Isaiah Lesson 69

To teach us and that you've given us through the words of your prophets, Isaiah, and as we get into this section, the fourth servant song includes a lot of overviews, but now we're into this section that can be just read without titles or verse numbers, and people will see it and they say, well, that's talking about Jesus, and so now as we get to open it up and pray, Father, that you give Jeff just the words to say that not only will our hearts be drawn in encouragement to you, but our hearts will be drawn in relationship with you, knowing who you are, in Jesus' name, amen.

Amen.

In the Old Testament, the nation of Israel was created to mediate blessing to the world, and the way that they were to do that was to worship the true God and under his covenant blessing be so blessed that the nations would stream to Jerusalem and meet the true God.

Solomon was kind of the high point of that magnet-like drawing of the nations. You hear about the Queen of Sheba coming up to offer worship and learn about the true God and listen to the wisdom of Solomon.

Well, there was also an African who was a eunuch in the court of Ethiopia, of Candace, and this is in the first century. This man may have been a Jew in kind of diaspora, or he could have just been a Gentile who was wanting to worship and learn about the true God, but in any case, he came to Jerusalem to learn, and there among the scribes and the Pharisees, he heard much of the Torah, but he was not satisfied with what he was given.

As he was returning to Ethiopia, he opened the book of Isaiah, and it fell to the 53rd chapter, and he read, he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, but he did not open his.

Mouth.

He's reading out loud on his chariot when the Lord says, fill up the evangelist to go alongside the chariot and cry out, do you understand what you're reading? The eunuch said, how can I unless somebody explains it to me?

So he invited him onto the chariot, and he, from that very passage of scripture, explained that the lamb is Jesus. Jesus is the prophesied suffering servant that the Psalms are written about in Isaiah 40 through 50s.

This is the beautiful story of the lamb of God, the suffering servant, and this gospel message will be preached by Philip on this desert road heading back to Egypt, and then on the roads extending from there to the ends of the earth.

The story of the suffering servant, it is the gospel, and the ground of the gospel, the epistemology, the way that we know that our gospel is true, according to many places, Luke 24, 1 Peter, Romans in chapter 3, over and over again, the ground or the way of knowing that our gospel is true is that these things were prophesied ahead of time and fulfilled in the person and work of Christ.

That's why Isaiah 53 is so important, because in crystal clear, living color, we see Christ crucified, hundreds of years, 700 plus years before the events came to be. Only God can tell the future. In the trial of false gods, Isaiah 40 to 48, we have Yahweh held up over against the idols of the nations.

They're just wood and stubble. The same person who fashions the idol also makes a fire with the leftover wood, and he has to prop up this little idol in order to bow down in worshiping. The ironies are thick, but none of them can speak, and none of them can tell the future things as if they're present, nor can they explain the things that have gone before and the reason for their occurrence, but Yahweh knows all, including the future.

And so, in the book of Isaiah, we have four servant songs. Chapter 42, chapter 49, chapter 50, and here in chapter 53. Now, even between the servant songs, you have these glorious pictures of salvation building.

The 51st chapter, the 52nd chapter, and now open with me to the end of chapter 52. So, the fourth servant song actually begins at the end of chapter 52, not at the beginning.

Of 53.

I would like you to look on your notes, if you will. So, we're looking at the fourth servant song, and it's a sweeping overview of the astonishing story of the suffering servant. That's in the beginning, the introduction.

It begins that way, and then it fleshes out in deep detail. But look at this chart I've given you at the top under my main introduction. It indicates that the 53rd chapter of Isaiah, and then also the ending of chapter 52, is actually five three-verse segments.

So, it's 15 verses, but it's divided into sets of three. And if you look at the structure of it, A, where we begin at the end of chapter 52, is an introduction to the suffering servant, but it pictures him already vindicated, which is also where we will end.

