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[vw: I did not forward parts 1-2 to you-all, but this one seems  appropriate as we are near the Passover season :]

IMG EDITOR's NOTE:

God is Holy. He cannot allow sin in His presence. But God also loves  you. So He did the unthinkable: He became a sacrifice and paid for your  sins Himself. All He asks now is that you believe, and He will remove  your sin and clothe you with His righteousness. "This is all New  Testament teaching," you say. Yes. But it did not originate in the New  Testament. It was recorded first in the Jewish Scriptures. This article  concludes our series on Isaiah 53, the Servant of the Lord.

ARTICLE:

In Isaiah 53:8 the prophet spoke of the distorted trial held for the  Servant of the Lord and of His death: "He was taken from prison and from  judgment, and who will declare His generation? For He was cut off from  the land of the living; for the transgressions of My people He was  stricken."

There was no one to stand in His defense or complain about His unjust  trial (Mt27:1-26). The high priest and Jewish leaders were corrupt and  plotted against Jesus because He exposed their great distance from God.  Even the Gentile Roman ruler Pontius Pilate knew they had brought Jesus  to him and accused Him out of envy (v18 ).

Daniel the prophet foretold the Messiah's death: "Messiah shall be cut  off, but not for Himself" (Dan9:26). The expression cut off clarifies  that the Messiah would not die of old age. He would be slain by an act  of violence that would cut Him off from the land of the living.

Daniel also noted the date. A careful calculation leads to the month of  Nissan A.D. 32 (vv24-27). This prophecy was fulfilled completely through  Jesus Christ who was cut off from the land of the living in Nissan  (Passover) A.D. 32.

HIS VICARIOUS DEATH:

The Servant of the Lord did not deserve the death penalty. He bore His  people's sins upon Himself and took their punishment. He paid for their  sins-for all of humanity's sins, in fact with His life. But this was the  only way He could provide everlasting life.

In verse 9 Isaiah described the Servant's burial: "And they made His  grave with the wicked-but with the rich at His death, because He had  done no violence, nor was any deceit in His mouth."

The Servant of the Lord was executed as a criminal, but He was buried in  the grave of a rich man.

Why? Because He did not sin. Isaiah described Him as the perfection of  wholeness and purity, the Lamb of atonement. Yet Isaiah chapter 1 speaks  at length of Israel's sinfulness: "Alas, sinful nation, a people laden  with iniquity, a brood of evildoers, children who are corrupters! They  have forsaken the LORD, they have provoked to anger the Holy One of  Israel" (v4)

And what is said of that generation of Abraham's children could also be  said of the millions of Gentiles who lived in the darkness of rejecting  the God of Israel and the coming Messiah.
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Jesus was crucified between two criminals. Crucifixion was considered an  especially humiliating and contemptible death, suitable for the lowest  of men. But after He was lifted off the cross, His body was laid in the  grave of a rich man, Joseph from Arimathea (Mt27:57-60; Jn19:38 ).

HIS VICARIOUS SUFFERING:

Isaiah 53:10-12 describes the Servant of the Lord's suffering and death:

Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him, He has put Him to grief. When You  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. He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His  knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, for He shall bear  their iniquities. Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great,  and He shall divide the spoil with the strong, because He poured out His  soul unto death, and He was numbered with the transgressors, and He bore  the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

Why did the Lord want His Servant to suffer so? The answer is given in  the same verse: "When You 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 word asham in Hebrew, translated as "offering," actually means  "trespass offering" (Lev5:15; 6:5; 19:21). Thus the Servant of the Lord  died as a trespass offering for sins, a pleasing sacrifice to the Lord.  And whoever accepts His death as such will be greatly blessed.

HIS GLORIOUS RESURRECTION:

Isaiah said the Servant of the Lord "shall see His seed, He shall  prolong His days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His  hand" (v10).

This verse would be fulfilled after the Servant's death. Hence He must  rise from the dead.

Thus Isaiah taught that the Servant who died as a sacrifice in order to  forgive us for our sins would rise from the dead to see the blessed  outcome of His atonement. This outcome would be revealed in the lives of  those who are faithful to Him ("see His seed, He shall prolong His  days"). These are the people who accept Him as their Savior from sin and  as their Lord.

The Messiah's suffering, pain, infirmities, and death were all part of  God's wondrous plan to redeem mankind.

God can provide atonement for our sins and give us everlasting life only  because of the blood sacrifice of Jesus Christ (1Cor5:7; Rev13:8 ).

