"God's Astonishing Servant" 52:13-53:12

I. Introduction A. This is a pinnacle text in the bloodline of redemption 1. "Every Christian ought to be able to repeat it by heart" —Martin Luther 2. Charles Spurgeon called it "the in miniature, the Gospel at its essence" 3. has been called the fifth gospel B. There are sixty-six chapters in the , with two distinct sections: 1. Chapters 1-39: God's judgment of the southern kingdom of 2. Chapters 40-66: grace and salvation, which come through the Messiah C. There are sixty-six books in the Bible 1. There are thirty-nine books in the 2. There are twenty-seven books in the New Testament 3. The emphasis in the Old Testament is God's judgment 4. The emphasis in the New Testament is God's salvation and grace D. This section of text is known as the , of which there are four: 1. 2. 3. Isaiah 50 4. Isaiah 53 E. Isaiah contrasts two servants: 1. The unfaithful servant: , who repeatedly failed to be all that God wanted them to be as a light to the world 2. The perfect, ultimate servant of the Lord: the Messiah, who perfectly fulfilled the will of God F. Most of the New Testament writers pointed back to this passage, as did Jesus and the apostles G. This is the pinnacle messianic prophecy of the Old Testament H. The Lord, through Isaiah, called us to be astonished at this servant of the Lord II. He's a Sovereign Servant (52:13) A. Jesus came, first and foremost, as a servant of God the Father, to perfectly accomplish His will in redemptive history 1. "I always do those things that please Him" (John 8:29) 2. John 6:38 3. Matthew 20:28 B. This passage deals with the servant of the Lord, but not everyone agrees that is Jesus 1. Isaiah uses the word servant to refer to himself, the nation of Israel, and the Messiah 2. Because it so obviously reveals Christ, this text has become an embarrassment to the Jewish people a. The oldest translations of this text from Hebrew into Aramaic are called the Targums; this translation of the text reads: "Behold, My Servant Messiah shall prosper" b. Rabbi Akiba translated a text from Isaiah 53 as "King Messiah wounded for our transgressions" c. Historically, the ancient Jewish rabbis believed that and 53 referred to their coming Messiah i. This changed in the eleventh century ii. Because of how New Testament writers look back to this text with regards to Jesus, Rabbi Rashi stated that it's not about the Messiah, but about God's servant Israel d. Isaiah 53 is now omitted from daily synagogue readings C. Isaiah 53 opens with "Who has believed our report?" (v. 1) 1. This question implies that only a few would recognize Jesus 2. John 1:10-11 3. John 12:37-38 D. Why do the Jewish people reject Jesus as the Messiah? 1. Because their entire religious system is about seeking to establish their own righteousness, as Paul said in Romans 10:3 2. There are only two types of belief systems a. The religion of human accomplishment or achievement b. The religion of divine accomplishment c. Either you do it for yourself or someone does it for you; if you do it yourself, you don't need a Savior 3. Jesus is presented as God's righteous servant, but one who will be largely rejected III. He's a Suffering Servant (52:14; 53:4-5, 7, 10, 12) A. "His visage was marred" (52:14) 1. Pilate did not think Jesus was guilty and had Him scourged, hoping to appease the Jewish leaders a. This was typically done by two soldiers who delivered diagonal blows from opposite sides of the prisoner b. The leather thongs of the flagellum were embedded with pieces of metal and bone so that the flesh and muscle would be torn 2. After He was scourged and beaten, He was brought back to Pilate and didn't even look human B. The language used in the text provides a clear picture of the suffering experienced by the servant 1. "Stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted" (53:4) 2. "Wounded," "bruised" (53:5) 3. "Oppressed," "afflicted," "led as a lamb to the slaughter" (53:7) 4. "It pleased the LORD to bruise Him" (53:10) 5. After the beating and scourging, Jesus was forced to carry the patibulum—the 75- to 100-pound crossbeam—to Golgotha C. No other religion has at its heart the humiliation of its God 1. The very heart of what we believe is the atoning death of