So, you begin and end with the exaltation of the Christ. Then this middle layer, which I've labeled B, corresponds to 53, one to three, and 53, seven to nine. This is the physical and emotional and spiritual suffering of the son.

So, it's his suffering. But the grand and culminating pinnacle of Isaiah 53 is which verses? Four to six. That's the top of the pyramid, the top of the mountain. It is this idea of substitution, okay?

So, you have vindication, suffering, and substitution. And you can see the verses that correspond with that. So, if you don't have these notes, you can email me, get the notes, and we'll be able.

To look at that.

So, today, we're going to look at the introduction, which is 52, 13 to 15, and then the first part of his suffering. Then next week, we'll climb the pyramid and come back down to where we began with the vindication.

So, who will be my first reader? We need someone to read 52, 13 to 15.

John.

That John, not this one.

52, 13, and 15. He was pierced for our transgressions. Behold, my servant shall act wisely. He shall be high and lifted up and shall be exalted. As many were astonished at you, his appearance was so large beyond human semblance and his form beyond that of the children of mankind.

So shall he sprinkle many nations. Kings shall shut their mouths because of him. For that which has not been told them, they see. And that which they have not heard, they understand.

Amen.

So, this is the introduction. And right away, we see Jesus vindicated, exalted. A parallel passage to this would be in Philippians chapter 2, where we see the humiliation of the son, but then it ramps back up.

Therefore, God has exalted him to the highest place. That at the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow in heaven and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus is the Lord to the glory of the Father.

That's the vindication that comes after the humiliation of Philippians chapter 2.

Amen? Amen.

So this is where we begin, in verse 13. Behold, my servant shall act wisely. Or another word there that can be translated from the Hebrew is prosper. He's prospering. He's wise. He's doing well.

He shall be high and lifted up.

Philippians 2 picks up on that language. And shall be exalted. He is exalted. He's high. He's worshipped, even. He's exalted to the highest place. Now, how is it that God could exalt someone to the place of worship?

Angels don't accept worship, do they? What does an angel do if someone falls down to worship an angel?

Get up.

No, no, get up. I'm a servant of the Most High like you. But the Father is pleased that the Son would be worshipped because he is God. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are rightly worshipped. So here, when it says high and lifted up, this means high as in to the most high place.

Lifted all the way up.

Exalted. Worshipped.

So what we're about to read is to the glory of God. To the glory of God the Father in the exaltation of the Son. These two are not contradictory, but they're mutual. In the exalting of the Son, we glorify the Father.

This is God's plan to glorify himself in the Son. So it begins there. Isn't that great that it starts at the highest point? And then it's going to bring us down to his suffering before coming back up to exaltation.

Verse 14. And here is this jarring shift. So we have this high exalted one, but look at verse 14 right away. As many were astonished at you, his appearance was so marred beyond human semblance and his form beyond that of the children of mankind.

Now notice what would almost appear to be hyperbolic language. Beyond human. It says beyond human semblance, beyond that of the children of mankind. So disfigured that a person doesn't even look like a person.

Is that ever true of Isaiah, the author?

No.

Is that true of Israel as the nation?

No.

Who in all humankind was treated and disfigured to this level? Of course, we know it's Jesus. So how was he disfigured? What do we remember of the crucifixion story?

He was beaten.

He was slapped. He was punched.

Yes.

They hit him with a rod on the head.

Rod on the head, crown of thorns in the brow, beard plucked, tongue cleaving to the roof of his mouth, cat of nine tails, the scourging, which would almost kill a man. Ripped skin. The picture here is such a brutalizing that you can hardly see that he's a human anymore when you look at him in the fullness of that suffering.

Mel Gibson did a pretty good job of that in the Passion of Christ.

And you know what they said about it?

Mel Gibson? They said, we couldn't go all the way. We could have depicted it more gruesomely, but we knew we'd lose the audience. There was a certain point they said, this is as far as we can go and it will still be able to be shown.