The Servant of the Lord will live forever, and everything He does will  prosper. Furthermore, Jesus promises that believers in Him, God's  children, will be joint heirs with Him. Therefore, whatever is said  about Jesus relates also to those of us who believe in Him Jn1:12;  Rom8:17)
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GOD IS SATISFIED:

In verse 11 Isaiah continued to describe how pleased the Lord is with  the works of His servant: "He shall see the labor of His soul, and be  satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, for  He shall bear their iniquities."

The Servant's work bore fruit. It was not accomplished for nothing. The  word satisfied indicates completeness and fullness. There is no need for  anything further. The Servant of the Lord's work has brought  satisfaction. It is perfect.

Then Isaiah emphasized the importance of the Servant of the Lord: "By  His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many."

The Servant is the only person who can justify us and acquit us from  guilt before the Lord. How does He do it? "For He shall bear their  iniquities." He carried our guilt on Himself, so we can stand before the  Lord blameless and innocent: "For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin  for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2Cor5:21;  Rom5:19)

Whoever puts on the righteousness of Jesus is counted no less righteous  than Messiah Jesus Himself in the sight of the Lord.

What must you do to partake in this great privilege? You must believe  that the Servant of the Lord, Jesus Christ, is the perfect Sacrifice who  carried your sins upon Himself and surrender your life to Jesus. True  believers learn God's Word and allow it to penetrate their hearts. A  genuine believer is a dwelling place for the Spirit of God who works  through us and helps us serve the Messiah and others.

Isaiah 53:12 continues with the idea of rising from the dead:

Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, and He shall  divide the spoil with the strong, because He poured out His soul unto  death, and He was numbered with the transgressors, and He bore the sin  of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

The Servant of the Lord was prudent and completely fulfilled God's will.  Therefore the prophet described His victory as that of a king at war. In  ancient times, a victorious king took all the spoil and divided it as he  pleased to his faithful subjects. The Servant of the Lord will do the  same. The Messiah will divide the spoils of His Kingdom with those who  love Him when He returns to reign for 1,000 years (Ps2; Isa2; Jer23:5-6;  33:14-16; Dan7; Mic4:1-8; Rev20:4,6; 22:5).

Why did the Servant of the Lord win this great victory and glory?  "Because He poured out His soul unto death, and He was numbered with the  transgressors, and He bore the sin of many, and made intercession for  the transgressors" (v12).

The Servant of the Lord:

--Was God Himself. Yet He came to Earth and sacrificed His life.

--Was pure and holy. Yet He bore our sins, was considered an outlaw and  sinner, and gave us His righteousness.

--Prays for us that we might know the will of God and do it.
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Isaiah 52:13-53:12 perfectly describes the purpose of the Messiah's  death for His people Israel and for all mankind (Jn11:49-51; 1Jn2:2).

Jesus Christ is described as the Servant of the Lord, superior to all  kings of the earth and to the high priest who served in the Temple. He  is God Himself who came into the world in the form of a man to bear our  sins.

When He appeared on the stage of history, the majority of the nation of  Israel did not recognize Him as their Messiah and rejected Him. But when  He returns again in glory and honor, all Israel will receive Him and be  reconciled to Him (Zech12:10).

Jesus' atoning death satisfied the righteous demands of God the Father,  who must judge sin. This death opened the way for believers to enter  into the presence of God. Every one of us can be saved from paying the  price for our own sin. We can put on the righteousness of Jesus if we  believe that He did satisfy the penalty for our sins.

Someday Messiah Jesus will return and establish His Kingdom, to rule and  reign with His children. We need only ask the Lord to save us in order  to be allowed to partake in that hope and to reign with Jesus Christ for  all eternity.




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(My Note:  Brothers and Sisters, we read every day about horrible things happening in and around Israel. This article is an excellent reminder that there are also many good things happening in Israel. We need to be praying for the people of Israel - both the saved and the unsaved. There are many Christians in Israel who are suffering escalating persecution just because they are Christians. GOD has a mighty work for them to do. We should remember the teaching of the Holy Bible that the GOOD NEWS should be given to the Jews first. I don't think this work has been given the importance that GOD intends. We should also remember that those yielding to this work will be increasingly hated by the Jews, so this is hard and dangerous work that deserves our prayers. NOW, more than ever, Christians need to be praying for Israel. This is also a reminder to give thanks for our freedom and safety to worship and praise GOD.)