The Exalted Servant of Yahweh

Behold, My servant will prosper,

He will be high and lifted up and greatly exalted.

Just as many were astonished at you,

So His appearance was marred more than any man

And His form more than the sons of men.

Thus He will sprinkle many nations,

Kings will shut their mouths on account of Him;

For what had not been told them they will see,

And what they had not heard they will understand.

Introduction:

Book: Isaiah

Author and date: Isaiah, who lived during the reign of four kings: Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah

Ministered in Jerusalem approx. 739-681 BC

During the time of the fallen kingdom

Tradition states he was sawed in half with a wooden saw under king Manasseh

Possibly referenced in Hebrews 11:37 when the author mentions the persecutions of those faithful to God

Called to ministry in the temple vision in Isaiah 6

His ministry was unique in the fact that he was told it would be fruitless from the very beginning

Isaiah would spend his life calling on his people to repent and turn to the Lord, with no avail

Despite this, he had some of the most incredible prophecies to be found in the Old Testament

Including that Judah would fall under captivity and be redeemed by Cyrus, who he knew of by name over 100 years before he was born

Isaiah: split into two sections

Chapters 1-39 pronounce judgement against Israel

Chapters 40-66 pronounce salvation and forgiveness

These chapters parallel the New Testament

They begin with the arrival of the voice of one crying in the wilderness

They end with the creation of a new heaven and a new earth

The most incredible prophecies that can be found are those of the coming Messiah

Written around 700 years before their fulfillment

The most comprehensive prophecies regarding the Messiah in the Old Testament are found in the Servant Songs

Four servant songs in Isaiah:

The Servants Ministry 42:1-7

The Servants Mission to the World 49:1-6

The Servants Sufferings 50:4-9

The Servants Atonement 52:13-53:12

Isaiah: the 5th Evangelist

Isaiah is often called the 5th gospel, or the gospel of the Old Testament

Augustine: “Some say he should be called an evangelist rather than a prophet”

In his book we can find much concerning Jesus the Messiah

Of the house of David 4:2

Virgin birth 7:1-16

A ruler, God with us 9:1-7

The Spirit will be upon him 11:1-16

And so much more

Second most frequently quoted books in the NT behind Psalms

Over 400 allusions

47 of 66 chapters are quoted or alluded to

Read Dr. Fish’s story

Our Series: Isaiah 53

One of the most astounding chapters in all of Scripture

One of the clearest pictures of the cross

Franz Delitzsch: “The most central, the deepest, and the loftiest thing that the Old Testament prophecy, outstripping itself, has ever achieved. It looks as if it had been beneath the cross upon Golgotha.”

Charles Spurgeon: “What a chapter! The Bible in miniature. The Gospel in its essence.”

John Stott: “Indeed, there is good evidence that Jesus’ whole public career, from His baptism through His ministry, sufferings and death to His resurrection and ascension, is seen as a fulfilment of the pattern foretold in Isaiah 53”

Martin Luther declared that every Christian ought to memorize this chapter

My challenge to myself and to you listening as we conduct our study

It’s written as if Isaiah were an eyewitness to what wouldn’t happen for another 600 years

At the same time, it’s written from a perspective that is looking back at the events that took place long ago

Isaiah speaks of the work of the servant in the past tense

God knows the end from the beginning, he is outside of time and is sovereign over all time

Isaiah 52:13-15

These three verses act as a summary to the chapter that follows

Should really be part of Isaiah 53 as it is part of the same servant song

Chapters and verses were a later addition to the Bible

Usually pretty good, though this time it’s a little off

52:13 Behold, my servant shall act wisely; he shall be high and lifted up, and shall be exalted.

Behold, my servant

We must ask who this servant is

We have the benefit of hindsight with the New Testament

Jews today argue that we cannot know who this is

However, every Jew until over 1000 years after the time of Christ recognized this as the Messiah

There are passages in Isaiah where Israel is the servant

However, other passages put forth an individual distinct from Israel that has a mission to Israel and the nations

It has been almost universally recognized that the servant is the Messiah

NT authors recognized that the servant was Jesus

Matthew 12:18-21 quotes Isaiah 42:1-3

Behold, My servant!

God is now drawing the reader's attention to the servant and what he will accomplish

Servant: a lowly position

A servant in those days had no will of their own

Servants generally are to be humble and not on the forefront

Jesus: sent to be a servant

Mark 10:45 “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”

Shall act wisely/prosper

The word can mean both things

Acting wisely and prosperity were closely connected concepts in Old Testament thought and language

1 Samuel 18:14 David was prospering in all his ways, for the LORD was with him.

Proverbs 10:5 He who gathers in summer is a son who acts wisely, But he who sleeps in harvest is a son who acts shamefully.

The Servant of Yahweh will be successful

He has accomplished what he was sent to accomplish

John 4:34 Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to accomplish His work.”

John 5:31 “I can do nothing on My own initiative. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.”

John 6:38 “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.”

What is that? We shall see further into the chapter

He shall be high and lifted up and exalted

Exalted language is used of this servant of God

This is language of continued elevation

High, higher, and highest

This is the language that God uses of himself!

Isaiah 6:1 In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple.

Isaiah 33:10 “Now I will arise,” says the LORD, “Now I will be exalted, now I will be lifted up.

Isaiah 57:15 For thus says the high and exalted One Who lives forever, whose name is Holy, “I dwell on a high and holy place,”

This is inappropriate language to use of sinful mankind

Isaiah 2:12 For the LORD of hosts will have a day of reckoning Against everyone who is proud and lofty And against everyone who is lifted up, That he may be abased (brought low)

He will be lifted up

This takes on a new meaning in the New Testament

John 3:14-15 “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life.