And that's just in depicting it with, you know, artificial graphics. Imagine the real thing. And that's, we jarringly go from the highest place to this. This is the mystery of the Gospel. That God himself would suffer this way and be so mistreated, allow himself to be beaten beyond semblance of a man.

Wow.

And it's written right here, this far, before the actual event happens. Already, it's enough to prove our Gospel. Because there's nothing else like it in the history of the world. The great kings and rulers that are esteemed, this didn't happen to any of them.

This didn't happen to Muhammad or Buddha or anyone else. Jesus alone was disfigured beyond semblance of a man. And it seems like the rabbis knew it, but they won't read it.

Yes. Right.

So picture now, this introduction is like a big cosmic picture of what we're going to get into the details of in chapter 53. In the end of 52, it's like this big picture. And you go from full exaltation to the horrible suffering.

And now look at verse 15.

The meaning of it.

The reason for it. So shall he sprinkle many nations. Kings shall shut their mouths because of him.

For that which has not been told them, they see. And that which they have not heard, they understand.

The meaning of the suffering. We're pointed back through a very key word here, sprinkle. What does the word sprinkle mean?

It reminds me of when they took the hyssop and they dipped it in blood and sprinkled the congregation and the altar of England.

That's right.

A couple of places. So this is Moses with the law in Exodus 24. He takes hyssop branches and he goes out among the assembly with blood dipped on this hyssop branch and sprinkles blood on the people. Then in Leviticus 4, when the offering is given, they're to sprinkle the altar with.

Blood.

This idea of sprinkling. There's a context for what we're reading here. It is the Old Testament sacrificial system. Leviticus 1711, without the shedding of blood, there's no forgiveness. He is given the shedding of blood to make atonement on the altar.

The sprinkling of blood on the altar atones for sin and innocent life substituted for a guilty sinner. That's how atonement was made by blood, blood atonement. So that word sprinkle is key. It points to sacrifice, blood atonement.

This suffering was not gratuitous. It was meaningful. Sprinkling reaches more people than pouring. Oh, interesting. Sprinkling reaches more people.

Yeah.

The idea is it's going out over the full assembly.

That's well said.

And then it says kings shall shut their mouths because of him. So now we have the most highly exalted men of earth that we would regard, right?

The king.

Even they fall silent before this.

Why?

Because it says that which has not been told them, they see. Galatians, before your eyes, Jesus was clearly portrayed as crucified. The Galatians never saw the sprinkling of Jesus's blood.

They weren't there at the cross.

But when Paul came preaching through words describing the suffering of Jesus, he's clearly portraying Christ as crucified. And that's how they were born again. And so it will be to the ends of the earth.

The preaching of the cross. A very select few people saw the crucifixion of Jesus. The centurion, some Roman soldiers, a few disciples, and crowds from a distance. Not even really wanting to go up that hill.

And especially in the darkness and the earthquake, people backing off. Just that generation, a few people saw. And yet all the world is going to see. Through the foolishness of the preaching of the cross.

And that's what we have here. Kings, when they hear of this king, they have to shut their mouths. There's nothing like him. This is the ultimate king. With the ultimate sacrifice. Sprinkling nations. For that which has not been told them, they see.

And that which they have not heard, they understand. Because now they're being told. They're hearing the message of the cross. Which leads us in to chapter 53, verse 1. So that's the introduction. It's this grand meta-narrative of exaltation of the son.

Through suffering, purposefully to sprinkle nations. And so he's exalted. It's a beautiful intro. And now we get into 53. Who'd like to read 1 to 3?

Sure, I've got it.

Thanks, Bob.

Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? He grew up before him like a tender shoot and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him.

Nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men. A man of sorrows and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces. He was despised and we esteem him now.

Okay.

Now we move into the suffering of the son. Despised. Rejected. But before we get into what he does, look how this section begins. Who has believed what he has heard from us? It's the preaching. The kings of the nations.

They had no knowledge.

They were in darkness.

They hadn't seen.

