God Justifies
Isaiah 53:1–12
Despised (1–3)
Isaiah 53 is one of the most visual foreshadowings of the crucifixion and the implications thereof in the Old Testament. It is referenced in some capacity over 10 times in the New Testament and is a prominent part of Handel’s Messiah.
This first section establishes the Suffering Servant’s origins, having nothing special about His appearance to attract men to Him. The servant was lowly and despised by men, a point clearly seen throughout the Gospels.
Jesus was continually harassed and insulted by the Pharisees. At His crucifixion, people mocked Him openly.
Substitute (4–6)
These verses are some of the clearest references to the crucifixion in the Old Testament. Jesus took up our infirmities which refers both to our sins and physical sicknesses, which He healed on a regular basis. Jesus was then “pierced because of our rebellion, crushed because of our iniquities.”
Isaiah is prophesying the crucifixion and its importance for us. Jesus’ death on the cross was a payment for our sins. This is seen clearly in 2 Corinthians 5:21 where “God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us so that in Him we may become the righteousness of God.”
Jesus’ death was for us — our sin separates us from God, and we need a Savior to make things right between God and us. Jesus is the One who by being fully God is able to make the payment for our sins by living a perfect life but by being fully human is the One who deserves to make the payment.
Mankind is guilty and must be punished. Therefore, Jesus must be human in order to make the payment. But only God can make the payment, since it requires a perfect sacrifice. So Jesus, by being both human and God, can fulfill God’s requirement of a perfect sacrifice.
Just as the Old Testament sacrificial system was meant to be a payment of our sins, Christ is the final sacrifice.
The sacrificial system pointed to Christ as the ultimate sacrifice, and now no more sacrifices need to be done (1 Pet. 3:18).
Willing (7–9)
Again, following the account of Jesus’ trial and crucifixion, it is easy to see the references here in Isaiah 53. Jesus did not open His mouth to defend Himself at the trial, and He was ultimately “struck down” because of the sin of His people. The reference to the servant as a lamb is a perfect allusion to Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29).
It is crucial for Christians to acknowledge the sinfulness of all of humanity. The Bible is clear that no one is good, and all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23).
This flies in the face of many modern views of humanity. Many people today, including some Christians, believe people are innately good and only the worst of humanity — the Hitlers, Maos and Stalins — deserve eternal punishment. Many of us have friends who are not Christians but who are genuinely good people, good in the sense they don’t run around creating havoc and such.
However, no matter how “good” a person appears, we know from Scripture, which is our foundation, that everyone is sinful and deserves eternal punishment.
Sacrificed (10–12)
Continuing in the same vein, these verses affirm that the servant’s death acts as a guilt offering. This death provides atonement for all those who become children of God through their belief in Him.
It is only through Christ that people can be saved. Therefore, as Christians we need to share the gospel because the sin of each person separates him or her from God.
If we don’t take this seriously, it makes a mockery of Jesus’ crucifixion.
By Robert L. Olsen, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Christian Studies, University of Mobile
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