRUISED AND EXALTED BY GOD 

A.  God’s Will (Isaiah 53:10) 

10 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. 

The message of this verse is the heart of the Gospel; it is one of the most significant truths in the Word of God. It shows Jesus’ death was not His defeat, but His crowning achievement and the path by which lost people find redemption. In The Must of the Second Birth, Robert G. Lee eloquently wrote: “The cross, a goal in the heart of God from all eternity . . . a transaction founded in deep necessity, was in heaven before it was on Calvary. . . . Before time commenced its solemn march did divine love consider man’s ruined condition and resolved not to spare the greatest gift which either time could know or eternity produce.” 

Much more was going on at the cross than a human plot; Jesus was fulfilling God’s plan. In the Garden of Gethsemane, He prayed: “Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42). In his sermon on the Day of Pentecost, Peter offered this perspective on Jesus’ death: “Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know: Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: Whom God hath raised up” (Acts 2:22-24). 

Isaiah shows that after His death and resurrection, Jesus would see the fulfillment of His mission in the conversion of His “seed,” or “descendants” (53:10 NLT). Who are His descendants? You and I and every other person who reaps the benefits of His death. Anyone who repents of sin and believes on Him is numbered among His seed. By the grace of God, we can join that happy group! 

—Describe the prosperity pictured in this verse. 

B.  Satisfactory Accomplishment (Isaiah 53:11) 

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. 

Jesus’ anguish, which included His death, was followed by His resurrection. He enjoys the blessed fruit of His labors and suffering, as God’s plan of salvation is made available to all people. His travail behind Him, Jesus sees what His suffering and death have accomplished, and He is “satisfied.” When He ponders the millions of individuals who experience saving grace because of His obedience—His doing the will of God—His victory must fill Him with overwhelming joy. 

At Calvary, Jesus defeated His enemies, including Satan, and put them under His feet. Although Satan is still active, he is an eternally defeated foe. In addition, Jesus has made salvation available that has the power to change the world. We see this in some measure today, as one-by-one lives are changed and renewed. But the full impact of His work will not be seen until the new earth and the new heaven appear and the eternal state is ushered in. 

—What does it mean to be “justified” by Christ? 

C.  Intercessory Prayer (Isaiah 53:12) 

12 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. 

Everything about Christ’s mission on earth was completely successful. In light of this, He is highly exalted. Paul wrote: “Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Phil. 2:9-11). Isaiah foresaw the time when the Lord would set up His universal and everlasting kingdom in the world. Once again, the prophet acknowledged Christ willingly laid down His life in obedience to God and, thereby, provided redemption for humankind. 

That He was “numbered with the transgressors” does not mean Jesus was a transgressor. Instead, it means that, in the view of the public whose attitude was expressed in the death sentence given to Him, He was regarded and treated as if He had been a transgressor. Not only was He not a transgressor, but He made intercession for transgressors. Nothing makes this more clear than His cry from the cross: “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). 

ASTONISHING REALITIES 

Today’s Scripture text leaves us speechless when we understand the full scope of its message. It offers a complete narrative of what Christ accomplished on the cross. It shows how His substitutionary death satisfied the righteous demands God made regarding punishment for sin, making redemption possible for all who believe on Him. With His suffering behind Him, not only is Jesus interceding for ungodly people all over the world and saving those who receive Him as their Savior; He is also pleading the case for the righteous as He sits at the right hand of the Father. Oh, what a Savior! 

Daily Devotions:  

M.  Jesus Betrayed and Arrested (Matthew 26:47-56)

T.    Jesus Before the Sanhedrin (Mark 14:53, 55-65) 

W.  Jesus Mocked by the Romans (Mark 15:16-20) 

T.  Jesus Crucified (John 19:17-25) 

F.  Jesus Insulted on the Cross (Matthew 27:38-43) 

S.  Jesus Died on the Cross (Luke 23:44-48) 

*Adopted from the Evangelical Sunday School Lesson Commentary 2020-2021.