But now there's something being sent to be told. Like Philip talking to the Ethiopian. He comes and he explains. This is Jesus who died. This is the message of the cross. Who has believed what he has heard from us?

So the question here is, who gets faith? Faith here is presented as a gift from God. Because it says, to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? Turn with me to John chapter 12, verse 39. John 12, 39.

Before we read the verse, I have a question for you about faith. Who is able to believe?

Only those that God has opened their eyes.

Only those whom God has given them eyes to see and ears to hear. In fact, in Romans chapter 7, it says that those who are of the flesh cannot please God. Indeed, it is impossible for them. Is faith pleasing to God?

It is. Can the unregenerate, dead sinner believe and please God by exercising faith in Christ? No, he cannot. So now let's look at this verse.

I'm going to prove it.

It says in John 12, verse 39. Referencing this passage that we're studying right now. In Isaiah 53. Therefore, they, what does it say? Could not believe. Now go up a verse, go up two verses to verse 37.

Even in the midst of physical evidence, miracles being done in their presence.

Verse 37.

Though he had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in him. Isn't that amazing?

And then 38.

So that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled. Lord, who has believed what he heard from us? To whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? The arm of the Lord is revealed in one sense in a miracle.

When blind eyes are opened, you say, wow, that had to be supernatural. And yet some Pharisees said by Beelzebub, he does the signs that he does. Other people might have scoffed and said, I have some trickery.

Some magic to see a miracle is not the same thing as to be given faith. And that's the distinction we have in Genesis 12. In John chapter 12, it says in verse 38. So that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled.

Lord, who has believed what he heard from us? To whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? It requires a supernatural work of God to bring faith into a human heart. Because we're dead in our trespasses and sins.

Have you guys heard the analogy of a shipwreck? And a person has fallen off the boat. And the ship has gone under and he's treading water. God sends a helicopter. And they dangle a rope. And they offer to save this man.

What is required of the man? He simply has to grab the rope. That you will find in 2nd Opinions chapter 4 verse 3. Or maybe it's in Hezekiah. A non-existent book of the Bible. Because let me tell you how Ephesians chapter 2 describes us in our sins.

Dead in our trespasses and sins. In which we used to walk as we followed the prince of darkness. And the course of this world.

And our flesh.

So going back to our analogy.

When that ship wrecked.

You were stuck in the boiler room. And the boiler room filled with water. And you drowned to death. And that ship went 10 ,000 leagues under the sea. Well 10 ,000 leagues under the sea. That actually meant that's how far it went vertically while being submerged.

So not a good analogy. But however deep the ocean is. That's how far underwater you are. You're dead and buried. And the analogy of the gospel.

Is we have a savior.

Who resurrects the dead. Lazarus come forth. He sends forth his word to heal them. He sends forth his gospel. And that outward call of the gospel. Comes to your dead ears. You wouldn't believe it. You wouldn't want to hear it.

To whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? But the arm of the Lord must be revealed. His power. To resurrect a dead heart. Comes in. And the inward call of God. John 6 .44.

The drawing of the father.

Makes the dead heart begin to beat. And these stopped up ears come open. And these blind eyes see. And the gospel call. Is God revealing the truth. Of Christ.

The hope of glory.

This is a revelation from God. This is why John chapter 3 says. You must be born again. Flesh can only give birth to flesh. But you must be born of above. The wind blows where it wants. No one knows where it's coming from.

Or where it's going. So it is with those born of the spirit. He sends forth the spirit to revive. That you would believe.

I don't remember who said this. But I remember the phrase. Regeneration precedes faith.

Yes.

Now does regeneration precede faith. Chronologically. Or logically.

Logically.

Meaning this. It's not like the spirit just zaps you one day. And then six weeks later. A gospel preacher comes. And because you're regenerate you believe. No it's not a chronological order. We're logically saying.