John 8:28 So Jesus said, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am, and I do nothing on My own initiative, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me.

John 12:32-33 “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.” But He was saying this to indicate the kind of death by which He was to die.

As many were astonished at you— his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance, and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—

What will this servant accomplish?

As many were astonished at you

God is now speaking directly to his servant

Notice the past tense. God is speaking as if this had already taken place

Astonished

Two types of astonishment: good and bad

We may be astonished watching acrobats fly through the air doing death defying stunts a circus

We may be astonished when we are surprised with a surprise birthday party or gift

However, we may also be astonished while witnessing a horrible accident

We may be astonished at the destruction a tornado can wreak on a town

The sense here is the negative sense, a sense of one being appalled, startled

Luther: This glorious king will be in such a form that many will be astonished at him. I read thus: Many are offended at him. The Hebrew word means to be startled, distorted. The word describes the posture of one about to vomit and one full of revulsion.

Why the astonishment? Why is there such a negative reaction? Because his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance, and his form beyond that of the children of mankind

The havoc that will be wreaked on the Servant will leave him looking as if he weren’t even human

Isaiah 50:6 gives us at least some idea of the suffering he would endure. I gave My back to those who strike Me, And My cheeks to those who pluck out the beard; I did not cover My face from humiliation and spitting.

Psalm 22:14-17 I am poured out like water, And all my bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; It is melted within me. My strength is dried up like a potsherd, And my tongue cleaves to my jaws; And You lay me in the dust of death. For dogs have surrounded me; A band of evildoers has encompassed me; They pierced my hands and my feet. I can count all my bones. They look, they stare at me;

The NT is surprisingly restrained when it comes to describing the Lord’s suffering and death

Perhaps this is due to the original audience being exposed firsthand to a crucifixion and all of the suffering that comes along with it

The Gospel According to God p. 61

It was astonishing that the Messiah would suffer in such a way

To the Jews it was unbelievable. It went against every expectation of the Messiah that they had

The mockery of the Pharisees of Jesus on the cross

The disciples utter shock and disbelief despite Jesus telling them for months what was going to happen

They simply wouldn’t accept what Jesus was saying. Peter even rebuked Jesus for saying that he was going to be crucified!

This had gone against everyone's plans for the Messiah except for God’s

Luke 24:25-26 And He said to them, “O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! “Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?”

Thus He will sprinkle many nations, Kings will shut their mouths on account of Him; For what had not been told them they will see, And what they had not heard they will understand.

He will sprinkle many nations

Sprinkle - some translations use startle

Both translations are valid, and there are reasonable arguments made for both

The word used is most often translated as sprinkle

Two types of sprinkling: with blood and water

Signifying atonement and purification

We see this often in Leviticus with the sprinkling of blood

This was done to consecrate, or set apart as holy, that which was sprinkled, such as Aaron's robes

This was also done to symbolize cleansing Leviticus 14:7 He shall then sprinkle seven times the one who is to be cleansed from the leprosy and shall pronounce him clean.

We see symbolic sprinkling in Ezekiel 36;25-27 that cleanses from sin

“Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.”

The result of the Messiah’s suffering will be the cleansing and atoning of many nations

God had promised the cleansing of sin in Isaiah 1:18 “Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the LORD, “Though your sins are as scarlet, They will be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They will be like wool.

On what basis? God cannot justify the wicked

On the basis of his Servant’s obedience and the cleansing that it brings

Hebrews 10:10;14 By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all….For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.

This cleansing is not just for Israel, but it has ramifications for the entire world

Men from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation

The heavenly scene in Revelation 7:9-10After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; and they cry out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”

Kings will shut their mouths on account of Him

Now those who were once silent in shock will be silent in submission

“Shut their mouths” - a sign of submission

We can get an idea of what this means by looking at Job

Job 29:7-10“When I went out to the gate of the city, When I took my seat in the square, The young men saw me and hid themselves, And the old men arose and stood. “The princes stopped talking And put their hands on their mouths; The voice of the nobles was hushed, And their tongue stuck to their palate.

Job 40:1-5 Then the LORD said to Job, “Will the faultfinder contend with the Almighty? Let him who reproves God answer it.” Then Job answered the LORD and said, “Behold, I am insignificant; what can I reply to You? I lay my hand on my mouth. “Once I have spoken, and I will not answer; Even twice, and I will add nothing more.”

Kings representing all the nations in the world will submit to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords

The same scheming kings and leaders who consider themselves as gods will recognize Jesus as their sovereign

Philippians 2:9-11 For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

When the Lord returns in glory it will be a shocking event

For what had not been told them they will see, And what they had not heard they will understand.

Speaking about the gospel, the good news of what the Servant of Yahweh has accomplished

The Gospel utterly confounds human wisdom

1 Corinthians 1:18, 20, 22-25 For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God... Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?.. For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

That which was once hidden has been revealed

It is this verse that motivated Paul in his mission to bring the gospel to the world Romans 15:20-21 And thus I aspired to preach the gospel, not where Christ was already named, so that I would not build on another man’s foundation; but as it is written, “THEY WHO HAD NO NEWS OF HIM SHALL SEE, AND THEY WHO HAVE NOT HEARD SHALL UNDERSTAND.”

It is the message of God’s servant that we are called to believe and spread throughout the earth

Romans 10:17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.

It is in the startling message of Christ crucified that the glory of God shines the brightest

It is the message that God has given us in this marvelous passage of Isaiah 53