Isaiah 53 (NIV)
Today’s passage feels in some ways like the climax of the book—the turning point and the answer to the question, “How?” How is God going to redeem his people? How can they belong to him again after so much rebellion?... The answer lies, as we’ve started to see, in the person of The Servant—this somewhat mysterious figure who will take on the identity and vocation of Israel to partner with God and bring all the families of the earth together, back to their Creator at last. But again… how? Surely the Servant of the LORD would be strong. He would be handsome, right? Someone everyone would want to follow? Surely he would lead with military power and that would show the world who their God was. Right?
The answer was as astonishing then as it is now. No one was looking for this kind of king. When he came, they didn’t even recognize him. In fact, they hated him, despised him. He wasn’t attractive, he wasn’t kingly. And yet he was the answer to the question. He was the means of God’s salvation. Not by power or strength or wealth, but by offering his own body to be laid on the altar, and to die as a sacrifice for the sins of the world.
Today’s passage might be familiar to you, but again, hear it in the context of the book, in the context of the story of Israel, of their longing for release from exile, both physically and spiritually. They were cut off from home, but they were also cut off from the LORD. They longed for restoration.
----------REFLECT----------
1. What did you feel as you heard the passage?
2. Like the people telling us about The Servant, we often don’t see the LORD when he’s right in front of us. We tend to look for God in the big, in the beautiful, in the powerful and strong. But where in your life might you be blind to the places and ways God is revealing himself to you, simply because they are small, weak or unattractive?
3. Half way through the passage it says “Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering” Then it also says that “he was pierced for our transgression, crush for our iniquities.” The cross of Jesus carries both the weight of the pain and suffering we’ve experienced, as well as the pain and suffering we’ve caused. How is this good news for you today?
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Bible Project: Isaiah 40-66 >>
Bible Project Blog: The Suffering Servant King >>
BP Exploring My Strange Bible Podcast: The Meaning of Hope >>
InterVarsity Press Selections: Isaiah >>
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