It takes the work of the spirit to make you alive. Unto belief. But this all happens in gospel preaching. When Bob goes to his next door neighbor. And tells him about Jesus. It's that the spirit is quickening him.

Unto belief. It's not that he's digging deep. And finding belief inside of himself. And so he believes and then becomes born again. It's a logical priority. Not a chronological priority. So faith comes by hearing.

Hearing by the word of God. It's in that moment of preaching. That God makes the person alive. But unless God does that inward miracle. Nobody would believe. That's what Isaiah is saying here. It's very important.

Because as precious as this chapter is to us. The Jewish people.

Had this chapter of the Bible.

When they rejected their Messiah. They have it today. Dennis Prager has it today. And I went up to Princeton University. And listened to him talk one day. And afterwards I stood in line. And I spoke to him for five minutes.

And he doesn't believe. That Isaiah 53. Points to Christ. He says he's read it.

I asked him about Psalm 22.

He didn't have any clue what that said. Even though it describes. The sufferings of the Messiah. There is a blindness. There are scales on his eyes.

Just like Saul had on his eyes.

Until the Lord gloriously regenerated him. So this is the point. Let's go back to Isaiah 53. And guys remember that chapter out of John 12. Because that's so important. It quotes from Isaiah 6. And Isaiah 53.

And it goes on to say. That Isaiah.

Was seeing Jesus.

Remember that?

In Isaiah 6.

Remember the.

I take it for granted you guys remember at this point. But Isaiah 6. Is that great chapter. Where Isaiah is transported to heaven. And he sees the glory of God. He sees the train of his robe. Filling the temple with glory.

And the angels singing holy, holy, holy. And he's undone. Because he's unclean. Until an angel takes a coal.

And touches his lips.

Here I am send me.

That was Jesus.

John 12 tells us. Isaiah was seeing Jesus on the throne. And then when we see the servant song. We saw in Isaiah 49. The father the son. And the spirit. That was Jesus. Isaiah is seeing Jesus all throughout.

And it just builds to this point. In Isaiah 53. He's seeing Christ. Christ.

Who has believed it.

To whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed. Verse 2. For he grew up before him.

Like a young plant.

And like a root. Out of dry ground. What would that indicate. About Christ. Why is he compared to a plant.

A young plant.

The root of Jesse. I think of.

The root of Jesse. A shoot will come up from the root of Jesse. A branch from his root. Will bear fruit. Isaiah 11. Jesse. The father of David. And then David. Whose son will be the Christ. So you have this promise lineage.

From 2 Samuel 7. That David will always have a seed. To sit on the throne. The messianic promise. That it would be a son of David. So he's from the stump of Jesse.

Okay so I think that's right.

But what about this idea of.

A young plant.

Anybody here into.

Gardening.

You grow plants.

What kind of things do you grow.

How many hundred do you want to know.

Hundreds.

Lots of us.

So when you plant the seed in the ground. And when it first sprouts up. How easy is it to destroy.

How easy is it to what.

To destroy.

Very easy. Isn't it so tender.

That's the idea here.

He.

The one that has been introduced. As exalted and high. And who will be disfigured. But then exalted. He's made tender. The idea here is a newborn baby.

A tender.

Vulnerable.

Helpless.

Child. Do you see that.

He grew up.

He has to grow up. Imagine that.

We're talking about the exalted one.

He has to grow up.

The idea here is incarnation. He's going to grow up like.

He's not a plant. He's like a plant. It's a simile. It's like a plant.

He grew up. Before him. Like a young plant. Can you imagine that. This is the humiliation of. Christ. In Philippians 2. That he would take on a human form. It's truly beyond us. That the creator. Who simultaneously.

In his divine nature. Is upholding the universe. By the word of his power. Yet he's adding humanity. To his deity. Without losing any deity.

By the way.

Canonic theology. Has Jesus leaving. Attributes of his divinity. Behind in heaven.

In order to become a man.

That's heresy.