Jesus Christ 2. The world looks at what we believe and wonders IV. He's a Sinless Servant (53:9) A. Isaiah presented the contrast of Jesus' death in 53:9 1. Jesus was sinless, yet He died with the wicked, crucified beside two notorious criminals 2. Jesus was poor on earth, yet He was buried in a rich man's grave B. "Because He had done no violence, nor was any deceit in His mouth" 1. A better translation would be "He committed no sin" 2. John 8:46 C. Even Pilate admitted, "I find no fault in this Man" (Luke 23:4) 1. This is important because it shows that what Jesus went through was undeserved 2. He paid a debt He did not owe D. How sinless was He? 1. Philippians 2:6-8 2. He stooped down from heaven to earth V. He's a Silent Servant (53:7) A. Suffering people aren't silent 1. Suffering people are very vocal about their suffering 2. Sheep, however, are silent a. Sheep grow to trust their shepherd b. They enjoy being sheared, so when it comes time to be slaughtered, the sheep follow their shepherd without complaint B. "But Jesus kept silent" (:63) 1. He did not argue with Herod (see Luke 23:9) 2. Pilate "marveled greatly" (Matthew 27:14); he had seen many prisoners, but not one of them had been silent C. Silence can be intimidating, but silence also affords the space to think 1. Pilate was about to make a decision that wouldn't just affect Jesus—it would affect him for eternity 2. Maybe Jesus was silent so Pilate had the space to think about his decision D. It's important to notice how the prophecy was written 1. This was written 700 years before Jesus came to earth 2. The text was written in past tense a. "Borne," "carried" (53:4) b. "Was wounded" (53:5) c. This is known as the prophetic past tense—God was so certain it would happen that He spoke about it as though it had already happened VI. He's a Substitutionary Servant (53:4-8, 10, 12) A. This text is full of substitutionary language 1. "He has borne our griefs…carried our sorrows" (53:4) 2. "He was wounded for our transgressions…bruised for our iniquities" (53:5) 3. "For the transgressions of My people" (53:8) 4. "His soul an offering for sin" (53:10) 5. "He bore the sin of many" (53:12) B. This text points out a collective problem we face as humans 1. Griefs, sorrows, transgressions, iniquities, sin 2. Romans 3:23 3. If you don't believe all have sinned—if you don't believe you have sinned—you'll never seek a Savior C. The problem is we all have a sorrow that comes from a sickness brought on by sinfulness; our sickness requires a specialist—a substitute D. Isaiah 53 presents the answer to the most important question any human being could ask 1. How can a person be right with God? How can an unrighteous person ever be made right with a perfectly righteous God? How can a sinner be saved in order to escape an eternal hell and enjoy eternal heaven? 2. The servant must become the substitute 3. A sinner can be saved because the servant became the substitute for the sinner; all of God's wrath and judgment was put on Him VII. He's a Saving Servant (52:15; 53:11) A. Because Jesus became the substitute, He is a saving servant 1. "Sprinkle many nations" (52:15) 2. This term refers to when the priest would sprinkle the blood of the sacrificial lamb to atone for the sins of the nation 3. "Many nations"—not just Israel (see John 3:16) B. This is the heart of the gospel: the innocent takes the place of the guilty 1. 2 Corinthians 5:21 2. God treated Jesus Christ the way we deserve to be treated so that He could treat us the way Jesus Christ deserves to be treated VIII. Conclusion A. The essence of sin is man substituting himself for God; the essence of salvation is God substituting Himself for man B. Many does not mean all, because not all will let the servant become their substitute C. God has a big eraser, but you have to admit you have smudges before they can be erased

Figures referenced: Martin Luther, Charles Spurgeon Cross references: Isaiah 42; 49; 50; 53; Matthew 20:28; 26:63; 27:14; Luke 23:4, 9; John 1:10- 11; 3:16; 6:38; 8:29, 46; 12:37-38; Romans 3:23; 10:3; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Philippians 2:6-8 Topic: salvation Keyword: grace, prophecy, saving, servant, silent, sin, sinless, sovereign, substitute, suffering