Reading: Isaiah 52-57
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. Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sor- rows: yet we did esteem Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 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. 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 (Is.53:3-6).
Approximately 700 years before the physical birth of the Son of God, Isaiah preached the gospel of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. Although Isaiah’s original audience did not fully understand his message, it is forever recorded in God’s Word as an indelible connection between the past and the present. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty (Rev. 1:8). God’s plan of salvation for mankind did not begin in a manger in Bethlehem. It started on the day that God first breathed life into the nostrils of Adam (Gen. 2:7). His message to us does not begin with chapter one, verse one of the Book of Matthew, but rather in the beginning (when) God created the heaven and the earth (Gen. 1:1).
Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call His name Immanuel (Is. 7:14; see also Matt. 1:22-23). Isaiah spoke of a miraculous birth and a beloved Savior. For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulder: and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counseller, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace (Is. 9:6; see also Eph. 2:13-18). He embraced the truth that this Savior would bring redemption to God’s children and judgment to His enemies (Is. 11:1-16). Isaiah proclaimed this good news for all to hear.
With faith in his God, however, Isaiah did not stop there. Chapter 53 of the Book of Isaiah contains one of the most graphic and heartbreaking accounts of the suffering of Jesus Christ that has ever been recorded. Isaiah knew that in order to save us, Jesus would first have to willingly bear the weight of all our sins. He would have to suffer the punishments mankind had rightly earned, and he would selflessly have to pay the terrible debt that we owed. 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 shared this message with a lost and dying world because He loved his God and fellow man. Jesus loved us enough to suffer and die in our stead. Still, each person that reaches the end of their life without accepting Him as their personal Savior means that a portion of His suffering was done in vain (Gal. 5:4). The more people that we can introduce to His gospel, the more who will be able to understand and appreciate the suffering of Christ.
Then opened He their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures, And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem (Luke 24:45-47).
Thought For TodayThe sad irony of lives ending without God in their hearts is that they always had a place in His.
Christ Revealed: As the One who was rejected by His own people (Is. 53:3; comp. Luke 23:18; John 1:11); remained silent when He was falsely accused (Is. 53:7; Mark 15:3-5); was buried with the rich (Is. 53:9; Matt. 27:57-60); and was crucified with sinners (Is. 53:12; Mark 15:27-28).
Word Studies: 52:1 uncircumcised = heathen (those without a covenant with God); 52:10made bare His holy arm = revealed His power; 52:12 rereward = rear guard; 52:14 visage = appearance, countenance.
Pray For Government Officials: Rep. Daniel Kildee (MI) • Country: Western Sahara (554,795) Northern Africa • Major Language: Arabic • 100% Muslim • Prayer Suggestion: Confess your sins to the Lord; He is quick to forgive (Ps. 32:5).
Optional Reading: I Peter 1