Canosis. Which is in Philippians 2. That word for emptying. He emptied himself. Canonic. Doesn't mean he left. His divinity behind. He left some of the prerogatives.

Of being worshipped.

Where he was in the presence of the angels. And constantly in glory.

And exalted to the humiliation.

Of taking on flesh. So it's humility through adding on. Something vulnerable.

Flesh.

To be made human like us. So that's the idea here. He's going to become.

A human.

A baby. And how vulnerable is.

A baby.

Helpless.

The most helpless.

So as a little aside. Who should we be most active. In rescuing. When they're under assault.

Babies.

The voiceless.

Those who can do nothing to defend themselves. And so that's why we go. And we cry out at the abortion clinics. But Jesus. Was made a baby. Meaning he was dependent on Mary. To nurse him. And Joseph to provide.

And protect.

This is the idea here. He grew up before him like a young plant. Like a root out of dry ground. That root could be.

Cut.

Severed.

And yet in God's providence. He would see through. The protection of this. Child to grow up. Even as a man. He could have been killed prior to the cross right. When did he almost die. Prior to the cross.

In his hometown. They tried to throw him off the cliff. But it wasn't God's time. Providentially. He restrained their wickedness. We're going to talk about the restraint of evil. On Sunday in about a month.

When we get to 2nd Thessalonians chapter 2. It helps us understand.

This world so much better.

The wickedness of man. The total depravity of dead sinners. Is so much worse than what we realize.

But.

Our God restrains evil. Until the restrainer is taken out of the way. In the tribulation.

But for now.

Human depravity is restrained. And so what did God do. When Jesus was about to be thrown off the cliff. He restrained their evil. And he walked right through the midst. He protected that vulnerable plan.

Providentially. And God has the power to do that. So this is what's happening here.

He's like a root out of dry ground.

He himself is made vulnerable. In his humanity. And yet in his divinity. He's still upholding the universe.

Look at the second part.

He had no form or majesty. That we should look at him. Name one exceptional. Exceptional physical. Characteristic of Jesus.

Or none.

There were none. He's just like an ordinary man.

But wasn't he at least as tall as Goliath. Or Saul. Or Pastor Jeff. Or the halo around his head. Was he as attractive as. Was he as attractive as John. He didn't have blonde hair.

And blue eyes.

Blonde hair.

Did he look like that picture.

That you get from the renaissance. Of Jesus with the flowing hair. And he's holding a lamb. Or Robert Powell. What would be the complexion of Jesus' skin?

Dark.

Middle eastern. Dark. What would his hair probably have been? Brown. Dark.

Brown eyes.

Probably brown eyes. More like Jonathan Ruby.

Yeah.

What about his stature? He never would have sinned. So he never would have overeaten. So there would be no gluttony. So he wouldn't be overweight.

In that sense.

I think as a carpenter. He would be strong. But he wouldn't be like. The physical specimen. That Da Vinci draws the picture of. The ideal man.

The arms out and all that.

He wouldn't have been perfect. In his physical appearance.

To make everybody say.

Oh this is the one we need to follow. He's the messiah.

Just sort of ordinary.

Isn't that amazing to think.

In the humility. And this is what it says. He had no form or majesty that we should look at him. And no beauty that we should desire him. It's not any outward. As man looks on the outward.

It's the beauty of his holiness.

That should attract us to him. The beauty of his character.

That's what God looks at.

That he finds precious.

It's not the outward.

This is just a tent.

Did you just quote that to me the other day Rich. 2 Corinthians 4. This tent is wasting away.

This outward man.

This outward man. Is being renewed. Day after day. Verse 3. Now we get into. His suffering. So we have him as a baby. We start with incarnation. Dependent on his mother. He's growing up like a tender plant.

Like Barbara raises plants. You just see it come from this vulnerable thing. To the full grown man. But then he's just an ordinary guy. He's a carpenter. Just doesn't look the part of the messiah. And then it says.

He was despised. And rejected by men.